A/N: Hi all! So every so often, I like to write little one-shots to break up the routine of writing more chapters for the fics I've already published. This is one I've had the idea for for a while now: a crossover asking, "what if Dick Grayson's Batman and Bucky's Captain America met?" The result? A very intersting conversation. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it, and if you're following one of my other stories I wanna thank you for being so patient with me.

The Batmobile shot through the darkened streets of Gotham City. Batman watched the radar carefully as he drove through the cool night. Intel suggested that a terrorist group had just set up shop in town, and he was determined to nip it at the bud before its influence spread any further. He'd left Robin at the manor just in case, much to his chagrin of course. A terrorist group that he had little to no intel on? Not a good mission to bring a 10-year old on, no matter what his upbringing was.

He parked the vehicle and grappled up to a nearby rooftop. Moving quietly, he approached the spot where they'd set up an HQ, and abandoned warehouse. Dropping in through a skylight, he started moving through the building. He could hear what sounded like a struggle, and as he approached the source of the sounds, he could see bodies, all wearing greem jumpsuits with a yellow H emblazoned on them. HYDRA? Batman thought. I haven't seen them since… His line of thought was interrupted as one man flew through the air right in front of him, landing hard on his back. Batman drew a batarang and turned the corner to face the culprit, and found himself shocked by who he saw. The bodysuit was of a different design than usual, but the wings on the cowl and the starred shield were all too familiar.

"Don't worry Batman, they're all unconscious," spoke Captain America as he turned to face the Dark Knight. "I hope you don't mind my presence here. I understand Gotham is your city, but HYDRA is my problem as well." He extended a hand, and to his surprise Batman shook it. "They've been messing around with dimensional portals and wanted to get a foothold in your world. Naturally, I followed them." He picked a small remote-like device off of one of the terrorists.

"I understand. It's been a very long time, Captain. The last time I saw you, we were fighting the Japanese in World War II."

The Captain smiled. "No, as I recall we were fighting Nazis. Here isn't a good place to talk. I've already called the authorities; let's chat somewhere private when they come to clean up this trash."

Twenty minutes later, the GCPD, SWAT team and all, were on the scene wrangling up the HYDRA operatives for processing. Captain America and Batman sat in silence on a rooftop two blocks away from the scene. Batman stared intently at the Sentinel of Liberty. The outfit was much different, and he was even carrying a handgun and combat knife, which just seemed wrong for some reason. Finally, he spoke. "You're not the original Captain America, are you?"

Captain America looked up. "What gives you that idea?"

"The way you fight is more akin to an assassin. Your apparel and equipment are more militarized. Yet, you knew we fought Nazis when I travelled to 1945. That being said, you must be Bucky, his sidekick."

James Buchanan Barnes chuckled as he removed his cowl, revealing a domino mask underneath. "You got me. You really are the World's Greatest Detective…or should I say Second-Greatest, seeing as how you're not the original either."

"Excuse me?"

"You're faking the voice impressively. An untrained or non-superhuman ear might not be able to catch it. Your belt also looks lighter, and you yourself are built differently. You must his old sidekick, Robin, then."

Dick Grayson grinned, allowing his voice to return to normal. "Impressive deductions. Yes, I was Robin when you met me, but since then I've gone through a lot of changes, and more than one identity as well."

"You and me both. I took up the shield as a means of redemption, I guess. Cap was like my big brother, never gave up on me even when I'd given up on myself. I did some terrible things, killed a lot of people, yet he always tried to save me. When he was shot, I wanted to finally do right by him, you know? Honor the man and at the same time try to atone for some of my sins."

Dick stared at him for a moment. "I think I understand. I'm sorry to hear about the Captain as well."

"So what about you? Why are you dressing up like a bat and haunting rooftops now?"

Dick looked away, as if contemplating whether or not to speak on the subject. After a few seconds, he finally spoke. "Not long ago, there was a crisis. The universe almost fell under the control of an alien dictator named Darkseid. Batman died stopping him." Dick pushed down the lump in his throat and continued. "I didn't want to believe it at first, you know. He'd always come back from seemingly deadly situations before, so why not this time? The world kept going though, and over time I had to accept that the man who raised me as his own son wasn't coming back. I didn't want to become this, I wanted to continue just being me and try to defend Gotham as Nightwing, the persona I took on after Robin. But most of the world didn't know Batman was gone, and others were trying to corrupt my mentor's legacy. So I had to put the cowl on, and here I am now." Dick looked over at James. "You understand, of course, that I'm telling you all of this in confidence."

"Naturally. But c'mon, who am I gonna tell all of this to? I live in a different dimension." Both men allowed themselves a laugh. After a moment, Barnes spoke up again. "It feels odd, doesn't it? Like we're just playing dress-up."

"Yeah. Every time I put on the outfit, I feel like I'm just wearing my father's clothes. Just trying to fill his armor. His will stated that he didn't want this for me, that he wanted to to keep being my own man. I know that this was my destiny, to become this when he died, but…"

"…it just doesn't feel right," James finished for him. "I know, man. Captain America is supposed to be a symbol of freedom, a soldier fighting for peace. Every day, I wonder if I have too much blood on my hands to deserve to be called Captain America. Whenever I'm with the Avengers, the team Cap is supposed to lead, I always feel like they're silently judging me by my deeds as the Winter Soldier. When they listen to my orders, I count it a miracle every time, like I'm expecting them to turn on me and say 'why would we take orders from a murderer like you?'"

"Thankfully, Batman only co-leads the Justice League, and only a few people know that I'm not the original. Even so, I look at what I do nightly; the interrogations, the borderline torture I inflict on criminals, the dark and brooding personality I have to emulate, and I can't help but feel like it's consuming me, turning me into him. The League has a few of my old teammates and friends from when I led a team call the Teen Titans in my youth, and even they are finding it hard differentiate me from my predecessor when I'm not wearing the cowl." Dick sighed. "Our mentors left us with some serious burdens, didn't they?"

"Yeah, burdens few heroes know anything about." The two men looked at each other, former sidekicks taking up the mantles of their deceased mentors, and smiled. "Hey, you wanna grab a beer?"

Dick thought about it for a moment. "Sure, why not? The League's Watchtower has a bar, I'll comm ahead to let them know I'm coming with a distinguished guest. But you're paying…Bucky," he said with a grin.

Barnes stood up and laughed. "How about this, Boy Wonder? Let's go a round, loser buys the beers." He dropped the shield, pulled the mask back on, and got into his fighting stance.

Dick did the same, mimicking Batman's voice once more. "You're on."