Chapter Text
He could only remember snippets, fleeting images or emotions. The sensation of cold, then warmth. A library. A cave. Falling, then flying. A desert. Pain. Dirt. Warmth. A soothing voice. Blood. A bundle in his arms. Running. Cold.
He lifted his head, tried to organize his thoughts into some semblance of coherence. There was a brick wall in front of him, and one behind him. An alley, his mind provided. But where the alley was...The thoughts drifted away as his eyes lowered to the bundle in his arms. Vivid green eyes met his. He stared at the boy for a second before deciding to adjust the blanket to cover the boy's shoulders better. He may not remember much, but he knew he needed to protect the boy in his arms.
"Todd?" the boy asked hesitantly. The boy was still looking at him, so that must have been his name. Todd hummed, tongue feeling thick. "We need to move. There are too many eyes here." Todd cast another look around the Alley. He did not see any eyes, but he knew he could trust the boy.
Keeping the boy wrapped in the blanket, he rose on steady legs. Instinct drove him to check angles and rooftops as he moved. It was going to snow soon. He wondered how he knew that.
Memories came and went. He remembered the boy's name was Damian for a couple days before it slid away. He would suddenly know for certainty where he was and where he had to go only for it to fade a few blocks later. He could find food reliably for himself and Damian, seemingly to know ahead of time which dumpsters to enter or doors to wait besides. Damian sometimes followed his lead, and some days he followed Damian.
The snow came and Todd found them an abandoned apartment to sleep in. It tugged at his memory, but if he tried to follow it, his head started to ache.
There was no need to follow the memories. The only thing that mattered was Damian. As long as he was alright, then Todd could face anything.
The man was pinning the woman to the wall. She was crying. The boy tried to tug him away, but he could not move; could not take his eyes off them. The man pulled out a knife. Todd reacted.
The man flew into the other wall with a cry but staggered to his feet. Silver flashed as the man lunged at him with the knife and Todd moved. He flowed around the other man, his body reacting far faster than his brain. Bone crunched as he got a hand on the man's wrist and twisted. The man screamed and dropped the knife.
"Todd!" The boy stepped forward and pushed at him. Todd allowed his grip on the man to be dislodged and be tugged away. The man ran; he did not take his eyes off the man until he disappeared around a corner. The woman was still against the wall, watching them with unease. Todd felt like he should say something, offer reassurance, but his mind was blank.
His mind stayed foggy as the boy grabbed his arms and pulled him away. He felt the woman's eyes on them as they turned the corner into the street.
The boy slowed soon enough, leading them to a small crawlspace. The boy's hands flittered over his body before grabbing his head, "That was stupid, akhi." He tilted his head in confusion, and the boy huffed before wrapping his arms around his neck, "We must remain hidden. They will be looking for us."
He wrapped his arms around the boy and watched the entrance over his shoulder.
The dark men dropped from the sky. They landed around them, and Todd pushed Damian behind him and against the wall. There was a knife in his hands.
Damian stepped to his side, unsheathing his own knife as one of the men spoke: "Ibn al Xu’ffasch, you are to return with us."
Damian lifted his chin, "Mother ordered me to stay here with my guard. Her orders supersede yours."
The ring closed around them, "Talia has been stripped of her title and of the Al Ghul name. Her orders have no weight anymore." The man looked to Jason, "Kalab, stand down."
A bundle - no, a backpack - was placed in his arms. The eyes of the woman were tight as they stood at the entrance of the tunnel, her hands clasped on the shoulders of a boy, "You know where to go?"
The boy nodded, "Somewhere Grandfather will hesitate to follow."
The woman nodded before looking at Jason, "You must protect him, Jason. That is my final order: Protect him."
Jason - his name was Jason - leveled his knife at the man and snarled.
He paused at an empty alley. He did not know why he was there. Damian tried to keep moving, but he was rooted to the spot. There was nothing significant about the alley; it did not look any different than the one they just left. So he allowed Damian to pull him away. They had to find a new place to stay.
Jason stared down at the bodies of the dark men, a stolen sword in his hands. This was the third attack in a week. Every time, there were more men to fight. They had stopped trying to talk. They lunged from the darkness, hands grabbing for the boy or a flash of silver aiming towards him. The boy was also armed now and covered in their blood. He reached up and tugged on Jason's hand, leading them quickly from the alley.
There was someone following them from above.