Just an FYI, since the writing of the 'Sacrifice' arc is moving along rather nicely, I've decided to put this up. An expanded version of this will go up in TT:cartoons after all the important parts are done to the arc. Thank you for your patience.

Dick-16 Jason-13 Cass-11 Tim-9 Damian-3

Stalker

The back of his neck prickled, making him look around curiously. Someone was watching him. It was a sense he picked up years ago before his first kidnapping. Or was it from the first time he was bombarded with question from the press without Bruce around? Either way, he knew someone was watching him, and not in a good way.

"Dick? What's wrong?" Tim looked up to his brother, pulling on his hand. He had promised to take his siblings out to an ice cream or coffee shop after school. Easy to do now that he had a license and car of his own. A short walk around the central shops on the northern island was worth it if it gave them a sense of freedom for a few minutes.

But with someone lurking in the shadows watching them, they weren't going to really get any of that. "Nothing much. Just a feeling."

"What kind of feeling?" Jason looked around too, trying to see what the older teen sensed. Dick was usually very perceptive. Cass was looking around as well, looking up more than down.

"Almost like someone's taking my picture," he admitted. "Someone from the tabloids looking for dirt."

"From where?"

"Not sure…"

"Whoever's watching us is really good at hiding." Cass gave a frustrated huff before giving up and looking at shops again. They hadn't picked a place yet. "A lot better than that photographer last week. How about brownies and cocoa?"

"I think that last nut gave me a rash," Jason admitted, scratching his shoulder. He pouted a bit when he saw a closed sign. "I wanted ice cream."

"Only southern states sell ice cream this time of year." Dick lifted the collar of his coat with one hand while unconsciously attempting to shield Tim from whatever person was watching them. He tightened his grip on the boy's hand at the very least, keeping him close. He made a point of holding on to his kid brother ever since his last kidnapping (which seriously rattled everyone) and no one made a fuss about it, especially Tim. Even if it was just bat-paranoia (a very highly intuitive protectiveness Bruce instilled in them) it never hurt to be cautious. "Kinda a shame. They come up with pretty interesting ones this time of year in Arizona."

"Maybe we can get the brownies ala mode?"

Jason smirked, satisfied with that answer. "Sounds good by me. Cass and I can split it then. So, you in Robin?"

The oldest rolled his eyes but still looked around suspiciously. He really couldn't shake the feeling. If it were just him, he'd probably push it off as paranoia. But Cass felt it too, and Jason to a lesser degree. Someone was watching them, and he didn't like it. "Sure. Just pick a seat near the back door and—"

"Away from the windows." His siblings' united chorus got him to look at them, raising an eyebrow. Jason gave him a snarky 'you're being ridiculous' smirk. "Yes Dad."

"Hey!" Caution was thrown into the wind as they teased each other all the way to the Ma and Pop diner on the corner, ignoring the sensation of being watched once again.

"Hey Dick!" Freddy O'Hara took out his iPhone and brought up a vid, passing it over to his friend at the lunch table. "Have you seen this?"

"What is it?" Dick repositioned his head to make sure the sun didn't blot it out, a cheap sandwich from the vending machine in one hand. He overslept that morning and forgot to raid the fridge for lunch before shooing his siblings into his car so they wouldn't be late to school. Didn't happen very often but when it did it was very inconvenient. Plus his friends gave him odd looks when they saw it.

Freddy was one of the few that didn't care and shared cool youtube vids whenever he could. This was titled 'Wonder Boy PWNs Cowboys'. The acrobat's eyes widened in surprise as he saw something that happened almost a month ago. "You."

"'Wonder Boy'? It was 'Boy Wonder'!" His friends laughed as they crowded around the one phone, watching the vid. "Seriously! I told Ryder it was 'Robin Boy Wonder' and that he better not get it wrong. I've got nothing on Wonder Woman."

"Yeah sure." Travis Murdock pointed at a certain flip that sent the teen soaring through the air. "Tell me you can't fly."

"Not like Superman." Dick couldn't help but grin at the sight. That was a really good move. "It's all about momentum. With enough practice, anyone can do that."

"Where'd you learn that trick!" Sean Bond pointed to a flip-turn-kick, his eyes bulging at the sight, one that rendered the gunman unconscious.

He cringed a little. "My sister, believe it or not. She's really good. She just needs to see a move twice before she can do it, and by the end of the day she turns it into an art form."

"I still can't believe you took down twenty guys on your own like this," Jessica Tanvern gaped, wincing at a well delivered blow at another guy.

"It was eleven and it wasn't on my own." He grinned at her anyway. "I was just the lead showman. How far has this vid gotten anyway?"

"Everywhere!" As soon as the fight ended Freddy pulled back up the page, showing the views. "Two million and counting. You should sell tickets."

"But my name's not even on there, see?" Dick pointed to the credits. No mention of his name anywhere, and the vid cut short of him taking off his mask. No one knew who did this. "I can't take credit, at all."

"Why not?" Sean leaned away, looking at his friend curiously. "You saved lives and spoiled a robbery. And you looked good doing it."

"That's a matter of opinion." They all snickered at the costume again.

"Why can't you take credit for this?" Jess looked over him, little curious.

Dick gave a long sigh before admitting things to him. "Bruce won't let it happen. He buried the story after it got out so it's now a tabloid rumor or a thing on youtube. He says it's for my safety but…" He sighed, shaking his head. "That guy… You should have heard the lecture he gave me after that. And when he told me not to accept interviews or act out like that again…"

"You two've been fighting?"

"A lot." He slumped over on the table, glaring at nowhere. "Every other time I'm in the room with him he tries to tell me what to do next because of some thing he's thought of at work. And it always applies to me. It's gotten to the point I'm not talking to him and avoiding even being in the same room. Don't even know how I'll survive Thanksgiving."

"Come to my place!" Freddy clapped him on the back excitedly. "My grandparents will love it! I mean, I'm their only grandchild and I don't exactly have that many cousins. There's so much food left over and—"

"I'll run it by Alfred. Thanks." He gave his friend a smile, reassuring the two of them. His other friends grinned at him too, mostly because he was sticking it to the system. Teenage rebellion at its best. The only bad part about that plan though was not being able to spend the time with his siblings. They'd be the ones who'd be hurt the most by this. And he'd miss Alfred's cooking

'I'll just have to talk to them about the pros and cons here,' Dick reasoned, just as he looked towards the parking lot not too far from them. He almost glared at the unoffending vehicles, trying to find the source of his discomfort.

"This is gonna be so cool! Think you can come by my place for Hanukah then?"

"Maybe."

"What are you looking at?" Jess' concern when he gave a dismissive answer to Travis wasn't lost on her.

"Hm?" The acrobat jerked his head around, blinking at her. "Oh… nothing. Just… Just a feeling."

It wasn't long after he and Bruce, through Alfred, made a compromise about Thanksgiving and a public event appearance that Dick found himself wandering the streets of Gotham, long after curfew. He snuck out of the house, left his watch at home and carried a burner phone, all so he could have a secret date with Barbara. Movies and a late night snack, nothing much but so worth it if only to defy their parents. They met up with a few of their old high school friends (most were in college except the ones Dick still hung out with) and had coffee after.

Now everyone else had gone home and he wanted more time to wander. The last bus to Bristol hadn't gone yet, and he was planning on hitching a free ride on top anyway, so he turned down everyone's offers to drive him home. And some nights it was just nice to just walk around.

Most of the shops were closed but looking at the display windows was fun too. He could get an idea what to buy everyone at random later. It'd be fun to check them out the next day, if Bruce didn't realize he snuck out like this. Again.

He'd been doing it a lot lately, sneaking away from Wayne Manor, going off the radar, and telling no one where he was going next. Nothing on him could be traced by Bruce, he made sure of it. He bought every item on him with cash from second hand stores just so he could be invisible. And this late at night being invisible helped. Bruce keeping him and his siblings out of the media helped with his anonymity right then, so he could disappear.

But even when he was supposed to be invisible, just some kid going home late at night, he wasn't. That feeling of being watched, followed even, nagged at him full force about five blocks away from the coffee shop. Dick tried to lose the guy via normal person methods, all the while checking reflections.

There was someone following him. Three someones. Big and burly guys, with cliché black ski caps and gloves to match their jackets. Three guys… 'No guns. Knives? No, doesn't look like it. Knuckles? Possibly. Taser? If they're smart. No other supplies so not a kidnapping. Not planned. Muggers. Great.'

Seeing he couldn't lose them like a normal person, Dick ducked into an alley, still weighing his options. 'Evade, attack, antagonize, or turn in? Question is, do I want a fight or do I just want to go home?' He took out his second cell and smirked. Bus didn't cross his path for another fifteen minutes. "What the hell."

Just as he predicted, the three muggers tailed after him, only to find an empty alley. Well, empty except for an eerie cackle. It was hard not to jerk these guys around. Watching them look around stupidly for their target only made it more inviting. "So! Do you make a habit of stalking young handsome men or am I just your type?"

It took another second or so of enraged looking around for one of them to spot him perched on the fire escape just above them. He grinned devilishly at them, glad he hit a few nerves. "Cause I have to tell you right now, none of you are my type. Too… everything. Geh…"

"Wunna say that to my face pretty boy?!" The largest (and maybe the stupidest?) of them launched himself at the ladder barely within reach so he could grab him.

"Oh so you admit, I'm pretty." Dick just grinned at them as they tried getting up to where he was. The first (George from now on) was half way up the ladder when he stood up and the second (Steve) as starting to climb after him, some brass knuckles already in place. He kept up his mockery of them as they came closer. "I think I'm pretty too, and the girls seem to think I am. I just don't get to hear it too much from men twice my age, and size. Well, size up here. I don't know about down there."

This really got the men mad at him, just as George came within arms distance. "Shut the f—"

He never got to complete that sentence. Dick had already grabbed the bar above him from the steps and lifted himself into a two-leg kick, shoving that guy into his partner and into the dumpster below them. Quickly he sprung forward, leapt to the drain pipe just next to it and held on as he kicked the lid own on top of them. He swore he heard heads knocking it as he shoved off the side of the building and towards the last guy (Mike).

Mike was already peeing his pants. And all Dick had to do was laugh again. This was getting fun. "What? Scared of the pretty boy? If you think I'm scary, you should see my boss."

"To hell with this!" Mike turn tail and ran in the opposite direction as fast as his two legs could carry him.

The teenager pouted dramatically. "Aw… there goes my fun!" Out of the corner of his eye he saw the dumpster lid lift slightly and quickly slapped it shut. He spotted a normal trashcan lid next to hit and grinned, swiping it. Quickly he whipped it about and threw it soaring at the runner. The man never made it out of the alleyway. "He shoots, he scores! Two points! Stay." Again he slapped the lid down, glaring at it slightly.

Dick was about to tie the thing down so the muggers wouldn't escape when he saw a bus roll by. He only glimpsed the number but that was all he needed to freak out. The last bus to Bristol was early! "Ah crap!"

Instantly he leapt back up the fire escape and onto the nearest rooftop. He had to get on that bus or it'd take three hours to walk it! Bruce would definitely notice then, and nothing Alfred could do would save him then. Soon he was running on rooftops, imaging he was just doing tricks at the circus to make it less dangerous in his head. It helped him with his footing and his tiring race against the bus. He sincerely hoped someone or something would stall it for a minute or two so he could catch up.

When he landed on top of the bus and hitched a free ride, he wasn't the only one smiling.

'What the heck?' Dick looked around for a moment before glaring forward and sulking again. That feeling was back. Again. He'd been getting it a lot, and now at the opening of a youth center it was impossible to determine exactly where it's coming from. And the scary thing was, more than once in the past month and a half he was right. Someone was watching him, many someones.

So far he'd spoiled two kidnapping attempts, evaded a handful of reporters, and taken down five possible muggers. The fighters had gotten progressively better, but not impossible to beat. They were out of towners, people who hadn't worked with the local criminals and heard the 'Wayne kids' weren't the best targets to grab. Not if you wanted money. And these paparazzi were given good information, nearly cornering him once or twice.

But Dick was always better, at evasion or self-defense. He had to protect Tim one time and had Jason's help another time. Being attacked or bombarded by people wasn't unusual for him, but the feeling of being watched, even after taking down the bad guys or making his escape, was something he'd never get used to.

Ignoring Bruce's speech, he took another look around, unnerved by the feeling he had. The nagging feeling that someone was watching him, seriously watching him, wouldn't leave him. It was even overriding his anger at the man at the pulpit. He and the others had to make a public appearance at a youth center's opening, suits and all. Waiting in the seats near the stage, in the cold, was enough reason for him to scowl, but it was just being watched that made him uncomfortable.

"Master Timothy," Alfred chided, bouncing Damian on his knee as they waited for the proceedings to end, "refrain from scratching your leg."

"But it itches like crazy!" Tim changed from scratching the side of his left knee to slapping it, keeping his voice low. "I don't think that lotion's working."

"Not if you do not allow it to work."

"That's what happens when you take hikes through poison oak to take pictures of birds," Jason murmured next to Cass, on the opposite end of the row from Dick. The girl just rolled her eyes and did her best not to be involved. "Way to go nature boy."

"I can't control where it grows," the kid mumbled, pouting slightly. His hand itched to scratch that spot again but Dick covered it instead, giving him a slight smile. Seeing it, the boy relaxed a little and leaned against him. He had missed him, more than either would admit. "You want to see my pictures later?"

"So long as they don't include blood and gore." That made Tim smile, just in time for the speech to end. Everyone clapped, even the three year old who had no idea what was really going on, glad the speech was over. Lucius Fox cut a ribbon and everyone was allowed to enter the new building. Everyone stood up and Dick took another look around, still feeling like he was under a microscope.

"Something wrong?" Bruce's question brought Dick's mind back to current events. He looked over to the man, debating whether or not to tell him. To tell him about the feeling he's had for the past month or so that someone has been watching him. To tell him how he was targeted while not being on the grid out on the town at night, by amateurs who had way too much intel for their actual skill sets. To tell him he was a little scared because of some faceless person he couldn't be sure about following him nearly everywhere.

But instead he just smiled his poster boy smile for the cameras. "Nothing I can't handle."

The man frowned slightly, concern in his face. "Dick, if there's something—"

"Hey Lucius!" Bypassing Bruce and his questions, he strode forward to his second in command at the company, evading any form of confrontation. No scene for the press during an event and really, Tim and Damian did not need to see the two of them fighting again. "What's inside this place anyway? Any high wires or trampolines?"

The one who raised him just watched him for a moment, some pain and regret on his face. He really needed to talk to him and sort this out, somehow. After having his youngest deposited in his arms, he really felt he should have stopped his oldest, tried talking to him again. Something was bothering him, something he didn't know about. He could tell. And it bothered him too.

"Oh sorry." Someone bumped into Bruce on accident, but nearly squished Damian in the process. The kid screeched at the contact, swinging a fist back at the man angrily. His father caught it and started to calm him down, looking for the person who had touched them, but couldn't find him. The man looked like a homeless drunk trying to snake through the crowd for the food table earlier, but to vanish like that so easily…

"Weird." He heard a camera go off and looked down to Tim, taking pictures of the crowd. "Tim, stop that. Most people don't like surprise photographers."

The kid pouted but put his camera away obediently. "Can we go home now?"

Nearly everything was in place. Nearly. Just a few more pieces, and then his wish would be fulfilled.

A/N: Kudos to those who can figure out who's stalking Dick! Yeah, should be obvious by now. Anywho, for fair warning, the arc is looking like 20 chapters long (it's already over 100 pages). I'll probably have to condense it further, cut scenes and chapters, and reduce what goes in further for the DNBverse core threat here. Which will make the extended version in TT that much better. If anyone wants to beta and help me trim the fat, PM me (seriously, please do). I really want to make the arch a series of one-shots but there's so many good bits i want to include and FYIs and angles and characters... *shakes head* It's taking a lot out of me. Spent most of today looking up references just to make it good, and that's for some very necessary scenes.

Anywho, like I said before, these stalking bits will be expanded, explained upon, and put into further detail, later. I just needed it clear that something was going bad. Dick's calming down here too, not as mad as Halloween (yes, he was a brat, but he was also being a super stubborn, argumentitive, independence seeking 16 year old who hasn't taken down hundreds of bad guys. Teenagers can be brats, even golden boy), but he hasn't made peace yet with Bruce, and everyone's suffering for it.

Timmy now has his camera too, that's important. ;] Well, one more short before the arch starts. Someone reminded me of a discussion Dick adn Jay had to have before anything else happens, adn it happened in the middle of his, somewhere. Til next time! ^^V