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Jason knew it was a mistake getting into the Batman’s car, but he gave into his moment of weakness when he was promised food, shelter and medical attention. He knew Batman was good to kids, he just didn’t know how Batman felt about Shifter kids.
The gash near his ear stung like a bitch and he was sure he had a cracked rib or two trying to help Batman take down those muggers.
“You know, you didn’t need to jump in the middle of that mess.” Batman growled, breaking the silence. “I had it handled.”
“The guy behind you had a gun. You’d be dead if it wasn’t for me.” Jason winced, holding his side.
“Yeah, and look where it got you. There is a reason I don’t like kids helping me.”
“You’re welcome, by the way.”
“Just hang on, we’re almost there.”
“Where are we going?” Jason asked, hiding the slight panic in his voice.
“I’m taking you to my home.”
“Batman has a home?”
“Where do you think I live?”
“I don’t know…a cave?”
Jason had been helping Batman on and off for a few weeks. Giving him intel here and there from gossip he had heard on the streets from mobsters, drug lords, and the occasional street person. Batman had been adamant that he didn’t need help from a kid, but Jason’s intel had proved useful every time. They had developed a bit of a rapport. Batman had paid him back in cheeseburgers and milkshakes.
But tonight was the first time Jason had jumped in halfcocked and got injured.
They arrived at the Manor and that was when everything changed for him. This was the night Jason found out that Batman was also Bruce Wayne.
Prior to coming to the Manor, Jason hadn’t shifted in a few weeks and it was starting to show. He could feel the itch in his bones and muscles as he tried hard to ignore the urge. He was used to the discomfort of the tics ravaging his body. Jason had trained himself to ride out the compulsion to shift while staying in various foster homes. It had never boded well to shift while in Foster care, much less living on the streets. Kid Shifters were more likely to get trafficked and sold to traveling carnivals. He once held on for three weeks almost four. Hurt like a bitch, but was worth it to not get trafficked.
The more difficult challenge was hiding his behavior caused by the tics from not shifting. His behavior had always either got him kicked out of people’s houses or provided just enough of an excuse for him to run away.
But he promised Bruce he would stay, at least until his ribs were healed. Bruce never did give him a timeline.
While Jason lay in bed recovering from his bruised ribs an older boy came bounding into the bedroom.
“What the hell, man!” Jason shouted, nearly falling out of the bed.
“Hi, I’m Dick. You must be Jason. Bruce told me all about how you helped him last night. Thanks for that, by the way. How are you feeling?”
All the words came out of the older boy’s mouth in quick succession without taking a breath.
“Like shit,” Jason snapped. It was best to have them believe he was cranky from being bedridden with busted ribs, than being miserable from being unable to shift. The attitude didn’t seem to faze Dick at all.
“I’ll bet. Well you are very brave jumping in like that.” Dick gushed.
The compliment seemed to take all the fight out of Jason. “I’m not brave,” he sighed. Right now he felt anything but brave. More like a coward willfully preventing his body from shifting.
“But you are, I don’t think I could have done what you did out there. Is it true that you live by yourself on the streets?”
“You sure ask a lot of questions.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend,” Dick apologized. “Why don’t you stay here…permanently?”
Jason thought about it and quickly came to the conclusion that the option wasn’t up for debate. They would all grow to hate him once they found out he was a shifter.
“Trust me; I don’t think you or Bruce want me to stay here.”
Dick smiled. “I think you’d fit in perfectly. I’ll go and let you rest. I’m sure if you asked, Bruce would let you stay.”
In the first hour of meeting Dick, Jason realized two things; one, he liked to talk a lot and two he never sat still.
On the second day the shouting had started. Everything was pissing him off. The pain was getting worse, and the tics were getting harder and harder to hide. Jason refused to tell them what was wrong and why he was so irritable. He couldn’t voice to any of them what would fix him. He hated yelling at them. It would be so much easier not to care about his behavior if Bruce, Dick and Alfred were awful, but they were great. They treated him so well even when he was being a little shit. This only made it so much harder for Jason to hate them.
He cried himself to sleep that night because a part of him was starting to love it at the manor. It was a place where he finally had a warm bed, got to eat three meals a day, a place he finally felt safe; just not safe enough to shift. Jason couldn’t entertain those feelings, because he wouldn’t be allowed to stay. Not if he slipped and shifted and they saw his true self.
On the third day he met Dick again, this time in Dick’s shifter form. Jason woke up to find a big panther with a shiny black coat and friendly blue eyes sitting on his bed. Instead of being happy and relieved at the sight of another Shifter, Jason’s heart sank at the sight. Jason turned his back on the panther that had been gently pawing at his hip.
“Please go away, Dick. I’m not feeling so good.” Jason sniffed, unable to stop his tears from falling. He wasn’t lying. He really wasn’t feeling good, but it was for an entirely different reason.
There was no way he could allow himself to shift now. No way would Mr Wayne want a scrawny, battered hyena cub living in the same house as a handsome black panther. The devastation and shame of what Jason was outweighed the relief of being under the roof of another Shifter.
Jason knew if he shifted, just for a little while it would stave off the rage and physical pain, but he couldn’t risk it. He had gone nearly four weeks without shifting once, he could do it again.
He spent the next couple of days in his room afraid his shouting might turn into physical blows. He didn’t want to hurt anyone, so he stayed away. He refused to let anyone in, especially Dick. He tried to contain his jealousy of Dick, but it was eating away at him.
Alfred tried to bribe him out of bed with cookies, but it didn’t work.
Jason was almost asleep when he heard a knock on his door.
“Go away, Dick.”
“It’s Bruce, may I come in?”
Here it comes, Jason thought. They are finally going to kick me out.
“It’s your house. Do what you want.” Jason answered, not moving from the bed.
Bruce opened the door and looked around the room and then focused his eyes on Jason. His expression was neutral, but here was definitely something on his mind.
Jason prepared himself for the worst. He just wanted to memorize the softness of his bed before he would be told he had to leave. He turned around in the bed with his back facing Bruce.
Bruce sat on the bed and placed a hand gently on Jason’s shoulder. The contact startled him but he didn’t brush it way.
“Jason, do you like it here?”
He nodded into the pillow. “Yes.”
“Do you feel safe here?”
“Yes.”
“Would you like to live here permanently?”
Jason sighed, because yes he would like to live here permanently with Bruce and Dick, but would they want him after discovering his form? Would his form matter to them; like it mattered to some uppity Gothamites?
“Yes, but I don’t think you’d want…a…”
“Jason, I want you here. We all want you here. But most importantly, I think you need to shift. It’s vital to your physiology that you allow yourself to shift frequently between forms. You’re in pain, son. I can see it. We can all see it. Please, Jason. It’s okay. It will be okay.” Bruce pleaded.
By this time Jason was sobbing.
“You’ve known?” Jason hiccupped. “All this time, you’ve known I was a Shifter?”
“Yes, I’ve been a father to a Shifter for six years. I’ve been through this before.” Bruce comforted, rubbing Jason’s shoulder. “You’re safe here.”
Jason turned around to face Bruce moving the sheets and blankets up to where only his eyes were showing. He closed his eyes and shifted. It hurt like a bitch at first as he hadn’t shifted in so long. He stayed under the covers scared to show himself to Bruce.
“Jason, can I see you?”
He sat up on the bed allowing the blankets to completely cover him. He waited to gather his bearings and reacquaint himself in his hyena form. It was all or nothing. Either Bruce accepted him this way or not. There was no turning back. He looked down at his chest and around to inspect his body. The tan fur was as matted as ever, but not as bad as it had been while he had been living on the streets. He couldn’t do anything about the brown spots, but they were far more pronounced now that he had been showering regularly. Still, it didn’t stop him from trying to quickly groom himself. He brought his front paw to his head to smooth down his brown tuft of a barely there mane.
“Take your time, Jason.”
Finally he responded with a soft ‘whoop’ sound unique to hyenas. Bruce slowly pulled the covers off him and all Jason could do was look down. He was so scared to meet Bruce’s eyes. He didn’t want to see rejection or shame there.
“Jason, you’re absolutely adorable.”
Jason looked up and tilted his head at Bruce. He could see tears in the man’s eyes as Bruce lifted Jason up to hold and nuzzle him.
“You’re so beautiful, Jason, why would you hide your form from us?”
Jason whooped again in response and allowed Bruce to hold him. He buried his head in the man’s neck moving it back and forth. Jason couldn’t remember ever being held with such care and tenderness. All his life he had been told that he was nothing but an ugly, worthless mistake. Is this what it felt like to belong; to be loved; to be part of a family? It felt good.
“But you are beautiful.” Bruce cooed, as he stroked Jason’s head. “Never be afraid of who you are, Jason. You hear me?”
Jason lifted his head and licked Bruce’s face in response. It felt good to finally be able to shift. His muscles unclenched and his bones stopped aching. Relief flooded his heart at Bruce’s acceptance and affection.
“Can I let Dick in? He’s been waiting by the door all morning.”
Jason perked his ears at that, because of course Dick had been waiting by the door. Dick had been camping outside his door for the last three days.
Bruce opened the door to let the panther in. Dick came rushing toward Bruce standing to his full height to get a good look at the “newcomer”. Bruce put Jason down to allow the boys to get better acquainted. Dick motioned to Jason to follow him and the two sped out of the bedroom toward the kitchen that led to the door to the back garden.
Jason was finally home where he was safe and free to be himself. At last, he was part of a family.