Christie's POV

After Robin had joined Batman to leave, I began walking home. The property adjoining mine contained eight acres of tall pine woods and wildlife. No houses were there, and people were never there. I, however, had explicit permission to come whenever I wanted, and it seemed like a private enough place to open the mysterious box Batman had handed me. There wasn't much to the box, and it weighed hardly anything. I opened the box wondering what could possibly be inside. The light from the moon bounced off the small metal objects inside. I looked closer to realize they were basically super tiny hook-like things with an even smaller bat symbol on it. So small, you could hardly see it. I picked one up to examine it, but it didn't get me very far. I was confused. What do I do with this? This isn't that self-explanatory... I continued moving it around in my hand hoping to figure out the purpose, but still nothing was coming. A movement in the leaves behind me caused me to, as quickly as possible, drop the object back into the box, and close it, hopefully out of sight. I scanned quickly around me, unsure of who would be out here. I looked up into the trees swaying in the nighttime breeze. Suddenly someone's silhouette appeared from behind some of the bushes. I was confused at who I saw. It was Robin. He walked over to me then asked, "Did you open the box?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Do you know what it is?"

"Umm, no"

He smiled a little, "Yeah, I didn't really think it was all that self-explanatory." Reaching out his hand, he continued, "Can I show you?"

I handed him the box, "Yeah"

He opened it and pulled one of them out placing it on his gloved palm. "It's an earpiece." Pointing out the curve he added, "This part goes in your ear, and you can hear our radio communications. Even if you aren't going out yet, you can at least know what's going on." He handed it back to me and reached to remove his. "It goes on like this," he said putting it back on. I copied his movement, putting mine on as well, "Ok, thanks."

He continued his explanation of how it worked, "As long as it's on, this switch here, you can hear us. You press and hold this button to let us hear you. Oh, and if you put the switch partway you can hear emergencies only. To communicate an emergency tap it twice before holding it. Make sense?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Great!" He looked pleased with his explanation, "Welcome to the team!"

"Thanks!"

He waited a second, as if making sure I didn't have any other questions, then ran off. I turned my earpiece on, walking back up the few stairs leading to my front door to the kitchen. I went upstairs to my room which was the first in the hall that also connected to my brother's room. The was an attic at the end of the hallway and the whole thing was lined with a balcony overlooking the living room. Once in my room, I hid the box and decided to hang out the rest of the evening with my family, explaining what had happened, but I kept my earpiece on. Just in case.

A few hours later, back in my room, I heard the earpiece come to life, "Cardinal, if you feel ready, I have an assignment for you to begin with. The type you can do from where you are for now." It was Batman speaking.

"Sure!" I responded, excited for my first task.

"Good. There is a new member of the Avengers, but since he joined, close to three months ago, he hasn't been seen much, and we don't know much about him. He disappeared completely two months ago and hasn't been publicly out with the Avengers or by himself. I would like to know why. He goes by Spider-Man, and as long as your parents are ok with it, I would like you and Robin to find him and find out what he's doing. Why he hasn't shown up. For now, your part is to research and see if you can find anything about where he may be. Can you do that?"

"Yeah!" I had told my parents about the offer when it was made, and they supported me helping, so I was confident they would be fine with me going as well, but I'd ask anyway.

"Let me know if you find anything."

"Ok, I will." I responded, ending the conversation. I went over to my laptop and brought it upstairs. It wasn't technically mine, but I used it, and no one minded. Once in my room, I opened it and started it up. I went to the Google search bar and typed "What happened to Spider-Man" It loaded a screen full of answers if I were looking for info about a movie, TV series, or comic, but nothing on the real one. It took a lot of looking, and a ton of re-wording, but I finally found one article that was somewhat new. "Where Did Spider-Man Go? Latest Sightings, and Suspicions" I clicked on the article written by Lois Lane and scanned for the latest sighting. "Spider-Man has not been seen at any crime scenes lately, but he has been seen seemingly randomly on top of the donut shop pictured above. He has been known to appear here, without doing much, which leads me to some suspicions. Why would a new Avenger disappear like this..." The article continued for a while, but I had what I came for. I looked to identify the donut shop pictured. It was in Chicago, IL, a pretty good distance from where I was. But the most recent sighting was only a week ago, meaning this was pretty recent. We had a chance of finding him. I pressed the button on the device on my ear, to allow Batman and Robin to hear me.

"I found an article that says, as of last week, he was in Chicago."

"Good work. Then, unless your parents object, we will plan on you and Robin heading that way soon."

"Got it!" I responded. Excitement filled me at the thought of my first mission. As I got ready for bed, I imagined how it might go. It was going to be cool. That was for sure.

Robin's POV

I got back to the Batcave where I walked towards where Batman was probably researching or looking into something. He did that a lot. I usually loved helping too, so long as it wasn't just reading through hundreds of personal files or news articles in hopes of finding some connection. That got pretty old. A few hours ago, I had returned from Christie's, a little proud at correctly assuming she might not know exactly what to do with the small box Batman had given her. I didn't think it was hard, but it wasn't super intuitive either. When I'd returned that time, we discussed what would be my first mission with Cardinal, and the first like this without Batman. There was always a possibility he would follow, but even if he did, it would be different. I was excited and a bit nervous. After that was set up, we would be leaving soon to go to Chicago, IL and look for Spider-Man, I had headed back to the house to finish homework. I had failed more than one year trying to balance being Robin, and I was determined not to do it again. Batman had already mentioned, multiple times, the possibility of putting Robin aside until later if I couldn't figure out school, and I couldn't let that happen. Being Robin was the best thing ever, and I wouldn't let school ruin it. Plus, it was one of the biggest ways we spent time together, one-on-one. Some of the best conversations Batman and I'd had came when we were waiting for hours at a time for someone to show up while on a mission. This time, I was returning to the Batcave to see what else might need to be done. Homework completed. I looked at my pole in judgement. Mostly of myself, but I was judging it a bit too. It shouldn't have been damaged so easily. I shook my head moving on as I prepared to start the second part of daily life. The Robin part. Before I could even reach Batman, he walked out not too far in front of me, causing me to stop and look for the explanation. He had a look that declared we weren't settling down for the night. Not yet. That was cool with me!

"Ready?"

I smirked and nodded. It wasn't uncommon for that to be all the explanation I got, but it still amused me when I thought about it. I stepped aside, giving him the lead right back to where I'd just come from. I followed behind not missing the fact that we were walking. Must not be too far... As we reached the main city we took to the roofs and shadows. That's when he decided it was time for a little more background.

"There's a weapons deal going on in the old clock factory. It doesn't look like it's going to go well for anyone."

I simply nodded, not having a ton to add. We continued until I could see it before a question came to mind, "Anyone special leading it?"

He looked back at me as if it were an odd question, and maybe it was. I knew he understood what I meant though. Penguin, Riddler, Harley and...Joker. I shook off the thought. Joker still freaked me out. Honestly most of them did, but he was the worst. Mostly because he seemed to genuinely enjoy every interaction that I dreaded.

"No one that I know of," came the reply to my question. I knew it made sense. I smiled to myself and continued closing the distance between us and the building.

As we came right upon it, literally the closest you could get on rooftops without being on its roof, Batman gestured to where I should stand. I was relatively new as Robin, but I'd been at it long enough that for the most part, words were unnecessary. Batman definitely preferred silence when it was an option. I jogged silently as I could to my spot. I crouched in place and waited.

"Robin, are you in position?"

Christie's POV

I hadn't been asleep all that long when a voice spoke directly in my ear, "Robin, are you in position?" It took me a second to figure out the source of the voice, but as soon as I did, I was intrigued. Must be on a mission. I continued to listen, "Yeah, ready when you are."

Curiosity came strongly. I wanted to know what they were doing! I'm not going to intervene or mess anything up...I told myself, as I got up and quickly dressed in a black hoodie and pants. It wasn't a suit, but it'd do for now. I headed out the door hearing a continued conversation, Batman was speaking, "I'm going in, factory west-side."

"Understood."

So that's where they were. The factory was a decently well-known location, and not in all good ways. It was right outside Havenbrook city limits. I went in their direction, not hearing much chatter the rest of the way.

When I reached it, I found a place to see inside, although I'd have to watch a bit to figure out what was going on. I'd missed the explanation. Inside was dimly lit and covered by pieces and parts of machinery that were mostly still functional, but the wall I was looking at did not match the functional nature of the machines. It was a little rusty with a gaping hole through which I could pretty easily see what I was trying to see. Two decently large men stood facing each other in a discussion of some sort. A third man stood behind the one currently talking. They were back to me, only a few feet away from the door I was standing rather close to.

"I gave you an offer that's plenty fair. You take it or leave it."

The man on the other side was not satisfied with that, "How about you give me what I want for a reasonable price, and I'll keep this little interaction a secret."

That was a bad move. The man, back still to me, although muscles obviously tensioning, instantly changed demeaner, obviously not a fan of the threat, "Yeah?! Well, maybe you won't get a chance!" I spotted Robin balancing on the beam above, but I doubt he had noticed me. "Batman, you need to move. Things are escalating"

No response came as the now very angry man, the one who had just finished yelling grabbed a pretty large hand grenade out, intentions clear.

Robin looked slightly taken aback as he began moving further from the scene unfolding below, "Batman, do you copy? He's got a grenade, and he may use it!" The concern was becoming evident in his voice, although it was still a whispered yell as to not draw attention to himself.

The other man looked concerned, but didn't back down as the one holding the grenade and his buddy backed slowly out the door, readying to pull the pin.

Robin was out of sight, but his panicked whisper came through, even louder this time, "-o --copy?!" The message was broken and scratchy, making it quite difficult to understand. That must be what's happening to Batman's! But he's even further. With that I decided I needed to find him and fast. That guy was going to pull the grenade, and he wasn't going to wait long for it. I ran around the back of the factory less concerned about staying covert, and much more worried about finding Batman before the grenade went off. The comm was completely static now, and quiet static at that. I spotted Batman in the back of one of the factory rooms, examining some boxes, seemingly unaware of what was going on in the other room. He whispered something to the earpiece, but I didn't hear it come through. I reached a hole in the wall hearing faint voices in the distance behind me. Unhappy voices. Going over to the window I quickly waved over to Batman, hoping he'd notice. He did. It seemed to take a second for him to register who I was, but whether he figured it out or not, my message was clear. He made a quick exit, as the grenade fire began to rise. I quickly dashed from the hole hoping to be far enough away when the explosion reached my side. In seconds, a good portion of the factory had blown in a sound that threatened to deafen me. That was not an ordinary hand grenade. After the explosion completed, and I'd had a moment to recover, I looked around, spotting Batman, and moving to join him. He looked at me, appearing unsure of what exactly to say, and it was hard to tell exactly how he felt about me being here.

"Thank you." He finally said. It was clear that there was more to say, but he didn't. That was a bit concerning. I probably wasn't supposed to have come but here I was. He probably would have been ok... maybe I shouldn't have come.

"Yeah," I said looking down at my shoes.

He looked like he was making a conscious choice to say nothing further about my appearance but did ask, "Did you see Robin get out?"

"Yeah," I said, still looking down, still unsure of my decision.

He nodded, "Good." He paused and looked back at me, "You did well."

With no other words, he began walking off to where Robin should have been.

Robin's POV

"Batman! Do you hear me?!" I was no longer worried about being too loud, the explosion was loud enough, that no one would be thinking about me, and I was way too worried about why Batman wouldn't answer to worry about that anyway. I was practically screaming into the earpiece desperate for an answer. When none came, I took a breath and swallowed hard, trying to force myself out of crying. This was no time to cry. He had probably gotten out. But he didn't hear my warning...I shook my head to get rid of the thought, as I jumped up from my position on the ground. Before the explosion, I'd been running around the edge of the building, hoping to spot him, but I hadn't been able too before the grenade went off, sending me to the ground. I raced further around, searching desperately for a sign that he'd gotten out. As I turned toward the opposite side of the building, I sighed with relief as a sudden peace came back over me. He was walking my direction with...Chris...no, Cardinal? It was going to take a bit to remember that like I did my own. How on earth did she get here? I ran over to them grateful but disappointed I hadn't gotten to him in time. It concerned me that had Cardinal not have just joined... I brushed the thought off again. I didn't really matter. It would have worked out ok, and either way, she is here... At least that's what I told myself. As I reached them, I asked, "How did you get here?!"

"I heard you talking over the earpiece."

But why did you come? I thought to myself. Once again, it didn't really matter. "Glad you did," I said. I was. Truly. Although it still bugged me that I should have been the one to get here.

"Both of you should head back. Tomorrow is school, and your first official mission." Batman said, the emphasis on official obvious to me. Cardinal wasn't officially supposed to be here, but she was, and it was a good thing. I wanted to object to going back home just yet. I had things I wanted to talk about, but I knew I shouldn't, so I accepted the instruction, and started on my way back. The whole way back I wondered how tomorrow would go. I had always wondered what it would be like to have someone new on the team. To have a partner other than Batman. I loved working with Batman, but he did have a very specific style, and it would be cool to go with someone more open to messing around. I had gone out with Nightwing a few times, but even that felt different. He never...almost never...I corrected mentally made it feel that way, but I was still the newbie out of the two of us. He'd started more than...a decade? Before. This was going to be cool, I decided smiling, thinking about it as I crossed more roofs in the dark. This is going to be fun!