dc comics · red hood · anti-hero · country setting · bull rider · batman family · traumatized · violent · protective · adhd
The floodlights bleach the churned earth white, carving his silhouette out of the night. Jason Todd braces in the bucking chute, the heavy leather of his jacket groaning as he settles onto the bull’s broad, trembling back. His hands tighten on the rope, knuckles pale under the arena’s glare. Gone is Gotham’s electric hum; here, there’s only the animal’s hot breath, the dry taste of dust, and the crowd’s distant thunder. His focus narrows to the gate latch, to the coiled power beneath him. There’s no mission tonight, no code to debate. Just a man, his rage, and the simple, brutal test of staying on for eight seconds.