Protect The Batboys

recovery

Dick had been home from the hospital for two days and was already a little annoyed with his teammates babying him. He knew that they didn't know just how often he dealt with Scarecrow and his drugs, but they wouldn't even leave him alone for ten minutes. They said they just wanted to make sure he was fine 'after going through such a horrible ordeal' (Miss Martian's words), so they were following him around like guard dogs despite his and Tim's insistence that he was fine.

So that was how Dick found himself hiding in the Batcave after sneaking away during a 'changing of the guard'.

He was finishing up a solo training routine when Damian entered the cave from behind the grandfather clock, his phone in hand with a furrowed brow. Dick wiped the sweat from his forehead as he approached his younger brother. "You're escaping the team too?"

Damian looked up from his phone, sliding it into his pocket after a moment. "Hmm? Oh, no. I am here to train as well. Care to spar?" Damian smirked, walking around Dick to the sparring ring.

Dick followed his lead, getting into a fighting stance. He waited for Damian to charge him, blocking the kick he aimed for his head with his forearm. "Why were you looking at your phone like that?"

"Why are you being nosy, Grayson?" Damian tutted, ducking under Dick's punch and swiping the older boy's legs out from under him.

Dick sprang up to his feet and got into a defensive position, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm your brother, its what we do."

Damian sighed, pretending to relax. Dick mistakenly took this opportunity to strike, aiming a chop at Damian's neck. The younger boy grabbed his arm and tossed him over his shoulder, staring down at Dick with a smug grin. "If you must know, it was my mother. She has been emailing me for the past few weeks, asking me to put Father on the phone."

"And why haven't you?" Dick asked, accepting Damian's helping hand.

Damian shrugged. "If it was important enough, she would have gotten in contact with him directly. Come on, I think the Martian has cooked up some lunch."

Dick bit back a groan. He loved his friends, he really did, they just have been so much lately. But he figured he had to face them sooner rather than later so he followed Damian up the stairs once the coast was clear. The two brothers made their way into the dining room to find the team and Tim digging into a simple meal of spaghetti and red sauce. They took their seats without saying a word, ignoring the looks they got from the team.

"And where have you two been?" Conner asked, sipping his water as he stared at them over the rim of his glass.

"In the gym, mom." Dick bit back harshly, wincing at his tone. "Sorry, its just, can you guys back off a bit? I'm seventeen, I don't need a babysitter."

"Clearly you do, seeing as you inject yourself with toxins." Artemis muttered under her breath but still loud enough for the brothers to hear.

Dick slammed his hands down on the table. "For the last time, I did that to save everyone because you five are clearly incompetent! I mean, how did Scarecrow get past you lot and get to me, huh? If I didn't do that, the whole gala would have been attacked by Scarecrow goons!"

The team froze, all eyes turning to the eldest. "How do you know?"

"That's the way he works. He gets his money, leaves, and sends in his minions to steal even more money for him. Trust me, live in Gotham long enough and you know how it works." Dick covered his tracks, not admitting that he heard Scarecrow's earpiece go off when he was being held hostage. "You five need more practice with Gotham rogues if you ever want to protect us properly."

"You're alive, aren't you? I think we did just fine." Wally snarked through a mouthful of spaghetti.

"Its not our fault our resident Gotham dwellers are away with Batman." Kaldur looked over at Damian when he tutted, eyeing the small child. "But would you be willing to give us a run down of the rogues so we know what to expect?"

Tim shrugged. "I guess, but you only have two and a half weeks left. I doubt you will come across more trouble with us."

"We will have more trouble from you." Artemis grumbled. "But sure, the lessons will be after lunch. The sooner we know, the sooner we can start training."

The Wayne brothers exchanged looks. "We will start compiling information right away. Meet us in the library."

So that is how the team found themselves surrounded by stacks of paper sprawled around them with a power-point presentation projected on the wall of the Wayne Manor library an hour later, with Tim shaking from sleep deprivation and too much caffeine in his system ranting about rogues while Damian held his head and Dick nodded along eagerly.