The entire morning after the Joint Search and Rescue Training Exercise, Rikido Sato was nervous. Not because he was worried about how well they'd done in the test yesterday. While Momo and her team seemed to have done the best, Iida had led them really well, with only a single Jamie dupe marring their score. No, something he'd heard later that day was the cause of his anxiety.
Before class started, Rikido knocked on Stephanie Brown's door while holding a freshly baked muffin. He heard some shuffling sounds on the other side, and then she opened the door. As he'd expected, she looked terrible. Her eyes had bags so dark and thick he was worried for her health, and the sclera was bloodshot. From the frown on her face, she wasn't exactly happy to see him, but after looking down at the offered breakfast, she muttered, "Come in." It was her favorite kind of muffin, with a mix of blueberries and strawberries.
Feeling a little awkward coming into a girl's room, Rikido tentatively crossed the threshold. The room was spartan, and without anywhere to sit other than the bed, which was where Stephanie plopped after grabbing the muffin, Rikido elected to stand. "So, uh, I wanted to talk to you about what you've been...doing...lately..." Despite being fairly well liked, if a bit ignored, in his class, Rikido had always had issues speaking his mind with personal matters like this.
Stephanie had clearly been hungry, and was tearing chunks out of the fluffy sweet with her mouth while giving him an annoyed look. "What have I been doing, Sato? You tell me." Her tone was hostile, but Rikido decided to look on the bright side: she hadn't kicked him out yet.
Yet. Taking a deep breath, he decided to approach this from a more obtuse angle. "Yesterday, after we came back from the USJ, Mr. Grayson pulled me aside to talk to me." That had gotten her attention, and suddenly a bit of the fire went out of her. "He wanted to let me know that, the past week, there have been reports of a vigilante stopping small-time crime in the area at night. I didn't know why at first...until he told me to ask you about it."
He thought that maybe, after saying that much, she'd jump on an explanation. But instead, she was just looking down, refusing to meet his eyes. So, he continued. "I still didn't really know what he meant, but then I realized: you've been really tired lately. It's like you haven't been getting any sleep. I told myself it couldn't be you, since sneaking in or out of UA is supposed to be impossible. But then I remembered how good a hacker you said you were, and last night, I took this." He pulled out his phone, and showed her a picture. It was of Stephanie, not wearing her hero costume but instead just some dark, concealing clothes with a face mask, climbing out of her window. "You can't just fight crime like that, Steph, it's illegal."
"It wouldn't be in America..." It was said so softly, Rikido wasn't even sure she'd said it at first. He tilted his head at that, so she finally looked at him again and started to explain. "Back in America, it works differently. Even as a minor, you can apply and get a license for hero work really easily. I've had one since I was 14. Pretty much everyone in my class has done actual hero work outside of class, it's encouraged. And I have the most hours logged of any first year in Titans history."
That definitely sounded impressive, and Rikido did feel a little jealous that the other school actually let them go out and do real hero work. But she hadn't really addressed his point. "Okay, but, this is Japan. Over here, I don't think it's legal for you to be doing hero work."
It looked like she'd been expecting to hear that, and let out a sigh. "Yeah, I know," Stephanie admitted. She laid back on her bed, looking as exhausted as Rikido imagined she felt. "Okay, so, I might have been doing some less-than-legal heroing. I just couldn't take it anymore! Classes are alright, but actually being out there? That's what I want! There was no way I could go a full month without hitting the streets."
Never in a million years would Rikido have expected his newfound friend was invested in hero work. He, like a lot of his classmates, were at UA to become a hero, but for Stephanie it wasn't something she was training for, it was something she already was. She was just getting better at it. Running a hand through his spiky hair, Rikido tried to think of something to say. "But, why though?" was all he managed to come up with. "Why do you need to be out there?"
She made a scoffing sound, but Rikido didn't say anything, and gave her time to come up with a good explanation. "I told you before that I became a hero to stop my dad, right?" He nodded his head, and when she kept waiting, he made a noise to affirm that she was right. "Well, I hadn't gotten a license at the time. But it turned out to be really exhilarating, using my wits and my athletics to fight bad guys. But I got caught for being a vigilante. The thing is, back home, especially in places like Gotham, that's basically nothing. I got the choice of a slap on the wrist...or the chance to take the license test for free.
"Of course, I passed the test easy. So there I was, a young teenager, out fighting crime. I was basically a nobody. But as the Spoiler, I did my best to help Gotham. When I applied for Titans, I didn't think I'd ever get it." Up to this point, Rikido wasn't sure where she was going. But now, she was getting to the heart of the matter. "Ever since Tim, Cass, and I became friends, I've been kind of lumped in with the Bat Family. Plus, y'know, I'm from Gotham too. But Batman is the greatest Quirkless superhero in the world. Dick Grayson is his adopted son, the first ever Robin, led the highest rated team in Titans Academy history, and is my freaking teacher. Even though Barbara Gordon doesn't do field hero work since her injury, she's only become more renowned as Oracle. Jason Todd, the second Robin, died a hero. Cass is also Batman's adopted daughter, and might be the best hand-to-hand fighter on the planet. Tim sometimes acts like he's an outsider too, but who is he kidding? He's the greatest detective of our generation, and a brilliant leader too. So, how am I special? How do I stand out?"
Now was when Rikido started to get it. "That's why you have to be out there," he said, feeling both understanding and sorrow mix in his heart. "Because it makes you feel like you're doing something. Like you belong here." Stephanie made a sound of agreement, and Rikido took a deep breath. "I kind of get what you mean. I don't know if you've noticed, but I kind of slip into the background a lot. I'm training as hard as everyone else...but I'm not seeing anything for it. So many of my classmates have gotten to do great things, to prove themselves...it's gotten to the point where I almost want a villain to attack me, if it means I can show everyone I belong here too."
The blonde heroine let out a whistle. "Damn, dude." Then, she laughed. "We're a couple of weirdos, aren't we?" Rikido joined her laughter, and when they stopped, she said, sounding almost defeated, "I'll tell Mr. Grayson not to worry. We're only here for, what, another week? I've gotten my fix. I'll keep my hands clean." It was sad for him to think about, that she and the rest of her class were heading back across the world so soon. But that just made Rikido want to enjoy the time they still had together more.
The time so far in Japan had been both a boon and a bane to Tim Drake and the rest of his team. They'd been doing well in the Joint exercises, though even with his passing score, he still felt they had more to learn regarding Search and Rescue. He and Izuku Midoriya hadn't had any issues as assigned partners, though as each had their own circles of friends and were often busy with their teams, they didn't get to see each other very often. Stephanie had started off a bit stressed the first few weeks, but lately had seemed more at peace, if a bit tired.
The bigger issues came from the friends who were also his teammates. Raven and her assigned partner had gotten into an argument, and while it had healed quickly, something about the girl still seemed off to Tim. Then again, he'd never had the best read on Raven, even though he tried his best. Gar's loneliness had been hitting him harder, so far away from home. And Starfire...Tim didn't know what to do about that. It hadn't taken the world's greatest detective to figure out why spending more time in a strange place, but still with a certain someone, was making her more conflicted. But that wasn't his place to meddle. The only one who hadn't been having any major issues, as far as he could tell, was Vic.
"You okay, Tim?" Midoriya's voice knocked Tim out of his thought process. He'd been waiting for the green-haired hero outside the UA dorm, so they could head to the Titan's one together and talk privately in Tim's room. Considering their shared circumstances, both had wanted to talk more, but finding the time had been difficult, especially with the privacy required.
Shaking his head to try and get back in the moment, Tim smiled and told him, "Yeah, let's get going." The walk to Tim's room was filled with idle chatter about heroes. It made him smile. Midoriya might have been the most hero-obsessed person Tim had ever met, not that it was an issue. When they'd finally gotten situated somewhere more private, just as Midoriya finished telling him about a time where All Might had saved some kid with a vinegar-related Quirk, Tim threw out a new question. "How many times have Batman and All Might done a team-up?"
It was a good place to start. After all, there was no hero Midoriya idolized more than All Might, and none that Tim loved more than Batman. "Not counting full teams, All Might and Batman have teamed up four times! Twice while All Might was studying in America, and two since then, once in Japan, and once in Gotham City!" Smiling brightly, Midoriya added, "It's funny, they seem so at odds, but they work really well together! It's unexpected, but that's two more times than All Might has teamed up with The Flash and once more than with Superman!"
Just imagining those two hanging out made Tim laugh. He'd only met America's most famous hero a handful of times, while he visited his cousin or clone, Tim's schoolmates, but even then he was able to see that his general media portrayal wasn't an exaggeration. He genuinely was as kind, generous, and warm-hearted as Tim had imagined. The idea of him spending time with the similarly beloved All Might would be like a competition in niceness. "Speaking of them," Tim said, trying to turn the conversation a bit more towards the serious. "We've got a lot to live up to, don't we?"
The second that topic got brought up, Midoriya's shining happiness was gone, and suddenly the hero was fidgety and nervous. "Yeah, we do." Out of everyone in his class, Midoriya had seen the most action, almost comparable to a lot of Titans students. "Sometimes, I've afraid I'll never be the Symbol of Peace. Or if I am, that I'll be a poor one. I mean, All Might is just so..."
Tim completely understood where he was coming from. "Tell me about it," Tim said with a sigh. "It isn't just the papers who are calling me Mr. Wayne's true successor. One of his big-time villains has started treating me that way too." He shivered at the thought. If he never spent another second in the presence of Ra's Al Ghul, it would be too soon. "I feel like Mr. Wayne's a little more hands off than All Might is though. He mostly just gives me vague advice and leaves me to figure it out." Then, something occurred to Tim, and he quickly asked, "Why did you get picked? For One for All?"
A light blush graced Midoriya's freckled cheeks, and his stutter got force. "O-oh, that? It's not really a great story. Uh..." It looked like Midoriya wasn't sure how to even start telling it. "Basically, I ran into All Might, and told him I wanted to be a hero, even if I was Quirkless. He tried to tell me I couldn't, but I ended up learning more about him. Even after my dream was crushed, I still rushed in to stop a villain from hurting someone, before I even knew I was doing it. It was that instinct, to just rush in and help, that convinced All Might to trust me." Hearing that made Tim smile. It just sounded so much like something Midoriya would do. Maybe it wasn't the best criteria for passing along the world's strongest Quirk, but Tim thought it had been the right choice anyway. "What about you, Tim?"
Great, now it was his turn to be embarrassed. Even thinking about it made Tim feel like he was a kid again. "I've always had a really good mind for solving mysteries. When I was ten, I started solving crimes just from what was reported in the newspapers. No one would take me seriously though, so I wrote letters to Batman telling him what I'd figured out. After my fifth one, he wrote back, and told me to be more careful. What I was giving him was useful, but it would be better if no one else could read it." He could still remember how giddy he'd felt, when his dad handed him a letter from Bruce Wayne himself, addressed to Tim. "I started researching ways to encode the information, using ciphers, and Mr. Wayne approved. I kept helping him, until he sent me something: information about the Robin Program. I started training myself, even though my dad didn't approve. I got accepted, and, well, here I am."
He could still remember, after becoming friends with Stephanie, learning she'd been the runner-up candidate. Ever since, he couldn't tell if she was still hurt by that fact, or if he was just imagining it. Still, Midoriya seemed to like what he'd heard about Tim's origin story. "Remind me to show you my notebooks sometime before we go, I think you'd find them interesting." Unsure exactly what he meant, Tim decided to just nod his head.
Still, there was one last thing Tim wanted to tell Midoriya. "The thing is though, I don't just feel like I need to prove myself to Mr. Wayne. I actually feel more of that towards Mr. Grayson." Clearly, Midoriya still understood what he meant, from the look of understanding in his eyes. "I mean, he's right there. Batman's original sidekick, the Boy Wonder. When he attended Titans Academy, his team, the Teen Titans, were legendary. Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Wonder Girl, and Speedy. Today, they all teach at Titans, and are among the Top 100 American Heroes. He's really supportive and nice, but I never feel like I'm living up to his example."
Looking suddenly a lot sadder, Midoriya gave his own experience. "All Might had a sidekick too, Sir Nighteye. I worked with him, as part of an internship. He...didn't approve of me having One for All. He was serious, and kind of mean, but he was also a real Hero. He...died, during a mission we had together." Just hearing that, Tim felt bad for even bringing the topic up. Sure, his mentor seemed unattainably perfect, but it was still possible to get his approval. Midoriya might live in that dead man's shadow forever. But as if to dispel that very notion, Midoriya looked at Tim with a smile. "Still, I know that All Might picked me, and I trust him. I'm going to be the next Symbol of Peace." Hearing that, Tim believed him, 1,000,000%.
