Robin stood facing Batman, his breath coming out in short angry bursts. In all the time Dick had been Robin, Bruce had never shut him down the way he had tonight. No warning, no apologies, just the Dark Knight looking at him, his expression betraying nothing.
"We have to talk now," Dick said, too angry to care about the cold night that was starting to chill him even through his suit.
"No time for that. Two Face and his men still need to be brought to justice."
Batman began to turn away, his cape flaring behind him. Dick knew he would pull out his Bat gun and shoot off, swinging into the night. He narrowed his eyes and pulled out his own grappling hook. If Bruce was going to ignore him, he was just going to have to make him listen. Every muscle tensed, he waited for Bruce to click the trigger that released the mechanism of the gun. Hearing the tiny pop of the gas canister as it shot the line off, Robin hit his own trigger, aiming exactly where Batman's line had gone. His aim was flawless; the two lines hit, Dick's knocking the other one off course. They drifted out between the buildings.
Batman rounded on Robin, his eyes narrowed. "This is not the time for this."
"When will it be, Bruce? When you decide to retire? I need to know right now if Two Face was responsible for Tony Zucco's racket. Did he send that two-bit punk to kill my parents?" By this time, Dick was screaming at Batman, too heated to care if the whole world heard him.
"Robin! Get a grip," Batman responded, his voice low and warning. "You will follow the orders I give out on the field. If I say it's not the time for it, it's not the time. And you will address me by Batman."
"Or what, your majesty? You'll lock me out of the cave again?" Dick's fists were clutched tightly at his sides. The last time Batman had denied him revenge, he'd almost quit the team, going off on his own to find Tony Zucco for himself. At the last minute, he'd decided that he wasn't a killer, that he was a better man than the scum who had killed his parents. But now, after all this time finding Batman had been sheltering him from yet another secret about his parents' murder, it made him feel that he would always be Robin, the Boy Wonder, never allowed to grow up and be responsible for his own actions.
Batman's eyes narrowed again and he turned to leave. "Meet me at the dock or go home and pack your things. This is not up for discussion." Pulling a second Batgun from his belt, he shot a cord off into the night and swung off the roof, leaving Robin more angry than ever.
Robin clenched his fists, too infuriated to move. A soft thump behind him let him know that Batgirl had arrived on the scene. He closed his eyes, trying to regain control of himself. He didn't want anyone to see him this way, especially the new girl.
"What's going on? I heard you shouting from 49th street?" she said, her voice soft with concern.
"Why don't you ask our fearless leader?" Dick pouted, still too jaded to return her courtesy.
"I would, but he's not the talking type. Robin, you can't let him get to you this way."
Dick looked at her, the kindness in her bright blue eyes pushing back any feelings of jealousy he had for her. She might be the new girl, but already she had a firm grasp of the dynamic between the two partners. Dick wondered to himself if there would ever be a chance of her joining the team full-time, and then pushed it out of his head. The last thing he needed was something else pulling Batman's attention away, stepping into his hard-earned place. It was bad enough that he was trying to finish his last year in college at Gotham State and still make it down for sidekick duty. Even Alfred had commented on how bad things had gotten between the two, and Alfred hardly ever criticized Bruce in front of Dick. It was a sign of the times that there was another cape around; a sign that Robin was on the way out.
Dick sighed, releasing his anger, unclenching his fists. His fight wasn't with Batgirl, it was with his mentor and who knew where he'd gotten off to. "You're right. I just hate it when he treats me like I'm still eleven."
Robin sat down on the edge of the roof, Batgirl sitting down beside him. "You guys have been partners since you were eleven?"
"Before then, actually. I had to train before I got to wear the costume. What made you sign up for this freak show?" he asked her, noticing how bright red her hair was under the clear winter moon. It reminded him of Barbara for a moment, but she'd never do anything this uncontrolled. The girl was nothing if not precise.
"Someone...close to me got a bad rap. Let's just say I wanted to even the tables. It seems like there's too much crime in Gotham, even for Batman to handle."
"What am I, chopped liver?" Robin said gruffly.
"No, Boy Wonder. Your name just is always on the second headline, in the smaller letters. Let's face it; this is Batman's city. Nothing changes that."
Robin looked down at the traffic below, musing. "Maybe it's time for me to head out on my own, make my own way in the world. I just can't stand being in his shadow, always the sidekick, never good enough." He struck his fist against the ledge. "I want him to look at me and say, "I'm proud of you."
Batgirl sighed, looking over at Robin. "Not a very good father-figure, is he?"
Dick cocked his head, watching her closely. "Better than a lot of men."
"Well," she said, choosing her words carefully. "Just because he's a good man doesn't mean that you and he have to agree. There's a big world out there, more than just on these rooftops. Maybe it is time to strike out on your own and discover where you fit in with all this."
"Who'll be there to watch his back then?" Robin said, genuinely distressed.
"Me. Catwoman. Commissioner Gordon. The good people who are down on these streets below. Robin, just because you've grown out of this role doesn't mean that you have to keep it out of a sense of duty. It would be for the wrong reasons. No one will ever be able to take your place."
Intuitively, she had gotten to the heart of the matter; Dick was afraid of being replaced, still never having proved himself to Bruce. The Two Face thing was a minor flareup; Zucco was still the man who killed his parents, and he was in Blackgate, right where Robin had put him. It was time to let go of the past and figure out where the future was taking him. "Come on, you don't want to be Robin?" Dick joked, his sense of humor finally gaining control of his anger.
"What, and lose this classy outfit?" Batgirl said, gesturing to herself.
"Where did you get that thing?" Dick asked as the two of them got up.
"I made it. What, do you think they just sell this at Bloomingdale's?"
Robin smirked at Batgirl. Her sense of humor had grown on him since they'd first started working. It was almost enough to tempt him away from Barbara, but he was a loyal guy. A little too loyal, he thought to himself as he remembered his problem with Bruce.
"Well, what do you say, bird-boy? Why don't we drop a line and see how the old man is doing?" Batgirl said, uncoupling a Batgun that Batman had given her.
"I think I'll sit this one out," he said, releasing his spare Batgun from his belt. "Good luck."
Batgirl swung out into the night and Robin stood alone for a moment, thinking to himself. Perhaps this was what growing up was all about – learning to deal with all the imperfections of the world on your own, including those of the ones who were close to you. Setting his jaw in determination, he willed himself not to think about Two Face or Tony Zucco tonight. Batman would bring him to justice, if that's what it took. Dick was better off not tempted to do something he'd regret later, and besides, he had a three-hour drive to get back to Gotham University. It was a lot of time to think about his relationship with Bruce, and his future. Both were a toss-up right now, just like one of Two Face's double-headed coins. Let's see which side it ends up on, Dick thought, swinging off into the night.