I Forgot to Mention

Off the Record

Tim reeled back from his laptop, heart pounding, as he attempted to make any actual sense out of what he had just found.  While admittedly, it wasn't the smartest move to spend his afternoon accessing the Batcomputer without permission, let alone looking into anything related to THAT night, Tim just had to know! Dick had so far been tight lipped about what exactly he and Damian went through at the Justice League's mountain base.  And, unfortunately, equally silent on the state of the sidekicks.  It wasn't like he believed that the teenagers were seriously injured or anything, if that were the case then Dick surely would have mentioned it...probably.  But aside from Kid Flash and Superman's clone, the others seemed in less than stellar condition. Of course, that's kind of how one tends to look when unconscious. So, with the all of the good intentions he could feasibly justify through a minimal amount of mental gymnastics, Tim got to work.

Dick might arguably be the better hacker in the family, but Tim was no novice to the skill. Had Jason not been intentionally trying to trap their older brother with the week's latest scheme, and thus shudder off at least some of the blame from his own guilty shoulders, he would have certainly gone to Tim first. It wasn't easy, but the backdoor exposed by Dick still had yet to be patched by their dad. And, had he not stumbled upon what appeared to be a file containing the recording of a call between Mt. Justice and the Batcave, Tim might have thought longer on what could've possibly distracted the man enough not to take care of such a glaring oversight. But now, all Tim wanted to do was close his laptop and travel back in time to approximately half an hour earlier. Back to when he didn't know about the deal his dad had brokered in order to protect them from the Justice League.

By selling us out! An unfamiliarly bitter part of his mind rumbled, though Tim was quick to push the thought away.

It was their own faults for breaking the rules, and subsequently exposing their existence to the hero community. Dad had always warned that there would be consequences for such careless actions. Tim just figured it would happen much later into his tenure, as Red Robin has only been an active crime fighter for barely two years.

***
Tim was struggling not to preen in the bathroom mirror, as he was determined to present himself with all the maturity of someone who deserved to be in this role. But, it was still the first time he had gotten to wear his suit since receiving it earlier that night, and Alfred had done a REMARKABLE job in creating it! From the black colored cape, gloves and boots, to the dark red outfit that somehow clung perfectly to his young frame, Tim briefly wondered if Alfred could have been a tailor in a past life. He absolutely couldn't wait to go downstairs and show everyone...though, maybe just a few more seconds of looking. Got to make sure everything was still perfect, after all.

Down in the Batcave, his older brothers ambushed him. Both already dressed in their own crime fighting outfits.

"Looking sharp, Timmy," Dick commented, letting out an exaggerated whistle that sent a wave of confidence through the nine year old.

"Of course he looks halfway decent," Jason interjected, "He isn't wearing bright blue!"

The eyes of Dick's mask narrowed, "It's called 'cyan.'"

"Just be glad I didn't call it 'toilet water.'" After a brief moment of basking in Dick's nearly palpable annoyance, Jason turned his attention back to Tim. "Speaking of which. What exactly do you think you're going to call yourself?"

Tim held back a nervous frown. While he hadn't spent his ENTIRE life coming up with the perfect field name, he had certainly dedicated a good amount of time to the task after learning of his adoptive family's lifestyle. Still, he hadn't exactly been able to come up with anything really concrete yet...