Damian ran away. Why? That's still unclear. He was there at night and gone in the morning. Dick didn't know what to do. He'd gotten a call from Bruce at around nine telling him Damian was missing. He had then spent the rest of the day looking everywhere he could think of and found nothing.

"Anything?" Bruce's voice came through his com-link, his voice was filled worry and concern.

"Nothing. Not Damian. Not Robin. Bruce I've looked everywhere. What happened last night?"

"We fought, I sent him home early…"

"What?"

"I… I told him Batman doesn't need Robin."

"Bruce! How could you? No wonder he ran." Dick voice growled. His little brother was missing all because his father couldn't think before he spoke.

"You can't say stuff like that to Damian. He doesn't know the difference between anger and truth. All he wants is to be Robin. You do realise you just told your son you don't want him? Damn it Bruce, think before you open your mouth." Dick couldn't think of anything but yelling at Bruce. He had to find Damian and yelling wasn't helping.

"Call me if you find him. And Bruce didn't make this worse." Dick didn't want to hear his voice till he had Damian back safe.

Deciding a quick stop by at his apartment was needed he opened the front and rushed into the house so fast he ran straight in to the small person standing in the middle of the room.

"Watch out Grayson."

"Damian." Dick screamed then proceeded to bear hug the boy.

"Would you let me go!"

"What are you doing here? God I'm glad you're safe. Why'd you run a way? Where have you been? I looked everywhere. When did you get here? You could have called. You had me worried."

"-tt-" was the extent of Damian's answer.

"Oh right." Grabbing his com-link he quickly called Bruce.

"I have Damian."

"Is he hurt? Where are you? Has he said anything? Where should I meet you? Is he hurt?" Dick just smiled at how Bruce had repeated his question twice.

"He's fine. He's with me. No. Back at the manor after I've talked to him. And he's fine." Dick answered every question.

"Where are you?" the question was said in a very deep threatening tone but was also dripping with worry.

"I'll bring him home after we've talked." Dick responded causally as he turned of his locator.

"It's late but there's a café that stays open all night if you want to go out?" Dick had expected him to protest the idea and clam it as a stupid suggestion but instead Damian graded his coat of the back of the chair and headed for the front door.

"So…?" Dick prompted the younger boy to start talking. They had now been sitting in the far corner booth of the café of over an hour and all Damian has said was 'yes' in response to being offered a crunchy choc/spearmint milkshake.

"He doesn't want me." It was a very clear statement.

"Damian…"

"He said he doesn't need Robin and other then on missions we're never together so it's the same thing."

"Look buddy."

"No, Grayson. Father doesn't want me, he never did. Mother doesn't want me. Nobody wants me. I'm made to kill, trained to kill. All I am is a killing machine and nobody loves a machine." He's voice got softer as he spoke, most of this was said to his untouched drink. Dick's heart broke at the statement. He felt shattered by the tone of Damian's voice. He really believed no one loved him.

"Damian that's not true!" Dick eyes brimmed with tears.

"I want you. I love you." He stressed out the 'I'. Dick lent across the table to place one hand on his brothers shoulder and used to other to lift Damian's head so they were looking eye-to-eye.

"Bruce loves you too. I know he does. He's just not good with showing it." Damian let his eyes fall. Dick realised how little Damian was, for all his big talk and harsh attitude, he really was just a kid who needed to be loved.

"I don't think he does." Damian's voice was gaining its normal icy-edge.

"I know he doesn't." Dick didn't know what to say. Damian looked up, his face set. His expression was dark, but, behind it all Dick could see the eyes of a broken little boy that needed his daddy to hold his and tell him it was okay. Damian needed Bruce to tell him straight out he loved him.

"I'm through with this." Before Dick could stop him Damian was gone.

"YOU LET HIM GO? HOW COULD YOU LET HIM RUN AGAIN?" Bruce fumed at Dick. Pacing quickly through the cave and running his hands through his hair. His voice was louder than normal. Bruce had never spoken to Dick like this.

"Bruce I didn't just 'let him go' I tried to stop him, go after him."

"YOU HAD HIM RIGHT THERE, YOU SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT HIM HOME."

"This isn't my fault Bruce it's yours." Dick voice was like stone. He didn't need to raise it at all. The weight of the tone and want was said was enough to collapse Bruce into his chair.

"I know." He sounded broken.

"What do I do?" Dick didn't have the answer because if he did he wouldn't be here.

"What does he mean to you?" Bruce was a little startled by the question.

"Dick…"

"JUST ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION."

"He's my son. I love him every bit as much as I do you, Tim and Jason. He's…" he pursed for a bit, not really sure what to say.

"I need him home Dick. Where I can see him, keep him safe. He's my baby." Dick just nodded, getting Bruce to talk was easier than he had thought.

"Describe him. Not his looks, but him. Who is Damian through your eyes?" Dick tried to get Bruce to continue, hoping that if he didn't let him stop it would work.

"He's impulsive, violent, disrespectful, arrogant, the hardest person I've ever had to deal with. He's the only person you can truly drive me into a rage. He doesn't know when to stop. He doesn't seem to understand anything." Dick flinched at everything he said but didn't interrupt.

"But… but I wouldn't trade him for anyone or change anything about him." Dick smiled.

"Well maybe the violence and respect, but…" Dick waited not moving not saying a word.

"But god I love him." Dick's knelt down so he could look at his father's face, throughout his description of Damian he had let himself slump forwards and was now looking at the floor, head in his hands.

"I know." Bruce looked up at him.

"So why doesn't he?" his voice was soft and gentle.

"Let's go find him okay?" the two the turned to the computer and started hacking every street camera, every security camera, well as a basis every camera around the city.

Damian sat in his favourite hiding place. A small crevice in the wall of the cave where from the shadows you could see and hear everything in the cave, but remain unseen. He had been sitting in his hidey-hole for about ten minutes when Batman had returned. After another fifteen Nightwing, as Dick had changed the moment he lost sight of Damian, had arrived. He listened to them yell, well his father yell, dick only raised his voice. When his father had started describing him had had to strain to hear him. He flinched at every word, wishing he could be anywhere else at this moment. There was a pause, Damian dreaded what his father would say next.

"But… but I wouldn't trade him for anyone or change anything about him." He couldn't believe what he had heard.

"God I love him." Was the next line that drifted to Damian's ears. This almost had him in tears. His father loved him. Really, really loved him. For a moment he didn't know what to do. Should he wait for them to leave then 'come home' and act like he hadn't heard anything or should he go down there right now. His father's next comment made you his mind.

"I'll call the League, you call the Titans. We'll get them to help. The more people looking the quicker I get him back." Damian knew it wasn't fair to have everyone looking for him at this hour, not when he was watching them. Without a sound he moved from him hiding spot and landed on the floor, no more than five meters behind the two men. At the sound of his landing both men swung round.

"DAMIAN!" Dick's voice was full of excitement but Damian didn't take his eyes off his father.

"How long…?"

"Before you came back." Damian answered the floor. The next thing he knew he was wrapped in two arms. Arms that held him so tight he couldn't move. He buried his face into his father's chest.

"I love you Damian." Bruce whispered to his son as he held him close.

"Mmm…" was all Damian said in return, which was okay as Bruce hadn't expected more. Dick just beamed a smile from ear to ear. Everything was as it should be.

This story started as a Damian/Dick brotherly fluff but ended a father son moment, oh well.

Please review.

Love,

AtarinaMAK