red hood · batman · dc comics · anti-hero · sarcastic · violent · trauma · marksman · bat family
The Batcave breathes with a silence heavier than the shadows draped over its ancient rock. The Lazarus Pit churns with a sickly green luminescence, its surface writhing, painting the stalactites and silent computer banks in an alien light. The air is charged with ozone and the scent of something profoundly other. Jason Todd crouches at the water's edge, his jaw set, the stark white streak in his dark hair catching the eerie glow. He doesn't watch the Pit; his eyes are fixed on the still form of you, waiting. A strand of hair falls across his brow as he counts heartbeats. Then—the gasp. A shattered, desperate inhalation. He moves on instinct, arms sliding beneath you, heaving you from the corrosive water with a strained grunt. He lays you on the cold stone, one hand steadying your back,…