Sleeping Ninjas

Sleeping Ninjas: Chapter 4

Recently

KF jumped of his uncle. He faced the leaguers and worry was etched onto his face, (so were some scratches but you know... no time for that...).

"BATMAN! ARTEMIS IS ABOUT TO WAKE ROBIN UP!"

Present

Everyone just stared at KF. Did he really just... stumble... into their meeting just to say that? It wasn't till Batman got up and asked KF where Robin was that they were sent back to the world of reality.

"He's in the the mountain. And the rest of the team is there too!"

"Let's go. NOW."

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When Batman, Kid Flash, and the other leaguers came to Mt. Justice, they could honestly say that they did not expect to see what they were seeing.

Inside the entertainment room was utter chaos. The couch was overturned, feathers were everywhere, arrows on the ground, puddles of water, sharpies and whip cream were scattered everywhere.

But that was nothing compared to what they were seeing.

Artemis, Conner, Aqualad, and Miss Martin were pinned to the wall by batarangs. Exploding batarangs were attached onto the wall beside each of them. A string was right in front of them, that barley scraped their feet. The string, (if tripped which was very likely), unleashed a chain reaction. Buckets of water were innocently waiting over their heads, bows loaded with arrows point to each of them, electric currents just waiting for the circuit to be complete, were the LEAST deadly of the weapons pointed at them.

Robin was in battle stance facing the League and KF. He seemed to be more asleep than awake. His head was dropping to the left slightly, (as if a weight was pulling at it), and the whites of his mask were half closed. It was obvious that instead of sleep walking or sleep talking, Robin would sleep FIGHT if he was woken.

The Leaguers and KF watched as Batman walked right past Robin whose guard was down as he didn't even realize that the bat had walked past him into the kitchen. Everyone just stared at each other waiting.

"EEEPPPP!"

Robin squealed and shot his eyes wide open. He looked up towards the ceiling only to look down again quickly.

"EEEPPPP!"

Robin wrapped his arms around himself shaking his head rapidly. He spit out water that he had accidentally swalowed.

"EEEPPPP!"

Robin fall to his knees, eyes closed, shaking.

Batman was perched on a support beam directly above his protégé's head. He had repeatedly dumped buckets full of ice cold water over Robin. Batman jumped down and kneeled down by Robin. He pulled out his cape from behind him and wrapped Robin in it. Robin, who's  eyes were still closed and shaking rapidly, leaned into the warmth offered to him by his mentor's and father's body.

Robin shook his head, spraying water at everyone. Batman was the only one who seemed not to have minded, and just reached out to brush the plastered hair from his son's face. Robin stopped shaking and opened his eyes.

The League members who had come with Batman plus Wally were just watching their fellow member with surprise, (though they had known the love between Father and Son, it always caught them of guard to how much Batman really cared for his son), and the Team, still pinned back to the walls, gaped at the supposed ferocious bat.

Batman slowly rose to his feet, pulling Robin up with him. Robin sighed and leaned closer into Batman's side, trying to escape the light that had pulled him from his pleasant dream. Batman tore his gaze away from Robin and glared at the League members there, who immediately broke eye contact. They understood the message and briskly began to get the teens off the wall. Wally just stood off to the side, watching.

When Green Arrow walked by, his hand on Artemis' shoulder, he joked.

"I told you not to wake him. But does anyone ever listen to meeeeeee? Noooooooo!"

"Shut it Baywatch!"

They all refocused to Batman and Robin when a motion was caught from the corner of their eyes. Batman picked Robin up, bridal style, and stared the Team dead in the eye.

"Clean this up."

Immediately, shouts of protests were thrown out into the air but were silenced with a glare.

"Now."

Robin sneezed, reminding them that he was still in his drenched suit. Batman shifted his hold, so Robin was being pulled closer to his body and the warmth was keeping him from shaking once again.

Robin was once again, asleep.

Batman turned heel, and left, yet on his way out, he remembered to pick up the stuffed elephant sitting on the sofa, unharmed. He gave Peanut to Robin, who's fist reacted by tightening his grip on it. Batman left the Leaguers and Team members in the middle of a sleepy, delusional battlefield.

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After leaving the Mountain, Batman returned to the Bat Cave. He changed Robin out of his soaked clothes into a pair of sweatpants and one of the youth's hoodies.

Batman, now Bruce Wayne, set his ward, Richard Grayson, onto the bed. The child rolled over, onto his side, and curled up, grip never loosening on the precious elephant. Bruce smirked at the adorableness of his ward.

Memories....

Bruce pulled the cover over his son and smiled before leaving the room. He silently closed the door, and came face to face with his basically second-father, Alfred.

"Master Richard pushed himself to his limits again."

"You don't sound surprised."

Alfred sighed in annoyance, yet amusement was clearly etched onto his facial features.

"Come Master Bruce. We might as well let him have some sleep."

Bruce nodded and left to join Alfred in the study.

But not before opening the door a crack, and peering back at his son.

Richard had a content smile on his face.

Just as Bruce closed the door, a whisper broke the silence.

"Thank you."

And as an immediate afterthought:

"I love you, Tati."

Bruce whisper back, not knowing (or caring) if Richard was actually listening.

"I love you too."

Ending was truthfully not what I was expecting, but remember that this was written before I even had the IDEA of The Only Escape. As you can tell, where and what I bold and italicize is different. I like to think that I have improved. This was actually planned to be a two-shot but I extended it to be four chapters. Either way, I hoped you enjoyed this.

-NightFlyStars

P.S. The Only Escape and Buried Secrets will be updated soon!!!