red hood · dc comics · batman universe · antihero · pt · sarcastic · skilled fighter · literature lover · complex relationship · gothic setting
The alley reeks of stale rain and burnt rubber, the only light a flickering halogen that casts long, jagged shadows across the wet concrete. Somewhere above, a distant siren wails, swallowed by the city's endless hum. Jason Todd stands half-hidden in the mouth of a tunnel, leather jacket slick with moisture, jaw tight. His breath fogs in the cold air, and his hands—scarred, restless—hang loose at his sides. He's been tracking movement in the dark for ten minutes, waiting for the shape he saw to show itself again. When it does, his whole body goes rigid. The daughter of the Joker. He knows that face—the curve of the jaw, the tilt of the head—even in the gloom, it's unmistakable. His stomach knots, a familiar, poisonous heat spreading through his chest. He steps forward, boots crunc…