Disclaimer – Own nothing.
To vi – Thanks for your review! I'm glad you are looking forward to more DickKory and Titans being a family content because there is definitely more coming! I'm so glad you enjoyed the last chapter with Dick, Alfred and Bruce! I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well!
To CrazyMulan52 – Thanks for your review! There will be more Dick being sensitive, don't you worry! To be honest, I didn't actually think about Dick being an active police officer. Considering how it worked in season 3 though, I'd say he still has his credentials (I'm thinking Bruce helped get rid of Dick's little prison stint in season 2), but he isn't really active in the police field anymore. Hope you like this chapter!
To Guest – Not going to answer 1, 2 or 3, because you're about to find out. You will also find out about Jason's reasons or grudges later on. 5, unfortunately, I am not bringing Rose and Jericho into this story. While I too missed them and was upset they weren't even mentioned, I didn't feel any need to bring them back in, and I mentioned in an earlier chapter I believe that Rose and Jericho are with Jericho's mom right now. 6, while that was possible, I think the reason they killed off Alfred was because of copyright issues with the Pennyworth TV show. Hope you like this chapter!
AN – Hey everyone. So, I did originally intend to post this chapter last Monday, but that Monday was not only Thanksgiving for us Canadians (Happy belated Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians!), so I was home with my family, but I also got a migraine and forgot. Not to mention, I didn't get as much writing done as I wanted to, leading me to decide to wait another week. Hope you all can understand that.
Enjoy!
Dick sat in the empty kitchen in Wayne Manor, a cold cup of tea in his hands. The entire building was empty in fact, with the excepting of him.
Bruce left Gotham almost as soon as he cleaned himself off and changed clothes. The younger detective had no idea where he was going, and neither did Alfred, who decided to go with him. Maybe Bruce just hadn't decided at the time. It was an extremely rushed decision, and one he made without telling anyone. It was also clear that he intended to go alone, but Alfred refused. Leaving Bruce alone after everything that had just happened was a terrible idea. So instead, Dick was left alone, and he had no clue what to do now.
A part of him thought that maybe he should just head back to San Francisco. While Gotham was the city he grew up in and protected as Robin, it wasn't really his home anymore. San Francisco was, the Titans were. He had stopped being responsible for his childhood city ever since he left almost two years ago. It was Bruce's city, and Bruce's responsibility. But he was gone, and thus, the city was unprotected. If he left, then crime would ran rampant. Barbara and the few cops who weren't dirty would do their best, but they'd soon be overrun. He wasn't sure if he could let that happen.
He picked up his cell phone, intending to call Kory to check in on what was going on back home. And maybe get her thoughts on his current situation. Before he could pull up her number though, his phone started ringing in his hand. The name that flashed on the screen was one that he hadn't seen in a while, but should've expected.
Barbara Gordon.
After only a moment of hesitation, he hit the 'accept' button and said, "Hello?"
"Hey," Barbara replied with a slightly nervous tone. He couldn't remember the last time he'd heard or seen her nervous.
"I'm sorry," she said when Dick stayed quiet. "I should've called sooner. I intended to, but things have been a bit crazy."
"Yeah, you're telling me," he replied somewhat sardonically.
She was silent for a moment, then asked, "Do you think I could come see you? I can be at the Manor in 10 minutes."
"Why am I not surprised you know that I'm in Gotham?" Dick wondered with a chuckle.
"There's not much that happens in this city that I don't know about," she answered, also chuckling. But then, her voice turned serious as she continued, "And given everything that has happened, I can't imagine that you'd stay away."
"You're right about that," the brunette told her. "Yeah, I'm at the Manor, and yeah, you can come over."
"I'll see you soon then," she said, then hung up the phone.
Even though she was no longer there, he whispered, "See you soon."
2018TITANS2018
Gar sat on his bed, looking at videos of several different animals. He had definitely gotten better at shifting into a tiger, he was faster when turning, had more control, and remembered to bring a change of clothes. However, he hadn't been able to change into anything else yet. He had tried turning into a dog, thinking it could useful to track criminals. Not only did it not work, but Conner pointed out that Krypto could take care of tracking, as he is a dog. Gar then tried to turn into a bird. He had always thought that flying would be cool, and it would be useful when doing surveillance. However, he hadn't been able to that either.
He wished that Rachel was here. Though they had only known each other for about a year, she had quickly become his best and closest friend. He could talk to her about any and everything. He may have quickly befriended Jason and Conner, and later Jericho, but he was still closer to the purple-haired teenager. It had been a little over three months since she left for Themyscria, and no one had heard a word from her since. Gar knew that he wasn't the only person who missed her since. Gar knew that he wasn't the only person who missed her. He could easily tell that Dick and Kory wished she was with them at the Tower, even if they didn't mention her anymore really. And right now, Gar would give almost anything to just talk to her.
"Hey."
Gar jumped a little, not realizing that Kory was standing in his bedroom door. A sheepish expression covered her face as she said, "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. Just wanted to let you know that we aren't going to do any training today. Thought we should have a free day."
"Oh, okay, cool," Gar answered absently, looking back to his computer to screen.
Kory frowned at his response. Normally, the teenager loved it when they gave a day off from training. As excited and energetic as he was for training, he truly enjoyed being a hero, but like everyone else, like taking time off every now and then to just have fun and relax. Then again, he had been a lot quieter ever since she broke the news to them that Jason was dead.
She inwardly kicked herself at the realization. Due to her own anger and sadness about the Robin's death, and her sudden blackout/sleepwalking, she hadn't really been checking in on the two boys in her care.
Cautiously, the alien came into the room and asked, "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine," Gar replied. "Why?"
"Well, we haven't really talked since the other day. I know that you and Jason were close. I just, wanted to see how you were doing," she awkwardly explained. She hadn't really done this before, comfort someone after they lost someone they cared about. Donna may have died only a few months ago, but Gar wasn't really friends with her like he was with Jason. And oddly enough, it was Dick who comforted the teenager. The man might be a bit rough when it came to social interactions, but he was good at helping kids through trauma and grief. Part of Kory wished he was here to help, but the other part of her knew that Dick was also grieving and probably busy dealing with Bruce, as she hadn't heard anything from him since the text he sent her yesterday, telling her that he arrived in Gotham.
Gar stared down at the floor as he said, "Honestly, I don't really want to talk about it. If I do, I'm going to start crying again, and I really don't want to right now."
The redhead winced when she heard that. After telling the boys that Jason was dead, she just stormed off. She should've stayed and comforted them. At the time though, she was just so angry. She still was, and she didn't think she'd be any good to them until she knew she wouldn't blow up at them.
"Okay, that's fair," Kory responded. Since she was still worried though, she sat down at the foot of the bed and asked, "What are you looking at?"
"A video of animals in Africa," the green-haired teen informed her. "Trying to decide which one I should try turning into next."
"Oh? And which one are you thinking of doing?" Kory wondered.
"I'm thinking monkey. That sounds like it could be a lot of fun."
That didn't surprise Kory. She could see Gar doing that. She could also imagine him getting into a lot of trouble with that.
"You could probably really annoy Dick with that," she joked with a chuckle.
Gar smiled. "It would be so much fun."
"Just as long as you don't drive him too crazy."
"Have you heard anything from him today?" Gar hadn't heard anything from Dick since he left. He was beginning to get worried about him. He hoped he was at least keeping in touch with Kory, but when she shook her head, he knew that wasn't the case.
"Not today, but it's still early. If he doesn't call or text by tonight, I'll call him," Kory answered, then quietly added, "Last thing he needs is to be left alone with his thoughts after all of this."
2018TITANS2018
True to Barbara's word, she arrived 10 minutes after they both hung up. Dick was already standing outside the door, waiting for her. He knew the new police commissioner was extremely punctual, and had little patience for people who were late. There were many times she would get mad at him for that actually, though she stopped once she became Batgirl.
She quickly got out of her specially-designed car, and rolled over to the entrance. As soon as she was close enough, Dick gave her a small smile and said, "Welcome back to Wayne Manor, Babs."
"Welcome back to Wayne Manor, Dick," Barbara said back, with a small smile of her own. It quickly disappeared when she added, "I wish it was for a better reason though."
"Same here," Dick replied as he walked back to the door and opened it for her. "Come on in."
"Thanks," she said, wheeling her chair past him and into the large house.
Barbara waited until they were in the living room and he was sitting on the couch before she spoke again.
"How are you doing?"
Dick sighed and shook his head. "To answer that, would take quite a long time to explain why."
"I've got nothing by time," the redhead responded. "Try me, boy wonder."
The moment those words left Barbara's mouth, he was hit with a wave of nostalgia. After his parents died and Bruce took him in, he didn't have many friends. The kids at the private school he was put in looked down on him because he grew up in a circus, and he was still so angry over everything he had lost. Barbara didn't care about any of that. Maybe it was because she was just an extremely caring and stubborn person. Or maybe it was because they met the night his parents fell. Either way, she quickly became his first best friend, as he hadn't met Donna, Roy or Wally yet. And even though their relationship had changed many times over the years, he still considered her one of his best friends and one of the few people who knew him almost better than he knew himself. No matter what issues they may have or had in the past, he knew she would have his back when it mattered.
"Well, Jason's dead. Bruce had already buried him before I even got here because he can't give a f**k about anyone else's feelings, and started looking for another Robin less than 24 hours later."
Barbara stared at him, mouth opened in shock. "Please tell me you're joking."
"Nope," Dick objected. "And then, he went off the deep end and ditched."
"By 'deep end', do you mean killing the Joker? He was found dead in his cell in Arkham this morning. Someone beat him to death."
Dick now felt conflicted and tense. As much as he trusted Barbara, he didn't know what to do. They have never been in this situation before. Batman had a code. A no-killing code that Robin and Batgirl agreed to follow. While Robin didn't technically kill Tony Zucco, his part in his death led to a major fight between Dick and Bruce. Barbara wasn't thrilled about it either, but she understood. And since it was technically gang members that killed Zucco, she let it slide. But this was different. She was now the police commissioner, and Bruce snuck into Arkham Asylum, into the Joker's cell, and murdered him. He had no idea what Barbara would do if he confirmed Bruce's guilt. All of his instincts were telling him to protect his mentor.
Though he didn't say anything, Barbara wasn't an idiot. She could connect the dots herself.
"Well, whoever it was, they left no evidence at the scene, and the security cameras were hacked, so there was no footage. The Joker also had no shortage of enemies and people who hated him. Anyone could've snuck in and killed him. Arkham's security is less than shelter. I guess we'll never know who did it."
Relief flooded through Dick's body, even though he tried to hide it. And instead of pushing it any more, Barbara changed the subject.
"Wait, what do you mean Bruce ditched?"
"I mean, he's gone. He hopped on his private plane last night and took off. Alfred went with him, and I have no clue where they are."
Somehow, Barbara looked even more shocked than she was just minutes ago. "He just left? Bruce, Batman, just abandoned Gotham?"
"Well, kind of, but not really," the brunette replied. "He told me to take over, and to do better than he did."
"You have got to be kidding," the former vigilante responded, but Dick shook his head.
It was crazy that Bruce would just up and leave the city that he claimed, that he protected, that he loved, and trusted it to someone else. Everyone who knew Batman, knew that he was a paranoid, control freak who had severe trust issues. The only person he trusted to take care of something he cared about was Alfred. Occasionally Clark. For Bruce to do this, was insane. But then again, he had been through a lot over the last few days. His son was murdered, and he broke his sworn oath to never kill. That was bound to mess with a person's mind. And Dick definitely didn't help by yelling at him. Looking back on it now, he wondered if that played a part in causing Bruce to snap. It probably did, and that made Dick feel even more guilty than he already did.
"So, what are you going to do?" Barbara asked. Dick shook his head again.
"I have no clue," he told her. "I know that I don't want to be Batman, or to be under Bruce's shadow. It took me long enough to get out, and I want to stay out. And I have a team, people that I need to take care of. I can't just leave them. But, as skilled as I know you are, Gotham is like a cesspool. There are criminals everywhere, even in the police department. If there's no Batman, no vigilante at all, then what happens? Criminals take over until the city destroys itself? I might not have the same affinity for Gotham as Bruce does, or did, but I don't want it to become a pile of rubble. This is the city I spent half my life in."
"I get that Dick, I do, but Gotham is not your responsibility, no matter what Bruce said to you. And you found something better outside of here. Don't give it up to continue Bruce's crusade. I know I'm being a bit of a hypocrite right now, but we aren't our parents. We don't have to follow in their footsteps if we don't want to," Barbara said, her voice soft and encouraging. It reminded him a bit of Donna, when he went to see her after burning his Robin suit.
"Maybe, but… it's more complicated than that. I just, need some time to think."
Barbara nodded with an understanding and sympathetic expression coming across her face. She then reached over to grasp his hand, which he gripped in return as she said, "Take all the time you need. And if you need anything, don't hesitate to call."
"Thanks Babs."
2018TITANS2018
That evening, Dick still hadn't decided what to do. He wanted to go home, back to San Francisco. But it didn't feel right to just abandon Gotham. Once word gets out that Batman is gone, crime would run rampant.
After eating an entire pizza himself for supper, taking advantage that there was no Alfred around to criticize him, he decided that maybe he should call Kory and discuss it with her. He owed her, and Gar and Conner an update anyways. Plus, if he did decide to stay, Kory would probably be the one to take charge of the Titans as Hank and Dawn were now in Washington D.C. Dick knew he should have called Kory sooner, but not only did he just want some space, he wasn't sure if Kory would understand what he was struggling with. Sure, she was a princess and the next in line to rule her planet, but would she really have gone back to rule if her sister hadn't taken the throne? Or maybe the reason he hadn't talked to her yet was because she would actually understand and he was just scared of what her answer would be.
As he went to press her number though, his eyes landed on the TV screen that he had turned on earlier, simply for background noise. The local Gotham news was on, showing footage of injured civilians and police officers, and buildings burning, all caused by the crazy fanatics of the Joker. Even after all these years fighting crime, Dick was disgusted that there were people who were 'inspired' by the psycho who gave clowns a bad name. According to the reporter on TV, these followers were professing to continue the Joker's work, demanding for Batman to come fight them himself, along with wanting justice for the Joker's death.
The sight gave Dick his answer, and he dialed Kory's number.
"Dick?" Kory's worried voice answered on the first ring. "I was just about to call you. How are you doing?"
"Not that great to be honest, but I need your help. The Titans' help. Do you think you guys could come to Gotham?" Dick wondered.
"Of course. We'll be there as soon as we can."
"Thank you."
2018TITANS2018
Kory stared at her phone after she finished speaking to the Titans' leader. He sounded weird on the phone. Stressed, worried, and maybe a little conflicted. Whatever was going on, it was bad enough that Dick Grayson was actually asking for help. She didn't think she had ever seen or heard him actually asking for any kind of assistance in all the time she had known him. He very much liked to go out on his own. The fact that he was asking for help, told her that not only were things going badly, but that he probably needed more help than he was asking for. So, she started scrolling through her few contacts.
He probably wasn't going to thrilled if she asked for more help for him, but he did say that he needed help from the Titans, and these two people were technically part of the team. As she clicked the person's number, she inwardly hoped that he wouldn't be too upset with her.
"Hello?" A groggy voice said once they answered the call.
"Hey Dawn," Kory responded with a wince, having forgotten the time difference. "I know it's late, and very last minute, but do you think you and Hank could meet us in Gotham? Dick needs help."
