Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 2

Tim felt…lighter, since talking with Bruce, like there was a load off his shoulders. Knowing that he would back him up when his dating life became public was a massive relief. No matter how careful they were, it would eventually. People like Vale were way too interested in them, even though he'd thrown her off her theory on them being the Bats after being publicly shot.

Getting ready for patrol even felt better which was just silly but soon enough he was suited up and off across the rooftops. He spotted movement at one point, glancing over to see Jason on his own patrol of the Alley. His home was just inside the boundary but Jason had never said anything about it and Tim was careful with his patrol route, never doing so on Jason's side of the line. They'd even shared intel a few times though they only worked together when the whole group was called in for something.

He passed by Bernard's apartment after a while, pausing to look inside, seeing him on the couch, the tv illuminating his face on and off. And then Ber looked up, surely, he couldn't see him in the darkness but then he was up and moving to the window, opening it.

"Red Robin?" he called softly and Tim hesitated, it was stupid…but he fired his grapple, landing lightly on the windowsill, holding on tight.

"Hi," he greeted lamely, and Bernard grinned.

"Hi. Everything okay?"

"Uh…yeah, sorry. I was just pausing and looked over, saw you. So…you're okay, after eveytthing a few months back?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Even have a boyfriend. Tim Drake agreed to go on a real date after our last one was interrupted. He's great!" Bernard was grinning at him, and Tim grinned back.

"Good, I'm glad. Told you, you'd get to tell him." It never got any less strange to talk about himself in the third person.

"Slow night for crime?" Bernard asked, and Tim chuckled.

"So far, makes a nice change."

"I bet. That doesn't look comfortable, wanna come in or do you need to keep going?"

"Inviting a Vigilante in, isn't that dangerous?" Tim couldn't help teasing, and Ber smiled at him.

"Considering you saved me, nope."

Tim hesitated, tempted but then his hand flew to his comm as it came on, pressing a finger to his lips and Bernard nodded. "Red Robin here," he answered, listening to the report. "Understood. ETA 5 minutes." He removed his hand and looked at Bernard. "Lock your door and windows."

"Rogue?" Ber asked, and Tim nodded.

"You have a gas mask?" he did, right? Bernard nodded, thankfully. "Scarecrow." He warned and then he leapt from the window, firing his grapple.

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Bernard watched Tim leave, worried for him. He shut the window, locking it. He grabbed his gas mask right as the alarm sounded, slipping it on. He'd never been hit by fear gas and he didn't want to know how he'd react to it. Maybe it wouldn't affect it and maybe it'd send him into a frenzy, he was not eager to find out. He turned the tv on to keep an eye on things. He grinned as he spotted the flash of red and black, Tim.

He'd been surprised when he'd seen Tim across the way, as far as he knew, Tim never stopped. Sure, he'd seen him swing by though he doubted a full human would be able to tell which bat it was, but Tim had never just sat and stared. And then the news showed a fight from above, the camera crew well out of gas range which was smart. He frowned as he heard screams nearby, going to the window and growling in anger at the sight of 'fog' flowing down the street. Fear gas. He glanced back at the screen, watching the fight, worried for all of them but mostly Tim.

And then he watched in horror as Red Robin went down, the Scarecrow obviously laughing as he plunged a needle into his neck. No! He snarled, feeling his fangs dig into his lip under the gas mask, knew his eyes were no longer brown, claws digging into his palms. He wanted to run to the fight, to pull Tim away, even as the other bats fought to get to Tim who was staggering to his feet, stumbling around.

What could he do? He couldn't go there, risk being seen, questions being asked…could he? He knew a full vampire could, but he didn't know…and he'd only compelled Tim the once, lightly, and not for long. But he had to try. He sat down and breathed deeply, reaching for Tim.

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Bruce fought to get to Tim, his son. Who knew what strain of the toxin was in that needle, the dosage… Tim staggered to his feet as if drunk, hand pressed to his neck. It hadn't fully kicked in then. "Red Robin, can you hear me?" he called over the comm.

"B?" Tim's voice was small, unsure, slurred.

"I'm here son, you need to get to the Batmobile. You've been injected with fear toxin, you don't have long before it takes full effect," he explained as quickly as possible.

"B…I…no…" Tim's breathing was picking up.

"Can anyone get to Red Robin?" he called to the others.

"Trying!" Dick called.

"Sorry," Batgirl panted. "Too many affected civilians…ouch, come on!"

"Tt."

"Tim, you need to get to the Batmobile," he murmured too softly for the fear affected civilians or the goons to overhear.

"No, no, no, no…. Dad please…not dead…"

And then to Bruce's horror he realised he couldn't see Tim anywhere. "Oracle, track Red Robin!"

"On it."

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Bernard saw Tim staggering in the street below his window and opened it, dropping down, knowing no one would see, either effected by the gas or hiding. "It's okay, you're safe, I'm here," he murmured as he approached.

"Please dad…please come back…"

"Shh," Bernard reached out to cup Tim's face, feeling him tense. "It's okay Red, look at me, whatever you're seeing isn't real." He stared into the whiteouts of Tim's mask; it made it harder but he felt Tim relax a little. "Come on, let's get you safe."

"Bbb…Ber?" he slurred.

"Right here, you'll be safer in my apartment till someone comes with the antidote. Trust me," he murmured, and Tim smiled slightly even though Bernard could hear his heart racing. "That's it, we're going inside."

"He's here," Tim whimpered, glancing to the side.

"There's no one there, I promise. Just look at me, I'll tell you if there's any bad guys. You've been hit with fear gas. The bats will come to help you."

Compelling Tim through the mask and the fear toxin was hard, but Tim trusted him. He held Tim's hands firmly but gently, leading him forward. Tim was shaking with fear, his pulse racing, but he let Bernard pull him forward.

Getting him upstairs felt like it took forever but finally they were inside the apartment. "Doors and windows are locked RR, there's no one here but you and me," he promised.

"Ca…can't…"

"Okay, it's okay," he led Tim to the corner where a chair was. "Sit here yeah? The corner means no one can sneak up on you."

Tim was whimpering now and it hurt to hear. He grabbed the blanket off his bed and came back, gently wrapping it around Tim, not too tight though but he was shivering.

"Do you carry antidote?" he asked but Tim didn't answer, slightly rocking himself, staring into space. "Red?" he took his hand and squeezed but there was no response, he was lost to whatever hallucinations the toxin was forcing on him.

Bernard backed off, knowing a bat would show up soon, and not wanting to spook Tim into lashing out. Sure enough, he soon heard a grapple. He looked over and there was Nightwing. He went and opened the window to let him in. "He's in the corner. He was shivering so I managed to get him to accept a blanket. He was sort of responsive at first, recognised me, but now he's just whimpering and staring."

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Dick swung quickly; Tim hadn't gotten far thankfully. The gas had dispersed from the air too which meant even if his rebreather was broken, he wouldn't be getting a continual dose. And his tracker was now still, inside an apartment building. If someone had hurt him… he landed on a window and went to check only for a blond about Tim's age to open the window.

"He's in the corner. He was shivering so I managed to get him to accept a blanket. He was sort of responsive at first, recognised me, but now he's just whimpering and staring," the teen explained, letting him in.

Nightwing glanced around to find a normal apartment and…there! Tim was curled in a chair, a comfy blanket covering him. Dick could tell he was still shivering, now he could hear his whimpering as well. "He recognised you?" he glanced at the teen who nodded.

"He saved me from a cult a while back. I saw him stumbling around on the street, saw him get dosed on the news. Figured it was worth a shot to try and get him inside."

"Has he said anything?"

"Not much. He asked his dad to come back? Said someone was coming. He was trying to say something else but he just kind of shut down instead."

"He could have attacked you," Dick chided, and the guy shrugged.

"I kept my distance till he recognised me. He wasn't being violent or anything."

Dick moved towards Tim, the whimpers tearing at his heart. Tim's hair was longer than he remembered, the last of the baby fat gone from his face. When was the last time he'd been so close to the kid? "Hey kiddo, can you hear me?"

"No, no, no…." Tim was shaking even worse now, pushing himself back in the chair.

"It's okay, you're safe."

"NO!" Tim screamed, lashing out, the blanket slowing the kick thankfully. "No…" his head snapped around, searching… "Ber?" Tim mumbled, looking at the other teen.

"Red Robin?" the boy asked.

"Not dead? No…too late…"

"No, you were in time, you saved me," the kid, Ber?, managed to keep his voice steady. "Remember? We beat the Chaos Monster and got out. That was months ago."

Tim was obviously frowning, trying to reconcile reality with the hallucinations. Dick shifted closer, needle in hand, and Tim freaked out again, attacking. It…it hurt.

"Red Robin, I'm scared," Ber murmured, and Tim froze, panting, gaze obviously darting around. The boy reached an arm out towards Tim who got off of Dick to stumbled towards him. Tim tucked himself into the slightly taller boy's side, wrapping a shaking arm around his waist. "You'll keep me safe, right?"

Tim pressed his head against a t-shirt clad shoulder, nodding, hands clenched in the t-shirt.

Okay, that was good. Ber looked at him and held his hand out, Dick taking a moment to realise. He hesitated but Tim trusted him, was fighting the fear toxin because of him. So, Dick passed the needle over.

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Bernard took the needle and then shifted how they were standing, glad Tim had a domino rather than the cowl tonight since it left more skin for him, then again with less skin visible maybe Scarecrow wouldn't have been able to inject him in the first place. "It's okay, we'll protect each other," he murmured. "You got injected with fear toxin Red. You know I won't hurt you." He carefully shifted the needle; he didn't want Tim to attack him. "Just giving you the antidote. Just keep breathing, we're safe."

Slowly, he slid the needle into Tim's neck, hating the terrified noises Tim was making, feeling the tight grip on his shirt. He pressed the plunger, sending the drugs into Tim's blood, and then he tossed the empty needle back towards Nightwing.

"How long does it take to work?" he asked, looking up at Nightwing even as he embraced Tim, not caring what the older vigilante thought.

"Depends on the strain but it has a sedative in it, should knock him out pretty, there he goes."

Bernard shifted as Tim slumped against him, whimpering softly as his hands relaxed. "It's okay, I've got you." He moved a hand to stroke sweaty black hair, relieved to hear his heart slowing to more normal levels. "I think he's out."

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Dick was relieved when Tim allowed Ber to give him the antidote and then he spotted something that made him realise why. It was a photo of Tim Drake and the boy in the apartment.

"I think he's out," the boy announced, and Dick approached, carefully taking his brother from the teen.

"Thank you," he murmured, finding Tim was heavier than he remembered, seemed he'd finally learnt to eat properly.

"No problem, he saved my life…I was seconds from being sacrificed when he showed up. I thought I was going to die, asked him to pass on a message to the person I'd been on a date with…and he refused, said we were both going to make it out, and he was right."

Dick found his gaze going back to the photo. "You know the Wayne's?" come to think of it…there was something vaguely familiar about him.

Wary brown eyes stared at him and then realised he had seen the photo. "We're dating. I met Bruce Wayne and his eldest a few times back in high school, doubt they remember me though."

Dating?! He…he hadn't known Timmy was gay…bi…whatever he was. Why hadn't he said anything? Why hadn't he told them he was dating someone? So, they'd been on a date and the kid had been taken then Tim saved him. Had they really fallen that far apart?

"Will Red Robin be okay?"

"Yeah, he should sleep off the rest of the toxin. Seriously, thanks for getting him to safety. We owe you."

But the teen shook his head. "If anything, I owed him."

Dick nodded, situating Tim before heading out with him, finding the Batmobile waiting.

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Bruce gently stroked Tim's hair back from his face, the boy still sedated. Thankfully, all his readings were back to normal, so he should be fine when he woke. Hearing from Dick where he'd found him was a relief, he'd gone to his boyfriend whether he consciously realised it or not. If Bernard hadn't seen him and managed to coax him inside…. he hated to think what could have happened before they tracked him down. Had Tim given his identity away? Not according to Dick but he hadn't been there the whole time, then again, Tim had admitted he wanted Bernard to know.

Dick was hurt that he didn't know Tim was dating but what did he expect? Bruce knew they had all shut Tim out, maybe without meaning too but he was so quiet it was easy to overlook him. He'd admitted his own mistake to Tim, had apologised, would the rest? He couldn't make them after all.

Tim began to shift restlessly and Bruce kept up the gentle touch.

"It's alright Tim, you're safe sweetheart," he murmured the old endearment and blue eyes fluttered open slowly. Tim tensed, whimpering. "Shh, look at me Tim, I'm right here," he coaxed, and Tim blinked groggily at him.

"B?" he mumbled.

"That's right."

"Wha…" he frowned in confusion.

"You were directly injected with fear toxin. You're in your apartment and have been sleeping off the antidote," he explained gently. He'd brought Tim to his own home once he'd stabilised, knowing he would feel safer there.

"Ber? Bern...ard…was…" he coughed, and Bruce helped him sit up enough to drink some water.

"Dick found you in Bernard's apartment, still masked. He saw you being injected on the tv and then spotted you stumbling in the street. He coaxed you into his apartment for safety."

"Hurt?" Tim asked groggily, and Bruce smiled at him.

"No, you didn't hurt him. Even with the toxin, you recognised him. You were in a corner and wrapped in a blanket when Dick arrived. You panicked when he tried to give you the antidote but Bernard was able to calm you and gave it to you. You can watch Dick's mask footage later. Do you think you can keep food down?"

Tim frowned, thinking it over. "Soup?" he asked, and Bruce nodded, Alfred had made sure he brought a care package with him.

"I'll be right back," he promised, leaning in to kiss his forehead.

He grabbed the thermos and poured the contents into a mug and then returned to Tim's side, helping him drink the soup slowly. He was relieved to see the colour coming back to Tim's face, the haziness fading from his eyes. "Bruce?"

"Welcome back," he smiled at Tim being fully aware now.

Tim pushed himself up, looking around and relaxing as he realised, he was sitting on his own couch. He pressed a hand to his forehead; headaches were a common side effect of the antidote after all. "Bernard?" he asked, and Bruce chuckled, pressing his phone into his hand.

"Maybe you should call him." he petted Tim's hair again, happy when Tim leant in before rolling his eyes, teenagers.

Tim would be eighteen next month, he should be looking towards graduation and Bruce knew he shouldn't have let him stay out of school but Tim had just taken the tests and started running the company while he was gone. He'd given up the last of his childhood…not that he'd ever had much of one and that was even before they truly met. The Drakes…well, better to not speak ill of the dead. And he hadn't made things better in those early days when looking at Tim brought back such painful memories. He'd messed up so many times with Tim and the boy remained at his side, had gone through hell to bring him home.

Sometimes, Bruce wished he knew more of what Tim had done in that year but knowing how it had ended, he could admit he was a coward because he couldn't ask. He knew the kind of person Ra's was, what he could do to someone…whatever Tim had done, he didn't care. Tim had escaped Ra's and angered the man enough for him to attack Gotham.

He blinked as Tim leant against him. "Still tired?"

"Hmm." Tim fumbled with his phone, bringing up a contact.

"Here, let me."

"But…cover…"

"The attack was public enough that it wouldn't be surprising you breathed in the gas," he assured his son.

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"Hey Tim," Bernard was relived as his phone rang.

"Bernard Dowd?" that was not Tim, but he recognised that voice.

"Mr Wayne?" he swallowed. "Tim…is he…"

"He's alright. He got caught in today's attack though. He'd like to see you."

"Of course, where?"

"His apartment."

"I'm on my way," Bernard promised.

He grabbed what he needed and rushed out of his apartment. He was relieved Mr Wayne had called, he'd been worried when Tim hadn't called since Bernard's apartment was in the attack area and Tim shouldn't know he was okay. Had the antidote not worked properly or something? He wanted to simply get there but if he arrived too quickly it would raise questions so he forced himself to use his car, glad Tim had given him a parking pass. He pressed the buzzer for Tim's apartment and was let up.

The apartment door opened to reveal Mr Wayne and Bernard ignored the scents of battle and some kind of medical place.

"Is he okay?" he asked.

"Ber?" Tim called from the apartment and he slipped past the man, rushing to him, dropping to his knees beside the couch, taking Tim's hand in his.

It was a relief to hear his heart back down to a normal rate and he no longer stunk of fear, though it lingered about him likely because he hadn't had a chance to shower. "Hey," he smiled shakily, kissing the back of Tim's hand.

"Okay?" Tim asked, and Bernard could tell he was tired.

"I'm fine," he promised. "Had the apartment locked and my gas mask. Even got to see Red Robin and Nightwing. I was worried about you. How do you feel?"

"Tired," he murmured. "Stay?"

Bernard nodded. "Of course," he agreed.

"I'll get him up to his room," Mr Wayne said, carefully lifting Tim up.

"Dad…" Tim grumbled but didn't really complain, Bernard following them upstairs. "Need a shower," he complained, getting to his feet when Mr Wayne put him on the bed.

"Tim…"

"I stink," Tim complained. Tim looked at him, slightly nervous. "Could you…help?"

Bernard swallowed, that was…okay. Nothing was going to happen, Tim had been through something traumatic and needed help, that was all. "Okay," he agreed.

"Are you sure?" Mr Wayne asked, and Tim nodded.

"You should go home B," Tim told him, and Bernard was relieved to hear a more normal sentence. Bernard moved to his side, wrapping his arm around Tim's waist, happy when Tim leant into him.

"Alright," he agreed reluctantly. "May I have your phone?"

Bernard pulled it out and handed it over.

"I've put mine, Alfred's, and the family doctor's numbers in. If anything happens,"

"I'll call," Bernard agreed. He waited till he heard Wayne leave and then he gently led Tim into the bathroom. "Can you strip or do you need help?"

"I can do it," Tim murmured, staring at the floor.

"Hey," he gently cupped Tim's cheek in his hand, hearing a soft sigh. "You're going to be okay Tim."

"I…" he shuddered and Bernard gently wrapped himself around him, feeling Tim slump against him. "Saw…"

"It's okay, you're safe now," he promised and he meant it. To keep Tim safe, he would reveal himself, he would keep Tim safe. And then Tim's lips were pressed to his, desperate, and Bernard kissed back, but kept it gentle. He carefully undid the buttons on Tim's shirt, Tim letting him, pliant in a way he hadn't seen him outside when he'd drunk from him. "You with me?" he asked, and Tim nodded, watching him through half closed eyes. "Can I?" he asked, hands resting on Tim's waistband, and he nodded again.

Finally, Tim was naked and Bernard stripped down to his boxers, turning the shower on before guiding Tim under the water.

"Can you wash or do you want me to?"

Tim frowned; he was obviously flagging but touching Tim's naked body was a lot more than Tim was probably ready for. Tim looked up at him, lifting a heavy arm to touch his face. "Real?"

"Yeah Tim, I'm real, I'm here," he promised.

"You can," he yawned. "Gentle?"

"Of course." He smiled gently and kissed Tim's forehead, hearing him sigh softly. He guided Tim's hands to his shoulders to help him balance and then grabbed Tim's body wash, gently getting him cleaned up, happy the scent of fear was being washed away.

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Tim woke slowly, body heavy, nice and warm…and then something moved and he felt a flash of panic. Where…what…

"Tim?" a sleepy voice murmured, and he recognised it. Bernard…but he was dead…hurt… no…the shower…oh. Fear toxin.

"Ber?" he croaked, and then the body pressed against his was moving, sitting up.

"Hey Tim," Bernard whispered, and then there was a hand running through his hair. "Do you remember what happened?"

"Fear toxin?"

"Yeah, you got caught up in a gas attack. Mr Wayne called me over after, apparently you were asking for me."

"Showered?" was that a dream?

"Yeah, you were too out of it to trust not to slip and kill yourself. I kept my boxers on," Bernard promised.

Foggy memories were coming back, fighting…being knocked down…Scarecrow laughing, pain in his neck…seeing bodies…fights…trying to get away…Bernard? Someone with another needle, Bernard holding him, feeling tired…had…had he gone to Bernard as Red Robin?

"You weren't hit?"

"Red Robin was on my windowsill when he got the alert so I got my place locked down and the gas mask on."

"Oh. Why was he there?"

"Saw me, guess he decided to check on me once he did. I saw him being injected on the news and then I saw him stumbling around on the street. I think his visit is why I managed to coax him up to my place. Nightwing showed up after a while and we got the antidote into him, so hopefully he's okay too."

"Yeah," Tim murmured.

He was, but he couldn't tell him, could he? But…Bernard had risked his own safety to help Red Robin. Lost in hallucinations, Tim could have attacked him, should have really. And yet he hadn't, he'd let Bernard bring him to safety. Which meant he really trusted Bernard, at least subconsciously.

He rolled over to face the sitting Bernard, he looked a little tired, had he stayed up again because of him? Good thing it was the weekend. He reached out and stroked Bernard's face, Bernard leaning into his touch, eyes warm.

"Sorry for worrying you," Tim murmured.

"I'm just glad you're okay," Bernard told him, leaning down, and Tim pushed up on his elbows to meet him.

Kissing Bernard was definitely one of his favourite things. This was real. He'd need to report to Bruce, let him know that was a different strain, stronger, the antidote not entirely effective. But it could wait.

TBC…