Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Many people claim to be capable of remaining calm under duress, to reason and think logically out of every situation and every possible bind, but most who say so are dirty fucking liars.

Jason can only watch in horror, nausea rising in his throat as he watches a woman scream for help, a blood curdling note that pierced the air as his fiery wings remained dormant. He wasn't allowed to help- hell, he wasn't allowed within 10 feet of an infected victim in case they lunged. As a human, like Barbara, Jason was required to stay inside at all times, armed with silver and wolfsbane. Dick, too, was benched because despite the aurae blood that whispered through the first robin's veins, Tim and Bruce weren't sure of whether or not it would be enough to save Dick from being turned into a werewolf.

It all began on the day of the Solar Eclipse.

"Is blondie not coming along?" Jason asked, raising a brow at the Fox who was fiddling with his camera. Tim and Stephanie were practically joined at the hip, so color him surprised when she just... didn't show.

Damian responds in place of Tim, sounding haughty and annoying as ever, "Eclipses are particularly volatile events for werewolves due to the fact that they can be forced into a shift when they least expect it, even if they remain outside the path of totality. Though, I wouldn't expect a human to understand-"

"Damian," Tim interrupted with an eye-roll, "what did we say about taking shots at people based on their species?"

"..."

"That's what I thought," the Fox sniffed, humming as Jason tossed the specialized, enchanted eclipse glasses at his face, "Thanks."

"No problem, Fox boy," he returns before throwing another one at Damian's face too, "here's yours, pipsqueak."

He got the glasses when he was out as Phoenix from Selina, and from Tim's approving nod, Jason had gotten the correct ones.

"I can, and I will end your bloodline," Damian snarls, but Jason only grins and pays him no mind.

"Good luck, kid," he crows, taking immense pleasure at how the dragon flushes with irritation, the tips of his ears growing dark with a blush as Tim shakes his head in exasperation. Jason was half tempted to continue before sobering, "Are we sure that all werewolves are inside?"

Tim gives him a look over Damian's head, "Yeah. There was a census sent out reminding all known were's to remain inside, and for natural born wolves to keep an eye on any Turned they know. Why? Are you worried about Dick?"

Jason scoffed, ignoring how his own face was beginning to flush with embarrassment, "What? Me? No, never! Dickface knows how to handle himself!"

"Mhm, sure," Tim gives him an unimpressed stare. But before they could continue, Damian interrupts with an impatient hiss and a stomp that Jason does not find cute in the slightest.

"Are we going to see the eclipse, Timothy," Damian demands, "or are you going to continue wasting breath on Jason?"

Jason feels his expression pinch in displeasure, but Tim cuts in before another argument could arise, "Damian's right, Jay. The eclipse is beginning in twenty minutes, and we should get to somewhere quiet before then. Lets go ask Bruce for a Doorway."

"Ugh, fine!"

Gasps rose around them as the sky darkened, the air falling quiet as the birds fell into the dark-induced slumber.

Tim and Damian, with their eyes far more sensitive than Jason's, wore custom-enchanted sunglasses. Jason wasn't sure about how or what it did other than block out more sun, but that was besides the point.

But just before they could see the totality through, there was sound of screaming and bones cracking. Almost instantly, the crowd around them burst into chaos, with people stampeding and running over each other as a hulking wolf tore through the crowd.

"TIM!" Jason shouted as the Fox was driven away from him and Damian by the panicking people.

"Jason, we must go!" Damian hissed, grabbing the human's wrist and beginning to drag him away. Despite the dragon's small size, he was able to easy pull Jason along despite his thrashing and panicking, "Timothy is capable, and will not allow harm to befall him! You, if you've somehow forgotten, are human!"

"I-"

Seemingly fed up with Jason's resistance, Damian hissed and opened a Doorway before shoving the human through.

Jason yelps, back colliding with a solid surface, and he whips around to see Bruce.

"Jason, what-"

"Tim's still out there!" he exclaimed, worry surging through his veins and tearing at him like a rapid beast, "He- there was a werewolf biting everyone out during the eclipse, the everyone panicked, and we were separated from Tim. Damian just- he just threw me back here!"

Bruce gave Jason a calculating look before nodding sharply, "Stay here, J-"

"STAY?! YOU WANT ME TO-"

Jason tensed, fists balling up at his sides when he prepared to scream at Bruce, but he was then tackled by a solid blur golden golden fur.

He grunts uncomfortably, face screwing up in displeasure as he pushes at Stephanie face, "get off of me, blondie!"

"Sorry, Jason," Bruce said, shrugging on his Batman costume, "You have to stay here while I gather your siblings and close off Gotham. You're human, so you could be infected. Lycanthropy is extremely dangerous as a virus, and the first shift for a non-mythic is unpredictable and could lead in death."

"What, so you don't trust me to defend myself?" Jason hissed accusatorily, wincing as Steph gave him an unimpressed stare and smacked him in his face with her cold nose.

"It's not that," Bruce said, verbally flailing as he tried to search for the right words, "It's- I trust you, but I'm still going to worry about you. You may be the most competent person in Gotham, and I'll still worry about you, like how I worry for Tim, for Dick, for Damian, and all of my kids. If you stay here, Jason, then I can be on the streets and handle things without worrying about you."

The human groans in frustration, but he couldn't do anything with Stephanie just... laying on him.

"I- just, I can't sit around doing nothing!" Jason hissed, wiggling to try and weasel his way out from under the werewolf.

Bruce gives him a look, "You can help Owl lock down Gotham, alright? Help her send out a message to the Justice League and notify them of the outbreak of Lycanthropy. You won't just be "sitting around doing nothing", your job is just as important as ours."

Jason faltered before heaving a defeated sigh, "Fine. Just- just hurry up."

The dragon, his father in all but blood, softens before nodding, "Alright. Stay safe, Phoenix. I'm counting on you to keep him in check, Starling. Don't let him run off."

And with the shift of the air, Bruce opened a Doorway and left behind a smug werewolf who still refused to get off of Jason's chest.

Jesus Christ, it was going to be a long... day.

Chapter Text

Bruce feels his cape flare out behind him, fluttering in the wind as he leaps weightlessly from roof to roof. It was an unnatural sight for Batman to be seen in broad daylight, but those who could see him had more pressing matters at hand. Namely, being bitten.

The dragon narrowed his eyes. From what Tim had told him, all werewolves should have locked themselves within their abodes until they could Shift out of their infectious lupine form, which meant the rampaging mythic had not known they were a werewolf, or just didn't care.

Bruce opens up a Doorway into the Clocktower, which had been turned to Owl's base of operations, to see Barbara already there.

"Owl," he addresses his friend's daughter, "have you taken the necessary precautions?"

She rolls her eyes, though the action lacked the glow of true irritation, "Yes, I did. I have a gun with silver bullets, the perimeter and doorways are lined with mountain ash, I have a sack of powdered wolfsbane, and I have direct communication lines to the Cave."

"Very well," Bruce nods before leaving for Duke's apartment.

The air shifts, and there he sees the demigod pacing the room.

"GAH!" Duke yelp, stumbling slightly when he sees Batman looming in the doorway before whipping toward Cassandra with a betrayed expression. The Fox only shrugs as Doug and Elaine Thomas rush into the room, freezing when they see Batman standing by their children.

"Uh..." Doug turned to peer toward Duke with a pinched and somewhat panicked expression, "Duke... Why is Batman in our room?"

"That's what I want to know!" Duke exclaimed, his heart pounding in the teen's chest. Anxiety? Worry? Bruce couldn't parse out the human's exact emotions.

"Are you safe?" Batman questions, his voice stony and close to a growl.

Elaine nods, "We are... Duke, Cassandra, is there something you have to tell us?"

While Duke floundered, Cassandra shrugged before moving toward Bruce.

"Later," the Fox confirms, a wry and playful smile drawing across her lips, "I'll tell you later."

And despite Bruce's hesitance, there really was nothing he could do in the face of Cass's persistence. Though, he trusts her to do what's right.

"Lilith," Bruce addresses the stone-faced werewolf, his voice tight with irritation, "I require your help."

She scoffs, eyeing him disdainfully with words dripping with malice, "You require my help?"

She had been capable of Shifting back to her human Skin due to years of practice, and Bruce couldn't help but feel impressed despite his disdain toward her. The dragon narrowed his eyes. How Tim stand being in the presence of this werewolf escapes him- she was nearly as insufferable as the human WE board members, "Yes, I do. I am not skilled enough to track down the bitten werewolves myself, and my main liaison is currently M.I.A.."

"And what of Starling?" she questions, "The werewolf in your care?"

"Indisposed," he bites out curtly, seething at the sheer displeasure, distaste, and condescension in Lilith's voice, "I only need one of your skilled trackers. I assure you, I will not allow any harm to befall them."

The two held the other's gaze, five uncomfortable seconds stretched between the two before the werewolf nods sharply, "Very well. My Tracker will arrive in three hours-"

"I'm afraid I will not be able to wait that long," Batman grits out- and yes, it was Batman. He did not have the patience left in him to maintain "Bruce" for a creature that wasn't in his... hoard- and he just barely avoids baring his fangs in a challenge.

"You can," she sneers, "and you will. My Tracker is on the other side of the continent, in the middle of her own mission. I will not compromise her mission for your trashy little city that barely deserves to live."

Anger like he's never felt before surges in his chest, and Batman snarls.

Lilith returns the sentiment, a softer yet no less threatening growl fills the air, but the Guardian of Gotham remained uncowed.

"I do not care at all what happens with Gotham," the werewolf sneers, "nor do I care about the humans within. They are parasites, and you should be grateful that I'm even offering my assistance in the first place."

Bruce only narrows his eyes, forcing himself to bite his tongue and shut his mouth. He may not have Tim's silver tongue, but he knows better than to ruin their tentative alliance.

So, the Dragon watches in a terse silence as the werewolf scoffed before turning and leaving through a Doorway opened by the Guardian of Buffalo, New York.

Bruce takes in a calming breath to gather his thoughts. He needs to find Tim before-

"Father!" Robin calls, from the streets below. Batman- stifling a frustrated sigh- tilts his head to see his son, dressed as Robin, rush to perch by his side, "I have yet to locate Sparrow."

Bruce grunts, eyes narrowing in thought before pushing to his feet, "Batman to Owl."

"Owl receiving," Barbara's mechanized voice answers his call, "I'm tracking Sparrow now. He was last seen in the alley off of 86th avenue, and the were disappeared into the Bowery."

Batman nods curtly, "Robin, with me. What is Magpie's status?"

"She will arrive at your location in two minutes."

"Have her track the werewolf," Batman says, "Robin and I will find Sparrow."

"Understood," Barbara responds, her altered voice was followed by a click that signified her temporary departure.

Damian blinked up at him, the white lenses clicked nearly inaudibly as his son tilts his head in a question.

The dragon huffed, grumbling a brief confirmation, "86th avenue."

"Understood."

And with a last glance over the square, Batman and his Robin took into the air.

They had a Fox to find.

Tim frowns, crouching beside the sobbing boy with a gentle and soothing purr, "It's okay. You'll be okay, I promise."

The lie tasted like acrid venom that stung his tongue. The chances of surviving a Werewolf Shift at this age? The boy would break, and- and Tim fears the worst. He couldn't bring himself to put the boy out of his misery, so he did his best with what little healing spells he knew and tried to ease the human's- well, werewolf if he survives- pain.

"It- it hurts!" the boy sobbed, tears streaking down his face as he clung to Tim's chest. His bite wound was inflamed, the edges were colored an angry, saturated scarlet as the Werewolf's- "Venom", for a lack of a better term- coursed through his veins.

"I know, bud," Tim crooned, allowing compassion to briefly distract him, "it'll be over soon, okay? It'll all be okay, I promise."

Too entrenched in comforting the sobbing and wailing child, the Fox was helpless as he was ensnared by a creature who reeked of blood, and was yet... lupine.

A werewolf.

He snarled, shadows flaring violently around him to knock the werewolf off him. The Fox crouched close to the ground, whirling around to face the mythic- only to see the boy captured in the man's arms. A knife pressed against the trembling boy's throat, forcing Tim to falter and freeze.

"If you do not comply," the werewolf leered, and Tim felt his chest clench at the sound of the boy's fearful yelp, "then this boy's blood would be on your hand."

"And what makes you think I wouldn't allow you to kill him?" Tim challenged, rising to his feet with narrowed eyes. He had no way of contacting his Skulk, and there were no cameras in the alley they were standing in.

The werewolf grinned sadistically, pressing the knife against the boy's throat and laughing as Tim jerked forward in worry and panic.

"I've heard much about you, Fox," the werewolf snarled viciously, "You and the Dragon are the only things that stand in our way."

"..."Our"?" Tim questioned, narrowing his eyes with bared fangs.

The werewolf tutted before twisting and striding off, "You will see."

And as Tim watched the man turn his back toward him, a snarling writhing mass of anger and indignation tearing in his chest at the blatant display of arrogance and disrespect, the was nothing the Fox could do other than bite his tongue and- and follow.

Chapter Text

Jason worried his lip between his teeth as Steph paced restlessly by the window. In his hand, Dick continues to chatter anxiously through the phone, "Tim hasn't checked in yet! He's never gone so long without saying at least- at least something."

"He's resourceful," Jason huffed, his over hand running worriedly over the wolf's bane at his side. He couldn't help but feel like he was trying to convince himself too, "Tim can take care of himself."

Silence. Then, a resigned sigh as Dick presumably set his head into his hand, "Yeah, your right... I just... I can't help it."

"I know, Dick. I know."

From the window, Steph grumbles once again before returning to Jason's side. He couldn't understand how, or why, but Jason just had a feeling things were going to get... worse.

Tim cradled the whimpering boy close to his chest, his heart aching at his pitiful cries yet unable to do anything other than sit and wait. His skin was feverish and far too warm, his body kept just below the threshold with help from Tim's mist.

The Fox glared at the bulky wolf standing by the doorway, wishing to burn that man to a crisp with his glare alone.

"What are your intentions?" Tim demanded, subtly weaving mist into his words, compelling the werewolf to speak.

"Why should I tell you?" the man sneered, shifting subtly to face toward Tim- as if he was drawn closer.

Tim dips his head in the guise of defeat, letting a bitter and wry laugh fall from his lips, "I mean, it's not like I can escape. You have me pinned. If I try to leave, you'll kill the kid- and we both know I wouldn't let an innocent kid die. You also have iron bullets in that gun of yours, so even if was willing to risk the kid, you can just shoot me, and I'd be indisposed."

The werewolf regarded him carefully before a wide and cocky grin stretched across his face, "Our leader has been working on this plan for six months! You see, humans are a kind of disease, one that only he- the true child of the moon- can cure! He wants to see the end of all humans on earth, and he'll achieve this by turning them all into wolves!"

Tim furrowed his brows, "But it's not enough time for their bodies to adjust- they'll die."

He huffs, "That's the point."

The Fox narrows his eyes, shoving down the bubbling anger that threatened to burst from his chest. There was nothing Tim wanted to do more than to sink his claws into their throat and-

He forces himself to take a deep breath, jolting into reality as the boy whimpers again.

Soon.

Once he frees himself from this stupid prison, he'll get his vengeance.

Soon.