When the quartet reached the living room where they had left the other three kids they found it empty. A camcorder, another borrowed from the AV closet, was on the coffee table hooked up to the plasma TV. It was paused on a shot of Miki sitting on the couch they were looking at. Tim knew instantly what the video would be of. None of them had ever been any good at fessing up.

"Cowards," Sari all but spat.

"Like you would be any braver," Tim retorted taking a seat on the couch and pressing play. Sari joined him while Clark and Bruce stood behind them. Clark was over to discuss yet another message that went to the Watchtower from 'A'. It hadn't been a pleasant conversation. He had no idea where Dick was.

Miki was sitting in the middle of the couch and it was him who started talking, his voice hoarse from disuse.

"Hey Timmy, Sari," he said. "We aren't the bravest of people, but we weren't sure if you would let us go after we told you everything. This way we have at least a chance, even though we know you could find us in two seconds flat. We aren't you; we aren't heroes.

"But we're not the monsters people remember us being either. Ali discovered Batman's identity. We don't know how and we didn't even know who it was until you were adopted. We knew you were the new Robin but we had no idea who Batman was.

"As you can see I'm not mute, nor am I entirely crazy. I planned on going to Arkham as a failsafe to the plan we had devised. Ali tried to bring Toby into her plan to blackmail and control every influential member of Gotham's elite. Toby agreed at first, but Ali turned sick, violent. She was planning on dangling Batman's identity in front of his enemies to control them as well. She planned to start a war that would leave the field clear for her eventual takeover when she was older.

"Toby decided to stop her. By that time she'd already contacted the Joker with a deal. Certain dead people, for a name. His name. Robin had yet to be killed and the Joker was just as in the dark as anyone else. But after Robin's death, the deal was terminated. We never knew who backed out first.

"Ali made a lot of contacts and in the end was able to play everyone off each other with the information she knew and promised, but ultimately never delivered. Ali found out about the plan to stop her takeover and everything fell apart. When she left that night, Traci followed her on Toby's four wheeler, catching up with her and stopping her from reaching her home. We met up with them a few minutes later.

"I'm sure you can figure out what happened after that. But she was alive when we left and she's alive today. Whether her family knows or not, we're not certain of. But I can tell you now that she's not 'A'. We are.

"I went to Arkham so that I could get away from home. You know what it was like for me there. I needed a way out and infiltrating Arkham was perfect. We needed an ear and in their drug induced babbling certain truths were slipped. Toby kept an eye on her people in Europe and Traci kept an eye on the elite in Gotham. We followed Ali's progress. What she was doing. What she was planning. You know enough about this world to know that age doesn't really matter if the person's smart enough to do it.

"You'd be surprised at how many people Ali has in her pocket. But Ali is planning something, and we're still working on figuring it out. We needed a reason to come together. We needed a reason for me to get out of Arkham. I couldn't just miraculously recover. That left you. We also needed the book in a safer location than Sari's sock drawer but we didn't have the heart to steal it and we knew she wouldn't hand it over to any of us. Again that left you.

"So we took our knowledge of each other and our past and we made this plan. We also felt that you deserved the truth, about what happened and what we were doing. You weren't the only one to feel something about the things we did, the people we hurt.

"We wanted you to know that we did care and that we recognized the need for Payback just as much as you did. You're not the only one who cares about this city Tim. Our city, filled with our people. The good, the bad, and the downright nasty. We do care which is why we're doing this. The people of this city deserve better than Ali and whatever foul thing she thinks up next. They deserve to chose for themselves who gets the power and the control.

"They deserve more than the mob and bribery. Which is where you come in. We wish you luck in whatever it is you do. I wish we could be friends you two, but life seems to be taking us in another direction. So we wish you luck and we hope you can forgive us." Miki stood then and shut off the camera. Tim didn't even register when Sari ran from the room.

"Tim, are you going to be okay?" Bruce asked. Clark had left feeling it wasn't his place to be there. Tim was standing in the front entrance waiting for Sari. He knew her well, knew she would leave soon. And he knew she would think it cowardly to leave any other way than through the front door.

"I'll be fine," he replied. "It's not like I shouldn't have expected this. Ali was ruthless, unpredictable, and uncontrollable even then. She was in a convenient position to blackmail or destroy anyone that stood in her way. I'd seen her do it many times. I can't even imagine what she'd be like now, with that many contacts."

"How much of a problem do you think she'll be?" Bruce asked.

"Not one we need to worry about," Tim answered. "The others will take care of her. They have so far." Bruce just nodded, and then suddenly turned his head. Tim followed his eye line to see Sari coming down the stairs, backpack slung over one shoulder. She bounded down and crossed the front entryway to stand directly in front of him.

"I'm leaving," she said bluntly.

"To where?" he asked.

"I'm going to find our friends, and I'm going to help them," she said.

"That's not a good idea, Sari," he replied. "People will come searching for you, all of you, you can't just disappear." Sari shook her head at him.

"We'll be fine, Tim," she said. "We're smart enough to avoid the cops, and none of us have ever been very close with anybody other than each other. They won't know where to start." Tim didn't answer. He didn't know what to say to that. It wasn't like she really wanted her here and even though he doubted the good feelings towards them would last, he knew Sari was determined to bring Ali down.

"You never did like Ali," he said.

"No I didn't," she said. "She needs to be stopped. We know her better than anyone, we know what she'll be capable of she isn't stopped. Look at the amount of chaos she's already brought done on us. Imagine what could happen if she decides to team up with the Joker." Tim didn't even want to think of that possibility so he simply nodded his head and she hugged him. He hugged her back.

"Good luck Sari," he whispered.

"You too," she whispered back. With that she pulled away and left through the double doors of the Manor, swiftly disappearing down the path. Tim shook his head and smiled. This was just so wrong. They were supposed to have been friends forever, now he was a vigilante and his old friends were hunting down a girl he'd helped rise to power.

It couldn't be denied that they'd all helped Ali gain those contacts and develop that ruthless streak. They'd all been cowards, playing a grown up game in a dangerous city. Ali had left them with two very distinct legacies.

The legacy they were ashamed of. A legacy of bullies, lies, criminals, and viciousness.

Then there was the legacy they clung to. One of superheroes, good deeds, and friends. One of freedom and a better life than the one they'd left behind. In the end it couldn't be denied which one they preferred, which one they needed, which one they wanted the world to know about. None of them wanted to die the petty little brats they'd been when they'd ruled the junior elites and even a good deal of the senior ones. No, they'd much rather die a proud hero and with all their cowardly promises.

Timmi-Tim Tim-Tim!

Hide your book. Hide your secrets.

Hide your friends and your family.

Ali's coming to play.

-A