"...and I'm telling you guys, he actually guessed Bruce was Batman!"

"Really?" Tim grinned.

"Well, he just figured out the name from our bird names, but still."

"Richard is clever," Damian preened, with the air of someone entirely responsible for Dick's intelligence.

"We need to let the kid get out more." Tim murmured, leaning back against the couch.

"Well, what are we supposed to do with him? He's got the self-defense skills of a drowned kitten," Jason grumbled.

"There aren't any villains here. It's not as dangerous here as it is at home. Even the average crime rate isn't that bad," Tim reasoned.

"It's not as though predators don't exist, Drake," Damian interjected. "I, for one, am not about to gamble Richard's safety on-"

"Oh, come off it, Demon," Jason interrupted. "No one wants to gamble anything, we're all trained vigilantes: if anyone can safely babysit a kid it's us."

"I would argue that the Batgirls would be much better at babysitting-" Tim piped up, with a raised finger.

"Steph isn't even here; you don't have to try to score points with your girlfriend," Jason smirked, to Damian's chuckled amusement.

"I am not! I'm just stating facts! They're less reckless, Cass can read body language…"

Tim trailed off as his brothers dissolved into hacking laughter. "Whatever. I'm right."

Tim sat with his arms crossed, waiting for his brothers to regain their composure.

"Look." He huffed out when they calmed down. "We still need a plan. What can we do with Dick?"

"Why not allow Richard to choose for himself?" Damian offered. "We can give him a list of options, and he can choose one. It should foster independence."

Jason and Tim exchanged glances. "That is… not a bad idea," Tim admitted.

"We can come up with some safe activities… do we think he's ready for a circus?"

"Absolutely not." Jason fired, sitting up straighter from his slouch. "I don't even want to touch circuses until we're sure he's either got those pain attacks under control or we've gotten rid of them completely."

Tim nodded, but Damian sat up.

"But, what about training? We cannot simply allow him to be untrained, regardless of the pain. The chances of his death are far too great."

"Not… here?" Tim offered, but uncertainty tinged his voice.

"Oh, really, Drake. We are just going to assume that nothing bad is going to happen, regardless of the fact that we are still rich, and therefore high-profile? This is your plan?"

Tim settled back, a frown tugging at his lips.

"There has to be a way to train without hurting him," Jason scowled.

"No such training exists," Damian stated. "At least, no worthwhile training."

"Calm down, Demon Spawn," Tim scowled. "Some of us with more level heads didn't get trained by death ninjas and can appreciate moderation."

"Ooh, look at Big Brain pulling out the big words," Jason mocked.

"Moderation is not a big word! It's only four syllables and everyone uses-"

"Can you two imbeciles stop arguing long enough to decide on a plan? I know your interactions have always been defined by constantly sniping at each other's throats, but a little restraint would be appreciated."

Jason scowled, and flopped back, arms crossed over his chest.

"Killjoy."

Tim huffed, brushed his hair out of his eyes, and leaned forward. "So what options do we want to give Dick? I think animal therapy is a good place to start."

"It has been productive so far. Of course, Titus and Alfred will constantly be available for his rehabilitation, but perhaps we should consider some younger new pets as well…?"

"No." Jason scowled. "No, you do not turn this into an opportunity to stockpile more pets. You're not allowed. Not as long as I'm living in this house."

Tim gave Damian a stink eye. "Agreed."

"Oh, come on! I will not train them to attack you."

"Yes you will!" Jason and Tim glanced at each other after their simultaneous outburst, before smirking at Damian.

"Perhaps if Richard owned the animal himself…?"

"No." Tim folded his arms over his chest. "This is a manor, not a menagerie. We have plenty of animals, and Dick isn't ready for the responsibility."

Damian slumped in disappointment, before sighing and offering another suggestion. "Well, he ought to have some responsibility - chores, perhaps. The poor child is used to serving a purpose, menial as it was. If he were to have some measure of responsibility it would probably help to ground him."

Tim and Jason exchanged glances.

"I don't know…" Jason offered. "I don't want him to think we're using him for anything…"

"I think Damian's right," Tim interjected. "He's lost, and he's in the middle of a complete paradigm shift. Some chores will give him something to do with himself, and it'll be familiar." Tim glanced at Jason, "Sometimes people just need structure when they adapt to new surroundings."

Jason scowled. "Well, I still don't want him to feel taken advantage of. If he does chores, then we all do them. End of story."

Damian looked offended at this suggesion. "Are you suggesting that I-"

"Be reasonable, brat," Jason smirked. "Four guys living together, even in a house this big… we needed to start cleaning sometime. And there's a no-exemption policy around here… your highness."

Jason blinked as Damian suddenly had a knife raised to his eye level.

"Where'd you find that?"

Damian grinned, feral and predatory. "An assassin never reveals his secrets."

"Wow, okay, that's enough out of both of you," Tim scowled, shoving both brothers in the chest to push them away from each other. "Damian, that thing better not come out where Dick can see it."

"I am not an imbecile," Damian sniffed. "I am not you."

Tim dropped his head in defeat. "Okay, we've all spent way too much time around each other recently. I propose we each take turns taking Dick out of the house… in teams of two. That way someone can get alone time at home while the other two watch Dick."

Jason's eyes narrowed, near imperceptibly. His eyebrow twitched. "Pretty big house. Seems like two people could keep their distance pretty well in it."

Jason caught Tim's gaze and held it. A moment of silence passed. Two. Three.

"That's a good point," Tim conceded. "We can take Dick out individually, and the other two can have alone time or not. We've got plenty of space for it."

"I suppose I'll have to take him out on a bicycle?" Damian scowled.

Tim chuckled, untensing himself. "Sorry Demon Spawn. We can drive you guys out if you want…?"

"No, thank you," Damian sniffed. "We shall be more than capable without your assistance."

"Whatever you want," Tim remarked. Now, somebody's got to go lie down with Dick, 'cause he isn't falling asleep 'till his sleeping buddy gets there."