#tim didn't think far enough ahead to consider that he might want to write down somewhere

[nerdpoe]

AU where Jason went to the Titans Tower to beat the shit out of Robin, not kill him. Tim misunderstands and plans accordingly.

Tim thinks that Red Hood wants to kill him, full stop.

So when Red Hood shows up, the absolute second power gets cut, Tim swallows a slow acting little pill.

He gets into a fight with Red Hood, and just as Red Hood is about to take off his helmet to reveal...something, who cares what, the pill kicks in.

Tim's breathing and heartrate slow to practically nothing.

For all intents and purposes, he's very, very dead.

The pill had a medicine that creates a false state of death, capable of fooling almost anyone if they aren't a Super.

And Jason isn't a Super.

Jason, as far as he is concerned, is now kneeling over the corpse of the latest Robin. A corpse he made.

His biggest mistake.

So he tries to revive the kid, but nothing works. Nothing fucking works.

He knew that going into his Red Hood schtick he'd be turning into a killer, but this was not a death he wanted on his hands.

Then, he makes his second biggest mistake.

He stays too long, trying to revive the kid that stole his mantle.

Nightwing shows up.

Nightwing sees Red Hood, helmet off, crouched over the motionless, beaten body of Robin.

Red Hood gets a fight, alright.

Just not the one he wanted, and with an opponent that is actively attempting to murder him.

@simplestoryteller

#batman au #titans tower au #nightwing #dick grayson #tim drake #robin #red robin #red hood #jason todd #fake death #tim didn't think far enough ahead to consider that he might want to write down somewhere #that he took the pill #and that it'll wear off in like five or six hours #so now nightwing sees the kid he considers his little brother on the floor #not breathing #with the villain that's been alluding to hunting said brother crouched over him #dick is OUT FOR BLOOD #and jason is fucking SO FUCKED UP MAN he didn't come into this with murder on the mind #the little baby bird was putting up a pretty good fight too #right before his body had just #given up #so not only did jason kill a robin #he killed a damn good one #tim wakes up many hours later in the batcave medbay with a grieving bruce sitting next to him #and ah shit #that's what he forgot to do #damn #he was so caught up in the euphoria of figuring out how to give red hood what he wants #and also get one up on him #story prompt

[incoherentbabblings]

Overall pre-"Stephanie's death" how do you think Tim treated Stephanie? Do you think he treated her badly when he knew her identity and she didn't know his or when he tried to discourage her from crime-fighting? Or did he still treat her with love and respect even when he couldn't tell her who he was and did show her he cared for her overall?

I think he was a teenager, who relied on the adults around him to know what the right thing was to do. Except the adult is Bruce, who can and does exert an extreme amount of control over Tim's life. I cut Tim a lot more slack than I think some do during the time leading up to his name reveal, but here's why.

When Tim is angry about Bruce telling Stephanie his real name, yes Tim is angry, but he's not angry at Stephanie. He's angry at Bruce, for going behind his back. Stephanie catches some of that anger initially because he's shocked and mortified and taken aback but he very quickly figures out that Bruce did not do it for Stephanie, or for Tim. He did it because he was upset that Alfred was avoiding him, and Bruce wanted to get around that without taking responsibility for it, and used two kids to do it. I actually think this is kept consistent for Tim. Like, when Steph dies, Tim never blames her for it. (Unlike... everyone else). It's Bruce's fault. He's the adult, he had a duty of care for these kids. He failed.

And that's what colours my understanding of Tim and Steph's relationship prior to that name reveal. I spoke about it before how Steph was playing the rules of a game that Tim (accidentally) established. When things get more serious, that's when she starts to get antsy. This isn't fun flirting anymore, this is a guy who helped her through a pregnancy, why won't he trust her?

Prior to that name reveal, honestly it's messy. Dixon writes Tim so... wishy-washy at times. And 90s sexism in writing is a thing. I genuinely think her pregnancy got Tim to settle down a lot - which sounds very weird and domestic and not quite what I'm intending. I mean this constant back and forth of 'stop being Spoiler but actually I'm going to do nothing of value to discourage you' stopped. I might be off base a bit here, but I don't think he berates her on this fact ever again after she says she's pregnant. Also, I think it's canon that he gives her gear and training before anyone else like Cass or the BoP take her on so... he cares enough to teach her how to throw a punch and go jumping along rooftops with him. Whether this is 'well if I don't she'll get shot' or 'a little rebellion and going behind Bruce's back is good actually' is up for debate. Maybe it's a bit of both.

That conflict though regarding her wearing the suit ends with the pregnancy and then it's time for - okay this relationship is for real and for serious - so tell me your real name.

I don't know if Tim would have told her in his own time, countermanding Bruce. I don't know if Bruce had given Tim the go ahead if he would have bolted straight to Stephanie's bedroom window. I don't know, because Bruce took that choice from Tim.

Any perceived cock ups in their relationship during this time... I know who I blame certainly. Rhymes with moose.

After that name reveal, I think Tim and Steph treated each other very well, all things considered. Tim's complaints about her dressing up died a death after her baby was born, because as far as he knew she was getting proper approved training from Bruce himself, or by the Birds of Prey, so again, Tim defers to the adults in his life regarding this. I kind of expect that of a teenager to be honest. Tim's rebellious nature is very situational I find. What the circumstances have to be I have no fucking clue. Wishy washy Tim...

#dc #tim drake #stephanie brown #timsteph #timsteph meta #ask and i'll babble