Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hands.

Large, rough hands that slapped against Jason’s backside repeatedly until his skin was red and sensitive. Hands that grabbed his hips so tight they bruised him.

Jason heard the smirk in Willis’ voice, the taunting tone as he rasped about how much Jason desired being beat like this. How it was the only food Jason would receive for the week, so he better enjoy it.

Willis loved Jason’s helplessness, bathing in the power and fire it gave him.

Jason screamed again as he felt a belt come down on his back instead of a hand, breaking the already sensitive skin. Blood trickled from the wounds. Jason barely fought the urge to throw up at the feeling.

“Daddy—Sir, please!” He sobbed. His vision was swarming and his limbs trembled violently as they struggled to hold his body up. Jason had surely blackout at some point, only jolting back to consciousness at the intense pain of Willis’ fingernails digging into his neck.

His mind was foggy and his muscles went uncomfortably lax because of the dominating hold. No matter how frantically he fought it and struggled, he couldn't get free.

The burning on his back was inescapable. He sobbed again as he tried and failed to suck air into his lungs. But the beating continued on and on, and Jason couldn’t escape and he could breathe. He was trapped. 

He was never going to escape Willis or the hurt the Luciferean inflicted. White-hot agony spread through his body and another loud wail pushed itself out of his mouth and—

Jason gasped and sat up quickly. Utter darkness surrounded him so he couldn't make out a thing. A horrible panic built up in his stomach at his lack of information. He couldn't remember where he was. He swore he was just with Willis, he could still feel the phantom pains on his back, but Willis was nowhere to be found. His eyes flicked up and immediately his eyes latched onto the darkness in front of him that stood out from the rest.  A shadowy figure was sitting in front of him, and Jason shrieked at the proximity the figure had to him. The incubus scurried backward on his bed until his back hit the hard backboard. A pained shout escaped his mouth as the tears flowed heavily down his cheeks.

“Don’t, please,” Jason whimpered. He pulled the blanket up tightly to his chest, using it as a barrier from the unknown person. A high keen was stuck in his throat, the inner demon inside him viciously craving the protection of a pack. He swallowed the sound with a violent shudder.

“Jaylad,” a low, familiar voice whispered. “You’re safe.”

Jason desperately wanted to believe it, but he knew he would never be safe from his father. Willis always caught him and dragged him back to their hellhole of an apartment. Every time he tried to escape, the pain got worse. Jason stopped running away once Willis started beating his mother in his place as punishment.

He shook his head rapidly, trying to calm his bubbling sobs. It was another lie to get him pliant and easy. He couldn’t believe it, he couldn’t—

A tug. 

His breath caught. A tug at his bonds, a familiar one, but more importantly, a safe one. It radiated nothing but concern and unwavering love.

“Bruce?” Jason whimpered, risking opening his eyes and truly looking at the figure in front of him. It was Bruce, unease painted Bruce’s face and his hand was frozen in the air, like he wanted to reach out to Jason but didn’t know if he could.

“You’re in the manor, baby. No one’s going to hurt you here,” Bruce promised. Jason nodded rapidly, his tears starting up again but for a different reason. He launched himself at Bruce, clinging to his father as he shook. Bruce wrapped his arms around Jason just as tightly, gently resting his head on Jason’s.

“Daddy,” Jason wept. He buried his head further into his father’s chest, knowing he was safe as long as he was close to Bruce.

“I’m here, my impling.”

Bruce rocked them slowly, rubbing a warm hand against Jason’s back. It felt nice, and Jason couldn’t help but grow drowsy at the feeling despite the fear plaguing him of closing his eyes.

“I think we should try to go back to sleep, Jaylad. Do you want to sleep with me for the rest of the night?”

Jason nodded without hesitation. He couldn’t bear the thought of being alone. Bruce shifted Jason slightly in his arms and stood. Jason purred sleepily against his father’s shoulder. The short walk to Bruce’s room was soothing and just the right level of calm Jason needed. He had to blink hard to keep his droopy eyes open.

Bruce gently deposited Jason on the bed and crawled in next to him. Now that they were back in bed though, Jason was afraid. He didn’t want to have any more nightmares. He didn’t want to be trapped with Willis again.

He stubbornly kept his eyes open, staring at the wall as Bruce pulled him close.

“Sleep, Jason,” Bruce murmured into the boy’s hair.

“Don’t want to,” Jason mumbled back. 

Bruce shifted, rolling Jason over so he was now facing Bruce. Bruce sighed quietly and ran his large fingers through Jason’s hair at the exact pressure Jason liked. 

The impling’s eyes fluttered as a loud purr broke from his throat.

“Chum, look at me,” Bruce requested, voice full of authority. Jason titled his head up so his half-lidded eyes met Bruce’s. Bruce blinked slowly, not breaking eye contact with Jason.

Jason whined half-heartedly as he snuggled closer to Bruce’s chest. “Not fair.”

Bruce’s lips quirked up, but he continued methodically slowly blinking at Jason, and Jason couldn’t help but mimic the motion, waves of exhaustion and comfort rolling over him in slow waves.

“I’ll keep you safe, Jaylad, I promise,” Bruce whispered. Jason nodded weakly.

Between the hand running through his hair, the warmth radiating from Bruce, and the loving, firm blinking Bruce was directed at him, Jason couldn’t help but give in to the pull of sleep.

His eyes slid shut, breath immediately evening out.

The last thing he felt was a light kiss to his forehead and love illuminating from the pack bonds.

My baby boy, my impling, I’ll keep you safe, my Jaylad.

Chapter Text

Bruce was out of the country, and Jason was sick.

Bruce was out of the country, and Jason was sick, and he was expected to look after the implings.

Of course, Bruce didn’t outright say this before leaving, but it was implied. Jason was the heart of the pack and the eldest demon. It wouldn’t be right for him to leave the implings under Dick’s care. Sure, Dick had grown up with Jason, learning demon customs and how to take care of pack but Jason… Jason couldn’t fathom leaving the babies for even a second.

Not when the pack was vulnerable without their Head.

When Bruce had left two days ago, Jason had been feeling fine. Sure, his nose was stuffy and his throat ached dully, but he was fine enough to fool his overprotective father. 

Jason couldn’t be the reason Bruce didn’t go on this important mission. Jason honestly didn’t remember the details of the mission, but he knew Bruce was one of the only members of the Justice League who could be trusted with this type of undercover mission, and the mission happened to be time-sensitive.

A perfect storm.

An excellent reason Jason couldn’t just whine for his father like he wanted to and warn Bruce that he was going downhill quickly. Instead, he smiled as Bruce bid the family one last goodbye, locking any discomfort he felt far away from where they could be reached through the bonds. 

“Be good,” Bruce sternly told the youngest implings. He pulled them into a tight hug, chuckling deeply as Damian complained loudly that he was above their need for physical affection, and left gentle kisses against their foreheads. Tim squeezed himself against Bruce awkwardly, looking so sure of himself and serious that Jason couldn’t help but snort.

A couple days passed and the implings had been on their best behavior. Damian did his homework without arguing that he was above the elementary lessons, and Tim didn’t argue when Jason made his curfew a few hours earlier.

Then Hurricane Wednesday hit.

Jason doesn’t know why, but a flip switched. He woke up with the worst migraine and his body aching all over. If only his symptoms were the worst of the problems, but the implings’ previous good behavior vanished. Jason and Dick tag-teamed their younger siblings, but the little ones were grumpy and stubborn and wouldn’t listen to a single thing.

Even Dick was at his wit’s end and left when he and Jason got into a screaming match over something so stupid Jason couldn’t even remember. Of course, Dick didn’t see that Jason was on the verge of tears during their argument, trying to manage the boys with his throbbing head, chills, and nausea.

But he left and it sucked. 

Jason sent Tim and Damian to their rooms, demanding that they stay there for an hour, glaring and growling almost violently at them when they argued. The second both of their doors slammed shut, Jason fell onto his bathroom floor and gasped wetly.

He was exhausted.

He wished nothing more to be in Bruce’s arms at the moment, or even Dick’s. He leaned over the toilet, nausea unbearable as he lurched over again and emptied his stomach. His mind swarmed, buzzing unpleasantly and so overheated to the point where he had to grip the toilet seat tight to steady himself as he swayed.

He felt the instincts inside him flare. They, he , wanted his pack. He grabbed the towel lying by his side and shoved it against his mouth to muffle the loud, scream-like wail that ripped from his torn throat. His sobs increased. The pain in his sore throat heightened resulting from his cries for his pack. But he couldn’t allow his imps or Dick to see him like this. He had to be strong for them, at least until Bruce came back. His body shook violently through the sobs and terrible nausea. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt this ill.

“Fucking dickhead,” he gasped, resting his head against the toilet seat. It was cool and eased the heat radiating from his body somewhat. If he let his mind drift he could even imagine it was a hand. Dick had forced Jason to eat hours before he abandoned them , despite Jason protesting he wasn’t hungry to disguise his growing upset stomach. Yet he knew Dick would grow suspicious if he didn’t eat something , so he shoved a bar in his mouth, ignoring the way his stomach churned.

And the implings seemed pleased to see him eat as well. Jason would take the brief moment of peace in the manor if it meant some slight discomfort for him. Damian’s tense grip on his bond uncurled immensely, and Tim visibly relaxed as a small smile graced his face. 

His fist tightened just thinking about his own selfishness at dinner earlier. He couldn’t believe he made this about himself for even a second. The implings were more important. They were his top priority, not his cold.

Even now, how could he just sit here, locked in his bathroom when his implings were alone and defenseless? He had yelled at them, growled at them when they hadn’t done everything wrong. His eyes burned in shame.

What kind of heart was he?

Everything inside him screamed at him to move and get up, defend the baby demons and provide for them. He finally broke when a flicker of discontent flashed through Tim’s bond.

He scurried to his feet, ignoring the way his vision blacked out for a moment, and ran. He ignored the fatigue in his muscles. He ignored the fire dancing across his skin and burning his insides. He ignored the next round of bile threatening to come up.

Get to the implings. Jason slammed open the bathroom door and stumbled out. 

Both of their rooms were empty. A panic gripped Jason’s heart before he looked at the clock on Tim's desk and realized it had been over an hour. He sighed.

Had it been an hour already?

The sound of a faint arguing got his attention. He followed it. Down the hallway, only stopping to hold down the bile twice, down the stairs, holding the railing tight to keep his vertigo from winning him over, and to the living room. The voices got louder and louder until his implings were in front of him.

They were arguing with each other . Not an invader. That’s… that’s good.

The boys didn’t seem to notice Jason’s presence. Tim held the remote over his head, smirking and spitting sharp remarks at Damian, who looked a moment away from pouncing on the older boy. 

“What’s goin’ on?” Jason asked. He blinked heavily to clear the fog in his head. Unfortunately and unsurprising, it did nothing to help. His youngest brother turned towards him.

“Todd, Timothy has clearly misunderstood . It is my turn to have the television. He just will not give me the remote,” Damian said, huffing loudly to express his displeasure. Tim crossed his arms. 

“You’ve had the TV all day, Damian. I want to watch one show,” Tim replied.

“That’s not an adequate response, Drake—”

The boys continued arguing, completely ignoring Jason once again. Honestly, Jason could barely pay attention to their petty argument over his growing headache. And they were just getting louder, and louder, and their distress was growing—

“Shh,” Jason mumbled as he pulled Damian into his arms and pressed the Luciferean’s face against his chest. An unexpected purr ripped out of Damian’s throat at the sudden affection. 

“We’ll share,” Jason murmured, enjoying the warm presence of his youngest impling in his arms. It was a balm to his instincts. His headache dimmed slightly. Jason nuzzled his head against Damian’s contently. His little demon was the solution to his problems.

“It’s not fair—”

“We share,” Jason growled with a note of finality.

“Yes, my Heart,” Damian and Tim replied instantly.

Jason hummed happily at their obedience and fell onto the couch with Damian. He reached behind him blindly for the blanket. His fingers brushed against it and he nabbed it, using it to bundle Damian up tightly so the younger could barely move. There, now the baby demon would be warm and safe in Jason’s arms. Damian settled down instantly, purring as he rested his head on Jason’s shoulder.

Tim settled against his other side, fitting himself under Jason’s arm and firmly against Jason’s side. Jason used his free hand to play with the strands at the bottom of Tim’s hair. Tim turned on a random movie, already blinking heavily. 

Jason laughed to himself. His poor, grumpy implings just needed a little nap with their Heart. Hell, he could use a nap too. Maybe just for a few minutes… just resting his eyes… for a few… 

A violent wave of nausea jerked Jason awake. He bolted up, knocking Damian and Tim off him and barely sticking around to hear their confused whines before slamming the bathroom door shut and heaving over the toilet.

The nap didn’t help. The nap didn’t help and now Jason was sick and frustrated. All he wanted was to feel better. Well, that and his dad. He groaned softly, feeling sticky and hot and all around uneasy.

The heat flaring across Jason’s skin increased.

A gentle, almost hesitant knock at the door.

It burned, so much so Jason didn’t think he could focus or stand.

“Jason?” Tim asked softly through the door.

Everything was fuzzy.

Fuck. He didn’t have it in him to put up a front right now.

“ ‘m okay, Timmy,” he weakly assured. He swayed slightly, the nausea and overwhelming hotness hitting him all at once. He just needed, just… he tipped over and

nothing.

There was a buzzing.

He cracked his eyes open.

Blinked.

Damian and Tim were sitting over him, both looking panicked and tears shining in their eyes. Why were they upset? 

“Jay?” Tim whimpered. Jason attempted to sit up but a strong, steady hand he hadn’t noticed before held him down.

“Shh, Little Wing. Take it easy,” Dick said. Jason hazily looked up to see Dick’s concerned, sad smile.

“Feeling a little under the weather, Jay?” he said.

Jason shook his head. He was fine, he had to look after the implings and keep them safe.

Dick huffed a humorless laugh. “Okay, little wing. Let’s get you to bed, huh?”

Jason shook his head again, feeling panic rise in his chest. Before he could contain it, it slipped through the bonds.

Dick’s face lit up in realization. “They’ll be okay, Little Wing. I’ll look after them. Everyone’s okay.”

“Yea, we'll look after each other, Jay,” Tim butted in. “Right, Dami?”

Damian leaned into Tim’s side, still looking distressed at the sudden illness of his Heart, but nodded. “We will be alright, Todd.”

Jason bowed his head in shame. He couldn’t even look after his pack when their Head was gone. He was useless.

Damian leaned down and nuzzled his head under Jason’s chin, calming Jason’s upset, flaring instincts slightly. Tim followed suit and repeated Damian’s childish gesture before leading Damian out of the bathroom.

It ached to see them go.

Jason sniffled unhappily.

“I know, baby brother.” Dick pushed assurance and comfort through the bonds. “Now let’s get you upstairs.”

The spots and heat from before returned, leaving his senses muted.

“ think ‘ma faint again,” he mumbled. “ ‘iz hot.”

Dick hummed quietly and helped Jason sit up to rest his head on the toilet seat. A second later, a cool, wet rag was placed on his neck. He shut his eyes, basking in the feeling.

“This okay?”

“Mm."

“Let’s just sit here for a few minutes, okay, Little brother? I’ve got you,” Dick whispered as he rubbed his hand slowly up and down Jason’s back.

Jason took deep breaths, the pressure from the damp rag and Dick's hand grounding him until he gradually became more cognizant and less sluggish.

“‘I’m okay,” he whispered hoarsely.

The hand at his back disappeared, causing Jason to whine, but the noise was quickly cut off when Dick lifted Jason into a bridal position in his arms. Jason relaxed in his older brother’s hold, allowing Dick’s pseudo purrs to calm him. They walked in silence, Dick's steps a soft lullaby.

They arrived at their destination.

Bruce’s room was dark and cold, soothing, and just what Jason needed right now. Dick set him down gingerly on the bed, and Jason immediately buried his face into one of Bruce’s pillows. Bruce’s familiar scent surrounded him and Jason could practically feel the man’s presence with him. He melted into the bed.

Dick slid two pillows under his head to prop him up and vanished for a second only to come back with two new wet clothes. He gently placed them on Jason’s neck and forehead. 

“You should try to get some sleep, Jay,” Dick whispered. He brought the blankets up to Jason’s chin, trying to tuck him in, but Jason fought him, thrashing and only succeeding in making himself more nauseous and exhausted.

“Jason,” Dick said sternly, making Jason cringe. “You need to sleep.”

“Gotta watch the imps,” Jason protested. Dick shook his head fondly and crawled into bed next to his ill little brother.

“Come ‘ere.” Dick gathered Jason in his arms, running his fingers through Jason’s hair. They laid in silence for a few moments, Jason desperately tried to keep his eyes open. Maybe Dick would fall asleep before he did and then Jason could sneak back to the babies?

“Don’t want to leave them alone,”  Jason said hoarsely.

“I know, but they are big, strong demons. They can watch themselves for a few hours,” Dick replied easily. Jason looked at Dick skeptically, and Dick smiled back, staring Jason directly in the eyes as he blinked slowly. Why was it so alluring and so soothing? He gazed at Dick, unable to look away.

All Jason felt was comfort and safe, cocooned in Dick’s love physically and wrapped around his bond as they looked at each other. 

Dick is a good caretaker. Jason should’ve… he should’ve trusted Dick to help more.

Jason’s eyes fluttered close, the need to sleep from his horrid illness and the absolute warmth emitting from Dick winning over any previous argument he had. He snuggled further into his brother’s arms which only tightened in response. A gentle kiss brushed his forehead.

“Sleep, Little Wing. I’ll be here when you wake up.”