Title: The Suit (pt 7)
Genre: fanfic (Batman Beyond)
Setting: sometime early on in the series
Rating: oh the G-ness
Notes: Ditto on all the previous disclaimers. Also, for those who care: I've been watching Batman: The Animated Series, and I feel I must inform you that my version of Dick is MUCH more based on his comic counterpart than the animated version, who is quite possibly the biggest dork known to man. Poor Dick. In other news: This story is in fact moving toward a climax and, subsequently, a conclusion. Really. I swear.
VII.
One sleepless night, two fights with Matt, and one spectacularly failed chem test later, Terry is standing outside of Wayne Manor wondering what exactly he ought to say to the old man. A sort of apology, something along the lines of, "Hi there, sorry I spent so much time bad-mouthing your son to your face; if I'd known you were related I would've done it behind your back"? Or maybe just play it cool, not mention it at all. Knowing Wayne, he'll just pretend it never happened. Seems to be the way he deals with anything he doesn't want to think about, and Terry is pretty darn certain Grayson's appearance falls under the heading of "emotional inconveniences we will not be discussing" in Wayne's book.
His first inkling that something's wrong isn't so much the silence of the manor (he's used to that) or the fact that Wayne is not there to greet him (Wayne usually hides out in the cave and only shows himself when he's good and ready), but that Ace is nowhere to be found. Terry's gotten used to the mutt's incessant growling in his presence and is even starting to get over the urge to kick him, particularly since there is no doubt that the Batdog can take him in two seconds flat (he has the bite marks to prove it). Yes, the lack of Ace's glaring black eyes watching his every move is definitely a clue that not all is well in Batville.
The other big clue is that someone has definitely been into the Batcave long before Terry got there tonight. Terry's relatively certain of this because the clock is open and the carpet in the room is littered with broken bottles and other obvious signs of a struggle. The lack of both Batdog and cranky old millionaire is beginning to look a bit too ominous for Terry's comfort.
He races down the stairs into the cave, managing (just barely) not to trip and crack his skull open. Bats screech and take flight somewhere over his head, but he's not paying too much attention to them as he scans the dimly-lit cavern, looking for signs of an intruder. But amazingly, down here everything seems exactly like it always is: damp, dark, untouched.
Which just means whoever broke in thinks he's clever.
Grabbing a Batarang from one of the shelves nearby, Terry flips on the lights and tenses, scanning the shadows. He waits for about five million years before he catches a slight movement out of the corner of his eye. He lets loose the Batarang before he even realizes he's done it, and is rewarded with a yelp from behind the big coin and a soft growl from somewhere further back in the darkness.
"Geez, you're going to cut someone's head off with those things," says a familiar voice. Terry hears some scuffling, then the definite scratching noise of the Batarang being pulled out of the wall. "Your aim is terrible," continues the voice cheerfully as its owner steps out into the dim light.
Terry's not surprised to see him, but that doesn't mean he's happy about it, either. "What are you doing here?" he demands.
"You mean, why am I skulking suspiciously in the shadows?" Grayson smirks. He's flipping the Batarang around his knuckles in an absent-minded way which Terry sternly tells himself is not cool at all. "I'd like to say I came just to make you jittery, but I was hoping to talk to Bruce. Obviously he's, er, out. And your dog has been hiding back here trying to rip my hands off for the last fifteen minutes."
"He's got taste," says Terry dryly. He hustles over to the coin. Upon closer inspection he can see two glinting black specks which might be eyes in the darkness, just out of reach. Ace growls when Terry reaches out a hand to him.
"Yeah," says Grayson. "Taste."
"He's scared," says Terry, surprised. "Ace never gets scared. What gives?"
Grayson frowns. "Off-hand I'd say what happened upstairs spooked him."
Upstairs. Broken glass. Obvious forced entry. No sign of Wayne anywhere. "What happened?" he asks, hoping he doesn't sound too panicked.
"That's what I'd like to know."
Terry sizes him up. "You mean you don't?"
"No," says Grayson grimly. "But I think I might have an idea."