The Jest of Robin

4: Count the Seconds

Wayne Manor, March 27, 2010, 20:09 EST

The team had been waiting in Megan's room, waiting for Wally to come back. M'gann, curled up next to Connor, had been crying, and was working on calming herself down. The intense emotion that she felt from the poor boy had caused her to go into some sort of fit after he had left the room. She felt his pain, his sadness, and something else. It felt like fear. She had never felt such pain from anyone before, and she couldn't cope with it. How did he have the ability to laugh and smile when he suffered from such inner turmoil.

Connor sat next to his girlfriend, comforting her in the best way he could. He held her close and let her cry. His mind thought back to the little boy who they were at first so against protecting, and now he knew that was the only thing that mattered. As Robin would say, "Focus on the mission." And at the moment, Dick Grayson was the mission.

Artemis sat on the edge of the bed, head down, ridden with guilt. She hadn't meant to upset the boy, she just wanted to know who he was. No. Wanted wasn't the correct word. Needed. She needed to know him. At school, he was just an annoying little freshman who randomly took a picture with her when she first started. She just needed to know what was so important about this kid that it was worth the time of the entire Team. Well, excluding Robin that is. How was she supposed to know that his parents were a sore subject? They know nothing about this kid other than he is a gymnast, Bruce Wayne is his guardian, and he is pretty smart. So sue her if she wanted answers.

But she never wanted to make him cry. She never wanted him to break down. How could a kid like that feel an emotion so powerful it breaks down a Martian? She just asked a simple question. Sure earlier she had her suspicions that he was a brat and spoiled, but she never told him about her accusation. Even if she had, what would it matter? But this could not be blamed on her. She didn't do anything wrong. Just asked a simple question.

The rest of the team disagreed. Especially Wally.

When the speedster finally came into the room, it was obvious he was furious at the blonde. "You just had to find shit out didn't you? You just had to be a bitch to the poor kid."

"Woah. I did not. All I did was ask a simple question. How was I supposed to know that it was a sensitive subject?"

"It doesn't matter if you didn't know it was a sensitive subject. He is a kid. Your idiocy caused him to be on the verge of a panic attack. You are a superhero, Artemis. You should be someone kids look up to, not someone who causes them to relive something so horrible."

Artemis looked down and didn't say something for a while. "Is he okay?" She finally managed to ask.

"Yeah, no thanks to you. He ended up falling asleep. I got him to eat a little bit of the soup that was made."

Kaldur'ahm looked at the angry speedster. "Did he end up saying anything?"

"What did you mean when he wasn't struggling with breathing? Yeah. He ended up apologizing. To me. To all of us. He said he was sorry for ruining the night, and that he knew crying was weak. I tried to reassure him that it wasn't, but I doubt he believed a word I said." Wally's anger had subsided mostly after not needing to speak to Artemis. "I am sorry for snapping at you Kaldur."

"It is alright. I understand you are upset, as you have a right to be. Dick is sleeping now, you said?" Wally nodded. "Then maybe we should go ask Mr. Pennyworth if he can shed any light on the reason for Dick's sudden breakdown."

M'gann shook her head. "At least one of us should stay here, in case Dick needs us, you know. If he wakes up or anything. Or maybe he could talk up here?"

Kaldur nodded. "I shall go ask for Alfred to come up here."

With that the team nodded and waited. Artemis felt even worse. She hadn't realized she caused the poor boy to have a panic attack. All this because she decided to say seven words. She felt tears sting in her eyes, but she refused to let them spill out. She did not deserve the luxury of crying. She had messed up. Big time.