Disclaimer: not mine

Someone gets a reality check, hopefully it'll sink in.

Chapter 9

Moving was easy with his powers, not that he had a lot to take anyway. The furniture had come with the place so all he had was his personal belongings. All of which fit in two duffle bags and a large backpack. The artwork was rolled up into a poster tube that he stuck through the handles of the lighter duffle. The other, he simply shoved into his chest for easy storage, the bag vanishing into his body. He put his backpack on and slung the duffle bag over his shoulder before heading downstairs, leaving his keys in the mailbox. It was a long walk to Tim's but he didn't mind.

He'd been reluctant to accept the money needed to break his lease early, but Tim's argument had made sense. Why pay for a place he wasn't using, especially when another student could use the cheap accommodation? So, he'd given in and let Tim pay, seeing the glimmer of happiness in his eyes had just made Danny feel better about it. Tim hadn't been that happy since the Joker confrontation.

Since the Joker's death had been announced Gotham was…lighter. Crime had dropped a bit even which was nice. It made the streets a little safer for the everyday citizen, which was good, but sooner or later one of the other Rogues would make a move to take his place.

Danny made it back to Tim's without issue, nodding to the lady at the desk before heading up. Tim had made sure he was added to the apartment and given him his own keys a few days ago so Danny pressed the Penthouse button in the elevator, letting it scan his fingerprint, and it headed up.

It felt a bit strange to think the place was now his home too, but Tim was right, he'd be a lot safer there if anyone tracked him to Gotham. And he needed to stay with Tim, he'd been through so much lately…having support so close was helping, Danny could see it. He would never leave Tim to try and deal with all of that on his own. He'd just have to adjust to living the luxury lifestyle.

Tim had already made space for his things in the bedroom and given him an area to use as an office so unpacking was pretty easy. He didn't have a lot beyond clothes and supplies for school after all. He hadn't seen the point after having to make a new identity, always worried he'd have to run and leave it all behind.

Tucker's latest update was concerning. While the idea that he wasn't the last halfa was a little comforting, the idea that Vlad had faked his death and made himself his own heir was worrying. What was the Froot Loop up to? And making Danny his heir, again? Ugh. Though he hadn't come after him, which was nice, unless of course he was planning something? Or leaving him alone because of where he was? Gotham was a very strange city, it accepted him but would it accept Vlad?

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Dick smiled at the man at the desk. He'd considered approaching Tim at WE but didn't want to corner him somewhere they had to watch everything they said, better to approach him somewhere Tim would feel safe which meant home. "Hi, I'm Dick Grayson, I'm here to visit my brother, Tim Drake."

"One moment…you aren't on the visitors list Mr Grayson. I'll have to call up and see if Mr Drake is home."

Dick just nodded, knowing he wouldn't get up there without Tim's permission. He could have come tonight as Nightwing, there was no one to stop him landing on the balcony but it didn't feel right. He stepped away from the desk so as not to eavesdrop, scared that Tim would turn him away. He knew Tim was back at work but he wasn't back on patrol, though he seemed to be doing casework from home since they'd all received information from him.

"Good afternoon, Mr Nightingale," the doorman greeted someone, and Dick glanced back, blinking in surprise as he took in rather familiar features but no, that wasn't Tim. Too tall and broader than his little brother, still the resemblance to him and most of the Wayne brood was interesting.

"Thanks Nick," the guy answered.

"Oh, Mr Nightingale!" the receptionist called and the younger man approached, a grocery bag in hand. "Is Mr Drake home? I called up but there's no answer."

What? How would this guy know if Tim was home or not? He was sure Tim's place was the only one on that floor.

"He should be," and now the guy was frowning in concern, eyes flicking to Dick.

"This is Dick Grayson, he wanted to visit."

"Ah, I'll head up and see if Tim wants that. Thanks Mary." And he was in the elevator before Dick could say anything.

"If you'd like to take a seat?" she offered, and Dick moved to the couch in the foyer, mind filled with questions.

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Danny almost went through the roof of the elevator to get upstairs faster, worried that Tim hadn't answered. He quickly opened the door and stepped inside, putting the bag down. "Tim?" he called. "I'm home," and it still felt weird saying that, but a good weird. "Tim?"

He quickly checked the lower level before flying up the stairs, relaxing as he heard the water running, opening the master ensuite door to see Tim's silhouette behind the glass. "Hey," he called, and Tim startled slightly before he opened the door, hair dripping water in his face.

"Hey, you're home early?"

"Nope. Mary called up, your brother Dick is downstairs, wants to visit," he explained, hiding his worry. Tim was still losing track of time more than he'd like, spacing out at odd moments. It was why he wasn't allowed on patrols yet, too dangerous.

"Oh. Um…" Tim hesitated.

Danny took a wet hand in his. "Your choice Polaris, she can send him away if you don't want to see him."

"I…he doesn't know but he helped look for me. But there was a lot going on with the Titans and after I never said anything."

"You're worried he's going to push?"

Tim shrugged.

"Even if he does, you don't have to tell him anything," Danny promised.

"Yeah, you're right. Tell her to let him up. I'll be out in a few minutes."

Danny nodded and then leant in for a quick kiss, going intangible right after to let the water drop off, making Tim chuckle. He made the call and then went to wait for their visitor. He wasn't sure what he thought of Dick Grayson, Nightwing, the first Robin. He'd been one of the first sidekicks, had paved the way for others, had helped save the world and all that stuff. But…he'd also abandoned Tim when he needed him, had caused the other heroes to turn their back son him and Tim had nearly died. He'd ripped away what little Tim had left after so many people had died and given it to some brat that had tried to kill him. And from what he'd heard, Dick favoured Damian despite the fact he'd abandoned Tim on the night that Tim would have died if he hadn't crashed through Danny's window. He really didn't want to meet Damian Wayne, ever, it'd be hard not to do something in payback for all the harm he'd caused. Harm he'd never apologised or shown remorse for.

A knock sounded and Danny opened the door, seeing Dick's surprise at his presence. "Tim was in the shower; he's just getting dressed."

"Right, thanks. Who are you?" Dick asked as he stepped inside.

"Danny Nightingale."

"He's my boyfriend and he lives here too Dick. He knows all about the nightlife, he found out the night Damian ditched me since I crashed through his window as Red Robin, almost dead," Tim answered as he walked down the stairs, hair damp but fully dressed in casual clothes for a night in.

"Boyfriend?" Dick blinked, looking between them. "I, uh, didn't know you were dating. Congratulations."

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How could he have not known that Timmy had a boyfriend? And a serious one if they were living together. He didn't say anything about the jibe at Damian, he knew it had to have been an accident. The kid didn't mean the things he said, he just didn't know how to talk to people and he felt threatened by Tim. He wouldn't have left Tim alone to face any of the Rogues though.

"Thanks," Tim's tone had gone a bit flat. "Want something to drink?"

"Anything's fine," he shrugged, and Tim waved at the couches so he headed over and sat.

Tim went into the kitchen, grabbing a pitcher from the fridge while Danny grabbed glasses. They moved so easily together in the kitchen; it looked so natural. Danny leant in to say something too softly for Dick to hear and Tim shook his head but then moved and pressed a kiss to the other's cheek. Adorable. If he knew Danny had offered to chuck him off the balcony, he probably wouldn't think that.

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Tim sat opposite his brother, Danny lounging beside him. He could feel Danny's unhappiness with Dick's presence and wondered if he was picking up anything empathically from Dick. That was one ability that had to suck in a city but Danny had it pretty much under control thankfully. He reached for Danny's hand, twining their fingers together, no point hiding since he'd told Dick immediately about their relationship. He'd known Dick wouldn't say anything since he'd dated both male and female teammates in the past.

He knew Danny didn't like that Dick had ignored Tim's words about how he'd found out Tim was Red Robin but he'd expected it. Dick had massive blinders on when it came to Damian but at least Bruce was seeing more these days.

"You could have just called Dick, I'm fine. Back at WE after all."

"But not patrol," Dick pointed out, looking him over.

"I've been focused on case work, aren't you always telling me to take a break?" he shot back.

"Tim…"

"You've barely shown any interest in me outside forcing me and Damian to interact, which never ends well. So why the sudden attention now?"

"That's not true," he denied.

"Isn't it? Seriously, when was the last time we did anything together, just the two of us? Three days before Damian was dropped off at the manor. You ditched me on my birthday for him, not warning or explanation, nothing. Face it, you're always going to choose him over me. You haven't been my brother in years Dick, it's too late to fix that. We can work together but other than that… just go," Tim sighed tiredly, energy draining along with his anger.

He hadn't meant to confront him like that, more proof he wasn't back to normal yet.

"Timmy…" Dick whispered.

"He asked you to leave," Danny stated firmly, sitting up, ready to intervene if Dick pushed.

Dick hesitated, staring at him, before slowly standing to leave the apartment. As soon as the door shut, Tim slumped back.

"I've got you," Danny promised, holding him gently.

"I didn't mean to say all that," Tim whispered.

"But did you mean the words?"

He had to nod, because he had meant them. Dick had hurt him so much over the last few years and he never saw what he was doing. "Dick seems to think that ignoring issues will make them go away, but it doesn't work like that. He can't just suddenly try and act like my big brother and expect…"

"No, he can't. If he apologised and honestly tried to do better?"

"Then it'd be different," Tim admitted. But would Dick ever do that?

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Tucker read Danny's messages, smiling at the news he'd moved in with someone. Good. He deserved to be happy. And Lois Lane's article had really stirred things up, maybe soon he'd be safe from the GIW and they could meet up. He really wanted to meet this person; Danny didn't dare name them while the stupid government was a threat.

Sadly, he'd tracked several purchases that could only mean one thing…Vlad was building a new portal. It could be for a harmless reason, like the guy needed access to ectoplasm because wherever he was living didn't have enough, but Tucker seriously doubted it. If he wanted access to the Infinite Realms then it couldn't mean anything good.

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Jason listened to Dick for all of five minutes before growling at him to shut up. "Just because Tim told you the hard truth and you don't like it, doesn't make it any less true. You may never have physically hurt him like I did, but emotionally and psychologically you've done just as much if not more damage to the kid. You're lucky he's a lot calmer than me, I'd have cut you off, shot you, years ago if you'd treated me like you do him."

"What?" Dick stared at him in shock.

"And he's right, ever since the brat came, he's all you care about. All you want to see is perfect Damian. Well, newsflash Dickie, he's not perfect. He's actually cruel, intentionally so, especially when it comes to Tim. And since he was never punished for his words or actions, he's had no reason to stop, he's just gotten sneakier cause he knows better than to let me or Cass catch him at it. Why do you think Cass never moved back to the manor either? She could take Damian in her sleep, but she shouldn't have to, not in her own home. Tim's good but he's not Cass' level, he was in genuine danger there but no one cared. Bruce at least seems to finally be seeing the truth since he benched the demon after that mess with Freeze, but more needs to be done."

"Did you know Tim's dating?" Nice way to change the subject.

"Oh yeah, I like Danny. He's fiercely protective of Tim without smothering him. I want to get him on the mats see what he can do because he has to have had training of some kind. Dating a Wayne, there'll be a kidnapping attempt eventually after all. Don't you dare tell anyone, it's Tim's news to share with who he decides. B knows, Babs probably does too. Don't you breathe a word to Damian," he warned.

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Dick absently stirred his soup, listening to Damian as he described something Titus had gotten up to on his walk. He was still reeling from his visits to Tim and Jason. Tim had kicked him out and Jason had practically yelled at him before throwing him out in the end. Why couldn't they see that Damian didn't mean the things he said, that he'd grown so much since his arrival, especially since becoming Robin?

He glanced up to see Bruce frowning. What had he missed?

"No, Damian," Bruce's voice was calm but firm, and Damian's eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise. "Tim will return to patrol when he wants to. He's taking time to catch up on case work since he has a business trip coming up."

He did? Dick didn't know that, then again…he usually found out through his absence on patrol. Had he really fallen that out of touch with him?

"But Father,"

"No Damian. Besides, I have no right to tell Tim what he can or can't do as Red Robin. Just like I don't interfere with Jason's work as Hood."

Dick swallowed, that was as good as declaring Tim was an independent vigilante with only a vague link them. Which…anyone outside the family would probably assume anyway since he wore nothing on his uniform to declare he was a bat; he didn't even use their weapons anymore. He had his bō and the discs he used instead of the birdarangs. At least Hood had a bat on his uniform.

"Tim is a member of this family and he will always be my son. It's past time that you accepted that. I found the attempts you've made over the years to have him removed from his position with the company as well. You are a minor and will be for years yet, you have no right to try and interfere like that."

He remembered, after Ra's had kicked Tim out of the window and Dick had brought him to the Cave to recover, when Damian had said he was filing to have Tim removed, he'd thought the kid was joking. Damian was far too young to take over and there'd been no one else in the family able to do it till they got Bruce back. Tim had been born into Gotham society, had grown up being groomed to run Drake Industries, he was the obvious choice among them to take over WE.

That day, Tim had said he'd known Dick would catch him because they were brothers. Had…had he lied? Tim was too good at lying, he could even get away with lying to Bruce. It was kind of scary.

Was it possible…was Jason right?

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Tim pushed and Danny lay back on the bed, watching him curiously. He knew Danny was a lot stronger than him, even in human form, could easily stop him if he did something he didn't like or want and it helped sooth the lingering anxiety. Even if somehow, he slipped and JJ came back, Danny would be able to restrain him.

He leant over his boyfriend and gently touched his skin, tracing scars and just exploring. They still had their pants on, Tim wasn't anywhere near ready for sex or anything, not after his sort of breakdown after the Joker. But he felt safe with Danny. If he didn't, Danny never would have been able to get him from the Nest to the apartment with a shower in between without Tim snapping out of his shock to struggle. They'd showered together since, it felt really nice to have Danny wash his hair and give a scalp massage. They'd seen each other's scars, there was no reason to be body shy. Besides, Danny had stripped and redressed him when he was injured, he'd already seen it all. But the pants were there as a reminder in case they got carried away.

They kissed, soft and slow, just enjoying the peaceful time together.

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Danny stood on a rooftop with Red Robin, dressed in black and with a simple domino on, feeling a bit silly. The clothing was armoured for safety even! "Why did I agree to this?" he sighed, and Tim grinned at him, something Danny was happy to see. And probably why he had said yes.

"It's not like a fall will kill you," Tim pointed out.

"True," he agreed, wrapping his arms around Tim securely. If anything went wrong, he could easily fly or go intangible to keep them both safe.

Tim had admitted to being nervous about going back on patrol alone but with Jason on a mission off world and Cass still in Hong Kong, he'd only really feel safe with Bruce and he'd been working hard with Robin lately. It had shocked Tim to see the man finally trying to curb his son's behaviour, but he was also happy about it. Danny had commented offhandedly that if not for the GIW, he could go with him as Phantom. The next thing he knew, Tim was giving him clothing and dragging him onto a rooftop to learn how to fly like a bat or bird.

It wasn't like Danny had an issue with heights or anything, but trusting a thin wire to hold them up? "Okay, let's go," he said, and Tim grinned, firing the grapple gun and then they were airborne.

They were going together to let Danny get a feel for what it was like before Tim would let him try. Apparently, training usually started indoors with lots of crash mats but since Danny wouldn't fall if anything went wrong, they were skipping that step.

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She looked at the footage and then followed the two figures from camera to camera. That was interesting. Red Robin was back on the rooftops but didn't seem to be actually patrolling, no, he was coaching the black clad figure beside him. Black hair, basic domino…it had to be Danny Nightingale. Watching the way he moved, he'd kept up the martial arts training his mother had started obviously.

And Tim might not be thinking of them working as partners. He might have simply wanted to get back out but not felt ready to go alone. And learning to use a grapple gun could be a very useful skill for someone dating and living with one of them. If anything ever happened at the apartment, it'd give him another exit at least.

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Bruce paused to listen to the two cops below. One of them was claiming to have seen Red Robin out with someone new, someone dressed in basic black clothing rather than a normal uniform, but with a domino mask and grapple gun. That was interesting. And there was only one person it could be. Was Danny interested in joining Tim as a vigilante or was it something else? Red Robin hadn't been patrolling, training a partner could explain that beyond simply catching up on case work. That excuse had worn thin once he was back from the week in London.

He'd gone alone which had surprised Bruce, but Danny was a student and he now had two big absences due to Tim. Asking him to go probably would have made Tim feel guilty, after all, Danny was on scholarship. At least the semester was almost over, he could go with Tim on the Venice trip if he wanted. Personally, he thought it would be good for them if he did go. Let them just be two teenagers in love in a foreign city where Tim was less likely to be recognised. Almost two months after the Joker's death, Tim was doing a lot better, but there were still occasions when he would spot Tim and he could tell it was still haunting him.

He'd see if Tim wanted to patrol with him in a few days, let Dick handle Damian for the night. He'd ask Jason but he'd like his youngest back in one piece and Jason would not put up with any of Damian's behaviour…just like he should have done more to correct it earlier. And if Danny did want to be a vigilante, he'd offer to help train him. He'd be starting older than the rest, but he had previous martial arts training and was obviously fit, it wouldn't be too hard to get him up to their standards if he was already learning to fly.

TBC…

Which Batman villain should try and cause trouble next? Someone easy for me to research please.