Finally moving the plot towards the climax as Dick's secret begins to unravel.
It didn't take long before William showed up at the park. Dick was there and noticed him immediately. Dick approached William without a word. He was a little disturbed, which William found concerning.
"What's wrong?" William asked, placing his hands on his great grandson's shoulders.
Dick fidgeted, gently crossing his fingers. He looked down, ashamed about something.
"I'm concerned about the training we've been doing." Dick admitted. "I was sparring with one of my brothers, and had I not had control, I fear that I could have killed him."
William figured he could understand the sentiment, even though he wasn't too familiar with having such a big family. However, he subconsciously hoped that it could have gone farther. It would have been interesting to see if Dick could actually kill someone at this stage. Since he didn't, William knew he would have to work that out. But for now, it was best to applaud Dick for showing some kind of restraint.
"You showed restraint." William praised, grabbing Dick's wrists. "What I've been teaching you, though fatal, is meant to be precise and controlled. The fact that you were able to stop yourself shows you have control."
"But the techniques I've been learning could kill someone."
"Something that might become a necessity when defending yourself."
Dick's head twitched. He understood William's perspective, but with how Bruce taught him, the thought of killing was so foreign to him. Killing was never an option to him, accidental deaths being a rare occurrence, and he never thought he's have that as an option now. Dick decided to leave it at that, having another topic he wanted to address.
"Can I ask you a question?" Dick asked.
"You just did, but go ahead."
"With how long you've been living, do you know about the Court of Owls and if they exist? I saw some graffiti referencing them and I'm curious."
William was a little shocked by the inquiry. He wasn't expecting Dick to ask that so suddenly, but it didn't seem to be a malicious question. It sounded like it was coming from a place of simple curiosity.
"Yes I know about them and they are very real."
Dick looked up at William curiously. He wasn't fazed by the admission, now that William could confirm what Bruce had already told him. Dick's follow up, however, was what peaked his interest.
"Are you one of them? Are you a Talon?"
William's puzzled gaze shot Dick's face down in embarrassment.
"I'm sorry, but after seeing that and thinking about your attire, I thought I'd ask."
William hated seeing Dick ashamed over a question. Even if he was a little surprised by the question, he wasn't hurt by it. There wasn't anything wrong with Dick asking, William just wasn't expecting to explain that part of his background yet. Honesty was the only thing that William could think of using. It was the only thing keeping Dick around.
"I am." William accepted. "Does that bother you?"
Dick was flabbergasted, unsure what to think. Bruce's tone towards them felt slightly negative, but this was his great grandfather. His great grandfather couldn't be a bad person with everything he's done with him. Dick didn't want to think that about William. It was confusing.
"I… I don't know… No." Dick muttered. "I know nothing about them outside of that poem, so who am I to judge." Dick shrugged. "Does that mean that I'm a Talon? Was I going to be?"
"All in due time Dick. All in due time."
Dick snuck back into his room. He was able to process everything between the park and home. William was able to talk him through some of the basics of the Court of Owls and Talons. It was enough to calm Dick's suspicions and even gave him an appreciation for the group. Though whether he could agree that the group was wholeheartedly good was debatable.
"Where have you been?" Jason inquired, flipping the light on.
Dick was stunned to see Jason in the room. Alfred was bad enough, but Jason was a whole other story. And after their sparring session, Dick wasn't sure he was ready for this confrontation.
"The park." Dick stated.
"Doing what?"
"Swinging."
Jason approached Dick, crowding Dick's personal space. Jason inspected Dick carefully, looking for something out of the ordinary. A hand brushed through Dick's hair, looking to see if it was hiding anything.
"Okay I was with someone." Dick hastily admitted.
Jason took a step back, giving Dick some space so he could explain himself.
"When I went for a walk all those days ago, I met someone."
"Who?"
Dick knew there was no hiding it any longer. Even if he tried to, he knew Jason would push it until he did. Dick sighed.
"I met my great grandfather, William Cobb, and we've been meeting up in secret." Dick told, but when he noticed Jason's troubled expression, he knew he had to reiterate. "He's a good man and is so nice. It's so nice to know that I have a biological relative out there."
Jason anxiously grabbed Dick's shoulders. Just hearing Dick mention the very relative that he and Bruce were talking about shook Jason. This was bad. Worse considering Bruce didn't know about it. Because of that, Jason couldn't believe what he was going to say.
"You have to tell Bruce about this." Jason demanded.
"I can't." Dick refused. "I promised I wouldn't tell anyone until he said so."
Jason groaned. Of course Dick would agree to that. With what little memory of who William was, it shouldn't have been a surprise that Dick would agree to those terms given the family aspect.
"Bruce needs to know. I'll be there, but you need to tell him. If you're afraid about how he'll react, just know that I'll be there for you."
Dick's eyes shied away from Jason, ashamed by his reveal. Ashamed that he said anything to Jason and ashamed about breaking his promise. And now that his secret was out, Dick could only imagine what Bruce would think. However, Jason sounded genuine. His promise to be there, on Dick's side, was nice.
"Okay." Dick finally agreed. "I'll tell him."
Bruce and Damian just got off of patrol. As they walked up the stairs, they were greeted by Jason and Dick. Jason held a neutral stance while Dick was nervously twitching beside him. The sight was rather suspicious.
"What's going on?" Bruce asked.
Jason nudged Dick, causing him to take a step forward. Dick kept his gaze on the floor, fidgeting his fingers.
"I meet my great grandfather," Dick whispered, "and I've been sneaking out to see him."
Dick looked up at Bruce nervously. What he was greeted by was an expression of stifled panic. Bruce was clearly bothered by the statement, but he seemed at a loss for words. Without warning, Bruce grabbed Dick's arm and dragged him across the floor. He tossed Dick onto his room, and slammed the door behind him.
Dick cried out, begging Bruce to let him out. Fists pounded on the door when rattling the knob didn't work. Bruce looked back at Damian and Jason as he held the door knob. They were both stunned by Bruce's action. Jason was pissed on top of that.
"What the hell." Jason growled.
"I agree." Damian added. "Father, why did you do that?"
"You heard him." Bruce coldly lectured. "He met that psychopath of a great grandfather William Cobb."
"Bruce, Dick has no memory of him and hasn't been harmed." Jason stated. "That doesn't give you the right to trap him."
That only seemed to infuriate Bruce more. Added with Dick's frantic cries, Jason's statement was less than welcomed.
"Do you hear yourself Jason? He has been communicating with a killer. Family or not, you know that man is doing something sinister."
"But that doesn't give you the right to throw Dick into a room and cause him to have a panic attack. I may not agree with it myself, but I can't let you do this to him."
Jason pushed Bruce out of the way and opened the door. Dick was on his knees, tears streaming down his face. Jason knelt down and wrapped his around Dick's frame. All Jason could do was whisper an apology to Dick.
Having Bruce toss DIck in a room and restricting his exit was always a plan. It was going to be place around this time and with the reveal. However, I may have had a slightly different plan.