The Last Talon

Chapter Twenty Four

Jason hated himself. How could he say those things to Dick? For the last year, they had all been relaying to Dick over and over again that being taken by the Court hadn't been his fault. And here he was, throwing it back in his face in one moment of weakness. He was a terrible person.

Like a dog with its tail between his legs, he made his way up the stairs and stopped outside of Dick's room. It was a couple of hours after their argument. Before Annie had gone down to the cave with Terry, she had given him a glare that said, "fix this."

He gently knocked on the door knowing Dick had probably heard him coming up the stairs, even if he was out on the roof. There was no answer, so he slowly opened the door just in case Dick was sleeping.

He looked around the empty room and saw the open window. Brooding on the roof seemed to be a habit Dick would never grow out of. Going over to the window, he called out as he usually did. He waited for several minutes but Dick did not appear, and he couldn't hear any movement from the roof.

'God damn it.' Jason muttered as he climbed out of the window and up onto the ledge of the roof above. With tentative steps, he walked over to a space by one of the chimneys, where Dick usually sat. But there was no one there.

'Dick?' Jason called, in case the boy was hiding. Other than the sound of the wind everything was quiet. 'Shit.'

He hurried back down to the room. He felt physically sick as memories flooded his mind of the day Dick had run away. Bruce had been panicked and his anxiety had been infectious. He had been 14 and his older brother had disappeared into the night without so much as a note. Even after he showed up in Jump and finally got back in touch, that night was still one of Jason's worst memories.

When he had taken over guardianship of Dick, he told himself he would be better than Bruce, he would give Dick no excuse to run away. It appeared he was no better.

He entered the cave and ran down the staircase.

'Dick's gone.' He said, expecting Annie and Bruce to freak out.

Annie did look slightly alarmed, but Bruce shrugged.

'What did you expect?' he said calmly.

'What?' Jason snapped.

'Jason, do you honestly think I went straight into the practice of letting a nine-year-old come out on patrol with me?' said the old man. 'I trained Dick to be Robin to keep him safe. Whether he went out with Batman or on his own, he was going to go.'

'So, he hasn't run away?' said Jason, the sickening feeling starting to settle.

Bruce leant over to the computer.

'McGinnis, is Dick with you?'

'No.'

'McGinnis.' Said Bruce in a warning tone his sons knew so well.

There was a moment's silence and then Terry answered. 'It wasn't my idea.'

Jason practically collapsed into an empty chair, running a hand through his hair. This kid was going to be the death of him.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

'You are in so much trouble.' Said Batman, looking over to the figure in black.

Dick had appeared at his side not long after he had set off from the Cave. He was wearing a black suit and was carrying escrima sticks on his back to replace his sword. The mask covering his face actually made him look more human. Dick shrugged, he had been very quiet since he'd arrived.

'When am I not?' His life seemed to be a constant routine of being grounded or being shot at. Sometimes both on the same day.

'Point taken.' Said Batman, 'Let's go.'