I Forgot to Mention

Good Tim Hunting

"We don't have to talk about Batman."

Tim tried not to look like he had just let out a breath that he had been holding in. Still, he refused to let himself get comfortable in Black Canary's office. His stomach already felt like it was twisting itself into knots, and he didn't know how much longer he could take this level of scrutiny.

"We have an hour together," she reminded him yet again. "That's a long time to sit in silence for."

"What do you want to talk about?" Tim asked as he shifted in his seat.

"How about we talk about you?" She replied, clearly seeing through his attempt at deflection.

Tim shook his head, "There's not much that I can tell you."

"There's more to your identity than just your name," Canary told him. "Tell me, what's your favorite color?"

"...It's green," Tim said softly.

"Really? I would have thought it was red, considering that you go by 'Red Robin.'"

"That was actually Red Hood's idea," Tim explained. "Nightwing suggested the robin part."

Black Canary nodded, "You seem to value your predecessors' opinions very highly."

"I guess," Tim shrugged.

"What about outside of your hero life?" Black Canary asked him. "Do you have anyone in your home that you look up to as well?"

Yeah, my dad and my older brothers, Tim thought with a smile.

Of course, he couldn't actually tell her that, so he just shook his head no.

"I don't want to talk about my home."

"Alright," Black Canary thankfully agreed. "Let's stick with what we were doing before. What's your favorite food?"

"Pancakes," Tim told her, a bit more readily this time. "Especially the ones my grandfather makes."

"So, you live with your grandfather?" Black Canary raised an eyebrow.

Tim froze. He hadn't meant to add that part about Alfred...even if it was true. He needed to quickly throw her off the scent of his family's identity.

"I...sort of?"

Tim could practically hear Jason laughing at him, while their dad and Dick stood in the corner, shaking their heads in disappointment.

"I mean, yes," he quickly corrected. "But, he isn't my guardian or anything!"

"It's alright if he is," Black Canary replied. "Plenty of kids don't live with their parents, for a variety of reasons. It's perfectly normal."

"Don't I know it?" Tim mumbled under his breath.

Except, apparently he hadn't been as quiet as he thought he was.

"Red Robin, you understand that I only want to help you, right?"

Black Canary's tone was so gentle that it almost hurt to listen to.

"I know that putting on a mask and fighting bad guys can make you feel powerful, like you're in control of everything. There's nothing wrong with those feelings. However, when we aren't as in control of our day to day lives as we would like to be, then it's easy to hide behind that mask. To try and deal with these problems alone, and try to be our own hero. It's not your fault if someone is hurting you—"