Thieves respect property. They merely wish the property to become their property that they may more perfectly respect it.

-Gilbert K. Chesterton

Chapter 3: Birdbrains

The Watchtower

September 30; 23:11 EDT

"Recognized: B01 Nightwing"

The zeta tube behind him had just barely cooled down before an overzealous green hound with long floppy ears skidded around the corner. The dog's nails screeched against the metal floor as he tried to maintain his balance on the slippery floor and Nightwing cringed when the dog crashed against the opposite wall. The dog shook his head and morphed into a small green-skinned boy with a monkey tail who hopped right up to the taller man and stopped just short of hugging him.

"Nightwing! You're back!" Beast Boy cheered.

Nightwing smiled and ruffled the boy's head. "Miss me B.B.?"

Beast Boy grinned, showing a straight row of shiny white teeth. "It just isn't the same without you giving the orders."

"You'll have to wait a little longer for that," Nightwing replied, ignoring the small jolt in his stomach at Beast Boy's pout. As much as he missed leading the team, he had no desire to jump into that role again anytime soon. Tim had praised Barbara and Kaldur's leadership and Dick knew that the team was in capable hands. He had admitted to himself a long time ago that he was terrified that someone else would die under his leadership like Wally did. His stomach turned over at the thought of his late best friend.

Swallowing down the nausea, he strode past the green-skinned boy and down the steps to the main hall of the Watchtower, with Beast Boy trailing behind him. Black Canary was debriefing Aqualad, Bumblebee, Wonder Girl, and Static on a recently completed mission in Nigeria, if he heard correctly. Batgirl was on a video call with Robin, giving him further instructions for his stake-out mission. The poor kid and his team had been stuck watching Wayne Enterprise's chemical research labs in Gotham for at least three nights in a row and erratically over the past two weeks. Batman was convinced that WE's supply of Xenothium would be next on the list of the thief. Of course, the fact that Bruce Wayne would lose a very expensive and dangerous item had nothing to do with it.

Nightwing waited patiently while Kaldur finished his debriefing with Beast Boy bouncing impatiently next to him. He greeted the others warmly as they left for the showers and clasped hands with Kaldur in a tight grip.

"It is good to see you my friend," Kaldur greeted. The stress lines on his dark skin had been wiped away and the older man looked much more relaxed after a few months of having missions go smoothly. "Have you thought anymore about returning to the Team?"

Nightwing's lips turned into a small but sad smile, "Still working on it, Kaldur. How have things been with over here?"

"Everything is going well. Your new recruit is fitting in well enough as can be expected with the language barrier and everything."

"Rose Worth? I'm glad she's doing okay. With her mother's death and being in a new culture I was afraid that the adjustment would be too much." During a mission that had taken him to Cambodia about a month ago, Nightwing experienced a tense situation with an unexpected team of mercenaries after the same jeweled statue he was trying to protect. Zatanna and Doctor Fate were convinced that the statue was the exact same one found in Chinese mythology that opened a gateway to the underworld. After locating the ugly bird statue in a prominent and well-to-do brothel in Cambodia he arrived there with the intention of either buying it as Richard Grayson or stealing it as Nightwing.

Instead his solo mission became exceptionally complicated by the arrival of a mercenary group hired by Oswald Cobblepot – aka "the Penguin" – to take the statue for his personal collection. Although Nightwing fought to the best of his abilities, he couldn't protect everyone and several of the working girls died, including the owner Lillian Worth. Her teenaged daughter Rose brutally attacked the mercenaries in a fit of rage. Several of the mercenaries died before he managed to calm her down and although disturbed by the level of violence, he was impressed with her mastery of the dual swords she wielded.

Communication was a bit of an issue but he managed to convince her to drop the revenge act and they rounded up the rest of the mercenaries together. After a quick chat with his mentor and Kaldur, the Batman offered her a trial run with the Team. At least, he thought that's what happened since he couldn't follow the conversation at all because it was in Cambodian.

The statue had disappeared during the scrimmage and Nightwing was still trying to track it down.

"How's Rose doing?" Nightwing asked.

"I have placed her on a team with Robin, mainly because of his rudimentary knowledge of Cambodian," Kaldur sighed.

"Yeah … he's kind of strange like that," Nightwing was concerned by Kaldur's exasperation. "Beast Boy, could you give us a minute?" Although he looked annoyed by the dismissal, the young teen wandered off to join Static in the kitchen. "Okay, what's up?"

"Unfortunately, I fear that having her continue to work with Robin may cause other problems within the Team. Wonder Girl was suspicious from the beginning but now she is downright hostile towards Rose and in return Rose seems to take perverse pleasure in monopolizing Robin's time." Kaldur shook his head at the situation while Nightwing chuckled.

"You go Robin! Come on Kaldur, they're just kids. You might have to take Rose off a couple missions but it should work itself out."

"The problem is not her skills, it is her attitude. She is not working with the team dynamic and is openly antagonizing others," Kaldur replied.

Nightwing shrugged, "She's had a tough life. Let up a little and let her breath. She'll get the hang of the hero business eventually."

"Perhaps," Kaldur narrowed his eyes. "Her past is still very much a mystery and sometimes I question her motivation for staying on the Team."

The shorter man returned the look, "What, you think she's a spy? Kaldur, Batman ran a blood test and her mother died right in front of her eyes just over a month ago. You and I both know how grief can affect a person."

Kaldur's eyes softened and he relaxed. "You are right. Perhaps I have been too judgmental. She is just so different from Virgil I can't help but compare them."

Nightwing scratched the back of his head, "Well, at least Virgil seems to be getting along with everyone."

"Yes," Batgirl interrupted, brushing against Nightwing's arm when she stood beside him. "At least one out of two are fitting in. That is a fifty percent success rate," she and Dick returned smiles while Kaldur greeted her with a nod. If there was one person other than Tim and Alfred that Dick regretted hurting during his self-imposed exile, it was Barbara. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but could I ask a favor of you Nightwing?"

"Sure," her hair was longer; kind of made him want to run his hands through it.

However, she was in Batgirl mode and shot him an unimpressed look as if she could tell exactly where his thoughts had travelled. "Could you head to Gotham and check on Robin and Beta Squad? He was looking stressed; I think Rose has been difficult again. I would go myself but I've reached my limit of 60 hours."

Looking closer, Dick noticed her deep blue eyes had lost some of their spark and dark circles had formed under her eyes. "Sure I'll do it, no problem. Go get some rest."

"Thanks," Barbara's smile was tired but honest. "I'll see you guys in two days." Batgirl waved and headed up to the zeta tubes. Dick turned back to find a knowing look on Kaldur's face.

"What?"

"I do not understand you two."

Nightwing shrugged, "That's what keeps it interesting," he winked at the Atlantean and followed Batgirl to the zeta tubes.

Gotham City

October 1; 00:24 EDT

Tim was bored and frustrated, but mostly so very bored. He really hated this mission, not that he would ever tell Batman. Very few people in the world have the guts to tell Batman to shove it, and Tim is not one of them. The most frustrating part of their mission was that it was based completely on guesswork. There was no evidence that Wayne Enterprises would be the thief's next target but it was the only Xenothium within Batman's realm of operation.

So there they were: Robin, Blue Beetle, the new Kid Flash, and Rose Worth. Four teenagers perched on a roof of questionable stability where they had a clear view of Wayne Chemical Research Labs. It's formerly sparkling white walls had turned a dirty beige from the smog in Gotham's air. Blue Beetle, aka Jaime, was wondering the other night whether his lungs would turn the same color if he sat on the roof long enough.

A gust of wind indicated that Bart had returned from his survey of the facility's perimeter. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing! How long are we going to be stuck here? I need some action or my legs will cramp up!" He pouted and scratched his red hair. Although Tim had become used to Bart wearing the Kid Flash uniform, he knew that Dick sometimes had trouble seeing Bart and not Wally. Just like the first few weeks when Tim donned the Robin uniform.

"You need to be patient and practice vigilance, Kid Flash," Robin scanned the facility with the heat sensor lenses in his domino mask. Rose was sitting near him on the building's ledge, sharpening her dual blades and paying no attention to the conversation. She had long since lost interest in the mission and Tim was just happy that she agreed to stay with them for the night. "Whoever this person is, they're very good and we can't lower our guard."

"How do we know it's not Catwoman? Isn't she some super-thief? Why doesn't Batman just arrest her?" Kid Flash replied.

"Because he has no evidence," Robin countered, "The level of difficulty is certainly within Catwoman's ability but at the time of the theft at Queen's Incorporated in Star City she was fighting Batgirl in Gotham's East End. The thief took less than three minutes to get the Xenothium so it would be physically impossible for Catwoman unless she managed to clone herself which is nearly impossible."

"Otherwise, she would have to be in two places at once," Blue Beetle finished for Robin and then turned to the side to hiss: "No! Blowing up the Xenothium would not solve the problem!"

Robin and Kid Flash ignored the ramblings of their Latino comrade but Rose narrowed her cold blue eyes as she listened to the scarab's suggestion.

"Can we not make it – uh … go away?" Rose gestured to the facility at Robin's questioning look. "The target."

"Like move it?" Rose shrugged and shoved her pale hair away from her face. Not quite was she was suggesting. Then again, these people didn't think like her. "It would keep the Xenothium safer but then we would lose our best chance at catching the thief. Batman is willing to take the risk if we can get closer to catching the thief."

"Didn't he steal some in Geneva just last week?" Kid Flash countered. "We're kind of useless just sitting here if he or she is hitting the other locations."

"We have our orders," Robin replied. He was starting to feel upset with the growing mutiny among Beta Squad's ranks. Nightwing or Batgirl would have stopped it long ago. Robin just didn't think he could keep the team in line much longer. "I'll talk to Batman and Aqualad about the mission tomorrow. Maybe we can switch with another team."

"Please!" Bart flopped down on the roof and the boards creaked ominously beneath him. "Let's ask for something far away from Gotham. How about … Fiji? That'd be so crash!"

"I agree," another voice interjected from the shadows of a nearby building. "How about you stay there and save me the grating sound of your voice."

Kid Flash nearly rolled with off the roof out of surprise if not for Blue Beetle grabbing hold of his leg. As it was, Bart had an upside-down view of Arsenal standing on a window ledge of the building next to them.

"Ar-Arsenal!" Robin called out in surprise. He snatched Bart's other foot and helped Blue Beetle pull him back onto the roof, all while keeping one eye on their sometime-ally. Rose hadn't moved an inch and was eyeing Arsenal curiously. "What are you doing here?"

"I was visiting a friend and heard an interesting story. Apparently a group of sidekicks have been hanging around outside his window for a couple nights. I didn't believe him since no one in the hero business would be stupid enough to use the same vantage point night after night. But here you are, proving me wrong." Arsenal leaned back against the stone wall. He made no move to join them on the building.

Robin winced and ignored how Bart questioned the likelihood of Arsenal having friends. "It's the best one! Where does your friend live?"

Arsenal jerked his thumb behind them. The top floors of the apartment building looked out over the roof Beta Squad had perched on for the past few nights. Several windows had faces and cameras pressed against them. Robin felt as a cold sweat dribbled down his back. Batman was going to be so disappointed that he got complacent.

"You got lazy. Just because the Light is supposedly broken up does not mean the threat has passed. Any one of their assassins could have been waiting for you tonight."

"Arsenal is right," Jaime admitted. "We should probably move before it becomes dangerous."

"Right," Robin was feeling flustered from having Arsenal of all people criticize his lack of foresight. The former archer was a known hothead. "Let's move West to Position C. We can set up there for the rest of the night."

"Robin," Rose interjected. "Who - ?" she waved her hand in Arsenal's direction.

Bart jumped in to reply, "That's Arsenal. He was the original DNA for Red Arrow and was frozen for years by the Light while Red Arrow took his place. He used to be part of the Team." Arsenal slowly released his clenched fists before anyone realized how much Kid Flash's words bothered him.

"Not now?" Rose asked, but she was looking at Arsenal.

"No," he did not elaborate further.

"But the invitation is an open one, and he can come back to the Team when he wants to," Robin said. Arsenal has always been distant from everyone else in the League and on the Team since his return, but his body position was borderline hostile and he snorted at Robin's words.

"Like that will happen anytime soon. I'm outta here. See ya, losers!" Arsenal shot off a grappling gun and swung away from them to disappear in the fog rolling off the harbor.

"Always a pleasure talking with you," Jaime grumbled.

Beta Squad quickly reoriented themselves with a view of the labs from the West. They had barely settled down when Nightwing swung up onto the roof. He greeted the four teenagers warmly and they responded with varying degrees of friendliness.

"Everything alright here?" The young man asked. The question was for everyone but his eyes were on Robin.

"Nothing to report yet," the current Boy Wonder replied. He tried not to fiddle under Nightwing's stare. Dick would be questioning him in private later. For now he was cut off by Robin's wrist computer indicating a tripped alarm in the building which was followed by a blaring siren and the facility being illuminated in spotlights.

Kid Flash nearly fell off the roof again and Blue Beetle swore in Spanish. "Let's go!" Robin ordered. "Nightwing?"

"I'll join you, but this is your mission," Nightwing winked at him and Robin felt that pressure bearing down on him.

The four teenagers and one young adult quickly headed down to the pavement in front of the facility. A group of scientists were having their identification checked by security personnel. The security woman jumped when the teenaged heroes appeared beside her.

"What's the situation?" Robin demanded.

The woman blinked in surprise at having Batman's sidekick standing before her, "A theft. I'm not authorized to tell you much more than that, even if you are Robin."

"Then contact someone who is. I can help."

"The entire facility is in lock-down," she warned. "But I'll see what I can do." She pressed the communicator in her ear, "Sir? This is Mulroney. I have Robin here requesting permission to speak with you … No, sir, not the bird, Batman's partner. He's here with Nightwing, Kid Flash, Blue Beetle, and some other girl … Yes, sir." She lowered he hand and gestured the teens to follow her. They travelled around the building to a discreet side door which opened when she knocked. On the other side was a large, beefy security guard with thick black hair tied at the nape of his neck.

"I am Head of Security, George Blacksnake. Please call me Blacksnake, everyone does. I welcome your assistance, Nightwing, Robin."

Robin's hand was dwarfed by the other man's. "I hope that we can be of help. Tell me what happened."

They trailed Blacksnake down a series of corridors and stairs while the man explained. After receiving warnings about the thefts of Xenothium, security around Wayne Enterprise's supply had been tripled. Three days ago the supply had been secretly moved to a level four security vault with 24 hour video surveillance aimed directly at the Xenothium and physical checks on the supply by security personnel every ten minutes.

"We had discussed these security measures with Mr. Wayne himself. Mr. Fox suggested placing the Xenothium in the vault that housed the Kryptonite. It is the most secure vault in Gotham City. At least, that's what we thought."

"Was the Kryptonite stolen as well?" Robin asked.

"No, and that is what confuses me most," Blacksnake placed his hand on the palm reader and leaned in to let his right eye be scanned. "The Kryptonite would be much more valuable on the black market."

The silver doors slid open and revealed a small gathering of senior scientists and security guards crowded around an open drawer in the vault. There were numerous other drawers in the vault that remained untouched.

"Only three of the drawers were used to store Kryptonite, all the others were decoys meant to waste a thief's time. The Xenothium vials were stored in one."

"Except, your thief knew exactly where he was going. That indicates he or she may have insider knowledge," Robin concluded. "What about the video surveillance?"

"Hacked," Blacksnake answered shortly. "The vault feed was placed on a loop for five minutes in between physical checks."

"How did he get into the vault?"

"We don't know yet. There is a record made of every time the vault doors are opened. For the past half hour, all openings have been on schedule of ten minute intervals. There are no other entrances into the vault, not even an air duct."

"Hmmm," Kid Flash leaned his weight on one foot. "Sounds like this guy knew way more than he should have."

"But how would he get out?" Blue Beetle wondered. "The entire building has been on lockdown."

"I was able to get you in," Blacksnake replied. "If I was absolutely sure that the thief was still in the building you four would still be outside. We have to go over all of our video feeds, movement of personnel, and use of security codes to be sure, but I am positive that this guy is long gone."

"What makes you say that?" Robin asked.

"Morrison!" Blacksnake barked at a lanky security guard. "Bring it over here!"

Morrison gingerly handed Robin a piece of paper tucked safely away in a plastic bag. The paper was white and of standard printer size; the ink was thick and black, perhaps a Sharpie or another permanent marker. Both items could be bought at any supply store. What was drawn on the paper was what Blacksnake was interested in. A cartoon bat and two small cartoon birds were doodled crudely on the top of the page. A message was scrawled beneath the pictures in large block letters: "TRY AND CATCH ME BIRDBRAINS!"

Kid Flash whistled as he read the message over his shoulder and Blue Beetle examined the paper with his scanners for trace residue. "This guy's gunning for you, Rob."

"Not just Robin," Nightwing added as he examined the paper over Robin's shoulder. The lenses of his mask were a glowing red indicating that he was scanning the paper as well. "It's clean," Blue Beetle pulled back and agreed.

"I'll have the lockdown lifted when the entire facility is checked and then the proper authorities can get to work. You are of course welcome to observe or do your own investigation. We'll do thorough investigation into everyone that works inside this facility," Blacksnake offered.

"Thank you, but I believe Batman would like to take the lead on this investigation," Robin quickly informed Batman of the situation through his comm link and almost cringed at the disgruntlement in his voice. Beta Squad had been observing the facility on-and-off for nearly two weeks and the thief still managed to make off with $50 million in Xenothium.

After he cut the connection with Batman, Rose snatched the bagged paper out of his slacked grip. She slowly read over the note before surveying the vault with a critical eye. A smile slowly spread across her face and she shoved the paper back at Robin.

"What?" he asked, unnerved by her excitement.

Her eyes glinted with an unknown emotion and her smile became predatory, "You will not catch this man," she sneered. "Not until he is ready."

"What do you mean Rose?"

"This man knows Robin," she poked him in the chest. "He knows Batman, knows the Team. He is playing a game."

Robin waved away her hand and rubbed at the pain that blossomed on his chest. "You can't know that."

Rose shrugged and turned away. Robin rubbed at the spot on his chest again, trying not to think about the possibility that someone knew how the Team operated. Aqualad had promised that he didn't let that much information slip while he was undercover. It was just a coincidence.

Gotham City

October 1; 00:55 EDT

Roy Harper pulled his blue baseball hat lower over his eyes as he strode purposefully down what had become known as Crime Alley. Park Row in Gotham City was dangerous, even for a guy who spent his nights playing hero. It was unbelievable to him how someone could survive growing up in a place like this, especially anyone under the age of 18. Dirty street kids, their faces and clothes smeared with filth, peered out at him from behind dented garbage cans. Their faces were hardened, their eyes narrow and distrustful. The adults were not much better; most of them were covered in scarring, their clothing old and worn. The buildings were nasty and decaying both inside and out. Crime Alley was the rotting center of Gotham City.

He waved off a prostitute and entered a decrepit apartment building that should have been condemned ten years ago. Roy climbed the stairs to the third floor, past walls of graffiti and gang symbols, to a worn door at the end of the hall. The room inside was dark except for the glow of a decades old television and a fading table lamp. The furniture, although old and worn, was still in good condition and the apartment looked taken care of. Two people sat on the couch in front of the television.

"Took you long enough, Harper," the one on the right mocked. He turned away from a commercial on the highlight of a new ancient Egypt exhibit at the Gotham Museum of Art to smirk at Roy. His dark hair fell gracefully over his forehead and his teal eyes stared mischievously from beneath heavy shadows. A small patch of white hair was growing at his temple. Although handsome enough, the dark haired boy had a hardened look to his face that closely resembled the street kids of Crime Alley.

Roy gave the couch potatoes a rude hand gesture and removed his dirty leather boots to slouch down on a frayed lay-z-boy next to the couch. The dark-haired girl nodded at him in greeting and took a sip of her herbal tea in a travel mug. Her skin was so pale, it was almost gray, and her violet eyes were the only pop of color on the otherwise monochromatic girl.

"May I remind you that you had the portal hopping half-demon? Jackass! By the way, your neighborhood sucks."

"What're you talking about? Crime Alley is the perfect place to raise children."

"Your roots are showing."

"Shut up! I'm always dying that stupid patch!"

"Hello Roy," an accented voice greeted from behind him, "I see that you are still in one piece." The woman that passed his chair with a bowl of popcorn was tall, like three inches over six feet tall, and built like a war-like supermodel. Her skin was had a glowing orange tone that matched her vibrant red hair perfectly. She had a body more voluptuous than any human woman Roy has ever seen, so he did feel a bit jealous when she curled up on the couch next to the dark-haired boy. Her glowing green eyes gazed at the television screen while the dark-haired boy and girl passed the bowl of popcorn between them.

"So … Red X," Roy started as the news report ended and a movie started. "Did everything go as plan?"

"Yup," the other boy tossed a piece of popcorn in his mouth. "Raven got me in, got me out, I dropped off the package, and we got back in time for some Jason Bourne. Thanks for volunteering to play distraction."

Roy shrugged, "Less destructive than Starfire's methods of distraction."

The mentioned redhead glared, "We do not have such notions of subterfuge on Tamaran. If we want something, we kick down the door and take it."

"We know, Princess," Red X smiled at the curvaceous redhead. His face was hard but his eyes were soft as he spoke to the wayward alien. "But I really didn't need any more attention being drawn to us. It was for the best to use Roy as a distraction that they would never see. Anyways, you would have sent those choirboys to an early grave just with your uniform."

Starfire smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. "Always so charming."

"Can we please watch the movie?" Raven drawled from the other side of Red X. The others promptly apologized for talking and all four settled in to watch the movie. They ignored the fact that three of them essentially committed grand theft of an extremely dangerous item worth almost $50 million.

Shout-out to lindz4567, dimonyo-anghel, lolmak, and Midnight Promise for their lovely reviews!

This chapter has been somewhat edited.