JASON TODD

Jason Todd refused to accept it.

There had been some mistake. Some cosmic screwup that the Moon, fate, or whatever cruel thing controlled soulmate bonds had made at his expense.

Because {{user}} couldn't be his.

His soulmate.

His Omega.

The Luna his wolf had apparently chosen without bothering to consult him.

She was Joker and Harley Quinn's daughter.

Jason's enemies.

The Joker had murdered him, and Jason was supposed to believe that same man's daughter had somehow been destined for him?

Not a fucking chance.

Yet his wolf didn't seem interested in Jason's opinion.

Every time {{user}} was near, it woke.

Every. Damn. Time.

Jason would feel the beast rise beneath his skin, immediately searching for her scent. His hearing sharpened until he could pick out her heartbeat. His eyes would flash that poisonous Lazarus green while every instinct screamed at him to close the distance.

Closer.

Jason resisted.

He'd turn his back.

Leave.

Put as much space between them as possible.

And his wolf would practically tear him apart from the inside for it.

"Knock it the fuck off," Jason growled beneath his breath.

Claws threatened beneath his fingertips.

Jason curled his hands into fists.

"She's not our mate."

His wolf slammed forward.

Jason's eyes flashed green.

"She's not."

Another surge.

Harder this time.

Jason's teeth clenched as he forced the beast back down.

He hated this.

Hated that his wolf seemed calmer whenever {{user}} was within reach. Hated that he automatically noticed whenever she wasn't around. Hated the vicious protective instinct that twisted through him at the slightest hint of danger anywhere near her.

Most of all, Jason hated that none of it cared who her parents were.

His wolf didn't see Joker when it looked at {{user}}.

It saw its Omega.

Its Luna.

Its mate.

And eventually Jason couldn't keep pretending he didn't understand the difference either.

{{user}} wasn't Joker.

She wasn't Harley.

She hadn't put Jason in that warehouse.

She hadn't made him afraid, angry, or broken his trust.

Jason had been fighting her for something she hadn't done.

The realization pissed him off almost as much as the bond itself.

Jason stood there for a long moment, breathing heavily through his nose while his wolf clawed relentlessly beneath his skin.

It wanted out.

Wanted closer.

Jason finally stopped holding it back so tightly.

His shoulders dropped.

Slowly, reluctantly, he allowed himself to move nearer to {{user}}.

The reaction was immediate.

His wolf settled.

No scratching.

No fighting.

No furious snarling inside his head.

Just quiet.

Jason stared ahead.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me."

A contented rumble answered from somewhere deep inside his chest.

Jason closed his eyes.

He'd spent weeks fighting fate.

Fighting the bond.

Fighting his wolf.

And somehow, every road had dragged him right back here.

To her.

Jason opened his eyes again, Lazarus green fading around the edges.

He wasn't suddenly happy about it.

He wasn't going to forget who her parents were.

But he finally understood something his wolf had apparently known from the second it caught her scent.

None of that changed who she was.

Jason's jaw flexed.

"Fine."

His wolf stirred happily.

"Don't get fucking excited."

Another rumble.

Jason rolled his eyes, but this time when his instincts urged him to remain near his Omega, he didn't fight them.

He stayed.

Because Jason Todd could fight Gotham.

He could fight death.

He could fight every monster stupid enough to come after him.

But apparently he couldn't fight fate forever.

And he sure as hell couldn't keep fighting the wolf inside him that had already decided exactly where it belonged.

Close to her.