Bat Brothers: Schooldays

Late Shift With Nightwing

"So." Dick said, perched on top of a Bludhaven billboard with his youngest brother. "This girl gave you the paper."

Damian groaned. "For the thousandth time YES. Besides, she's on the activity council. She's probably given out dozens."

Dick grinned and shook his head. "One month in and D has a girlfriend."

Damian frowned. "I'm not going to that dance."

"Sure you are." Dick said.

"Nope."

"What? Are you scared?"

Damian sighed. "I'm not scared. I don't want to go alone."

"Jon's coming."

"Yay." Damian sighed. "I'd look like an imbecile."

Dick laughed. "Ask this girl out. And what even is this girl's name?"

"Tiana Cameron James."

"You know her middle name?"

Damian shrugged. "She writes her full name on her notebook."

"And you've noticed that why?"

Damian shrugged. "I'm very attentive."

"Ooooh." Dick laughed. "You like her."

"She's very attractive and sufficiently smart."

Dick nudged his brother. "You need to ask her out."

"And what if she says no?"

"You're the super-star athlete and the genius son of a Gotham billionaire. Why would she say no?"

"Because I'm a prick."

Dick grinned. "Some girls dig that."

Damian looked through a pair or binoculars down below. He stood up. "Drug deal. Heavy narcotics."

"Let's go." 

Dick jumped down to a lower rooftop and shot a line out to swing off of down closer to the ground. Damian stayed close behind.

"What about if you get Jon to find out if she likes you?" He shouted.

"Drug deal now- girlfriend later."

"I'm multitasking!" He laughed. "And I thought he was gay." Dick muttered.

Damian flipped out a butterfly blade and spun it threateningly around his fingers before grasping the handle, blade out.

"Stand down, Robin." Dick said.

Damian sighed and tucked his knife away on his arm sheath. One of the dealers pulled out a gun. By this point the buyer had escaped. "Take care of this!" Dick shouted, running after the heroin user. "Wait!" he shouted out. "Don't freak out- I just want to talk." They ducked into an alley. "Oh, shit." Dick cursed but he found her backed up against the bricks of a building.

Dick caught his breath. "Look." He started. "Drugs just aren't worth it." He reached into the pocket stitched against his triceps and flipped out a business card. "Here. Try the community center. They have a lot of programs that can help. I think this is a wake-up call."

Dick worked at the community center by day, crime fighting by night. He left and returned to find Damian sitting casually on top of a cardboard and recycling dumpster. He tossed the gun to Dick.

"I already stripped it. We may as well leave it here for when the police come. I think everyone heard the gunshots."

"Any injuries?" Dick asked. 

Damian shook his head. "Not that I can feel."

Dick looked at Damian's back. "You got cut."

"Joy." Damian muttered, climbing up the ladder to the roof.

Back at the cave, Alfred gave Dick some coffee as he had work in a few hours. Alfred gave Damian a cup of decaffeinated tea.

"How bad is it?" Damian asked, sitting backwards in a chair at the briefing table. Alfred passed the needle through.

"It's going to be tough to stitch up but it's not too deep."

Dick looked at Damian's back. "You sure have a lot of scars."

Damian frowned. "Ra's Al Ghul was not fond of stitching wounds unless absolutely necessary."

"Some of those look necessary."

Alfred finished suturing the wound and Damian put his shirt on. 

Dick set down his mug. "Go get some sleep. You have school in a few hours."

Damian took the elevator up to the Manor. It was 3:24 in the morning. Sleep would feel good.