Please read the very important (and long..) A/N at the bottom!

Chapter 6: Take it Back

"Then get on your knees, pretty boy."

Dick's thoughts had been going a mile per minute, but halted now to freeze into a block of ice.

What?!

He stared at Snake, at that dirty, smug grin, and only then realized that he was opening his belt with one hand. He was serious. Dick felt the bile rising. Oh God, he was serious.

"...What?" he asked with a dry voice, trying to buy time. He had to think of something; he needed to get them out of here. Damian was in trouble – the boy didn't seem to be able to stand on his own feet. Was he drugged? Hurt?

The Commissioner was yelling something behind him, but Dick's ears were buzzing too loudly to make out the words. They didn't matter, anyway. He used the distraction to shift his glance to the man who was holding the gun to Damian's head (oh God there was someone holding a gun to Damian's head!) and make sure he had seen right the first time: the gun was still uncocked. Good.

He could flip to the side and kick the gun out of the man's hand before he even knew what was happening, and then use the momentum to roll with Damian under the car... but then what? What about the Commissioner? And what if the goon did see it coming? All it took for him to blow Damian's brains out were two small movements with his fingers. He couldn't risk that.

"I said, get on your knees, pretty boy."

Dick kept staring at him. He had to think of something, but his mind was blank. Completely, utterly blank. He didn't know what to do.

Two small movements with his fingers. He couldn't risk it.

With shaky knees, he stepped closer to the gang leader who smirked madly. His brain rebooted with full force and started to scream at him, but there was no, not even one single idea on how to get out of this one.

There was cursing behind him and shuffling, then the sound of a punch and the Commissioner panted when the air was expelled from his lungs. A soft thud; Dick suspected that Jim had just been shoved to the ground. Damian was squirming in the arms of his captor, he could see him out of the corner of his eye, but his movements were sluggish and clumsy.

Dick dropped to his knees right in front of Snake and reached for the fly of the trousers. His hands were shaking badly... oh God, this was really happening. Dick thought he might burst into tears any second.

How did this whole thing happen? Where had he gone wrong?! There were only three guys in the garage on the surveillance tape, and they had been arms-deep in the cars' insides, trying to salvage them. And now there were five, all armed, and had Damian as a captive?

With trembling hands, Dick tugged at the jeans. Wow, he had messed this one up, holy shit. He hadn't expected the leader to show up, it was way too dangerous. All he had wanted were fingerprints or other leads; the surveillance camera in the garage was connected to the facial and voice recognition software in the Batcave. He didn't think that Snake himself would show up with so much anger. Dick completely trusted him to take it out on Damian – there had been other dead kids where the Snake had struck. But how had he known that Dick would even come to the garage?! How had he been able to plan this with so many undefined variables – Damian, the Commissioner, himself?

The goons behind him were laughing, and Snake had begun to pant in anticipation. Dick was still struggling with the trousers – his arms didn't really follow his instructions, as if there was no strength left whatsoever. Then finally, the trousers slid down the man's hairy legs, and Dick saw something metallic gleaming on one shin.

Oh.

So Snake hadn't planned this.

He only had about two seconds to act before Snake realized his mistake. Without conscious thought, Dick launched into motion. He pushed himself off the ground with all the strength he could muster, grabbing and unsheathing the knife that was strapped to Snake's right ankle.

He twisted his body and threw the knife full force, praying that it hit its target and seized the moment. Automatically, the goons all followed the trajectory of the shiny knife; only Snake had noticed the unexpected movement at his feet before it was in the air. Before he could act, though, Dick slammed his elbow into the man's crotch, grabbed his collar when he tilted forwards into a defensive position, and pulled – with his hands pressed against his balls, the automatic response of his body and the trousers still wound around his ankles, Snake simply toppled right over Dick.

It didn't take longer than a heart beat – immediately, there were gunshots, but Dick used the momentum of Snake's body to pull him over himself and create a temporary shield. He only needed a second to dive for the gun the man had dropped.

The other goons were confused, surprised by how fast the game had changed. The man that had held Damian was serving as a wonderful distraction, clutching his hand and screaming at the knife that stuck in the flesh of his palm. He had dropped the gun and Damian, but Dick was pretty sure that he hadn't yet realized that the knife had also severed the sinews that had connected the muscles of his trigger finger.

He shot at the man that had had his arms crossed before and was now desperately trying to get his gun fast enough, hit him in the shoulder and then threw himself sideways into Damian's direction, tossing the gun towards the Commissioner. "Number five – oh – seven!" Dick screamed, praying that the Commissioner remembered his police training and the maneuvers they had learned.

Jim was still kneeling on the ground and grabbed the gun that skidded over the floor. The two men right next to him were too distracted by Dick's sudden action and their two screaming comrades... Correction; one screaming comrade. Dick barreled into the goon at Damian's side full force, knocking his head into the car door beside him. The man dropped to the floor like a stone, and Dick lunged for his little brother.

In one swift movement, he threw the car door of the Old Timer open and hauled the boy into the interior. No time to check up on him, one bullet had already hit the car door. In this one blink of an eye Dick hadn't seen any blood surrounding Damian. It had to do for now.

Dick risked a second to reach behind his makeshift shield and took Damian's former captive's gun. He whirled around to check on Snake, uncocking his gun. The leader was still lying on the floor, clutching his balls. Yeah, Dick had really hit hard. No, he didn't regret it, not one bit. Asshole.

Jim!

While Dick had been busy saving Damian, the Commissioner had acted in the only smart way his situation had left him; he had grabbed the gun Dick had tossed over to him and shot one of the men's thigh, bringing him down. The man had fallen, and Jim had yanked him forward, using his body as a shield just like Dick had used Snake. It was a dirty trick, dangerous, but the only solution available. The second man had stood too close to him to give him time to search for another shelter.

The man was panicking now, Dick could see it. He was all alone all of sudden, and the gun he had pointed at the Commissioner was unsteady.

"Give up, boy, it's over," Jim said quietly.

"The police are on their way already; the guests surely heard the gunshots," Dick added, trying to sound just as cool and collected as Jim did when he visibly directed his gun at the man, too. Damn, the Commissioner had nerves of steel...

The last goon wasn't as stupid as the rest. He threw his gun into Jim's direction and lowered himself to the ground slowly, face down. Jim shifted a wary glance at Snake and seemed satisfied with what he saw.

They did it.

"Damian!" Dick swiveled around to the car and his little brother. Damian was staring at him from the car, obviously trying to stay upright, with wide, unfocused eyes. When he heard his name, his gaze shifted slowly, uncertainly to Dick's face.

"Are you alright? What did they do?" Dick grabbed the boy's shoulders, checking him over anxiously. Dear Lord, who knew how long those assholes had had him before he showed up. Who knew what they were going to do if he hadn't showed up. He had only been inches away from a headshot! "Are you hurt?!"

Damian shook his head, apparently a bit taken aback by Dick's frantic behaviour. "Jus' sso..some drug," he slurred.

Drug. Not concussed, not bleeding, no protruding bones. Still aware of his surroundings. Alive.

"Oh, thank God," Dick sighed and drew the surprised boy into a tight hug. For once, Damian didn't struggle. "You're okay..."

"Dick?"

Dick looked up, not letting go of Damian. The Commissioner was standing in front of him, with a seriously worried expression on his face. Dick suspected that he had called his name a couple of times already.

"Everything alright?"

Dick nodded slowly, pulling Damian closer. "He's okay. Shocked, but okay."

"What about you?"

Dick blinked up at him and only then realized that he was trembling badly. Like breaking through the water's surface and feeling the cool air on one's skin for the first time in ages, Dick's senses suddenly snapped back into reality, the last minutes crashing down on him. Woah.

There were sirens blaring in the vast distance, and he heard hurrying footsteps approaching. Alfred? The garage was a mess – five guys lying on the ground, three of them bleeding strongly, Snake still in fetal position but bound to one of the cars with an oily bicycle chain... Huh, when did that happen? The guy who had surrendered voluntarily was also tied up neatly. Dick must have zoned out there for a few seconds.

"Dick!" The Commissioner sounded downright exasperated now. Status report, right.

"Fine," he replied, trying to keep his voice from wavering. "I'm fine, thanks." As long as I don't think about what I was about to do five minutes ago...

Jim didn't look convinced, so Dick decided to demonstrate how 'fine' he was by getting up. He didn't let go of Damian – who, most importantly, hadn't yet let go of him – and stood up, standing on shaky knees. He felt like he had just run a marathon, tiredness washing over him suddenly.

"Are you sure? Because those were some really intense moments right there..."

Yeah, he had noticed. Dick huffed a dry laugh. He still felt the jeans fabric on his skin... Fortunately Alfred slammed the garage door open just then and saved him from coming up with an adequate answer. There were many people in fancy dresses peeking through the door when Alfred hurried in, not daring to enter but keen to watch. There had been a high society party after all, Dick remembered with a grimace. No time to think about that.

Alfred stepped over the goon with the wounded thigh and took the whole situation in with a few sharp glances. He lingered a little bit longer at Snake, whose trousers were still draped around his ankles, then mustered a long look at Dick. He had probably seen the surveillance tapes..

"Everything's okay," Dick offered, not very convincing.

"You don't look 'okay'." Typical Alfred, totally undermining his authority...

"Listen, Dick," the Commissioner piped up again. "The police will be here any second. We'll try to handle it fast. Are you up to it?"

Dick nodded, solemnly. He really wasn't looking forward to giving testimony at the police station right now, but he knew how those things worked only too well, and knew that the sooner he got it done, the better.

"What about Damian? We need to have him checked over."

"We'd need his testimony, too..." Jim looked at the two of them sympathetically, "but I guess that can wait til tomorrow."

"I'll bring him upstairs," Dick turned towards the door to the Manor, and the high society bystanders backed off a few steps. "Alfred, call Leslie, will you? I'll be right back."

On the big staircase, away from the crowd, Dick allowed himself to lose some of the cool facade he had tried to display. Damian was getting heavy in his arms, but he doubted that the boy would be able to walk the stairs on his own. He suspected he knew what drug they had used, and there wouldn't be any long-term effects as soon as Damian had slept it off. Leslie would check him through anyway, just to make sure.

"Don't say anything to anybody until I'm back, okay?" Dick murmured into the boy's hair. He was too tired to make it an order, and he probably couldn't get the voice right right now, anyway. "I'll need to think of some story first."

Damian muttered something unintelligable, which could have been an 'I'm sorry' or a 'go to hell'.

They reached Damian's room and Dick lowered his brother to the bed. Damian looked positively awful, curling up in a tight ball at once, but Dick didn't have the time to take care of that now. He didn't look much better himself.

"We'll talk about what happened when I'm back," he said, slightly distracted by the two cats that sat outside on the window ledge and looked at him expectantly. Huh. He decided to let Alfred fight that battle.

Damian felt miserable. Simple as that.

It was long into the night when he heard keys dangling at the front door. The door to Pennyworth's room opened and he heard hurried footsteps, but didn't dare to follow. He expected Grayson to come to his room at once, but he didn't. Only the butler's footsteps passed his room a few minutes later.

He would still come, Richard had told him so before he left. Damian pulled the blankets closer around him.

He hadn't slept like Leslie had instructed him to, but the drug had still worn off little by little and was now completely gone. Damian's head was pounding, but that was just one of the side-effects; he'd be alright... except for being scared out of his mind by the prospect of having to talk to Grayson.

Damian was no fool; he knew he had messed up big time. Walking right into the Snake's guard post was stupid and embarrassing, getting drugged was frustrating and dangerous. It had been nerve-wracking, but in the end nothing that hadn't happened to any of them before. But bringing Grayson and the Commissioner into such a position... Damian shuddered. Just the thought of Richard sliding onto his knees, while Snake had grinned like a dirty pervert...

Damian didn't know how Grayson knew that Snake had a knife strapped around his ankle. Granted, he had been drugged and his perception hadn't been great all evening, but he was sure that neither holster nor knife had in any way pressed against the jeans. That was the point of a hidden knife, after all. Damian had been truly terrified when Richard had actually pulled down Snake's pants. He wouldn't ever forgive himself if he had gone through with it.

He didn't know if he could forgive himself now, but right now he was more afraid of what Richard had to say to him. Hours had passed since Grayson left, and Damian had spent a good deal of them trying to figure out what to say, how to defend himself. There was no good excuse for his behaviour – he had disobeyed a clear, direct order, had endangered innocent bystanders and almost made Grayson... he couldn't even finish the thought without feeling nauseated. Richard had to be furious about the humiliation he had to go through thanks to his mistakes.

Grayson would send him away now, Damian was absolutely sure. There was no reason for him to keep a kid he wasn't even related to that openly defied him and fucked up things so badly. Richard would just send him back to his mother and go back to living the life he was probably missing like hell.

There was a soft knock on the door just then. Perfect timing. Damian remained silent, but the door opened nonetheless and Richard stepped in. He was wearing a morning robe, his hair still damp. Damian could smell the curd soap they used in the Cave's showers.

"I know you're still awake."

Unwillingly, Damian pulled the blankets back and sat upright, watching as Grayson stepped closer and sat down on the mattress, opposing Damian. He looked tired beyond words, and Damian averted his gaze quickly.

"What happened, Damian?"

Richard's voice was soft, but flat. As if he had already given up and just held this conversation with him pro forma. He would wait for an answer and then tell him to go. Damian swallowed and refused to answer. Grayson sighed resignedly.

"I gave you a clear order. You were to stay back and watch out for the other guests. Why didn't you listen; I thought we had a deal?"

A deal, yes. Damian felt the bile rising. It was only this damn deal that brought him into this position, that had proven to him that Grayson neither wanted nor needed him around. "I didn't want to be redundant," he whispered therefore.

"Redundant?" Now Grayson's voice got more lively, "Damian, you had the most important part in this! I would have never just walked into that garage if I didn't have any back up! Alfred was supposed to check the tapes after I gave him the signal and if anything happened, he was to send you to bail me out."

Oh. Damian felt his cheeks turn red in shame during Grayson's speech. He hadn't thought so far... right, Grayson had simply walked into the garage, with the Commissioner in tow, while he knew or at least suspected a few armed criminals...

That only meant he had messed up even more. No wonder Grayson came in. No wonder he had panicked like that when he actually saw Damian – not only was he shocked to see him in that situation, his whole contingency plan got blown to pieces, and the Commissioner was involved as well...

"I watched the tapes in the Cave, you know?" Richard went on when Damian didn't speak up. "You walked right into those guard posts! What happened!?"

"I was distracted."

"Distracted." Grayson echoed him, a mixture of resignation and disbelief... more resignation, though. "Damian, I don't know what to do with you anymore..."

Damian forced himself to look at his mentor and saw how he ran a hand through his wet hair. "Are you mad?"

"I don't know. I'm... disappointed, honestly. And scared."

"Scared?" He asked, because it was easier to think about that than about the disappointment part.

Richard nodded. "Yeah," he said with a soft voice. "I keep telling you that all it takes is one tiny slipup and its over. I've been telling you from day one, but you just won't listen to me. Today you almost got yourself killed, just because you didn't like your role in one gig? Damian, that was not only reckless and disobedient, that was stupid."

"I know..."

"And then there was the Commissioner! He could have died as well, just because we can't communicate properly?"

The following silence was suffocating. Damian knew that Grayson was waiting for him to say something, but he didn't dare to open his mouth and give him even more reason to kick him out. Finally, though, he couldn't bear to wait anymore. "What will happen now?"

Grayson sighed deeply. "I don't know, Damian, I'm just as clueless as you used to point out." – ouch! – "It's obvious that things will have to change, I.. I will think about it. We'll talk about it tomorrow."

Abruptly, Grayson stood up and hurried towards the door.

"Richard," Damian called, not even noticing the name. Grayson halted in front of the door and looked over his shoulder. "How did you know about the knife?"

"The knife?"

"Yes, the one around his ankle. How did you know about it? I didn't see it."

Grayson turned around again, shrugging slowly. "I didn't."

What?! "What do you mean?"

"I didn't know about it."

Damian's calm facade crumbled just like that. He hadn't known?! But that meant – oh God. Damian felt as if someone had just punched him in the stomach. "But... why did you..."

Just the thought of Richard sliding onto his knees in front of that asshole was enough to keep Damian awake for weeks to come. And to think that the idiot really... he would have...

"Damian, he held a gun at your face." Grayson, the idiot, had the nerve to look at him just as surprised as Damian looked right now. As if it were completely normal to do as a homicidal pervert ordered and... all the adrenaline Damian had suppressed so far suddenly shot right up his spine. Before he knew what he was doing, he was standing upright in his bed, hands balled to fists and screaming.

"Are you kidding me?! Do you know what almost happened?! What else he would have done to you afterwards!?"

"Of course I knew," his mentor shot back, still calm but obviously uncomfortable. "But he had threatened to kill you and you know he had killed kids before."

Damian continued to shout, running out of breath. When he stopped to inhale sharply, Grayson looked at him sternly. "That's enough Damian. We got away with a black eye this time. We should be thankful nothing happened."

"But it almost did!"

Damian froze immediately, shutting up. Grayson's eyes widened also the tiniest bit, signaling that he had also recognized the familiar argument.

'Nothing happened, alright?'

'But something could have happened, and I had no chance of finding you with your tracker off!'*

Suddenly, Damian was hit by tiredness. And a lot of different things he couldn't make sense out of right now. All he knew was that Grayson would have gone through with everything Snake would have ordered him to do just to keep up the slight chance that he wouldn't kill Damian. He had said so with absolute conviction, and Damian knew how stubborn Richard could be.

Grayson seemed to debate whether to walk up to him or leave. In the end, he just pinched the bridge of his nose and grabbed the door handle. "Tomorrow, Damian. Try to get some sleep."

-tbc-

* this dialogue goes back to chapter 1, when Damian snapped at Dick.

A/N: When I wrote the conversation between Dick and Damian, I couldn't get the Lion King's scene between Mufasa and Simba out of my head. It was very tempting to simply copy it: "Simba/Damian, I am very disappointed in you." - "I know..." - "You could have been killed! You deliberately disobeyed me; and what's worse, you put Nala/the Commissioner in danger!"... *lol*

Thanks for more than 100 reviews! I promised you a reward, and here is the deal: I'd like to write a One Shot for you! Please send me prompts and ideas you'd like me to write, and I will make a poll (as soon as I know how to do that) with your suggestions. By the end of this ff, I'll write the one with the most supporters. You can send them in via review or PM, though I would prefer PM because I will surely answer you to talk about it. The more detailed your idea, the better (One sentence-prompt are likely to be misunderstood, I think). The only demand on my side is that it should be mainly about the Batfamily. I don't have an issue with M-rated stuff as long as that stuff serves a purpose for the plot (meaning: no NSFW or PWP or whatever kids these days call it ;) ). Be quick! I'd like to have the poll up for as long as possible, and there are only 2 or 3 chapters missing til the end; also I'd like to limit the poll to 5 or 6 possibilities, though I will adjust it depending on your feedback... most importantly: DO IT! If I get no prompts, there'll be no One Shot ;) Prompt me!