Robin jumped from rooftop to rooftop, his cape flapping about in the wind as he maneuvered the city with ease. He'd only been out for an hour, but the afternoon summer shone brightly overhead, a clear indication that the day was far from over. The only sounds that accompanied him was the release of gas from his grappling as it was fired so he could lift himself to a better vantage point, just so a moment later he could extend his cape into a rigid triangle and glide down to the next building. He made it look easy, but it had come with years of practice, and more than once the Titans had warned him about going out on his own; he couldn't fly, and if he got stunned in the air he'd have to be scraped off the pavement.
"Just give it over already!"
"Someone, heeeeelp!"
But he landed on the edge of a building and looked down. Beneath him, a man was trying to grab a woman's purse. He narrowed his eyes as the man lifted a crowbar and brought it down on the woman's arm; she cried out, but didn't let go.
Robin jumped off the building, shooting his grappling hook so it would slow his fall. The heavy thud as he landed on his feet brought the muggers attention to him, and he let go of the purse. The woman stepped back, but smiled as realized she'd been saved. "Why don't you try picking on someone your own size?" Robin asked the man as he stood up straight, pulling out his collapsible staff and raising it offensively.
The man quickly glanced to the sky, then behind him, no doubt looking for the other Titans, but upon realizing Robin was alone, turned back to the young hero and smirked. "Yer not so big without yer friends, know that?" The man said cockily, raising his crowbar and charging forward with an, "Haaaaagh!".
Robin easily sidestepped the overhead strike, and kicked the back of the man's knees. He stumbled and Robin took the opportunity to grab him by the arm, throwing him against the nearby wall and striking him in the face twice. The man crumpled as the shock of the fast blows nearly knocked him out. Robin shook his head and grabbed some wire from his utility belt, then bound the mans hands and feet.
"Thanks for that." The woman from before approached him, shaken and with a small bruise, but otherwise alright. "He moved in a couple of months back; I didn't like the look of him so I always tried to steer clear, but he followed me out here today when I was going to my car and..." She trailed and took a breath, her blonde hair whipping as she shook her head.
"Just doing the right thing." Robin said with a somewhat forced smile. "Go ahead and call the police, he's not going anywhere." Robin looked down at the man who groaned, and for good measure gave a quick kick to the mans stomach. He groaned and coughed as the air was forced out of his lungs.
"Yeah, sure." The woman glared down at the man. "Hope it was worth the makeup kit and fifteen bucks I had in there, jerk."
Off in the distance police sirens sounded, and Robin turned to face the direction they had come from. Pulling out his grappling hook, Robin gave the woman a two finger salute. "Sorry, gotta go." The woman nodded in understanding, and once more Robin took to the rooftops.
Just a little after he started his journey, Robin stopped hearing the sirens and had to guess where he was supposed to go. Luckily, it didn't take more than a few minutes of travel before he spotted two cop cars in a parking lot, with two officers standing outside, talking with one another. Robin cocked his head to the side before jumping off the corner of the roof and gliding down to the parking lot. The two officers watched him descend, and raised a hand in greeted as he landed. "What's the trouble?" Robin asked as he ran up to meet them.
"Eh, no trouble, least not anymore." The first cop, Mendoza judging by what was written on his nameplate, jerked a thumb to the second cop car. "Guy in the back there tried getting into someone's car. The alarm went off and the guy got tazed when he tried to make a run for it."
Robin looked over the man's shoulder and could see that there was indeed a young man, probably about his age with a mop of black hair on his head, sitting in the back seat of the cop car, looking incredibly depressed. "Not that I care. Guy shouldn't have broken the law." Robin thought to himself. "And the guy who stopped him?" Robin asked.
"He went inside that office over there, it's where he works. We got his statement already." Mendoza shrugged. "Leave the little stuff like this guy to us, huh? Go take care of those freaks with the super suits or crazy powers that are above our paygrade. We got this one." He gave Robin a friendly tip of his police hat and got back in the car, and the other cop gave him a nod before getting back into his car and both of them drove off.
Robin watched them until they were out of sight, then sighed and looked to the ground. "Nothing I've been able to do all week, except stop some random mugger who was so stupid he tried assaulting some woman outside of his apartment..." Robin looked up at the sky and raised a hand to shield his eyes from the sun. The heat of the afternoon was starting to wear him down, and he could feel sweat starting to form on his brow and the back of his neck. He shook his head and pulled out his grappling hook, then maneuvered the rooftops until he found his way back to his motorcycle, park some several city blocks away.
Placing on his helmet, he started the bike and tuned into the police scanner frequency.
A few minutes of static and patrol updates later, Robin switched the radio off and began the drive back to the Tower.
Parking his bike in the garage and heading to the elevator, Robin crossed his arms over his chest, his shoulder's squared.
"It's been a few months since we stopped the Brotherhood of Evil. What few villains didn't get frozen with them underground are in prison. Now that the city isn't constantly cleaning up their messes and trying to keep them locked up, the city's been going back to a regular crime level, and it feels a lot safer here than it did before." The doors opened and Robin stepped out, walking down the long hallway to his office, past the evidence room where the souped-up technology that was too dangerous to be put anywhere else was kept. "But it also means I don't have anything to do. Not really. Last week was a little busier, but all I've been doing is stopping petty criminals that you would find popping up anywhere. We haven't even been called out in over a month."
He stepped into his office, turning on the light and letting door close with a hiss behind him. Opening up the filing cabinet, Robin found the correct form and began quickly filling out the form detailing his activities of the day.
As often as he had done it in the past, it didn't surprise anyone that he finished it quickly and was left standing in the quiet room, momentarily unsure what to do with himself.
Deciding he didn't want to sit around, Robin headed for the elevator and once inside, headed up another floor to the gym.
It didn't take him very long to decide that he wasn't in the mood for lifting weights or doing cardio, and instead set up a combat routine with the drones.
"Cheap but smart!" Cyborg had said when showed them what he'd built. "Easy to build and rebuild, and capable of over 1000 different battle techniques, these guys are sure to help us prepare for anything!"
Robin smiled as he recalled the memory, then walked into the middle of the open area they used for indoor battles and began his fight.
Sounds of battle rang out as Robin acrobatically maneuvered his way between non-lethal laser beams, throwing bird-a-rangs and striking with his staff, or leading the drones into attacking each other by careful positioning and forward thinking.
But just as easily as he had overcome the mugger earlier that day, it didn't take long before Robin was left standing the victor of a pile of wires and scrap metal. "Woo-hoo." He cheered himself on sarcastically. As he grabbed the bin where they placed all the drones that needed repairs, he frowned and thought to himself, "I'm happy that crime is slowing down, but there's nothing for me to do here..."
After cleaning up, Robin made his way up to the meeting room.
To no one's surprise, he found the other four Titans there, each engaged in a task all their own. Raven was reading, Starfire was cooking, and Beast Boy and Cyborg were bickering over whose turn it was on the Game Station.
"Nuh uh celery head, I just got my turn!" Cyborg was holding the controller over his head, far out of reach of the younger boy's shorter arms.
"Dude, you've been playing for an hour and a half already!" Beast Boy tried shifting to a snake to get past Cyborg, but was expertly grabbed and lifted up so he was eye to eye with the metal man.
"And you played it all night last night, and this morning! If you hadn't stopped for breakfast, you'd still be playing it now!" Cyborg argued, his red eye glowing with fire.
Beast Boy shifted back to his human form and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "It doesn't count if you're asleep, right?"
Robin's lips lifted into a half smile as he watched the pair continue to argue, and he walked into the room.
"Hi." Raven said as she looked from her book as he walked past.
"Robin, there you are!" Starfire floated over the counter, holding a mixing bowl with a whisk sticking out of it. He paled at the sight of purple mist rolling off it. "I have tried mixing cookie dough with some Kalarion flowers from my home world, would you like to try some?" She asked, lowering herself to the ground as she got close.
"Uh, no thanks..." He took a step back defensively; he saw that Starfire had ignored him and was about to force feed him when he quickly added, "I got a quick lunch while I was out." It was a total lie, but she didn't need to know that.
Starfire didn't look at all upset, merely nodding vigorously in understanding. "Very well. Beast Boy!"
The changeling looked over at the call of his name and his face fell in dread as he realized what was about to happen.
"I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy." Raven said as she got up from the table and stood beside Robin. The duo watched as Beast Boy tried to turn into a rat to run away, then hid behind Cyborg, who grinned and tried to help Starfire force feed him her dish.
"Hey."
Robin turned his head as Raven gently touched his shoulder. "Hey, yourself." He replied.
She blinked, and he thought he saw something in her eyes, before her brow knitted together. "Where were you?" She asked him, her voice low but still easily heard over the rabble on the other side of the room.
"Just out. Patrolling." He answered. "Have you been reading all day?"
She looked disappointed at his cut and dry answer, but shook her head in response to his query. "No. I meditated a little bit earlier, then had breakfast." She gave him another look that he couldn't quite discern, but motioned to the kitchen before he could call her out on it. "By the way, we're almost out of food. Hence why Star is once again trying to give us food poisoning."
Robin chuckled dryly. "I'll go on a run later. I would've done it earlier if I had known."
"Why did you go out?"
Robin blinked in confusion, his head tilting slightly as he looked at her. "Huh?"
"I mean..." Raven frowned, looking away from him. "Why not stay here?"
He gave a short, uncertain laugh. "Because..." He looked around, then back to her. "Why stay here?" He asked in response. "I wasn't in the mood for video games or sitting around, and I'd rather have gone out to fight instead of exercise." He explained.
"But you were only gone an hour." She supplied.
"Yeah, but how did you know that?" Robin asked himself, raising a brow in response. "And?"
Raven shook her head and raised a hand. "I just mean..." She sighed and looked at the ground. "Nevermind."
Robin was about to ask her what she was talking about, but before he could, a green cheetah raced over to stand behind Robin, then Beast Boy shifted back to a human and put both hands on his leader's shoulders to use him as a shield.
"Dude, make her stop! My stomach is turning just looking at that stuff!" He whined.
Cyborg couldn't hide his smile as he and Starfire walked around the couch and up to the shapeshifter. "C'mon now, Star worked hard on that!" He said, his shoulders shaking as he tried to control his laughter. "At least give it a chance!"
"In that case, you can have some friend Cyborg!"
The entire team erupted into laughter as Starfire jammed the whisk into Cyborg's mouth, and he fell down flat. "Oh God, it's spicy and sour and chewy! Make it stop!" He cried out in agony as he writhed around on the floor.
Starfire shrugged and dipped a finger into the mix, bringing it up to her lips. "Mmm, it came out really well!" She watched as Cyborg ran over to the sink and starting washing his mouth out with soap.
"What would you do if we weren't here?"
The room fell silent at the sudden question, and Robin turned to everyone, all of whom were giving him confused looks.
"What do you mean?" Starfire asked.
Robin rested his weight on one foot, placing a hand on his hip as he did so. "I mean, we're crime fighters. But the city hasn't called us out in a while, and almost all of the villains we used to fight are forever frozen underground on the other side of the world." He explained, rolling his hand as he did so. "If we're not crime fighters, what are we?"
Everyone looked around uncomfortably. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere but here." Beast Boy said after a moment. "I mean, you guys remember when Starfire went into the future, and I ended up a circus freak!?" His voice got higher pitched and he waved his arms frantically. "I don't want to end up like that!"
"I'd probably go kick back with Titan's East." Cyborg answered, drying his mouth with a towel. "At least I could put all my skills to use somewhere else."
"Yeah, I'd do that too!" Beast Boy chimed in.
"If we could no longer remain together, it is likely I would go back to Tamaran." Starfire said sullenly. "My place is here, with you four. But if we were to go our separate ways..." She shook her head. "It is not something I wish to think about."
Robin felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to face Raven, who was giving him a worried look. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it after a moment and nothing was said. Her eyes were wide as she looked at him, and Robin realized she was probably trying to read his emotions. Finally, she stepped back and her brow furrowed. "What's wrong?"
"Yeah, kind of a weird thing to ask, Rob." Cyborg added.
"Nothing." He said quickly. "I'm just not used to things being so slow around here." He admitted after a moments thought, turning around to face Cyborg. "But it is something to think about. The city may decide to shut us down if the police force is enough to keep the city safe."
"What would you do?"
Robin looked over his shoulder at Raven, who was still giving him that worried look. But it was mixed with something else, something he couldn't quite define, and he turned towards her.
Before he could answer, the main monitor began ringing behind him.
"Trouble?" Starfire asked, setting the mixing bowl down.
"No way, that's-" Beast Boy began speaking, but lost the words in his shock.
Robin was standing there, more stunned than any of them, before his shoulder's squared and his fists clenched as he grit his teeth.
The Bat Signal, a black bat on a yellow oval, was fading in and out in time with the ringing.
There was a scramble as all at once, everyone moved forward to the front of the room, but Robin managed to get there first, and in large red text the words 'CALL DENIED' flashed across the screen before it shut itself off.
"What the heck Robin!?" Beast Boy asked. "Batman is calling, and you decide to ghost him!?"
Before he could answer, the monitor lit up, and the five heroes were once again greeted by the Bat Signal.
"If I wanted to talk to him, I would've reached out a long time ago." Robin shot back angrily, making Beast Boy flinch. Robin once again denied the call.
"Why don't you want to talk to him?" Cyborg asked.
The monitor lit up again, the Bat Signal flashing once more.
"That's personal." Robin shook his head and denied the call once more.
"What if it's an emergency?" Cyborg asked.
"Oh please." Robin snorted dismissively. "He would never call me in an emergency. He made it quite clear last time I saw him that he could handle himself and didn't want my help."
The monitor lit up once more, and Raven and Starfire gasped as they looked up. Robin turned around, expecting to see the Bat Signal once more, but dropped the remote in surprise.
"Alfred?" He asked himself. "Why are you calling here?"
"Robin. I'm sorry to force the call through, but I need to speak with you." The elderly British butler was wearing a theatre tragedy mask that covered the upper half of his face, and in the background the Bat Cave could partially be seen, though all that could be seen was the cave wall and nothing more.
It took a moment for Robin to find his voice, but when he did he asked, "About what?"
Alfred sighed. "I'm afraid it's about Batman. He's gone missing."
There were audible gasps from his teammates, but Robin didn't react, outwardly at least. "What do you mean?"
"It's been over a month since I last saw or heard anything from him. I've followed all the procedures he asked me to do when he's been away for too long, but I haven't heard a single thing from him since the last time I saw him." Alfred explained, trying not to give away too much about how Batman operated in front of Robin's teammates.
Robin scoffed. "There's nothing to be worried about. He's probably chasing some big case and needs to be discrete."
"But that's just it; the last we spoke he said he was going to stop a shipment of small arms that were coming into Gotham. There were no mentions of the super villains before he went out, and it should've been something he could handle." Alfred swallowed visibly. "It won't be long until the police come here wondering why Batman's secret identity has been missing for so long. I can tell them he's gone on vacation, but I don't know who else to turn to. Please, come back to Gotham and find him."
"Don't worry, mister." Beast Boy said. "We'll be there lickity split and we'll find Batman, don't you-"
"No, we won't!" Robin turned towards him, cutting him off with a yell. He shook his head and turned back to Alfred. "Maybe you should let the cops know you haven't seen 'him' in a while and that you're worried too. In case you forgot, Batman told me he could handle himself and that I-"
"You can't seriously mean that!" Alfred interrupted him. "I haven't forgotten what happened the last time you two spoke, but after he took you in and taught you everything you know, do you seriously mean to abandon him when he could be in danger? You wouldn't be where you are now if he hadn't saved you, so I implore you, come back and find him!"
Robin huffed, hating that Alfred had made a good point that he couldn't argue against.
He looked at the ground, then to the side, before finally looking back up at Alfred. "Alright. I'll do it."
Alfred visibly relaxed, but Robin could feel his teammates ease up as well, even though he hadn't been looking at them. "Thank you, Robin. When can I expect you here?"
"Tonight. I'll pack and head over right away." Robin answered.
"Very well. I'll be expecting you soon." Alfred nodded once, then disconnected the call.
Robin sighed, turning on his heel and beginning the trek to his room.