And then he walked away but his smile never dimmed.

[theshortestbird]

Who: Tim Drake and Conner Kent
When: 4/13. Morning.
Where: The apartment in sector 11.
Summary: Tim lost his dad, again, and he needs to talk.
Warnings: Angst. Possible mentions of drug use. Will update as needed.

He had gotten the message from Bruce last night. It took him until now to fully accept that he was actually gone, and so Tim had called out from work that morning. His boss might need him, especially now that they were down one person, but he just found that he couldn't do it. Not today. It was one thing, to know that Bruce might be dead. It was another to think that he might have just disappeared.

What would he do if someone else disappeared? What if Cass disappeared, or Conner? What about Blaine, what about Jubilee, what if any of his other friends just disappeared? It was sad when Carrie disappeared, when Damian disappeared. It was worse when Dick disappeared.

He finally shuffled out mid-morning, to get something to eat. He had to go on patrol tonight, after all.

Comments

[kryptonianclone]

Now Conner look more concerned, pushing his bowl away and getting to his feet. "Sure. What happened?"

[theshortestbird]

"Let's go to my room," Tim said again, waiting for Conner to follow him. Once the two of them were inside, he shut and then locked the door. Just in case someone accidentally came in. Tim went to the edge of his bed and took a seat, folding his legs under him.

"Batman is gone."

[kryptonianclone]

"... Oh. I'm really sorry, man." He did sound genuinely sorry. "That can't be easy on you... but you know you'll see him again when we all go back home, right?" he tried to cheer his friend up. "It's not like he's gone for forever."

[theshortestbird]

"Yeah, I know. That's not really the hard part," Tim agreed with him, finger idly playing with a string on his bedspread. "I know I'll see him again. I know that he could come back here, too."

He paused. "The problem is that this city can't know that Batman is gone. So. I have to be Batman."

[kryptonianclone]

Conner paused for a long long moment before he finally spoke. "What? Why? This isn't Gotham."

[theshortestbird]

Tim set his jaw, raising his head a little and staring at the wall. "Because this city is just as bad as Gotham. And if anyone finds out he's gone? Especially someone like the Joker? It's not going to be good. So. Between me, Superman, and Black Bat, we're going to be Batman."

[kryptonianclone]

"Okay, how long has Batman been here?" Conner said, still trying to dissuade him. "It can't have been as long as he was around in Gotham. I bet the city was still standing before he arrived and it will probably still be standing long after he's been gone. Tim... You were Batman before and it didn't end well at all. Superman's still around, we've got the Teen Titans, and everyone in the city has powers, right? And isn't the Joker locked up right now? Because if he isn't, he really should be."

[theshortestbird]

"We don't have the Teen Titans. Not yet. As soon as they become what we need them to be, then Batman isn't needed as much. But people need to still be afraid to commit crime. And Superman needs to be himself, because people look to him, still. And Black Bat... she wants to be Batman. She really does. But she doesn't have the detective skills that are needed. I'm the only one right now that can do this. Maybe not forever, but I can't just let this city go. Not if we're going to be here awhile," Tim sighed. "The Joker is locked up right now. But this is the third time that's happened in this city, so I'm not counting on that for long."

[kryptonianclone]

Conner was silent for a long while, mulling it over in his head. "... Then promise me. Promise me you won't do it forever, that it's only temporary. I don't... want to see you become like him. I don't want you to turn into something different," he pleaded softly, hoping that he wouldn't have to state how he truly felt - that if Tim became Batman, he'd lose his best friend. "... And you've got to promise to not stress yourself out either, okay? I'm assuming you're still going to be running around as Red Robin and taking care of the Titans. I might be an idiot for a leader, but I can step up with that too if you need me to."

[theshortestbird]

Tim nodded. He knew he could count on Conner. He knew he could count on a lot of people, really. But he also had learned early on not to count on anyone. Because there came a time when they were gone, and he couldn't afford to deal with that.

He didn't have the time for it. He didn't really think he had the emotional handle for that, either.

"It's only temporary. I've seen what I could be, as Batman. I can't," His breath hitched for a second. "I don't want it. I don't want to be like that."

[kryptonianclone]

"Good, because if you start acting like him, I'm going to lock you in a room and not let you out until you start acting like Tim again," he said, only half joking with a little grin. "And don't you for one second think you're alone and that you have to, like, 'shoulder the burden yourself' or some crap like that. Got it?" he insisted. "It's not your responsibility to take care of the whole city."

[theshortestbird]

Tim nodded, drawing a little in on himself. "I wouldn't mind that. Whatever makes me act like my old self again," He half joked back. "I know. It's not, but it's. The last message he gave me."

He swallowed. "The message that I got, it was him telling me that it's up to me now."

[kryptonianclone]

"Bullcrap," Conner immediately said firmly. "You're not like him, the whole thing with Ra's proved that. He may want to try and do everything on his own but don't be like him and not accept any help from your friends. It's not all up to you. You've got all the Titans behind you, wanting to help, Cass, Kal, me, and there's got to be other people here willing to take a stand if they see something bad going down. So don't you dare think it's all up to just you."

[theshortestbird]

He cracked a small grin. "When did you get so good at pep talks?"

[kryptonianclone]

Conner nudged Tim slightly with an elbow. "Learn how from the best."

[theshortestbird]

Tim grinned. "Cassie taught you how, right?" He was clearly teasing, and moved from his seating position, moving back so he could push at Conner with his foot in retaliation.

[kryptonianclone]

Conner rolled his eyes with a little grin back. "Whatever you say, Wonder Boy."

[theshortestbird]

"Exactly," Tim smirked a little, giving a nod. "Whatever I say."

[kryptonianclone]

"So. You gunna be okay for now? Or do we need to go watch some lame movies or play some video games and forget the world for a few hours?" Conner asked.

[theshortestbird]

Tim perked up at that. "Video games. We need to play a lot of video games," He nodded, standing up from the bed. "I think beating you a few times will get me out of this funk."

[kryptonianclone]

"Ha, if you beat me, it's only because I'm letting you win," Conner shot back with a smirk, getting to his feet.

[theshortestbird]

"Please, we all know that I'm the best at video games, especially when Bart isn't around," Tim smiled, remembering the good times. Like when they camped out together, just the three of them. Young Justice. Those were the good days.

[kryptonianclone]

"I'm taking that as a challenge," Conner stated, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow a little.

[theshortestbird]

"You can, but just know, I'm still going to beat you," Tim smirked, getting up from the bed and going to grab the gaming equipment that was in the closet.

"Racing or shooter?"