Rating: K+
Genre: Angst
Summary: Law of the place of the injury. John and Mary Grayson die in Metropolis and their son Richard is taken in by another billionaire. A few years later, he becomes friends with Batman's sidekick, Nightwing.
Author's Notes: This story is finished, and was originally posted on the YJ Anon Meme. I thought about uploading it as a single chapter, but I think there are places where I think dramatic breaks are justified. The title is a legal pun. It's a Latin phrase used in conflict of laws, that stands for the rule that courts should apply the law of the place where the injury (tort) was committed, which I think works well here. But also, it has the word Lex here. So, yeah.
Lex Loci Delicti
The Law of the Place of the Injury
Dick is doing his homework for AP BC Calculus when he sees something on the computer screen out of the corner of his eye. It catches his attention, and soon he's following the intruder down the halls of LexCorp Tower through the security video system. Whoever it is, he's dressed like Batman, and to have gotten into the building without setting any alarms, he's probably affiliated. But not affiliated enough, because he hasn't got the faintest clue he's being followed, if only virtually. Dick is bemused, maybe even amused (if a- means without, and muse means to think, why does amused mean entertained, and not stupefied?) by the intruder who looks like some weird Batman copycat, and it's not like he has to do the calc work (Lex has already started him on differential equations), so he follows him around on the network for a good half hour until the intruder gets to where he's going.
"Really?" Dick asks himself, "You're after that? I'm whelmed."
Still, no one steals from Lex Luthor. Dick types in a command and immediately, the intruder is trapped. Not even Superman could break out of that. "No kill like overkill? Right, Lex?" Dick muses to himself. Then he bounds down to the place where the intruder is trapped in a clear cube: it looks like glass, but it's seven thousand times stronger than steel. He helped Lex with the formulas, at least, the easy parts.
"Hey!" he says playfully.
The intruder, who is definitely at least pretending to be affiliated with Batman looks at him. "Who're you?"
"You're not from Metropolis, are you?"
"No. Why?"
"Cuz, if you were from Metropolis, you'd know who I am. In fact, I'm going to assume, you've only been in Gotham a little while."
"Why?"
"Because, if you'd been in Gotham, oh, say, five years ago, you'd know who I am."
"Well, who are you?" The intruder seems frustrated. Apparently he's whelmed too.
So Dick folds himself backwards and stands on his hands. "I'm Richard Grayson. But everyone calls me Dick. I'm Lex's son, adopted son, well, ward, if you want to get technical about it. I'm the one who made it cool for billionaires to pick up urchins, so Roy Harper owes me a debt of gratitude. But if you don't know who I am, you probably don't know who Roy Harper is.
"So now that you know who I am, who're you, Batboy?"
Batboy, or whatever his name is, growls. "No. Nightwing."
"Really? Now that's interesting. Where's Flamebird?"
Nightwing seems shocked. "How'd you know the story?"
Dick giggles that laugh Lex finds so unnerving. "I'll tell you, if you tell me what Batman is doing with Project Kr."
"That's not—I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, in that case," Dick reaches under his shirt and pulls out a lead locket, "I don't think you'd mind if I…" Dick pauses for dramatic effect, "opened this?" Green light floods out of the little heart-shaped locket. Nightwing—Project Kr—looks ill. The longer Dick keeps the locket opened, the more ill Project Kr looks, until Project Kr falls on the floor. Dick snaps the locket closed. "Richard Grayson command key, activate red sun lamps." The room turns red. Every once in a while, Lex's paranoia comes in handy. "Richard Grayson command key, open containment unit." The front wall of the glass cage opens and Dick steps in. Project Kr is panting on the floor.
Dick takes the utility belt away from Project Kr and removes a pair of batcuffs (they're still where he remembers) and ties Project Kr's hands behind his back. Then he sits and waits for the Kryptonite poisoning to wear off.
"So tell me, Project Kr, what is Batman doing with Cadmus's weapon?"
"That's not who I am."
"Oh, right, because I'm totally going to believe that you're not Superman's clone after that display."
"No," Project Kr is struggling to speak, "My name's not Project Kr. I'm not a weapon."
"Ok," Dick nods, because actually, he understands not wanting to be a project, "Nightwing, I still want to know, what are you doing with Batman? I know Aqualad, Kid Flash and Speedy stole you from—or broke you out of—Cadmus. But, why Batman? You're Superman's clone, why aren't you with him?"
Nightwing looks away. He looks…forlorn. "Superman… doesn't like me."
"Superman doesn't like me either. Feeling's mutual, actually. But, Lex thought for sure that the Big Blue Boy Scout would take care of his son."
"Superman… Superman's not my father."
"I see. Well, that's a point to commend you. If you ask me, you got the better bargain. Batman's way cooler than Superman."
Nightwing looks a little scandalized. "Batman's just a normal human being."
Dick laughs. "Yes. That's what's brilliant about him. Through shear effort he's managed to become so much more than that. Batman will sweep in and catch people at the last minute—he's Gotham's safety net, and God knows Gotham needs a safety net. But Superman, he's just a bully, an overgrown child who blunders through life punching aliens through buildings, and he doesn't care where the rubble lands."
Nightwing doesn't quite understand, but he doesn't say anything.
Dick sighs. "What did Batman want?"
"To distract you, mostly, I think. He should have gotten what he was after by now."
Batman wanted to distract him! Dick taps his watch and a hologram pops up; it's a computer. His second Christmas present from Lex (the first was the Kryptonite locket). It takes him fifteen seconds to find Batman, now that he knows what he's looking for. Indeed, Batman's gotten into the mainframe and stolen the information he was looking for. Lucky for Dick Lex isn't just paranoid about Superman, and the info will just tie Batman up in knots. That means Batman will have to come to Metropolis again. The thought brings a smile to Dick's face.
"Well then, in that case, I think you should go."
Nightwing doesn't move.
"Unless, you want to go back in your pod?"
"You're letting me go?"
"Yeah."
"Won't Luthor be angry?"
Dick shrugs. "Lex's out of the country on business."
Dick leads Nightwing down the corridors. Nightwing's still wearing the batcuffs and the corridors are still flooded with red sunlight. Eventually they rendez-vous with Batman.
"Hey Bats!" Dick says pleasantly.
"Richard," Batman nods.
"Picking up strays, are you? I'll tell Lex his influence's reaching into the Justice League."
Batman smiles sadly as he unlocks the cuffs around Nightwing's wrists. "Dick… I… I'm sorry about your parents."
Dick laughs that broken laugh Lex hates. "What are you sorry about? You saved their lives in Gotham."
"It doesn't matter. I'm still sorry."
"Yeah, well, that makes two of us. But… thank you. But the next time you get the urge to steal from Lex, please don't."
Batman leaves and takes Nightwing with him. Dick goes to his room and finishes his homework. Then he calls Lex and tells him everything, about Batman and Project Kr who is now Nightwing. "I hope it's ok I let them go."
"Of course Dick. I trust your judgment."
"Thanks Lex."
"Was that all, Dick?"
"Yeah, and, I love you dad."
"I love you too son."
He has to fight back the tears as he hangs up. It's true. He does love Lex. But still, he wishes, oh, how he wishes his parents hadn't died under that rubble, and even now, he wonders, if his parents had died in Gotham, would he… would Batman… would Richard Grayson be Nightwing?
To Be Continued
