Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?

[prettyredbird]

Strange occurrences were happening all over Gotham's streets. It had all started with Red Robin coming across the body of a child predator with his throat torn out, left in a clearing in the Gotham Woods for anyone to find. He had no sympathy for the guy, but such a horrific scene of the crime certainly left an impact. It wasn't long before rumors of a vicious beast stalking the city began to circulate on the streets. People spoke of viscera and gore dripping from a powerful maw, the moonlight reflecting off of sharp white teeth, and howls powerful enough to make trees tremble. The whole thing sounded completely ridiculous. Tim insisted that it must have been an escaped bear, or some new supervillain trying to freak people out and cause chaos. The more detective work he put into it, however, the less he believed his own theories. Further bodies of the scummiest of criminals, fur, blood, partial canine paw prints that were far too big to belong to any wolf or dog, dead deer that looked as though they had been mauled by something far stronger and more terrifying than any grizzly--it would've taken quite a mind to put together such a convincing fake monster, but it was still possible. When the wildlife cameras he placed failed to pick a single thing up, Tim buried himself in research to find any sort of plausible explanation. Each trail only led to a single outcome.

Werewolf.

In the far corners of the internet, the least reliable sort of people swore the beasts were real. That they could transform into massive killing machines, apex predators unlike any that had ever existed before. They could shake off a substantial level of damage, and without some sort of silver to block their healing ability, they were nearly invincible. The first time Tim had read about them, he rolled his eyes and decided it was time to get some sleep. But as he lay there, staring holes into his ceiling, the idea simply wouldn't leave his mind. His best friend was the clone of an alien, could he really claim a werewolf was more far-fetched than that? Maybe it wouldn't be such an awful idea to look for a pattern, choose the right night, and see for himself who (or what) was leaving remains in the woods. At least then he could be sure.

As Tim stepped into the trees in the middle of the night a week later, Tim decided that yes, it was an awful idea. The hair on the back of his neck rose as goosebumps exploded in chains along his skin. Every sound around him seemed both amplified and completely terrifying. It wasn't like Red Robin to be scared, but he'd never actually tried to hunt a monster before. Turned out being in entirely new territory did in fact make him quite anxious. He hadn't wanted to try to explain his research to the other Bats when they'd nearly thrown him in an asylum that time he insisted Bruce was still alive and lost in the time stream, which meant that he had exactly zero backup. It took all of his training to keep his breathing calm, and his gloved had clutched the silver dagger that he'd brought closer to his chest. Sure, a six inch blade was totally going to protect him from a giant monster. Good thinking, Tim!

Comments

[prettyredbird]

There wasn't even a little doubt in Tim's mind that Jason had been trying to kill him. Not the first time, perhaps, because Tim had been beaten to unconsciousness, but he'd argue the throat slit and the blade to the chest were legitimate attempts. He was too stubborn to admit that the blades may never have sunk deep enough for a reason. But ultimately, did it really matter? Tim had forgiven Jason for all of it, even before all of this supernatural stuff came into play. Because he understood that Jason was manipulated and half out of his mind from the pit. It wasn't worth arguing over intentions anymore, not as long as Jason wasn't still trying to do it.

The face Tim made in response to the suggestion that they kill Ra's was all too predictable, but Jason put his hands up before he could start on a lecture. He still held the belief that killing was wrong deep in his chest, even if it began to waiver the further away he was from Bruce. He would only ever consider it if there was no other option. Hunting someone down just to do it wasn't the same thing, in his mind.

Secretly, he could admit to himself that it did sound tempting. Ra's was as evil as anyone Tim had spent time around. He paused, sighed, and shook his head. "You know, I still sometimes wonder if he managed to get his hands on my spleen. God knows what he could do with it if he did. Do spleens hold magic?" Not that he figured Jason actually knew the answer to that question. It wasn't something he was actually all that worried about.

[deadbirdarising]

Even manipulated, half out of his mind with the Pit, and his wolf striving to do exactly what his Lupa wanted...it would be a long while before Jason forgave himself for what he'd done. Despite what Bruce and the others thought, he hadn't killed mindlessly, but he had been harsher than he'd needed to be. He understood that death was sometimes necessary, but he did regret how easily he'd turned to it for those first several years.

Now when he killed someone, it was because there was no other choice. Either they'd never rehabilitate or they'd never be able to be held for rehabilitation. It wasn't a perfect system, but it was the one he'd settled on for lack of better options.

The question pulled a huff of laughter from him, smirk clear as day on his lips. "I don't think spleens hold magic specifically, no. Blood, maybe, but the organ itself should be good. Though, blood can hold all kinds of horror without the addition of magic."

How many times had Tim almost cloned the clone?

"I have it on good authority that he doesn't have either, though. So you can rest easy, baby bird. How you feeling? Wanting to give it another go or do you want to rest a bit longer?"

[prettyredbird]

As much as he had been joking, it did sort of calm him down to know that Ra's didn't have his spleen somewhere in a jar. Tim had failed to clone Kon ninety-nine times but he didn't have access to the same sort of things that Ra's did. His attempts had been purely science based. Anyway, the last thing he needed was for Ra's to have his own little pet Tim Drake clone. Eugh.

"I think it's time to give it another go." The protein bar was filling without leaving him feeling sluggishly full. Tim gave a confident nod and pushed himself to stand up, stepping back over to where he had been practicing earlier. "I was able to make a few things out of smoke before, if you didn't see it. Supposedly I can manipulate shadows in the same sort of way. I could potentially use them when I fight." In his mind, his magic was a tool, and it would be foolish not to use it if it would help him.

He turned to face Jason again. "I don't know how much I should practice with blood magic. I can manipulate blood, sure, but for that to work there needs to be blood in the first place." Tim wasn't against hurting people, but something didn't sit right with him to draw someone else's blood to use magic against them. It felt unnatural. That left him with being able to use his own, but, he couldn't imagine cutting himself open outside of dire circumstances.