Blue Jay's Flight

Laser Tag

I slowly opened my eyes and nuzzled closer to what I had been sleeping on. I didn't register this, but Nightwing's legs were on either side of me and I was wrapped up in his arms. One of his arms was pressing my body to him and his other hand was resting on my head. His right knee was bent upwards and the other was stretched out.

My brain finally processed where I was and I quickly flew out of his arms. I hit the wall and fell to the ground with a painful grunt. My face was hot with embarrassment and my ears were on fire. I quickly hid my face in my hands and I heard Nightwing slowly get out of the bed.

"Morning, sunshine," he replied with a chuckle. "You fell right asleep and before I knew it, you had snuggled up nice and comfy up to me."

All I wanted to do right then was crawl up into a corner and die. Nightwing then knelt down and gently grabbed my wrists. He then pulled them away from my face and laughed. "Hey, I'm not complaining. Plus, it was nice not havving you beating the living shit out of my face. By the way, hor are your knuckles?"

We both looked down at them at the same time and I gasped. They were black and blue.

"Yeesh," he said and and made a painful noise. "Well, at least you didn't break them. But the way you were whaling on me, it could have."

I groaned. "You are never going to let me live that down, are you?"

He smiled. "Nope. But it's a compliment! Not very many people can do that. You caught me off gaurd and I paid the price for it." Yeah, he sure had. His face was still swollen from yesterday.

"What time is it?" I then asked.

"Eight in the morning," he replied and my eyes widened. "Yeah, you were out for that long. This event has really taken a toll on you. And so, I have something planned for the day."

I looked up at him in confusion as he stood up. He extended his hand towards me and I gingerly took it. He pulled me up to my feet. "What're we going to be doing?"

He gave me a mischievous smirk and said, "You'll find out. It'll start this evening, but trust me, you'll have a blast. This will be in your area of expertise, seeing how you can slide away from anyone's grasp just when they think they have you. I speak from experience."

I gave a weak smile. "You haven't changed a bit, Dick."

"What makes you say that?" he asked.

"You're still the cunning little Boy Wonder who wanted to save me from my oh so horrible life all those years ago," I replied. "You're still kind, caring, sweet little boy that you were back then."

He paused and looked down at me. "You're not the same," he finally replied after a few moments of silence. "You've been through more then you realize, yet you're still so strong. And I can't help but want to preserve that stength, which is why I'm so stubborn on saving your ass."

I looked down and bit my lip. Now, for the first time, I felt like he was right. Maybe I DID need saving. Maybe...just maybe...I needed Nightwing's help, and his alone. I furrowed my eyebrows and shifted uncomfortably.

I felt his hands on my shoulders and I looked up at him. "But that can wait. For now, you need a day off. Unfortunately, you're not gonna like my form of transportation..."

My eyes widened, but Nightwing was already on top of me and he had jammed something into my arm. The world spun and suddenly blackened.

I woke up in a car in the passenger seat. I slowly shifted into a more comfortable position and looked to my left. Dick was sitting there with a smug look on his face. "Hello, again," he greeted when he noticed that I was awake.

I groaned, "How long have I been out?"

"Almost an hour," he replied. "Don't worry, we're almost there."

"Where is 'there'?" I asked.

He smiled. "We're gonna play a game. It's called Laser Tag."

I lifted an eyebrow. "What the hell is Laser Tag?"

He smiled. "You'll find out. It's a game where you have these fake guns and shoot out beams of light. Both players are wearing a vest, the goal is to hit the other player with the gun. Everytime you do, you get ten points. It's really fun!"

I shrugged. "Why not?"

When we got there, everything was all glowy and I realized that it was lit by blacklights. Dick had grabbed my hand and was pulling me towards the PvP single room. He helped me put on the vest and showed me how to use the gun.

There was then a voice over the intercom said, "Players, are you ready?! On your mark! Get set! Go!"

There was suddenly utter silence and I closed my eyes to listen for footsteps. Dick had told me that the goal of this particular version of the game was more like hide and go seek. He had chosen the color red, so he was the seeker, and I was the hider. The goal was for me to not get hit and to get to the other side of the playing room, which was here. He had told me and Bruce Wayne had funded it, as a gift for a man who saved his life. Little did he know that I was well aware of who Batman was. You'd think a billionare playboy would crack a smile once in a while.

I then started to move forward with careful steps. I had agreed not to use my power of flight. I crept forward silently and swiftly. I pictured myself on the streets of Gotham, trying to to get spotted by Batman or Robin. I was very proficient at that.

"So!" I heard Nightwing's distant voice shout. "What'll be your first move, Jay?! You are allowed to shoot me! And then I'll be disabled for twenty seconds! You have all the time in the world to do this as well! But as soon as I hit you, game over!"

I smirked and whispered under my breath, "Challenge accepted, Boy Wonder."

I silently pressed on and went up a set of stairs. I then hid behind a pillar and listen carefully. Nothing. I then got up and continued in that direction. My footsteps didn't make a single sound as they hit the ground and I kept low to the ground.

I lunged behind a wall as I heard a shuffled from the other side. Then, there was a pause and I heard Dick snicker. "Well well well!" he shouted. "You are doing a great job, Jay!"

A flicker to my left caught my eye and I realized that I could see him in the mirrior. He had no idea that I could see him. I knew that the beam of like would reflect off of the mirror. I aimed carefully and shot one. His vest made a sudden noise and he looked down in surprise. I didn't take time to relish in the glory and booked it. I saw another series of stairs and I jumped down them. I landed silently and continued my persuit.

Crap. Dead end.

I quickly turned around and made another attempt in the laser tag maze. I heard him again and I rolled over behind a pillar. I shot at him again as soon as I spotted him and continued to run.

"Damn!" he shouted. "How do you keep doing that?!"

"Skills!" I couldn't resist shouting back. Probably a huge mistake, but hey! I've done stupider!

I heard him running after me and I turned to shoot him again. I hit my target and I heard him cuss loudly. I was almost there, when I suddenly faceplanted. Dick had pretty much tacked and then shot me.

I cursed. "Come on! I was so close!"

He laughed with his legs on eighter side of me. He sat up and sighed. "You did get very close, I'll admit. You were only twenty yards away. Unfortunately," he whispered and brought his face very close to mine, "you're not quite slick enough." His face was inches away from mine and both of his hands had pinned my wrists to the ground.

I felt my face blushing and he smirked. He then pressed his lips to my forehead and I froze on the spot. I was petrified from shock and he finally got off of me and pulled me up.

"This time-"

"I want a rematch!" I said before he could finsih. "I'm determind to beat you!"