Tim swung down beside the gargoyle he'd seen Dick talking to
earlier. Sometimes his bro's weirdest ideas were the best ones, and he did need someone to talk to. First, though, he had to check the statue for any bugs. His bro had gone further than this on various pranks.
"Sometimes I wonder if what people say about the clan being wild is right." Tim shifted. It felt a little odd talking to a statue, but it was much easier than talking to a person. And he needed someone to talk to.
"I mean, I said that it was just until my shift as Robin was done when I came into this, and I still mean that. Or at least I think I do. It's just...I'm not the same person that came into this game. I was the good little Drake boy, oblivious to so much going on around me. Now I know about all the world-shattering problems out there, and they show no sign of slowing down.
"I mean, I can't unlearn what the Bat taught me. I'll always see the thugs and the gunmen. Gotham is my home. I won't leave her. But can I ever really quit with all the trouble the Bat's training has shown me?
"I'm the thinker of my friends. If I retire, will they die because of it? I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me. They don't know how to think out problems well, and no matter how hard I try to teach them, they just blow me off. Will I have to go on forever to keep them alive, or will they start listening someday?
"Sometimes, when I hear Bruce talk about Gotham or Dick talk about the 'Haven, I just can't ignore their tone. They talk about the cities like men talk about the women they love. The women that trample all over them, but they can't leave. And I think maybe Gotham's sucking me in, too.
"I want to do my shift and be done with it. But can I? Or will I
always be needed. First Bruce needed me, then Young Justice...will it ever end, or will my temporary shift last until I die? I want to be an ordinary guy someday, but can I?
"And even if I do hang up the mask someday, I know I can never
really leave. I can never really get out, because my second family will never lose their masks. Will I be able to quit, or will I feel the need to watch their backs forever? I want to be an ordinary guy. I do. But can I? Or will I keep in the game, no matter how hard?
When I grow too old for the streets, will I become a second Oracle?
"Heh. Guess you can't tell me the answer to that."
With that thought Tim quietly leaned back against the statue to
contemplate the world and his place in it. Soon enough sirens
sounded and he was back into the Gotham night, sucked a little
deeper into his temporary life.
earlier. Sometimes his bro's weirdest ideas were the best ones, and he did need someone to talk to. First, though, he had to check the statue for any bugs. His bro had gone further than this on various pranks.
"Sometimes I wonder if what people say about the clan being wild is right." Tim shifted. It felt a little odd talking to a statue, but it was much easier than talking to a person. And he needed someone to talk to.
"I mean, I said that it was just until my shift as Robin was done when I came into this, and I still mean that. Or at least I think I do. It's just...I'm not the same person that came into this game. I was the good little Drake boy, oblivious to so much going on around me. Now I know about all the world-shattering problems out there, and they show no sign of slowing down.
"I mean, I can't unlearn what the Bat taught me. I'll always see the thugs and the gunmen. Gotham is my home. I won't leave her. But can I ever really quit with all the trouble the Bat's training has shown me?
"I'm the thinker of my friends. If I retire, will they die because of it? I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me. They don't know how to think out problems well, and no matter how hard I try to teach them, they just blow me off. Will I have to go on forever to keep them alive, or will they start listening someday?
"Sometimes, when I hear Bruce talk about Gotham or Dick talk about the 'Haven, I just can't ignore their tone. They talk about the cities like men talk about the women they love. The women that trample all over them, but they can't leave. And I think maybe Gotham's sucking me in, too.
"I want to do my shift and be done with it. But can I? Or will I
always be needed. First Bruce needed me, then Young Justice...will it ever end, or will my temporary shift last until I die? I want to be an ordinary guy someday, but can I?
"And even if I do hang up the mask someday, I know I can never
really leave. I can never really get out, because my second family will never lose their masks. Will I be able to quit, or will I feel the need to watch their backs forever? I want to be an ordinary guy. I do. But can I? Or will I keep in the game, no matter how hard?
When I grow too old for the streets, will I become a second Oracle?
"Heh. Guess you can't tell me the answer to that."
With that thought Tim quietly leaned back against the statue to
contemplate the world and his place in it. Soon enough sirens
sounded and he was back into the Gotham night, sucked a little
deeper into his temporary life.