Disclaimer: Nope. I don't own any of these characters.
A/N: Oh look! More Grayson angst! LOL, just a little oneshot to offset the INTENSE story I'm writing right now (Dust). I have yet to track down more Batman Reborn comics…but I LOVED the issues I got my hands on. I honestly want more Deathstroke/Dick-as-Batman tension. So I just mixed in some stuff from the Teen Titans show with Batman Reborn.
Mellowtopian, if you're reading this, this is for you. Thanks a bunch for recommending the comics to me.
Dick pulled the famed cowl off of his face.
It was nearly three in the morning by the time they got back. Dick leaned back in his seat and breathed in the cool air, closing his eyes to rest for just a moment.
"Good evening, Master Dick…Master Damian," Alfred said.
"'Evening, Pennyworth," Damian replied, leaping out of the Batmobile and peeling his mask off of his face.
Dick watched Damian move across the room. Although the kid could be a brat he couldn't help but love him. Was he ever that much of a brat to Bruce when he was Robin? Dick certainly hoped not.
"How did it go tonight, Master Dick?" Alfred asked in a low tone.
"Fine," Dick replied, rubbing his bruised face. "Took a hard hit to the face, though."
"I'll take a look at it later."
"Thanks, Alfie."
Dick smiled ruefully as Alfred rolled his eyes. The butler wasn't too fond of the nickname, but Dick liked to call him that. It was a term of endearment. Damian was off in the corner somewhere playing with his kitten. Dick turned his back to hide his smile. Even though Damian was a tough little guy everyone had soft spots.
"By the way, there's a box for you over there," Alfred said, pointing to the other end of the room. "The Titans were cleaning out the Tower."
"All right, I'll take a look."
Not even bothering to change first, Dick went over to the box. He opened it and saw that it was stuff from the old evidence room in Titans Tower. Tim and Kory must have been doing some spring cleaning. He chuckled as he took out stuff from villains long forgotten. Control Freak's remote control. Mad Mod's cane. Even Mumbo's magic hat.
Back in the early days as a Titan he realized that they fought some pretty silly villains. Most of these villains were still in jail, but people like Mumbo and Control Freak were sort of…endearing. Entertaining even. Dick pulled out more things and set them on the ground. The current Titans must have been wondering whether or not to keep these things.
He came to the bottom of the box and what he saw there nearly made his heart stop. A metal mask with a crack running down one side was at the bottom of the box.
For the longest time he simply stood there in his Batman costume, memories flooding over him. That had been so long ago…back even before his beat in Bludhaven as Nightwing. This went back all the way back to when he worked as a Titan. Even to this day the man still lived causing trouble elsewhere. Slade had moved on to bigger and better things, but after all these years Dick always wondered whether Slade still held a grudge against him.
Why had the Titans sent him this? Dick swallowed. Why should he be worried about this now? Tim didn't know about Dick's time as Deathstroke's apprentice. Only a small circle of people knew about the apprenticeship, and even then it was a hush-hush topic. If Tim or Connor cleaned out the evidence room and sent these things to him then Dick understood. They didn't quite understand how personal this was to Dick.
"What are you looking at, Grayson?"
Startled, Dick looked down at Damian. The young son of Bruce Wayne stood next to Dick with a kitten in his arms. The small feline meowed as Damian stroked its fur. He gazed up at Dick with his father's cold, calculating expression. Dick picked up the mask.
"This mask…the villain who wore it caused me a lot of trouble when I was Robin."
Even to this day Dick still had questions. But after everything that had happened since then Dick grew up. He learned to cope. Oh, he and Slade had clashed a few times afterwards, both as Robin and as Nightwing. Mentoring Slade's daughter Rose was also—Dick realized—a subconscious sort of revenge for the time Slade made him his apprentice. It felt so good to bring him down with Bruce and Tim during that horrendous fiasco with Superboy Prime.
"What kind of villain was he?" Damian asked.
"Oh, he's still alive. He caused the Titans some trouble, back when we were just forming as a team." Dick studied the metal contours of the mask. "He liked to mess with me the most."
It was so strange how obsessed he used to be over Slade. Now he knew the face under the mask. Once he saw that face it seemed a little…anti-climatic.
"So…what exactly did he do to you?" Damian asked.
Dick shot a hard glare to Damian. Although their relationship was slowly growing stronger as time went by, Dick wasn't sure if he was ready to share such sensitive history to Damian. Truth to be told, Damian could be a little frightening at times. Of course, Damian was a trained assassin.
"You know, Damian, I was a lot more like you when I was younger," Dick said, "when I was Robin I wasn't all about the silly puns."
That seemed to catch Damian's attention.
"Like me, Grayson? Tch."
"You're too young to remember when the Titans formed. I acted a lot like your father…focused, determined…to the point of obsession."
"Why did you stop? That's the way things are supposed to get done."
For a moment Dick wondered whether he should just tell Damian the truth. What was he afraid of? Of Damian telling him that he should have been stronger? Was he really afraid of a ten-year-old's opinion?
"You should be careful. I tried to be independent of Bruce…and I ended up in the darkest place of my life."
Dick put a hand to his forehead as memories flooded back to him. That was a long time ago. He wasn't a little kid anymore who could be manipulated or shoved around. For goodness sake, now he was frigging Batman. Slade knew that. Slade respected that. Damian frowned.
"Stop speaking in riddles. I am not a simpleton and I do not have time for your long-winded stories."
"I know you've been trained to kill by your mother's League of Assassins. I know that you don't think I'm trained well-enough to take your father's place as Batman, but know that once…once I was trained to do the same."
That was all he could say. All he dared to say. Dick left Damian in silence as he climbed up the ladder to the penthouse. Perhaps one day…maybe when Bruce came back…Dick would tell Damian the whole story about his clash with Deathstroke. It would certainly explain why he hated the man so much.
Secretly, Dick wanted to punch him for all that he was worth. Not only for that harrowing time as his apprentice but also for all of the pain and suffering he caused in Bludhaven, in Gotham, in Jump City…
What would happen if they encountered Slade again? Ever since they first clashed Slade caused his friends to suffer. First with the nanoscopic probes and then with Terra's betrayal. Slade even hurt his friends in the Justice League back when Sue was murdered. Slade never hesitated to kill people for personal gain. In a way, Damian would have been a better apprentice for Slade. The kid was even more intense than Bruce at times.
"What?"
The kitten leapt out of Damian's arms as Damian followed Dick up the ladder. Of course, the kid would have a lot of questions. Dick knew that he wasn't stupid. Now that Dick mentioned that he had training as an assassin he had caught the kid's attention.
"Grayson, I demand that you tell me the truth!"
Shaking his head slightly, Dick continued to climb up the ladder.
"I never said that I was trained willingly, Damian. I'll tell you the truth when you're older. All I'll say is this: When it comes down to the bare essentials of fighting crime…it's all about the choices we make. Someday you may have to decide how much you're willing to give up for the people you love."
Dick reached the top of the ladder. He knew that Alfred was listening in silence. The old British butler knew exactly what Dick was talking about. Alfred was the first person outside the Titans Dick told after he came home from Slade's haunt. Damian's eyes narrowed.
"What…what happened when you were with the Titans?"
For a moment Dick opened his mouth to tell Damian what had happened to him nearly ten years ago. It would be a good lesson about over-obsessing and taking on villains you were obviously not prepared to go against. Then he decided against it. This was a story for another day.
He looked down at the dark Bat insignia on his chest. A smile spread across his face as he realized that he was standing here in the cape and cowl. This was the exact opposite of what Slade wanted him to become. Ultimately, Slade had been proven wrong. Yes, they were alike, but at the same time they weren't.
"You're cryptic tonight. I'm not sure that I like that." Damian's face scrunched in irritation. "Tch."
"You know," Dick said, ruffling the kid's hair. "I think I may be growing fond of you, Damian."
"Not sure that I could say the same, Grayson."
Since those things were part of the Titans' history he wouldn't throw this away. They would go in a closet or attic somewhere. As Damian went over to the kitchen Dick pulled the cowl over his head once more. Although he hoped that Bruce was still out there alive somewhere, Dick was now Batman. He was Gotham's Dark Knight. If he ever met Slade again he would be ready. And Damian would be at his side.
They would protect the people they loved.
A/N: So…if you couldn't figure it out, it's Dick thinking about the Apprentice arc while HE'S FRIGGIN BATMAN.
This is my first time working with Damian's character. He's such an arrogant little ninja! I love him.