Hello, it's me again.
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE COMICS OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS.
As much as Tim liked being informed of what was going on around the company, he couldn't say the same thing for this one.
He was in a meeting, and they were reporting the stuff he already knew after all.
Tim tried not make his boredom obvious as he pretended to listen to what one of them were saying. Apparently, Wayne Tech had been robbed and fortunately, Batgirl was there to stop it.
Anyway, Tim was just there. Listening. Observing. Pretending to not know things. Goodness, he was suddenly craving for some coffee right now.
He nodded as the man finished what he was reporting. He wanted to at least show them that they had done an excellent job with their presentations. Also, he didn't want their efforts to go to waste.
And then, it happened.
All the staff stared at him. Some gave him looks of surprise, while others gave him a look of pure annoyance.
Tim tried to remain as calm as possible, because, well, he's a Bat for goodness sake, and Bats do not, he repeats, do not get nervous.
He fished his phone from his pocket and checked the Caller I.D.
Brat
xxxxxxxxxxx
Tim sighed. Of course.
He stood up from his seat and addressed the members currently present.
"I'm sorry but I have to take this call." Then, he went outside.
He pinched the bridge of his nose as he held the phone close to his ear. "What is it, Brat?"
He could practically see the boy wrinkling his nose for whatever reason. "Well, Drake, I merely want to inform you that Todd is awake and that he is not acting as he should be."
Okay, so they kind of switched. Not that Tim didn't know that.
"He is panicking Drake. He thinks he is actually Grayson."
Tim sighed. The Brat was noticeably trying to hide his panic.
"I'll be home later, Brat. Don't let Jay do anything, especially leaving the manor. Got it?"
"-Tt-" Ah, there it was. "I know perfectly well what to do, Drake."
Then there was a beep. No bye. Nope. Nada. Zilch. Nothing.
Tim just can't, the amount of disrespect he-
"Tim," Oh, it's Bruce, what a surprise.
"Hey," he placed his phone in his pocket. "Is there something-"
"Dick's gone."
"-wrong." Tim finished.
Okay, so Dick's gone, Jason's awake, Damian and Bruce are trying so hard to not make their panic obvious...
A perfectly normal day for Timothy Drake.
Tim wanted to feel frustrated. He really did. He also want to feel frantic, like Damian and Bruce seemed to be doing.
For some reason though, he couldn't, not because he didn't want to, but he just... couldn't.
Maybe he's just used to this. Maybe he just needs his coffee. Or maybe, just maybe, Tim was just so done with this. With everyone.
Because caramel frappuccino, he'd been investigating Dick and Jason for a while, twenty-four seven, with no sleep, just his beloved coffee. (He had a few naps though, but that's not enough. It's never enough.)
He'd teamed-up with Damian, the brat, to find out whatever the heck is going on with his brothers. It was one of the weirdest and unusual things Tim has ever done because Tim and Damian DO NOT get along.
He'd dealt with a stressed and confused Bruce, which, he kinds of admit, he was used to, but well, it was still one of his reasons, okay?
Tim just wants some coffee. Someone, anyone, please, just give him one.
"Okay," Tim stated calmly. "We'll find him." He told Bruce.
"We will." Ah, there was Bruce's Bat voice, which meant he will find Dick.
"Todd, stop calling me that," Damian scolded as Todd ruffled his hair.
"You're adorable Lil' D." Damian cringed at the nickname. Even though Todd sounded like he was showing affection for Damian, it just didn't feel right.
Todd was supposed to be the one with mood swings, while Grayson was supposed to be the one who could vomit rainbows and sugar.
Damian led out his trademark "-Tt-." He removed Todd's hands from his head and went to the library.
He really does not want to deal with Todd right now. He was acting a lot like Grayson. Well, he knows that it's because he has Grayson's memories. Still, this was too unnatural for Damian.
"Dami, I'm not really Jason." Todd said, catching up to him as they walked. "It's me, Dick, your brother."
Damian continued walking as if he had heard nothing.
Todd, however, continued. "I know you don't believe me and you keep telling me that I'm Jay, but it's the truth, Dami, I'm really Dick."
The boy suddenly felt like walking faster, just to get out of this one-sided conversation.
Todd followed behind, fastening his pace as well. He grabbed Damian's hand when it was within his reach, pulling the boy back.
"Dami, you have to believe me. I know I don't look like I'm your handsome and attractive older brother, but please, just listen to me." Todd begged in such a Grayson-like way.
"-Tt- Todd, for the last time," Damian said shaking away the man's hold. "You are not Grayson." He told the man with a glare.
"B-But Dami-" Damian raised his hand, a message for Todd to stop talking.
"I do not want to hear it." And just like that, he left Todd there in the hallway, alone.
Jason was angry. Very angry.
And hungry too.
He had just ran away from a freaking hospital.
Well, it wasn't that he ran away, it was just that he told the doctors that he was okay and healthy now meaning he could leave. Unfortunately, they didn't allow him to leave yet so he kind of... left.
Plus, it freaked him out that the nurses and doctors-heck, even Bruce at one point-kept referring to him as Dick or Mr. Grayson.
He was not Dick Grayson. He doesn't even look like him. Besides, Jason's ten times more handsome than Dickiebird.
So, right now, Jason was finding a good place to eat in the streets of Gotham, looking for a good place to eat. He was wearing clothes (stolen from somewhere) that will hopefully, hide him from the other Bats for now.
He walked for a while, taking in what the city has to offer. Despite having a high crime-rate, Gotham was still a beauty for many other reasons.
Jason remembered his time in the streets as a stray. He remembered stealing and acting tough for other people to leave him alone. He also remembered that time when he took care of Zitka.
Jason failed to hear his footsteps afterwards.
Wait, who's... who's Zitka?
Jason's head started aching after that thought. He decided to continue walking. It was probably just the emptiness of food in his stomach that caused the headache.
The man felt satisfied when he reached his destination.
Bat Burger
"Welcome to Bat Burger, may I take your order?" The employee, who was dressed in a poor imitation of the batsuit, said lazily.
Geez, this employee wasn't even trying.
"I'd like a BatBurger Deluxe Oversized with Bat-Fries and a Bat-Soda." Jason said as he looked at the menu.
The employee yawned. "Do you want to jokerize those fries?"
"...No."
"That would be $6.49, sir."
Jason was about to get his money when he remembered that he actually doesn't have any money with him right now.
Jason wanted to swear but well, he can't right now, his cookies are still at stake.
"Is there a problem, sir?" The employee asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah," Jason answered. "I kind of... lost my wallet."
The employee didn't even look bothered by it. "I'm sorry sir, but our policy is to pay as you order."
'That policy sucks,' Jason thought. 'I'm too hungry to deal with this.'
"What's going on here, Fred? There are other customers waiting in line." A plump woman approached the employee.
"Sorry, ma'am but this guy claims he lost his wallet."
The manager looked skeptical and seemed to be planning to talk with Jason. However, as she got a good look of Jason, her eyes widened.
"Oh my gosh! Mr. Wayne what an honor to have you in our place!" The woman suddenly exclaimed with an utter look of joy. She elbowed the employee who took Jason's order and practically hissed at him to prepare his food. The confused employee immediately went and prepared Jason's order, leaving a puzzled Jason with the manager.
Okay, a while ago, it's Mr. Grayson, now, it's Mr. Wayne.
What the heck was going on?
"Mr. Wayne you have no idea how happy I am to have you here in our fine establishment." The woman told him with a wide grin. "Your father really helped my family out a lot by granting my eldest son a scholarship."
Jason just nodded. He wasn't usually this quiet but he was just really too confused and too hungry to figure out what was going on.
As the woman continued on with her story about how generous Bruce Wayne was to her family, Jason's gaze followed Fred the Cashier Guy, who was in the process of filling a cup with soda.
"And that is why, Mr. Wayne, you don't have to pay for your food anymore." The manager finished, making Jason's eyes focus on her once again.
Wow, free food. Nice. But... Jason rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you sure Mrs. Rogers? I think it would be pretty unfair if I don't-"
The woman, who Jason now know the name of due to her name tag, shook her head. "You don't have to, Mr. Wayne. Consider it as a sign of thanks to your father." She said.
Jason hesitantly accepted his food and went to find an empty space.
Finally, he can eat in peace.
Dick felt like he wanted to cry or something that's related with crying.
Dami, his partner, didn't believe him.
As he watched Damian's figure stride farther and farther, he felt... hopeless.
If Damian, his younger brother, didn't believe him, then who will?
'I'm Dick Grayson.' Dick chanted in his head. 'I'm Dick Grayson.'
He decided to go elsewhere. Somewhere that's not the library. Damian obviously needed time alone, Dick can see that. He knows he can be too annoying sometimes, which is kind of too much to take.
"Why hello there, Master Jason," Alfred materialized behind him.
Dick didn't even flinch or felt surprised by the sudden appearance of the butler. "Hey, Alfred."
"You seem to have a lot in your mind, young sir." Alfred said as he dusted the antique vase that was right in the corner.
"Yeah."
"Would you like a cup of tea, Master Jason?" Alfred offered.
The former acrobat smiled. He actually does need one, Alfred's teas can really make one feel calm and relaxed. He nodded.
"Come along then, young master." The butler then headed to the kitchen, Dick following behind him.
"Your teas are the best, Alf." Dick stated after sipping his cup of tea.
"Now, where have I heard that before?"
Dick chuckled. He always did compliment Alfred a lot back when he was a kid. You can't really blame him though, drinking Alfred's teas especially when reading books calmed him down.
Wait, reading books?
Dick got a headache after that. He didn't mind it that much though, there were more pressing matters than a slight headache that would go away any time soon.
Tim suddenly felt like removing the business suit.
He felt like the suit was suffocating him for some reason, and that he was being baked into a Tim Cake.
Probably because it is a hundred degrees in this car.
He gave Bruce the "Why?" look from his seat.
"It's for your training," Bruce grunted. "Helps in extremely hot weather conditions."
Bruce probably didn't want to admit that:
a.)He forgot that Alfred told them that this car's air conditioning system was broken.
b.)He was in a hurry.
It's probably both.
"So, how's Damian?"
Wow, Bruce Wayne finally acknowledges his youngest. "He's fine." Tim said. "I think he's still freaked out by this whole Jason and Dick thing."
"Oh."
"Anyway, any plans on where we should start looking for Dick?"
Bruce nodded. "He couldn't have gone that far in his condition." He stated.
"Areas near the hospital first?"
"Yes."
So that was what happened. Bruce and Tim scouted the areas that were near the hospital. They even asked questions from a few passersby if they've seen Dick Grayson. Knowing that the man was trained, they both knew he ditched the hospital garments already and was probably hiding somewhere. Tim checked the alleyways and dumpsters for any sign of Dick's garments. He was on his ninth one when he found it, hidden under all that pile of junk.
Ohhh, Alfred will not be pleased when Tim gets back home later.
"Hey Bruce," Tim said over the phone. "I found Dick's clothes. He's most likely near the area where I am right now."
"Alright, I'll be right there in a few minutes."
Jason ate his burger like there was no tomorrow.
You can't blame him though, he was really hungry.
Also, Jason didn't like the idea of eating cold french fries. They'd taste bland and bleh.
He took a sip from his soda and continued eating in peace. Inside his head though, plans were starting to formulate.
By plans, Jason meant when he was going back to the manor. As much as Jason loves his safehouse, Alfred and his cookies were far more important than anything else in the world. Except his babies. His babies, especially that beautiful AK-47 of his was important too.
As the rogue bat was having these thoughts, he noticed two girls approaching him. The first one was a girl with blonde curly hair wearing a tank top while the other one was a brunette wearing a crop top. They grabbed chairs for themselves and sat in front of him.
"So," the blonde girl said. "You must be that Wayne kid."
Now that Jason had finally replenished himself, he was now more aware of what the people were addressing him as.
To be honest, Jason was kind of shocked that they weren't surprised about him. Yeah, Jason wasn't as famous as Dick,Tim, or Damian when it comes to being one of the Wayne kids, considering he died, but still, he expected people to kind of shout "Zombie!" or probably something close to that.
"You must be mistaken, lady." He said as he ate his fries. "I'm not that 'Wayne kid.'"
The brunette then decided to add herself to their conversation. "Actually, you kind of are." She told him. "Your that Grayson kid."
Is everyone blind today? Is it April Fool's or something? Does he have to buy eyeglasses for everyone?
"Lady, I'm not that guy." Jason told her. "You got the wrong man."
"Please, save the lies for another day, sweetheart." The blonde waved off. "We know it's you."
Fine, if that's what they want, that's what they'll get.
The boy raised his arms, surrendering. He sighed for good measure. "Alright, you got me, what do you girls want?"
The two girls giggled and looked at each other. Jason then proceeded with his fries once more.
"We heard Wayne Tech's releasing a new gadget this Christmas." The brunette a look of excitement in her eyes. "Can you tell us what kind of tech it'll be?"
The girl beside her nodded enthusiastically too. "I really want to know too. I'm a huge fan of their technology. Like, it's so freaking advanced."
"It's like Mr. Wayne is leading us to the future." The brunette added. "Can you please spoil us Mr. Grayson? We really want to know."
Aww, how adorable, these two girls could really get along well with Replacement.
Wait, since when did Jason use "aww?"
The boy shook his head. Enough of those thoughts. "Sorry girls, I don't actually know too, Bruce's very secretive about these things."
The two girls looked sad, but told him that it was okay. They asked him if they could have a picture with him though, which Jason thought would be really weird for them once they found out who he was and that the closest pictures the newspapers got with him in it would date back years ago.
Nonetheless, Jason agreed. It's not everyday that someone treats you like a celebrity after all.
"Mr. Grayson, you look so awesome in the photo." The blonde then showed him their picture. Curious to what he looked like, Jason leaned over to take a good look at it.
That was when Replacement decided to materialize behind the two girls.
Damian came to the conclusion that what he did earlier that day was rude and disrespectful. Acting that way in front of Todd made him realize that it might not have been the best way to approach him, or rather, address him about the matter.
Besides, Todd still had the memories of Damian's partner. He couldn't just leave it at that. Damian didn't want both of them to return back to normal with Grayson having the memory of Damian acting rude towards him and not reconciling afterwards. It might damage their partnership and Damian didn't want that.
Which is why, Damian Wayne, the son of Batman, is going to demand for forgiveness from Todd.
Yes, Grayson would like that.
He searched for a total of thirty minutes (being how large the manor was) when he spotted Todd in the garden.
Todd, the ridiculous man, was laying on the grass. He looked like he was taking a nap.
Well, Todd could've fool anyone, but not Damian. The boy knew the man was awake.
"Hey Dami...an," Todd said hesitantly.
"-Tt- Todd," Damian addressed him. "I would like to apologize for my actions earlier today. It is rather... immature and childish of me to do that."
"No worries, you're still a kid after all." Todd then sat up and looked at him. "Do you believe me now though?"
Damian shook his head.
The older of the two emitted a long and audible sigh.
"However," Damian added looking at anywhere but the person with him right now. "I will try my best to get along with you well." 'Even if this is still freaking me out,' Damian silently added.
Damian could feel Todd smiling at him.
Todd was smiling in a very Grayson-like manner.
It was a very peculiar sight for Damian.
After what seemed like forever, I finally updated. Hurray!
Also, I just watched the Lion King. It was pretty great.
Sorry for the grammar errors, if there are any.
Anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter and please review! :D
