No Nuance November

Little Wing

"Do you remember the emergency frequency if you need to reach me?" Bruce asked him for the fourth time.

"I open the window and yell really loud for Superman." Jason answered, voice filled with underserved confidence.

"Jay-"

"Yes I know the frequency. Unless it changed within the last 10 minutes since you asked me."

Bruce nodded before returning back to making sure his suit was in order.

It wasn't the first League mission he'd gone on since Jason had joined them but it was the first off world one. It'd never been that difficult to get back if something did happen. While Bruce was very clearly nervous and doing the worst job ever of hiding it, Jason was excited.

The other times he'd left Jason in Gotham, he'd left very specific instructions to not go out. He didn't want Jason patrolling alone yet. While he appreciated the concern, he found it slightly grating after a while.

He was Robin, he grew up on the streets in a way Batman hadn't, he could take care of himself. There was just no convincing Bruce of this.

But now, he was projected to be gone for at least a week, maybe longer. Gotham couldn't be left unmonitored for that long, and with Barbara being busy, it left Jason to handle the homefront.

He was more than ready to prove himself.

"I'm gonna get my homework finished." Jason called out to him. "Unless of course you wanted to make sure I knew where the panic room was?"

"Jay before you head upstairs," Bruce called out to him. "I'm leaving in the morning. You are staying put tonight to make sure you're caught up on everything before I go."

Jason knew that tactic. One last check to make sure nothing was going on that he could run interference for before he left.

He decided to let Bruce have it. One more night of coddling and then it'd be on him. The excitement thrummed in his veins. He was ready. He knew he was. Bruce hadn't told him not to patrol or anything. Jason actually had the full green light.

"That's fine. It lets me get a head start on some stuff too."

He'd long finished his school work. It was always one of the first things he did when he got home. He didn't want to get behind, and boy was it easy to get behind.

He hadn't been this excited since his first ever patrol with Batman. Of course the thrill never fully went away every night but the expectations had changed dramatically. Nothing he'd done could quite top the excitement that came with Robin.

He couldn't sleep either. He wanted it to be tomorrow night. He wanted to prove himself.

Robin had patrolled Gotham on his own before but that had been before Jason, but he'd been as old as Jason. If he could do it then Jason certainly could.

Jason was up before the sun.

Breakfast was a muted affair. The energy was weird. Between the adrenaline Jason felt and the all encompassing dread Bruce was radiating didn't mix that well.

When Jason came with his book bag ready to go Bruce seemed to be confirming a few things with Alfred in a hushed tone.

"You never did hear from him did you?" Bruce asked

Alfred hesitated slightly. "You know how he is."

"Yes well, you think he would still let at least you know." He glanced past Alfred to Jason.

He gripped Jason's shoulder, kneeling so he was eye level with him "Please be careful lad." There was a tone that Jason didn't hear very often.

Jason set his jaw. "You're worried for nothing. I'm Robin, I got this."