Chapter 1
"Batman? Who the f--" Raven cut Beast Boy off.
"Who is Batman?" Raven asked in a logical tone. Robin looked at the screen a second before pressing a button beneath the screen. The little beeper came to life. I man was seated in front of the camera. He had a prominent chin, and worn dark eyes that looked as though they had seen too much tragedy. His night black hair was slicked back in an out-of-date style to the nape of his thick, muscular neck. He wore a white tank top, and his large and defined muscles were obvious behind the form-fitting shirt. He was seated behind a huge keyboard of countless keys and buttons in a dark room that they were unable to even see the walls off. They heard high-pitched squeaks that they couldn't quite identify, but Robin knew what they were.
"Still surrounded by your namesakes, Batman?" He asked, a small grin on his face. Starfire appeared unbelieving and disgusted at the same time, but Raven and Beast Boy seemed to like the idea of being surrounded by the birds of the night.
"Not much has changed in Wayne Manor since you left, Robin." The man's voice was deep and intelligent, his eyes mirroring his intellect. "However, much has changed in Gotham in the past few years."
"You're from Gotham? That's hours from here!" Beast Boy exclaimed. Raven sighed, exasperated.
"Just let Robin talk, please," she said in a tired voice, having quelled Beast Boy's loud tongue more times in the past few minutes than she would have cared to do in an entire lifetime. Beast Boy quieted, though reluctantly, to the relief of the other Titans and even the man on the screen. Robin returned to looking at Batman after watching the tiff between BB and Raven.
"What's happened, Batman?"
"A lot. You know that I'm not as young as I used to be, Robin, I'm getting on in years. It takes a lot to admit this, but it's getting harder for me to keep up with the newer and younger villains as they keep getting bigger and better. However, it's been just recently that I have been overwhelmed by it all." At this point the white strands in his hair seemed more visable, giving him a slight salt and pepper look. The wrinkles in his face looked deeper around the corners of his mouth and eyes, giving him the look of a wise but genial grandfather. "Last week was my fortieth birthday, and I'm afraid I'm having trouble keeping up. I have a favor to ask of you."
"I can't come back Batman. I have to stay here with my friends in Titan Tower." Starfire, BB, and Raven, and Cyborg waved sheepishly behind Robin's shoulders. Batman glanced at each of them in turn. "These are my friends Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy, and Cyborg." Batman gave a nod.
"I am Batman, but I trust that you can keep my secret, considering you are heroes yourselves."
"You may have our word as Titans," Star proclaimed proudly, and the other three nodded.
"Then you may call me Bruce Wayne. Robin, I don't ask you to come back forever, just long enough to do me a little favor." Robin seemed to consider it, and nodded.
"I owe you for my training. What do you need?"
"I need you to help me train my new apprentice. Robin, meet BlueJay. BlueJay, this is Robin." A girl a little younger than Robin walked into the view of the camera. She was of slight build, with straight, shoulder length bright blue hair with black streaks running through it like tiger stripes. She had icy blue eyes that sparkled and pale pink lips. Her suit was tight, like a catsuit, with an off-the-shoulder neck that folded over. It was the same icy blue as her eyes, and cinched down the front like a corset. The folded over neck was black, and stitched on the shoulders with bright blue thread. The legs were tight, and black combat boots went over the legs at the knee down. She smiled. "You can call me Jay if you like. It's shorter."
"How long should the training last?" Robin asked. He didn't want to leave his friends behind for long.
"Well, with just you and me, it would take a year or so. However, if you brought the. . .er. . .Titans with you, we could finish sooner, I would say in less than half a year. You are aware of the size of Wayne Manor. There would be plenty of room for the five of you to stay. What do you say, want to help an old superhero train his protégé?" Both Batman and BlueJay seemed so hopeful that even had he wanted to Robin could not have said no. However, remembering his days at the Manor and how wicked cool they were, he had no such plans.
"Of course! When do you want up to come?" Robin asked eagerly. Raven muttered something along the lines of "thanks for asking us, oh fearless leader", but Robin was too caught up remembering the 200-car garage to either notice or care.
"I would like it if you could come in about a week. If you needed it, I could pick you up."
"You kidding? We have a jet!" Cyborg said, "I was the one who built it!" Bruce Wayne smiled.
"Fine, then I will expect you here next Saturday for an extended stay. Thank you, Teen Titans, this means a lot."
"No problem, Bruce. We'll be there Saturday morning."
"I'll miss cartoons!" Beast Boy yelled, but Robin stomped on his foot, causing him to yelp and quiet down, whimpering like a puppy.
"I'll be waiting at the landing pad," Bruce Wayne replied. The screen shut off, black once more, and covered in dust.
"Well, thanks for volunteering us for babysitting duty!" Cyborg said incredulously, and Robin looked like he was about to snap back, but Starfire covered his mouth with her hand.
"It may be pleasureful, who of us knows?" She asked, and Cyborg gave up the argument.
"Who'll save our stomping grounds while we're gone?" Beast Boy asked.
"Don't sweat it, BB, we'll only be gone for six months. It's time the police did something other than sit in Krispy Kreme all day. We'll let The Fuzz handle it for once." Robin didn't seem too worried, which calmed the other Titans.
"I must pack!" Starfire exclaimed, flying out of the room and down the hall to her own room. The other Titans shook their heads. Only Star would pack a week early.
"What was this Batman like?" Beast Boy asked.
"He took me in after a villain killed my parents. I stayed with him, learning everything he knew and developing my own gadgets. He spends most of his time in the cave with the bats and his Doberman; Darko.
"I could definitely like this guy," Raven said, smiling, "I like the cave idea. We need one." Robin, BB, and Cyborg grinned.
"Maybe when we get back, Raven. For now, let's just worry about getting to Gotham. Is the Titan Jet working, Cyborg?" Robin asked.
"It should be. I'll give it a tune up to make sure we don't get grounded in Metropolis because we ran out of fuel or one of the engines blows."
"Good. Raven, do you want to make sure that everyone's stuff get's moved into the jet's storage?" She nodded.
"Beast Boy. . . just try to stay out of the way."
"Hey--"
"Well, get to it, Titans!" Robin said, and they went to get ready for the trip to Gotham.
Author's Note: I am going to be posting pictures of Batman, BlueJay, and the Titans on my website when I get back from geek camp. This is a short chapter, but they'll get longer once the Titans get to Gotham, I promise! I'll try to work on this over the next three weeks so I can update the day I get back, but I can't make any promises! Have a cool summer!
Inwe
"Batman? Who the f--" Raven cut Beast Boy off.
"Who is Batman?" Raven asked in a logical tone. Robin looked at the screen a second before pressing a button beneath the screen. The little beeper came to life. I man was seated in front of the camera. He had a prominent chin, and worn dark eyes that looked as though they had seen too much tragedy. His night black hair was slicked back in an out-of-date style to the nape of his thick, muscular neck. He wore a white tank top, and his large and defined muscles were obvious behind the form-fitting shirt. He was seated behind a huge keyboard of countless keys and buttons in a dark room that they were unable to even see the walls off. They heard high-pitched squeaks that they couldn't quite identify, but Robin knew what they were.
"Still surrounded by your namesakes, Batman?" He asked, a small grin on his face. Starfire appeared unbelieving and disgusted at the same time, but Raven and Beast Boy seemed to like the idea of being surrounded by the birds of the night.
"Not much has changed in Wayne Manor since you left, Robin." The man's voice was deep and intelligent, his eyes mirroring his intellect. "However, much has changed in Gotham in the past few years."
"You're from Gotham? That's hours from here!" Beast Boy exclaimed. Raven sighed, exasperated.
"Just let Robin talk, please," she said in a tired voice, having quelled Beast Boy's loud tongue more times in the past few minutes than she would have cared to do in an entire lifetime. Beast Boy quieted, though reluctantly, to the relief of the other Titans and even the man on the screen. Robin returned to looking at Batman after watching the tiff between BB and Raven.
"What's happened, Batman?"
"A lot. You know that I'm not as young as I used to be, Robin, I'm getting on in years. It takes a lot to admit this, but it's getting harder for me to keep up with the newer and younger villains as they keep getting bigger and better. However, it's been just recently that I have been overwhelmed by it all." At this point the white strands in his hair seemed more visable, giving him a slight salt and pepper look. The wrinkles in his face looked deeper around the corners of his mouth and eyes, giving him the look of a wise but genial grandfather. "Last week was my fortieth birthday, and I'm afraid I'm having trouble keeping up. I have a favor to ask of you."
"I can't come back Batman. I have to stay here with my friends in Titan Tower." Starfire, BB, and Raven, and Cyborg waved sheepishly behind Robin's shoulders. Batman glanced at each of them in turn. "These are my friends Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy, and Cyborg." Batman gave a nod.
"I am Batman, but I trust that you can keep my secret, considering you are heroes yourselves."
"You may have our word as Titans," Star proclaimed proudly, and the other three nodded.
"Then you may call me Bruce Wayne. Robin, I don't ask you to come back forever, just long enough to do me a little favor." Robin seemed to consider it, and nodded.
"I owe you for my training. What do you need?"
"I need you to help me train my new apprentice. Robin, meet BlueJay. BlueJay, this is Robin." A girl a little younger than Robin walked into the view of the camera. She was of slight build, with straight, shoulder length bright blue hair with black streaks running through it like tiger stripes. She had icy blue eyes that sparkled and pale pink lips. Her suit was tight, like a catsuit, with an off-the-shoulder neck that folded over. It was the same icy blue as her eyes, and cinched down the front like a corset. The folded over neck was black, and stitched on the shoulders with bright blue thread. The legs were tight, and black combat boots went over the legs at the knee down. She smiled. "You can call me Jay if you like. It's shorter."
"How long should the training last?" Robin asked. He didn't want to leave his friends behind for long.
"Well, with just you and me, it would take a year or so. However, if you brought the. . .er. . .Titans with you, we could finish sooner, I would say in less than half a year. You are aware of the size of Wayne Manor. There would be plenty of room for the five of you to stay. What do you say, want to help an old superhero train his protégé?" Both Batman and BlueJay seemed so hopeful that even had he wanted to Robin could not have said no. However, remembering his days at the Manor and how wicked cool they were, he had no such plans.
"Of course! When do you want up to come?" Robin asked eagerly. Raven muttered something along the lines of "thanks for asking us, oh fearless leader", but Robin was too caught up remembering the 200-car garage to either notice or care.
"I would like it if you could come in about a week. If you needed it, I could pick you up."
"You kidding? We have a jet!" Cyborg said, "I was the one who built it!" Bruce Wayne smiled.
"Fine, then I will expect you here next Saturday for an extended stay. Thank you, Teen Titans, this means a lot."
"No problem, Bruce. We'll be there Saturday morning."
"I'll miss cartoons!" Beast Boy yelled, but Robin stomped on his foot, causing him to yelp and quiet down, whimpering like a puppy.
"I'll be waiting at the landing pad," Bruce Wayne replied. The screen shut off, black once more, and covered in dust.
"Well, thanks for volunteering us for babysitting duty!" Cyborg said incredulously, and Robin looked like he was about to snap back, but Starfire covered his mouth with her hand.
"It may be pleasureful, who of us knows?" She asked, and Cyborg gave up the argument.
"Who'll save our stomping grounds while we're gone?" Beast Boy asked.
"Don't sweat it, BB, we'll only be gone for six months. It's time the police did something other than sit in Krispy Kreme all day. We'll let The Fuzz handle it for once." Robin didn't seem too worried, which calmed the other Titans.
"I must pack!" Starfire exclaimed, flying out of the room and down the hall to her own room. The other Titans shook their heads. Only Star would pack a week early.
"What was this Batman like?" Beast Boy asked.
"He took me in after a villain killed my parents. I stayed with him, learning everything he knew and developing my own gadgets. He spends most of his time in the cave with the bats and his Doberman; Darko.
"I could definitely like this guy," Raven said, smiling, "I like the cave idea. We need one." Robin, BB, and Cyborg grinned.
"Maybe when we get back, Raven. For now, let's just worry about getting to Gotham. Is the Titan Jet working, Cyborg?" Robin asked.
"It should be. I'll give it a tune up to make sure we don't get grounded in Metropolis because we ran out of fuel or one of the engines blows."
"Good. Raven, do you want to make sure that everyone's stuff get's moved into the jet's storage?" She nodded.
"Beast Boy. . . just try to stay out of the way."
"Hey--"
"Well, get to it, Titans!" Robin said, and they went to get ready for the trip to Gotham.
Author's Note: I am going to be posting pictures of Batman, BlueJay, and the Titans on my website when I get back from geek camp. This is a short chapter, but they'll get longer once the Titans get to Gotham, I promise! I'll try to work on this over the next three weeks so I can update the day I get back, but I can't make any promises! Have a cool summer!
Inwe