Minutes later though, he was calling his younger brother on the comms. The device beeped several times before Red Robin answered in a breathless voice as though he'd just finished a fight. "Red Robin."

"Hey Tim," Dick leaned back on the couch he'd dropped into, feeling like the world was closing in on him again. "You know, something funny just happened a couple of minutes ago. We got a visit from Gotham's finest and they wanted to put me, Dusty and Damian under house arrest."

"...And?"

"And, I'd like to know why you didn't tell me that Buddy knows about Dusty."

"I just found out an hour ago."

Dick raised an eyebrow in surprise. He didn't think GCPD could act that fast. "That's still sixty minutes, Tim. It takes less than two to call in and give me a heads up."

"Been busy chasing after a metahuman ghost who may or may not explode."

"It would've helped if I knew about the visit beforehand so I could keep the princeling from flaying the boys in blue."

Silence on the other end, before a sarcastic, "Sorry."

"Sorry for not telling me or sorry for siccing me with the prince?"

"Sorry for the cops being flayed. I can't be sorry for the demon child; you've made your choice months ago, you handle the consequences."

Dick sighed and ran his hand through his hair. It was obvious his younger brother still hadn't gotten over their last argument. "Tim, you know it's not like I kicked you out-"

"Barry's in my sights. Later."

"Tim-"

The comms cut off. Dick exhaled slowly, tilting his head back on the couch and wrapping an arm around his eyes. Now, not only was he hanging on a trapeze with nowhere to go, he could feel a gunman arming a rifle below him, ready to shoot the lone acrobat. If he let go, the fall could break his bones. But if he stayed hanging, the shooter could kill him. Either way, he'll lose.

Like the whole situation with his brothers.

No matter how much he tried to make the two get along, one would always antagonize the other. He'd already managed to keep more bloodshed from happening, but he still wasn't able to keep his two younger brothers from exchanging heated words or the occasional fists. And he can't side with one without alienating the other.

Then there was also Dusty; and with him, a whole plethora of other problems. He and Babs still hadn't patched up their issues - it felt more like a temporary band-aid than a real patch. Alfred was also after him to spend time with Dusty. And the Pierce brothers are now targeting his son.

How did Bruce do it?

His adoptive father could juggle an idiot public persona as an eccentric billionaire, an incredible tactician for the most powerful superhero team in the world, and the most brilliant detective for the dark city of Gotham. Yet somehow, the man managed to spare a day or two for his adopted kids starting with yours truly. Sure, those days were few and far between but they still happened and they were all the more cherished for their rarity.

It was obvious Bruce eventually chose the job over his familial or social relationships. Would Dick have to do as Bruce did? Sacrifice family and social time for the work?

Dick shook his head. He couldn't do that. He couldn't just abandon his friends from the Titans, the League, the Outsiders; and he could never abandon his family. His parents had been taken from him early on and he'd never do that to anyone, especially not to his son. Would it have been better if he took up the cops on their offer of protection?

His comms beeped. "Red Robin to Batman. Dick! Answer me!"

Dick fumbled for the device. He'd unconsciously dropped it when he leaned back on the couch. "Tim, what's wrong?"

"I just got Barry Pierce to confess. He's already sent the assassin. I repeat, the assassin's on his way to Wayne Towers!"

There was no stopping Dick this time from speeding to Dusty's room.

-17

Damian was still with Dusty when he burst into the room - Dick thanked whomever that his youngest brother was there so he didn't have to search for him and so that Dusty actually had a Robin-trained sitter in the vicinity. Trained or not, both boys were startled when the door banged open and Dick's panicked outlook appeared.

"Grays-"

The new Batman barely let his brother finish before he was ushering them both out of the room - and its large picturesque window. The moment Dick turned to face the door though, they all heard the dull crack behind him.

Both he and Damian ducked, scrambling out the door.

"The bunker, Damian!" Dick ordered, heart pounding. "Go!"

The newest Robin tucked the wailing baby under his chin, running towards the hidden passageway that would take them to the Bat-Bunker. Dick was glad the Bunker's architect made the route to the secret door entirely free of windows. It made the job of tracking them from outside the budiling that much harder for the assassin.

That still left everyone else outside the penthouse.

Dick paused before entering the study - the fire alarm was right beside him and he took a couple of seconds to smash the protective glass case to pull the lever. Klazons sounded throughout the penthouse and Dick rushed for the Bunker.

Now if all goes well, the two cops stationed outside should come running in, an alert would be reported to the dispatcher which would then bring the detectives' attention back toe the Towers, and maybe even Tim's. Because trapped as they were inside the penthouse, Dick nor Damian couldn't change and go out as Batman and Robin in less than five minutes. Who knows what could happen in those five minutes with the assassin outside?

But Red Robin was already on the way, and Dick had to have faith that his younger brother would arrive sometime within those five minutes and take care of the assassin, solo.

Babs met them on the entry way. "The Crays has been blinking like crazy for the past minute. What's going on?"

"Assassin." Damian growled, running past her to place the baby in the playpen Alfred had brought in earlier. Dick wondered if it was a good thing Alfred beat the Boy Scouts for preparedness or a bad thing that the butler had to put a playpen in the Bat-Bunker. Paranoia runs rampant in the Batclan.

"I've got remote cameras picking up the assassin from the Kensley Building." Babs called out. She'd wheeled back to the monitor as soon as Dick and Damian went past. "Looks like he's armed with a high-caliber rifle."

"Tank-piercing bullets." Dick told her, already wearing the lower half of the Batsuit and was just now pulling on the upper half. To his left, Damian was tying his boot laces. "One punched right through the bulletproof windows."

"Red Robin's on the scene."

Batman paused from pulling up the cowl, turning to Oracle and the Crays. "Can he handle the sniper?"

Babs took a couple of seconds before answering, her hands busy typing commands - probably to check other camera angles, "Looks like one lone sniper..."

Dick could almost feel his hopes rise.

"...armed with a lot of expensive toys."

Damn. Good luck, little brother.