Chapter 19

Two weeks.

It had been two weeks since the last time he had seen Krypto. Connor wondered if he should be out looking for his dog. He knew Bruce would be upset if Krypto was lost. Bruce and that dog had been together ever since….well, since forever it seemed. They were inseparable. Connor rolled over his thoughts still dancing around the idea of his lost friend and his servant.

Is Bruce really mine?

Connor thought to himself as he pulled the blanket over his head. He didn't want to wake up. There had been no word of his mother. Only the news of Superman rapidly gaining back his supporters. The fuckers, what did they see in that old man? Then again, Bruce had never gone public with the crimes done to him. He'd only retreated far away into a dark corner of his mind to ignore the chaos going on around him. There were times when he and Bruce had been at the farmhouse Connor had wondered if the blind man had even truly been a billionaire. The biggest truth, and Tim had sworn by it time and again, was the fact Bruce had formerly been Batman.

How can that be true? Bruce, of all people? Bruce is way to quiet. He gets upset if anyone shows even a hint of violence or raises their voice to loudly. Hell, he didn't even fight back with those idiots at the old school started mocking him.

But still, couldn't it be true? There had been rare moments where Connor had thought maybe there was more to the former CEO then he originally told. What about that fight on the roof with Superman? He'd seen it on a video his mom had showed him once of Bruce fighting back Batman and coming to his side. Completely heedless of his own safety as Superman lingered no more then ten feet away from them. Ready to tear Bruce apart, but the man hadn't abandoned his side even in the face of his own demise. There had been times where Bruce would stop and react so fast to catching a falling plate or stopping Krypto from stealing a snack Connor had often wondered if Bruce truly hadn't been some form of training.

But where's the evidence if that's true? He's Bruce! He's my Bruce, I've known for almost a year. Batman and Robin and Flash can't claim to know him like I do, can they?

What if they could? Connor himself was only two years old if he was being completely honest. He'd been growing in a petri dish during the time Bruce had been held captive by Superman for six years. Batman, or Dick as Connor had learned from Tim, had even been raised and trained by Bruce during his tenor as the Batman. He'd taught Dick how to fight, do detective work, and even to work on computers. The two had trained for years and years, working together as a team to clean the streets of Gotham City. Connor snorted at the idea of a sidekick, but then again wasn't everyone on the Young Justice team a glorified kid hero to begin with?

He was pulled out of his thoughts from a knock at the door. Connor sat up in bed, rolling his headphones off to greet his visitor. Megan poked her head in, hesitating when she saw the bigger teen laying in the bed.

"Oh, I'm sorry Superboy! Were you sleeping? I'll tell Flash you-"

"Flash is here?! Is Krypto with him?" Connor asked as he all but leapt out of the bed. He ignored Megan's surprised squeak as he threw the door open and dashed down the hall. His heart escalating as he thought of finally seeing at least the one of the few people he'd come to call family in the last year.

"Krypto, KRYPTO! Here boy, here!" Connor called as he ran to the meeting area. He spotted Flash there talking with Batman and an older gentlemen with a balding head. The man had his arm in a sling and what looked like a half healed scar across his temple. When Superboy came barreling into the area Batman gave him an agitated glare, but was cut off by excited barking as Krypto came charging up to him. Tongue lolling as he happily jumped on the teen and started to lick his face.

"Oh, good boy! Who's a good boy?! You are, you are! Good boy Krypto, did you miss me?" Connor asked, falling to one knee to let the dog lick his face. Krypto was whining and pawing at him uselessly as if trying to climb into his lap. Connor was grinning from ear to ear and wrapped his arms around the dog. He squeezed him until he felt the hound let out a playful bar and snuggled into him. Completely at home with at least one of his masters with him.

"You didn't wait," Flash teased as he watched the reunion. Batman's eyes only narrowed, but he didn't step in to separate the two.

"Is this young master Graves?" Alfred asked, gazing down at the young man. Connor looked up at the sound of his last name as he focused on the elderly gentlemen. He frowned, trying to place where he had seen him.

"Hi, who are you?" Connor asked, his voice tight with suspicion. Krypto barked at him and rolled onto his back, begging for a belly rub. Connor relented, feeling safer with the dog there then he had in the last few weeks.

"Superboy," Batman growled at him. Connor glared back at him as he dared the man to question him.

"Master Grayson, please, the lad has been through enough already. I don't think he needs you lecturing him," Alfred chided his former charge. Dick just shook his head, but remained silent.

"Did you find any lead on Bruce or my mom?" Connor asked, gazing at Flash. He wasn't quite sure who to focus on yet, but he felt the older gentlemen might have something to do with finding Bruce.

"We did find a lead on Bruce, but not your mom. This is Alfred by the way, he's Bruce's former butler. Super nice guy, makes delicious biscuits," Flash stated casually. Connor glanced at Alfred who only gazed at him with a kindly expression. The older man's aura reminded him a bit of Bruce's. How he could remain calm and seem to be happy to see you the moment you entered the room.

Connor stood up slowly, brushing dog hair off his shirt as he studied Alfred. The old man seemed nice enough, giving him a genial smile. He was glad to know there was a lead on Bruce finally. The day was actually turning out a lot better then he had expected.

"Sir, no offense, but I'd really like to know about the lead on Bruce before we discuss anything else," Connor said carefully. The first couple of days in the Young Justice headquarters had been hell with Batman around. The man had seemed out to either ruin his stay there or trying downright piss him off. Connor partially understood why, but the man was also trying what little patience he could muster with every that passed with Bruce and his mother missing.

"Of course young man, I understand perfectly. Flash, you were just discussing the new lead you had found?" Alfred said politely. Flash nodded, still gazing at the old butler before he answered Connor's question.

"Actually, Alfred filled in the missing pieces. He was hurt pretty bad and was out for a couple of days. He's the man Krypto saved, do you remember when your friend came back injured?" Flash asked gently. Connor nodded as he self-consciously reached down to pat Krypto's head.

"Yeah, I do," Connor said slowly. Alfred only offered him a kindly smile which helped to ease the tension. Batman was still glaring directly at Superboy who was weighing the option of punching the older man in the face.

"I talked with Alfred and we found out what happened after you um…walked away from Bruce in the park," Flash stated. Connor sighed, but didn't meet Batman's gaze as the man continued to glare at him.

"Alfred had recognized Bruce when you two went to the museum exhibit. He stated Bruce looked like he was having a panic attack and asked you to leave right away?" Flash asked. Connor nodded his confirmation as he continued to pet Krypto's head.

"Well, after you two went to the park and you left Alfred was able to catch up to Bruce. From there they went back to Alfred's apartment where they started talking until they were attacked. There's a mercenary, an old adversary of Batman's named Deathstroke who attacked Alfred and Krypto. The other man who attacked only goes by the name Dark Wing, but we don't have any information on him," Flash explained. Connor frowned at the names since he had never heard of him.

"What I don't understand is why Deathstroke would be involved in all this. He has a sense of honor…or a twisted set of morals at the least," Batman cut in after a few seconds of silence.

"Just because he has a set of morals, however lacking they may be, doesn't mean he'll stick to them when it concerns Bruce. I suspect Deathstroke and his accomplice probably figured out who Bruce truly was and were hired to take him," Flash explained. Connor felt his stomach drop as the worst suddenly came to mind.

"Is Bruce dead?" Connor asked, his voice rising as he felt panic starting to set in at the thought. The comment even made Batman pause to consider, but Alfred only shook his head.

"When those men crashed in they shot at me and Krypto, they didn't shoot at Master Bruce. I remember seeing sir trying to fight them off, but to no avail, I'm afraid to say…" Alfred said quietly.

"You didn't tell him the rest of it," Batman cut in when Alfred fell silent. The butler shot his former ward a perturbed look, but he didn't have time to silence him.

"When they were being attacked Bruce was calling your name. He was calling for help and you weren't there to protect him because you two had an argument," Batman ground out. Connor swallowed dryly, seeing in his mind's eye Bruce kneeling on the ground with his arms around Bruce.

"I-"

"Tell me, what person in his right mind leaves a blind man and his dog, and a very damaged individual no doubt suffering from PTSD and who knows what else, alone in the park? Without any way to get back to the hotel?" Batman growled.

"Krypto was with him…"

"Yes, he was. And if you hadn't left them there to begin with that dog would be dead! You're lucky he was even strong enough to come find us when we did! If he hadn't he would have died, do you UNDERSTAND that?!" Batman yelled at him, his voice rising to boom in the small space. Flash and Alfred were trying to calm him down, but it was useless. Connor grit his teeth, glaring at the older man as he continued to yell at him.

"Do you even CARE where Bruce is right now?! He left us, abandoned everyone at the League and his friends DIED protecting him! For some reason he chose to go with you and hide, and for what?! You pay back him saving your life by abandoning him in the middle of fucking London?!" Dick roared as his anger finally capped to the bursting point. Connor's fury was starting to rise too as he shifted, his fists balling up as he glared at the man.

"Grayson, this isn't the time! Please just-" Flash said, but his comrade only ignored him. Grayson reached up and ripped back his cowl. His eyes blazing as he glared the teen eye to eye.

"You have NO RIGHT, none to treat him the way you did! The moment I find Bruce I'm taking him home and shipping you back to whatever test tube you came out of, even if it's Luthor!" Grayson raged at him.

That was it for him. Connor just flew at the man and punched him in the jaw. He heard a click of teeth as the man's jaw was forced shut, cutting off his words. He felt a certain satisfaction when he saw blood at the corner of Dick's mouth. Good, he'd made the man bite his tongue.

Grayson glared at him, wiping at the blood before he reached down to grab something from his belt. Connor went in for another punch, pulling back his fist even as he felt Flash's arm around his as he tried to hold him back. Only to feel a sickening sensation when he saw the all too familiar green glow coming from Dick's hand as the man raised his fist. Shit, he had kryptonite?

Connor was trying to throw off Flash at the same time, not wanting to hurt the man. Dick took the opening and returned the punch directly to the side of Connor's face. He actually felt the burn of the kryptonite as it scraped against his cheek and the force behind the blow. He grunted as he staggered back as Grayson came at him, forcing him down as he tried to wrench Connor's arms behind his back. Panicking, the teen yelled for the only other ally he had in the room.

"Krypto, HELP!" Connor yelled. He'd almost called Bruce's name too in his panic, the irony not lost on him in the situation. He heard a snarl and a yell as suddenly the pressure on his back eased up. The sickness Connor had been feeling had lessened, but not by much. He felt as if he should throw up.

He turned around and saw what had happened. Krypto had latched onto the back of Dick's cape and had flown in the opposite direction as he dragged the hero off of Superboy. Connor felt a huge relief the dog had his back as Krypto flew over the hero and landed on the floor between him and Bruce's former ward. The dog's eyes were glowing red as he bowed his head, hackles raised as his lips were pulled back over pearly fangs. Growling as the dog dared Grayson to attack his master again.

"Good boy," Connor said. His voice shook just a hint as he reached up to wipe the blood from his cheek. He was still feeling sick and wondered how in the world Krypto could even stand being so close. Maybe kryptonite didn't affect animals from Krypton the same way they did the people?

"Dick, enough! Just…stop. We don't need any more fighting," Flash insisted. Krypto was still growling as Connor managed to regain his feet. He stood behind the dog, feeling a bit more confident with the canine between them. Alfred to his benefit held his hands up to the canine and whispered soothing words to him. Trying to calm him down. It only took a few minutes for Krypto to stop growling and reluctantly sit down when ordered, but he was still gazing at Dick suspiciously.

Grayson got up and pulled his cape around to inspect the damage. He scowled when he saw the bite marks, but deep down he didn't blame the animal. He glanced at Krypto who was continuing to gaze at him knowingly, his lips rolling back when he saw the kryptonite ring again.

"You're more honorable then the man you just saved, I hope you know that," Grayson said to the canine as he slid the ring off and put it away. Flash was standing by his side, eyes narrowed at him as if he were about to pin him down should he try to throw another punch.

"Fuck you," Connor hissed at him. His blood was already boiling, but he stopped when Alfred held up a hand to him. He seethed, but stood where he was as Krypto leaned on his leg.

"Gentlemen, if you're quite done throwing punches, may I make a suggestion?" Alfred stated. Connor kept his mouth shut as did Grayson who only continued to glower at him. Neither of them was willing to give ground, but they both cared about the same person they were discussing. Connor could only imagine his mom would have cackled at the scenario if she'd been there at that given moment.

"Sorry, Alfred. You were saying?" Grayson chimed in to break the silence. Alfred rubbed the corner of his silver mustache as he studied the two men who had just tried to throw punches and each other and sighed heavily. What a mess.

"It's fair to say several people…and canine alike care very deeply about Master Bruce. At the end of the day we all want what's best for him. He went through a very traumatic experience neither of us can even begin to comprehend. Is that a fair statement?" Alfred asked calmly. Connor nodded as did Dick, but he still didn't look happy about the fact Connor was still involved in the discussion.

"Now, I doubt Master Bruce would want us fighting over his well-being. Quite frankly it's ludicrous and downright childish for two such intelligent gentlemen like yourselves to be fighting over this matter. Krypto is the one who had to break up the two of you, and he hardly knows better to not drink out of a toilet," Alfred continued, admonishing the two men. Krypto's tail began to wag at his name being mentioned, but the butler continued his speech.

"No matter how either of you put it, Master Bruce made the choice to go with Master Graves for his own reasons. I suspect they were sentimental in nature, but I can't know for sure. While what happened between Master Graves and Master Bruce is highly unfortunate, Master Graves had no idea of what would transpire several hours later. Had Master Bruce and I not have been attacked I imagine he would have returned to his current residence safe and sound with Connor. While I do think you showed poor judgment young man, I do feel it's a disservice to hold you solely responsible for what happened," Alfred explained. Grayson clenched his fists, but didn't lash out. This time when he spoke his voice was completely calm, if a bit strained.

"Alfred, he just LEFT him."

"I understand that, but Master Bruce was hardly on his own for more then fifteen minutes at the most in the park. I was right there with him and Krypto was present. It's not as if Master Bruce was left alone for hours on end in the park," Alfred pointed out.

"I would prefer it if you two gentlemen would make your peace on the matter. Imagine, what if Master Bruce walked in right now and saw you two fighting? What would he say?"

"Well, he'd probably ask what all the commotion was about. He's blind," Connor deadpanned. Grayson was about to snap at him, but Alfred shushed him.

"He jokes about it all the time around me and other people. He knows he's…he's accepted it," Connor explained gently. His tone softening as he finally forced himself to breathe in and out slowly.

"I don't know the version of Bruce you lived with, but the one I know is completely different. He's very soft spoken, he likes cooking, gardening, and we have two pet hens back at our farm named Penny and Rave. Penny is his favorite and when he thinks I can't hear him he'll pick her up and talk to her like she understands him. And when it's quiet he'll sit in his chair with Krypto and read for most of the evening," Connor explained. He was babbling at this point as he felt a tightness in his chest. He forced himself not to think about everything that had been left behind on their farm. Hell, now he wished he'd just gone back to school and dealt with whatever punishment they had hashed out to him for getting back at those bullies that first day.

"He's always fair and he never gets angry or raises his voice or…he's Bruce. That's all he is to me. When I first met him a year ago he was hiding in Superman's old fortress with Krypto. He won't even get angry with me when I do something wrong or snap at him," Connor finished lamely. He swallowed thickly and swiped at his eyes, refusing to shed any tears.

"He's my friend. He's…family. Him and Krypto and mom are all I've got. And I don't want you guys to take that away from me. And if he's gone I'm scared about what'll happen. I don't want to just stop seeing him all of a sudden because you won't let me," Connor ground out. There was a dead silence in the room now. Connor swiped at his eyes again, refusing to let them water. Grayson had folded his damaged cape around himself as he gazed down at the ground. Concentrating on the blood patterns on the floor from his bit tongue.

"Young man, how long have you known Bruce?" Alfred asked him gently.

"About a year, give or take a few months," Connor answered quietly.

"Connor, I have been with Master Bruce ever since he was a child. He is a very kind, and a compassionate man. But you must also understand before he met you there were other people that were deeply involved in his life. You have to accept that he was another man once. A man who was once very driven and had strong passions and believed in what he did," Alfred said with a soft sigh.

"He was very inspiring that way."

"Yes, yes he was. And he'd always get mad when you'd make him stop working to go rest or even eat," Dick stated tiredly.

"That's funny, just a few weeks ago Bruce was bragging to me about how he liked taking naps all the time," Connor snorted. He expected Dick to snap at him, but this time the man only let out a tired chuckle. Pushing his hair back as he gazed at Superboy.

"Is that so? Does he nap often?"

"If he's telling the truth, apparently every afternoon. Ever since I found him he's…he's seemed content. He never wants for anything. Mom makes sure he and I are well taken care of," Connor said quietly. He remembered his mom with another pang and earned a sympathetic shoulder squeeze from Alfred.

"Connor, I swear to you, we are looking everywhere for your mom. She's a resourceful woman though, she's probably gone into hiding right now or is laying down a false trail for Luthor to go after so he doesn't come looking for you," Flash said gently. He of course assumed the worst had happened, but he wasn't about to say that to the kid.

"My mom can kick ass. She stood up several business partners in a meeting just to talk to me after school," Connor stated. Grayson snorted as he looked Connor up and down.

"Spoiled rich kid and a lone child at that," Grayson said with a shake of his head. Flash was grinning despite himself as the conversation.

"You and Bruce have pet hens?" Flash asked, wanting to keep the good conversation going.

"Yeah, they don't lay eggs or anything. We were supposed to put them down and eat them…but I acted dumb and I knew Bruce wasn't about to do it either. So we just kept them as pets, but Penny and Rave will follow him around the yard if I let them out. It's kind of cute," Connor explained.

"Next year we were planning on getting ducks too."

"You're going to have an entire zoo on your property at this rate," Alfred murmured. He seemed less then pleased at the idea of so many animals, but Connor just shrugged his shoulders as he petted Krypto on the head.

"Like I said, the life Bruce and I lead is just…different from what everyone has been telling me. It's all I've known for the last eight months…and really, it's the happiest I've been," Cullen said quietly. He scratched Krypto behind the ears and hugged the dog. Burying his head into the soft fur of the animal's neck.

"And I just don't want that taken from me when we get him back. If we do."