Getting to know you

Beware the Court of Owls

Dick grunted as he walked, holding his side. In a daring escape from the Court of Owls, he'd gotten injured. The red blood ran down his side, the Court having decided he was an expendable Talon, the only thing done to him was heightened senses. While they normally resulted in the gold eyes Gotham had learned to fear, Dick had managed to keep his beautiful blue eyes, with gold flecks added into them.

He knew where he wanted to go. The Court wouldn't chase him down, but he'd need to lay low for a few days. Hopefully they'd listen enough to know what was going on. Dick attempted to take another step, but his shaking leg collapsed, and he crashed to the ground. He pushed himself up, shaking his head. He had to continue, he had to get help.

Using the wall as support, he made his way down the long tunnel used for the fabled car. He finally came to the end of the tunnel to see the bright computer, glad he still had his Talon googles on.

There sat Batman and his three kids, Red Hood, Red Robin, and Robin. They were looking at something on the computer, completely oblivious to Dick. "Please...help me." Dick coughed at the end, definitely catching their attention. No one was supposed to be in the cave besides them and Alfred.

The four spun around to see the injured Talon. "Who are you?" "Y-you may know me as Talon. I-I'm not here to hurt you, I swear. I need somewhere to lay low for a few days, until the Court gives up on looking for me." Batman's glare increased when he saw the blood. "Why haven't you healed?" "N-no healing factor. I'm an expendable Talon. We don't get the blood that helps us heal, w-we just get our blood. If we lose too much, oh well."

Batman stepped forward. "Where are your weapons?" "Expendables aren't given those either, unless they're on a mission. I-If you don't believe me, you can search me." "Let's get you medical attention, first." "How do we know we can trust him?" Red Hood snarled, his gun still trained on Dick. "If you don't believe me as Talon, maybe you'll believe me as the boy who was supposed to be your brother." Dick took his mask off, but left the googles on.

"My name is Dick Grayson. I was kidnapped before Bruce Wayne could adopt me eight years ago. I-I'm sixteen years old, R-Romani decent, with my parents deceased. Tim Drake was there t-the night my parents died." Bruce paled. "Dick?" Dick nodded, seeing black dots.

Batman pulled down his cowl to see what had happened to the lively young boy. "Please, I-I'm not asking much, just somewhere to duck for the next few days. I'll s-stay wherever, I just need somewhere t-to go." Bruce walked over and draped one of Dick's arms over his shoulders. "Let's get you to the med-bay. Damian, call Alfred, tell him it's an emergency. Tim, help me get him to the med-bay."

Tim rushed over and draped Dick's other arm over his shoulders. Jason went to the med-bay, knowing his medical knowledge could sustain until Alfred arrived. Bruce and Tim supported Dick's weight as they walked, trying to keep him awake. "Hey, stay with me." Bruce whispered. "M starting to see black dots." Dick's head was dropping.

Bruce laid Dick down on the gurney, applying pressure to the wound. "Before you go unconscious, can the Court track you?" "Used to have a tracker in my arm. Cut it out about fifty miles from here... and threw it into an empty field about forty seven. Made sure it was far enough so that no one would get hurt." Dick rolled his arm, revealing the long cut he'd made.

"How'd you cut it out if you had no weapons?" "Grabbed a knife off one of my attackers. Left it with the tracker. Didn't want...to insinuate anything by bringing a weapon to the cave." Tim grabbed his hand. "Hang on. Alfred will be here any second."

Jason was busy stitching up the wound on Dick's arm. This guy was supposed to be his brother? Why had he never known he was supposed to have a big brother? Even through the googles, Jason could see Dick's eyes clearly weren't gold, but they were closing fast.

"Dammit. Hang on, Dickie, we're gonna get you through this." Jason cursed under his breath, using a slightly more colorful word than what he had. "Language, Jason." "Don't you guys...have a swear jar or somethin?" "If we did, Jason would go broke every month."

Alfred appeared, motioning for Jason to move. It just so happened that the side that was injured was the same side as the arm Dick had cut the tracker out of. Bruce moved his hands, letting Alfred see the extent of the wound. Dick moved his arm so his hand was extended to Bruce, and Bruce immediately took it.

"Sorry if I woke you up, Alfred." Dick had a weak smile. "It's quite alright. Let's get this stitched up." Dick turned his head to Bruce, the smile still on his face. Bruce cupped Dick's face with his non bloody hand and rubbed his finger over Dick's cheek. Dick hummed as the sensation, the motion being strangely calming.

Alfred continued to stitch the wound up, watching out of the corner of his eye. There was no mistaking the boy was Dick Grayson, who was supposed to have come to the manor. Alfred had been heartbroken when he found out Dick had been captured. Nevertheless, he was here now, and Alfred would make sure he was happy.

Dick's smiled started falling as the exhaustion grew. Tim shared a look with Jason, filled with worry. Bruce never acted like this to strangers, so Dick had to know him. What was stranger was that Dick showed emotion, while most Talons hid theirs. Dick groaned as he finally lost consciousness, surrounded by a sense of security.

Alfred wrapped the wound up and sighed. "It will take bed rest, but I believe he will be fine. Do I need to prepare a room?" Bruce nodded. "He needs a home. I lost the chance to give him one eight years ago. I don't plan on losing it again."

Alfred nodded and walked off. Jason sighed. "Are you sure he'll want to stay? I mean, Talons move around a lot, right?" "He's already proved he's different than other Talons simply by coming here. Most Talons would stay with the Court, with their healing factor already activated. Something tells me Dick didn't like it there. I want to give him a chance to have a home, a loving family. I want him to know he's not the only one who's been through what he has, watching his parents die."

Tim came back with a bad of blood. He hooked it up to the IV stand and inserted it into Dick's arm. "Should we remove the googles?" Bruce shook his head. "Talons are extremely sensitive to bright light. It's why he wears them. If we take them off, the med-bay lights might damage his eyes. I'll see how they're created, and make a pair than isn't quite so...Talon."

Dick slept peacefully, still holding Bruce's hand. He felt safe, something he hadn't felt since being taken by the Court. Bruce held Dick's hand, thankful he was getting a second chance when it came to the Romanian boy.

"So...what exactly are we going to do? Is everything going to change, or are we going to act like nothing ever happened?" Tim asked. "We need to give him time to adjust. Once he wakes up, we'll move him upstairs. I know I can't order you to treat him like family, but please act like it."

"I know he explained it, but why are you so set on keeping him here?" "When Dick's parents died, I planned on taking him in. Adopting him and showing that he wasn't the only one to feel his pain. Then, when I found out the Court had kidnapped him, I almost went crazy. I searched for weeks before assuming he was dead. The Court was nearly nonexistent at that point, and I assumed they had killed him. I was wrong, and I want to make up for that. I want to give him a chance, and take the second chance I was given."

Jason and Tim nodded. It made sense, with Bruce's actions. Damian tt-ed, but agreed. Bruce turned his attention back to the sleeping form on the gurney and sighed. Dick didn't look quite as pale as a Talon, but then again he wasn't a full Talon.

Bruce sighed again. What had happened to him? What exactly had Dick been through? It seemed like more than he was letting on. "I'm sorry, Dick. I should've been there." Bruce whispered, loud enough that only Dick could hear him.