A/N: Hey guys, I have another chapter for you. I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and I'll see you all in 2018.

"Is all of your school work done?" Bruce asked Roy. The teen was working on something in the Bat Cave when Bruce came downstairs. Alfred had said he hadn't seen Roy since his lessons for the day had finished. 'He must've been down here.'

"Yes, it is," Roy said. "I finished it and then came down here."

Bruce walked closer and peered over his shoulder. "What're you working on?" He could almost feel the hesitation in Roy's mind. "I'm not going to think it's stupid or get aggravated. I promise."

"It's a….a. new trick arrow."

"Another one?"

"Uh….yeah…"

"What does it do?"

"If it works then it would….um…."

"It would…."

"….Deploy a boxing glove…."

Bruce blinked, wondering if he'd heard that correctly. "A boxing glove?"

"…..yes…." Ok, so it was kind of stupid. Luckily he saw how tense Roy was, so he closed his mouth and considered his next words carefully.

"That's…interesting…What applications do you think it will have in the field?"

"Well…what if you need to punch someone really far away?"

"I suppose…"

"I'm just…messing around. I'll stop if you want me to-"

"No, no, if you want to tinker with trick arrows that's fine. I'd prefer you to do something constructive." He sat down next to Roy. "Do you need help?"

"Um…sure. If-if you want. I'm trying to get the inflating mechanism to work."

"Inflating mechanism?" Roy handed Bruce his designs for the arrow. "I see. This isn't a bad design, for a boxing glove arrow at least." Roy chuckled, which took Bruce by surprise. He glanced over at the teen, but his face was neutral as he focused on his task. "Why don't you try this-" Bruce stopped, hesitating to put his hands on Roy's. "Is it ok if I touch you?"

"Um- Yeah. That's fine." Bruce put his hand on Roy's to show him what he was talking about, They worked in silence for a few minutes while Bruce tried to help Roy figure out how to work the inflation mechanism. "You're picking up on this stuff really quickly."

"Thanks. Surprising considering how-"

"You're not stupid Roy, so don't try to say you are."

"Sorry."

"Don't apologize, I just…don't want you to think that. You're not stupid. You're very smart."

"Thanks. Brave Bow always thought I was smart too."

"Did he?"

"Yeah. Whenever I got a C on a test he'd say: Roy, you're smart and I know you can do better. I always had to maintain at least a B average for him."

"Sounds like he had a lot of faith in you."

"He just wanted me to do well. One time, I skipped school to go play ball with some boys in my class and the grade above us, boy was he mad. I was grounded for a week."

"How did he find out?"

"A cop on the reservation caught us playing. Some of the boys got away, but others weren't so lucky."

"Sounds like you and your friends caused trouble."

"They weren't really my friends. They wanted someone else to play but he was sick."

"You were the backup?"

"Kind of. They were my friends when they needed an extra player or help with homework. I didn't really fit in on the reservation."

"Oh?"

"One time I came home from school and some men were talking to Brave Bow. They stopped talking when I came in and Brave Bow told me to put my bag away and go play outside. I knew something was up because he always made me do my homework before I was allowed to go outside."

"Did you ever find out what they were talking about?"

"No, but it was weird." He didn't mention that later that night Brave Bow had told him he'd always have a home with him, no matter what anyone said. It'd given Roy an idea about what they were discussing. "Am I doing this right?"

"Yes, just keep your hand steady and move it right here."

— The Next Day —

"Then we get to look through the big telescope and look at the constellations," Dick said, concluding his detailed account of what he would be doing on his school trip.

"Why do you have to go somewhere to look at stars? Can't you just look up?" Roy asked. He was sitting cross-legged on Dick's bed doing his homework while Dick packed his bag.

"Because there's light pollution."

"You could just stay here and I'll show the constellations."

"You know them?"

"Brave Bow taught them to me when I was a kid and we'd go camping in the mountains."

"You could see the stars?"

"You could see so many stars. The sky was full of them." Roy looked down at his lap, suddenly getting really quiet. It took Dick a minute to notice. He swallowed and sat on the bed next to Roy. He wrapped an arm around his friend and leaned his head against his shoulder. Roy didn't say anything, but he didn't move away either. The two of them didn't move for a couple of minutes. When they finally did, Roy didn't say anything, but he did squeeze Dick's hand before he left the room. He went back to his own bedroom and put his work away. It was Friday, so he had all weekend to work on it. He'd decided to go downstairs and work on his fighting when someone knocked on the door. "Come in." Bruce came in and Roy frowned. "You're home early-" He clicked his jaw shut and tensed.

Bruce noticed but didn't say anything. He tried to stay relaxed and calm, hoping it'd show Roy he could do the same. "I'm home early because I have to leave for a business trip tomorrow."

"I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't have questioned it."

"It's fine Roy, I'm not mad. Anyways, I have to go to Phoenix this weekend to try and finalize a deal with another company."

"You're going to Phoenix? As in….Arizona?"

"Yes. I know that's where you're originally from. Not Phoenix, but the state of Arizona."

"Um….yeah…" Roy gave him a suspicious look.

"I was wondering if you'd like to come with me."

"Go with you?"

"Yes."

"I-I thought I had to stay hidden."

"I have a private plane. I wouldn't offer if I didn't think I could keep you safe while we're there. I probably won't have to do work all weekend so we could…do something else too."

While Roy wanted to say yes, there were alarm bells going off inside his head. This was too familiar. Too nice. Too much like Oliver. He swallowed and tried to think of something to say. "Thanks, Bruce that's really…really nice. I just-"

"Do you not want to go?" Bruce asked in confusion. He'd thought this was a good idea. This should be a place Roy considered his home. A place he should want to go back, especially since he hadn't been there since he'd left the reservation.

"It's not that. I-I want to go. I really do."

"Then what's wrong?" Roy shifted on his feet and looked away. "Roy you can tell me, I promise I won't get mad." Roy wrapped his arms around himself.

"When I first met Ollie….he'd do things with me. Take me hiking, or to the city, or camping. We did stuff like that and he was really nice. Just…nice and that's why when Brave Bow died I…."

Bruce sighed internally. Of course, Oliver had somehow ruined this for Roy. "I'm not trying to trick you, Roy. I know that you haven't been back to your home in years-"

"Phoenix isn't my home. The reservation is." Roy closed his eyes and silently cursed himself. "I"m sorry. I shouldn't have- I'm sorry."

"It's ok, Roy. It's ok."

"No, I talked back to you."

"You were clarifying something for me. I'm not mad. Do I sound mad?"

"…No."

"Do I look mad?"

Roy opened his eyes. "….No."

"Then I'm not mad. I have maybe a day's worth of work and then we can do what you want. I'm not trying to get something from you, Roy, I just thought you'd like a change of scenery."

Roy looked away. He wanted to go. He really did. He longed to see the desert again and to feel the oppressive heat of the Arizona sun. As strange was it was, he missed the scraggly weeds and cactuses. He missed the scenery he'd grown up with. "Ok. I-I want to go."

Bruce was hopeful at the way Roy said he 'wanted' to go and not that he 'would' go. "Ok. We'll leave in a couple of hours."

Roy nodded. After Bruce left he crawled under his bed and held his charred bow to his body. He closed his eyes, desperately trying to picture the day he got it. Instead, though, his brain decided to focus on his bow burning. He opened his eyes and sighed. 'Guess I should pack or something.' He crawled out from under his bed, but quickly realized his first problem. He didn't have a bag. After a moment of deliberation, he went back to Dick's room. "Hey, Dick?"

"Yeah?" Dick asked, just finishing zipping his bag.

"Can I borrow a bag?"

"Why?"

"Um….I'm going to Arizona with Bruce this weekend."

"You are?!" An unidentifiable feeling started building in his stomach.

"Yeah. I need a bag to pack some clothes in."

"Alright well…" Dick disappeared into his closet and returned two minutes later with a small tote bag. "Here. You can use this."

"Thanks." Roy went back to his room with the distinct feeling that Dick was mad at him for some reason. He shrugged it off though and tried to figure out what to pack.

— —

"Are you ready to go?" Bruce asked Dick when his younger ward came downstairs to the foyer.

"I don't know," Dick replied with uncharacteristic snark. "Are you ready to go?"

"What's with the attitude?"

"Roy told me you're going to Arizona."

"Yes, I have a business meeting there this weekend."

"And you're taking Roy?"

"He's from there Dick. I'm trying to do something nice for him." Dick crossed his arms and Bruce sighed. "Dick stop acting like a child."

"Sir, he is a child," Alfred muttered behind him.

"I'm not explaining myself to you."

"Just tell me why Roy gets to go somewhere," Dick pouted.

"You're going on a school trip."

"That's different!" Bruce sighed again.

"Master Dick, this isn't a matter of favoritism," Alfred told him. "I think Master Roy could benefit from a weekend away from Gotham."

"Whatever…."

Alfred shrugged at Bruce as if to say 'well I tried'. The two of them let the conversation drop when Roy came downstairs. "Are you leaving?" he asked Dick.

"Yeah." Dick grabbed his bag and completely ignored Roy as he headed for the door.

"Ok… Bye then!" Dick didn't say anything as he went outside. Roy frowned and looked at Bruce and Alfred. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, Master Roy," Alfred assured him. "It's nothing you did." He looked at Bruce. "I'll be back soon sir, to take yourself and Master Roy to the airfield."

"Thank you, Alfred."

Alfred left and Bruce tried to reassure Roy. "Ignore Dick. He's just…acting childish."

"Ok."

"Make sure you're ready to go when Alfred gets back.

"I will."

— —

Tension and fear were crippling Roy's mind when they left the Manor less than an hour later. He focused on breathing as the only place where he was safe from Oliver disappeared. At one point the anxiety got so bad he had to close his eyes and sit back with all his muscles tensed. 'Bruce will keep me safe. Bruce will keep me safe. Bruce will keep me safe.' This mantra didn't really make him feel better. Maybe Bruce would keep him safe while they were in Gotham, but Roy wouldn't have put it past him to just leave him in Phoenix. That way, he wouldn't have to deal with Roy's constant nightmares and problems.

"Master Roy," Alfred said, bringing him out of his head. "We're here sir." Roy swallowed and got out of the car. He grabbed his bag from the trunk, then followed Bruce to the plane. surprisingly, there was no one around. "Try to relax sir. It's only a weekend, but you should have some fun."

"I will Alfred," Roy said.

"We'll see you Sunday, Alfred," Bruce said.

"Yes sir, and," he lowered his voice. "do try to be careful. Should you do something to upset Master Roy, you'll have to fi it on your own."

"I know."

"Try to do something fun with him too."

"I will. See you Sunday."

"See you Sunday, sir."

Bruce and Roy boarded the plane. "I'm going to let the pilot know I'm all set. Take a seat." Roy nodded and sat in a seat near the back. Bruce sat in the middle, close to Roy, but not right next to him. Roy buckled up and looked out the window as the plane took off. The first time he'd ever been on a plane was when he'd flown to Star City with Oliver two years ago. He'd actually liked it since he'd never had an ariel view of the mountains before. The view of Gotham wasn't a nice as the desert, but it was nice in its own way. From above it looked like a normal city. Which had been the same thought he'd had about Star. Eventually, Roy sat back and started doing some of his homework. Bruce didn't try to talk to him during the flight. There would be plenty of time for awkward conversation starters when they were in Phoenix. Unfortunately, the flight was 6 hours. Roy finished his homework halfway through the flight, then went back to looking out the window. Bruce hadn't heard a peep out of him since they'd left Gotham, so he was confused when he heard something quiet. He glanced back at Roy, who was still looking out the window. He listened closely and realized Roy was singing. It was hard to make the words out, and a quick guess told Bruce a lot of them weren't in English. Closer listening told him that he didn't know what language it was. "What language is that?" he asked.

"Huh?!" Roy asked, jumping.

"The song you were singing. What language was it in?"

"Navajo."

"You know songs in Navajo?"

"I know a lot of stuff in Navajo. I can speak it…kind of."

"You can?"

"We were taught in school on the reservation and Brave Bow would speak it sometimes at home. Musicians use it in songs sometimes too."

"Really?"

"….Aoo'. It's really different from English, but it's cool once you get the hang of it. Brave Bow would always roll his eyes though when he heard the music I was listening to though."

"Why?"

Roy shrugged. "It was rock and rap. Even if it was in Navajo, he said it was bad for me. I think he was just being a grumpy old man."

Bruce couldn't really judge since he didn't understand the appeal of rap music himself. "Navajo rap?"

"Aoo'. Like this guy named Shade. He can rap entire songs on Navajo."

"Interesting. Are you fluent?"

"Kind of…but also no? I'd be better if I hadn't left the reservation when I was 12, but I still remember a lot of the grammar rules and stuff like that. It helped that people would use sometimes in the town, so I got used to using it in conversations."

"That's fascinating. Do you miss speaking it?"

"Kind of-" Roy stopped suddenly. This was the first time since Brave Bow died that he'd talked about his home. He looked away, curling up into a ball. 'Stupid,' he thought. 'Stop bothering him. Why should Bruce care about how you grew up?'

Bruce was unsure of why Roy had suddenly gone quiet. 'Did I offend him?' Nothing he'd said stuck out to him. Whatever it was, he let the conversation drop. Despite the abrupt end, he was a little happy he'd had at least a short conversation with Roy. The rest of the flight was spent in silence. Roy didn't sing anymore, almost making Bruce regret bringing it up since he'd been so calm when he was. He glanced back every once in a while to see that Roy was curled up in his seat, staring out at the dark sky. When the finally touched down at a small, private airport just outside of Phoenix, Bruce was relieved. "Stay here," he told Roy as he stood. "I'll make sure the pilot is gone before we get off."

"Ok." Roy waited until Bruce was gone before finally uncurling and unbuckling. He didn't move from his seat though. 'Just try to behave,' he thought. 'You're lucky he didn't get mad because you were talking so much earlier.' Bruce's niceness was starting to get to Roy. 'He brings me on this trip, doesn't get mad at me for talking, what does he want from me?' It made sense. Bruce was being nice because he wanted something from Roy. That was what Oliver had done, wasn't it? Roy spent the next few minutes trying to figure out what Bruce wanted from him. It was a lot harder than he thought, so he didn't have a definitive answer by the time Bruce returned.

"We're all set. It's dark so no one should see us. Come on." Roy grabbed his bag and followed Bruce off the plane. They walked quickly and silently across the tarmac. The residual heat left over from the day was still hanging in the air as they walked. Despite all his misgives about being there, the tension left Roy's shoulders when he took a couple of deep breaths. They got into a car with tinted windows, Roy sitting in the back so he didn't have to be near Bruce. He looked at the ground instead of trying to see out the tinted windows. All he'd see was a place that'd allowed him to fall into Oliver's trap anyways. Once they finally stopped he got out and discovered he was in a parking garage. "Is anyone going to see us?"

"No, it's late, so we should be fine. Besides, this elevator will take us directly into the hotel. I stay here whenever I'm in the area, so they're already expecting me."

"That's good I guess." Roy still looked over his shoulder until they walked into the suite though. Once the door was closed he breathed a little easier.

"Are you hungry?"

"Um…" He could tell Roy was trying to figure out what the right answer was.

"If you're hungry Roy, that's fine."

"I'm not."

Bruce didn't really believe that, but he didn't feel like pushing Roy at the moment. "Ok. You're sleeping in this room." He showed Roy into a smaller, side room where there was an extra bedroom. "I have to leave early tomorrow."

"Ok." Once he was alone Roy dropped his bag and slid the glass door open. He walked onto the balcony and looked out over the city. It was late, but if he stared hard enough he could make out the dark shapes of the mountains in the distance. He went back inside but left the door open a crack. Tired from being so stressed, he changed into his pajamas and went to bed, laying on top of the blankets like he used to do a lot when he was younger. Roy fell asleep actually feeling calm for the first time in a long time.

— —

The next morning Roy was awoken by the bright sunlight. He got out of bed and opened the door up more. The heat immediately hit his face and he relaxed. Now that it was light he could actually see the mountains outside the city, covered in scraggly dots of plants and cacti. Whether or not this trip was just Bruce trying to get something from him, he was glad to be somewhere familiar. He got dressed and wandered cautiously into the main room. True to what Bruce had told him the night before, he was gone. There was a table against some windows with food on it. Roy wandered over to it and picked up a folded piece of paper with his name on it.

Roy,

This food is for you.

Bruce.

Well, Roy was hungry, so he didn't question it. He sat down at the table and started nibbling on the food. He had a good view of the street from this window. It wasn't that exciting though. Like he'd told Bruce, Phoenix wasn't his home. He'd grown up hours away on the reservation. The only thing the city reminded him off was Oliver being nice to him when they'd first met. This thought was so prevalent in his mind, by the time he'd finished eating he closed the drapes, casting the room in a dark red glow. He went through the suite, closing the drapes over every window, except the sliding door in his room. He could still see the city, but this room had a view of the mountains. If he blocked the city out and focused on the mountains he could marginally enjoy himself. Roy sat down in the doorway of the doors with a book and started to read. The hours passed quickly this way, with him reading and enjoying the sun. He was so focused he didn't even hear Bruce come back.

When Bruce walked into the suite he didn't expect all the windows to be covered. He frowned as he set his briefcase down. "Roy?" There was no reply. He went into the side room and found Roy reading by the only open window in the place. "Roy?"

Roy jumped. He turned around, dropping the book. "Hi, I didn't hear you come back."

"I see that."

"You're….um….back early."

"Everything went smoother than I'd anticipated."

"Oh. That's….good."

Bruce sat down at the foot of the bed. "Roy, why are all the drapes closed?"

Roy looked down. "Sorry, I just…. Sorry."

"I just want to know why."

"I just….I kept thinking about how Ollie brought me here when I first met him."

"Oh. I see." Bruce was starting to feel like this had been a bad idea. All he'd done was reminded Roy of Oliver and how he'd been manipulated. Never one to quit though, he decided to try and salvage what was left of his idea. "Since I'm back early, anything, in particular, you'd like to do?"

Roy hesitated, glancing back at the glass door. "Can-Can we go hiking? In the mountains?"

"You want to go hiking?"

"Yeah. Brave Bow used to take me hiking all the time."

The mountains were pretty isolated. No one would see them out there. "Ok. Let me change and we'll go hiking." Once he was alone, Roy jumped to his feet.

'We're really going hiking?!' He couldn't help the excited feeling that started building in his gut. It was so exciting he was actually waiting for Bruce by the door. Bruce almost smiled in amusement. This was the most excited he'd ever seen Roy. He packed water for the two of them in a backpack. "I miss my hiking boots," Roy said so quietly, Bruce was certain he'd been talking to himself. He couldn't help but ask though.

"You used to have hiking boots?"

"Brave Bow and I went hiking so much it just made sense for me to have some. I left them behind when I left."

Bruce didn't say anything else but did file the information away. "You ready?"

Roy nodded and stood up. "Let's go." Getting down to the parking garage was easier than Roy had thought. Bruce's suite was the only one on the floor, so they didn't have to worry about getting caught. They made it down to the car, where the tinted windows provided them with needed privacy.

"Do you know a place we could go?" Bruce asked.

"Cholla Trail, on Camelback Mountain."

"Have you been there before?"

"No, but I've heard people talk about it before."

"Guess it'll be a first time for both of us then." Once they got to Camelback Mountain it didn't take long for them to find the trail. Thankfully, it appeared to be some kind of an off-season, so there wasn't a lot of people around. Once they got on the trail, Bruce decided it wasn't that bad. The slope wasn't that steep at first. At one point the trail got steeper, but Roy was apparently unfazed. Every once in a while, there was a sign that said 'Cholla Trail', confirming that they were going the right way. Bruce wasn't really struggling, even though he was the one carrying the backpack. After about an hour, they reached a point where the trail widened out. Bruce took the opportunity to get some water out. Roy had been carrying some since they started, methodically drinking from it as they climbed. When Bruce stopped he put his empty one in the bag and grabbed a new one.

"Nice view," Roy commented. From his estimate, they were a little more than halfway up. From here he could see the grid-set city of Phoenix.

"I bet it'll be even better from the top."

"Let's go then!" They didn't talk as they moved farther up the trial, mostly because it got significantly harder after that, but it wasn't a problem. The silence was comfortable for once. Despite the fact he was sweating and tried, Roy looked at home on the trial. At one point he stopped to admire something.

"What'd you see?" Bruce asked. He took a deep drink of his water.

"A lizard." He pointed off a few feet. "There's a quail over there." He stopped and cringed. "Sorry I know it's stupid but I thought it was cool."

"It is cool." Roy didn't seem convinced, but he went on hiking like it was fine. At one point they were scaling the peak of the mountain on a thin trail, but he navigated it like a pro, easily finding the best way up. They had to scramble up steep rocks to reach the top, but Roy scaled those with apparent ease as well. Despite having no hiking shoes, he even helped Bruce when he stumbled. It took the billionaire slightly by surprise that Roy willingly reached out to grab his hand, but he took it. Roy didn't flinch or look uncertain. He looked sure of himself, confident where he was leading Bruce was the right way. When they finally reached the top there was no obvious place to sit, so they just sat on the big rocks at the top.

"Whoa…" Roy breathed. The city was laid out before him, stretching into the horizon. He breathed heavily, out of breath, but flying high on the view. It'd been forever since he'd been so high he felt like he could see everything. Like he was standing on top of the world.

Bruce was enjoying the view, though not as much as Roy. He saw Roy lean back on his hands from the corner of his eye. He looked over at his teenage companion and froze. Roy was sitting back on his hands, feet hanging out of the edge of the trail. He was relaxed as he looked out over the city with his face covered in dirt and sweat, and he was smiling. He was actually smiling. His grin was wide and natural, not forced or hiding anything. Roy was just relaxed and happy. Bruce knew he was staring but it was hard to stop. Roy hadn't smiled in front of him once in the 7 months he'd been living with them. Not that Bruce had seen anyways. From some second-hand information, he knew Dick and Alfred had seen Roy smile, but he'd never seen it himself. The teen was just so relaxed and happy right now though. Bruce eventually had to look away, not wanting to mess this up by scaring Roy.

"Thank you for bringing me," Roy said after a few minutes. "I never realized how much I'd missed this."

"You're welcome," Bruce replied, measuring each word carefully. "I'm glad you're having a good time."

"The last time I went hiking…I was with Ollie."

"You really like hiking?"

"I love it. Brave Bow used to take me all the time."

"We could do more stuff like this."

"Really?!"

"It's a good activity for endurance, strength, agility-" Bruce kept talking, but Roy wasn't really listening. He was just enjoying the idea of being able to go on more hikes. "I think there are some mountains that aren't too far from Gotham. I don't know if we'd be able to come back here a lot, but maybe it could still be fun."

"I'd love it." Roy played with his water bottle. "I'm sorry I was so suspicious last night. Guess you were really just….trying to be nice."

"It's fine. You have every right to be suspicious. Oliver tricked you and it's hard to trust people."

Roy looked away. "I've really missed the desert." Bruce smiled. It reminded him of how Dick always seemed to miss the circus. "You should see the view from the mountains on the reservation. You could see the whole town from the mountains Brave Bow used to take me on."

"Maybe someday we can go."

"I'd like that. Did-did you have fun on the hike?"

"I did."

"Good." Roy was quiet for another moment.

Bruce looked at his watch. "We should head back down. It's almost dinner time."

"Ok." They started back down the mountain as the sun started to set. When they were halfway down, Bruce asked, "What do you want for dinner?"

"Um…I don't really have a preference."

"We can have anything you want."

Roy was quiet for a moment. "Pizza?" He hadn't had pizza in years.

"We can have pizza." Roy smiled again, once again catching Bruce by surprise. Twice in one day. This must've been a magical mountain. They actually made it down the mountain faster than they'd made it up. It was dark by the time they'd gotten to the car, but Bruce didn't mind. They went back to the hotel and he ordered pizza for the two of them. "Why don't you check and see if there're any good movies on tv?"

"Ok." Roy turned on the tv and began flipping through the channels It didn't take him long to find a James Bond film, the same one he and Bruce had watched before, and he settled on that. While he was watching the pizza was delivered to their room, but the portion of the room with the tv was hidden from the door's view, so Bruce didn't worry. The two of them spent the rest of the night watching the movie and eating pizza. Roy didn't sit right next to Bruce, instead still sitting on the farthest edge of the couch, but he was relaxed and laughing the whole time.

— —

Roy and Bruce got home before Dick was back from his school trip. Bruce didn't say anything when Roy chose to sit across the aisle from him on the plane, but it'd made his day. The tarmac was deserted for anyone bar Alfred when they got there. Bruce distracted the pilot so Roy could get out and to the safety of the car. "Did you have fun, Master Roy?" Alfred asked him once he was settled in.

"I did," Roy said. "It as great!"

"I'm glad."

Once he was back at the Manor, Roy sent the last couple of hours before Dick got home working out his newest trick arrow designs. He heard someone running down the hall, then stop outside his door. He waited expectantly, wondering if the door would open. It did eventually and Dick poked his head in. "HI," he said cautiously.

"Hi," Roy said. "How was your trip?"

"Fun. How was yours?"

"Fun."

"Really?" Dick opened the door more and came in. He sat on the bed across from Roy. "What did you do?"

"We went on a hike."

"That's it?"

"Yeah. It was really nice. My adoptive dad, Brave Bow, used to take me on hikes all the time. Kind of like how your parents taught you acrobatics. Being able to do it again was great. I really missed the desert too, so it was nice to be back there, even if it was for a couple of days."

Dick lowered his eyes. He suddenly felt bad about being so jealous on Friday. Of course, Roy would've been happy to be going. Wasn't that how he felt when he was visited Haly's? "I'm glad you had a good time."

"Maybe we can go hiking again and you can come with us."

"That'd be cool! Come on, let's go play video games!" He grabbed Roy's hand and dragged him downstairs.

Roy laughed. "Fine, but I'm going to beat you!"

A/N: *Aoo' - Yes