Chapter 17
Piper was watching TV in the den with Dick and Tim. Dick was 16, Piper was 15 and Tim was 12. This was when Dick was trying to establish himself as Nightwing and Jason was the new Robin. Jason had disappeared again, so they thought he was just out somewhere letting off steam. There had been an argument between Bruce and Jason again. Piper had offered to go with him to help clear his head, but Jason said he wanted to be alone. She respected her brother's wish. Jason climbed onto his bike in his guise of Robin and drove away. That was the last time Piper saw him.
Later that night, Alfred went up to Bruce and whispered something in his ear. Piper strained to hear, but all she picked up was Alfred saying "it's Jason," and she knew in an instant something was wrong with Jason. Bruce immediately ran out of the room and down to the Batcave. Piper and Dick followed.
"Bruce please," Dick said. "Let us go."
"No, you have to stay here."
"Why?" Piper protested. "He's our brother. If something's wrong, we have every right to go along and help him. I promised I'd do anything for him. I can't back out on that now when he needs us the most."
"Stay put." Bruce's voice was firm. Dick and Piper gave up. They watched him drive off in the Batmobile, praying that he'd be home in a few hours with Jason.
They waited up all night for him to come home with Jason. Bruce came home later the next day. The three kids and Alfred waited for him in the Batcave. He stepped out of the car. Piper looked in the passenger seat and found it empty.
"Bruce, where's Jason?" she asked, panic in her voice.
Bruce looked at Piper then and the ground. He shook his head.
Piper's heart felt as though it had been ripped out of her chest. "No…Bruce, you don't mean…he can't be!" She dropped to her knees and sobbed. Dick put his hand on her shoulder but she brushed it off.
"I promised him!" she yelled at Bruce. "I promised him I'd do anything to keep him safe! Why didn't you let me go?!"
She shot back up to her feet and ran to the elevator. Once she was back on the house level, she ran into her room and locked the door. Piper didn't come out for a week. She hardly slept, due to nightmares about Jason. It took Dick and Tim months to make her smile again. Once she found out how Jason died, the nightmares only grew worse. If she had been there, if she had kept her promise, Jason would still be alive. She carried as much guilt as Bruce.
There was a fifth room on the second floor that was next to Piper's. That room had been unoccupied for two years. Bruce never let anyone in it. Sometimes, when Bruce was out of the house, Piper would go into the room and clean it up. That was Jason's room. A room full of haunting memories.
"Pip?"
Piper jumped and turned around. She saw Dick standing in the doorway looking at her with concern. He was wearing dark denim jeans and a blue sweater that matched his eyes. She quickly wiped her eyes on her sleeve. Dick walked up to her.
"Are you…ok?"
"Yeah, I just…I had the biggest flashback ever. About Jason."
Dick just nodded. "Joker will be put behind bars permanently. For Jason." He gave her a small smile. "Come here," he said as he opened his arms. Piper fell into them.
"This is getting serious. Way too serious."
"You're not going to back out on the whole superhero gig are you?"
"Of course not. I just don't want you or Tim to end up like me. Or like Jason."
Dick pulled away and put his hands gently on her shoulders. He looked into her eyes. "Piper, I can't promise you that I won't die. If I die a hero, so be it. But I promise, I will never leave you."
Piper opened her mouth to say something when suddenly a loud crash came from upstairs. There was a strange yet familiar laugh and the sound of Tim's voice calling out for Piper and Dick. They raced out of the kitchen and up the stairs to Piper's room. The window was no longer in existence and shards of glass littered the carpeted floor. The seat where Tim sat was empty. And in Piper's seat sat a little clown doll.