Teen Titans Fan Fiction ❯ Past Woes ❯ Saving the Heroes ( Chapter 3 )

As the Titans got used to Dick Grayson, they found they liked this sweeter, more sensitive side of Robin. He could still turn into Robin at the drop of a pin, so the city was fine, but he rather liked being himself. Dick had, at Beast Boy's insistence, done an impression of the playboy heir side of himself he showed to the media, and it left both Starfire and Raven blushing, while Cyborg and Beast Boy were flabbergasted and awed.

Days turned into weeks and they got even more comfortable around him. It was going well up to the point Starfire asked him if he would be willing to go back home.

"I am not comfortable with you being so unsure, Dick," she said kindly. "And besides, if you do find out he…does not like you anymore, you can always come back with us!"

From then on, she and the other Titans began to persuade him that he should go back. Finally, after a few weeks of prodding, he came into the living room with his decision.

"I think it is time I go home, if only to see Alfred. I'd like you to see where I grew up."

They began preparations immediately. Within a week, they were ready, or in Dick's case, as ready as he'd ever be. They contacted the Titans East and asked them to look after things and left, travelling swiftly. It was Robin the Titans travelled with on that journey.

When they eventually got to Gotham, it was dusk. By the time they'd gotten to Wayne Manor, Robin knew Batman would be out, which left Alfred at the house. He got them all up to the front door and behind the cover of some bushes changed into his civvies. He came out, looking frightened and stood in front of the door with them behind him for an eternity before Cyborg placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Just do it man," he said with a lopsided smile.

Dick took a deep breath, raised his hands to the bell rope and pulled. The clanging of the bells made the poor boy feel sick and he paled and was about to bolt, or try to, when the door opened and Alfred stood there staring at him. The tray he was carrying in one hand clattered to the floor as he saw who was standing there.

"M-master Dick?" he asked, his British accent thick with emotion.

"H-hey, Alfred," Dick said nervously, shuffling his feet.

Alfred was standing stock still one moment and the next he had pulled the boy into an embrace, crying. Dick gasped then returned the hug as well as he could. They stayed like that for what seemed like ages before they broke apart. Dick rubbed his eyes and smiled, gesturing behind him.

"I have no doubt you and Bruce will know who they are."

"Of course, Dick. You really think we wouldn't follow your own adventures? Where are my manners? Come on in."

Dick led them inside the house and Beast Boy gave a cry of delight and began darting around to try and see everything at once. Starfire was starry-eyed and Cyborg looked as excited as Beast Boy. Raven managed a small smile and her eyebrows raised up, but other than that there was no outward signs of happiness for her.

"I'll go put on some tea for you Master Dick. What will your friends have?"

"Raven will have tea, Cyborg will have coffee, Beast Boy will have soda, and Starfire will have mustard."

Alfred gave him a bizarre look. "Um, mustard, Master Dick?"

"She's not from Earth, Alfred. She's Tamaranian. She likes mustard. Give her mustard in a cup," Dick said with a smile as he tried not to laugh. "Now, they want to see the Batcave."

"They're not allowed to touch anything," Alfred said with a raised eyebrow.

"I know. Come on guys."

Dick led them down to the Batcave with ease, remembering the many times he'd run down the tunnels to join up with his mentor to fight some gang or another. He missed it and it must have shown on his face because Raven placed a hand on his shoulder. Dick smiled at her and watched as her eyes widened when they got to the cave.

Beast Boy did his run-around-like-you're-crazy routine and dropped at Dick's feet as a dog, panting. Dick sniggered and walked over to the familiar chair and plopped down, spinning around lazily as the others explored. Alfred brought their drinks and looked rather sick as Starfire smiled and downed half the mustard at once. He excused himself quickly.

"Call if you need me, Master Dick," Alfred said with a tender smile.

"Of course, Alfred," Dick replied.

He lazily drew his hands across the familiar keyboard and, without thinking, typed in the old password. He was surprised when the computer immediately accepted it. He began going through the old villain files, pausing on the Joker's.

"He's insane," Beast Boy murmured and Dick started, turning to see his friends behind him.

Dick began clicking through the carefully labeled files, some more horrid than others. He showed just how crazy the Joker was. As if on cue, just as he finished a loud, rapid beeping came from the computer. He didn't even think before he typed in the code to receive the audio.

"Alfred! Arkham had a breakout. Call everyone. Joker is going to go after Dick! Alfred, Alfred?!"

The teens stood frozen for a moment. There was a sound of laughter and the transmission suddenly cut short. Anger flared in Dick before he knew what hit him.

"Joker," he snarled, the hatred in his voice greater with the clown-like villain than even Slade. "It's his fault Bruce and I fought. It's all his fault!"

He pulled his mask out of his pocket and put it on then flipped open his Titans communicator and punched in a number.

"You two wanna have some fun?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Robin observed the scene carefully then looked to the sky to see about the coming storm. He could see it swiftly approaching from the eastern horizon. He could see the rest of his team in position. He noticed Batman wasn't the only one captured by the Joker, and he snickered softly at the thought of Aqualad and Speedy rescuing their mentors.

He watched as Joker circled Batman, laughing manically about something or other. He paid no attention until with a flash, a gun was drawn. Robin leaped into action before he thought about it even as the storm arrived overhead. He lunged down, using a grappling hook and slammed full force into the Joker, who gasped in surprise. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Batman's eyes widen and a small smile decorated his face.

"Little birdie!" Joker gasped. "If I had known you were coming I would have brought more toys. Oh well."

Joker lifted the gun again and pointed it at Batman. Robin moved in front of the gun as the trigger was pulled multiple times. The shots hit him like punches, each one hitting a different spot. The pain was so great that he collapsed onto the ground. He heard Batman cry out in horror and he could hear Starfire's scream of loss. The Joker laughed happily and Robin opened his eyes and looked up. Lightning flashed in the sky and he smiled up at the teen force of nature, but Joker didn't realize what he was smiling about and he laughed.

"Is the light pretty, little birdie?"

"His name is Lightning actually," Robin said with a grin as he sat up. "And I'd say he's more handsome than pretty."

Joker frowned. "That isn't funny little birdie."

Robin clicked open the communicator he'd had in his hands and said two words.

"Titans, go!"

Lightning and Thunder shot down from the cloud, carrying with them Aqualad and Speedy. They slammed into the ground, leaving a small crater. Speedy immediately drew an arrow and began firing, enjoying his mentor's soft gasp of surprise. Aqualad pulled the rainwater together into blades and began to fight, ignoring his own mentor's cry of delight.

Robin forced himself up, in spite of the pain radiating from his chest. He could feel Batman's startled gaze on him.

"How?" the one word that could be any number of questions.

"I upgraded my suit."

There. The first words he'd spoken to Batman in two years. He was almost immediately distracted from that thought by an attack from the Mad Hatter and Poison Ivy. Robin heard a sonic boom as Thunder and Lightning began to 'play.' He smiled and ducked an attack, only for a knife to flash towards him. It was stopped midair by a seemingly invisible force. The Boy Wonder smiled and patted the invisible bear.

"Thanks, Bobby," he said. "Hello Melvin. How are you?"

"I'm good," she said and looked up at Bobby. "Bobby says that these men are dangerous and mean."

"Yes. Yes they are," Robin said before launching himself up and over the Mad Hatter.

There was a flash of speed and suddenly the Mad Hatter went flying and Kid Flash stood in his place, grinning at Robin.

"I got that one!" he said proudly.

"Yeah, yeah, you got him. Now go help Bobby."

"…Who?"

"The sixteen foot high stuffed bear," Robin said and he could feel Batman's incredulous stare.

"Yeah. Right," Kid Flash said with a 'you're crazy' smile. "I'm just going to run around and help real people."

"Oh, Bobby's real alright," Robin assured him before he sped off.

Robin quite suddenly was facing the Joker alone. He could hear Starfire's starbolts, Cyborg's weapons, Beast Boy's…well, his animal noises, and he could feel Raven's dark power, but it all faded as he stared at the man he had to blame for his fight with Batman.

"You haven't grown much, little birdie," Joker crooned.

"I have, Joker, just in ways you can't see," Robin said, his voice holding anger.

Without any preamble, they lunged forward and was suddenly locked with each other in combat. Each blow was familiar, with Robin used to fighting Joker. The old moves came back to him without thought and he bared his teeth in a feral grin.

It was a fierce dance, and the other combatants seemed to melt away before them. Robin finally pinned Joker to a wall, glaring into his crazed eyes. Joker laughed, spinning them around, and Robin slugged him. He stumbled back and pulled the gun again, pointing it back at Batman. Robin twisted the Joker's hand, grabbing the gun. He spun a full 360 degrees and fired.

The battlefield went dead silent. The only sound was the heavy breathing. The Joker stood there, blood oozing from his shoulder where he'd been shot. He looked bewildered and sank to his knees.

"Well well, the little birdie can shoot, but you missed my head," the Joker finally laughed.

"This 'little birdie' wasn't trying to kill you," Robin said coldly, kicking the Joker to the ground and pulling out restraints to put over his hands.

One by one, the other Arkham prisoners fell under the combined force of many of the Teen Titans. Robin, Aqualad, and Speedy were all acutely aware of the adults' stares, but ignored them in favor of their team. When the battle was over, they all looked around and Robin smiled.

"Good job Titans," Robin said proudly.

He heard a snick and suddenly knew Batman wasn't tied up anymore. He swallowed nervously and wanted to crawl into a hole, but he forced a smile as Thunder and Lightning approached.

"That was fun!" Lightning said with a grin. "You should call us more often!"

"Yes," Thunder rumbled. "It feels good to do good."

"I'm glad you two liked it," Robin said. "By the way, the training center that we're building for you two is almost done. It's going to be perfect for your abilities. I'd like to see just how powerful you are."

"It will make music for us, yes?" Thunder asked eagerly.

"Of course," Robin said with crooked smile.

Speedy came up behind him and placed a trembling hand on his shoulder. Robin turned and arched an eyebrow.

"What's up?"

"I can't do it, Robin. I can't face Green Arrow. I wanna go home," he said, his voice quivering.

"Hey, you don't have to face him now, but you will eventually," Robin said gently. "Wouldn't it be better to get it over with?"

"I could ask the same about you."

"Look, just do it," Robin said irritably.

"Speedy!" Green Arrow exclaimed, waving him over.

The red-haired teen looked at Robin desperately before turning and hurrying over. Robin watched him go sadly. Thunder and Lightning looked confused.

"I do not understand. Are they not friends?" Thunder asked.

"It's not that," Robin said quietly. "It's just…they had a falling out. Speedy got into some heavy shit three years ago and Green Arrow kicked him onto the streets."

"I do not understand. What could he have done that was so bad?" Lightning queried.

"Drugs," Robin said bitterly. "I helped him kick the habit. He never did go back, though. Green Arrow roughed him up in his emotional state and Speedy is unsure how safe he is around him."

"What are drugs?" Thunder asked.

"Look, I don't have time to explain right now. They're just not good for a person, okay?" Robin said quickly. "Now, I know you had fun, but I think it's best if you leave now. In fact, that's exactly what my team's going to do. Tell Melvin and the others that you'll take them home, okay?"

Robin looked over his shoulder to see Batman and Green Arrow talking to a nervous looking Speedy. Cyborg, Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy came over and Robin immediately started walking away, fear making his gut clench.

"Robin, where are we going?" Starfire asked they all followed him.

"Back to the house," he muttered, absentmindedly rubbing his chest. "I need to see Alfred."

"Why?" Raven asked. "I thought we were here to see him," she said, pointing at the dwindling figure of Batman.

Robin lowered his head and muttered in Dick's voice, "I'm still scared Raven. And I can't face him in front of Green Arrow and Aquaman. I just can't. I wouldn't mind it in front of you guys, but they're different. They can be harsh, and Bruce is all the harsh I can take in one setting. Besides, I'm pretty sure my ribs are bruised. Alfred needs to take a look at them. Now, can we fly there?"

"Are you asking us or telling us?" Beast Boy asked.

"Telling you," Robin said in his own voice.

Cyborg got onto Raven's dark energy disk and Starfire gently picked Robin up. Beast Boy changed into his pterodactyl form and off they went. They arrived quickly and slipped in through the Batcave entrance. Robin changed out of his costume and suddenly became Dick Grayson again, who noticed that his chest was hurting rather badly.

"Yeah, bruised ribs," he muttered, coming out from where he'd been changing.

"What about bruised ribs?" Alfred asked, just coming into the Batcave.

"I got shot again. Five times," Dick said softly, watching Alfred freeze. "But I upgraded my costume, weaving in special material that made it bullet proof. My chest still hurts though, and I got my arm slashed open pretty bad."

"Upstairs and out of the shirt," Alfred demanded.

Five minutes later, Dick was sitting in nothing but jeans in the study watching as Alfred sewed up his arm. The other Titans were sipping drinks, or in Starfire's case mustard, and carefully avoiding looking at Dick's open wound. Beast Boy had promptly gagged as soon as he saw the torn flesh, and the others weren't stupid enough to look.

"There we are, Master Dick," Alfred said as he swiped a washcloth with alcohol on it over the wound one final time. "Now, let's have a look at those ribs."

Dick flinched as Alfred inspected him thoroughly. He was upset to learn that he did, indeed, have bruised ribs. In fact, his chest appeared to be one big bruise. A door shut somewhere in the house and Dick looked up, fear making his heart pound in his chest.

"Alfred!" Bruce called. "Alfred, is he here? Did he leave us again?" There was a heart-wrenching tone in that voice.

Bruce suddenly appeared, hurrying into the study. He promptly froze as soon as he saw Dick sitting in the chair. The two stared at each other for long moment, unable to move. Bruce composed himself and stood up straight.

"Dick," he greeted in a blank voice.

"Hey, Bruce," Dick returned with the same tone.

"You came back," he said, sounding nonchalant about it.

"Yep."

The silence was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Dick had his eyes glued on the floor. Alfred stood there behind the boy, his hands resting on his shoulders. The Titans were nervously looking between Dick and Alfred and Bruce.

"Master Bruce," Alfred finally said. "Know that if you screw this up, I shall never forgive you."

With that said, Alfred ushered the Titans out and left the two alone.