2019-06-12 - Family Intervention

Summary:

Batman and Co find Red Hood and bust Helena as well.

Log Info:

Storyteller: None
Date: Wed Jun 12 22:44:19 2019
Location: Staten Island

Related Logs

None

Theme Song

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cassandra-cainselina-kylejason-toddbruce-waynehelena-wayne

In the aftermath of the attack on the Wandering Drake - Bruce knew something was going to have to be done with Jason. He's too loose of a cannon to leave out on his own. And ignoring him was not an option after the meeting with his daughter - and the woman that was going to be his wife. Tracking Jason was hard, but eventually he deduced how and where Jason was hiding at.

The subway - a project long abandoned in Staten Island - made a good base. Bruce should have thought of using them himself, but he didn't. Point for Jason there. Normally, for this, he'd brought Helena. Because honestly, Helena is probably how he found him - it's not like he doesn't have ways to track the Babblebat. But for this one, it was cowled. Taking his two stealthiest agents, Catwoman and Black Bat (or Orphan), the threesome made their way past the alarm systems and warnings, and into the old station.

Once there, Bruce makes the first overture of this being a peaceful meeting. A family meal from 'Big Belly Burger'.

Cassandra can totally have the toy.

And then they wait for Jason to come home.


The subway station has been abandoned for decades and decades, as it seems to date back to when the stations were first being built. That means it has a grand, gothic architecture. Tall, caulted ceilings with balconies and recessed areas gives the entire place a churchlike quality. Catwalks extend across the ceiling, allowing travel above, with stairwells connecting them to eachother and the floor far below, likely from some attempted refurbishment in the 90's. The rubble has been swept away (With some large piles in corners here and there).

The lights work, though the darker areas are lit with strung up Christmas lights, giving multicolored light and odd appearance. An armory is in recess, decked out with plenty of knives, guns, and stuff from his utility belt. The vast majority of ammunition is made up of all kinds of non-lethal (But often very painful) options. A few boxes of real ammunition is stashed, as well. Another recess holds a small bar with various alcohols, and a few old arcade cabinets that are working. Bad Dudes, Street Fighter 2 Turbo, etc.

A small kitchenette exists, which is made up of a fridge filled with beer and condiments, and a microwave. Lots of ramen, a pan and a hot plate. There's a thrift store couch in front of an old television, which is bedecked with an old NES, SNES and SEGA, with a bunch of games. He wasn't allowed to waste his time much on video games while being Robin.

A battered, worn and unmade futon serves as his bed. Scattered beer bottles shows that Jason likely drinks…a lot.


The 'Black Bat', indeed, is quiet. So quiet that it's hard to remember she is even there, unless one has her in visual range. She moves, effortlessly past the traps without making a single sound - a feat, no doubt, that will sit well with Catwoman. It's another of Cassandra's 'innate' talents that likely all the members of the household eventually understood when she would appear behind them while they had been focused on something else and just stood, silently, eerily, behind them watching them do said task with a curious interest.

Now that talent serves her better in this particular mission. She follows Batman and Catwoman into the subway station, towards the colored lights, and ultimately the safehouse, or perhaps even den of the Red Hood.

She will try to figure out the toy later.


Catwoman, for her part, finds herself sat on the back of the couch, legs crossed and swinging slightly, her goggles perched on her forehead. She's occasionally shifted between sitting and lounging and back as she works to restrain a bit of an anxious streak in seeing her wayward son again. She wrinkles her nose a bit at the peace offering. He always did eat too much of that stuff - she'd told Bruce - but he'd probably love it. Though given the glance in his fridge - carefully checked for shotgun traps, the boy's in dire need to Alfred regardless.

We should have sent him to an interior decorator before the institute." She notes, cringing a bit - first at the decor, and then at herself realizing that's in poor taste. She peers briefly at Cassandra and says, "Remember, don't clobber him unless he's going to attack us." She says, feeling like the girl can be over-eager at times, then shifts onto her back, staring up at the catwalks and just… sighs. The anticipation is killing her.


"This is not that type of mission." Batman responds, having very much the same reaction that Selina had as he took it all in. It's the the healthy and rich fare that the Manor home provides, but that is just part of the Wayne/Kyle lifestyle. There's a small frown as he keeps the cowl on, unsure of what or who Jason may bring home with him. Who knows if he's like Bruce in that 'let me show my girlfriend my cave' thing that happened with Selina.

But for now, it's a wait. He's not touched the computer yet - as much as he wants to know how much information he may have pieced together on what Jason may have links into. But it's the waiting game, as he glances to where Selina is lounging on the couch, and there's a wry smile. "He probably sleeps on that, you know."


Selina waves her hand dismissively without look up, "That's why I'm not touching the cushions."


The sound of Jason's approach can be heard a good few moments before he arrives. The sound of a loud engine rumbles down the subway track, now blocked off from the main tracks…but if you know where to go, not from the world above. Headlights flash across the hideout briefly, before a dark, dark red (Mistaken for black in the right light) '68 Mustang roars into view, 90's Bush blaring from the vehicle. It pulls to a stop and idles for a moment.

Jason growls to himself as he brushes damp, dark hair (With that odd streak of white) from his face. His red domino hides his identity from the public, as his helmet lies beside him in the passenger seat, cracked from a solid blow. A bit of blood streaks his forehead, and his body is dappled with sweat from pain and strain.

He hauls himself from the car with effort, not using his left side that much. A simple glance reveals the fact that he has been shot in the arm, and likely taken quite a few body blows from a bat or something similar…from someone with inhuman strength. He begins to make his way back to the trunk of the car when he notices the others in the main part of the station above him. He sighs and turns away from the trunk, climbing up off of the track with a restrained growl. Soon he is on his feet, staring at the others for a long moment. Finally, he gestures.

"…Mom, there's a field kit over there in kitchen. Second cabinet. Can you grab it from me? I need to pull a bullet out." His deep blue eyes, one swollen shut, land briefly on Batman. There's a tension in his shoulders that is undeniable. Finally, he glances towards Cassandra. "Really franchising, huh?," he asks…since Batman wasn't there to hear his AWESOME JOKE at the ship.


The Black Bat costume is a bit more 'unique' than some of the others - save the thin 'Bat' symbol across her chest and the utility belt itself, she is all in black. And, unlike the other Bats or RObins, or even Nightwings, she has no visible flesh. Where the cowl would otherwise show off her lower jaw and mouth - instead is sewn up in a patchwork fashion.

The female newest Bat tips her head to one side to consider Jason. But she says nothing. She only watches him with a silent stare.


Selina's eyes narrow as she hears those signs of approach, and slowly sits up again, watching the entrance tensely and pulling her goggles back over her eyes without thinking about it in a vaguely defensive gesture. Which is just as well, because now Jason can't see how her eyes widen when she sees the state of him, the sight prompting her to slide immediately off the couch and stand on the ground, heels clicking and echoing on the surface. "Holy…!" She starts to mutter, grimacing in that tense moment before Jason speaks, making her shoulders slump exasperatedly. "We know." She says, putting her hand to her forehead, before moving to grab it. Distractedly, she DOES note, "The hell did I tell you about picking fights with wheat threshers, kid?" though she sounds a bit harried - worried even - more so than she usually lets on.


There's a glance to Cassandra. All's well, even if it's not well. Jason didn't immediately go for a weapon. Though when he mentions the injury, and Bruce sees the condition of his former ward, his lips pull into a thin line. With Selina heading to get the field kit, Bruce points towards a chair. "Sit." clearly, he plans on handling it himself, as he reaches up to pull back his cowl. He's going to need to be able to see the injury.

"What happened?" he queries. Asking for a report? It's totally what he would do in this situation, if to keep Jason on task and distracted from the work on the removal of the bullet. He's already going into his belt to get his own kit. Jason's may be good, but they both know his is cutting edge.


He peels his jacket off with a wince, glancing down at the bloodied hole in the arm. "Shit." He tosses it over a table as he moves closer to the others, peeling his domino mask off, spattering a bit more blood and revealing his black eye. It looks like it is a day or so old, while the other injuries are new. "When did I ever listen to good advice?," he grunts.

Jason tenses when Batman tells him to sit, and it looks like he is about to say something biting. He sways instead, though, as a good bit of blood is revealed to be streaking his side and arm. He's lost a lot. "Shit," he repeats, a bit quieter.

He makes his way over to the chair, sinking into it. He uses his free hand to unbuckle his armored top (With the bleeding bad symbol in the middle), and he drops it all to the ground. His chiseled upper body is revealed, along with a lot of old scars. Each non-Batman Bat is known for something specific, when it comes to physical ability. Jason is the most physically built, instead of slender and wirey. He is -suprisingly- graceful for all of that, though. "Did you get the Mother's Day gift?," he asks Selina, oddly. "Turns out there's more of those people. Tracked them down to finish the job, but…they had some metahuman muscle on their side. I was hoping to get information on the trafficking, but…well. There will be time."


Cassandra looks to Bruce, watching him carefully, but she remains on task herself. Reading the underlying layers of everyone's body language. Listening to the word sounds. She remains in place, nearly perfectly still. One might not even know she were alive save the occasional turn of her head. She remains perfectly still, perfectly silent, otherwise. Watching.


Catwoman brings the first aid kid to Batman, dragging a chair over with one free hand and setting on on the other side opposite side of Jason from Batman, sitting on it backwards with her arms folded over its back. One could reasonably surmise that they're surrounding Jason, or preparing him for interrogation; though it's more a matter of keeping watch. Heck, when Selina lifts her goggles, her green eyes just seem… worried and tired, a far cry from the mischevious self-assuredness he might be used to. Though they sparkle a bit, the corner of her mouth tugging upward with the temptation of a smile. "… I did." She says softly with a bit of a nod. She's still guarded. This man DID shoot her last time she let her guard down around him. But… she'd really like not to be.


Selina's body language itself is a far cry from what Cassandra might be used to in the brief time they've known each other. The graceful confidence that usually possessed her had gone from that, to tension during the wait to, now, motherly concern, the older woman gripping the sides of the chair's back and rocking subtly as she watches Bruce work; yet also bearing a sort of wounded guardedness, like an animal that's been struck once before by someone they trust.


The mention of a Mother's Day gift brings an arch of a brow to Selina. He hadn't heard about this yet, clearly. However, his attention returns to Jason. "I never forced any of you into this." he points out. They all volunteered. Even Cassandra. Opening the kit, he takes out the scapel and disinfectant, pouring some of it into the wound to clean it before turning his attention to pulls out the forceps to prepare to pull the bullet out.

"Why the non-lethal weapons?" It's a simple question, but one that carries a lot of weight. He's trying to get to the bottom of this. His own body language is concerned - he's tending to the young man, and while guarded, at the same time, it /is/ one of his own. And he wants answers.

"I am assuming that a new family is trying to fill in the gap we've created in Staten Island. It means the mission is going well. But also proves that this is also why the mission does not end." he grits his teeth as he looks to Jason, blue meeting blue. "This will not be pleasant." And he moves to start probing for the bullet.


"You didn't," Jason replies. "But you also picked kids who were just as damaged as you. How else did you think we were going to turn out?," he asks softly. He doesn't show a reaction from the disenfectant, and he seems to be trying to look anywhere except his father.

"Because you're right…about -some- shit, anyways," he grunts in reply to the questions about the nonlethal weaponry. He doesn't go into detail about how he wasn't exactly himself before, during the Bad Times. Instead, he simply watches Selina in morose silence. He looks back to catch Bruce's eyes briefly.

"These ones are branching out from Queens. I've linked them to there. Russians. Seemed like petty stuff at first until I found out about the trafficking. It's been…hard…not to fucking kill them all. But hey, the Rules are a bit shadey when it comes to kneecaps, at least…

He nods when he is warned about the bullet. It wouldn't be the first time he's been shot.


Cassandra finally looks to Selina, points at Jason, and nods, once, firmly as if she understood Selina's doubts and concerns, and affirming what Jason was saying.

Cassandra Cain: Living Lie Detector.

She then holds her hand up to Bruce. Looks at Jason. And, she finally moves.

She walks over to Jason, until she's very near him, and, gently pressing on Bruce's arm, she pushes Batman back, just slightly. She knows what she's doing.

Then, sudden, fast, she strikes the upper arm of the man whose hideout they are in with a finger-snap, a snake's head attack. And, the arm is deadened to both feeling, and to even being able to move.

She tips her head to Jason as if to say 'you're welcome', and then steps back again, gesturing to Bruce to proceed with the impromptu medical care.


Selina herself used to occasionally jab Bruce for the island of misfit toys he's created. Nowadays, hearing Jason call him on it, just makes her sigh softly. "… People like us don't have many places to belong, Jason. You know that." Hell, candidate number two tends to be The Hand. Of course, but 'people like us' she doesn't mean 'orphans'. Damaged, angry people with dangerous or ugly talents. Selina's probably the most well adjusted person in the room, and she's a kleptomaniac teen-runaway dressed like a cat with ninja skills.

She looks to Cassandra with a slightly confused blink before she nods her head with a tiny smile… immediately before lurching as Cassandra strikes Jason. "*JE*SUS, BB!" She yelps in alarm, holding her hands up and flat 'what the fuck!' gesture, before looking to Bruce, "*Tell* me she just ninja'd something useful, I dare you!"

This is more like the Selina he knew. Though usually she'd probably get a laugh out of it, instead she cringes in Jason's general direction with concern.


"She /did/." Bruce is quick to respond to Selina when Cassandra steps in. "It's a technique she picked up…" he won't go into that further at the moment. Perhaps in deference to the young woman's own history. There's a nod to Cassandra as she steps away. A thank you. "She deadened the arm. Same thing she did to me in training - he won't feel it." With that, he gets to work.

Bruce has his cowl pulled back as he's working on Jason's shoulder that looks like he has taken a bullet into while Selina is sitting nearby, watching her fiancee and adopted son with worry and wary. And Cassandra is lurking. Bruce digs into the shoulder, finding the bullet quickly, and works on fishing it out in order to drop it into the pan.


Of course, the family tableau isn't complete quite yet. That part comes in a minute, with the sound of the door creaking open. "Okay, so I noticed the pizza didn't go over so well last time, so this time I may have told Alfred I was going to go visit Peter, which of course put him in show off mode - I am not getting into just what's going on with him and Aunt May - so I actually have here two of the world-famous-"

Which is when she looks up from the paper bag in her hand and sees that Jason isn't alone, and that he's with both Mom and Dad. And Cass. Huh.

"Uh…hi guys." Innocent smile. "We can probably share?"


Jason frowns softly at Selina's response, but he doesn't reply to it. He clenches a fist and looks like he is about to swing at the suddenly jabbing Cassandra until the pain deadens in his arm, and he pauses. "Oh. Uh. Thanks?"

He sinks back into his chair, watching Bruce work. He has a black eye that is a day or so old, and some new bruises and cuts, in addition to the bullet wound he is getting tended to. He glances up when Helena arrives and his good eye narrows a bit.

"Did you tell them where I was?," he asks. There isn't a ton of venom in his voice. It's obvious he doesn't think she did, but he's covering his bases.


The 'creepy' mask of the Black Bat first turns on Helena, uncertain of why Selina is freaking out - but then understands, as she looks between the other three people. She steps away from Jason, so there will be no further confusion.

Cassandra then wals over to the Big Belly meals, and she takes the toy from the family meal that Batman had said she could have. She walks over to Helena, and offers it to her.

Sharing is caring.


Selina blinks once, then seems to deflate at Bruce's response, placing one elbow on the back of the chair she's sitting backwards in and propping her chin up on her hand. "… Oh." She says, and shakes her head, giving an 'okay' symbol to Cassandra with her free hand. "That's probably gonna be pretty useful going forward, if we make a habit of getting shot. Just gotta put a bell on her first, or teach her to say-" at that moment, Helena announces herself, and Selina stares at the entrance way until she notices them. "-… *Hi*."

A lot of mental math is done very quickly, and her expression shifts from '*What?*' to 'Young lady, we specifically told you!' to 'Why didn't you tell us?!' to 'That's so sneaky, I love it', to, finally, acceptance. "You're grounded! Get your brother an ice pack." She says breezily - much more like Selina now - and then looks back to Jason. "Be honest, are we the *last* people on earth to sniff you out?"


*tink* That's the sound of metal on metal as Bruce pulls out the bullet and drops it into the pan. Now that the wound is starting to really bleed since Bruce pulled the plug from it, he goes to work with his kit. Pulling out a small vial, he pops it open and starts to fill the injury with sealant medical foam. Then as it's presed in, he reaches and pulls out a small bandage. Ripping off the backing, he applies it to the injury, and starts to pull on the small zipties built into the bandage to seal it completely.

There's a momentary glance to Selina, and an apologetic look. "You didn't see her do it before." he starts to say, before his teeth grit. "/Helena/." His tone isn't as friendly as her mother's, the cocnern clear on his face as he continues to work, and he shoots a look at him. Even Selina's attempt at levity does not help in the moment as he draws in a breath. "If you're coming back, and you're going to take this path - then you need to know everything. Including opening communication." he says with a frown. "I will not have a lone wolf scenario."


"I didn't even get around to telling them I found you at all," Helena admits with a grimace in Jason's direction and an awkward shrug. "Things got kind of busy." She takes Selina's grounding with all of the gravity it deserves, which is to say far less than Cassandra's gift.

"Thanks," she smiles ruefully to the other girl. "But you can keep it. On the other hand, I brought Alfred's famous post-thanksgiving turkey sandwiches, so if anyone wants not-fast food, There should be enough to go around."

She moves to the fridge to retrieve an ice pack - apparently she knows where they're kept even - before bringing it back to Jason. "Didn't you learn from the last time?"


Jason turns to watch Bruce pull the bullet from his shoulder. He sits silently while he patches his arm up. He looks like he is about to say something about Helena, but he stops when Bruce chastises him. He bristles and sits up a bit in the chair.

He looks back to Helena and chuckles a bit as she brings the ice pack over. "You know I don't learn from my mistakes," he teases. WHen it comes to the coldness and awkwardness he tends to treat the family, it seems to be that he is warmest to Helena, followed by Selina…and there is a sort of cold fury directed towards Bruce, mingled with some kind of sadness. Cassandra can read all of this in his body language.

"What path am I taking, exactly?," he grunts.


Cassandra is left holding the toy after Helena had suggested they share. She watches the family drama play out in all of their emotions, understanding as much, if not more, than they themselves do individually and unable to express that. But she's used to it. She walks back to set the toy back on the table with the ever-growing pile of food and she goes back to waiting, watching. Even listening.


Catwoman watches Cassandra offer the toy and presses her lips together very tightly for a moment.

Gah! That's actually really cute!

Selina shakes off the urge to grin like an idiot - otherwise known as 'most of the time she spent with Little Helena' - and grimaces faintly as things grow tense between Bruce and Jason. This talk *is* essentially why they came down here, so Selina isn't in a position to complain about it. It's just a shame. Things were feeling downright homey there for a second, even with the bullet wound. Heck, the bullet wound probably helped. Not that they tend to make a habit of getting shot, but first aid in general is basically a family activity at this point.

She lets Bruce answer that one, hugging and leaning into the back of her chair a bit harder.


While Bruce can easily replicate the move that Cassandra did to reset his arm, he doesn't. Instead, he moves back, nodding his head to Cassandra to let her know it's okay to reset his arm. Then comes the question of the night. He looks from Helena to Selina, and then back to Jason. His work done, he moves to rise and then go wash his hands out in the sink, before explaining. "I've made mistakes. The mistake I made with you is that I never gave you the choice, Jason." he says finally. "And it's possibly too late, but perhaps it's not."

He takes a seat. "You have a choice to make. I'm willing to pay for you a new life. A new identity. You can go to the school that you want. Whatever skill you want. You can remain part of the family, but you step away from the life of it." he says finally.

"If you stay with this, then you become part of the whole. You'll be allowed to operate on your own - but if you start to take a life, if you step outside the rules…"


With Bruce on one side of Jason, Helena takes up the other, leaning against his shoulder. To Cassandra especially it's clear that there's a bond there. Partners in crime. Although at least not literally. In this case.

When Bruce makes his offers, her lips purse, a slight tension running through her, but she keeps her thoughts on the matter to herself for the moment.


Jason is silent as Bruce talks. He brushes his fingers back through his sweat-dampened hair and leans back in his chair. "Sis, can you grab me a beer from the fridge?," he asks her once Bruce is done talking. He is giving himself time to think. Plus he needs one! He turns back towards the man after a long moment and says…

"Any chance I had at a normal life ended when I died. Did you know I woke up in my coffin? I woke up down there. I had to take my belt off and use it to scratch at the top enough until I could break through it." He holds up one of his hands, showing the scarring on the backs of his knuckles from it.

"Can you imagine that? Digging yourself out of your own grave when you have no idea what is happening? When you're certain a certain person is going to show up any second to save you? That shit leaves a mark. I don't sleep. I barely eat. All I can do is hunt. I don't kill anymore, but Jesus Christ, I have to hold myself back each time I'm looking into the eyes of another killer, or rapist, or dealer. But I -do- hold myself back. Will I EVER kill another person? I can't guarantee I won't…because I cannot guarantee one of them won't kill one of you. Unlike you…I'd kill for that. I'd put the one who took my family away from me in the fucking ground, dad."

He has never spoken about the coffin to anyone. Not once.

"I can do this, dad. I have to. I can't live a normal life. I can barely live this one."


The only person who has remained cowled this entire time now takes the ghosted mask off to reveal Cassandra's visage beneath. Her eyes are hard, her lips drawn into a severe line and she moves over to Jason.

She stares into his eyes, as if trying to see something. Or, perhaps, convey. She shakes her head once, firmly, glowers at him.

Bruce, having seen her reaction when he had mentioned killing to Cassandra might have a clue what she's trying to convey. If anyone is less 'anti-murder' than Bruce, it is Cassandra. For reasons yet uknown.

She then places a hand on Jason's heart, and points to everyone else in the room. Shakes her head again in the same fashion.

Not even for them. If anyone understand her.

She exhales, the only sound she's made all evening. And then, finally, she resets his arm with another serpent strike to the shoulder area - though, to Helena who wasn't here when Bruce xplained what she was doing? It might seem an odd way of attacking him.


Selina looks progressively more pained as Jason describes his situation, looking away sharply as her eyes water up with a choked, "God…" as she covers her mouth with one hand. Despite all her better instincts, despite what Jason's done to her in the past, her impulse is to reach out one hand and squeeze Jason's good shoulder - sitting on the opposite side of where Batman was - though as he gives his answer, she gradually looks down at the floor.

She had no idea. She was so close, and she had no idea.

"Jason…" She starts to say, only to pause as Cassandra draws near, looking so intensely into her son's eyes, prompting her to let go of his shoulder and let her arm hang limply over the back of her chair for a moment, before wincing sharply as she strikes him again. She holds out her other arm to Helena for a moment, and just notes "… She does that." With a slightly choked voice, and sniffs sharply.


"I know. I had the coffin exhumated when you first made your return." Bruce had to know it really was Jason. That it wasn't a clone. Someone's idea of a sick joke. That it really was Jason. He draws in a breath and lets it out slowly, before he focuses on Jason's eyes. "Then you won't be alone in this. We'll give you the space you need. But as it has already been proven…" There's a glance to Helena at that.

"This isn't something you can do alone. And you're not going to be alone. I'll help where I can. As will the others." He's not going to let his son be a lone wolf. "But like Dick, this is your place. Your life. And I will make sure you have your space."


"What do I look like, your kitchen wench?" Helena gives the side of Jason's head a light shove when he asks for a beer, but at least it gives her an excuse to have her back to him when he explains what happened, so no one has to see her expression. And instead of a beer, she grabs a bottle of water from the food she brought.

"Alcohol dehydrates, and you're already dehydrating yourself by leaking out that hole. Have a water." Oddly enough, she doesn't seem surprised or unsettled by Cassandra's resetting strike, stepping around to the side to get a better look before nodding approvingly over at her. "Nice trick."


Jason clenches his jaw when Cassandra moves in like that. If her 'words' effect him he makes no show of it. He does grunt when she strikes his arm, though, returning sensation. He winces as the pain from the wound floods back. He looks over at Selina, and he briefly holds her eyes. There isn't defiance there for her. Just…a broken boy, really.

He looks back to Bruce and then nods slowly. "I…okay. Okay." It seems like saying that takes quite a bit out of him (As does everything else, obviously), and he sinks back a little bit. He looks over to Helena and grins softly when she shoves his had. He furrows his brow when she returns with the water, though. He takes it, though. "Buzzkill. Also, get that eyepatchy friend of yours to call me. She seems like a good time," he grunts. "Saw her briefly, but Arsenal beat me to the girls. I was busy doing all the work, as usual," he grunts. That is not what happened, but how would they know that?


Cassandra moves over to Helena, and then she squeezes her arm, comforting. Supportive, sensing the pain of the other girl, and her expression softens. She looks to Selina, and Bruce with the same expression, then nods.

It seems she, at least, approves of Jason's willingness to try it Batman's way another time. He has Cassandra's Seal of Approval. For whatever it's worth.


Selina can barely hold Jason's gaze, though she seems visibly relieved when he agrees to Batman's terms. It should at least buy SOME peace of mind, unless Jason's suddenly learned subterfuge since his rampage, which he sure didn't seem capable of before. When did she get to the point in her life when she's happy about people following rules?

Selina sighs. "Well, that's something." She says, but groans, shifting backwards in the chair a bit and shaking her head as Jason brings up Rose. "… You can do better." She says with a tight, sympathetic smile and a teasing tone.


"When you have time, I will bring you up to speed." Bruce finally decides as he stands up. "Guys tend to want women that remind them of their mothers." Was that a tease to Selina? Perhaps. How that means Selina fits in Martha Wayne, who knows. But he pulls the cowl back into place, apparently ready to leave. It's up to Selina and Cassandra if they want to follow. But does Helena have a choice? No, she's grounded.

Okay. She really does, but still.


Helena sets her hand over Cassandra's at the squeeze, a sign of thanks, before she smirks back at Jason. "Yeah, maybe if I brought her along with you she'd stop thinking I was so boring. That, or she'd figure out how it is I'm so resistant to 'fun' that includes guns and illicit substances. Already got vaccinated from prolonged exposure to you."

Gee Mom and Dad, I have the best friends, don't I? At least the boyfriend seems to be a nice kid, right?


Jason laughs softly at Selina's words, though he winces at the pain from the jostling from the laugh. "Eh. Don't get a lot of attention from the fairer sex with the life I lead, mom. If eye-patchy assassin chicks is all I can get…" He trails off and grins, but it's obvious he's partially teasing her. Partially, anyways.

He nods briefly to Bruce before looking over at his sister. He then looks back to Bruce.

"Oh, wait. You work with other superheroes, right? Can you get me a date with Captain Marvel? Or, hey, some of those X-girls are kinda hot…" He trails off, bringing the bottle of water to his lips, looking impish.


Cassandra smiles to Helena, then she puts her own cowl back on, and slowly moves to join Bruce, apparently ready to go on real patrol, now. She briefly looks back to see if either Helena or Selina will be joining them.


Selina shoulders slump as she leans back, shaking her head in a bit of an 'I give up' manner before she stands up as her kids tease each other, feeling oddly nostalgic despite all the blood and injury and, frankly, wounded feelings around her. Anything not to think about the coffin, really. "That's all I can take." She says, not recognizing karma for years of PDA when she sees it, and standing up, walking behind Jason and briefly putting her hand on Jason's shoulder as she softly says, "Take care, little bird." And tilting her head, "See you soon." Before she begins to walk away.


"How'd you like the gift?," he calls out to Selina as she begins to walk away. He then glances about at those departing, offering a bit of a nod as a way of saying goodbye.


Helena smirks over at Jason, shaking her head and rolling her eyes before ruffling at his hair. "Eat the sandwiches," she calls back at him as she moves to follow her parents out. Time to pay the piper.


Selina stops with her back to Jason, tilting her thoughtfully as she says "It was…" she turns her head head enough to look at Jason with one eye, a smile visible on her face as she finishes, "… Purrfect." before she walks away.


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