Disclaimer:Me no own DC characters. DC comics do. Simple?

Posting this now is more proof that I'm continuing what I've started than because it's really ready for an update. Plus I'm having trouble with the next part. =P So, again thanks to everyone who's read 'Without Me' and are continuing to read this one.

In other news, I have a new poll up. it's for when I finish writing/posting this and another great story. Enjoy!

Where's Robin?

Ch. 22 – Girl's Suspicions

Barbara Gordon tried her phone one more time. And just like the other forty-seven times she tried calling Dick, the recording played its little tune for her. The number you are currently dialing is disconnected. Please hang up and try again.

Frustrated she forced her cheep phone closed. Not picking up was one thing. Being completely disconnected was another. At the very least she should be allowed to leave a message to haunt the little brat. How dare he ignore her calls and emails! She didn't care how sick the guy was, he had no excuse for not returning her messages.

Finally fed up with the nice approach, Barbara had made her way to Wayne Manor to visit the sick circus kid, ignoring all the security features. Dick had shown her how to dodge them all not too long ago, just to prove it was possible. They made a game of it, and it was lots of fun. With the snow around the grounds, she had to admit it was more difficult, but still worth the trouble if she shocked the great butler Alfred enough so she could slip past him.

She rang the doorbell incessantly, knowing she was waking up everyone who was napping at four in the afternoon. The girl could almost swear she heard British curses through the door, making her both proud and guilty for a moment. She may like Alfred, but he typically sided with Mr. Wayne when it came to rules and Dick. So to see her friend, she had to get past him.

As soon as the door opened she shoved her way inside. "Hi Alfred. Sorry for waking you, but I gotta see Dick. We've got a project due next Monday and he hasn't returned my calls. Don't worry about me, just go drink your tea."

"Miss Gordon!" The girl was nearly to the stairs when the butler finally managed to grab her arm to stop her. "I must insist you leave Master Richard alone."

"Not until he gets off his sorry hide and does his part of the project. He can do that in bed, I've seen him at it before."

"I'm afraid he's horribly sick," the old man insisted. "He can hardly lift himself from his bed."

Barbara gave him a shrewd glare. "No one's that sick and still at home."

"Doctor Leslie Thompkins is with him," he retorted. "And if you must know, he hardly slept last night. Master Bruce has only left his side to handle a few meetings and hasn't slept these past two days in an attempt to help him heal. I fear he too will soon fall ill, and so will you if see him."

She blinked in surprise, second guessing her actions now, her anger ebbing. "Is he really that bad?"

"Indeed he is." Alfred gave a long sigh. "You would not believe how many times I have changed the sheets these past three days. And I dare say his carpet will need to be replaced when he has recovered."

That was more information than Barbara ever needed. If Dick was really that bad, there would be no way he could answer the phone or check his laptop for emails. And that meant he wouldn't be able to finish the project in time. She was so screwed.

Slowly she eased off the steps, ready to leave at the man's request. "Sorry, I had no idea. The people at school said he was sick. They never said how bad."

"Your concern in admirable," the butler stated, some relief coming to his stance. He stepped a little closer to guide her back out of the manor. "I will be certain to tell Master Richard of your visit."

"Do you know what it is?" The girl stepped in stride with the gentleman, glancing once towards where Dick's room was. Just how bad was he?

"At first we though it was a cold," the old man explained, "then the flu. Tests are still being done but for all we know its pneumonia."

"Or just a really bad cold," she stated hopefully. "I had one that kept me in bed for three days, and the fever kept coming back. Course would have gone away sooner if I took something the first day."

Alfred smiled kindly, seeing a likeness between her and his employers. Stubborn folk, the whole lot of them. Before they knew it, they were back at the main entryway to the house. "One can only hope he recovers quickly. Then everyone can have some rest."

"Are you sure I can't see him," Barbara whined. Sure she had a school project to do with him, but Dick's been her friend for years. She'd never forget the first time they met. He was just a tearful kid then at the police station, just wanting to go back home. That kid really went through hell. "I bet he'd love to see a friendly face."

"As much as it pains me to say so, we really can't afford anyone else becoming ill because of him. You know how he is. He'll kick up a storm if he thinks someone else's misfortune is because of him."

Relenting, she nodded. Yeah, sounded like Dick alright. Alfred let her out of the manor, telling her the way down the path to not upset the security grid. Really, Bruce Wayne was super paranoid with all the security he had going on. She was half way down the path when she realized something.

Dick being sick wouldn't turn his phone off.

Barbara stopped mid step, then looked back to the manor. Each of her calls earlier resulted in a disconnected phone response. Either his phone number was changed or it was completely dead. Dick wasn't the kind to change his number without telling her, and he didn't let his phone die. Her eyes narrowed. Something wasn't right.

Quickly she leapt off the path and towards the tree line. Using all her gymnastic skills she acquired from classes, clubs, and just hanging out with Dick, she maneuvered through the greenery to where she knew her friend's window would be. Dick told her once that the balcony was wired, so it was best to never touch it. Resolved, Barbara climbed to the nearest branch to his room and peeked in.

All she saw was a very tidy, empty bed with a satchel on top, ready to go at a moment's notice. She could see her school's uniform, perfectly pressed, waiting to be used and laying on the high back chair near by. There were signs of activity from what she saw, but it was consistent with a large person occasionally sitting on the edge of the bed. None of it looked like a kid in a sick room.

This amateur detective's eyes narrowed in thought. For a long time she thought something was weird about Dick and Bruce, but she never thought they'd lie to cover something like this up. Either Dick ran off (not unheard of but unlikely) or was kidnapped. Either way he wasn't home, and Mr. Wayne wanted to keep that a secret.

"Up all night, probably out looking for him," she muttered under her breath. Concern filled her chest. One of her best friends was probably MIA, and all she could think about was a stupid school project. As she made her way back towards the path she was supposed to take to leave, she thought over the possibilities again.

Her dad and Wayne were friends, good friends. And considering the guy's protective nature, he told Dad every time Dick was taken. She hadn't heard a thing about it at home, nor at school. So Dick being kidnapped was looking less and less likely. Running off wasn't like him either. He was fine Thursday, laughing his head off as always. So why the sudden vanishing act?

For a moment she debated confronting Alfred or even Bruce about this. She had her suspicions, about everything. Dick's scars, bruises, injuries and sudden disappearances, plus his exhaustion at school or occasional higher educational slip of the tongue. Plus there was his laugh, that cackle of his. If by a long shot she was right, then something else must have happened to her friend.

"He's 'sick'," she repeated, thinking out loud in hopes to interpret the code. "So he's going to 'recover'. He better. Or I'll find him and make him better."

"I just don't get it Kal," Conner rambled on as they walked. It was their second day of searching, going over each of their designated islands again. Batman insisted they look everywhere, and in a different order than before. Same groupings, much to one pair's chagrin. And soon to be two if the clone's rambling didn't end soon.

"I know all this stuff about females from the g-nomorphs at Cadmus, but this wasn't covered. They never said they wanted to know where their friends were every hour of the day. Or that they'd be mad at you for making a choice without telling them. Or that saying sorry wasn't good enough. Or that your brain gets muddled every time you try to explain things to them. Or how you always say the wrong things despite them sounding so good in your head. Or that they can read you like a book no matter what you do. Or—"

"I do believe I am the wrong person to be debating love lives with Conner." Kaldur found the incessant chatter from the clone quite aggravating. He hadn't even apologized to anyone else for running off the other day. Frankly, the Atlantian didn't understand why Batman had them come back to Gotham after the other night. It was a fiasco. Each bomb they found detonated. They only managed to eliminate casualties. Kingston Square would probably never be the same. And yet here they were again, for the third evening in a row.

"But you're the only one I know of who's had a relationship." The pleading look in his eyes could have turned most people hearts to favor him. But not this time. Kaldur was rather good at hiding his emotions when he wanted to. And even he was still upset about those two running off.

"I think it has more about what you did than how she feels." The young leader turned to him. "Either way, you have to do more than just apologize. You must promise to never run off like that again, and keep that promise"

"But…" Conner looked away. Already the older teen could tell he wasn't really sorry about skipping out. "It turned out alright, didn't it?"

Kaldur took a deep breath. This was going to take forever to explain. "Conner, you disappeared without telling anyone. For all we knew, Cadmus may have taken you back, or worse. We had to guess where you went of your own accord, and if it were not for Wally's ramblings Saturday, we would never had known. You left your comlink. You scared us both near to death, M'gann more so than I."

This made the clone step back a moment in surprise. Clearly he didn't think of it this way. "You… you two were… you were scared? About me?"

"For you. It is what friends do." The Atlantian could sense it was finally seeping through to him. "We worried you would be injured or kidnapped or even brainwashed. Things have happened before, and neither of us would want you taken away. It was simply you disappearing that scared her. And when people are scared, they sometimes turn angry. I have learned girls become both angry and scared at the same time when someone they care about is involved. And this is, I believe, why M'gann is upset. It was not you coming to Gotham in an attempt to help Batman, but doing so without telling her or consulting her first.

"And," he continued, looking the clone fully in the eye, "you have yet to apologize, truly apologize, for your actions. Once you have, then you can make it up to her."

"But she won't even talk to me now," Conner insisted. It was clear to him now what he did wrong and he now felt bad about it. "How do I get her to just talk to me?"

Kaldur gave a long sigh. "That I do not know. Women are mysterious creatures."

"Hmmm…" The kryptonian looked down in thought, finally silent. His partner took that opportunity to look around themselves once again. The sun would be setting shortly, so it may be in their best interest to call in. The previous night taught them how the darkness there worsened the people of Gotham. It wasn't until he heard Conner's voice again that he realized he wasn't anywhere near him.

"Hey kid," he started as he approached a little girl in a purple hood. She innocently looked up to him, blinking. "How do I get a girl who's mad at me to start talking to me again?"

"Conner…" Horror filled Kaldur's features. Though he wasn't a native to the surface world or their customs he was aware that it was creepy for a strange boy to come up to a girl like this.

The girl though only giggled at him. "Give her something she likes! Make a message out of it or something. My neighbor's boyfriend gave her a heart-attack with chocolates and everything to apologize to her."

"Is that all?" he asked, cocking his head to the side in curiosity.

"Stephanie!"

A haggard nurse who had to be her mother darted forward protectively, glaring at the clone. The girl just giggled some more as Conner blinked in surprise. Kaldur barely managed to grab his arm and drag him away before the woman reach her child, chiding her for talking to a complete stranger.

"What?" Conner asked his leader as they quickly jogged away. "What did I do wrong?"

The Atlantian gave another exasperated sigh. Was this guy really so innocent?

An hour or so later, Kaldur finally managed to get the clone to realize how bad it was to walk up to a random child and start asking questions, especially in strange neighborhoods. Really, the boy had plenty of knowledge in his head, but no cultural wisdom. Small things like 'stranger danger' or knowing how to please your girlfriend were still foreign to him. He was beginning to wonder if Superman behaved like this as well.

Getting closer to the Hill, he opted to take a break and grab something to eat. Batman had given them prepaid credit cards to use for expenses, primarily food. The two of them hardly used it, but right then it was becoming necessary. As they bit into the subs, Conner looked around in idle curiosity. All around him were broken down houses and in the distance he could see both a cemetery and a hospital. Really nothing much there. Course most people tried to ignore everyone else's existence but that was nothing new. As soon as the lights were low, everyone around Gotham seemed to do that.

Then something caught his eye, something just a little odd.

"Is something wrong my friend?" Kaldur asked after the clone froze for a few minutes longer than expected.

He shrugged. "Maybe. Aren't there two major crazies running around?"

The Atlantian nodded. "Yes. Joker and Scarecrow. Why?"

"I think I just saw one of them. The other one." He thumbed over towards an abandoned building just a little further down the road. It looked like an old laboratory. "Some really skinny guy in rags just went in there with a big paper bag. Looked heavy."

At his worlds, Kaldur's eyes widened. He wrapped up the remains of his sandwich and strode forward. "Come. We will see if it's really him, then call Batman."

"Sounds like a plan."

A/N: Honestly I've been having trouble getting through the Scarecrow case. I know what I want to happen, just getting it done is difficult.

And I wasn't sure where to put Barbara's scene. Either the end of last chapter or the beginning of this, either way in the timeline it happened. Yes I know Babs is batgirl in season 2, but here she isn't yet. So I'm making her getting ready to become her. =P

As for Conner, I think we're making some headway in his and M'gann's relationship. Now he knows what he did wrong, and why someone would be angry. Even got some advice from Stephanie (yes, that's her cameo. Don't rub it in). So now he's gotta act on it. But life isn't that simple. Scarecrow and Joker are more likely to get put back in Arkham before they get things fixed.