batman: track and field au
author's note: i just miss track and field varsity even though i wasnt even that good... and ive been thinking about batman track and field au for FOREVER. so today i wrote a bit 📝
things u need to know: bruce is not batman. he's a coach at a school where the rest of the justice league teaches. yes, they're still the justice league. and yes, his robins still end up as vigilantes. jason is 15 in this; the joker hasn't gotten to him yet. also i added some characters ahead of the timeline bc i love them :/
Jason stumbles over from the finish line, grinning and sweat-drenched. And then his face screws up in sudden distress, and he promptly wobbles and collapses onto the hot stadium mat.
A half-formed sound of alarm—
Bruce leaps over the bleacher railing and sprints.
A poor, well-meaning race official gets there first, but Bruce shoulders him roughly aside and crouches by Jason. Jason has turned on his side, holding his right knee tight to his chest and making little pained gasps.
It tears at his heart. “Jason,” Bruce says.
Jason’s eyes are screwed shut, and he says nothing, but one of his hands reach blindly in Bruce’s direction and Bruce grasps it tightly.
“You were terrific, chum.” He squeezes, and feels the tremor that goes through his son. “Stretch your leg out for me.”
Jason shakes his head. “Hurts—”
“I know. I know. Please, Jay.”
It’s slow, and excruciating, but between the two of them they manage to get Jason sitting up, his leg extended straight against the ground. One hand of Bruce’s presses down firmly on the knee, and the other pushes his foot to flex, the metal spikes of Jason’s shoes digging hard into the callused flesh of Bruce’s palm. Jason leans back on his hands, spread flat against the ground, head tilted up to open, cloudless sky, exhaling drawn-out, shaky breaths.
The speakers blare out the next events—second call for Male C’s 400-meter hurdles, and third call for Female B’s high jump. The left side of the crowd begins clapping on beat for their star javelin thrower as she rocks back on her feet, once, twice, and begins bounding forward. Bruce makes a displeased noise. He hopes his throwers remember to pay attention.
A mosquito buzzes by Bruce’s ear and he shakes his head sharply to drive it away. The sweat has been beading at his hairline all throughout, and now it rolls torturously slow down his face. As his hands are otherwise occupied, he makes no move to wipe it, and does his best to ignore the unpleasant sensation.
At last, Jason’s breathing evens out. He tugs his leg gingerly away from Bruce’s hold, cheeks flushed with exertion and, doubtless, embarrassment. “Thanks.”
Bruce sits back on his haunches and wipes the sweat off his face. “Ready to stand?”
Jason raises a hand, wincing as he tests the muscles of his leg. “One sec.”
Bruce nods shortly. Jason safe, his attention wanders over to the bleachers. Tim, thank God, is dragging Damian away from the high railing. Dick and Cass are eating lunch with much avidity—Dick’s best event, high jump, had just ended before Jason’s, and Cass seems to have just returned from shot put. Duke and Stephanie are nowhere in sight, and for a moment Bruce is alarmed, but then he spots them at the stage and relaxes. Duke must have won his high jump—he stands on the highest podium, and even from here Bruce can tell he’s grinning—and Stephanie is clicking away on the school camera next to the official photographer.
As he watches Stephanie turn the camera backward and attempt to take a selfie with Duke, there’s a tap on his thigh. Bruce extends his hand without looking and grasps the hand that interlocks with his, pulling Jason up with ease.
Bruce glances at Jason, and notes how he squints against the glaring afternoon. “Remember to reapply your sunscreen when you get back.”
Jason rolls his eyes. “Not everyone is ghost-white like you.”
“You do not have to be ghost-white to get skin cancer.”
Jason grumbles, but when Bruce raises an imperious eyebrow at him, he raises his hands in surrender. “Fine. Whatever you say, boss.”
“Good. And, Jay...” Bruce reaches out, tentative, and puts a hand on his shoulder. “I meant it. You did terrific.”
Jason beams, bright enough to outshine the day, and something in Bruce’s chest uncurls into warmth.
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I find the earlier seasons angel stuff so much more compelling than later seasons, for a few reasons probably. But one of the big things for me is the framing of Cas as somehow uniquely predisposed to rebellion in a way that other angels aren't.
For me this makes Cas less interesting (even while making him the specialist little princess which like yeah! he is special! because he's my baby!) and also really flattens out the complexity of Heaven's whole structure and undermines a lot of what we see of other angels early on.
I love Anna and Uriel so much, they're really fun characters and they both have their own different forms of rebellion going on before Cas defects. Uriel also apparently has a bunch of other angels who agree with him or who he has managed to convince to join him.
Cas' arc in season 4 is what made him such a compelling character to me to begin with and it's compelling (to me) because it's a process of decision making that makes sense to me in a 'this is how many people in a similar situation might behave' kinda way rather than. Cas is just like that so of course he does that.
Heaven is a religious organisation that is set up in such a way that professed beliefs (love of humanity, obedience to G-d) are not those that are actually upheld by the organisation. And as we all know from real world religious organisations, some people will accept this cognitive dissonance and have no problems, and for some being confronted with this conflict of ideas will cause them to lose faith in the organisation. Zachariah specifically says that the angels 'on the ground' were kept in the dark about Heaven wanting to bring on the apocalypse, because the higher up knew this would cause problems!
There are many factors contributing to Cas' evolving feelings and leading up to his decision in 4x22. Uriel's betrayal, talking to Anna, talking to Dean, these all gave him opportunities to reflect and question his loyalties. I also think that specifically 4x07 was a big one for him. He was told to do what Dean told him to, rather than given specific orders from Heaven. That situation, by it's nature, allows for speculation! It invites him to wonder what Dean might choose, what Heaven would want Dean to choose, and what Castiel himself thinks Dean should choose- and that already has him forming opinions!
I really like the idea which I felt was implied in these seasons that all angels have the capacity for independent thought/ opinion/ feelings and that exposure to the chaos of humanity and interacting with humans leads to the development of these (in Uriel's case it brings out his dislike and resentment of humanity, in Anna her desire for the full breadth of emotional experience, etc.)
All the lobotomy stuff still works as a plot line without presenting Cas as the one who is always rebelling and was just like. made wrong. while the other angels don't really cause problems.
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