Dick Grayson sighed as he signed one of Wayne Enterprises' many documents. He still could not get used to the fact that his adoptive father's multibillion dollar company was his now.
And never would
He finished signing the document and closed his eyes, remaining in that position for a few seconds.
Then, frustrated, he opened his eyes again and pounded his fist on the desk, almost breaking it in half. He clenched the edges of his desk tightly until he was almost sore in the knuckles.
No.
He had to relax.
He released a shuddering sigh and forced himself to relax his tense muscles.
Really, he hated sitting hours in front of a desk and being trapped in many business meetings so boring that even Alfred, the most stoic man he had ever met, would easily agree with him.
He would infinitely prefer to be Batman than to be the head of Wayne Enterprises (and that was saying a lot).
He could not understand how Tim could be so interested in business. He was happy, however, that his little brother would inherit the multibillion dollar company once he reached the age of majority.
He would have to wait however for years, cooped up in that damn office.
Dick got up when he heard someone knocking on his office door and opened it, revealing his partner Lucius Fox and other businessmen from a much smaller but still respectable company from a medium-sized town near Gotham.
"Richard Wayne, it's a real honor to meet you." the eldest Wayne returned the handshake from the head of the other firm, Jonathan Miller.
Dick sent him one of his usual bright smiles and did the same with Miller's other associates. With one typical Grayson smile, the muscles of Miller and his associates relaxed somewhat.
No matter that Dick still hated his new job, he was still the best of all at making people comfortable and at their ease. Certainly it stemmed from the fact that he had grown up in the circus in his first eight years of life.
"Then, if you have no objections, we can start the meeting." Dick stated with a smile and all the men nodded.
"Mr. Miller, it has been a real pleasure doing business with you." Dick stood up with a smile giving the other man a firm handshake as he escorted him and his business partners to the door.
"I can say the same, Mr. Wayne." Miller smiled one last time before walking out and closing the door.
Richard's smile slipped away. "Mr. Wayne was my father. I prefer to be called either Grayson or Grayson-Wayne or Richard Wayne." he muttered to no one in particular.
That comment had struck a very raw and vulnerable nerve.
"Richard? Are you okay?" asked Lucius worriedly.
Right.
For a brief moment the acrobat had forgotten that the black man was still in the room. "Sure, Lucius." he easily sent him a smile but the other man noticed that it was less bright than usual.
"Richard, I have known you for a long time and I know there is something bothering you. I would like to help you, if possible, although I may know why." Lucius explained kindly.
"It's just that I can never get used to the fact that people are starting to call me 'Mr. Wayne'. I can easily handle 'Mr. Richard Wayne' but the former... I just can't. At least for now." explained the last of the Flying Grayson, releasing a heavy sigh
"It's actually a little strange for me to hear you being called 'Mr. Wayne' too, but I can live with that." he continued when the younger man looked at him in confusion. "I mean, I can't really be that surprised. Even if you feel unfit to run Wayne Enterprises, know that you are doing a great job. I can really tell that you are Bruce's son: like father like son." he stated with a warm smile.
Dick suddenly had a knot in his throat, as impressed as he was by the depth of Lucius's speech. Instead of crushing him in a solid hug, as he did with anyone, he restrained himself and merely smiled gratefully at him. "Thank you, Lucius."
The latter nodded and, after a final goodbye, walked out of his boss's office.
Dick sighed and sat down heavily in his chair. He checked and made some changes in his schedule for about ten minutes when his phone rang. He answered without checking the ID identification. "Richard Wayne speaking."
"Dick!" exclaimed the female voice on the other end of the line.
"Diana?" he asked surprised, stopping typing and standing more at attention. Dick heard her grunting in pain along with explosions in the background. "Are you okay mom? What's going on?" he asked worriedly.
"Doomsday has literally appeared out of nowhere and is destroying Washington. We need your help! We've got the whole damn Justice League to stop him!" growled Wonder Woman.
"How the heck do you mean he literally appeared out of nowhere?" asked Dick as he grabbed his jacket and walked out of the office.
He was almost in a panic.
Doomsday was one of the most powerful supervillains in the entire universe. The League had faced him only once, many years before, but on that one occasion he nearly killed Superman and the others several times. He has never faced him personally before and this would be his first time.
As Nightwing and not as Batman.
He had yet to figure out whether it was better for him to be Nightwing just for the JLA (as his father wanted) or to be Batman full-time.
Well, this battle would determine that.
"That's not our priority right now." stated the Princess of Themiscyra harshly.
Dick ignored her stinging tone knowing full well that she was just stressed about the battle and could not blame her.
"Don't worry, Diana. I'm coming as soon as I can." he affirmed as he began to descend the stairs at an absurd speed, jumping several steps at a time. "Although I don't know how much I can help you." he admitted dejectedly.
On the other hand, if Wonder Woman, Superman and other Earth's most powerful superheroes had a lot of trouble with Doomsday, what could a human like him do? And he wasn't even Bruce.
"I'm going to kick your ass so hard you won't be able to sit down for a whole month if you say that one more time!" growled Wonder Woman as more explosions could be heard in the background, increasing the younger man's worries. "You're Nightwing, the best of all even though you have no powers, one of the leaders of the JLA, you've been the contingency plan for years to take down your father in case of mind control! So move your ass or we'll all die here without your help!" she ended the call.
Dick could not help but laugh at the bluntness of her mother figure. She rarely acted this way but it was funny every time.
Now, moving on to more serious things, he would be back out there as Nightwing after a long period of absence.
Although he was getting used as Batman, Nightwing was his true self.
Nightwing is coming back!
Jason, Tim, Damian, Cass, and Steph sat down at the table, ready for lunch. They frowned when Alfred handed them the food before Dick and Dinah had arrived.
"Alfred, why have you already prepared lunch when Dick and Dinah are not there yet?" asked Stephanie confusedly.
The young Wayne noticed that the butler stiffened slightly and his usually stoic expression was tinged with concern. This was enough to send alarm bells ringing for Bruce Wayne's children.
"Master Dick and Miss Dinah are out at the moment and I am not sure when they will return home."
"Out where?" asked Cass after she had digested her first bite of food. She frowned when Alfred hesitated to answer.
"Out on a League mission, right?" said Tim raising an eyebrow. Alfred nodded and the young detective mentally patted himself on the back.
"How did you know, Drake?" asked Damian suspiciously.
Tim looked at him with an amused smile. "If Dick and Dinah, both members of the Justice League, are missing, the reason is simple."
"What's the mission?" Cass got straight to the point, ignoring Damian who was throwing a bat-glare at Tim.
Alfred sighed heavily. "Doomsday." he said simply.
Silence hovered in the room and tension rose noticeably in the air.
"By Doomsday, you don't mean that fucking monster that almost killed Superman and the rest of the JLA multiple times and that battle lasted for entire days and is basically nearly invincible/immortal, do you?" asked Jason impassively. The silence of the British butler gave him the answer. "Fuck." he muttered.
"What are we still doing here?" for emphasis Damian slammed his fist on the table, barely registering Pennyworth's disappointed look. "We have to go help Grayson! And Lance!" he quickly added, not wanting to make it seem like he was primarily concerned about his older brother and mentor.
From the amused looks of the others, he evidently failed to do so.
"Master Dick has strictly instructed me to keep you out of the fight." Alfred stated stiffly.
"You cannot seriously expect us to stand by and do nothing while Dick and the others are facing Doomsday!" Stephanie raised her hands in the air in frustration as her siblings nodded in agreement with her.
"I'm sorry sirs but I can't have you participating in the fight." insisted the older man.
"I don't know about you but I'm not going to just stand here and do nothing." declared Jason firmly as he stood up. He was then followed by his family.
"Master Dick informed me that if you interfere you will be grounded for two month with no night activities."
"Better to be grounded for two month than to let Dick fight that monster without us." Cass stated as she cracked a few joints.
Alfred sighed heavily and suddenly everyone noticed how tired and pained he looked. "Master Dick does not want to involve you because he is afraid, afraid that he is unable to protect you from that horrible creature. You are still not members of the Justice League, so you should not worry about facing enemies like Doomsday. Master Dick is accompanied by the best superheroes in the world, and you can be sure they will protect him to the best of their capabilities."
Tim sat back in his seat, rubbing his eyes. "We are not questioning the Justice League's ability to protect Dick-"
"-speak for yourself." muttered Damian.
The third-born ignored him. "-but we can't risk losing him. Doomsday is one of the most dangerous supervillains in the universe, and just the thought of Dick having to face him..." he shuddered.
"We're not questioning Nightwing's skills because we know he can kick all of our asses at the same time." Stephanie began and then paused. "And he'd give even Black Bat a run for her money in a solo confrontation with her" Cass nodded at that comment. "but we're just worried about him." she concluded in a voice that was on the verge of breaking.
"We can't lose Dick." stated Cassandra softly, with a tinge of sadness and worry in her voice.
And I certainly don't want to be Batman so soon Thought Jason but he did not voice that comment aloud and kept it to himself.
Alfred looked at them one by one and noticed how firm they were on the issue. Personally he himself was torn in half between letting them go to help Master Dick and still trying to convince them to stay home as the elder Wayne requested.
"So; are we going or not?" Jason tapped his foot impatiently. Damian nodded and crossed his arms.
Alfred sighed as he mentally made a decision. "Young gentlemen and ladies, I am aware of your concern and overprotectiveness towards Master Dick" he suppressed a smile when he saw Master Damian blush slightly at that comment. "but I insist on the issue that you should stay here, safe." he raised his hands when his nephews were on the verge of protesting, shushing them all. "It is only fair that Master Dick and the JLA take care of dealing with that monster, after all it is their job and not yours, no matter how much you want to."
His speech was followed by a long silence.
"Life sucks." muttered Damian as he sat down.
"You can say that again, kid." nodded Jason irritably.
Once again the Bat Family was no match for Alfred Pennyworth.
"Well, now though, I strongly suggest you eat your food before it gets any colder." said Alfred.
Everyone nodded, albeit dejectedly, and soon began to eat their lunch, the dark mood that engulfed the entire dining room.
Alfred was sure that the confrontation with Doomsday would be very violent and challenging for the entire Justice League.