Knock knock!
Dick jumped out of bed as he heard the two knocks on his door.
"Yes?" He spoke groggily. He had completely passed out after his nightmare. To be honest, it was probably because he wasn't used to the amazing sleeping conditions.
"Master, Dick. I believe you should wake up and prepare yourself if you do not wish to eat a cold breakfast." Alfred's calm voice said though the thin door.
"Yeah, thanks for waking me." Dick had completely forgotten that he was staying with Bruce when he first woke up during his nightmare. Honestly, it was kind of weird. He barley knew Batman, but he knew that Bruce wanted to protect him no matter the case.
So, with that in mind Dick quickly readied himself and then headed down the stairs.
There were two seats that had plates near them, so Dick decided to sit on the one that wasn't at the end of the table. That would obviously be Bruce seat. The table was long, Dick wasn't even sure why if, according to Alfred, it was usually just the two of them around.
On the glass plate were some scrambled eggs and French toast. Dick couldn't remember the last time that he had something that even smelled close to this good. Next to each plate was a glass or orange juice, a napkin, and silverware.
"Good morning, Master Bruce." Alfred greeted causing Dick to turn around. Bruce was dressed in a formal black jacket over a white dress shirt and it was accompanied by a teal tie.
"Good morning, Alfred, and to you too Dick."
"Good morning." Dick said lightly. He wasn't used to people being this kind to him. It seemed weird... Almost as if they were plotting something against him. He was just waiting for them to say 'just kidding' and laugh in his face as some diabolical plan took place.
Bruce sat down in his chair, and was about to take a bite into his French toast when a beeping emitted from his phone. Seeing that Bruce had yet to eat, Dick set his fork down and waited. Bruce soon noticed this,"You don't have to wait for me to eat before you do."
Dick cocked his head," You sure?"
"Positive." Bruce then began typing on his phone.
Dick then cautiously picked his fork back up and stabbed a small piece of French toast. Then, keeping his eyes on Bruce, he slowly put the food in his mouth and eventually finished it.
Normally, he would be enjoying the richness of the bread as he ate it, but he was so confused. Wasn't it normal to wait for the head of the house to eat before you could eat?
Bruce then placed his phone down and he too began to eat his breakfast.
Dick kept his head low as he ate. A question was gnawing at his mind, but he feared to ask. Perhaps he would be turned down or punished for asking such a thing.
"Something on your mind?" Bruce asked noticing Dicks distress. Dick suddenly jerked his head up and sent a forced smile.
"It's nothing." Dick tried to shake away the topic.
"Are you sure? Is it the food? I can have Alfred make you something new if you would like."
Dick shook his head and put up his hands,"No, no, the foods great- but.... I just-I wanted to ask something, but it's dumb. It doesn't really matter..."
"Are you sure?" Bruce asked making Dick want to just blurt out his question, but he refused to. What was the worst that could happen? He would say no? Actually, that was probably the best case scenario (other than him answering yes, of course).
"Yes, I'm sure." Dick turned his eyes away from the older man.
Then they continued to eat in silence as if nothing as occurred. Sure, Dick probably should have started a conversation, but well, his "people skills" were rusty.
Fortunately, he didn't have to say anything, for Bruce did,"I need to ask you something."
"Ask away." Dick responded getting somewhat nervous. Was he going to kick him out already? Had he decided that he was more pain then he was worth?
"The night your parents passed, you told me that their death was not an accident. You told me that someone had sabotaged their act."
Dick immediately tensed.
He had told him that, hadn't he....
"Dick, who killed them?"
Dick lowered his head not wanting to respond, but he knew that he had to,"A man named Tony Zucco." He would have lowered his head more if the strain on his neck was not unbearable.
Bruce squinted his eyes,"Tony Zucco? Why do I know that name?"
"He was a mob boss..." Dick trailed off hoping Bruce didn't know anything about Tony's death.
"That's not why. What else can you tell me?"
"Well... I know he was in an.... accident." Dick visibly winced.
"He's dead,"Bruce spoke as if a light bulb went off in his head."I remember when his body was found. He had been tortured horribly, only to be killed, but no one ever found the killer. Who killed him, Dick?"
"I didn't!" Dick immediately shouted out,"I told him not to. I tried, I begged him to stop, but he said that it needed to be done."
"Who?"
"My uncle. "
"Why?" Bruce asked knowing that there had to be more of a reason that just because he killed the Flying Grayson's.
"He believed that if I saw Tony tortured and murdered, then I would stop thinking that killing was a bad think. Of course, it wasn't going to work, but it didn't stop him from trying." Dick spoke fast as if just speaking the words were a pain.
Bruce slightly nodded as he continued to eat his breakfast. He saw that Dick was still haunted by the memory and decided not to dig deeper.
The memory sent chills down Dicks spine. He hated thinking of all the times his Uncle made him witness something awful like that. The thought almost made him forgot about what he had wanted to ask Bruce, but he really needed to do this. No matter how scared he was to ask.
"Um, Bruce?"
"Yes?" Bruce looked at Dick.
It wasn't too late to back out. He could just ask another day, right? Yup, that sounded like a plan.
No.... He had to.... It would be wrong not to.
"I was wondering and I really wanted to know if...,"Dick sped up the last part,"I could go and visit my parents grave." Dick then pulled his head back and shut his eyes as if he was expecting Bruce to beat him for asking such a question. Bruce's heart practically broke knowing that, but he was also filled with anger knowing that the Court of Owls was the reason for it.
"Of course."
Dick slowly opened one eye, and then the next," Really?"
"Yes, I'm sure Alfred wouldn't mind. Just tell him when you're ready."
"Thank you." Dick nodded quickly,"Thank you, so much,"A smile then appeared on Dicks face,"So, Bruce Wayne? Ha, I still can't get over that. A billionaire playboy. That's great."
Bruce sighed as a small smile too crept onto his lips. Maybe taking in Dick would have a lot more advantages than he previously believed.
---
Dicks new shoes crunched in the grass. He had agreed with Alfred to go shopping first, and then, to go to the cemetery. Shopping hadn't been too bad of an experience, but he felt cramped with all the people in the clothing store. Alfred had also suggested that he buy a pair of sunglasses so he could stay hidden in the public without being too obvious, so Dick obliged, even though he looked like a total douche when he wore them indoors.
They also went to a small flower shop and picked up some yellow roses. They were his Mothers favorite flower, for a reason Dick didn't know. She had never been fond of the common blood red roses. Probably because everyone loved them and they weren't different or special compared to the other variety of roses.
Dick hadn't been to the cemetery since his parents died. The Juvie never let him go and his Uncle was against the idea of him still holding on to his parents memory. So, it had been four years since Dick had visited and honestly the thought broke his heart.
Mary Grayson
Wife, Mother, Friend
John Grayson
Husband, Father, Friend
He read his parents name on their tombstones as he felt his knees collapse under him. He didn't think his emotions would spill when he saw their tombs, but they did. Tears streamed from his eyes with no intention of stopping anytime soon.
"H-hi, Mami, Tati." Dick spoke shakily,"I've miss you so much. I'm so sorry I've never been able to visit."
And that was all he said as he continue to bawl on the floor in front of their tombs. What he would give to have them back...
After about ten minutes, Dick found himself wiping the tears from his eyes,"For so long, I imagined myself coming here to visit y'all. Though, I always struggled with what I would say. What does one person say to their dead parents? I miss you? I love you? I'm not going to keep saying that. After recent events, I'm now certain what I want- need to say."
He took a shaky breathe,"Thank you," He spoke as if they were the last words he would ever say,"I've been through so much, with the detention center, with the Court of Owls... They were all awful. They didn't care about my needs or what I wanted, but y'all did. You cared. If I wanted to grow up and stay in the circus, you would let me. If I wanted to grow up and become- well, even an ice cream truck driver (no offense to ice cream truck drivers, cause well, I love ice cream) you would let me. All because you knew that it would make me happy. You didn't care about what you wanted. You didn't beat me bloody if I didn't obey. You just took away my dessert for the night. You made my bed time earlier, and honestly, I didn't realize how great that was until it was taken away from me."
Dick let out a small laugh as more tears fell from his eyes.
"I should have done more. I should have been a better child. Maybe y'all would still be alive if I was.... I just- I wish things could go back to the way they were, before everything went downhill. Before I realized the true meaning of pain."
Dick was silent for a while. Nothing was heard from him but his soft cries and the every now and then sniffle.
"You both were the best parents I could ask for. And I'm so sorry it took both of you to die for me to realize that...." He placed the roses in the middle of both tombs and stood up,"Thank you."
---
After Bruce came home from work, he immediately asked Dick if he was well enough to perform. Dick wasn't sure exactly what he meant, but apparently, Bruce wanted to test his skills and see what he needed improvement on. So, that's how Dick ended up in the Batcave alone.
Honestly, Robin thought the Batcave was pretty cool. The gadgets were extremely high tech, and just the place itself seemed to calm Robin. Yeah, dark and scary doesn't seem very calming, but when you grow up with the Court of Owls, pretty much anything is relaxing.
Recognized: Superman 01
Robin jumped as the zeta tube called out someone's arrival. He wanted to raise his weapons, but as soon as he saw the man, he wasn't so sure.
He was large and buff and had muscles that were larger than Robins head.
Yes, he definitely looked like a threat, but he also had the hero look to him. Partially because of the funny and bright costume he wore.
"Who are you?" Robin called out as the man neared him, causing Robin to slowly move back. He wasn't sure who this guy was, or the extent of his abilities, so Robin decided to keep his distance. Though there was also the fact that Robin was actually scared. Ever since the incident with the Talon, he felt himself to be always on high alert and just waiting for something to go wrong. He felt weak, vulnerable. Like, someone could just kill him with a stare.
Dick tensed as his back hit the cave wall. If this man was going to hurt him, he was going to do it now, but he didn't seem to want to hurt Robin.
"Hello," The man spoke,"I'm Superman. And you are?"
Dicks fear quickly diminished,"Superman? Like Superboy?"
"Kind of," Dick noticed the frown that followed.
"Superman." The gruff voice of Batman said as he saw the man.
"Bruce." Superman greeted the Dark Knight,"I was just introducing myself to your new partner."
Batman sent Dick a look reading are-you-okay? Most likely because Dick probably looked terrified without Batman and some alien he didn't know.
"I suspect you came for another reason."
"Yes, information on a case." Superman replied.
"Robin, would you mind leaving us to talk? I'm sure Alfred could use some company."
Dick nodded as he quickly scurried away.
"Clark, so what information do you have?"
"I'll tell you, but I want to ask about your partner first."
"Fine." Batman kept his nonchalant expression. Honestly, he didn't want to answer any of his questions, but whatever it took to get him out of there faster.
"You said that he's Dick Grayson? The kid that you had wanted to take in a few years ago."
"That is true."
Superman paused for a moment,"Do you even know how to take care of a child?"
"I was once a child. It should be easy enough."
Superman let out a sigh,"That doesn't mean you can take care of one, Bruce. A child needs to constantly be with their guardian, and you're always going to be busy, whether as Batman or Bruce Wayne."
"It's not like he's exactly had the best role models with the Court of Owls. I doubt he will expect much."
"So, you're just going to use that as an excuse to not raise him correctly? Bruce, think about it, if you don't raise him right, he might actually become a stone cold killer like he was trained to be."
"I don't think you have the right to tell me that, with the way you've been treating Superboy."
"That's different, and you know that."
Batman sent the kryptonian a glare ,"Just give me the information you have obtained."
Thank you to everyone who wished me a Happy Birthday! I tried to say Thank you to everyone, but realized it would be much easier if I just did it this way. It definitely made my day, even if some of you guys were late, it just made me happy on a day that wasn't even my birthday. So thanks so much!!!
Also, sorry for any mistakes, I know it's been a while since I've updated and I really wanted to post this today! So here you go and feel free to notify me if I made any grammar or spelling errors.