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( The Look he gives jason when he reveals the time... kids.

fingers pinching the bridge of his nose again, he waves the other off then and slowly follows after him, door gently coming to almost close behind him as he does. )

Didn't think Etraya had a Santa Claus.

[Jason rolls his eyes at The Look and gestures with his head back to the living room.]

He does now and he delivers only to you. So deal with it.

( he's only 31 and feels so old and tired right now, but. he follows after jason, forcing himself to wake up some as he does. well, a twenty minute nap was nice, he figures. at least he hadn't been thrown from sleep due to nightmares this time. there's always that. )

Surprised he did with no milk and cookies left out.

( deadpanned. trying to be funny. )

Oh I got that covered. [As they near the tree, there's an empty glass and plate. Jason brushes right past that, though as he nears the tree. There is a large box and then a few small ones around it, all poorly wrapped. Look, he's trying. As soon as they get close enough, he holds out the big box. It's addressed to Bruce from a scribbled out name and then 'Santa.'.]

Here. Do this one first.

[He could say he has instructions from Santa but he's not thinking about that as he gestures for Bruce to open it. Inside is one of his capes, black and smaller than Bruce would normally wear, but it has an extra metal skeleton built into the lining and a pocket in the center. It's an attempt, an a rather good one, to imitate the bones in birds wings, effectively giving Bruce the ability to glide. In the center pouch is Jason's grappling gun, to allow for bail outs.

Someone has been studying and working and trying to do so while Bruce is out on patrol.]

( and doesn't want to have to pop a dislocated shoulder back into place courtesy of his pseudo-father's shenanigans.

he takes his time in unwrapping the gift, still gently tired but more or less waking up now. the thought to make some coffee or have a shot of something stronger crosses his mind, but. for now, he leaves it and, instead, focuses on the task at hand... and a few more tasks to come from the looks of it there under the tree.

when he opens the gift and really allows himself to take a good look at it, he's careful in the way he touches it — in the way he admires the craftsmanship of it before he's lifting his gaze up to meet jason's. )

You made this? ( it's not so much a question as it is confirmation and he's looking back down to it gently. ) Thank you.

[Jason watches nervously. He's not trying to usurp any of Bruce's own work, but Jason wanted to try (and he's had a lot of downtime due to his arm). When Bruce asks if he made it, Jason nods.]

Yeah. I thought, like, if you want to fly... I mean. It's based off birds. So maybe you could glide. Here. If you touch this button.

[He reaches over to the cape and presses a small red button and all the bones of the cape flex outward, making the fabric of the cape almost like a solid. Perfect for gliding.]

Like it?

( when the cape flexes like it does, he tilts his head in curiosity. it's interesting, he'll give it that and creative as well. eyeing it some for a few moments longer, he looks up to jason then and nods. )

Yeah.

( gift in one hand, he reaches out with his other and gently give jason's shoulder a couple pats. )

You did good.

[Jason is eager for Bruce’s approval, especially regarding something like this. His breath catches when Bruce tells him he did good. He nods with a crooked smile and looks up at Bruce.

He is good enough. He is good enough.]

Thanks. I mean. [Jason bows his head a moment before he raises it again, his eyes glossy with unshed tears.]

Here, open this one next.

[Jason pulls back, protecting this vulnerable moment under the mask of getting Bruce more presents. This one is a little square box. Inside are a couple of the medicines from the super world, vials and needles. It’s not his entire collection, but it’s a demonstration that he’s working hard to trust Bruce.]

( carefully setting the first gift aside, he holds the next in hand and, as before, takes care with opening it. when he pops the top off and sees the contents of the gift, he stares to it for a long moment before he's lifting his gaze up to meet jason's. )

First-aid?

[Jason frowns before replying,] Kind of.

[It takes him a beat or two to admit,] I stole them. Before the crowbar thing. I meant to give them to someone else, but. You’ve been really good to me so I thought maybe… maybe they’re better in your hands.

( he falls silent at that. at the crowbar thing. still a moment in time he feels angry about. not at jason, of course. but at what happened and what could have happened had he not been there... what could have been prevented if he had been there earlier...

placing the lid back on the box, he looks over to jason again and nods gently. )

I'll hold onto them. Thank you.

[The weight of Bruce’s silence is not missed. Jason assumes it’s because of his admission of stealing and for a moment Jason hangs his head. He nods at the thanks but he doesn’t miss the way it feels like a consolation than true acceptance of Jason’s crime.

He shuffles behind him for the last box. He holds it tight in his hands knuckles white on his right hand before he offers it up. Inside is a collection of various candies and some Christmas movies. On top is It’s a Wonderful Life.]

Merry Christmas, Bruce.

( setting this gift aside to be able to take the next one handed over, as before, care is taken in the way he opens the gift and, upon seeing what it is, he falls silent once more, mostly because of the movie there on top. he wonders if it's a running similarity across alternate versions of himself. makes him curious but also not at the same time. it's a complicated feeling.

still, he offers jason a tiny smile when he looks up to him from the gift. )

Thank you, Jason.

( voice soft but genuine, he glances over to the tree then, still holding his gift. )

There's a box there for you.

( and within it, beneath the dark coloured paper and lined up neatly in the rather large trunk of a box, many many books that he had brought back with him from that other earth. from classics, to poetry, to horror, to fantasy. there's a little bit of everything in there for jason. )

Sorry about the movie. It was the only Christmasy one left. [Jason feels even worse now that he remembers what the movie is about.] I can go get a different one.

[Bruce indicates a package for him and Jason hesitates. He's probably fucked up the whole Christmas spirit with admitting to being a criminal and giving Bruce a movie about wondering if life is worth living. Great job, Jason. He bites his lip, wondering if he deserves this gift, but reaches out for it with shaking fingers.]

Seriously, I can run down to the mart and get a different movie right now.

[He still tugs the wrapped package into his lap, but looks up at Bruce.]

It's ok.

( voice soft, gently reassuring, he shakes his head and sits there in an armchair as he watches jason begin to open his own gift. a glance to the christmas tree for a moment, he looks back to the kid. )

I'm not sure how many you already know, but. I thought it would give you something to do between missions.

[Jason frowns until he turns back to the package and the first spines are visible from beneath the paper.]

No way. [He hurries to tear the rest of the paper off.] Holy shit, is this all for me?

[He runs his fingers over the titles and he can't help but grin as he holds up a handful of the books.]

I love Pride and Prejudice.

( the smile he wears is still soft and he nods at the question. )

Who else would they be for?

( before he can even think to answer that, though, he glances over to the tree again and gives a nod. )

That, too.

( the nod given to, from a distance, may look like an ornament hanging on a branch, but. in fact, is a key to a vehicle. a motorcycle, more specifically. the charm the key dangles from being a black and red twisted sort of pretzel looking thing. )

[Jason continues to rifle through the titles, occasionally exclaiming the titles like "Dracula!" until Bruce mentions one more gift. The gift in his hands seems more than enough until he sees the key. His heart stops in his chest as he surges forward to pluck the key off the tree.]

Wait, is this...? [He looks back up at Bruce. Is this his bike? The Kawasaki Z H2 in all black?]

( still with his last gift there in hand, he looks down to it for a moment before he's looking back over to jason. )

I put it together the best I could. ( spent months looking for parts in the junkyard and building the bike up from scratch, much as he'd done his batmobile. ) Gave it a few test drives. Didn't fall off, so you don't need to worry.

( a bit of dry humor there. )

She rides smooth. Should be easy to get through places when you need to.

This is fucking awesome!

[Jason is oh so tempted to go for a ride right now, but he's got all these books and Bruce, too.]

Promise not to ride it in the tower.

[He holds up his fingers in a distant version of a scout's honor.]

Holy fuck, Bruce. This is the best Christmas I think I've ever had.

[Far out-doing any experience with his own Bruce.]

Mine was always out of town. In Milan or something.

( jason's genuine enthusiasm for the gift— for both of the gifts causes that tiny smile to pull into something just a touch more wider albeit fleeting before he's looking back down to his own gift. it's... nice, he thinks. to see jason so happy. he gets the feeling there's been so little for him to ever be truly and genuinely happy about, so. to give him that feeling — to allow him to indulge in things he likes and has a passion or desire for... it's the least he can do, isn't it? also, it's christmas. maybe he didn't do too bad with this after all. )

Guess Etraya will have to do this year.

( since, well. not really anywhere else to go for it. )

Merry Christmas, Jason.

I didn't think I'd say this half a year ago, but I'm okay with being here. It's better than home.

[His grin is huge as he looks up at Bruce.]

Sorry about the movie.

( again, he shakes his head. )

It's fine.

( despite how soft his voice is, his tone is genuine even as he falls quiet while staring to the film. )

[Bruce doesn't sound fine, so Jason stands up and crosses over to where Bruce is sitting. He reaches down for the movie.]

I'm gonna get a different movie. [And on his new bike!]

( before jason can take the movie from him, fingers grip onto his gift and he just says it. )

Selina's here.

( and then his gaze drops and he's quiet again. )

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