Chapter 28: The robin flat
"Shit, that's Barbara!"
Both Jason's and Damian's eyes snapped wide open when Tim said that name, and stunned, the Outlaw replied:
"What the hell is she doing here?!"
Tim ruffled his hair as he answered his counterpart:
"We wanted to discuss a case where a criminal moved his business from Bludhaven to Gotham and that's why she had announced herself for today."
"Shit! Dick wouldn't like it at all if she saw him like that. Let alone, any more people involved could blow our cover!"
Jason briefly weighed their options. In fact, Barbara was one of the few people he really liked, let alone loved, and actually he knew she could be trusted. However, their current situation was too precarious for him to take any chances. *1
The Outlaw now turned back to Tim:
"Get rid of her!"
"What, how? Barbara can't be fooled so easily! She'll know something's up right away if I turn her down on the door just like that."
Jason knew exactly what Tim meant. Any of them would get suspicious if Tim canceled on someone only at the doorstep. He was the kind of person who did that kind of thing in advance, since his entire life was one well-planned routine.
The doorbell rang again, which only agitated those present.
But as Jason's gaze briefly wandered to the Red Robin's belt, an idea occurred to him. Out of the tricky situation, he now walked briskly to the kitchen and took the glass of water from Damian's hand, who protested about this with a "Hey!".
However, the boy's initial annoyance quickly turned into confusion when he saw the Outlaw not exactly gently grab Tim by the collar and drag him out onto the balcony.
Damian's face visibly brightened at what happened next. On the balcony, with a quick "Sorry Tim." Jason pulled the pepper spray from his belt and sprayed it in his face.
Immediately Tim's lungs spasmed as the irritant gas hit his face and his eyes and nose started running water like crazy:
"Damn..arg...Jason, what..kch...the hell?"
Without wasting much time, the older man pushed his counterpart's head down so that he could now wash of most of the substance out of Tim's face with Damian's glass of water and the smell would also fate away. Unnerved, he spoke to his taken-by-surprise victim:
"Look. Now you just have to pretend to be very very sick and convince Barbara to go away again. Take something like conjunctivitis and fever. I 've set the base for you and for the rest, it's up to your acting skills."
Under Jason's rough handling, Tim croaked back:
"Urg...Seriously Jason? This is your grandiose plan? I can't believe you sprayed pepper spray in my face! Arg...do you actually know that can be dangerous? Eh...why don't we just tell her about Dick?"
"Oh now don't be such a sissy prince! And like I said, how do you think that womanizer would feel if Babs saw him like that? Let alone that too many people might overstimulate him in his condition. Him playing the friendly dog in front of you was the absolute exception. You already have a face full of snot, now you might as well use it to send Babs away!"
Jason dragged Tim back into the apartment and called toward the kitchen:
"Damian, take the turkey and go hide in the main bedroom already."
The usually cynical boy's face was adorned with a wide nasty grin as he eyed Drake's helpless countenance. He would have loved to savor this moment a bit more, but in the end, the current situation demanded the opposite of him.
Damian directed Dick, who was looking a bit confused about the whole situation, to follow him.
Jason meanwhile, ruffled Tim's black hair a bit with his hands to further emphasize the image of the sick Red Robin:
"So fever and conjunctivitis. Got it?"
Tim blinked his eyes desperately to finally regain half his vision. Inwardly, he made a mental note to himself to pay Jason back some day.
Annoyed, he wriggled out of the outlaw's rough grip and growled:
"Oh just get out of here before I lose my temper and smack you! I'll do it my way."
That elicited a grin from Jason, after all. Tim was one of those people who made it fun for him to get on their nerves. His calm disposition made it a kind of challenge to make him fly off the handle and was therefore quite amusing.
Finally, Jason patted his counterpart on the shoulder one last time:
"You'll do just fine." and left the pile of misery behind him as he also headed for the bedroom.
Tim only grumbled sourly to himself before the now penetrating ringing drove him to the front door. However, he quickly fetched a handkerchief for his runny nose, so he would not look completely like a neglected dog.
His hand was already on the doorknob when the teenager collected himself for a moment and then began the play as soon as the piece of wood opened.
"Gee I thought you weren't even...What happened to you?!"
Barbara's eyes snapped open in wonder as she saw the sickly figure of her friend. Tim had thought up the entire script in a matter of seconds, so that his dying swan would be believable.
First act, pretend nothing was wrong and let the scenery speak for itself:
"Sorry Babs, I seem to have overslept and just had to quickly put on my costume. Come on in."
Tim could see the fish already beginning to nibble at the bait. The redhead's eyes were already graced with concern as she entered:
"Ok, um...are you ok...you don't look like you're...well...in a good condition."
"Oh I...*cough*...I'm fine. So about the case..."
Tim opened a hologram with the data across his living room table and began to narrate:
"...I've compiled all the records about the target into an overview so that...*cough*...Sorry. So it'll be easier for you to work with and I can explain it better to you when we leave for Gotham right now. I just have to pack up a few things real quick. Then we can go. Sorry, I haven't gotten to it yet. Give me a...*cough*...moment."
Tim was just turning around when his arm was grabbed.
Act Two, the bait was taken. He just wanted to end this quickly as the burning in his face was getting worse.
"Now wait a minute Tim. Did you actually look at yourself in the mirror? You're all huffy and coughing. You're not well!"
The teenager turned back to her and watched the redhead put her hands on her hips:
"My goodness you guys can't even take it down a notch. I'm certainly not taking you with me like this! If your body isn't in top shape, it's way too dangerous!"
Barbara rubbed the root of her nose before asking:
"Have you actually taken your temperature?"
"It's not that bad. Just slightly elevated."
"How high?"
Act Three kicked in. Harnessing the motherly instinct.
Tim did a little printing out of his answer to give the impression that he was uncomfortable admitting to being sick:
"Just a bit over 39°C, it's really not..."
Suddenly, the teenager was grabbed and pulled across the room. His glazed eyes snapped open as Barbara took him toward something very specific:
"W-What are you doing!"
"You belong in bed my friend! Where did you get the stupid idea to work with a fever!? That's really unbelievable!"
OK, Act Three just got way out of hand! Mayday! Mayday! Barbara is heading straight for the bedroom!
Alternative, alternative, alternative, Damn it he needed an alternative!
"Hey Babs wait! You can't go into the bedroom right now! It...*cough*...it's pretty messy in there right now!"
"Oh poppycock, as if something like that would bother me."
The woman's graceful fingers already wrapped around the handle when Tim tried to stop her again:
"Barbara you really can't...!"
But then the door was opened and Barbara's eyes snapped open:
"I don't believe it..."
The woman stepped further into the light-filled room and then confronted the perplexed teenager:
"You can't be serious Tim! You call this messy?! There are only three pieces of clothing on the floor."
Timothy, meanwhile, was making eyes like a fish.
The large bed in the middle, plain white closet walls on the side, and large closed windows on the outside facade. It was, as always, his empty bedroom. Jason, Damian and Dick were not...here?
Barbara dragged him in front of the bed, then said:
"Clothes off and inside the bed! When I come back in a minute with tea, I want you laying under the covers!"
With that, the redhead immediately disappeared out of the room again to prepare the mentioned tea in the kitchen.
Tim was just confused, when he looked at the closed door to the living room.
What the...where were they?
They couldn't have gone outside. The windows could at most be tilted open for security reasons, and even in his closets there wasn't enough room for someone like Dick to fit in there.
They couldn't just vanish into thin air!
Tim just decided to keep following his script for now. He could still worry about it once Barbara was gone.
The teenager was just getting rid of his cape as well as his top when a whispering voice behind him drove his soul out of his body:
"I told you to get rid of her and not let her make you tea!"
Tim could just barely suppress a yelp as he turned and saw Jason's head floating in the air behind the bed.
"Jason what...?"
"The turkey can turn invisible."
As if that had been an order, Dick seemed to manifest himself around Jason out of nowhere. He had covered both Jason and Damian with his wings, and Tim's face was now a shade whiter. The Outlaw started again:
"Yeah oh how great, we've all marveled at that by now. Now get rid of Babs before Dickie's fucked up senses get that I have cigarettes in my ass pocket!"
Damian, too, was now peeking out from between all the feathers, spitting:
"I told you getting Drake involved was a stupid idea!"
Only to get a snarky instruction from Jason back:
"Keep quiet in the shrimp class!"
Tim's initial shock quickly turned to annoyance as the two grouches picked on him:
"I know, I'm working on it! Wait cigarettes?"
"I'll tell you later. Now get rid of her!"
Barbara was already knocking on the door again, again giving those present an enormous fright. Shortly Jason instructed snappishly:
"Damian! Turkey, stealth mode, NOW!"
At the very last moment, Damian somehow managed to convey to Dick that he needed to turn invisible as the redhead re-entered the room:
"Had you said something?"
With a pained smile, Tim just waved it off:
"Nah...hehehe, I was just talking to myself."
Barbara looked at the younger man skeptically at first, before approaching him and handing over a pack of tissues with the words:
"Here, you should really take care of your nose." into his hand.
Tim just looked at the wad of soft paper in confusion before using it, as the next question was thrown at him:
"Chamomile or mint?"
"Uh...what?"
"Would you like chamomile tea or mint tea?"
"Oh, uh...mint please."
Tim was already exhaling in relief as the woman was about to leave the room again. But he rejoiced too soon. At the doorstep, the redhead stopped and turned around one more time.
Tim's heart leapt as Barbara now set course for the wall where his three guests were hiding. In his mind's eye he could already see Jason standing in front of his face with the pepper spray again, should he blow it now and that little Gremlin was just waiting for a reason to fillet him!
Barbara paused right in front of the wall.
They were busted!
But suddenly the redhead bent down to pick something up. Intrigued, she stared at a feather sparkling slightly bluish like a Gem in the light between her fingers, "That's beautiful. Where did that come from?"
Tim realized immediately that it had to be one of Dick's. Why did he have to lose one now, of all times!
"Um...This is from a former mission. I had to fight a few mutated birds with the Titans, and I kept it as a souvenir."
Barbara looked at it for a moment before turning to him saying:
"You shouldn't leave it here on the floor. It's really too precious for that."
Suddenly, a slight growl sounded behind her. How many rocks could you actually throw in one's path?
"What was that?" asked Barbara as she looked over her shoulder to the wall where Dick and the others were standing.
Panicking, Tim quickly came up with an excuse for that as well:
"The walls!...Hehe, when the wind makes the skyscraper vibrate, they do creak."
"Oh, really?"
Barbara turned her attention back to the supposedly sick person and didn't notice how Dick manifested himself again behind her.
Tim had been so close to ending his play and dragging the redhead away from Dick, since he wasn't exactly friendly with her.
Besides, his eyes were still burning like hell!
"By the way, did you hear something from Jason and Damian? Bruce said he and Damian had a fight and then I guess the kid ran off to Jason. That's why he's looking for them now."
Tim could only follow the whole thing with half an ear, because Jason and Damian behind her were just trying to keep Dick from starting dinner already by pushing and shoving.
"Jason and Damian? No. What makes you think that? We may be in the same family, but we never actually have any contact with each other."
"You don't? I thought you and Jason had contact from time to time. Didn't you say some time ago that he comes to visit you now and then?"
Tim could see Jason giving him angry looks as he pressed his hand in Dick's face. The Outlaw had specifically told him that his visits were to be a secret, but Timmy had once blabbed in a conversation with the redhead.
Pepper Spray 2.0 seemed closer than ever.
"Yeah, but that's only when I need help at work sometimes and no one else is available. That's been the case maybe once or twice. You know it's hard to keep the collateral damage down with him. That's why I prefer to ask one of the Titans."
Now Based on Jason's facial expression, that answer hadn't exactly soothed his temper.
"True enough. He wouldn't exactly be my first choice either. Well, if you have his number, please let him know that Bruce is worried about Damian and that the little guy should come home."
"Will do."
Tim watched Damian and Jason behind Barbara bring Dick back under control and he reluctantly made them invisible again with his feathers.
The teenager yawned once, getting on his play again and settled into bed, wanting to bring this whole situation to an end before his poor heart got another heart attack from all the stress:
"You know Babs, I think I'm too tired for tea. Is it all right if I hit the hay and we say goodbye here? I've had a stressful couple of days and since you don't want me around anyway, I'd like to just sleep for today. I've already sent you the data."
Concerned, the redhead looked down at her younger friend:
"Sure, but only if you actually sleep now. I'll let Bruce know you're taking a few days off."
Tim panicked inwardly. Surely that would be suspicious right away!
"No!...uh...He's worried enough about Damian as it is. I'll just ask someone in my circles if they could help me out with Bludhaven. Leave Bruce out of this, please. You know how uneasy he's become about us."
Barbara knew what he was trying to say, and a hint of sadness graced her otherwise cheerful face. Shortly she replied:
"I see."
But that sadness was soon gone as she set off for Gotham. She placed the feather on one of Tim's nightstands and walked out the door as she spoke:
"Well, I'm off to take this guy down. Feel free to contact me if you need any help or hear anything new from Jason and Damian."
Tim mumbled to himself under his covers so that Babs would finally disappear.
"Will do. Be careful and good luck."
At the doorstep, she paused again and smiled at him:
"That poor guy doesn't even know what's about to hit him. By the way, I don't know why, but your wall over there seems pretty creepy. Maybe you should hang a picture there or something."
Tim just pretended to be asleep already, whereupon the redhead disappeared out of the room without another word.
Secretly, the analyst was still following her with a small computer on his wrist to make sure that she had left the apartment immediately.
And when she did...Tim jumped out of bed and ran to the adjoining bathroom:
"Water, water, water!"
His eyes were on fire! He had had to endure it for so long and in the process the pain was getting worse. So it was not surprising that the next moment he found himself standing over the washbasin, finally getting rid of the last remnants of the pepper spray.
It didn't take long and Jason was standing behind him in the bathroom doorway:
"You told her about me being here?! That should..."
He paused as Tim raised a finger warningly under running water:
"Think carefully about what you're about to say, because I'm this close to kicking you between the legs way harder as I did the last time, so you can start your career as a soprano singer!"
Jason fell silent for a moment, knowing exactly what event Tim was alluding to. It was one of those memories that wasn't easily forgotten, but he still wouldn't let himself being shut off: *2
"Oh come on, what do you have that stuff for if for it being used? It worked out, didn't it?"
Tim just growled:
"...out."
"What?"
"Get OUT!"
A hard kick hit the Outlaw against his chest and catapulted him out of the small bathroom. Gasping, he hit the bedroom's floor and the next moment the door was slammed shut in front of his face. Damian and Dick just eyed this with raised brows, while Jason reordered himself again and chuckled slightly strained: "Urg...man he's pissed."
He stood up and rubbed his dull aching chest before saying:
"He'll probably need a few more minutes. So, who's hungry?"
Damian could only roll his eyes.
A shortly after, the three found themselves in the adjacent living area. Damian busied himself on the sofa going over the data on his computer, Dick was on the floor with the cigarettes from Jason's pocket, and Jason was making dinner in the big kitchen.
Damian couldn't help but be surprised that the Outlaw and this computer lover seemed quite familiar. Jason wasn't exactly the kind of person who would voluntarily want to have anything to do with the main family, so he was surprised that he must have met up with Drake from time to time. Also, the outlaw knew where all the stuff in the apartment could be found. The boy addressed this:
"Say Jason, how come you know your way around this place so well? According to the conversation earlier, you seem to have been here often. I actually thought you avoided all of us."
The taller man's brows drew together for a moment as he was about to chop some carrots. He considered whether or not to answer, but finally did:
"Well, you're not the only one I gave a communicator back at Dick's funeral. For reasons I won't tell you, I felt it necessary to offer Tim my help. I gave you one simply out of the situation, because otherwise you would have been completely alone with the old man. You and Tim are worlds apart when it comes to the spirit and believe me when I tell you that Dick's supposed death had just hit Timmy very hard."
Damian growled:
"What are you trying to say?"
"You don't need to know that, just that it's not something you can be better at than the other. We're here now, our current problem is playing on the ground up ahead, and anything other than finding a solution to it shouldn't interest you right now either."
Damian grumbled to himself, annoyed. What was that all about? What did he mean that his spirit and Drake's were worlds apart? He didn't like this secrecy at all! But while the boy was about to ask questions, he thought of another one, which he actually wanted to have answered long ago:
"By the way, there is still another question, which I actually wanted to ask you yesterday at the orphanage already."
The carrots were now joined by onions, as the taller one replied, bored, "Go for it."
"Why don't you want to be Batman anymore? After all, you were so fond of it back when Father was supposedly dead."
"That's very simple. There has to be a Batman. Dick never wanted to be him, so I took over, which as you know ended up with Dick having to face up to the responsibility after all, and eventually made you his Robin."
A grin graced the Outlaw's face as he looked over at Damian:
"So you can be grateful to me in a way. And by the way sorry I shot you at the time. Not exactly the best start we had, don't you think? But I think everyone of us was pretty shaken up when Bruce was pronounced dead. "*3
Damian only snorted disapprovingly for a moment before the Outlaw continued:
"I've already told you that everything is still not running smoothly in my head. Using a Larzarus Pit is something that leaves a part that doesn't belong to you affecting you. Anyway, it feels like that for me, which is why I sometimes trade a bit more impulsively, then I already did in the past. But to get back to your actual question, let me ask you also one. Why do you want to be Batman?"
Damian didn't think twice with his answer:
"It's my birthright and what I've been trained for all my life."
Jason just shook his head:
"That's not an answer. I asked why you want to be him, not why others expect it of you. You shouldn't always be head over heels about things kid. You are not a robot anymore, you have your own head to make decisions for yourself and not because others expect it from you. So use it and ask yourself the question, why Batman of all heroes? How is he different from a Nightwing, Red Hood or Superman? Why you don't want to create your own hero, like Dickie, but wear someone else's mantle similar like me. "*4
Damian was thinking hard, and Jason could see it rattling around in the boy's head. But when no answer came, the Outlaw simply continued:
"Well, I don't want to be Batman because he doesn't align with my goals. The Batman is a hero who cares not only about Gotham, but also about the whole world. That's too big for me. If I were to be Batman, I wouldn't be able to protect the weak people he can't cover. Besides, this coat is like a dog leash for me, which forces me to accept Bruce's methods. I've tried to play by his rules before, but they suck in a nutshell. I've tried to be my own version of the Batman, which hasn't ended up too sparkling either. As the Red Hood, I'm simply a bird-free. Every hero is bound by rules and the Red Hood's is 'Do whatever you want, but do it for the right thing.' And oh what wonder, I just like to do what I want. I admit that I've messed up a lot in the past. But at the same time, it gave me the opportunity to look into the motivations of other heroes. You don't learn anything if you're only concerned with yourself. You only get better if you also look around. I've come to realize that over the past few years."
Jason thought it was right to be so open with Damian in this regard. He knew where it led one, if one strayed from the actual path because of pride and stubbornness and others plan, who one should be in the future. Talia was not much different from Joker in that aspect.
Damian was about to say something back when the door to the bedroom was yanked open and Tim, still with anger on his face, entered the room. He sat down on an armchair opposite Damian and just said snappishly:
"Who has the data?"
Jason's brows drew together:
"Aren't you first going to-"
"I'm still pissed at you and I'd like to take my mind off the annoying pain in my lungs and eyes for a bit. So which one of you is going to let me have all the data about this case now?"
Tim spent the next ten minutes going over all the data he had collected on Dick's condition and all the other things that had happened. The more time passed, the deeper the wrinkles on the teenager's forehead became, until finally, addressing Jason, he said:
"You weren't exaggerating when you said Dick's condition was bad. The changes in his DNA structure are serious. Also the aspect that he keeps mutating makes a cure completely impossible. I wonder..."
The strategist began muttering to himself as he ran through all the possible solutions in his mind, and Damian just eyed him with skepticism.
Jason was pouring a homemade sauce over the vegetables in a roasting pan when he noticed the sentence wasn't finished:
"Tim, could you maybe share with us what you were going to say?"
But the latter seemed too lost in his thoughts to hear the Outlaw's question.
"Tim!"
"Huh, what?"
"You were going to say something."
"Uh...Ah yes!"
Tim looked at his screen again before he began to explain himself:
"I've now roughly gone through all the data about Dick, and it's true that you have to somehow restructure his DNA to make him human again. I can think of two very rough directions that could be taken here. The first is as already made by Damian, the possibility that we ourselves somehow accomplish this in the lab, which actually borders on the impossible."
"And the other option?"
"Would be for Dick to do it himself."
Tim now saw the distinct question marks on the faces of the other two and explained himself:
"Well I understand too little about all these demonic processes to say that this theory could really work, but since one of Dick's abilities is controlling molecules..."
Jason continued the sentence:
"He could make his own DNA human again by changing them."
"Exactly. However, I don't know if he's capable of doing that. According to your records, he has only changed the structure of his feathers up until now. Whether this is possible with the rest of his body is another question. But since he can make himself completely invisible, that could be the case. Also, the enormous demonic energy...I don't know how that can be reconciled with a human body. Enormous energy requires an appropriate body, such as Superman's. It would probably tear a normal human being apart. But maybe it would be possible to turn him into a human-looking half-demon like Raven. In any case, I see too many risks in us doing anything that would change him. We may understand physical processes, but not magical ones. It's very likely that we would eventually kill him."
Jason slapped his hand against his forehead:
"So the new plan is, sort of the old plan. Somehow making Dickie regains his memories and he solves the problem himself. Is there really no alternative Timmy?"
Tim rolled his eyes:
"I can't pull solutions out of a hat for things I don't understand Jason. My area of expertise are the physical laws of our world. Not those of another."
Damian just hissed:
"-tt- great Todd, so much for your hoped for miracle solution Drake."
For that, the cynical boy cashed in a potato to the head.
"Hey!"
"Still Jason to you, fucking Chihuahua. Three heads are still better than two and even more so when it's Timmy's. Besides, I don't recall hearing from you that Dickie could solve this whole thing by himself. Behave yourself."
Of course, the boy wasn't going to let that stand:
"Pah! You want me to behave? That kind of thing shouldn't come from someone who can't even manage two conversations without swearing at least once."
"You little..."
"Anyway..." Tim interrupted the two of them before they got into another argument:
"...as far as for Dick's memory, I might be able to help. I didn't give all his stuff to Bruce back then but kept it here. If we go through the individual pieces with him, it might trigger some memories."
"Well, at least there's a ray of hope. By the way..."
Jason was placing slices of cheese over his vegetable casserole when his eyes stared scrutinizingly at Tim:
"...what kind of car even is that thing, which you and Dickie had built together? It's totally over the top."
The addressed thought briefly, before he remembered what was meant:
"Oh you know Dina? Actually, Dick put her together mostly. I just breathed life into her and wired up all the technology. That was more of a fun project of ours, since cars are too bulky for Dick to use and I have a similar view on that."
Jason almost dropped the cheese:
"You call something like that...a fun project?! That thing almost killed us by playing getaway car!"
But Tim took this rather indifferently:
"Well it was never be ment to be used in a real operation, but it's nice to know that it works just fine. Then I now have new data to improve her further. Dick and I just wanted to see if we could put together something a little more extreme than the Batmobiel to, as Dick put it, 'screw around big time '. Bruce, of course, was not allowed to know anything about it. He would have taken her away, with all the stuff we put in her. That's why She looks like a normal car and can transform into different models. Plus, only Dick and I can unlock her."
"He definitely wasn't understating the case when he said 'screw around big time'." Jason grumbled and Damian couldn't help but hiss disapprovingly. He couldn't deny that it pissed him off that Richard secretly had such a project going on with this lickspittle.
The outlaw was just putting the last slice of cheese on the casserole when he ended the conversation on his part. He simply needed nicotine right now:
"Well, since you've got your computer stuff going on anyway, I'm going for a smoke. And make sure that turkey doesn't chase after me. I hate, when he snatches my cigarettes."
With that, Jason just let them do their part of the work and put the roaster in the preheated oven. He briefly wiped his hands clean with a kitchen towel and then went out onto the balcony to finally have a smoke, away from the addicted turkey. He was about to stand against the railing and take out his cigarettes when he noticed that his butt pockets contained only the lighter.
Jason slapped his own forehead. That's right, he'd given those to Dickie.
He searched his other pockets. Maybe there were still some somewhere. But all he found was emptiness, except for one. Surprised at the piece of paper in his front pocket, he pulled it out and looked at it. Surprised, his eyes snapped open before amusement set in.
It was the picture of him and Bruce. He had simply tucked it into his pants when he had been talking to Dick alone and forgotten about it. It was a real joke that this photo was his last possession that didn't fall victim to the flames.
Jason could only laugh out loud and didn't even notice how the many eyes in the living room stared at him through the large windows in confusion. What a punchline.
Like that, two days passed with the three of them trying to get Dick's memories back and Jason and Tim keeping each other from picking a fight with the Gremlin of them. Damian really provided a lot of argument material, which is why Jason was so happy to be able to share this problem with someone now. How did Bruce and Dick always handle him?
Along the way, Tim tried to find more solutions. The fact that he had a whole lab in one of the adjoining rooms accelerated the search immensely, but their current goal remained the same.
And so the living room was now adorned with box after box, filled with Dick's possessions and every day they were all allowed to listen to his CD collection, carefully selected over the years. Which, to say the least, consisted mainly of embarrassing love songs, paired with a little Romani music as well as Boy bands, and above all drove Jason crazy. He had never thought much of Dick's questionable tastes, but this was really too much! *5
So it was not surprising that the Outlaw often lay on the sofa with pillows pressed over his ears, while Tim worked on his computer and Damian went through each item individually with Dick, just like now.
After countless old gadgets, letters, photos with Dick and other heroes, as well as all sorts of other odds and ends, where Damian only wondered why one picked up such things, the only result was a tattered photo on the floor of Batman, instead of a hoped-for memory.
Finally, Damian arrived at the last box and when he opened it, he looked a bit surprised. On the top was a yellowed poster of the Flying Grayson's and underneath were newspapers with articles about their appearances. But a thick leather book was what almost magically attracted the boy's attention. Under Richard's interested gaze, he opened it and tilted his head in confusion. Pasted inside were old photos of a young boy he didn't recognize at first glance, so he asked about it:
"Drake, what's that?"
Tim just looked over his shoulder for a moment and then simply said:
"Dick's Old Photo Album. As far as I know, this is before and during his time in the circus. This was put together by his parents, so be careful with it."
Jason knocked the pillows off his head:
"Wait, that clown wasn't always with the circus?"
Tim just shrugged, "He told me at the time that his parents had distanced themselves from the circus for a couple of years because they got pregnant with him. The first three or four years he probably lived with them in Romania on his grandma's farm, and the photos are mostly from that time, too."
Jason's face was adorned with a nasty grin at the thought of old baby photos of that weirdo:
"Well that sounds like material I can tease him with later."
Immediately, the Outlaw was found behind Damian, now staring spellbound into the book as well. Tim just rolled his eyes and closed his computer before he too joined the rest and put the book on the floor, saying:
"Since none of you know who all the pictures show anyway, let me explain. Maybe Dick will remember."
Tim flipped back to the first page and curiously everyone looked at the old book.
"This one is of his parents' wedding. They were already pregnant with him by then, and got married in his grandma's village church."
They looked closely at the overjoyed couple on the first page and Damian commented regarding the bright red dress of the woman in front of them:
"Isn't it customary to wear white at a wedding?"
Tim explained:
"The Roma people, of which Dick's family on his mother's side is also a member, have quite different traditions depending on where they live and accordingly the dresses can vary. That's why his parents' wedding was apparently quite colorful."
Tim pointed his finger at an old woman standing in the background, smiling:
"That's his grandmother, by the way. Dakaria Stoica."
Jason's eyes narrowed suspiciously:
"Wait a minute, how come you know so much about all this stuff? Were you stalking him?"
Tim just waved it off:
"Please." before the corners of his mouth crept up slyly:
"I was stalking all of you, Mr. Haywood. At least the data that wasn't exactly well secured."
Jason was momentarily tongue-tied. How did this smart aleck know his birth mother's last name!
"Besides, I often asked Dick about his past. I was just interested in who he was before his time as Robin. Anyway..."
Tim pointed to the next picture, which showed Dick's grandmother in detail once again. She was sitting in a rocking chair on a wooden porch and appeared to be knitting little socks while smiling joyfully at the camera:
"That's your Grandma Dick, do you recognize her?"
Confused, his counterpart looked at the old photo and just tilted his head, not understanding why they always showed him all these things. Resignedly, Tim said:
"So you don't. How about this?"
He turned the page and now pointed to a picture of Dick's very pregnant mother on a sofa and how his father seemed to be talking to her belly with sparkling eyes:
"Do you at least remember your parents?"
Dick's only reaction was a short snort followed by scratching an itchy spot between his feathers. He didn't seem to really paying attention and Tim's finger retreated in disappointment.
"So neither."
Damian continued to look at the book with interest and flipped to the next page, where a sleeping baby with a colorful knitted cap and the already familiar socks was lying in a hospital bed.
"Is that him?" he asked.
"Yep, that's shortly after he was born."
Jason gave a playful whoop:
"Oh...such a cute baby butt. I should get copy's of that."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tim interjected.
"Bruce hacks into your files from time to time, and I don't think photos of little half-naked kids would do you much good. I certainly don't assume he's ever looked into this album."
"Wait, he's doing what?!"
Damian continued to look at the various photos, simply ignoring the others. Dick as a baby in his mother's arms, his grandma, his over-proud father. It fascinated him to see how it seemed it was supposed to be and how overjoyed his parents looked together. All of this was a new insight for him into things he normally didn't concern himself with, but... secretly always wished he had with his own parents.
He scrolled on to a scene where the same baby was sitting on a dining chair with a brownish squishy substance smeared all over him from top to bottom. Damian heard a brief click of a cell phone camera and Jason cracking next to him:
"Hahaha, fuck Bruce! I just need a copy of that!"
Tim slapped that idiot on the back of his head and admonished:
"Jason, put the phone away or I'll make it go away!"
"Alright, alright..." he replied annoyed.
They went on page after page, while Tim explained the story behind each photo. There were many happy scenes, like Dick saying his first words, taking his first steps, swinging happily under an old oak tree. His grandmother playing the accordion at a party and everyone dancing to it, and especially how his parents were always there to support and cheer up their son. His family was like Dick himself. They shone brighter than anyone else and Jason's initial joking gradually disappeared and eventually gave way to a sadness he had known all his life.
He was shown only once more why he had envied Dick even before his time with Bruce. He had never known such love from his own parents, but had always wished for it. Every photo, every scene, every smile stirred up old pains. It was simply the family he had always wanted but never had. He himself didn't have even one photo of himself before he came to Bruce. Up till now, that had never really bothered him. Yet...it did now.
Damian felt the same way, but more because Dick's parents got along so well and showed their son all their pride in every single picture. Damian himself was already happy if his parents had a meeting that didn't end in a fight and gave him at least a little recognition. He had also gained his father's recognition in the end only because of Dick, but not for his own sake.
They had just reached the point where Dick's grandma had died and his family had rejoined the circus, when Jason rose and went to the couch to watch TV. It just bugged him how old feelings were boiling up again that he had long wanted to leave behind, whereas Damian was still very interested in the others live. *6
So Tim went through the time in the circus with him and Dick. The latter looking more and more bored and at some point just started imitating different materials with his feathers, so the teenager more likely told Damian about all the photos than Dick himself. In fact, both Tim and Jason were surprised that the boy listened so quietly and only asked questions now and then. After all, he wasn't exactly on peaceful terms with Tim.
Finally they arrived at the last page, which showed a photo of the entire circus crew and directly in the middle of them, the overjoyed Dick on a large elephant, which wuzzed him with its trunk through the black hair. It wasn't the first picture of Dick being so intimate with this elephant and Damian addressed this right away, pointing to the trunked animal:
"Is there a reason there are so many pictures with this elephant?"
Tim smiled a little as he related:
"That's Zitka. Dick once told me that she was his best animal friend in the circus and always looked out for him. If you ask me, I think it kind of fits him. He must have been very sad to leave her and everyone else behind in the circus. "*7
Damian's gaze lingered on the picture for a moment. He himself could not imagine having to give up Titus or his other pets. In that aspect, he did not envy Dick in any way.
Tim turned the book again to show Dick the picture:
"Do you recognize any of these circus people?"
But Dick only grumbled to himself, clearly signaling that he had no desire to see any more of this book.
The teenager let himself sink back in disappointment and sighed heavily:
"Neither. So that was all I had left of Dick. Doesn't seem like he remembered anything. But maybe that was due to his lack of receptivity. I'd say we'll just leave the stuff here so he can take another look at things himself, too."
Tim rose and went to the kitchen to brew himself some coffee, while Jason asked:
"So what now? Wait and drink tea? ...or coffee I assume..."
The cup was already placed under the machine when he answered:
"More or less. We have no choice but to research and keep trying with the Dicks belongings."
"Not to push, but we really don't have much time. Bruce is looking for us, the Justice League might be too, and nobody knows where that one fat demon came from or went to. Maybe he's still hunting us, too!"
Tim calmly took the first sip of his coffee:
"What do you want me to say Jason? That I'm the holy grail and can make a cure for everything? Spoiler, I can't. I think the most logical step would be to reconcile with Bruce and find a solution together without pressure. But..."
He felt Damian stabbing him with glances:
"...I don't think that's an option for now."
Jason only groaned annoyed, while he switched through the TV program:
"Oh, this sucks. Why does everything always have to be so complicated? And as far as Bruce is concerned, he can kiss my ass at this point. Let him rub one out on his Batman mask in his cave. For my part, I'm gone as soon as it turns in his direction. But as far as I'm concerned, you're welcome to do it. At least then I'll have my peace and quiet again, and I can be far away from that lobster-eating bat-king-of-jerks to do my own..."
"Wait, go back for a second!"
Harshly, Jason was interrupted by Tim, repeating himself in confusion:
"To the part about the lobster-eating bat-king-of-jerks, or even further?"
"Oh nonsense, not your crap. The TV, switch two channels back!"
Astonished, the Outlaw did as Tim had asked, and they were all now staring at a colorful Haly's Circus commercial that was already half over. It ended with the exclamation:
"Now in Bludhaven." and a slight grin formed on Tim's face:
"Maybe I just got an idea after all."
Notes:
*1 Jason actually loves Barbara. It even went so far at one point as to him putting a letter on her apartment door saying he would give up Red Hood and everything else to be whatever she wanted for her. Be it Jason Todd or anyone else. If she would just give him a chance, he would spend the rest of his life trying to make her happy. And if she didn't think he was worth that one chance, she should just throw the letter away and he would never say a word about it again. (Comic: Three Jokers)
Yaaaaa... Unfortunately, Jason bought the cheap Tape, so the letter came off the door, the janitor threw it away, and Barbara never got to see it in the end.
Jason really never has any luck in life, though. (ಥ _ ಥ)
*2. Yep, Tim once kicked Jason in his privates and did it on purpose. In his defense, this was before the New 52 and Jason was kind of a big asshole back then. (Teen Titans #47)
*3 Quick comic summary: Bruce and Damian never got along in the beginning. Damian because he just knew his mother's way/viewed the other Robins as competition to be taken out and Bruce because he didn't know exactly how to deal with him. After an incident with the Justice League, Bruce then supposedly died and the Battle for the Cowl event began, which was to determine who would be the next Batman. Dick was supposed to be Batman, but refused to do so, until Jason saw himself as the new Batman and shot down everything like he would always do. Also first Damian and later Tim (both even almost killed). With Damian's near death, Dick realized that he had a responsibility to him above all else and could no longer act selfishly. He went off and beat the crap out of Jason and became the new Batman with Damian as his Robin.
*4 Jason has often taken on the identities of other heroes. (Nightwing, Red Hood, Batman, in another universe he used to be a priest...) That's why I think he often asked himself these questions, as he has trouble finding his place.
*5 Dick's playlist from one of the comics: [link href=" r/DCcomics/comments/3t9tgf/dick_grayson_is_a_fan_of_opm_original_pilipino/"] r/DCcomics/comments/3t9tgf/dick_grayson_is_a_fan_of_opm_original_pilipino/[/link]
I would go insane too. XD
*6
That whole time before the circus and Dick's grandma are made up by me. There is nothing canon about it, only that his family on his mother's side is from Romania and belongs to the Roma (Gypsies). His father is American.
*7 Zitka is again canon, but can also have different names depending on the universe.