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Dick had spent all night avoiding getting blasted by a new rogue up and down the East River. He wasn’t too far from Gotham considering how much further they’d gotten away from the Teen Tower building and his teammates were busy tackling another rogue who’d stayed up further north who was attempting to take out an entire residential block. It seemed easy enough considering the rogue had no superpowers and was on foot, but their aim was really good. Everything the green ooze touched would begin to sizzle before the green eventually looked as though it seeped into whatever it was on and disappeared.
He’d dodged a lot of things in his days as Robin, and now that he had taken on the mantle of Nightwing, he didn’t think it would be much different. Though he was getting far more accustomed to working as a team, this new rogue seemed to be luring him further and further away. It sent warning bells off in his head, but he couldn’t simply let the rogue go free. He was careful of his surroundings, looking out for traps, but it wasn’t diligent enough when a random child who looked as though they were hiding from the odd looking men running their way, threw a bucket of the green sludge right into his face.
Panic was the first thing that his mind registered, the second was that it got in his mouth and tasted like the foulest thing he’d ever had the misfortune to taste. He couldn’t see, domino mask protecting his eyes, and he quickly scrambled to wipe it away. It was a harrowing few seconds where his mind heard sizzling but no pain accompanied it. Acid would have already eaten through anything it touched, so now he was left wondering just what it was.
Once he’d freed his eyes from it, he’d noticed that it had begun to soak into his skin, less and less to fling off; no rogue or child in sight. Hoping an evidence vial would contain the goop the way the rogue’s gun did, he scraped a good portion of it off into the vial and hurried back to the tower in a panic. He needed to stay calm, level-headed, and hurry to the decontamination room, though he was beginning to think that might not help as the ooze had already worked through the fabric of his clothes and into his skin. It was nearly gone when he pulled his glove off to access the building.
He’d not been Nightwing for long and his old mentor’s voice was chastising him in his mind. He stripped his clothes quickly and tossed them into the biohazard furnace before the jets came on. The water based solution stung him, cold as could be, but after the designated time he began to soap himself up with the decontamination foam. He hurried along, knowing he’d lost time getting back to the tower, and god knows what was in the green ooze if it was absorbed so quickly. With another spray out of the way, he came out the other side, closed vial in hand. Luckily with no one else at the tower he ran up to his room naked as could be and got dressed.
The world was starting to change, and though he was used to having tech from aliens and the Wayne’s access to state of the art electronics and medicines, he was not used to hearing the ding of a communications device. He went over to it and pressed a button as the small black screen came to life.
[Family dinner is in two days, Master Richard. Please do not forget to arrive on time. - Alfred]
[I expect you to be here this weekend. There is already activity causing concern. - B]
He began to type away at the keyboard feeling a tad uncertain. When he’d been to the manor the last time there had been a fight between the three of them, nothing major, but it had been eating away at Dick for some time. He’d prepared a gift, ready to give to Jason, but he wasn’t sure now if he should expose himself to the family after he’d gotten doused.
[I’ll do what I can, Alfred. Wouldn’t miss your dinner for the world.]
[Sure thing, B.]
Dressed and careful to put another set of gloves on just in case, Dick made his way to their lab. As he began to test the substance in a hooded vent biohazard container with his hands gloved inside, he’d notice that it would not sink into certain substances, while others it would. Nothing in their systems gave him concrete answers and ultimately he held the vial in his hand perplexed.
He changed tactics, working away to try and find any sort of reference to the new rogue, a name, a gimmick, past crime, and even went through an entire collection of recent mug shots to no avail. He’d nearly given up when he got notice that his fellow Titans had returned.
“Dick! You wouldn’t believe this guy!” Gar was running up behind him in the lab, grin spread wide as he threw up his hands.
“Wait!” Dick said, backing up a few steps and looking up to the concerned faces of Kori and Donna. “I’m glad you’re all looking safe, but I got hit with something. I’m still not entirely sure I’m safe to touch.”
“What happened?” Donna asked as she looked him head to toe without noticing anything perceptible.
“Was this caused by the one you chased?” Kori asked almost simultaneously, gaze just as worried.
“It was the new one, but he got away. I think it was done on purpose, he led me to an alleyway and a kid threw a buck of this onto me,” he said, holding up the vial in his hand. “It absorbed into my skin and some got in my mouth.”
“We should run your blood work,” Gar said, looking at the green goop, “nothing usually good comes from stuff like this.”
“No kidding,” Dick said, feeling a little more relieved with his teammates near him. He’d gone so long as Robin feeling a touch lonely that it really reminded him of how much he loved working with the Titans in moments like these. Though he knew Bruce would ultimately have his back in a pinch, Bruce also struggled to really express himself.
“Have you taken a sample of your bodily fluid yet?” Kori asked, striding over to the medical cabinet they kept in the lab for such occasions.
“Some, but maybe some more tests could be run. A basic panel has ruled out any major known drugs, and the substance itself hasn’t elements the computer has yet to identify.
“Most unusual,” Kori said, perplexed. “My ship’s libraries were most up to date when I left. It is unfathomable that this substance is not within its knowledge base.”
“We may be dealing with magic,” Donna offered, helping Kori set up a tray. Gar looked a little squeamish, making himself busy looking at the analysis from the computer.
“Zatanna might be willing to give us a consultation. I’ll give her a call,” Dick considered, before he looked around quizzically. “Where are the others?”
“Vic, Raven, and Kid Flash are all speaking with the authorities. Some of the residents needed evacuating and they’re making sure no one else is trapped inside any buildings that collapsed.”
“Casualties?”
“Luckily none so far. We should have spared someone to go with you,” Donna said with a sighing frown.
“Don’t worry, I will be okay,” Dick said, trying to offer a smile of comfort. He was pretty certain they could tell he was just as unsettled, but when all was said and done, nothing revealed anything of concern in any test and Zatanna said she’d look into it on her own end.
When he climbed into bed that night after explaining everything in detail to his team and listening to their reports, he felt a kind of exhaustion that went deep to his bones. He’d run enough to feel it, but it went deeper than the normal fatigue and more into how a flu might feel. Tossing and turning, skin sweaty and clammy to the touch, he reached over to call for his teammates when he passed out.
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The early morning sun was filtering in through the window of his room through the curtains, a stray beam of it in his eyes and he yawned. Whatever fever had wrecked him the night before had passed and he stretched to wake up his mind. His body felt looser than it had before but he wasn’t quite awake enough to gauge anything. His bladder on the other hand had things to say and he crawled out of bed with his eyes mostly closed, heavy with sleep.
It wasn’t until he’d passed in front of the mirror, stood in the bathroom and found the counter at a different height than normal, that he blinked a few times to wake up his mind. He jumped back suddenly, a bewildered little kid looking at him in the mirror.
“Hey!” He began to speak when his dozing mind finally put two and two together and his eyes widened like saucer dishes. “aaaaaAAAAHH!”
Dick stumbled back, the little him in the mirror did too, and when he knocked into the wall behind him he was forced to gaze at himself in the mirror. He brought his hands up to his face, patting against the soft smooth skin, not a stray hard earned whisker of age in sight. Flying up to the mirror he turned his head this way and that, looked down to his body, shirt so large it hung down off his shoulder. Scars were gone, a lot of his muscle mass gone, and he lifted up his shirt to stare down at himself. Richard was tiny again!
To say that Dick Grayson didn’t know what panic attacks were was a lie, but it had been some time since his emotional outbursts needed such a degree of self control. It felt so odd to have the irrationality of it all whirling in his head until at last he found himself splashing his face with water.
“Magic! It has to be!” the squeaky little voice came out of him and startled him.
“Ah ah aaaaaah, hello, hello, HELLO,” Dick began to speak, trying different pitches and tones, dropping as low as his voice could allow. It was beyond strange. Had he sounded like this before? He looked like pictures from when he’d said goodbye to his life as a circus performer and began living with socialite Bruce Wayne. He lifted his hands, realizing that even his hair felt different, and he hurried to empty his bladder so he could get his teammates to help.
Just as he came to the door to open it in his haste, Raven was startled to find him, eyes wide.
“Raven!” Dick said quickly, throwing his hands up as if he meant her no harm, “It’s me! Dick!”
“You’re!” Her mouth opened wide before she calmed and looked at him closely. “You’re tiny.”
Dick gave a bit of a frown, but he understood how shocking it must be considering he just went through it himself but he was finally starting to calm down.
“Yes, yes, I think that goop that got me must have been magical! There’s no other explanation! I need to call Zatanna immediately!”
“But you’re so….so tiny,” Raven said again, feeling all the rush of confusion and shock and worry from him. “I felt your mind, I didn’t realize that you were actually tiny.”
“Raven, focus on something other than how small I am, please!” Dick said, voice a little more shrill in the youthful pitch than he expected. He flushed red and tried to look a little more dignified by straightening his shoulders, but he knew he probably looked more adorable than intimidating by the smile that curved on her face.
“We should wake the others.”
“We should.”
38 minutes later Dick sat at the table, at least a head shorter than everyone but Gar who was naturally shorter as well. It didn’t help that they took turns gawking at him before trying to look a little less shocked when kid Flash spoke up.
“Zatanna said she cannot get back to the States for at least two weeks, though she found a few spells she thinks she might be able to use.”
“Two Weeks!” Dick exclaimed, trying not to feel like he’d heard the most devastating news. “I can’t go home looking like this!”
“Have you informed Batman yet?” Donna asked delicately, “about your…condition?”
Dick looked a little concerned as his eyes drifted away from them, trying best to figure out how he’d explain it and shrugged. “I haven’t, no.”
“I for one would not mind having you for the weekend here. We could also enjoy a movie day.” Starfire looked around, everyone nodding who was going to stay.
“I really appreciate it but I’m not so sure I can get away from going home. They’d be awfully cross with me and I’d have no justifiable explanation.” Dick crossed his arms, shirt falling for the eighth time off his shoulder.
“I think turning back into a kid might qualify,” Vic said with a grin, “but you’re more than welcome to stay. If you need an esc-”
“I’m 19 years old! What do I need someone holding my hand for?” Dick looked indignant, and Donna had to turn away and hide the laughter that spilled out of her mouth.
“You look like you’re what, 7? 8?” Gar said, waving his finger around at him in a circle.
“11 at least!”
Donna’s laughter got stronger when Dick finally stood up from the table.
“Probably the best option is just…fine, I’ll call. The worst that can happen is…well…I get…”
“Grounded?” Donna said, no longer even trying to hide the peeling laughter. It was contagious, spreading across the young adults while Dick’s cheeks flashed redder and he stomped away.
“Laugh away now! Just you wait! I’ll be big again and make you all suffer!” He was pretty certain he didn’t look very intimidating being swallowed up by the shirt, oversized slippers flapping against the flooring, and voice squeaking, but by god he was going to keep some dignity. If one could have such a thing at…9?
He gave a heavy sigh and reached down to pick up the phone, punching in each digit with a bit too much force before he finally brought the receiver up to his ear.
“Wayne’s residence. Alfred Pennyworth speaking. How may I help you?”
“Alfred, yes, it's me Dick. I need you to come pick me up.”
“Jason?” Alfred sounded a little confused, mouth moving away from the receiver on his end as the voice got lower.
“No, I’m Dick.”
“Very funny, Young Master. You are far too old for such games, are you not?”
“No, this is not Jason. This is Dick . Please. I don’t want to explain this over the phone, or several times over. Can you please pick me up from the Titan’s Tower? I’ll explain it to everyone over lunch.”
“...Very well, but if I find that this is a prank, I might have to withhold your dessert this evening.”
Dick let out an exasperated groan, “I’ll see you soon. At the Tower.”
After hanging up the phone, Dick made his way back to his room and packed up his things along with the vial before he figured out how to make himself look at least somewhat presentable in some of his clothes. With his jacket swallowing him up and hiding the ill fitting swamp of clothes, he said his goodbyes. It was a little easier to joke around with them, trying to make light of the situation as it seemed he was not in any mortal danger just yet.
It wasn’t easy on the ride back home, Alfred’s curious and disbelieving glances making him feel restless. He knew there would be questions unending, more testing, and boy was he not looking forward to Jason lording over him. They’d come to a much better place but he still wasn’t exactly sure how it was going to go as he crossed his arms.
When he got into the manor Alfred surprised him with a few boxes in his room. “What’s that?”
“I had kept some of your old clothes, Master Dick, should the need arise and Master Bruce had taken in another lost soul. I did not think it should apply to such a case as this, but here we are. If you pick which items you’d like to wear, I shall see to its washing.”
“Thank you, Alfred,” Dick gave him a smile, opening up the boxes. It’d be nice to at least look decent. Though the designs were dated, there were a number of pieces that wouldn’t look out of place and look enough he was at the dining table waiting eagerly for Bruce and Jason to return from their last minute holiday shopping.
“I can’t believe how big a truck they had! I could almost fit right in it! I didn’t even know they had ones you could control like that.” Jason’s excited voice came through before Bruce’s chuckle stopped short, staring at Dick from the doorway. Jason popped his head in the side confused by the sudden change.
“I didn’ know we were having guests over.”
“Hi, Bruce,” Dick said, trying to offer a smile before he looked away. Bruce’s eyes were already narrowing when looked down to the table.
“Dick…”
“Dick?” Jason took a double take, pushing his way in and plopping down at the table across from him. “I didn’t know they made you in fun size.”
“Ah! Master Bruce, Master Jason, please sit. I have lunch prepared.” Alfred disappeared once more as Bruce came into the room and took his normal seat. A silence fell over them and once a plate had been set out for each of them and drinks served, Alfred stood to the side and waited.
Dick squared his shoulders and began to debrief them on the events that had transpired, eyes moving between the three of them until he’d come to the conclusion of his morning surprise. Where the Titans had responded with surprise, concern, and humor, the three of them had responded with surprise, concern, and horror.
“We should run tests, immediately.” Bruce was the first to talk, pushing his plate away.
“How old do you reckon you are?” Jason asked, sizing him up. “8?”
“I don’t know,” Dick conceded, “but I look about-”
“9,” Alfred said, smiling warmly. “You look as you did when you came to us. Roughly 10 years ago past this summer’s date, I might add.”
“A decade!” Jason was looking at Dick in a new light. “You can hardly run around in your disco outfit being that small. What’re you going to do now?”
“No, I can’t fit any of my normal clothes.”
“Mine might fit a little better, want some?” Jason offered and Dick felt warmed by it and gave him a smile.
“Thanks but Alfred had some of my old clothes from before, so I’m going to wear those.”
“Let’s go, Dick. I want to get your blood ran.”
“No offense, Bruce, but I’ve already ran my blood work. Kori’s computer is really advanced. It’s got all sorts of substances in the universe listed in it.”
“Be that as it may, I will feel better knowing I’ve done everything in my power to help figure this out.” Bruce pushed his chair back, and Dick frowned. He felt like a kid again, getting bossed around.
“I know I look like a kid, Bruce, but I’m not one! I’m 19!”
“And you’re still my ward, so please, let me do what I can to make sure you’re safe.”
Dick looked up to see that Bruce indeed looked distressed. It wasn’t everyday someone de-aged and he had to hand it to him that it was going a lot smoother than he’d expected. At least he didn’t think he was an alien or shapeshifter. He sighed and got to his feet as he wasn’t feeling particularly hungry anyways. “Alright. I even brought the vial. I knew you’d want to test it too.”
Jason hurried over, almost a head taller than him now and looked at the green goop with a sense of wonder. “It’s glowing! You didn’t mention that before.”
“Oh, well, yah, it glows and it even took away my scars. Ones I had when I was young.” Dick took off the too big slipper and showed Bruce his foot. “See it? The slice on the side of my foot is gone. I got that when I was 6.”
“Cool! If it didn’t turn you into a kid, it sounds like it would be helpful for people like us.”
“Jason, we have no idea what this is. It could be highly toxic.”
“It’s not radioactive. We’ve tested that too,” Dick assured him.
“I shall bring your plates down to the cave,” Alfred said, gently ushering them on as Bruce took the vial and they all headed down below the house.
Nothing had really changed since he was there a few weeks ago and after Bruce had taken all his samples of hair, saliva, blood, and urine, Dick was told to go busy himself while they waited for him to process it. Jason hovered around while they chatted about what it was like to suddenly be a kid again until finally they were walking through the cave when Jason suddenly stopped and got a wild look in his eyes.
“Let’s spar!”
“What?”
“Yah! Let’s spar! Usually you’re so much bigger than me, and we rarely get a chance as it is! Now I’m bigger and you gotta get used to your new body for now, right? I mean, you’re not giving up being Nightwing are you?”
“No! I’d never give it up but I can’t exactly run around with the Teen Titans now. Look at me?”
“Okay so you can’t be a Toddler Titan,” Jason said with a laugh. “So what? You were flying around with Bruce around this time, right? It’s just temporary. Not that the old man will ever admit it, but he misses you both fighting crime together. It's not like you have to go back to school.”
“Ugh! Can you imagine that?” Dick looked disturbed, “It’s bad enough that Bruce is trying to get me into college.”
“Hahaha! I can just picture it now, walking up to the admissions office and handing them your paperwork and they go, ‘excuse me young man, but this is a reputable establishment and kids are not allowed.’ Or or! ‘Where are you parents, young man?’ with a disapproving scowl and then they stumble over themselves when you present them your birth certificate and their eyeballs pop outta their heads!” Jason acted out the scenes, face full of laughter between serious moments and Dick couldn’t help but enjoy the idea of it, drawn into his imaginary world where he could jokingly tell off people looking like a 9 year old.
“Let’s spar. Let’s do it!”
Dick suddenly was full of energy and the two of them raced towards the training mats, fighting to be the fastest before they squared off. It was fun as they flung each other around, parried hits, rolled with punches, and though Dick kept misjudging what he was capable of and getting landed on his butt, soon he’d adjusted and began to take Jason down too.
It wasn’t until they were exhausted laying on their backs sweating like dogs did Dick look over to Jason with a smile. “You know, you’re not half bad.”
“Says the punk who got his butt handed to him!”
“Hey, I put you on your butt just as much near the end,” Dick said with a smirk.
“Yah yah, I just got soft on you, s’all. Can only push a kid down so many times before it hits you in the heart.”
“Oh sure, blame it on my newly acquired stature.”
“Then let’s do a rematch when you get back to normal. I’ve really been practicing hard. I can knock a few heads around, I tell ya!”
“Yah? Okay, let’s have a rematch, but I’m telling you, you’re going to eat dirt.”
“In your dreams, pipsqueak!”
“Hah!” Dick flipped up and over starting a wrestling match. Pinning and flipping, rolling around and grappling, soon they were so tired they couldn’t even keep each other down, much less throw the other off.
“I gotta hit the showers and you should too. Man you stink for a little guy,” Jason said with a grin. Their hair clung to their foreheads and necks and Dick nodded along in complete agreement as they dragged themselves to the showers. Alfred had been kind enough to come down with food and a pair of clothes that were freshly washed and dried. It was nice and comforting to be in clothes that nearly fit him again and he drank down his drink without taking a single pause. It didn’t take but a few gulps in when he suddenly remembered that Bruce had alerted him to a potential case.
“Hey Bruce,” Dick said as he got closer to him at the computer.
“Yes, what is it?”
“You mentioned something about a case. What’s happening?”
“Oh, right…Two-Face is at it again. A heist.”
“Let me help. I’ll patrol with you and Jason.”
“We can’t be sure that you won’t be compromised.”
“I just sparred with Jason and I feel great! I haven’t had this much energy in a long time, Bruce. Zatanna feels confident this is magic at work and found some information that looks really promising about pools of liquid that have similar qualities and the magic surrounding it. I just have to wait for her to get back to the States.”
Bruce looked back at his computer, the tall tale sign of his concentration resuming let Dick know that he was pausing the argument for the moment, considering his words and investigating further before making his own decision. Dick crossed his arms and looked up at the monitor as it continued to give the same type of answers he already had known and waited him out while Jason sat nearby on another monitor reading through case files.
It was strangely comfortable for them in a way it wasn’t when he was in his normal body. Maybe it was the nostalgia of being so short at Bruce’s side, computer looming high above him, but Dick found himself smiling, arms dropping to his side as Alfred came back with a refresher of tea for them all. For a fraction of a moment he even considered that it might not be so horrible if he was stuck this way for a while.
“Dinner will be ready in a few hours, Master Bruce. Master Richard, might I ask what you intend to wear for patrol this evening?” Alfred asked, an amused smile on his face. Dick knew it wouldn’t have been brought up if Alfred didn’t have an idea. It hit like lightning.
“No way! You kept my oldest uniform!”
“Indeed I did, Sir. I kept the very first ones for sentimental value. I’m afraid they might look slightly dated to Young Master Jason’s outfit, but I believe it will look quite smashing on you.”
“It hasn’t been decided,” Bruce interjected, eyes still concentrated on the monitor.
“Oh posh! We’re merely trying them on, aren’t we?”
“Just enjoying a trip down memory lane, Alfred.” Dick grinned wide with a nod.
Within the hour he was standing in front of his mirror, Jason off to the side with his hands in his pocket, Alfred fussing over the collar for a moment. He could feel the well of emotion in his chest, memories flooding him both daring and dangerous, but also sweet and simple. It was another time, another place, a feeling that he knew if he grasped at too hard would slip from his fingers. The mind he was in couldn’t process it as well though, stinging his eyes with tears, choking his voice a little.
“I can’t believe it fits!” he finally managed, turning this way and that, twirling his cape around, something he hadn’t had since he’d donned his Nightwing blue and gold outfit. As he spun the third time around he looked up to see Bruce in the doorway, a soft smile on his face as if he too were filled with the same tenderness of nostalgia.
“You must have been a pipsqueak then too,” Jason said fondly despite the jab.
“Oh that reminds me,” Dick said, getting a little more serious. He went over to his closet and fished out a present that he’d prepared for Christmas. The off white box was flatter and big, bowed up nicely with a dazzling red bow and he held it out to Jason. He could feel all their eyes on him and then Jason who looked completely surprised. “I had planned on waiting for Christmas day itself, but I think this is a better moment.”
“Oh, thanks, Dick. I really appreciate it,” Jason replied a little hesitantly. Though they hadn’t started their relationship out on the right foot, Dick was trying really hard to make up for the initial anger and jealousy, to let go of Bruce’s thoughtlessness. He couldn’t think of any better way to show that than give this to Jason. It was painful to watch how slow Jason took the bow apart, though it was fun to watch him take joy in it, butterflies in his stomach with nervousness on how everyone might react.
“You don’t mean it!” Jason said with a gasp, eyes lifting away from Dick’s older Robin suit. “But this is yours!”
“I don’t need it anymore. It’ll be a bit big on you now, but I think you’ll grow into it just fine. It’s yours Jay. You’re Robin now.”
“You really mean it.” The genuine amazement at the gift was evident in the pitch of Jason’s voice, and Dick almost felt a moment he thought his chest might burst. This was right. This was how it should have been in the start. Dick should have been the one to hand over his title and name and colors, but seeing Jason’s genuine appreciation gave him the reassurance that they could mend their relationship, even if Bruce didn’t understand.
“Dick…” Bruce began to say, stepping into the room. He looked worried watching the two of them.
“It’s okay.” Dick looked at him and smiled, nodding in a way that showed even if he looked 9, his maturity was far beyond it.
“What’re we gonna call you right now though?” Jason asked as he held the outfit close to him.
“Hmm…can’t very well call me Nightwing while I look like a Robin.”
“Robin 1?”
“That’s pretty lame,” Dick said with a laugh, watching Jason flush and look a little put out as he looked to the side. “But sure, till Zatanna can get me out of this mess, I’ll be Robin 1 and you can be Robin 2.”
“I haven’t agreed to this,” Bruce said sternly.
“I’ve been running missions on my own and with a team since I was 11 under all sorts of conditions, Bruce. I can handle this too.” Dick crossed his arms, attempting to look as resolute as one can as a child.
Bruce regarded the two of them for a moment and finally nodded. “So long as you remember who is in charge.”
“Yes! Time to put the thugs on their butts!” Jason jumped up and threw a fist up in the air.
“Shall we have supper before patrol?” Alfred asked, sweeping a white glove hand towards the door after Bruce’s retreating figure.
“I’m starving!” Jason said, running out with his box to take it to his room first.
“No running in the manor!” Alfred called out after him with a chiding tone. After changing back into everyday clothes, Dick met them all at the dinner table.
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Hours later all dressed and ready they piled into the batmobile. Bruce filled them in on more information that he’d been investigating on a heist with the Two-Face’s involvement. Jason didn’t seem nervous at all, explaining how he’d helped Bruce pick up clues of the two part plan to gain respect and more territory, and by the time they’d arrived at the Museum of Natural History, Dick was ready for the mission.
Thwarting a few goons was easy enough between the two of them, and though Jason and Dick hadn’t worked together, it only took a couple awkward moments before they fell into a rhythm. Jason could pack a bigger punch but Dick could slip in and under others, helping topple them back and over before well placed kicks kept them down.
Nearby the world’s largest Blue Diamond stood proudly in its case catching the low light of security lighting but turned brilliant when the overhead lighting suddenly cut on and men with revolvers came piling in. Instinctively Batman stood in front of them, gauging their intentions when a set of shoes sounded off the walls.
“Well now, it must be my lucky day if I’m seeing double!” Two-face said as he broke through the line of men, pistol in one hand and the other in his pocket. “How exciting!”
“Two-Face!” Jason said, coming out from the side as Dick came out from the other. Though their outfits were styled differently, they were still clearly both Robins.
“Oh that takes me back!” Two-Face said as he eyed Dick. “Feeling a little nostalgic, Batman?”
As if they’d practiced it a million times together, Batman activated the smoke bombs they’d placed around various displays and the gray clouds filled the air around them in seconds. Coughing and confused yells were erupting all over, but both Robins and Batman moved amongst them without hesitation, eyes protected by their domino masks and small masks on their mouths that they’d kept hidden were put on.
Guns were being confiscated, groans filling the air, and while Dick was making sure not to hurt anyone more than necessary, he could hear more yells and screams on the far end of the room where Jason was making his way around. His small fists were better used for knockout strikes, but more than anything, he enjoyed the advantage such a small body gave him. With a run he let himself fall and slid along the sleek stone flooring under Batman’s cloak between his legs and kicked up at a goon before they could shoot Batman in the back. He popped up off the ground, the old practiced move only seconds into action before Batman reached out and took Dick’s hand.
“Whoo-hoo!” Dick yelled out, running for a moment with the pull Batman gave him before he jumped and let the pendulum momentum carry him. With practiced timing, Dick felt himself let go, legs sturdy as he flew and toppled two men with a flying V kick.
“Save some for me!” Jason called out, jumping up and spin kicking another in the head from behind as the smoke began to clear out. They’d gotten almost everyone but the Blue Diamond was already pilfered in the chaos.
“Hurry! He can’t have gotten far with it!” Batman was already running by the time his words began to come out, and the Robins were quick on his heels. When the sound of his grappling hook engaged, shooting through the air, and the feel of air rushing against his hair and bare legs, Dick couldn’t help but feel the rush of adrenaline and excitement pulsing through him.
He was determined to follow along over rooftops, taking the pursuit seriously, but he also couldn’t help but laugh and hoot between jumps and swings. Even though he still did these kinds of things as Nightwing, there was something extra fun about being little with a cape again, following along Batman as if it were times gone by. And added yet, the sorrow he’d been encapsulated in when he was younger was lifted now with time and the competitive nature Jason brought with him, gave it all a new flavor and edge made him try even harder than before.
Two-Face was doing his best to get away in a town car, half hanging out of the back while another hung out the front and shot at them as they tried to keep up and get closer. If there was anything they could count on though, it was lots of traffic in Gotham, and with a few well placed batarangs, Batman had pulled Two-Face out of the car and began exchanging blows and Jason began to fight one of the emerging thugs.
Dick was trying to hold his own over a tall bulky man who actually knew how to fight. It wasn’t easy to twist and flip out of his way, making use of his acrobatics to avoid a direct hit from those ham fists, but unlike his days of old, he had a taser gun and pulled it out just as he did a split to duck. Hand thrusting forward as he fell, he engaged it on the man’s groin, swinging a foot and helping him drop to the ground with a thud.
“Hah!” Jason said, triumphantly standing on the thug he’d just boxed a tooth from when another came from behind, gun aimed at his head.
“Watch out!” Dick called, bataranging the piece away as it fired. Hearts stopped, the seconds to see a dribble of blood making Dick scramble to get closer when Jason turned around, white lenses masking but brows and grimaced mouth more than showing his anger and punched the stunned thug in the solar plexus. Batman was just finishing subding Two-Face when Dick pulled Jason off as best he could from the man’s sure to be broken or bruised ribs.
“Are you hurt?” Batman was quick to ask, seeing the blood trickling down the ear and side of Jason’s neck.
“Yah! Robin 1 got the gun just in time but it nicked my ear!” Jason’s angry voice was accompanied by another kick to the leg of the thug.
“Get them tied up, we’ll discuss this when we return to the cave.”
“Common, Robin 2, let’s focus,” Dick began to pull the men to the side, tying them all up to a nearby light pole as sirens sounded in the distance and the blue and red lights began to light up the night not too far away.
With Two-Face in custody and the Blue Diamond back in the hands of its rightful owners, they made their way back to the batmobile and rode the trek home in silence. Dick had managed to staunch the bleeding after several minutes of holding a piece of gauze to it from their emergency kit, but Jason’s expression was still rather upset.
“I had fun today,” Dick said, ignoring the icy feeling in the air.
“It…yah, it was fun,” Jason agreed, the anger in his face wavering slightly.
“I’m glad you only got nicked.”
“About that, thanks, I owe ya one,” Jason said a little more softly, though he looked away.
“It’s on the house.”
“It was carelessness. Gloating over another left him vulnerable,” Bruce said, his tone admonishing.
“Here we go,” Jason muttered, crossing his arms as Dick shifted in his seat and remained silent to see how their argument would play out.
“We’ve talked about this behavior before, Jason. How many times must I tell you that we do not continue to hit our opponents once we have disarmed and subdued them?”
“It all worked out, didn’t it? What’s the big deal? If you don’t teach them a lesson they’ll just be out there again in a week doing it all over again.”
“And what if Dick hadn’t been there? You’d be dead right now. We can never be too diligent against-”
“But Dick was there! I knew he’d have my back, just like I got his!” Jason turned his head, shooting daggers into the back of the seat in front of him where Batman sat.
“The mistake could have been avoided all together if you had kept yourself calm. One mistake and it's over for us, Jason. I need to know that you’re doing everything you can to minimize that risk as my partner.”
“I knew the risk when I signed up,” Jason insisted.
“Again, Dick won’t always be there. I won't always be there.”
“Heh, no kidding,” Jason said sourly, eyes jerking to look out the window as the vehicle came to a stop. Dick couldn’t help but wince at that, taking the stab to heart before he looked to see how Bruce’s stoic expression remained unchanged. As soon as the roof of the vehicle began to lift up, Jason ran off, ignoring Bruce’s calls for him to return. Dick slipped out and came to stand next to him, eyes drifting up once Jason was completely out of sight.
“I’ll talk to him, Bruce.”
“It’s my responsibility.”
“Yah, you should talk to him too, but I’ll talk to him first. You wouldn’t understand. It's a…Robin to Robin kind of thing.” Dick patted his arm and took off after Jason, feeling the need to distance himself from Bruce just as much. When Dick had first joined Bruce, they had their trials, developed trust, learned how to work together in a seamless way, but there had been lots of similar arguments, ones where Bruce’s well meanings were delivered in icy tones, but more than anything, Dick was often still being treated like a kid. Being left out of the circle for what Bruce thought was more dangerous things had always been a sore spot for him.
He found Jason in the library, sitting on the viewing couch aimed at the large window out to the garden. Though the curtains were still drawn back, there wasn’t much to be seen with the inner lights reflecting the interior of the room. It let Dick see that Jason was still angry, and when he caught Dick’s reflection in the glass he huffed and crossed his arms, legs drawn in.
“Hey…” Dick called softly, hopping down on the couch next to him.
“Hey yourself,” Jason said under his breath, looking away.
“You know, Bruce still lectures me,” Dick said, stretching his legs out. It was a little chilly in the manor and bare legs had goosebumps on them.
“Yah? I didn’t figure he’d ever lecture you,” Jason replied a little less angrily.
“He does. You know why though right?”
“Because he thinks he knows better.”
“Well, that’s true, that too, but there is another reason. Especially a reason like today.”
“And what’s that?” Jason asked, looking Dick’s way, willing to at least entertain an explanation.
“His parents were killed by a gun in front of him-”
“I know that! We all do.”
“Yah, and that’s why he’s shaken when he almost watched you die by a gun, right in front of him. Do you know how hard that is on him, feeling responsible for us, just like he feels responsible for what happened to his parents?”
“I know what it’s like to watch a parent die, Dickie,” Jason said grumpily.
“It's different, Jason. I’m not saying what happened to your mom was easy, and I imagine that’s why you have packed extra punches for those gangster thugs, but it's different feeling like you’re responsible for seeing your parents die, and then see that play out again later on.” Dick’s voice softened, his eyes falling away. It was so easy to remember what it was like when the very hands in his lap looked exactly as it did when it was all so fresh.
“What do you mean?”
“I saw the guy who killed my parents leaving the circus tent. I-”
“No, Dickie!” Jason turned around and snapped up a hand, “don’t you ever!”
Dick shook his head, suddenly overwhelmed with the bristling emotion. It took a moment for it to pass, all the while Jason’s gloved green hand holding his own tightly.
“I said the same thing to Bruce, but it doesn’t matter what other people tell you. We feel responsible. We feel at fault. We ask ourselves a million what ifs, and so, when he thinks that you’ll get killed, and it will be his fault, he’s trying everything he can to make sure you don’t die, Jason. It’ll kill him if he thinks he’s responsible. That’s why, even if I know he’s being unreasonable, I can understand where he’s coming from.”
Jason let out a sigh, the tension in his shoulders easing out as he looked to the side. “Okay, fine. I get it. But I still don’t see why he’s gotta be so mean about it.”
“You’re telling me,” Dick said, trying to brave a smile.
“Like, what’s so hard about giving a hug and saying, ‘that scares the crap outta me, but I’m glad you’re okay. Here’s some ways to do better.’”
Dick looked over to Jason with a lopsided smile, “common, you know Bruce is never going to do that, so why waste your time thinking about it. It’s why I had to go my own way after a while. I knew that at some point, I needed to be responsible for myself, find my own path, find friends who could help me grow into more than that.”
“The Teen Titans?”
“Yah. Say, how’d you like to come visit them with me? See what it’s like on the other side?”
“Really?” Jason sat up straighter, beaming again. Dick couldn’t help but chuckle and nodded.
“But promise me that you’ll try to understand more where Bruce is coming from. At least, that he does mean well. He just wants to make sure that you’re going to be safe. That he won't relieve that nightmare again.”
“Okay, I hear ya, I hear ya. I can try, but I can’t make promises that he’ll understand where I came from and what I saw. I know how these people really think and act. I lived it, Dickie. He just won’t believe me at all about it.”
Dick nodded and clasped his hand over their joined hands. “How about let's get showered and go to bed. It’s pretty late.”
“Aww, does wittle Dickie need a bedtime story?” Jason asked in a slightly mocking tone as he jumped up off the couch.
“Ha. ha. ha., no! But…I am pretty tired,” Dick grinned and stretched as he got up too. Before they could make their way out towards the sleeping wing of the manor, Bruce appeared before them in the hallway.
“I need to speak with you alone, Jason,” Bruce said, voice calm though he looked as if it would still be a stern talking to.
“Yes, sir,” Jason said, looking away as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
“Good night,” Dick said to them both.
“Dickie,” Bruce hurried to say, hand lifting as if to stop him.
“Yah, Bruce?”
“You did good tonight.”
Dick let out a little bit of air as he smiled, and looked over to Jason for a moment before he looked back at Bruce, “thanks. I enjoyed it a lot. The dynamic trio was fun. Let’s keep at it.”
Bruce nodded and Dick gave a little parting wave before he took a shower and got into bed.
Staring up at his own ceiling Dick felt a slew of conflicted feelings, but ultimately it hadn’t been a bad day. He couldn’t help but wonder what kind of conversation Jason and Bruce must be having, or if they’d ever reconcile their differences, or if eventually Jason too would break off on his own as he had and choose a path for himself. Either way, he knew the next few weeks were going to be a lot of fun.
**************************************************************
When Zatanna had finally arrived, Dick couldn’t be more happier. It wasn’t like being a kid again didn’t have its advantages, but he was ready to be an adult again, ready to get back to his team mates at the tower. He was ready to flirt again without making things very very awkward.
“I’m confident this is going to work,” Zatanna said, flipping through the pages of a book she’d gotten from a very old trusted warlock.
“Why do you say that?” Dick asked, curious again how it all worked.
“Well…It didn’t kill you the first time it touched you, and it’s not making you crazy now, so those were the big concerns.”
“You mean I could have instantly died with this? Or gone bonkers?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that’s reassuring…”
“So it’s important that everyone stay back and continue to not touch it when it comes back out,” Zatanna said, looking around the room with a warning look. Bruce and Alfred took many cautious steps backwards and Jason put his hands up and walked all the way back to the wall and crossed his arms while leaning against it.
“Don’t gotta tell me twice,” Jason said.
“We’ll store it in this large glass container and I’ll take it back to the warlock. It was his condition in lending me the book.”
“How nice of him,” Dick said, reaching out to touch one of the inked drawings that looked raised and embossed. His hand was slapped away with a bit of a grin.
“No touching.”
“Aww, okay.”
“Stand in the circle,” she ordered, backing away from him.
“Oh and you might want to take your clothes off. The magic only affects the body,” Zatanna said as she opened the dusty tome.
“You just want to see me naked, don’t you?” Dick questioned with an even bigger grin.
“Eww. You wish, batboy, emphasis on the boy . Now hurry up and change.”
Not long after, Dick was dressed in one of Bruce’s bathrobes, taking slow breaths to keep himself steady from the nervousness bubbling up in his stomach. Zatanna began to chant nonsensical sounding words to him, but executed them with precision and confidence as she raised a hand. A green mist began to form around him, pulling up out of his skin slowly, and just like when it had seeped into him, there was no pain.
Soon the mist had fully grown, blocking his ability to see the others with cascading thick smoky fog that glittered wet like sparkles. It wasn’t nearly as disturbing as the ache his body began to feel. It reminded him of days spent rubbing his legs when he’d gone through growing pains, with comforting hugs from Alfred while getting read to, but far more intense and quick across his whole body. He tried not to fight any of it, to keep his breathing in check, to keep his mind grounded but he fell to his hands and knees nonetheless and passed out when it became too much for his mind to process.
The smell of cologne was the first to hit his senses when Dick started coming to. It was familiar, expensive, and mixed pleasantly with the warmth of arms holding him safely. He might be 19, but there were moments where he still needed this kind of comfort, comfort that he didn’t know how to ask from Bruce. Jason was at his other side looking a little excited and concerned, Alfred and Zatanna hovering above with worried looks, and when he gazed up to Bruce he saw the same emotion in his gaze.
“Glad to see you’re awake, chum. How do you feel?” Bruce asked, pulling him into a hug.
“Like I got hit by a truck. A big one.” Dick was not as shocked to hear his normal voice again, but it was still a little strained as his body seemed to be growing more accustomed to its size again. He was shocked however that Bruce was holding him, hugging him, and he hugged back with a growing grin on his face. When the moment passed he slowly got up, pulling the bathrobe close so the now short just above his knee high length didn’t expose him unwillingly to the others.
“Shall I prepare dinner now, Sir, or shall we be enjoying more of Miss Zatanna’s shows?”
“That’d be great, Alfred. Thank you,” Bruce replied as he watched Dick stretching and bending. Though careful of the robe, Dick found that his body felt just as it had weeks ago and a cursory glance underneath the light fabric away from prying eyes brought his mind to peace. It felt good. It felt right. He was fully restored as far as his eyes could see.
With a new set of clothes on, a dinner eaten in good cheer, everyone was sitting in their main living room with a roaring fire. It was a kind of peace that Dick hadn’t expected and he looked out of the window at the falling snow. They’d come a long way together and he wondered just where they might all end up in the future.
“We should spar again,” Jason said, catching his attention with a look of challenge, grinning as he lifted up his fist and punched the air a few times. “Let’s see who ends up on their butts this time.”
“Yah, I’d like that,” Dick replied, throwing his arm over his shoulder as they headed towards the cave.