Disclaimer: You should be glad I don't own the show. Actually, you should be glad most writers don't own the show. We enjoy the pain of our characters far too much

Breath of Life
Florence and the Machine

Mount Justice, Happy Harbor
May 28th, 2011

"Dude, we have to go see him!"

"Wally, Batman wouldn't let us visit him even if we tried."

"But Roy..." Wally whines, holding out the 'o'. "Dick is out brother. We need to see him."

Roy sighs, throwing his hands into the air. "What do you want me to do? If we just show up at the cave Bats will skin us alive."

"You could call Batman and ask him if you could go over." M'gann mentions lightly from her spot in the kitchen. None of the others had excited their rooms yet, or if they did they were avoiding Roy and Wally. "If it is truly for the benefit of Rob- I mean Dick, then he should accept."

"Don't be ridiculous," Roy scoffs, "we can't just call Batman asking for permission to enter his cave."

"Why not?" M'gann questions, and Wally just knows that if he could see her then he would see her head tilted to the side like people do on TV when they are confused.

"Well, he... he's Batman. He's The Batman." Wally stammers over his answer.

"Uh-huh." Yep, she's not convinced. Wally and Roy look at each other, both opening and closing their mouths as they try to figure out a reason why they can't just call the cave and demand to go over there. Okay, maybe not demand. Wally would probably end up begging while Roy stands and glares in the background.

After about twenty seconds Roy shrugs and heads towards the computer. "What are you doing?" Wally demanded, speeding after the former sidekick. In response he was given a look that blatantly stated 'What the hell do you think' before Roy was pressing buttons on the keyboard. Before Wally could even argue to what was happening, the big bad Bat was on the screen.

"Yes."

And just like that, the connection was cut off, leaving both boys in shock and confused. Wally recovers first. "Wait, did he mean we could some over? How would he even know what we were going to ask?"

Roy manages to pull himself together and he briskly heads towards the Zeta Beams. "There's only one way to find out."

Recognize: Red Arrow B-0-6, Kid Flash B-0-3

As their identification rings out across the cave the two boys step out of the light. The Batman and Robin are in the gym nearby them, neither looking up to address them. Wally looks around quickly, resisting the urge to run around in search of his little bird. Nothing has changed since the last time he had been there, which had been the night before Dick had been taken. He and Roy come to the conclusion that Dick isn't in the cave at seemingly the same time and they head up to the Manor in silence.

After walking for a exceedingly long amount of time -especially for a speedster- they finally made it to Dicks room. He would've speed the entire way, but Roy would hate to be left behind, and there is no way Wally is carrying him, and Alfred made a rule back when him and Dick first became friends about no speeding in the house and you do not break one of Alfred's rules. Wally stands outside of the door for a moment trying to figure out what to do before Roy pushes past him and slides the door open. For a moment he allows himself to speed inside the house, and runs ahead into the room, eyes scanning around for his little brother before spotting him on his bed, clutching his head and curling his body into itself, making him look so small and vulnerable and broken that it's heartbreaking.

"Hey Dick." Roy announced their presence with the two simple words, but the words are enough to make Dick to nearly jump out of the bed. Wally frowns. Dick always knows when anybody is around him at any time. Hell, he usually knows where everybody is anyways. He studies his best friend, noting the exhaustion in his face. Slowly Dick smiles and releases his grip on his head, eyes showing relief and insecurity, a strange mix for the boy wonder.

Sorry. The former boy wonder.

Wally watches Roy speak to Dick for a moment before he blurts out the only question on his mind. "Why?"

The voices aren't going away. The have been there all night, and Dick doesn't try to argue with them anymore. He had figured they would leave if he ignored them, but they just get louder the longer they stay. Then Roy and Wally had snuck into the room -and how they did that without him noticing them... well, he blames the voices- and his brain was once again only his. Strange, given that Alfred, Bruce, and Jason had come in to talk to him a few times and the voices only ever dimmed down lightly.

Dick watches Wally study him out of the corner of his eye while he talks to Roy. It's nice, for a while, just being with his brothers and friends and not being worried about what they are thinking about him. Dick is caught off guard when Wally begins to speak.

"Why? Why was it you? Why does it always have to be you that every evil person wants? It's not fair, Dickie, the entire team was there. We should have... we should've protected you. Should've done something."

Dick really doesn't want to respond. After all, he agreed completely. Yet, his most logical part if his brain was thinking back to the knife held against his throat three months ago, and he forced himself to sound sure and reassuring and sane. Because what sane person has a vindictive voice in his head? "Wally, there isn't anything you could've done without him killing me. It's not your fault."

Roy cuts off Wally's response with his own. "Dick, we should have found you. We took that insane clowns word that you were dead and-"

"Oh for goodness sake Roy, you weren't even there when I was taken and you despise the team. Stop suddenly acting like you are one of them"

"Them?" Wally questions tentatively. Both Wally and Roy are looking at him with looks that hold shock, hurt, sympathy, pity, and even anger. Dick forces himself to go back and rethink what he had said. Did he really not include himself in the team, his family-away-from-home? No, in that moment he realizes that he is not one of them, not since he had been replaced. Maybe not even before that. Had he even really been with them? Why was he just realizing how separated he was from the rest of the team? And, he was the only one that could have been replaced. KF is the only speedster besides Flash himself, M'gann the only other Martian on Earth besides her Uncle, Superboy is the only other Kryptonian anywhere besides Superman, Zatanna is Zatara's only child, therefore the only one to receive his magic abilities, and Kaldur was the only one the King wanted to be Aqualad. Maybe Artemis would be easily replaced as well. So it's only humans that they could -would- replace? Maybe because there were so many on this planet, but, being one of the few pure humans that are heroes now, he had been told that nobody else can do what he does. So, what? He had been lied to about that for years? If they lied to him about that, how many other thing had been lies?

Suddenly he is aware of the two boys still watching him, and slowly he nods his head to answer Wally's question. Choking and clearly distraught, Wally stumbles over his words. "Robin- Dick, dude, you are still one of us. You always will be."

"Am I? Was I ever, really? Think about it. Besides, the team made it clear. I'm not one of you. You know the way out." With that he stands and walks out of his room, forcing unwelcome tears back down his throat. They shouldn't have come. Yet, for a fleeting moment when he sat with his brothers, the voices had left him alone. They burst back into his brain, fast enough and loud enough to make the former Boy Wonder flinch. Groaning, he clutches the side of his head and continues heading forward. Barbara should be here soon, and he has to do a little damage control before Bruce kills him.

Just as he thinks of her, the doorbell rings. Quickly he jogs to the front door, ignoring the voices once more, getting there just after Alfred does. The butler looks surprised at Barbara being there and Dick being out of his room, but he smiles and offers to get them some tea to drink. Dick shakes his head and Barbara politely refuses, and together they head to the sitting room. Usually they would stay out of the room, Dick instead steering them to another part of the house due to the clock leading to the cave, but today it won't make a difference. Once they are both out of view of the eldest Bat, Barbara glares at Dick and motions for him to explain.

"So how are you?"His voice shakes a little because god the voices won't stop. Dick clears his throat and tries again. "I mean, you had a bit of a fight last night against the Joker."

"Cut the crap and tell me."

"Fine, Babs. First, remember, I am an acrobat. I grew up doing death defying stunts with my family. Bruce is a millionaire. Jason lived on the streets almost his entire life. When I first came to the manor, I was curious as any child would be. One night I had a nightmare and came down here and I realized that the clock isn't right. I fixed the time on it and it opened up to an elevator that led down. Once down there I saw Batman, with Alfred leaning over him putting stitches into his side. Apparently he had gone to a drug ring and it went bad. It always does."

"Anyways, I found out that Bruce is Batman and decided it would be a brilliant idea to fight bad guys myself. I tried to convince Bruce to let me help him, but he wouldn't let me. So I snuck out and nearly got myself killed. After that happened a few times he agreed to start training me so I could help him when I was good enough. Almost a year later, Robin was born. Jason has been training since he moved in, ready to help out when I move on from the role of Robin to become my own hero. Actually, I already have the plans for my own hero outfit."

Barbara looks ready to explode with questions. "So, when they said Robin died..."

Dick takes a deep breath. "They thought I had. The Joker had taken me for three months. After the first two months he told Bats that I was dead. I probably should have been."

Barbara throws her arms around him, nearly crying. "Oh Dick! Wait, why did Bruce say you were in England with some friends? Let me guess, you needed a cover story. God, you could have been dead for the past month and I wouldn't even know! Does this make Jason the new Robin? Hey, is that the clock? All I have to do is make it the right time, right?" She jumps up and heads over to the clock, opening it and twisting it to make it right. Dick knows, he should stop her, but he already told her about it. Why not let her see it too?

"Breath, Babs, breath. It's good for you. He said I was in England? Well, I should've guessed that. And yes, Jay is the second Robin. Bruce is going to kill me for telling you this. He should be down there with Jay right now." He steps to her as the clock slides to the side, walking into the elevator at her side. "So just try not to touch anything. Wally has a tendency to break things down here. Oh yeah, Wally West is Kid Flash. For all I know him and Roy are down here too." Although they are most likely still in my room shell shocked. Dick thinks bitterly.

The door opens, and they step into the semi-darkness that is the cave. "Oh my god." He hears Barbara whisper next to him before she moves into the cave quickly. She stops a few steps in, watching the training area with rapt fascination. With a feeling of dread Dick sees Bruce knock Jason to the ground, finishing a round of sparring, and look around. His eyes reach Babs quickly, and he growls. Jason looks over at her and then at Dick, hiding a smirk that told Dick that Jason just won a bet. Probably with Bruce about whether he would tell Babs or not.

Bruce looks at Dick before walking to the computer. "He wants to talk to you." Dick translates the look to her, shaking her head when she opens her mouth to talk. "We can talk later. Go." Throwing one look back at him, she heads over to Bruce to talk.

The only thing as he can think as he and Jay head upstairs is This won't go well.

Wally gapes at the door of Dick's room as it shuts behind Dick's retreating form. "Roy he doesn't think he belongs with the team! What if he thinks he doesn't belong with the heroes at all? He might quit! He-"

"Wally breathe." Roy interrupted his rambling. "You remember what happened last time you talked without breathing. You were out cold for ten minutes."

Wally nods, pulling the precious oxygen into his lungs before speaking. "This is the teams fault. And did you see the news last night? The Joker attacked the Gordon's and was taken down by Batman and Robin. I would bet anything that Dick was there."

"If he were there then-" Roy begins, only to be interrupted by a ringing. "Is that the doorbell? He asks, although he already knows the answer. "Who would be coming here? It's only eight o'clock in the morning."

Together the two boys walk out of the room, making sure to shut to lights off and close the door so Alfred doesn't lecture them. Silently they stalk down the halls of the manor, listening for any clues as to who the mystery visitor is. At their pace, it takes them nearly ten minutes to reach the sitting room.

"Don't they have a guest over?" Wally asks when they see the clock open. To their surprise, Dick and Tim are the two that walk out. Tim walks past them, rolling his eyes and with a smirk on his face, while Dick flops onto the couch and mutters something to himself. Not bothering to hide anymore, Roy heads to the elevator. As Wally follows, he notices that Dick doesn't acknowledge their presence.

"Isn't this all a bit strange? I mean, come on, none of the leaguers would have rang the doorbell and none of the team would come through the front door." Wally questions again as the elevator heads down to the cave.

"Look, we didn't know Jason was training until he took over as Robin. Maybe they are training someone else that we don't know about." Roy reasons, stepping out as the door opens for them. "It's not like we saw anybody on the way down here." Wally opens his mouth, only to get cut off by a voice across the room.

"No. I am not training you." Wally recognizes the voice of Bruce before he actually sees Bruce. When he does see Bruce, he is surprised to also see Barbara Gordon, Dicks redheaded firecracker of a friend. She smirks and sits down in Bruce's chair that he never seems to use and starts twirling slowly.

"I'll stay here until you do train me." She states, eyes wandering. When they lay on Wally and Roy, she smiles and waves. "Hey Wally. And you must be Roy. Nice to meet you, I'm Barbara Gordon."

Roy smirks at the annoyed expression lining Bruce's features before he responds. "You're Dick's friend, right? He finally told you the secret. And you are already trying to be part of the team. Well, good luck. If he doesn't agree I'm sure I might be able to. Or you could ask Dick. He might be willing to help out. Anyways, we've got to go." With the last line Wally is pushed to the Zeta Beam, trying to control his laughter at the smirk growing an Barbara's face.

Recognize: Kid Flash B-0-3, Red Arrow B-0-6

"Dude, are you honestly going to train her?" Wally manages to say over his laughter. He watches as Roy gives him a look that says You're-kidding-me-right?

"No. And just from meeting her, I can tell Bruce will be training her by morning." Wally can't help but laugh at Roy's response.

Almost two hours later Barbara and Bruce emerge from the cage, one with a scowl and one with a smile. Barbara practically skips over to where Dick is sitting on the couch. "He is going to train me." She announces. "Now, what did you have planned about this whole new-hero-thing for you?"

"How did you- No. I'm not even going to ask. I like the name Nightwing. Come on, I have some designs upstairs that I have been working on for a while."