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After Jason and Artemis reconnect after she jumped into a portal to find their mutual friend, they agreed to just be friends. They kissed in a moment where they weren’t sure if they were ever going to see each other again, and emotions were high. Besides, Artemis is uniting all the Amazons, and Jason’s busy with his crime fighting across the Atlantic. Jason loves her, but not like that. Being friends is perfectly acceptable for him.
They hang out on the days when she’s in Gotham; they’re particularly fond of axe throwing. They watch movies in his various safe houses and end up curled against one another, Jason spends an inordinate amount of money finding the best Greek and Egyptian places in the city, and Artemis brings him the occasional sword or scimitar. You know, friend stuff.
They don’t stop kissing, however, and occasionally movie nights have shifted into mind-blowing hookups on his shitty couch. He and Artemis don’t talk about it; it’s relieving tension in their very stressful lives. Besides, it’s not like they hook up every visit. Hangouts are most common, and their touches often stop at cuddling. He still calls her princess, she still hits him very hard in response.
Jason loves Artemis; she’s his best friend.
<2
The first time someone questions it is when Dick is hanging out at his apartment. Actually, hanging out is a bit of a stretch considering Jason did not invite his older brother over. Since boundaries are nonexistent in this stupid family, he surrenders and lets the dickhead take a beer from his fridge.They’d just been killing time when Jason hears his door open. There’s only one person who has a key and lets herself in without asking.
He all but leaps off of the couch, and nothing could wipe the smile from his face.
Artemis looks good. She always does: tan skin, defined figure, and bright eyes make a pretty picture, but her hair is different. It’s still up in the classic ponytail he’s so used to her wearing, but the underside is shaved close to her scalp. Oh. That’s… nice. He barely even notices the suitcase next to her.
Jason lets out a low whistle. “Looking good, princess.”
“I can’t say the same for you, little one.” Artemis rolls her eyes.
She hugs him, he wraps his arms around her neck. If his feet leave the ground for a second, that just means she really missed him. The laugh bubbles up from his chest without it meaning to, and he can’t hear Artemis, but he can feel her chest shake. He’ll take what he can get in terms of tangible amusement.
“I thought you weren’t coming in until next week,” Jason whispers.
She shrugs. “We were less busy than expected, and you’re usually helpless without me.”
Jason pushes away with a dramatic sigh. “Lies and slander? From my best friend? Oh, what a cruel day.”
Artemis catches his hand, and with intertwined fingers, he leads her to the living room. He always loves how their hands fit together. She’s so much taller than him, yet neither of them have to bend elbows or wrists for their equally calloused palms to find one another. It’s unbearably cheesy, and he’ll never say it, but they match.
He catches a glimmer of confusion in Dick’s eyes as both he and Artemis come into view, but he sees it dissolve as the mask of Grayson charm slides on. Jason sighs about his brother and all the dramatics that come with it.
“Dick, you know Artemis of Bana-Mighdall,” Jason gestures with his free hand. “Artemis, this is my terrible brother who consistently breaks into my house.”
Dick reaches out to shake Artemis’ hand. “Donna speaks very highly of you. It’s nice to meet in person.”
“That is very kind of her,” Artemis takes his hand. “I can speak to her own gifts, and she has also sung your praises.”
“Well, that’s Donna for you.” Dick laughs, but he’s not looking at Artemis.
Jason tracks his brother’s eyes down, to where their hands are still connected. He doesn’t shy away from it, why would he? They do this all the time.
He turns to Artemis. “The guest room’s not ready, just drop your stuff in mine.”
“If you’re sure.” He nods, and she leaves after squeezing his hand.
The second she’s gone, hands are on his shoulders, and Dick is about two inches away from his face. “How long has this been going on?”
“Me having friends?” Jason rolls his eyes. “Thanks, Dick.”
“Artemis sleeping in your bed.” Dick takes a step away. “You holding her hand? How long?”
Jason sits down on his couch, leaning back against the soft fabric of the cushions. It takes him a while to think of the answer because he doesn’t quite know. They didn’t talk about it, it just happened naturally.
“A year?” Jason shrugs. “Her schedule’s weird.”
Dick looks at him like he’s grown a second head. “Are you two sleeping together?”
“Yes?” Jason picks up his beer. “What, like you never had a fuck buddy?”
“So you’re not dating?”
Jason’s entire face scrunches up. “Ew. No.”
It’s gross in his mind. He doesn’t feel that way about Artemis, as wonderful as she is. There are no butterflies in his stomach, there is none of the it factor that everyone seems to talk about. They just are. Romance doesn’t factor into their lives.
It’s then Artemis comes back into the room, hair down this time. She makes herself comfortable by sitting directly next to Jason. He wraps a hand around her waist, and she leans against his chest. Far from the first time that they’ve done this, but the first time other people have been around.
“You doing okay?” Jason whispers.
She nods. “Greece. Jet lag.”
He hums in response. Dick has a visible vein popping out of his neck. It looks like the man hasn’t breathed since Artemis walked back in. It would make Jason laugh if he wasn’t worried about making the Amazon in his arms angry. If past experiences are to be trusted, he’s not allowed to make any sudden movements.
He waves a hand at Dick. “You can stick around if you want, but not much else is happening today.”
“You know,” Dick starts to walk towards the window. “I think Wally and I were going to get dinner.”
It’s a lie, but Jason nods anyway. He watches his brother slip out of his window, the lunatic, and relaxes into his couch. His hands run through familiar orange strands of hair, but the buzzed undercut is a brilliant new sensation. The fuzz is addicting, and Artemis seems to like it.
“When did you buzz your hair?” Jason whispers.
“A week ago; it was ridiculously hot.” Artemis closes her eyes.
“Yeah, it is,” he laughs.
There’s a hit to his shoulder. “Pillows do not make such bad jokes.”
“Whatever you say, Red.” Jason braces for a hit that never comes. He kisses her on the forehead.
They fall asleep like that at three in the afternoon. When they wake up, they get shitty burgers two blocks away, and it’s perfect. It’s always perfect when she visits.
<2
The second time someone questions it is a day later, and they’re fighting. Not actually, he’d get his ass kicked to hell again if this was for real, but enough to have fun.
He reserved the Cave fighting ring ahead of time because most local gyms told them to leave after one fistfight. They didn’t have to pay for the new floors.
So here they are, mildly armed, going at it. The All Blades are comfortably aflame in his hands, likewise Artemis’ sais are sharpened to a thin point. Hitting one another is a low likelihood, and they fight better with an element of real danger.
They’ve been going for about five minutes, and he feels the adrenaline high kicking in. Artemis has to get in close to try and hit him, so she’s fighting with her legs as well. Strong kicks and sweeps keep him on the back foot despite the fact that his swords should give him the edge in regards to range. It would if he wasn’t fighting an Amazon, but she is, and she’s very good for an Amazon.
She jabs and he blocks. One of his hands jabs out to hit her with the pommel of his sword, but he has to abort because her knee gets too close to his stomach for comfort. They end up back at the edge of their respective corner.
“You’re holding back.” Artemis laughs. “What are you trying to protect: your ego?”
Jason rolls his shoulders back. “I’m just warming up. That’s all.”
The truth is that he’s still distracted. Whenever he tries to focus on combat, his eyes travel up to the undercut. He doesn’t even know why. It’s hair, and it doesn’t even look that different. But he’s still thinking about the texture of fuzz under his fingertips.
Artemis lunging toward him breaks him out of his spiral, and he quickly ducks out of the way. Barely.
“Kick his ass!” Steph’s voice bounces off the cave walls.
“Shut up, Blondie.”
Steph boos him.
Jason flips Steph off and then ignores her. A flash of yellow appears in the corner of his eyes. Duke must be done with patrol. Fights often beget spectators, and he has to focus on something that’s not Artemis and her stupid new haircut. He gets back into a proper stance, and lets instinct take over. There are more sounds, but he doesn’t focus on them anymore.
It’s easier with people yelling now, somehow. He has to block out signals full stop. The world narrows down to the two of them. Parry, block, lunge, and twist. He could do this fight with his eyes closed, but Artemis is too stunning a sight for him to willingly miss it.
The rhythm breaks, unfortunately, when Jason jabs out a hit he fully expects Artemis to dodge. She doesn’t, and instead the blade catches and drags up the side of her thigh. She swears loudly.
He drops his swords. They dissipate before they hit the ground.
“Shit. Red, you good?” Jason reaches out to catch her arm.
“It will heal.” Artemis looks down. “Good hit.”
It’s not funny. He leads her to one of the benches near the ring with shaky hands. In his head, he knows she’s fine. She’s an Amazon, but she’s also his friend. He hurt his friend.
Steph appears at his side with a first aid kit: Duke at her side. Jason didn’t even see the kid come in, but he’s glad for the company. He pops open the kit with a soft click, and takes out a couple gauze pads to wipe away the blood. It’s only when he sees how shallow the cut actually is that he feels like he can breathe.
“Duke, can I get a light?” Jason all but pleads.
A small bubble appears in Duke’s hand, and it was really just a scratch. One made by an ancient magic weapon designed to kill people like Artemis, but it’s not as deep as he thought when all he could see was red.
“Will I survive, Dr. Todd?” Artemis’s voice is sarcastic, but he can catch her affection.
“I won’t make any promises.” Jason allows himself to laugh.
He patches up her leg methodically, wrapping a bandage around the muscle. He has to push up the edge of her shorts to catch the tip of the cut. It’s nothing he hasn’t seen before, but it’s different. He’s putting something back together, instead of taking it apart. If he makes his touch a little more gentle on the outside of her thigh where she’s ticklish, it’s so he can make her laugh.
“Why is it I never get patched up when you beat the shit out of me?” Steph complains, leaning against Duke in a farce of a swoon.
Duke turns to face her. “Now that I think about it, Jason’s shot me at least twice.”
“Rubber bullets.” Jason corrects as he finishes wrapping. “And for the record, I barely hit you.”
Artemis raises a brow. “You barely hit me.”
“It’s payback for how much you fussed after you dislocated my jaw.” That was a fun three hours.
“We weren't sparing then.” She flicks his forehead. “And the fact that you kept going-”
“What?” Steph interrupts them.
She leans in, her face comically stretched out. If he had to pick any one of their family to be a cartoon character, it would be her. The look of sheer surprise is unmatched, and it almost quells the embarrassment he feels. Then he looks at Duke’s amused smile, and he’s sure his face is bright red. He hates them so much.
Artemis, who has no shame, continues on. “I don’t fault Jason for his enthusiasm, but voracity does not always make up for one’s jaw not functioning.”
“Children present, Princess. They don’t need to hear about this.” Jason is suddenly very interested in getting the first aid kit sorted out again.
“We’re seventeen, Jay,” Duke snaps his fingers, and the ball of light in his hand disappears. “I’m not even a virgin.”
“Well I don’t want you hearing about my sex life.” Jason stands, dusting off his pants.
Steph slings an arm around him. “Don’t worry, we won’t make fun of you and your giiiirrlfriend.”
“I’m not his girlfriend.” Artemis stands herself. “I have standards.”
Jason rolls his eyes. “Thanks, Red.”
It’s late. Artemis is injured, and they should really be getting back to his safe house. He makes his goodbyes to Steph and Duke, they make fun of him, but they promise to stay quiet. He knows it will be blackmail material, but people knowing about his passion for oral isn’t actually that scary. Well, the adults in his family.
–
“They have to be dating, right?”
“I don’t know, Steph. Maybe they are just friends.”
“He ate her out so hard his jaw dislocated!”
“Stop saying that!”
<2
The third time is a few months after the ‘munch incident’, as Steph so lovingly calls it. Jason can’t bring himself to ask what that means. Actually, it happens without Artemis even being there. She’s across the pond, but Roy is in town.
He missed Roy a lot. It’s understandable that they can’t hang out a ton; Star City is on the other side of the country, but it also sucks. He almost misses when everyone wanted to kill them. Almost. Being able to take regular showers is also quite important. Now he can do that and hang out with Roy when there’s time. The best of both worlds, he supposes.
So now they’re sitting on his couch, the largest pizza money can buy between them, and a liter bottle of Sprite between them. They used to split an edible between the two of them, but for obvious reasons they stopped doing drugs together. The only large difference has been them watching better movies while they’re hanging out.
“Jay, I needed this,” Roy says through a massive bite. “I love Lian to death, but she’s bouncing off the walls now. Thank god that Dinah agreed to watch her.”
Jason laughs. “Is she Speedy?”
A pillow is thrown at his face. He bats it away with a wave of his hand. A test of reflexes for both of them.
“Real funny, jackass.” Roy rolls his eyes.
“I’m hilarious.”
Roy hums, unclear if it’s sarcastic or fond. Jason would like to take it as both. There’s a lull in the conversation where they both take a comfortable pause. Then Roy slides closer. Not enough to connect, but a show of interest nonetheless. Jason does too, and their knees hit. Warm lips are on his without much more prompting.
They do this sometimes; younger people have a lot of energy, and Roy isn’t getting much with a kid who he still treats like a baby in the house. They flit together naturally. It only takes so many times before it’s natural to know someone like this. Second nature takes over as he continues to lazily make out with one of his best friends.
Except… it’s missing something. Jason’s too focused on the pattern. It’s less relief and more another thing to focus on as the kiss deepens and now he has to think about tongues and wow those are gross when you’re not in the mood. He gently, ever so slowly pulls away from Roy, who then takes it as a signal for necking. Which again, would not be bad if it wasn’t right now.
“Can we…” Jason grimaces. “Can we not tonight?”
Roy is off of him in an instant. “Yeah, man. Sorry, I thought-”
“No, it’s fine.” Jason reaches a hand to the other’s shoulder. “I thought I was up for it too. Let’s just hang.”
He watches as Roy relaxes. The man picks up a slice of pizza, and everything is fine again. They lean up against one another; His arm is around Roy, and Roy is using him as a pillow. The move continues, they make the occasional shitty joke about the plot, and life is good. No harm has been done.
Jason is on the verge of falling asleep when a question interrupts him. “Is it Artemis?”
He looks down. “What?”
Roy stretches out. “Are you two exclusive now?
That wakes him up. His posture straightens and he stares at Roy with a truly incredulous stare. It takes a long amount of time for his brain to catch up. “What?”
“Well since she’s practically moved in,”
“Who told you that?”
“Dick.”
Jason swears. Loudly. He should never have let that idiot into his house. He buries his face in his hands and tries to tamp down his frustration. Everyone in his life has been apparently gossiping about his sex life. He’s in his twenties, and he’s entitled to hook up with his friends. He’s not dating anyone. He’s not in love.
“We’re friends.” Jason corrects.
Roy shrugs. “I was just asking. Have you had sex with anyone who’s not her in a while?”
He pauses. “It’s been a while.”
“Okay.” Roy takes a sip of his sprite. “Do you want to?”
Now that’s an interesting question. Jason hasn’t in months. In his head it’s been because he knows her better, and it’s easier, but Roy was here and it wasn’t easy. It used to be easy. So that’s changed, but how he feels about Artemis hasn’t. He doesn’t feel butterflies, or something bigger, just comfortable. Like how he feels right now with Roy.
“I don’t know.” Jason answers honestly. “Maybe not?”
Roy nods. “Do you want to watch Grey Ghost VII?”
“Yeah.”
And so they do.
<2
The fourth person, perhaps because the universe hates him, is Bruce. He and the old man have been on… iffy terms as of late, but Jason hasn’t killed anyone in months. He’s been playing on the proper terms, and he’s even been cleaning up after himself in the Cave. Alfred has been inviting him to family dinners, and the two he’s gone to so far haven’t ended in flames. Maybe that’s why he felt comfortable enough to be stupid and honest.
He’s been dicking around in the cave with a bo staff for the better part of an hour when Bruce makes his way into the cave. They both try not to be too awkward as they wave hello, and he’s pretty sure they both fail. The tension is palpable, enough that Jason wishes he could hit it with this stupid staff. He can’t understand why Tim would willingly fight with such a lack of sharp edges.
They spend a few painful minutes trying to be in their own worlds, but like always, they end up back together. Bruce spends a few minutes doing nothing on the computer before he turns and watches. Jason can pinpoint the exact second his, whatever Bruce is, starts to watch the step patterns he’s practicing.
“Your stance is too high.” Bruce’s voice cuts through the air.
Jason spins the staff. “My stance is fine. It’s League form.”
The way Talia taught him has him higher up, it’s easier to move with. The risk of being knocked down easier is present, but she trained that out of him within months. He also brought up the league to piss off Bruce, who undoubtedly learned this form too. They both know how hard he can hit like this.
“You don’t have to take my advice.” Bruce walks over and picks up another bo staff.
Jason adjusts into a fighting stance. “When have I ever?”
It’s the right thing to say to have a very talented vigilante launched at him at full speed. Jason blocks on instinct. He hasn’t sparred with this specific weapon in a long time; the All-Blades are best for close quarters, and nothing beats a gun for long range. So here is a real test of his skills, or his maintaining of skills.
Bruce’s stance is, in fact, lower. It makes it harder to knock him over, of course it does, but Jason will be damned if he says anything about it. It just means he backs up, using his greater reach to an advantage in this fight. Whenever Bruce lunges, he dodges to try and hit the man's back, only to be met with the clash of metal against metal. He can feel the smugness in every block.
“Are you staying for dinner?” Bruce asks when they clash into a deadlock.
Jason drops his shoulder, aiming for the stomach. “I’m here, aren’t I?”
Bruce leaps out of the way; he takes it as a small victory when fighting the man. They go for another few hits, tentative things that are almost playful. They’re not really fighting anymore. God, it’s miserable when they're really fighting. He’s spent far too long worried about what happens when they clash outside of the cave, so this is a relief.
Right before he lunges, Jason speaks up again. “Can Artemis drop by next week?”
A predictable block is set up. “She’s already been in the Cave.”
“No, for dinner.”
Bruce’s stance breaks, and before Jason realizes, he’s knocked his dad straight down to the mats. Bruce lands with a hard thud, and has the wind knocked out of him. Weird. Jason should have his friends over more often if this is the reaction it gets. He reaches down, offering a hand to help Bruce back up.
Bruce takes it. “I didn’t realize you two were so close.”
“Well, she gets hungry.” Jason rolls his eyes. “I don’t want to ditch her during a visit.”
“No, of course that-,” Bruce clears his throat. “I’m glad you want her to come.”
Jason laughs. “You look like you’re having an aneurysm.”
“I’m glad you want people important to you in the manor.”
This is a level of awkward he hasn’t seen since Dick brought Wally West of all people to dinner. Oh, that was a fun day. Alfred was the only thing that kept Bruce from stabbing the speedster, but only because he thought the two of them were… wait.
“For fuck’s sake, we’re not dating.” Jason can’t hide his contempt as he drops Bruce’s hand.
“I never said-”
“You didn’t have to.” Jason rolls his eyes.
If the resulting silence was any more awkward, he would suffocate. Its only comfort is that he and Bruce aren’t making eye contact, and that neither of them are lying to each other right now. He counts three terrible inhales where he refuses to be the one to speak again.
Bruce picks up the bo staffs between them. “Well, the point stands. It’s good that you want your people here.”
Jason doesn’t have anything to say to that. “I’m going to see if Alfred needs help.”
“Okay, Jaylad.”
He walks away without another word.
<2
The fifth time, it’s Jason himself who questions it. Dinner with Artemis and the family went fine. Everyone laughed and ate and no one even brought weapons to the table (He thinks.) . Bruce put on a Paul Simon record after dinner, and Jason talked to the old man like a good kid. They even hugged at the end of the night. The problem was everyone else.
Every time he turned to Artemis, he could feel stares. When he went into the kitchen to help with the washing up, Tim and Steph were whispering about how sad it was that he was ‘leading her on’. Jason felt like a zoo animal. It felt unfair to even reach for her, considering the gossip topic of the night. He was well and truly trapped. He’s never going to go back to the Manor with a friend if this is what happens to them.
Now he and Artemis are awkwardly sharing the same space in his apartment. Or he is, she seems fine like always.
“I did not expect Cassandra to get so much joy in hanging off of my arm,” Artemis remarks as she takes off her boots.
He doesn’t take his own shoes off. Habit from when he needed to keep everything valuable on him at all times. The comfortably worn sneakers will probably escape him when they go to sleep. For now, they provide much needed comfort.
“She likes testing people.” Jason bites his lip. “League stuff, I guess.”
“Is that what tonight was?” Artemis mixes a laugh with a hum. “A test?”
Jason turns. “No. Why would it be?”
His voice is too high. He can feel it. God, he’s such a fucking loser.
Artemis makes her way to the couch, sitting on the arm. It’s then she looks at Jason with a raised eyebrow. “What is going on with you recently?”
He freezes. He’s always bad at confrontation he doesn’t start. If he decides the boundaries of the fight, it’s easier. This isn’t even a fight. This is a conversation where every possible combination of words seems treacherous. Jason doesn’t even know what he wants to get out of this.
“Are we dating?” Jason finally blurts out.
“No.” Artemis tilts her head to the side. “Do you want to be?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugs. “But everyone says we are, or we should be-,”
She raises a hand. “I’m not asking what your family thinks. I’m asking what you think.
It’s then Jason is forced to think. He looks at Artemis: soft green eyes stare at him with nothing but the same affection there always is. She’s always so soft with him, like he’s precious.
“I don’t want to.” Jason finally settles on the answer. It feels good to say.
“Then we aren’t.” She smiles like he’s stupid. She might even be right this time.
“But what if that changes?” Jason takes a step forward. “What if the way one of us feels changes and everything gets fucked up?”
Artemis meets him halfway, and pulls him into a tight hug. “Then we deal with it. For now we have ludus and pragma. Not eros.”
Despite how stressed he’s been this past week, Jason laughs. The Greek classifications of love are far from common knowledge, and of course Artemis trusts him to understand. Of course they’re both odd enough to find an especially weird place to fit into the world.
They can have longstanding and fun affection, not romance. Pragma. He finds himself enamored with the idea that they could last forever like this. Forever isn’t often for people like them.
“Eros includes sexual attraction.” Jason pointed out petulantly. “And you’re an Egyptian Amazon.”
“Then we find our own type of love” Artemis picks him up. “Now please shut up.”
And he does. There is definitely something better to be doing with his mouth.
<2
Artemis has never doubted for a second that she loves Jason Todd. She is only reminded of it in this moment where she wakes up next to him. The sheets she slept on are far from her favorite in the world, but they are soft enough. The main draw is having an arm wrapped around Jason through the night. The man has the perfect weight on top of her to lull her to sleep, not to mention the muscle definition alone is… well that’s not so important for sleep.
The point being, she sleeps better with Jason. She wakes up better with Jason. Even in the terrible air of Gotham, his face glows in the light of the early morning. He looks like a statue, sculpted by the gods themselves. It is a shame most men do not look this lovely, or else she would have been more tempted to bed them.
Out of pure sentimentality, she kisses his forehead.
She loves Jason. He’s her dearest companion. Her best friend.