Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

They have been here for a while, trying to get away from San Francisco’s bullshit, Anne and  Dan had tried to convince him to stay but there wasn’t much left for them there, and they needed to get away a little after the Carnage fiasco.

So they were trying a new scenario, that and they needed to eat, and Gotham had a lot of baddies to become their meal. Batman has been very much of a pain in the ass trying to take them down, said metas weren’t allowed in Gotham and that he would throw him in Blackgate. 

But eh, it’s not like Batman will find out Eddie is the new rogue, as long as he and V are careful.

Right now he was riding his motorcycle around Gotham, avoiding cameras and trying to find trouble also known as a meal.

Then he stops his motorcycle abruptly as he finds himself staring ahead.

“V?”

“Yes, Eddie?”

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

“Food!”

“No!” Eddie exclaims, horrified. “It’s a kid!”

Venom perks up at that. “Ohhhhh, kiddo! Why is the small human wandering alone?”  The alien says softly, he has a soft spot for kids it seems. 

“Dunno V, but we gotta do something about it” He says as he gets off his motorcycle.

When he approached the kid Eddie blinked in shock, the boy looked like he had dug his way out of a grave with how much dirt he had on his whole body. The black-haired was looking around with glassy blue eyes, as if not entirely there.

“Hey kid, you okay?” Brock asks, putting a hand on the teen’s shoulders. 

The kid looks at him groggily. “B-Bruce?”

“Sorry, I uh, I’m Eddie, can you tell me your name?”

“D-Dad? Bruce?” Is all the kid can say.

Okay so the kid was probably not very well in the head, brain damage perhaps, who let the kid out like this? One has to wonder who allowed the child to be in such a condition without proper supervision or care.

“Okay, shit, uh, kid, can you follow me?” He tries.

The boy stares at him lost but nods, okay at least he can follow simple orders.

“I’m going to get on that motorcycle right there” He points at it. “I need you to get behind me and hold very tight so you won’t fall off, get that?”

The boy nods again, not uttering a word.

“Kay, good, let’s go”

 The kid follows him obediently as he gets back on his motorcycle and Brock starts driving.

“Eddie? Are we taking this small human in? Ohhh are we adopting it?”

Eddie's brows furrow in nervousness as he responds with a muttered reply, his voice tinged with uncertainty. "More like kidnapping," he mutters, shifting uncomfortably. "I just need to make sure the kid is okay, then we can take him to the police."

“Oh, but I liked the idea of adopting” V says, and he can tell the alien is pouting. 

“Last time we had a child it tried to kill us” He deadpeans. 

V does a mental shrug. “Carnage was an accident” He offers dismissively,

“...I hope you realize how fucked up that sounds” 

“It’s true! Besides this kiddo seems to not have anyone looking for him” 

“We don’t know that yet, gotta fix him up then ask for the authorities to locate his parents” Eddie

“What if his parents are shit?” 

Eddie's expression shifts to one of contemplation, his brows furrowing in thought. "Then…uh, we can…dammit, maybe then we can keep him" He suggests tentatively

“YES!” 

“Don’t get attached, his parents may be worried sick looking for him” He warns, his tone firm yet caring.

“We can always eat them!” The alien says way too eagerly. 

Eddie's expression shifts to one of disbelief, his eyes widening in shock. "V, no, we’re not eating the kid’s parents if they are good people" He retorts firmly, a hint of exasperation in his voice.

“You’re no fun” V mutters.

“Shut up, we are arriving home, don’t need people asking why I’m speaking to myself” Brock whispers under his breath, as they reach the shady apartment in Crime Alley.

The kid follows him inside with empty eyes that have those at the ground floor exchange wary and worried glances.

“Hey, Eddie, who’s the kid?” Elize, the landlord, asks with concern written all over her features.

He decides to be honest, the woman was just worried for the kid, Eddie was new here so they probably thought it was weird for him to bring a teen with him out of suddenly, he felt sick at the possible reason they may be worried over.

“Dunno yet, found him wandering about, gonna check him for injuries, see if I can get a name when he is coherent”

“Oh, poor lad” A man, who he doesn't know the name says. “I’ll bring you two some homemade food my wife will make tonight later”

Eddie was taken aback by the sudden offer. “Thanks…I’ll get going then, don’t worry I won’t hurt him or anything”

One of the women looking at him warily nods. “You have a medkit?”

“I have a used one in the bathroom”

“Wait, I have a spare one with me” Elize chimes in, she disappears into the check in area then comes back with a small medkit in her hands. “Here, make sure the kid is alright”

“Thanks El” 

She waves her hand dismissively. “No problem, just go already, the boy looks ready to pass out”

Not really, the kid just looks like that, apparently, but he nods. “Kid? Follow me, kay?”

The boy nods following Eddie to the second floor and into his apartment, it was small but it was enough for two people, in this case two and one alien.

Eddie immediately goes to work, he asks the boy to sit down, then looks for injuries, he frowns when he notices the kid’s fingernails were mostly all crooked or missing.

It has a mix of blood and dirt under them, damn, okay so he was joking about the boy digging his way out of a grave but…the kid had dirt all over him, had blood under his fingernails as if he had dug something and looked dead on his feet.

Shit do they have a zombie in their hands or something like that?

“What are Zombies, Eddie?”

“It’s an undead, uh, someone who came back to life wrong, they also eat brains”

“Ha! A brain buddy then!”

“Yeah, kind of…but not like us, he is…” 

“Is the small human broken?” V asks, and oh, even the big guy sounds worried.

“I think so…” He looks at the boy, who looks so young, around fifteen or sixteen years old, how could this little guy have died? Did someone kill him? Was it a natural death? “...V, can you heal him?” He asks faintly.

“We could try, but if we’re not compatible I can’t stay too long before he dies”

“Then be quick, love, just focus on healing his brain for me, okay?”

“Of course, we can do that, Eddie”

Eddie shudders as he feels his partner leave his body, the black slime jumping towards the kid and merging into his body quickly. 

Then he watches uncomfortably as the boy’s body spasm, eyes rolling to the back of his head, it takes a few minutes then V is done and jumps from the kid’s body back to Eddie who stops the boy from falling as he loses consciousness, he carefully lies the kid down on the couch.

“Eddie, I don’t like what I saw” V says with a mix of anger and concern.

Oh, he probably saw the kid’s memories, then. “What? Why? Did you see how he died?”

“That clown whore was the one who killed him, it was very bad, kid kept asking for his dad to save him, but the bat was also the reason he ran away”

“Fuck, kay” So the Joker killed the kid, he was going to make that bastard suffer, how could he does this to a child? Wait did V just mention the bat? His eyes widened. “He is Batman’s son?!” He hisses.

“Yes, Eddie, keep up! The kid was the second Robin, which means the Robin the bat keep away from us, is the third”

“Second? There was a first?” He asks confused, it’s not like he was here too long to know there were multiple Robins.

“Mhm, the first one is now Nightwing from what I saw in his memories, he was an asshole to the small human, the bat was shitty too, and the female too...kiddo left to find his mother, she worked for the Joker and got them both killed”

“Shit” He puts his head into his hands.

“Are we keeping him? Can’t let the little one back to them, right? They are assholes” 

“That’s up to the kid”

The boy chose that moment to wake up, groaning quietly as he sat up, then he was on alert, looking around in a panicked state. 

“W-Where—is he gone?” The boy asks, tears gathering at the edge of his eyes.

“Hey, hey, calm down, you’re safe, the clown is not here, we found you wandering the streets and brought you here, V healed your brain damage”

“I…” the kid then blinks slowly in confusion. “...‘we’?”

V formed his head on top of Eddie’s shoulder, he didn’t say anything, just stared at the kid who blinked rapidly in both curiosity and panic.

“Are you a meta?” The boy blurted out.

“Nah, normal loser human with a looser parasitic alien” 

“Not a parasyte!” 

“Of course love”

“I–I remember dying, how am I here?” The kid says ignoring their quick love’s spat, he frowns as his head hurts. “I—dug my way out, I was dead, how am I alive now?”

“No idea kid, just found you and brought you here so V could heal you, I know this must be confusing and scary, do you feel alright?”

“I…I feel no pain, and…I’m scared” The kid whispers, he doesn’t know how he got back, why is he back anyway? He wasn’t worth getting back.

Eddie feels his heart break for the boy, he slowly wraps his arms around the kid, giving enough time to him to back out if he didn’t want this, but the teen just leans in desperately .

“There, there” Eddie says ruffling the boy’s hair. “I’m sorry about what happened to you, V told me some stuff he saw…you were the second Robin, right?”

The kid goes stiff but nods.

“Kay, listen I’m not going to tell anyone about you being Robin and who your dad is, I’m not that type, just want to let you know that we know”

“...I..thanks for telling me”

“No problem, now, what’s your name?”

“You know who my dad is but don’t know my name?” The kid inquires as he leans away to stare at him. 

Eddie just shrugs. “I’m new here in Gotham”

“...It’s Jason”

“Kay, so, Jason, we would appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone about V when you get back to the bat…we kind uhhh, we are rogues?”

“We eat the baddies!” Venom says cheerfully as he shows off his sharp teeth as he smiles. 

“V!”

“What? It’s true! We eat only the scum, like men and women who go after small humans or the ones who violate other humans”

Jason didn’t seem scared, he actually looked pensive, then he nodded in approval, one of the many things he and Bruce never agreed on was that people like that should die, Bruce wanted to throw them into jail while Jason wanted to kill them.

“I won’t judge, people like that don’t deserve to live” Jason says bitterly, he didn’t have a good experience when he was living in the streets…so needless to say he hated scum like that.

He doesn’t understand why they need to eat to kill them though, but since there is an alien involved it may be how it needs to be fed? In anyway fuckers like pedophiles and other rapist deserve that and much worse. 

Eddie seems startled by his response but quickly recovers. “Right?! Like c’mon, Batman and the new Robin keep preaching about not killing but these people are like the worst of the worst!”

“...new Robin?” The kid asks through a whisper, eyes wide and full of hurt. 

Brock immediately regretted his slip of tongue. “Oh shit! Sorry I–yeah, there is a new Robin…I’m sorry kid, didn’t mean to drop that on you”

“How long have I been dead?” The kid asks, ignoring his apologies. 

Brock took his laptop from the kitchen table. “Let me see, your full name?”

“Jason Todd Wayne”

Eddie did a quick research on his laptop and looked at him guilty. “...six months and uhh it only shows Jason Peter Todd in the research…”

Six months, Bruce replaced him in six months. He didn’t even let Jason have his last name, how little did he matter to the man? He shouldn’t be surprised, nobody ever wanted him, not his adoptive parents, not his biological mom, and certainly not Bruce Wayne. 

“I’m sure…I’m sure you two can talk it out, maybe the guy has a good reason? I don’t know, but you can ask him when the police calls him and you go back home”

“No”

Eddie does a double take at the firm answer. “No?”

“I don’t… don’t want to go” The kid says quietly as he hugs his knees. 

“Kid…you remember everything right? Don’t you want to go back to your family?”

"You'll never be Dick Grayson, Jason, he's a better man than you'll ever be" Barbara says to him with such a cold look that it made him want to cry.

Dick was paciing around, he was angry, so, so angry, angry at him for fucking up. "You're a liability out there, Jason! Every time you rush in guns blazing, you put us all at risk. You think you're some kind of hotshot, but you're just a loose cannon. I can't trust you to have my back when you're too busy playing the hero without a plan. Get it together, or get out of the game before you get someone killed!" 

"I adopted you because I thought I could make a difference in your life, but I was wrong, you're not my son" Bruce said, he didn’t…he didn’t consider him his son, what now? What is he supposed to do? He thought he finally had a family again….

The Teen Titans hated him for being the new Robin, hated him for being a street rat, for being a brute, for being among them, for simply being alive. 

“...no, I don’t…they…they don’t want me, t-they never did” He feels a sob escape his lips.

“Oh kid” Eddie hugs the teen again who leans in desperately “I’m so sorry, I…well, you can stay with us, if you want?”

Jason shakes his head against the man’s chest. “I don’t want to be a bother, I’m just trouble”

“Nah kid, whoever said that to you is a shithead” 

“Yeah! And we eat shitheads! Yum!”

Jason snorts, a smile slightly forming. “Maybe”

“No, really, they are assholes, you don’t say shit like that to a kid”

“I’m sixteen”

Eddie smirks playfully. “Still a kid” 

"Baby boy!"

Jason rolls his eyes then looks away. “...if you really don’t mind me staying” He really didn’t want to live in the streets again.

“I don’t, I can make room for you” Eddie reassures him.

They both startle when there is a knock on the door.

“Oh, one of the neighbors offered to bring some food when he saw I brought you here” He explains gently to calm the teen down.

The man brings a half of a bolognese lasagna, says to be sure the kid eats well, takes one look at the boy who waves shyly at him and nods in approval at seeing the boy back to himself before leaving.

Eddie turns to him, holding the lasagna in his hands. “You hungry, kiddo?”

“...I could eat”

“Then let’s eat”

Jason ate quietly, watching as Eddie and ‘V’ bicker about random stuff, then he is thinking to himself about what he could do to help this man and alien that offered shelter to him, how could he be useful to them? Maybe…maybe he could join them in killing the bad guys, he still remembers how to fight…

But that’s a thought for tomorrow. 

Chapter Text

“Nope” Eddie said for the tenth time today.

It’s been a whole week since he took the kid in, his neighbors all love the brat, they keep bringing food and even some clothes for the kid that they had stored, which saved him from going shopping.

But it also has been a really long week of the kid pestering him about wanting to help him out, it didn’t help the situation that V thought it was a good idea to let a fucking teenager become a criminal along with them.

Jason pouted, crossing his arms as he threw himself at the couch like the brat he is. “But I want to help!”

He sighs, massaging his temples. “Still a no, you’re kid, hell your da–Batman shouldn’t even be putting kids in costumes and sending them after criminals in the first place” He pointed out with an angry scowl. 

“Eddieeee! The little human wants to help us, why not let him?” V asks ignoring the small grunt from the kid who mutters a 'I'm not little...'

“Cuz he is still a kid, kids are supposed to be doing normal stuff! What if he gets killed while helping us? Uh? Would you like that?”

“Oh, we don’t want the little one dead nor hurt…”

Todd glared at him. “I’m not useless, I can defend myself!”

Eddie sighs wearily, he gives the boy a look. “I don’t doubt that, but the point is that you’re still a kid, you should be enjoying you teenhood, going to school, making friends and all that jazz, not going out to beat rogues”

“We don’t want you hurt little one and Eddie says you need a ‘normal’ life”

“But I don’t want to go to school! I want to go back to action, help you guys kill bad guys!” The kids whisper yells, just in case, the apartament had shitty thin walls. 

“Yeah that ain’t gonna happen, listen kid, killing is a tough thing to do” Brocks said holding the teen’s gaze. “It’s not something you do and don’t come out of it scarred, even if it’s someone who deserves it, it still changes you forever”

“Eddie…” V hesitates, he knows what the man means, he was a wreck when V forced him to kill for the first time without care, he couldn’t help but feel guilty now. 

Brock shrugs off the sudden feeling of guilt of his lover eating him alive. “Listen, you’re sixteen, you have like, more two or three years of school and normal life ahead of you, live those couple of years like a normal kid, then when you finish school, when you’re considered an adult, then you can think over this again and decide if you really want to help us, okay?”

“...two years?” Jason asks quietly.

“Yes, two years is all I ask of you, you go to school, study, make friends, maybe even think over what career you would want to work on, then if you still think this way you can help us out on taking down some bad guys, okay?”

Biting his upper lip, Jason pondered over this offer, he didn’t really hate going to school before he died, but he didn’t get good grades since he was always tired from patrolling as Robin, if he goes back he could do good, he wasn’t dumb as the other rich kids thought he was just because he is a street rat. 

“I…maybe, but can I really just go? I’m legally dead…”

Eddie hums. “I will figure out that part later, okay? Question is, do you want this?”

“...yes, I would like to go back to school” He missed it actually, learning stuff he couldn’t when lived in the streets, and reading new books, he liked it.

The man lets out a sigh of relief. “Okay, good, we have been stealing the money from the people we eat, we’ve been gathering it, sooooo, we can move to an actual better apartament, and enroll you in a school”

“Public school…please?” Jason asks faintly. “Rich assholes always looked down on me…” He mutters.

Not only the rich kids but also the rich parents, they knew he was Bruce’s prized street rat son and made sure to let him know how he was nothing without Wayne.

“Rich assholes are also tastier”

Jason lets out a startled laugh at that. 

“V shut up” Eddie deadpans. “But yes, I can enroll you in a public school if that’s what you want”

“Then…I think I can do that…” The kid relents. 

“Alright, you won’t regret it kid” Eddie says fondly as he shuffles the teen’s hair who leans into the touch without thinking. 

Brock felt his heart melt, the kid was really touch starved, did Batman never give the kid some affections?....That's a stupid question, of course he didn’t, the guy was emotionally constipated. 

He placed a quick kiss on the boy’s forehead before standing. “Well, I’m going, it’s been two weeks since we ate, chocolate can only help so far” Eddie says getting ready.

Jason nods, then he eyes Brock analytically. “Uhhh, Eddie? You should probably wear a mask whenever you need to talk to the victims? Some people may think V is too scary, and maybe change your voice? If you don’t have a voice modulator, maybe ask V to change your voice when talking to people?”

Eddie blinks at him slightly taken aback…uh, that’s actually a good idea, the kids and other victims always run away whenever Venom tries to make sure they are okay. “Can do that…V you can do that right? Instead of covering my whole body, just my eyes and month? And change my voice?”

“Yes, Eddie! We can do that!” The alien purrs happily. 

“‘Kay good” Then he turns to the kid with a proud look.  “Thanks for the idea, kid”

Jason just shrugs trying to look nonchalantly about it, but you see he was trying to suppress a smile of appreciation on his face. 

They find the perfect meal for tonight, a rapist, the guy was corerning a woman who was trying to get away from the assailant, but the guy had a good grip on her and started to undress her as she cried for help.

Venom dropped from the building, landing behind the man who screeched at seeing who had interrupted him.

“Oh s-shit, l-listen, it’s not what it looks like!” The man tried to defend himself.

The woman who was still being pinned down to the wall gave the creature a pleading look. “It looks exactly what it looks like! Fucker is trying to rape me!”

The rapist turns to glare at her. “Shut the fuck up you whore! You were asking for this! Wearing shit like this, you expected what!?”

“Hmmm, that sounds very shitty on your part” Venom quips. “But it doesn’t matter, you’re our meal tonight”

“Wait, no! I didn’t do shit wrong!” The human scum lets go of the woman taking a few step back in fear. 

“Liar~” V sing-songs.  

The woman closed her eyes shut tightly, all she can hear is the noise of bones and flesh being chewed for a few seconds, then it’s gone. Shit, the creature saved her, but what if she is the next one he eats?!

“Hey, you feeling alright?” A different voice asks with concern.

She opened her eyes slowly only to be met with a guy wearing black, with a mask covering both his eyes and mouth, his voice was slightly rough.

She was confused for a second, then she notices how his mask looks made of the same slime as the creature who ate that fucker. “...you…you’re human? Oh, I thought you were some kind of monster or alien! You must be a meta then!” She sighs relieved.

Eddie shrugs, may as well play along. “Eh, yeah sure, anyway are you okay?”

“Yes! Thank you so much!I-I thought he was going to–thank you” The woman lets out a shaky breath, then she is fuming in anger. “Fuckers like this one can die for all I care! You won’t hear me complaining you ate that scum, promise” 

“Really? Well, thanks, if you’re feeling alright to go home then I’ll be going”

“Wait! I owe you my life!” The woman eyes him nervously. “I can…do you need any favor? Maybe you want some fun?” She bat her eyelashes at him.

She wanted to pay him somehow, with sex, probably, she looked uncomfortable but used to the idea, it made him feel sick, but this is crime alley, things like this must happen a lot…but if she could owe him a different favor…

“A favor? I see…do you by any chance know anyone who can forge documents?”

The woman looks taken aback at the question. “Uh…I may know someone? Is…is that all you want from me?” She asks suspicious. 

“Yup!”

“Oh…” She looks relieved. “I…yeah, I know a guy, works in the system, he can forge about anything without people getting suspicious, is it for you?”

“It’s for a guy I know, I saved him a while ago” He lies. “He found this homeless kid and offered to adopt him, needs to make the adoption official without involving the regular adoption method, also put the kid in the system, the boy technically doesn’t exist…”

“Uh, that’s kind of wholesome” She whispers, with a silly smile, she expected a lot of things from the rogue who eats criminals, but nothing like this. “Its sweet you want to help them, the kid is safe with this man, right?’’ She asks just to make sure.

“Of course, the kid is in safe hands” He reassures her.

“Good, then, if you have his contact, give it to me, I’ll call him and ask for details and pass it to my friend”

“Thanks, you would be helping me out a lot here”

She waves her hands dismissively. “You did save me from being violated, and I’m helping your friend more than you in this case”

He shrugs. “Still, thank you anyway, and be safe” 

Eddie gave her his number, the woman promised to call when she arrived home to talk to his ‘friend’.

Since they already ate, there wasn't much he needed to do, so he went back home, avoiding cameras as he let Venom merge with his body. 

Jason woke up slowly, he could hear someone speaking quietly, oh, it was Eddie, he came back? When? He didn’t mean to sleep this late, he was supposed  to be useful and take care of their apartment. 

Eddie finishes the call after a few minutes, Jason had heard him talk something about a ‘favor’ and ‘adoption’?

“Hey kid?” The man snaps his fingers in front of him to get his attention. 

He blinks rapidly, finally getting fully awake “Yeah?”

Eddie smirks. “You’re now officially Jason Charles Allan Brock”

The kid’s eyes widened in pure horror. “Jesus, your surname is worse than mine! You have three fucking first names as your surname!”

Eddie rolls his eyes playfully. “Oh, I’m sorry, mister Jason Peter Todd” He retorts with an arched brow. 

The kid flushes slightly. “Hey at least mine was just two!”

“Too bad you don’t like it, it’s permanent” 

“Awww, c’mon!” The kid groans, but internatelly he felt warm, this was really happening, he got adopted by the second time in his life, he just hopes this time it’s better, that as much as he still doesn’t see Eddie as a father, that the man won’t tell him one day that he wasn’t wanted, that he regrets it.

“Yeah, yea, cry me river, now, tomorrow we’re moving to a new apartment, kay? It will be close to this public school I found, the less shitty one I could find, the enrollment has already been dealt with as well, you start next week, enough time to get you the school uniform and school materials” Eddie looks lost in thought for a second as he lists the things they need to buy.

“Ohh, we need to get him books! We saw he likes books!” Venom quips excitedly. “That one by this ‘Jane Austen’, it’s his favorite!”

Jason just feels warm inside, because he can tell that these two strangers are making so much effort to give him good things, one of the differences between him and Bruce, Bruce always had everything easy when it’s about money and stuff like this.

This guy and his alien who he met a week ago, has been more welcoming of him than Dick, Barbara and Bruce ever were. 

He doesn’t want to hope, things can always go downhill any time.

But he was liking being with these two so far.

They have been wandering about aimless without a host, they are not part of the hive, they have been rejected, their parent is dead, Carnage is dead, but that’s okay, they don’t want to be like Carnage so his death was necessary, they want to be good, they can do good!

But they are weak, they need a host, they need to bond with someone, maybe…maybe their ‘grandparents’ - the term that humans use - would accept them, they try to sense them…they are far away, they don’t know where and how to get there, but they just need to reach out ot their link and ask, right?

“Venom” They whisper, hoping it can hear them. “Grandparent? Need help, need home, I can be good, I can do good, can I come home?”

They sense confusion through the link, fear, then anger.

“Who are you?” Their grandparent asks through growl.

“I am….Toxin, I am Carnage’s spawn, I can be good, I want to be good, please?” They plead. 

They are met with silence, they think their grandparent may not like them, understandable, Carnage did try to kill Venom and their host, a host that from the memories they have from when they were still part of Carnage, was the symbiote’s lover, not just any host. 

They wonder, could they find a host who would be accepting of them and not just a host they would use as a mindless husk as intended? They wanted a host, maybe not like his grandparents, but a host who was good, who wanted to do good like them, a host who would accept them.

“Fine” Venom answers after what seems forever, his tone angry but at the same time tired and accepting. “Hurt Eddie and the little one, and we kill you”

They don’t understand at first what he means by that, but then they sees flashes of memories, a small human, hurt, so much hurt, they don’t love him, they regret getting him off of the streets, the clown kept beating him up with that stupid crowbar, they feel him dying then he wakes up, he has been replaced, another Robin in his colors, they don’t want him back.

They feel something burning inside them, oh it’s anger, pure rage, their sibling was hurt, their brother deserved better, they would protect him, would neer hurt him like they did.

“Protect, I protect brother”

“What is it, love? I can literally feel your anxiety” Eddie asks concerned. 

They had just moved to a new apartment, it was nicer than the last one, much larger and less likely to fall apart, Jason was unboxing some of their stuff but stopped to see what had V so tense. 

“...Eddie…we may be grandparents”

The human almost chokes on his own spit. “Excuse me, what?”

“We felt someone reach us, they say they’re Carnage’s spawn”

“Oh God” He feels faint, he sits down to steady himself. “Not another one, what do they want? Want to kill us as well?”

“No, they want to be good, want to do good…”

He frowns. “They…really want that?”

“Newborn, weak, still inexperienced to hide emotions, they mean it, they want to try to be good” Eddie could tell the symbiote was trying to figure out what they should do. 

“Well, shit, we can’t just let them loose and if we can somehow make them not evil…”

“They will need a host…”

“Shit…” 

“Are you two talking about another alien like V?” Jason asks, he had watched them talk silently from his seat at the table, but not he was curious.

“Yes, apparently our last spawn spawned another symbiote before we killed him” Eddies explains, looking twenty years older. 

“Oh, but they want to be good? Unlike their parent?”

“Apparently”

So this was his new parent’s grandchild…and they would need a host, Jason could tell both V and Eddie looked conflicted, like they wanted to give the alien a chance but also were worried over them turning out to be like Carnage, they have told him about their spawn, but he think this one deserved a chance.

“...I could be their host, I guess” He offers, shrugging. 

Eddie and V turns to him with wide eyes. “Kid…that’s, no, no way, that’s too dangerous”

“It could work, but we are not sure it’s a good idea, they could hurt you…”

Jason looks at them firmly. “So what, you’re going to leave them alone? Wandering trying to find a host and maybe turn evil then come after you?”

Eddie lets out a long tired sigh. “...ugh…fine, tell them where they can find us, V”

“...we will kill them if they try anything”

“As if killing Carnage was easy” Eddie mutters massaging the bridge of his nose.

“Does that mean I will have to go out and kill bad guys with you to feed them?” Jason asks way too cheerful.

Eddie gives him a look. “No, we will bring them food from our patrols, nice try, kid”

Jason rolls his eyes.

He felt excited to meet this symbiote, maybe they could get along well.

Hopefully.

Chapter Text

Toxin takes a couple of days to arrive at Gotham, they take over temporary hosts to make their way there, takings buses, trains, as soon as they arrived at the building their grandparents are residing, they quickly jump off from their meat suit and climbing the building until the the third floor entering by the open window.

They enter the building, it looks like a nice place, different from the memories from their grandparent, they must have moved to a new place, the previous one looked ready to fall down, this one looks new and well cared for.

Toxin is met with their human grandparent staring down at him warily, and the teenage boy who they saw through their link was eyeing them with curiosity behind Brock.

“...hey, you’re Toxin, right?” Eddie asks even though he knew the symbiote can’t speak human language in this state.

The blob nods, not moving, afraid of scaring them.

“Okay, listen, this is our kid” Eddie says, pointing to the small human who looks startled by the man’s words for some reason. “He has agreed to let you take him as a host, you fucking dare to hurt him and we will kill you, understood?”

Toxin nods firmly, they would not hurt their newest host, they want to be good, they want to do anything but hurt him, they want to protect them.

“We will know if you want to cause any harm” Venom says with a warning tone.

All they can do is nod again and watch as Eddie hesitantly lets the teen step forward towards the symbiote.

The boy kneels and extends one hand toward them, a clear invitation for them to bond, they just hope they are compatible, for they really wish to be part of this ‘family’, they want to be with someone good.

They crawl into his hand, merging with the boy’s skin, and then they are inside, wrapping their tendrils over the teen’s organs who shiver at the sensation. They make themselves comfortable and chirp happily, because they are compatible!

“Hello?” Toxin greeting their new host in their mind.

The boy fidgest awkwardly and shily answers. “Uhh, hey, I’m Jason”

“I know!” Toxin exclaimed excitedly. “You’re perfect! We are compatible!” 

Toxin feels the boy’s confusion and happiness when they tell him he is perfect, then disappointment when they say they are compatible, did the teen feel like they are not good enough? Like they are not perfect? Who would make him feel like that?

“Thanks?” The boy mutters with a hint of sadness in his voice.

Toxin doesn't like the feeling they feel from their host, they don’t want to pry, so they won’t go through his memories to know what could have caused him to feel like this, but they are also not going to let him believe he is not good enough.  “Perfect! Not just because of compatibility, perfect because you are you! ” They say cheerfully and loudly, their heard popping out of his shoulder so they can face him.

Jason feels confused again, hopeful, then wary at their words. “You’re just saying it to make me feel better, aren’t you?”

“Kid? What is this about?” Eddie asks confusedly.

“Nothing!” Jason quickly says and glares at his symbiote, though inside he was pleading for the alien to not say anything.

Toxin tilts their head to the side, confused as to why his host would not like to share his insecurities but nods.

“Riiiight, liste, we are here if you wanna talk, kay?” Brock asks gently.

Jason nods quickly and ready to move on from this conversation.

“Good, sooo” Eddie looks at the black and red symbiote head on his so–Jason’s shoulder. “You, treat him like a brother, okay? You protect him, love him like family, kay? You two can have your disagreements but do not hurt each other, talk it out and tell us if you need help with anything, okay?”

The kid nods seriously 

Toxin also nods way too excitedly. “Alright grandparent!”

“Call me Eddie…or I suppose ‘dad’ since we kind of are adopting you” Eddie says awkwardly as he scratches the back of his neck.

“What!? Why can’t I be the ‘dad’?!” V says in outrage. 

Brock stared at where V’s head popped out to glare at him. “You can be the ‘father’”

“We think it sounds too formal!”

Eddie rolls his eyes so hard that Jason almost worries they will get stuck like that. 

“Don’t be a baby, I said it first”

“You think it’s too formal too! That’s why you chose first!” Venom accuses.

“You gotta be kidding me—kids go to your room and get to know each other, your father and I have to talk” Brock says pointing at Jason’s new room.

Toxin looks at Jason very confused. “Are they always like this?” They ask in his mind, slightly worried over their grand—their parents fighting. 

Jason who was doing as asked and going to his room nodded. “It’s just how it is, it’s not…it’s not like other parents fight though, they don’t say it to hurt each other…”

Catherine and Willis fighting each other was nothing like this, they would spit words like venom, his father would slap his mother on the best days and beat her to a bloody pulp on the worst days. 

“Did they hurt you too?” Toxin asks out of sudden startling Jason.

“Shit, I forgot you can see or feel what I feel” Jason was already regretting his decision, he was going to lose all of his privacy.

Toxin does not feel hurt by those thoughts, but they do feel bad for the breach of privacy. “I’m sorry…”

Jason immediately regrets his own thoughts. “No, fuck! I’m the one who is sorry, listen you needed somewhere to go, just like me, and I offered to be your host, so I’ll just be a be a big boy and deal with this, I’ll get used to it”

“Are you sure? I can try finding another host if it makes you uncomfortable, I wish to be good”

“No, it’s okay, chances of finding another compatible host is slim if what d–Eddie said is true” Jason sighs. “Sorry, but for real, I’ll get used to it, we are in this together now, ‘kay?”

Toxin could feel the determination coming from the boy, so they nod and smile toothly. “Of course!”

“Good, now, Eddie said for us to get to know each other…I…well I have no idea how to go with this, I wasn’t the best at making friends, but you can see through my memories if you want to know more about me if you want” Jason offers slightly unsure of his own offer.

Toxin ponders over the teen’s words, if he is giving permission…still they want to know from him by talking. 

“What do you like Jason?” Toxin asks curiously, like a toddler who was still covering much about their world around them. 

Jason blinked owlishly in surprise, he didn’t expect the symbiote to ask him that,he just expected the alien to go through his memories like he offered. “Uhh, I like reading and learning new things?”

“Reading?” Toxin seems confused by the concept until it goes into his brother’s memories and lets out an impressed ‘oooooh’. “It sounds fun! Can we read?”

Jason blinks slowly. “Sure, uhhh” He looks at his brother slightly confused. “But can’t you just, I dunno see it through my memories?”

Toxin titles their head to the side like a cat. “Yes, but reading with you will be more fun, right?”

“Hmm” Jason hums thoughtfully then looks at the other side of the room where a bag with a couple of new books was. “You’re right” He takes the plastic bag and takes one of the books out, hands caressing the book cover with a bit of excitement “C’mon, let’s read this one, it’s my favorite, Eddie and V bought it for me yesterday”

“It is a romance, is it not?” They say, from the small information they got from their brother they knew the genre of the book but didn’t go too further into the memories, like they said, they would like to enjoy reading it with their new sibling.

Jason smiles widely. “Yes it is! Romance is uhhh, a human thing? People who like each other more than a friend? Like Eddie and Venom! Romance usually is around two characters falling in love with each other”

Toxin perks up at that, remembering what they saw when they were still part of Carnage. “Ohhhh, I like it, I like what our parents have! Carnage did not like it, not even from his own host who liked the strange human woman, he thought love was a useless emotion, but I think it’s beautiful!”

“Oh…really?” The boy asks, surprised, this alien was born not too long ago and they're already have strong opinions like this without anyone to help shape their mind, it was interesting.

 “...I like romance books” Jason admits, slightly embarrassed, but not too much after hearing his newest brother talk about romance with such awe. “They are nice, I like other genres as well but…I like romance a bit more”

Toxin tendrils spread over to hug their brother at feeling the hesitation on the boy’s words to share this with them. “Then we shall read this one, brother!” They say excitedly but also reassuringly. 

The teen’s eyes shine at the other’s clear interest in reading with him  and also, he felt happy at hearing them call him of ‘brother’ so quickly, and sad because Dick never did....shaking his head he focuses on the present and smiles slightly when he feels Toxin’s worry for him at hearing his thoughts, at least they cared enough to worry.

 “Of course, do you want me to read out loud? I know you can see through my eyes but…”

The symbiote hums, sending a comforting feeling through his body. “Whatever you think is best brother! I wish to know more about this story you like!”

Jason feels his chest warm up at that, nobody ever showed this much interest in something he liked, Bruce used to pretend to care, but he always looked bored out of his mind whenever he babbled about his favorite book to him, and Dick once joked romance was too ‘girly’ for him…so this was a nice change.

“They sound dumb” Toxin blurts out. “Why would it be ‘girly’ to like something so beautiful?” 

It was strange to have his every thought known by someone, but he will have to get used to this.

“I dunno, cuz they are assholes?” He shrugs, trying to sound nonchalantly. 

Toxin feels odd, but he doesn’t like one bit what these people said to his brother. “I don’t like them”

“...me too Xin, me too” Jason whispers bitterly 

Toxin focuses on the nickname “Xin?” 

“Yeah, It’s a better name if I need to talk to you in public and pretend I’m on the phone”

“Ohhh I like it! Can I call you Jay?”

Not Jaylad.

Not Jaybird.

Just Jay, he can accept this one.

“Yeah, sure” The teen opens the book and stares at the page with a small smile. “I think you are going to like this one Xin” Then he begins to read out loud.

And Jason can barely describe it, but he feels the interest, feels the other focus, he can tell Toxin is listening to every word he is saying and that they care to try to understand, to ask questions when they get confused, he feels their excitement, their happens and sadness, and how much they are adoring the story just as much as him.

And that connection? It felt nice.

Felt like he finally had someone who actually listened.

Like he actually has a friend. 

Chapter Text

It’s been a week since Toxin joined their little weird ‘family’, Jason and the new symbiote have been getting along well to the relief of Eddie and V.

The two kids, well kid and symbiote,  have established that if anything they do makes the other uncomfortable they should voice it and do their best to not repeat it.

The last incident had them both take that very seriously…

Toxin had suddenly taken over for the first time, without any warning, it had gone…spectacularly horrible. 

Jason was in the kitchen cooking since Eddie could barely cook anything edible, he liked it, Alfred had taught him how to prepare his meals if ever needed so he had a better time making the food.

It was something silly, he accidentally knocked out the knife from the counter table and Toxin in instinct took over to grab it before it fell to the floor.

It was then that Toxin felt the utter horror and panic coming from their brother, whose screams were muffled under the thicc black and red slime like armor around him.

“Jay?” They asked with concern in their voice through their bond. “What did I do?” Jason doesn’t answer, he just keeps screaming. 

Toxin doesn’t know what they did, their brother’s mind is loud, screaming: “Out, out, have to get out, Bruce? Dad?!” over and over, his hands hurt, his head feels like it’s tearing apart.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you!” They exclaim almost sobbing.

Eddie, who was in the living room, glanced over at them and carefully approached when he saw a fully formed Toxin holding a knife and not moving for a whole minute. “Toxin?” He calls them softly. “What’s going on?”

The younger symbiote turns to him with a shaky voice. “I-I hurt him, dad! I didn’t mean to! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

Brock takes a deep sigh, okay he needs to be calm, V is controlling his emotions to keep them at bay right now, he can’t panic too, V’s head pops out watching with a serene expression and doesn’t say a word. 

“Shhh, just go back in and let me take care of this, okay?” Eddie says calmly. 

Toxin sniffs but nods. “O-Okay!” They slowly merge back into their brother.

As soon as the symbiote is gone back to the backseat, the screams come out, Jason arms go up as he scratches the air, eyes wide in terror.

Eddie is quick to embrace the boy, V wrapped his tendrils around his arms so Jason doesn’t hurt himself nor his host.

Jason’s heart beat was going crazy and Toxin didn’t want to make things worse so they just watched silently and hoped his brother stopped hurting.

It was only a whole five minutes later that the kid stopped screaming and struggling, they were lucky their new house was kinda isolated enough that nobody would come to see what the hell was going on. Eddie guided Jason back from the edge of his panic.

His voice was calm, steady, counting softly in tandem with Jason’s ragged breaths. "One, two, three... focus on my voice, four, five, six... look around, Jason... seven, eight, nine... feel the ground beneath you"

Gradually, Jason's screams faded to sobs, and his struggling subsided. Eddie’s words and presence anchored him, pulling him back to reality. 

He focused on the details around him, the rough texture of the floor, the dim light filtering through the windows, Eddie’s warm, reassuring grip on his shoulder and the strange feeling inside his chest of tendrils embracing his heart and ribcage gently.

It took another few minutes for him to comprehend what had just happened, when it sank in, he looked down in shame.

“What happened, kid? Toxin said they hurt you by accident?” Brock asks carefully. 

V was still silently watching, not wanting to say something wrong, he knew he wasn’t the best with words after all.

The boy’s eyes widened at that. “No! They didn’t!” He is quick to defend them. “I just….ugh! It’s so stupid!” Jason grabs his hair in exasperation. “It’s all my fault, I shouldn’t have reacted that way” 

Toxin was confused and concerned, but then his brother’s mind wasn’t screaming anymore and they could see what exactly they did to set him off, oh…this…they should have been more careful, it makes sense now, they should have thought about it better before taking over like this

When Jason feels the guilt through the bond he feels awful, Xin didn’t need to feel guilty over this. “It’s not your fault! Fuck! This is so stupid!”

“Kid, if it did set you off, it isn’t stupid” Eddie says gently. 

For a moment, the room was filled with a tense silence until V finally spoke up, his usually brash tone softened with empathy. “If you don’t want to tell us, it’s alright too” he said, breaking his silence, his voice surprisingly gentle.

He thinks on not telling them, but they are being so gentle that it made him want to. “I-It’s just… when Xin took over, it felt like I was suffocating, felt like… like when I was buried” He finally admitted, his words trembling as he remembers waking up buried alive. 

Eddie’s heart ached for him, his expression softened. “Oh kid, that’s certainly not stupid” He said softly, his hand squeezing Jason’s shoulder reassuringly.

Jason didn’t know how to feel about that, usually his past parents always said he was too dramatic for his own good, that he reacted too exaggeratedly to things, but here is a man who he knows less than a month reassuring him that it's okay, that they are not mad about how he reacted. 

“You were scared that you were back there?” Toxin asks from his shoulder, finally coming out to speak out loud, their tone was still full of guilt. 

The boy looks at them with a bashful look. “Yeah, sorry I freaked out, it’s not your fault, Xin…”

“I’m still sorry, JayJay” Toxin said gently, leaning in to nuzzle his shoulder like a cat. “I promise, I won’t do it again without warning you first, will do it only when I need to eat”

“Y-Yeah, I think with a warning it may be less bad” Jason says resting his head on theirs. “You need to take over to eat, right? I almost forgot”

“Hey, if it’s triggering to you, we can try figuring out another way” Eddie says looking at V to see if there really is a way, V just nods, already thinking of possible solutions.

“No! It’s fine, I’ll get used to it” Jason exclaims. “I ...maybe we can do it a few times until I get used to it? I don’t want to make things more difficult just because I’m being dramatic”

“Not dramatic, JayJay” Toxin gently scolds him. “But if you are sure we can try, dad and father should be around for it though, in case you panic again”

Eddie gives him a tender look. “Whatever you decide and need, kid” He agrees.

“We will be here if you need us, kiddos!” V says toothly with a reassuring tone. 

And they do help, the next morning they gather in the middle of the living room and the boy asks Toxin to take over, slowly this time, it helps when it slower, it gives him time to process that he is not back in the ground, he still panics the first tries, but eventually after lots of attempts over the week they figure something out.

Not only Toxin has to be slow, but they also need to open a gap so Jason can see outside every two minutes, it makes it more bearable, they make it work.

That same week, Eddie and V brought them their first brain to eat and well, Toxin’s first meal was messy, their parents had brought a decapitated head

While Jason was a bit used to seeing dead bodies, this was a bit too much for his stomach so he ended up throwing up before they could eat.

Toxin had wrapped themself around him as if their tendrils were arms embracing him when he started to hyperventilate, Edddie and V of course were there to help him calm down as well.

Jason and Toxin had come up with the idea of the symbiote blocking his vision and smell senses when they needed to eat, maybe one day they won’t need to do that, but for now, this works.

Eddie and V don’t yell at him to get over it, to try harder, Toxin doesn’t force him to ignore how he feels nor ignores his wishes, it feels odd to have this much support, to not be seen as a dramatic child seeking attention.

He felt like they actually care enough to try. 

And that’s good enough for him.

Chapter Text

Jason was a bit anxious, he would start school today, he was both excited and nervous, it was not the same public school he used to go to when his mother was alive, so there was almost zero chance of people there recognizing him, but he also was adopted by Bruce and shown on TV…

Well, Venom had healed not only his brain damage but also his whole body, so the past few weeks he had a growth spurt, he was taller and his shoulders were a slighter broader.

His hair was a bit longer, reaching his chin, he thought to himself if he should cut it short again but…he didn’t mind having longer hair, may be because Bruce always scolded him for letting his hair get longer, saying it would get in the way when they patrol, so now he just wanted to do the opposite of everything the man said.

“Feeling alright kid?” Eddie asks, concerned

Jason had everything set, his school didn’t have a uniform so he was wearing his usual clothes, he had his bag full of scholar materials, Toxin was doing their best to calm down him nerves from inside. 

“Yeah, just a bit anxious, ya know?” The boy says, trying to look nonchalant..

“If anyone is rude to you, you tell us alright?” Brock tells his kid. 

Venom pops out from Eddie’s shoulder, showing off his sharp teeth. “Yes! Then we will eat them!”

“V, we don’t eat kids” The man scolds his lover lightly. 

Venom tilts his head to the side confused. “Kids? Why would little ones be rude?”

“Oh love, kids can be the most cruel sometimes” Eddie says with a saddened smile. “But I meant to say if they bully you, you tell me, I’ll talk to the schoolmaster about it and the kids’ parents to deal with it, even if you think it’s something silly, you let us know, okay?”

Jason for a moment didn’t know what to say, he was used to being bullied and not telling anyone, he once told Bruce about the kids calling him street rat and all he said is that he would get used to it and to prove he was more than that, so he stopped complaining about the bullying after that. 

“Okay… thanks, dads” He said softly, his voice weak but filled with genuine appreciation.

Eddie smiled softly, recognizing that Jason was still getting used to the idea of being cared for. A flicker of anger rose in his chest, oh how he hated Bruce Wayne for breaking the kid down like this. Next time they crossed paths on patrol, Eddie might just give Batman a piece of his mind… or his fist.

He pulled Jason into a warm embrace, ruffling the boy’s hair affectionately as he did. Instantly, the boy’s tense posture melted, relaxing at the touch. Venom, nuzzled against Jason’s head, adding his own brand of comfort.

“You’ll be alright, kid” Eddie murmured, his voice full of quiet reassurance, after a moment, he pulled back, giving Jason a supportive look. “You ready?”

Jason took a deep breath. "Yeah, let’s go”

Eddie drove Jason to school on his new motorcycle. It was faster and more spacious than the old one, giving Jason plenty of room to feel comfortable sitting behind him. As they pulled up to the front, Eddie glanced back, giving Jason a reassuring smile.

“Good luck, kid” Eddie said warmly. “Remember, call me if you need anything, I’ll be here to pick you up after school” Then he whispered a: " Take care of each other, kay?"

Jason gave a small nod, his stomach twisting with nerves as he hesitantly stepped away from the bike and headed into the school, he walked into the corridors until he arrived at the class that he was going to stay in. 

The door was already open, and the teacher greeted him with a welcoming smile, she had asked him to come a bit later so that everyone had arrived to meet him.

She turned to the class, gesturing for Jason to step inside. “Alright, everyone, we have a new student today, Jason Charles Allan Brock! Let’s all be kind and welcome him!”

Jason felt every pair of eyes lock onto him the moment he stepped into the room, and his stomach churned. A wave of anxiety surged through him, his body freezing up, the only reason he wasn’t having a full panic attack was because Toxin was doing their best to stop it from happening. 

“It’s alright Jayjay!” Toxin tries reassuring him. “Remember, dad said if anyone is rude we can tell him!”

He responds with a quiet "alright" in his mind, and Toxin immediately sends a wave of comfort through his body, soothing some of his tension.

The teacher, noticing Jason’s stiff posture, speaks softly, her voice filled with understanding. “Would you like to introduce yourself to the class?”

Jason quickly shakes his head. The last thing he wanted was to stand in front of everyone and talk right now.

"That's okay! No pressure!” She says gently, her tone warm. “You can take the open seat toward the back”

As Jason moves through the room, the other teens watch him curiously. With his tall frame and hardened expression, they had expected him to be more confident, maybe even cocky. But it was obvious, he wasn’t full of himself, he was anxious, and they could see that. No one had the heart to make fun of him for it.

When J a son sits down, his mind feels like a blur, Toxin whispers reassurances to him, but the anxiety still presses in, heavy and suffocating. There’s only so much his sibling can do.

“Hey, I’m Paul” Says a boy sitting beside him, his voice low and friendly, pulling Jason from his thoughts. The kid has warm, dark eyes and a welcoming smile. “Don’t worry, nobody here’s gonna make fun of you or anything”

Jason glances over, his shoulders still tight, but Paul’s words help. “Jason” He says quietly, still a little shaky but grateful.

Toxin sends him a warm feeling through his body, trying to comfort him. He appreciates it as he relaxes even more at it.

Paul nodded, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, then gestured toward the blonde kid sitting in front of Jason. “This is Joseph, but he goes by Joey, he’s mute, so I’m speaking for him”

Jason blinked, perking up a bit at the mention. “Oh” He said, his voice uncertain but curious. “I know sign language?” It came out like a question, he wasn’t sure if Joey even knew or used it.

Joey’s eyes lit up with excitement, his entire face brightening as he started signing. “Hi! How do you know sign language?”

Jason’s initial tension melted just a little as he smiled.

 Slowly, he brought his hands up and began to sign back. “My previous family liked learning every language they could for some reason, so I picked it up too”

Joey’s excitement didn’t fade. He practically beamed as he signed, his curiosity clear. “That’s so cool! What other languages do you know?”

Jason’s smile grew a bit, though there was a subtle flicker of hesitation when mentioning his past. Still, he answered honestly.

 “Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Japanese, Spanish… among others, my Russian’s the worst, to be honest” He gave a sheepish grin, trying to downplay it.

Paul raised his eyebrows in surprise, whistling softly. “Damn, dude, that’s a lot of languages!” He looked genuinely impressed. “You could teach us sometime, we have Spanish classes here, but I’m shit at it”

Jason chuckled, his anxiety lifting even more in the comfortable exchange. “I could try teaching you, yeah,” he replied, his voice steadier now.

Before the conversation could continue, Paul glanced up as the teacher approached the front of the room. “Oh, class is starting, it’s language arts, by the way” He said, straightening in his seat. “We can talk more at lunch”

Jason nods quickly before getting his English book and a notebook from his bag.

The class goes smoothly, apparently they were talking about literature today, how lucky! He will always love reading, he pays attention really focused, the teacher - Chrys was her name - end the class by giving them some homework, she tells them to pick a book, read it and write down what you think about it and what genre it is and resume the story.

Everyone but Jason groans at that.

“Ohhh we get to read more fun books!” Toxin says in his head, excited by the idea, that makes Jason smile. 

Chrys rolls her eyes playfully. “Relax kids, you have two weeks for this, don’t slack off, okay?”

The teens all chorus a ‘yes’.

The teacher looks at her watch then turns to the class. “Since you all behaved you can leave for lunch bit earlier”

Everyone cheers quietly knowing that if they were loud she would take it back, one by one the students leave, Jason, Paul and Joey are the last ones to leave.

“Hey, do you wanna eat with us?” Paul asked, pulling out his packed lunch from his bag, his voice casual but friendly.

Jason nearly sighed in relief, the invitation lifting a weight off his shoulders. He had been hoping they would ask but didn’t want to impose. “Yeah, sure” he said, trying to keep his voice steady, though inside he was grateful.

Joey, sitting beside Paul, beamed at Jason, his smile wide and bright. Jason couldn’t help but think how cheerful Joey was, his upbeat energy kind of contagious. The  guy was... cute in a way, with his unfiltered joy.

They grabbed their lunch boxes and made their way to the school cafeteria, eventually finding an empty table. They sat in silence for a long, awkward minute, but not an entirely uncomfortable one.

Paul finally broke the silence, his curiosity getting the better of him. “So, as you noticed, I know sign language too” He started, glancing at Jason. “But what did you mean earlier by ‘previous family’?”

Jason stiffened slightly, he didn’t mean to sign that, before he could answer, Joey shot Paul a sharp look and elbowed him hard in the ribs.

“Ow! What?!” Paul yelped, rubbing his side.

“ That’s rude! Don’t just ask that!” Joey signed, his expression serious, frowning at Paul.

Jason smiled sheepishly at the exchange. “It’s okay” He said softly, feeling the tension ease a little. “Well... I was adopted by this guy, but he... he was a shitty dad—”

“You’re not my son”

“I don’t need a teenage rebellion”

“–-my adoptive brother was an asshole—”

“He isn’t worthy of becoming Robin!”

“Kid, you and I? We are no brothers, get it?”

“—so I ran away” He shrugs trying to not look too bothered. “Now I’m staying with another guy”

Paul’s face darkened, his usual light-hearted demeanor shifting into something more serious. “Is he cool? You safe?” Paul asked, his voice low, concern evident in his eyes

“Yeah…he is nice” Eddie is, he never thought he would be so lucky to have a second chance at having a parent again, and the man was tyring his damn best, him and V. “... better than the previous fucker” He finishes slightly bitter at remembering Bruce. 

“Hmm let me know if that changes, ‘kay?” Paul says slightly protective.

Jason doesn’t think the day will ever come that he needs to leave but he nods, appreciating the offer.

They finally start eating after that, both boys stop when they see the new student open his lunch box.

“Did your dad make your lunch?” Joey asks, looking at Jason’s lunch box in awe at how good it looked.

Jason looks up at him, blinking confusedly for a moment. “Oh, no, it was me?”

“For real?” Paul asks, stunned. “This looks so good!”

He flushes slightly at that. “Wanna try it?” He offers. 

“Hell yeah!” Paul grinned wide, making a ‘gimme’ hand motion as if his life depended on it. Jason snorted but obliged, serving a small portion of his lunch to Paul first, then to Joey.

As soon as Paul tasted it, his eyes widened dramatically. “Holy shit, this is top-tier food. What the hell, man?” he exclaimed, almost tearing up, holding the bite in his mouth as if savoring a sacred treasure.

Joey wasn’t faring any better. His eyes were glossy as he chewed slowly, signing with clumsy, excited movements. “So good” He signed, the words almost shaky from the pure joy of it.

Jason’s chest swelled with pride, a small smile tugging at his lips. He hadn’t expected such a reaction, but it felt... good. It reminded him of Alfred, the one part of his old life he genuinely missed. The old man had taught him how to cook, always patient, always with a lesson tucked behind every dish, and ready to scold Bruce when things went too far.

Paul wasn’t done. He looked at Jason intensely, his eyes playful but serious. “Marry me” He said dramatically. “You can be my trophy husband.”

Jason burst out laughing, a rare, full-bodied laugh that seemed to surprise both him and his new friends. Joey definitely did not blush at the sound, absolutely not.

“Buy me dinner first” Jason shot back with a snarky grin.

Paul clutched his chest with exaggerated flair. “Oh, but I’m broke! I’ll have to seduce you in... other ways” He said with a mock-sultry voice, wiggling his eyebrows.

They kept up the banter, trading jokes and quips back and forth. Every now and then, Jason would catch Joey stealing a glance at him, subtly. Then the bell rang and they had to go back to class. 

Science class came and went, not his favorite subject, but manageable. He understood the homework, at least, even if it wasn’t thrilling.

When the final bell rang, Paul and Joey walked with Jason toward the gates. They were going to walk home together, but they lingered, wanting to say goodbye.

Eddie’s motorcycle pulled up right in front of the school gates, and Jason’s heart lifted at the familiar sight. Eddie waved, and Jason gave him a quick signal to wait a minute.

“Uh, that’s my dad” Jason explained, pointing to Eddie, his voice was a little brighter, a little less anxious than it had been earlier. “I’ve gotta go, but it was really nice talking to you guys!”

“Of course, dude, I hope we can be good friends! You’re alright” Paul says winking at him.

Joey offered a warm smile. “See you tomorrow, J” he signed, his hands moving with a certain softness that matched his expression.

“Seeya” Jason replied, feeling a bit more confident as he waved, jogging toward Eddie and the motorcycle waiting for him.

As soon as Jason reached Eddie, Paul’s eyes widened at the sight of the sleek bike.

“Damn, his dad’s motorcycle is awesome, you think he’s rich?” Paul whispered, still watching in awe as Jason hopped onto the bike with ease.

But Joey wasn’t listening. His focus was locked on Jason, eyes lingering a little too long on the boy as he rode off. There was something about the way Jason carried himself, he carried himself as if expecting an attack all the time, it was subtle but he could see how the guy kept looking around as if seeing if it really was safe.

But that wasn’t all that caught his attention, the teen was kind despite whatever he went through, and…very good looking too. 

Paul noticed Joey’s silent admiration and had to suppress a grin. “You think the new kid’s cute, don’t you?” He teased, his voice dripping with amusement.

Joey’s reaction was instant. His face flushed so red it looked like he might actually overheat, his hands flew up to sign aggressively. “Shut up!”

Paul’s grin only widened, thoroughly entertained. “Ohhhh, you do!” He said, dragging out the words, full on teasing..

Joey groaned internally, signing more frantically now. “No, I don’t!” But his furious blushing told a different story, and Paul’s laughter only grew louder as he nudged his friend playfully.

“Admit it, you totally have a crush on him” Paul whispered, eyes twinkling with mischief.

Joey glared, but the soft embarrassment in his eyes betrayed him.

“I mean I can’t blame you…” The other says with a smirk. “...he is kinda hot" He stared at his friend's eyes. "Would”

Paul laughed his ass off when the blond threw a punch at him at that. 

Chapter Text

Joey arrived home to find his older sister in the kitchen. Rose was attempting to make dinner when he approached, she turned to him with a smile.

“Hey there little bro” She greets him.

“Hi” He replied as he looked around with a bit of hope. “ Where is dad?”

Her expression soured slightly. “He is…working”

Ah, of course, working, he is always working, who did he have to kill this time?

He looks down disappointed. “I wish I could help somehow” Not with killing, but to make sure his father wasn’t going to kill someone innocent.

He wanted to be someone good, maybe even become a vigilante, but Slade has turned down his idea to be Jericho really harshly.

Rose sighed, sitting on the chair by the table. “You know why he doesn’t want us in the…family business or anything like that, specially you” 

He looks away, he hates how he was treated like glass sometimes, just because he is mute doesn’t mean he can’t fight or protect himself.

“You remind him a bit of Grant…he doesn’t want you to die like he did, he wants you to have a normal life” She continues. “For us both to have a normal life”

He points to the scar on his throat before signing. “So much for a normal life”

“I know” She sighs tiredly. “He isn’t the best father, far from that, but he is trying with us”

“He can’t even look at me” Joey signs angrily. 

Most of the time when the man is rarely at home, he would avoid looking at him, always looking somewhere else when talking to him, it always made him feel ignored.

“Cuz he sees how much he failed you already when he looks at you, or some shit like that” She points out with a sad frown. “But I’m not here to talk about him, I wanted to ask you how school was today” Rose changed the subject quickly. 

At least he had Rose’s company at home, he thought to himself, they had gotten closer the past few years.

“It was fine, there was a new student” He signed with a smile, appreciating the change of subject. 

Rose looked interested at that. “Oh? Is he nice?”

He thinks of the boy with a strange white strand of hair, teal blue eyes so vibrant when he laughs. “Yes” He signs, unaware he was smiling like a fool 

Rose takes one look at his face and smirks. “...is he cute?” She asks with a teasing tone.

Joseph signs another yes without fully paying attention to the question, when he turns to Rose, she is giving a big smirk and her question finally sinks in, he groans into his hands at that, making his sister laugh loudly. 

“Aww, baby brother has a crush!” She coos. 

The boy was so red in the face he felt like he was going to explode.

“C’mon, don’t be embarrassed little bro!” She says more gently “What made you crush on him?”

He hesitates before signing. “He is just so nice, knows sign language among other languages” Joey’s eyes bright up . “He knows how to cook! His food tastes so good!” Then he looks down as his cheeks heat up. “He is so pretty”

“A pretty boy, uh?” Rose smirks. “Well, I hope he is indeed a good person, or else I’ll kick his ass if he breaks your heart”

Joseph just throws a fork at her at that, earning a mad cackle from his big sister.

Eddie was watching his kid cook dinner, he seemed very relaxed, so he is assuming the day went okay, Jason gets the food ready in a short time, when they finish eating, the small family goes to the living room to spend some time together.

“How was school, kid?” He finally asks, they wanted to give the boy a bit of time without going straight to questions about his first day at school.

“Do we need to eat anyone?” V asks way too cheerfully. 

Jason chuckles. “Nah, It was alright! I was nervous at first but these two guys were really nice to me” Jason tells his…dads, man it’s still so surreal that he has these two as his new parents, he liked it though.

Brock perks up at that. “Oh? Already made new friends? That’s great Jay!”

“I think so! I mean, we just met, but they seemed nice and wanted to spend time with me?” The boy said more unsure.

Eddie’s expression softens at that. “Well, you will be friends in no time then, don't worry about it, kid” He is quick to reassure. “And what about class?”

“We have to read for homework!” Toxin chimes in excitedly, their head popping out of Jason’s shoulder, eyes wide with joy. 

Eddie chuckles at the younger symbiote’s excitement, it was good that they and Jason have something in common that they like.

“Yeah! I need to get a new book, talking about one I already know about feels like cheating…”

“I don’t think it would be cheating, but if you really want I can bring you some new books, when do you need to give your teacher the homework?”

“She gave us two weeks, so there is a lot of time”

“I’ll bring some books tomorrow anyway, that way you'll have time to read more than one an decide which one you wanna write about”

“Thanks dad” Jason and Toxin said together in excitement.  

“What about you guys? How was ‘work’?”

They have been talking about Batman as normally as possible around the kid, Jason wanted them to, he didn’t like feeling awful every time Bruce was mentioned, so talking about the bat as if he was normal everyday thing made him feel more in control.

“Oh, it was okay, as okay as it can be when that bastard keeps trying to take us down” Eddie muttered with a tired sigh, rubbing a hand over his face. “The bat was going on about how we’re not supposed to be judge, jury, or executioner, you know, same old spiel, he tried to say some other shit, I don’t know, we tuned him out and left while he was still reciting his little morality monologue”

Jason snorted at that. “Oh hell yes, old man must be pissed off you fucked off before he could finish his rant” 

“Can’t we really eat him? He is so annoying” V whined. 

Jason smiled at him with amusement but said seriously. “As much as getting rid of the old man would be amazing, Gotham unfortunately needs him…that and the Justice League would come here to take you down if he dies, you do not want the whole JL after you two, you guys may be strong, but against the whole League? No offense but you two would end up either dead or behind bars if they decide to intervene”

“We could take them! Eat them all!” V exclaimed. “Right Eddie?”

Brock grimaced at that. “I think Jay is right, love, the League is full of powerful people, I don't think we could go against them”

Venom growled, his voice vibrating through Eddie’s skull like an annoyed thunderclap. “You underestimate us, Eddie! We are strong! We are powerful! We do not fear the League!”

Eddie pinched the bridge of his nose, already feeling a headache coming on. “V, babe, I love you, but this isn’t some Saturday night brawl with some two-bit thug, we’re talking about Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, you really think we can take on an alien god, an Amazon warrior, and a guy who can punch us a thousand times before we even blink?”

Venom made a displeased hissing sound. “Hmph, they may be strong but we could—”

“No, V” Eddie cut him off, firm but tired. “Look, I get it, you don’t like backing down, but this isn’t a fight we can win, if the League decides we’re a problem, they won’t just fight us, they’ll take us apart and that means…” He hesitated, his expression darkening. “That means we’d never see Jason and Toxin again”

Venom went quiet at that. 

Jason’s breath hitched at the thought, he really didn’t want to lose then, V and Eddie were not the type of people he expected them to be as parents, but they were still his family, they saved him, and they have been taking care of him, they….they actually seemed to give a shit about him, always making sure he was comfortable and that he had everything he needed, they treated him and Toxin like actual family and not just their responsibility.

He can’t lose them.

“JayJay, it’s okay” Toxin whispered in his mind, their voice warm and steady, a soothing pulse spread through Jason’s body, easing the tension in his shoulders. “Dad and V aren’t going anywhere, they would never leave us”

Jason exhaled shakily, feeling the reassurance seep into him through their bond. “Thanks, Xin” He murmured back.

Eddie watched him carefully before patting his shoulder again. “You good? I’m sorry, V and I are not fighting…just discussing, V needs to understand we can’t win every fight”

Jason nodded, forcing a small smirk. “Yeah, just… y’know, don’t go picking a fight with the entire Justice League, alright?”

Venom grumbled but didn’t argue. “Fiiine, but if the bat keeps annoying us, I reserve the right to at least bite him”

The boy snorted. “That I can allow” His voice still had concern in it. 

“We are sorry little ones, we are not leaving you” V reassures them, Venom could be more perspective than they give him credit for. “We won’t get in trouble if that means it will keep us apart”

“Thanks dad” Jason whispers, feeling more relaxed at V’s decision.

He understood how hard it was for the symbiote to back down, how resisting a fight went against its very nature. But here V was, choosing to do so, not for himself, not even for Eddie, but for Jason and Toxin. The realization warmed Jason’s chest, a quiet reassurance that, despite his instincts, the alien was putting their well-being first. 

And that? That meant more than he could put into words.

“Aside from B, anybody giving you trouble in your hunts?” Jason decides to ask, not wanting to dwell much in the previous subject.

Eddie makes a face at that. “There is this guy, Deathstroke I think is his name, some people put a hit on us, so he has been trying to hunt us down, but I think he is more curiou about us than actually trying to kill us”

“Oh Slade” Jason rolls his eyes. “He is like that, if you caught his attention then he will be a pain the ass, I remember that he was obsessed with Richard at some point”

“Oh great, so we got the attention of a creepy guy, just great” Eddie muttered feeling sudndely tired.

“Can we eat this one?!” V asked hopeful. 

“...maybe?” Jason frowned as he thought about it. “I mean, he isn’t on B’s side, so maybe having around could be useful?”

Edde nodded in agreement. “Keep him alive for now, got it” 

“Bah!” V groaned annoyedly. “The tasty ones always get to live…”

Brock gave his partner a sympathetic look, bringing one hand up to pat the black blob. “There there, love we will find you a rapist to eat tonight and lots of chocolate and Tater Tots”

“Yes! You treat us so well, Eddie” The symbiote purred, giving the human a hungry look. “That’s why we love you~”

“Uhhhh we are going to our room” Jason said loudly as he got up from the couch and left quickly.

The last thing he wants to know is how a symbiote and a human make out. 

“What is ‘making out’?” Toxin asks confusedly.

Jason freezes on his tracks. “Uhhhh”

Toxin sees flashes of images of people from movies passionately kissing one another. “...that looks disgusting” 

That has him snorting. “It does, doesn’t it?”

Kissing was a very weird thing to him, it always looked so messy and uncomfortable—

“They had the same look that Joey had when looking at you, does that mean he wants to make out with you too?”

–he was glad that Toxin thought the same and—

“Wait what?”