"OK, so are we on board that none of us is responsible for this?" Kory asks, standing with Gar, Rachel and Tai in the door to the room they put their superpowered enemies whose heads are splattered over the walls after Dick left to go talk to the boss of the guys chasing Rachel.
"What are you looking at me for? I was keeping watch on the roof." Tai says, seeing his teenaged comrades stare at him.
"It looks like their heads exploded, maybe that was what they meant when they talked about being punished?" Rachel says, leaving the room and heads over to hers with the rest following her.
"I guess that's probably what happened." Kory agrees.
"Now what? They were our only lead to what's going on, right?" Garfield asks sitting down in a chair in the room while Rachel and Kory sit down on the bed with Tai standing at the window, looking outside with his body half turned to the group.
"Dick will find something." Rachel says confident in the former Robin.
"Why do you trust him? Out of all of us he bailed on this, on you the most." Tai grumbles, looking at Rachel.
"What are you talking about?" Rachel asks annoyed.
"He left you in a holding cell where you were abducted. He tried to leave you with his friends where he also lost you. And now he fails to keep watch. For someone supposed to be the famous Robin it's all sloppy work. Makes me wonder if he plays an angle." Tai explains.
"He's not. He's only trying to help me. I know it, because I could see into his mind." Rachel tells Tai with a stern look.
"Fine, if you say so." Tai sighs in acceptance and turns back to the window.
"Come on guys we're supposed to be coming together as a team, not distrust each other, OK?" Kory reminds the group, noticing the heavy atmosphere.
"He started it." Rachel says all but glaring at Tai.
"Whatever. I'll keep watch on the roof." Tai informs them and leaves.
"You shouldn't be so hard on him." Kory tells Rachel.
"Why not?" Rachel asks surprised.
"Because he's only so overprotective because he cares about you." Garfield tells her.
"And he's not wrong. If Dick had been on guard like Tai currently is, we could have left before those bozos found us." Kory adds.
"What is his story anyways? I heard that you only remember wanting to find Rachel and Dick is the cop she came to for help. How did Tai get mixed up in this?" Garfield asks the two girls in the room.
"He followed you from your school right?" Kory asks Rachel.
"Yeah. He went to check on me when no one knew why I was missing in school and found my mom dead." Rachel says, remembering her mother sullenly.
"But going towards potential danger isn't exactly normal is it? And the way he acts it's as if he's like Dick." Garfield says.
"I don't know, he never told me. And I didn't know him well at school, just a passing hello or help when someone was bullying me for my hair color." Rachel tells them.
"Well, then you might want to ask him why he is acting like this." Kory suggests, with Garfield nodding in agreement.
"Fine." Rachel says and jumps off the bed, following Tai to the roof.
"You should be inside." Tai tells Rachel without turning around to her, sitting cross legged on the edge of the roof overlooking the parking lot and its entry.
"I need to talk to you." Rachel tells him, sitting down next to him, her legs dangling over the roof's edge.
"About?" Tai asks.
"Before. Why did you follow me and how do you know to fight like that?" She asks.
"I followed you because I like you and you were in trouble. And as for how I know to do what I do... that's a longer story." Tai answers.
"We have time, so tell me." Rachel requests.
"Alright. Well when I was a kid, after my parents died my grandpa took me in and under him I learned some Martial arts basics and swordplay." Tai starts to tell her.
"Then about 2 years ago my grandfather was killed in a robbery and I almost died as well. What few really know however is that I awoke my ability and one of my ancestors took control over my body and killed the 8 attackers. I woke up in the hospital days later and remembered killing them but it's like I was watching someone else do it. Anyways 2 months or so after I got out of the hospital and recovered my strength I saw you getting bullied by that one kid... What was his name? Jackson? I'm not sure anyways I helped you and it felt good... right somehow. So I hung out at a more dangerous neighborhood at night and beat up a few guys when they tried to rob someone. After getting stabbed one night however I realized that it wasn't enough. I needed to be better. Better protected. A better protector and a better fighter.
So I trained and for about a year now I have been a vigilante, punishing the criminals and protecting normal people." Tai explains, looking at Rachel the whole time.
"So you were the unnamed guy running around our town." Rachel says in realization, having heard about him on the news in the past.
"Yes. I didn't see the point of a name because I didn't do it to be famous, just to get some justice for the little man." Tai answers.
"Looks like I'm not the only one with a troubled past." Rachel sighs, putting her hand on his knee gently.
"Want to talk about yours?" Tai asks, nervously putting his larger hand on top of hers.
"Not much to talk about honestly. I have had nightmares for as long as I can remember and it took me long to realize that some of them are visions. Like the night before my mom was killed I had a vision about Dick. That's how I knew I can trust him. It's like we were supposed to meet." Rachel informs Tai.
"I understand. So that's why you trust him." Tai says in realization.
"Did you have a vision about the rest of us? Me?" Tai asks.
"Not the same way. I saw some images of your vigilantism in the car when I... kicked you out. Sorry about that by the way." Rachel answers honestly.
"So that's why you were scared." Tai says in realization.
"Sorry." She apologizes again.
"No. It's OK. I can understand that." Tai tells her, squeezing her hand carefully.
"You say you understand but you look angry." Rachel tells him with a sigh.
"I'm not angry. I'm disappointed that it's only Dick who has your complete trust. I wish that were me. I guess I'm just not as selfless as I thought I was." Tai admits, releasing her hand and turns back to look over the parking lot.
"Wanting people to accept you. If that's selfish, then I am the most selfish person on the planet." Rachel says quietly.
"I will always accept you for who you are." Tai tells Rachel, putting an arm around her nervously.
"Thank you." Rachel replies, leaning her head against his shoulder and relaxing there until Kory interrupts the calm moment.
"Sorry to interrupt but we have to head out. Dick called with a new hideout situation." Kory informs them, looking up onto the roof from the ladder leading to it before heading back down.
"Ahem. We should go." Rachel says, Tai removing his arm from around her embarrassed.
"Right. Let's get out of here." Tai agrees, getting up and heading to the ladder with her.
A few minutes later the group of Kory, Tai, Gar and Rachel are sitting in the van heading to the place Dick told Kory to meet.
"Where are we going anyway, Kory?" Garfield asks, lazing in the backseat next to Tai.
"Dick didn't say really. He just gave me an address which according to the gps is 4 hours away." Kory answers.
"Do you think we're going to the batcave?" Garfield asks giddily.
"Doubt it." Tai replies calmly.
"You really think Batman has a cave as a hideout? He has so many gadgets I imagine his hideout is a high tech lab. What do you think Tai?" Rachel says relaxing in her seat.
"I don't know, maybe like a clock tower or something? It would be beneficial for him so he can glide across Gotham." Tai guesses shrugging his shoulders.
"He doesn't need to glide. He has a jet and the most amazing car in the world ever." Gar says almost drooling while thinking about Batman's vehicles.
"What do you think Kory?" Rachel asks the woman.
"I don't know. I just want to know what he's packing under his suit." Kory answers, making Rachel and Gar go "ewww."
"Either way. Did Dick say something about a plan for when we meet up with him?" Tai asks Kory.
"No but he apparently captured one of the higher ups of this organization." Kory replies.
"Alright, good." Tai says, nodding his head.