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Birds and Bees	By : defying3reason Category: DC Verse Comics > Batman Views: 2564 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, or any aspect of the broader DC Universe, and I make no money from my fanfiction

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Chapter Eighteen
"Urgh…" Dick groped blindly for the ringing phone that had woken him up. Never mind that it was almost one o'clock in the afternoon, which was a decent time to expect even a costumed vigilante to be awake, let alone one of the ones notorious for ignoring bodily needs like sleep and proper nutrition. He still irrationally hated whoever it was that had disturbed his sleep, and so upon getting his fingers around the contraption he threw it across the room.
He hadn't turned it off though, so it kept ringing.
After a few minutes he was feeling less groggy, and it occurred to him that he should probably see who called. After so many weeks of unbearably tense silence, he sincerely doubted it was Damian, but he still hoped the kid would call and reach out to him. Years of experience had taught him that Damian would need to be the one to break the ice; every time they'd had a rift Dick had been unable to repair it without the kid reaching out to him first.
And of course his missed call was from Wally. He didn't have a new voicemail, so it probably wasn't anything pressing. Instead of calling back, Dick got back into bed and dozed for a little while longer.

Irey hovered uncertainly outside her brother's door, wondering if it was worth knocking. He wasn't home very much anymore, to the point where she couldn't honestly remember the last time she'd spoken to him. She missed her "little" brother (by two and a half minutes), and frankly she was starting to get worried. Everyone was, even Uncle Piper, and he was the only person Jai talked to about important stuff anymore.
Finally Jai opened the bedroom door, wearing an expression between amusement and annoyance. "You're making a racket with your speed-pacing. You wanna just come in?"
"Yeah, sorry." Irey followed him into the room, and he shut and locked the door behind her.
Normally Jai's room, though stuffed to bursting with the media he collected (CDs, books, classic movies) was neatly and immaculately organized. Irey had never seen it in such disarray; the floor was covered with discarded clothing, the stubs of eyeliner pencils, books thrown about (none of them school related, Irey couldn't help but notice), and there was a worrying amount of fast food containers on the floor. For a normal kid, the state of the room would suggest that they weren't leaving it very much at all, and Wally and Linda certainly seemed to believe their angsty son was hiding from the world in his personal sanctuary. But Irey knew her twin, and she knew he was too meticulous to surround himself with garbage (especially greasy fast food). He probably hadn't slept at home all week.
Jai plopped into his desk chair and turned back to his computer. He was wearing clingy vinyl pants that she couldn't imagine their mom letting him buy (they didn't have part time jobs or even an allowance, so how he had obtained clingy-slut wear was a continuing mystery), a wispy black t-shirt, and knee boots with an impressive heel. He looked like he was going out clubbing, and it was seven thirty on a Wednesday.
"So what is it?" Jai asked.
"I was…I was just hoping we could talk. I haven't seen you much lately bro. I miss you."
"Uh huh. I've been busy. Plus so have you. You and Dad have been out like all the frickin' time lately."
"No we haven't!" Irey insisted. In addition to their typical evening patrols, they'd had three brushes with the Rogues and one off-planet mission that month, which was light duty. "You just haven't been around to see us. I'm not here to dig up info on you so I can narc to Mom and Dad. I'm just getting worried Jai. I want you to tell me that you're okay."
He didn't look up from his computer screen. "Of course I'm okay." His distracted statement wasn't terribly convincing.
Irey pressed on. "You just…you don't seem very happy lately, and you used to talk to me more. And I could kinda use my brother now too, so…can you not pull away so much?"
Jai finally turned away from his desk and faced her. "What's wrong? Are you worried about flunking your classes?" That would be fresh on Jai's mind, considering the fight Linda and Wally had finally had with the kids about their progress reports.
Irey nodded. "Yeah. School got really hard this year, and I'm having a really hard time keeping up. Plus now my friends are going to parties and stuff, and I have to skip out on everything so I can be free for my Impulse work. My good friends are getting suspicious, and I've lost most of my not-so-good friends because they think I'm blowing them off. It sucks."
Jai frowned. "I don't know how much help I can be with your friends, but I can help you out with your homework and stuff. What are you behind in?"
"Everything."
Jai snorted, seemingly unsurprised by the statment. "We used to do our homework together when we were little. Wanna go back to that? I've been falling behind a bit too, so if I help you with yours maybe I won't keep forgetting about mine."
Irey beamed at him. "That'd be great!"
"Great. So…is that it?" He really did look concerned about her, and Irey was surprised at how emotional a response she was having to seeing a genuine expression on Jai's typically hardened face. He'd grown so sarcastic and bitter that she found the sight of him invested in their conversation both alien and achingly reminiscent of their childhood.
Irey had one more pretty pressing problem on her plate, but she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to talk about it. Then again, she and Jai used to share information with each other. If she told him what was going on with her, he might tell her what was going on with him.
"Actually, um…there's this boy that I'm…I'm kinda seeing. I, uh, didn't tell Mom and Dad."
Jai smirked at her. "Me too. But I think they've figured out I've got a boyfriend. No one's got any idea about you. How come you're not telling Mom and Dad?"
Irey sat down on his bed and rested her hands on her knees. "I dunno…I don't think they'd approve. Plus he's not my boyfriend. He doesn't even know my name. But Impulse has been on two dates with him."
Jai laughed. "Oh man Irey…you sure that's the route you wanna take? Letting someone date the costumed you?"
"It's obviously not the best way to do it, but I met him as Impulse and I don't see how Irey West is going to get to know him. He's…one of the Rogues."
"So that's why you've been all gung ho about patrolling with Dad. Oh wow…Downpour, really? But that kid's a moron," Jai said with a sneer. He wheeled around in his chair so that he was facing her, arms crossed over his chest, clearly unhappy about the prospect of a third-rate Rogue dating his sister.
"No he's not! He's really sweet, and he's barely even a villain. I bet when he's older he'll reform, just like Uncle Piper. Then he'll start fighting crime with us and we'll get married and…oh shut up. You don't have to be mean."
He hadn't said anything, but with that mocking expression he really didn't need to. "You do realize how stupid that sounded though, right?"
Irey rolled her eyes. "So who are you dating that you don't want Mom and Dad to know about?"
"Promise to keep the secret?" Jai asked. Irey rolled her eyes, but dutifully nodded. "Damian."
Irey gaped at him. She was hard pressed to think of a name less likely to come out of Jai's mouth. Even Uncle Piper sounded more likely than Robin. They'd known the kid for years, but he'd barely ever interacted with Jai, since Jai wasn't a costume. Impulse had been reaching out to Robin for ages, but she'd never gotten very far. The kid just didn't seem to value a social life. Plus…
"I thought he liked Lian. Oh no, she's got a huge crush on him!"
Jai's narrowed eyes iced over. "Excuse me, but you should actually back your brother on this one. I like Damian way more than she does. She barely even knows him, but I've been dating him for two months. Plus you're supposed to pick my side. We're twins."
"Sorry, sorry. So Damian's gay?" Irey asked, feeling terribly confused and conflicted. She and Lian had talked out their fantasy weddings recently. She knew how into Damian her bestie was, and she'd been happy and supportive of the crush. And Irey really couldn't imagine an angry brooding teen like Damian being a good match for her angry brooding teenage brother. She thought they both needed partners that would balance them better.
"Damian says he's bi, but I think he's pretty gay. Anyway, he certainly likes gay sex enough."
Irey's eyes widened. "You guys are already having sex? But you've only been dating for two months!"
"So? That's kind of awhile to hold out. I mean, since I'm not dating a supervillain. You should hold out. Forever," Jai said threateningly. Irey snorted at him.
"That's different! I mean, I was just thinking that, like, you know…for your first time you should date the guy more than two months so that…so that it means something. You know?" Irey was losing his attention with her rambling. Jai turned back to the computer screen and went back to his IM chat.
"I've gotta get going soon. I'm meeting up with Damian in a little while. So we're going to do our homework together from now on. Is there anything else?"
"I…I guess not. Jai, um…just be careful, okay? I like Robin a lot but he's pretty intense. Don't let him, y'know, pressure you into anything you're not ready to do."
Jai looked over his shoulder as Irey went to leave his room. "Yeah, that goes for you and Downpour too."

Dick had gone out on patrol and gotten home again before he remembered the missed call from Wally. He was just getting out of the shower, wearing a towel and limping a little on his way to the bedroom, when there was a knock on the door. With a sigh, Dick changed courses and limped over to his front door. "Yes?"
"Dude, you never called back."
Dick hiked the towel up a little, then stepped aside to let Wally in. "Dude, you didn't leave a message. What's so important?"
"Uh…you can put clothes on first. It's not that important."
Rolling his eyes, Dick went to his room to throw on his pajamas, then went back out into the living room where Wally was speed-pacing, kicking up the occasional spark of speedforce and sending Dick's papers into utter disarray.
"So what's so not-important?" Dick asked.
"I want you to tell Damian to treat my kid better or find a new boyfriend."
Dick couldn't muster the energy for the glare he really wanted to send Wally, so he fixed him a look of cold indifference. "Go fuck yourself."
"Oh come on! It's not an unreasonable request, is it? I'm asking you to do it because you're the only person who can get through to that little monster!"
"Wally-"
"Okay, okay, I guess he's not little, but-"
"If I thought I could land the hit I'd have punched you in the face by now. Will you cut it out? Damian is not a monster! And what makes you think you can convince me to tell him to break up with Jai? Does that even sound like something I'd do?" Dick demanded.
Wally flopped onto the couch, scowling. "Well no, I guess not. But the kids aren't happy together and I'm getting worried. I was talking to Bruce the other day, and he thinks that Damian wants to break up with Jai anyway. I think it'd be better for both of them if he just made up his mind instead of keeping this going with all that false hope. I know my son's not perfect, but he doesn't deserve to be jerked around."
Dick could relate to that. He'd certainly gotten enough false hope from people he cared about over the years, and he knew the pain of a relationship going toxic without either person having the strength to break it off intimately well. "I'll talk to Damian. But I refuse to let you treat him like the bad guy in this."
"So what, are you saying Jai's the one hurting him? Damian's like ice. This shit rolls right off his back. Jai is nothing but feelings," Wally pointed out.
"Damian comes across as cold, but that doesn't mean he doesn't feel things."
Wally rolled his eyes at that. "Even his dad thinks he's wrong. He apologized to me on Jai's behalf."
"Yeah, well I don't know if Bruce is the best judge in this one Wally."
"I know he's not great at talking to his kid, but he's damn good at spying on him. The intel he gathered supports everything I've seen."
"Which is?" Dick pressed. He was a little curious himself, and sadly reflected that Damian couldn't have picked much worse a time to shut him out.
Wally sighed. "It looks like the kids rushed into sex before they were ready, and now it's straining the relationship. Dick…I saw Jai crying the other night. I haven't seen him cry since he was eight and I don't ever want to see it again. I'm sorry I've been hard on Damian, but it just doesn't seem to be affecting him the same way. My kid's in pain and I want to help him."
"I do too. But Wally...I'm actually on the outs with Damian," Dick admitted. Wally looked distinctly uncomfortable with the admission. "I haven't been working as hard as I should to fix it. He usually comes to me, but I guess he's too distracted. I'll invite him to patrol with me tomorrow night and ask him what's up."
"Alright, that's a start. Thanks dude." Wally nodded at Dick, looking grateful and, Dick couldn't help but notice, tired. He hadn't seen shadows like that under Wally's eyes in years. Unless something else was going on too, parenting was taking a lot out of him. "See you later."
"Bye."
Wally took off, and Dick spent a good long while lost in thought before he managed to fall asleep.

Dick spent the next night in Gotham, and even though he and Bruce had tag-teamed Damian and all-but forced him to agree to go patrolling with Dick, as the hour got later and later he started to think he was going to be heading out alone after all.
Finally, a very surly (even for him) Robin stalked up to join him at the batmobile. "Alright, let's get this over with."
Dick tried not to be hurt by that. He closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and forcefully reminded himself of how he'd behaved when he was seventeen. When he opened his eyes he was more composed. "Sorry you feel that way Damian. I've been looking forward to this all day, actually. I missed you."
Damian jumped into the passenger side without comment. Sighing, Dick got into the driver's side and started the car. "So where do you want to go?"
"I'm sure there's no shortage of crimes for us to foil. You'd do just as well to drive aimlessly as to have a destination."
"True enough. So...how's it going with you and Jai?"
"Subtle Grayson."
"If I try to be subtle then you just ignore me," Dick pointed out. "Seriously though, are you okay? The adults are getting worried for you two."
Damian turned away from Dick, facing out the window. "I sincerely doubt that anyone's worried for me."
"Well I am."
"You don't need to bother. I can handle myself. I'm doing fine."
Dick tried his best, but he couldn't get much more out of Damian, even after a few fights loosened him up and got him in a better mood. Dick would have liked to switch tactics and try talking about his own relationship, but reciprocal conversation had never worked well with Damian as a strategy (though it worked wonders on Tim), and in addition, given the other elephant in the room Dick dismissed it as a horrendous idea.
They were going to have to talk about it eventually though. The tension between them was alien and ugly and Dick desperately wanted it gone. Again, he felt a pang of sympathy for what Bruce had gone through looking after him during his own teen years. Having a crush on your mentor royally sucked, but having the kid you were mentoring crush on you sucked even more.
They were patching up some minor cuts in the Cave at the end of the night when Dick tried one more desperate attempt to reach out to Damian. "Hey...I heard that you were thinking of breaking up with him. If you do...well, I'm here if you need to talk about it, okay?"
Damian didn't say anything, but he gave a slight nod before he left for the manor.

"Hey Daddy...can I talk to you about something?"
"What's up Peanut?" Roy asked. He was in the middle of a workout, but had just gotten to doing pushups, something he'd never really enjoyed with two arms but now openly loathed with the one. He didn't mind the excuse to procrastinate the pushups, though he'd still have to actually do them. His aim was thrown entirely if his organic arm wasn't at least close in strength to his metal arm.
Roy sat up and wiped some sweat off his brow with the good arm. Lian sat down on the couch with her hands on her knees, tapping her fingers anxiously. He quirked an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's…wrong, exactly…I just hafta ask you a really weird question."
That was a terrible opening. Roy stood up, stretched his back, and then regarded her expectantly. "Just spit it out then. I'm listening. What's not-wrong?"
She started to speak a couple times, then looked away from him and forced it out. "Irey and Jai said that you're, like, the cautionary tale for superhero kids. They said that their dad tells them stories about you so they know what not to do as kids. Like that they need to always use protection because that's how I happened, and that…they said you were a drug addict. That's not true, is it Daddy?"
Roy closed his eyes and hissed in a pained breath. He paced back and forth, and a tense silence stretched between them.
"Dad…Dad, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anythi-"
"No, no-no-no, sweetie, I'm not upset with you," Roy said quickly. He crossed the room and crouched down in front of her. "Believe me Peanut, I am glad that you told me you heard all that…this just isn't how I wanted to start this conversation."
"So it's true?" Lian asked.
"It doesn't sound like Wally gave the twins a very fair version of the story, but…there is some truth there." Roy sat down next to her on the couch and put his head in his hand.
"So…I was a mistake," Lian said quietly. She didn't dare look at her dad for his response to that uncomfortable statement, but if she had she would have noticed his fingers clench painfully in his bangs.
Again, it took him a moment to answer.
"You were not a mistake," he started in a slow, careful tone. He sat up, and with great effort turned to look her in the eye. "You are without a doubt the best thing that's ever happened to me, and the proudest achievement of my life. I mean that Lian, and I hope you don't ever feel unwanted."
"I-I know, and I don't, it's just…just…well, considering Mom…" Lian started nervously rubbing her hands together. "I kind of had to wonder how much of an accident I was. Was Mom just a one night stand, or…or was she…"
"She meant something to me," Roy said. "I sometimes wonder if the feeling was actually mutual, but at the time it seemed that way. I was really young, and scared, and in a bad place, but I don't regret any of it. And Lian…we actually did use a condom."
"Really? But I'm here."
Roy nodded. "Yeah, I noticed. Those things aren't one hundred percent you know. Linda was on birth control when she conceived the twins. Bet Wally didn't tell them that."
"Nope." Lian still didn't look like she fully believed him, but she let it drop.
They had plenty of painful issues to discuss, after all.
"So what about the other part? Dad, were you really a drug addict?" She looked at him with such hopeful, innocent eyes. He really didn't want to be having this conversation, but he'd promised himself a long time ago that he'd never lie to Lian about this. If he did, how would she ever believe him when he told her about the parts that mattered?
Slowly Roy nodded, then looked down at the floor. He didn't want to see whatever her emotive gaze had to tell him. He could imagine it clearly enough anyway; shock, hurt…disappointment.
"Yeah, I-I was. Well, still kinda am. You never really stop struggling with it once it's got you. But I've been clean for years. For a good long time though, I was using."
"W-what…why?"
"I…I was really unhappy," Roy started. He hadn't been planning on having this conversation with Lian for at least another year, and he only had the barest idea of what he wanted to tell her. He tried again to compose his thoughts. "I know that Grandpa Ollie is great with you, but he-he's changed a lot since those days, and he really wasn't much of a guardian for me when I was a teenager, and I was a pain so I needed a really strong guardian."
"Well yeah, I can kinda see that. I love Grandpa Ollie to death, but sometimes he's really hypocritical and way too permissive. I could see how that wouldn't end well," Lian said simply, showing a level of adult analysis that Roy hadn't expected.
Sometimes he was as surprised as everyone else that she was his daughter. It didn't seem like the same genetic material that produced a fuck up like him should make a girl like Lian.
"Anyway, it makes him a great grandpa, but I'm betting you needed more structure and support when you were my age," Lian prodded.
"Er, right. Yeah, so anyway I started getting depressed, and when I was depressed I blew off school and got really angry and argumentative. And his response was to get angrier and make me feel more isolated…and it just kinda kept snowballing. We were at each other's throats, and then he took off and I just felt so…so hollow, and not hollow. It was the worst feeling I've ever felt, and I just can't really describe it but it was bad. And I had some friends who all came from broken homes too, and they used drugs to escape. I knew the stuff was dangerous, but I honestly didn't think anyone would care about me if I got hurt, so I started using."
"What did you use?" Lian asked in a quavering voice, as though she didn't really want the answer.
Which was fitting, because he didn't want to tell her. "Heroin. I, I used heroin."
"Oh Daddy…"
Roy dropped his head again and closed his eyes. His voice broke on his next sentence. "It was a terrible, stupid thing to do. I was just hurting so much, and making it stop for just a little while was…was…Lian, if you ever feel anything like that, you need to tell me. I do not want you to make the same mistakes I did, okay? You have a family, and I love you so much, so don't ever feel like-like me. Okay Peanut, please?" He only realized he was crying when he noticed she was too. Lian gripped his hand in both of her small ones and nodded.
"I promise Dad. I won't ever do anything like that, I promise. Please don't cry."
He pulled her into a hug and she buried her face in his shoulder. "I'm sorry Li."
"I love you too you know," she whispered. "Just so we're clear. So you don't ever need to feel that bad again. Because if something did happen to you, I'd care. I'd care a lot if you were hurt."
"I know Peanut. Like I said, you're the best thing that ever happened to me. You completely changed my life, and I am so thankful for that."
Lian pulled back and wiped at her eyes. She let out a nervous laugh, then scooched back to her own couch cushion. "Wow, we just got really dramatic, huh?"
"Hard subject," Roy muttered. He wiped at his own face. His hand was still shaking.
He'd been having nightmares about Lian becoming a junkie since before she could walk. He wanted so much more for his daughter than what he'd had.
Lian leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You're a good dad. At least, I think so, and I'm the important one here, okay?"
Roy finally hesitantly smiled, and watched with relief as Lian beamed at him. "I think we deserve a treat tonight after all that. Want to order a pizza and marathon some cartoons with me?"
"Sure! I'd better go upstairs and get my homework done now though, or else I won't have time to." She gave him another kiss and then ran upstairs. "Love you Daddy!" she called before leaving the room.
"Love you too Peanut!" he called after her, shaking his head. "Deep breaths Harper, you don't have anything to worry about. She is nothing like you, and she's going to be fine."
He went upstairs and grabbed a quick shower, decided to skip the rest of the pushups, then went downstairs and ordered the pizza. He poked his head into Lian's room and found her at her desk with her Algebra book propped open, doing practice problems with a systematic ease he would have killed for at her age.
"I'm heading out to pick up the food. What do you want to drink?"
"Iced tea?" she asked without looking up.
"Sure thing. Be back in a bit."
Roy did head out the door with the intention of getting the pizza and heading right back home, but once he was down the street he couldn't stop himself from taking a quick detour to the West home. He knocked on the side door and waited patiently.
Wally opened the door, looking a bit surprised to see him. "Hey dude, what's-"
He was cut off by Roy punching him in the face.
Wally staggered backwards from the force of the unexpected blow, then brought a hand to his mouth to feel his bloodied lip. He scowled at Roy, and then aimed a punch that was fueled by indignation and (thankfully) not superspeed.
From there the two men devolved into a fighting style more at home in a backyard brawl or a bar fight than any kind of costumed situation, yelling curses at each other and fighting as dirty as possible.
They only broke apart when an air horn went off between them. Even then, Roy was about to dive at Wally again, but Linda blew the air horn right in his face. He covered one of his ears with his hand, Wally shielding both, and they retreated to separate corners. Linda waved a broom between the two of them, poised with her other hand on the air horn, ready to blow it again if need be.
If Roy had thought Wally was mad at him, it was nothing compared to the look on his wife's face. "Jai! Irey! Upstairs, now!"
Roy felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. At first he'd thought Linda had been yelling at him, and with a yell like that…
"But Mo-om!"
"Did that sound like it was up for negotiation to you mister? I repeat, upstairs, now, and do not make me repeat myself again!"
"C'mon Jai, we'll probably be able to hear it from up there anyway," Irey hissed. She grabbed her brother's arm, and a moment later the doorway was free of gaping teens.
Linda pulled a chair out from the kitchen table, plopped it between the two bruised and bleeding men and sat down, glaring them down imperiously. Roy thought it best to remain in a cowering position, and Wally seemed to be thinking along the same lines.
Linda turned her glare on him first. "Alright Roy. Care to explain why you walked into my kitchen and assaulted my husband?"
"Lian just asked me if all the shit she's heard from Irey and Jai about me is true. She said that Wally tells them stories about my teen years as cautionary tales," Roy spat out.
Wally had the decency to look uncomfortable. "It's not like they're not true," he said defensively.
"I did use a condom with Jade, though I noticed you didn't mention thing one about your kids being pill babies!"
"Hey, I was married at the time, okay?"
"Oh shut the hell up Wally! You're not some kind of saint just because you're living the middle class wet dream, so don't get all holier than thou on me!"
Linda blew the air horn again and they both shut up.
She turned towards Wally. "So you've been having serious parenting discussions with the kids without me?"
"I-"
"Parenting discussions that, in the process, make Roy look like less of an authority figure to our kids? To our kids who are best friends with his daughter, who therefore spend a lot of time in his home where they have to listen to his rules and therefore respect him as an authority figure to be safe? They're teenagers Wally! What kind of idiot are you?"
"Nothing I said was bad, okay! Just-just that they should stay away from drugs and not have lots of sex!" He turned to look at Roy. "And maybe I was wrong about the condom, but I wasn't wrong about any of the rest of it!"
"That does not make what you did okay!" Roy exploded. "Do you know what I just went through with Lian? That's not how she should have heard those things! I know I fucked up when I was a kid, and I know I fucked up bad. And you, and your uncle, and Ollie and fucking everyone won't ever let me forget it!"
"Apologize Wally," Linda all but growled.
"But I…he was a drug addict! I didn't lie to Irey and Jai!"
Linda stood up, walked over to her husband, and put her hands on her hips. "For starters, the next time you feel the need to have a serious conversation like that with our children, you are going to discuss it with me first. We should both definitely be a part of that. Secondly, there is nothing okay about throwing your friend under the bus like that. And Roy's right, he deserves better than that." She turned to look at him with a much more sympathetic expression. "You're an amazing father. I'm sorry about all this, and I'll do whatever I can to make it right."
"Thanks Lin-"
"However, you're still not allowed to come into my home and assault my husband. Even when he deserves it. Save that behavior for the Watchtower. Are we clear?"
Roy smirked at her. "Sure." He took that as Linda's blessing to wail on Wally again the next time he saw him on the Watchtower.
"Good. And so you know, all four of us will be having a discussion tonight to make sure Irey and Jai get the subtle details my idiot of a husband may have skipped over," she informed him.
Roy nodded. "Well I guess I'll get going then. Linda, sorry for disrespecting your home."
"Just don't do it again and we're absolutely fine," she said, glancing warily between the two men and picking up on the fact that the apology was only directed at her.
Roy threw another withering glare at Wally before he stalked off. "You're an asshole West." He slammed the door shut behind him.

Lian was tactful enough not to ask Roy about his split lip and black eye when he returned home with the pizza (plus she and Irey had already texted about their dads brawling in the kitchen, so she had an idea of what had happened), but when Dick came over the next day to watch a movie and unwind before his patrol he was obviously startled.
"Wow, someone got you good. I hope you gave them a shiner to match."
Roy smirked. "I did, but the speedforce took care of it."
"Oh Roy, really? He's your neighbor now and your kids are friends. Isn't that an incentive to start getting along with Wally?"
Roy skulked into the living room and flopped onto the couch. "Just put the movie in. I don't want to friggin' talk about it."
"…what'd he do?"
"I said I don't want to talk about it."
Dick obediently popped in his DVD and settled down on the couch next to Roy. He'd brought over Blazing Saddles, which they'd both seen enough times to be able to recite and consequently they could have a comfortable conversation or assorted other activities while the movie was on without missing anything. Dick had been hoping for assorted other activities, but a conversation would probably be more productive.
Besides, he'd been kind of hoping to mooch off of Roy for some emotional support of his own, and some of it was about Wally. He'd save that for later though, since Roy was clearly already pissed at Dick's bestie.
"Have you gotten beaten up by anyone else lately?" Dick teased. Roy rolled his eyes. "Well what? It seems like you stopped patrolling, and I haven't caught you hanging out at the Watchtower for ages. I feel like I'm the only person who invites you to do team ups anymore."
"You kinda are. It's okay Dick. I've never been one of the popular heroes, and I don't really care."
Which was utter bullshit, but Dick let it go. He resolved to talk to Donna and Tim and see if, between the three of them, they could pull Red Arrow into more active duty. Superheroics gave Roy a sense of purpose that he didn't do well without, which was one of many reasons Roy moving to Keystone was a bad idea.
Living in Keystone was great for Lian, but it was clearly stressing her father out. The speedsters weren't letting him into their clique, and he was getting bitter and restless about it.
"You still want my help with that human trafficking thing this weekend?" Roy asked.
"Yeah, I could use some back up. Tim's gearing up to defend his thesis so I can't bother him."
"Plus he just got custody of Bruce's latest lost waif, or so I heard."
Dick nodded. "Yeah, X'hawn wasn't very comfortable at the manor. He's really close to Tim, so it should work out. I'm gonna hit up the warehouse where they store the kids on Saturday night. If you need someplace for Lian to go, Alfred says she's always welcome to sleep over the manor."
"She'll probably want to sleep over Irey's instead. So you still not speaking to your little creeper?" Roy guessed. Dick frowned and nodded. "It's been way too long. One of you guys has to fix this."
"I've reached out a couple of times, but you know how he is about his dignity. He's embarrassed and he won't let me in until he gets over it. I don't think there's anything else I can do."
"I know dude, but it's been…what, two months? Two and a half? That's way too long considering you guys used to hang out almost every day."
Dick sighed, and laid against Roy with his head pillowed on his chest. "I'm getting really worried about him. He's been…seeing someone, and he's been on silent to me for pretty much the duration of the relationship at this point."
"Damian's dating?" Roy had wound his arm around Dick and had been caressing him with his fingertips, but stopped abruptly in response to the news. "How? I can't even picture that. Oh wow, I just got a mental image of Damian trying to flirt and it was the most awkward thing…what are his pick up lines like?"
"'You seem like someone eager to engage in sexual exploration.' I'm not kidding Roy, he said almost that to his current partner and the kid thought he was calling him a slut."
"So Damian accepted that he's gay?"
Shit. Dick hadn't meant to let that slip. Then again, he wasn't sure if Damian's sexuality actually was a secret or not. "He's bisexual, and he's dating Jai. I don't think they're out though, so discretion please."
"Kay. Damn. And here I was hoping for a minute that he actually wasn't interested in Lian. There goes that. Okay, so he's got a boyfriend and they started dating around the time Damian creeped on us fucking at your place? That's…that kid really has some issues, huh?"
"Mm," Dick agreed. "Like I said, I'm worried. I was kinda hoping dating someone his own age would help him get over his crush on me, but he's more uncomfortable around me than ever. I don't know how to fix it."
"I'm sure you'll think of something. You're a resourceful kind of guy."
They watched the movie in silence for a little while, then started trading comments about it, and reminisces of other times they'd watched it over the years. Eventually Dick fell silent, lost in thought.
"You okay Dick? You look like you're a million miles away."
Dick nodded. He decided to test the waters a little about the other thing he wanted to talk about. "Yeah…just thinking. Um…I had a weird conversation with Wally the last time I came down to see you. I'm just…I'd kinda thought he'd grown out of being a self-centered asshole."
Roy paused the movie and sat up straighter on the couch, captivated by the new conversation topic. "Oh really? Do tell."
Dick scowled, not liking the response to his test. He'd noticed back when they were teens that Roy and Wally rubbed each other the wrong way. It had started when they'd both been interested in Donna (and she'd picked Roy without ever noticing that Wally had been flirting with her). The two were clearly only friends because they had so many friends in common, and because they'd fought side by side and almost died together, and even if a guy got on your nerves you had to respect them at least a little after that.
However, Wally and Roy were both important to him, and Dick generally didn't let the one talk shit about the other in his presence. But Wally had ticked him off, and even though Roy had been preaching the Wally-West-is-a-self-centered-asshole gospel since Dick had been in fish scale booty shorts, he still didn't want to give the guy fuel for that particular fire.
But he really wanted to talk to his boyfriend about how annoyed he was with his best friend.
"Look, if I'm going to unload about this to you, I want your word that you'll be respectful. Wally's still my closest non-Bat friend."
"Kay. I promise to be mature and supportive."
"Thanks."
"So what'd the selfish prick say?"
Dick groaned, but he'd expected that. "He's being a real asshole about Damian. He started by bleeding me for info on the kids, then he got pissy with me for the don't-rat-gay-kids-to-their-parents thing, he insinuated that all the problems the kids are having are because of Damian, and…well, this last one is going to sound stupid, but you know his friend Piper?"
Suddenly Roy's arm was around him in a possessive embrace. "The red head? Yeah, I remember him. What about him?"
"Uh…did you know he was gay? And that he likes brunettes, apparently?" Somehow Dick could guess that Roy had known.
"Well yeah, I mean, him being gay, not the brunette kink. He's one of those flag-waving activist types. I dunno, I guess when you're just with guys you get more defensive about it or something."
"Oh. Yeah, Wally never told me. And he even said he thought Piper and I were well suited for each other. So he just sat on that, even when I was single. I told him I was lonely a few times, and never once did he go 'oh by the way, my other best friend that I think you'd like, he's single too and really into you,' because he thinks it's awkward when his friends date."
"Well it is. I mean, as someone who's dated two of Wally's friends believe when I say that he makes it really awkward."
Dick smirked. "I know. Sorry about that. You know I never asked him to pick a side."
"Neither did Donna." Roy shrugged. "I don't care that much. I'm not exactly crying myself to sleep at night because Wally West doesn't like me."
Dick laughed and leaned forward for a kiss. "Well I like you a lot, if it helps."
Roy brushed his fingers down Dick's cheek. "That is way more important to me. Not that I'd cry myself to sleep if you changed your mind, but it would suck."
"Ass."
"Yep. So…should I worry about Piper?"
Dick snorted. "Of course Roy. I'm going to end out relationship on a total whim so I can pursue this guy I kinda sorta know just because I found out he's gay. That makes sense."
"Kay. Well, I mean he's pretty cute, y'know, other than the weird nose. It's worth making sure."
Dick turned in Roy's embrace so they were facing each other. "I promise not to leave you for the Pied Piper."
"Good."
"…but you think he's hot too?"
Roy thought about it for a second. "I mean yeah, he's pretty cute. He's not you or anything, but he's nice looking. Why? You think he'd want to do a three way?"
Dick grinned. "I knew there was a reason I liked you so damn much. He's trying to get back together with an ex right now, but I think we should keep him in mind for the future."
"Yeah, that'd be hot."

Things wouldn't come to a head between the two angsting teens for a few more nights.
Piper was sleeping peacefully , James curled around him. They'd left the TV on, and the movie was finishing as its audience slumbered, Piper relaxed and content with the familiar heartbeat of someone he loved in his ear. James wasn't as relaxed, but the possessive arm flung around his (maybe) boyfriend was well received.
Then Piper's phone rang. He would have ignored it or turned it off, but the ringtone was Jai's and he never ignored Jai. Frankly, at this point it was fear as much as fondness that made him ever-available.
Piper extracted himself from James and almost fell over as he got out of bed. James sat up on his elbows and yawned. "God, it's almost two in the morning. I thought you said you didn't do costume work anymore."
Piper paused. "I didn't say that. That's not what this is, but James, I'm still a reserve."
James looked like he had something to say about that, but Piper had a more immediate problem to deal with. Jai didn't call him at two in the morning if it wasn't important. He stepped into the hall and answered his cell. "Hey. Is everything alright?"
For a long, tense moment all Piper heard was panicky breathing and atmospheric noise. "C'mon, talk to me. What's wrong?"
The boy let out a sob that hit at Piper's heart, and then he finally choked something out in a broken whisper. "Damian dumped me."
"Oh no. Oh hon, you're going to be okay. Where are you? Talk to me."
"H-he doesn't want me anymore. I wasn't good enough because I'm never good enough and-and Piper what am I going to do now? I'm never going to-I'll never get anyone as good as him again and I ruined it!"
"No, hon, that's not-"
James stuck his head into the hallway. "Who the hell are you talking to? And why are you calling them hon?"
Piper waved his hand angrily and took a few steps further down the hall. He was worried by what he could hear on Jai's end: the occasional passing car, wind, and lapping water.
Piper had been born deaf, but his parents signed him on for excruciating experimental surgery that had not only given him hearing, but amplified it to a superhuman degree. People had a tendency to forget about his robot ears.
"Hon, where are you?"
Jai's voice was so tiny and broken. "I-I went to the, the river because we used to come here. It's pretty cool and I...I..."
"Are you on the bridge?" Piper asked in a careful but commanding tone.
"Oh hell." James went back into the bedroom and came out a moment later with shoes and his keys. Piper nodded and started walking towards the stairs.
"Come on hon, I need you to answer me. Are you on the bridge?" Piper tapped on a picture of Jai that was hanging in the front hall as they passed through it so James would know they were dealing with Wally and Linda's troubled teenage son. James nodded, and urged Piper to walk faster.
"...I...I...you can hear it, can't you?"
"Yeah, Jai, I can hear it. You're not on the bridge for the reason I think you are, are you?" Piper stumbled a bit as he climbed into James' car. His hands were shaking and he was having a terrible time trying to focus on what was around him when so much of his attention was on Jai's small little voice.
"I...I don't know. May-maybe."
"Oh hon no, don't do that. Can you wait for me to get there? I'm on my way. Wait for me and we can talk about this in person, okay?"
He could hear the tears in Jai's voice. "You're coming for me?"
"Yes, of course. Always."
"And you won't hang up until you get here, right Piper?"
"No, I won't hang up."
Piper dug through James' glove box and pulled out a pen and a napkin. He messily scrawled out Wally's number and passed it to James. James dug his phone out of his pocket and dialed one handed as he drove for the Keystone-Central bridge. Piper caught his quiet murmur of, "Wally? Hey, you need to get to the bridge," before his attention returned to Jai.
"So are you going to make me talk about it?"
"I think we need to," Piper answered, hoping he didn't sound confrontational.
"What do you want me to say? That I'm not going to do it? I don't-I'm not going to tonight but, but it'd probably be easier for everyone if I did. I mean, then no one would have to put up with me anymore-"
"Jai, no! We don't put up with you, we love you."
James squeezed Piper's knee and Piper squeezed his hand back so hard he probably hurt him. It did nothing to calm his racing heart.
Jai's voice lost the hard, angry tears and returned to its quiet, trembling state.
"...you love me Piper? You'd really care if I was gone?"
"Of course I'd care. Jai, you're so important to me I don't even have words for it. You're so special, and unique and intelligent and gifted. Please, please don't do this. It's just one relationship. I know it feels like a lot right now, but it's not worth ending everything."
"I thought I was a burden for you."
"No hon, no, never. And I do love you. I promise, I'll help you through this." Piper loved Jai like family. He'd never had kids himself, having never settled into a serious enough relationship where they could even think about finding a surrogate (given his record, he figured adopting was out), but he considered the twins to be close enough to count. He couldn't imagine what it would feel like to lose Jai, who really was like a son to him.
They finally pulled onto the bridge. Piper leaned against the window, desperately looking for his young friend. He motioned for James to pull over, and he raced for the street lamp that illuminated a figure sitting hunched over on the ground.
Jai dropped his phone, shot up off the ground, and ran into Piper's waiting arms. Piper crushed the teen to his chest and let out a sob of relief at having the boy in his arms, safe and there. "God you scared the crap out of me Jai."
"I'm s-sorry Hartley."
"Don't ever doubt your importance to me please," Piper gasped. Then he noticed the sound of Wally's feet hitting pavement, then water, circling around them. He gave Jai another tight squeeze, knowing that his part in the night's drama was coming to a close and wanting the reassurance of Jai's warm, living body pressed close to him for as long as possible. This was a heartbeat that he wanted to hear grow into a man's, and when it stilled he wanted to be long dead himself.
Wally finally approached them. Jai looked up when he heard the distinctive sound of a speedforce generated boot hitting the curb. "Dad? What are you doing here?"
Wally blinked at them in bewilderment, and then the speedforce reclaimed the costume, leaving him in pajamas. "I'm...not quite sure. What's going on?"
Piper unconsciously squeezed Jai, eyes locked fearfully with Wally's. "I called him, just in case. Jai, you need to talk to your parents. You need help."
Jai pushed out of Piper's arms, and when Piper took a step to come closer he ran back several paces, taking him worryingly close to the edge of the bridge. His face shone with perceived betrayal.
Piper pleaded as best he could. "I'm not letting you go without a fight. Jai, please, talk to your dad."
"Why? So I'm his problem instead? I thought I could trust you Piper, but you're a fucking liar! I am a burden, aren't I?"
"No! But I can't run at the speed of light if I need to save your life!"
"What?" Wally squawked. "Jai, get off the fucking bridge right now! That's not funny!"
"Well I'm not joking! I know you won't miss me, so just get the hell out of here! Fuck you!"
"Jai!" Piper yelled.
"Shut up Piper! You're a liar too! Just get away from me! Leave me alone!" And then he was hit by a crimson blur that dragged him safely onto the sidewalk. When they stopped, Piper could see Jai hitting and kicking at his white-faced father, trying to break his hold. "Stop it! Let me go! Let me go! Fucking let me go like you did when you picked Irey you son of a bitch! I hate you!"
To Piper's surprise, he could see tears streaming down Wally's face as he struggled to hold his flailing son. Wally was usually able to hold his composure until the action passed.
Then again, all bets were off when it involved family.
After a few minutes of thrashing and expletive filled verbal hatred, Jai tired out and collapsed, a sobbing mess in Wally's arms.
"Jai, please let me help you. Let me and your mom in. We want to help, I promise."
Jai closed his eyes and finally nodded. Piper hesitantly walked over to them. "I-if you need me, if I can be any help-"
"I've got it from here Hartley. Thanks." Wally briefly met his eyes, and the poor guy looked terrified but also grateful. Piper nodded heavily, and was about to step away when Jai broke away from his father and ran over for another hug.
"I'm sorry I'm such a mess."
"Don't worry about me Jai, worry about you. And let your parents help. I love you."
"Love you too."
Piper gave him another squeeze and then entrusted him to his father.
James was sitting in the front seat of his car waiting for him when Piper got back. "How'd it go?"
"I don't know...I hope he's going to open up, but..."
"I didn't catch all of that. Was this really over a boy?"
Piper shrugged. "I think the boy was just a catalyst, but it sounds like Jai got his poor heart trampled on."
"Yeah, uh...speaking of that. This is probably a bad time to tell you this, but I don't think this is going to work for me. I'm sorry Hart, but I don't think you've changed that much and I don't want to go back to this."
Piper stared at him in incredulity. "Can you drop me at Wally's?" He added a mental 'you son of a bitch.'

Dick spent half of the next night searching Gotham's rooftops and seedier locales for Damian. Eventually he noticed a distinct lack of concussed street thugs with broken bones and figured that Robin had skipped his patrol.
He found Damian in his little nook in the Batcave. The kid was wearing workout clothes and his hair was messy, but his sweat was dry so it had been some time since whatever brutal workout he'd subjected his body to had taken place. He was lying on his back on his workbench, gazing at the roof of the Cave with deadened eyes.
"Hey…" Dick leaned against a table and waited for some acknowledgment.
"Kid Flash and two of the Flashes have already made excursions to Gotham to verbally abuse me, so if you plan on detailing how my carelessness has hurt Jai you can refrain. I've heard it."
"The Flashes yelled at you? Even Bart? He's like the most easy going guy ever," Dick said in blatant incredulity.
"Such is my ability to be characterized as the villain," Damian muttered. He looked bitter, which was understandable given he'd just ended a relationship, but there was still something unexpected about it. He was so…melancholy, from his expression to his lethargic posture (and Damian was never lethargic).
And that made Dick realize that he knew very little about what had gone down between the two teens.
"Do you want to talk about it? What happened?"
Damian's lips curled up ever so slightly, but it was more of an amused grimace than an actual smile. "You're the first person to ask me that. The first person to assume I had a reason for breaking it off. Even Father…"
"Jai's really hurting, and he does it visibly so everyone's responding to that." After all, the kid had been involuntarily committed less than two hours after the break up. "But talk to me. I wanna know your side. You never mentioned anything that made me think you were going to dump him." But it had also been months since Damian had really communicated with him.
Damian sat up, but he curled in on himself with his legs tucked up against his chest rather than face Dick. "It just…things became tense, I suppose…certainly uncomfortable, once the relationship became sexual."
"Oh. Well a little awkwardness is normal. I mean, you guys were both virgins, so-"
"He wasn't a virgin." Damian said it in such a matter of fact tone that Dick nodded, and prepared to adjust his advice before the words sank in.
"Wait, what? Really?"
Damian finally made eye contact with Dick, apparently intrigued by his surprise. "I don't know when he began his sexual exploration, but I was not his first or only partner."
Dick had just begun processing the fact that Jai must have been young when he'd started having sex when Damian dropped another bombshell on him.
"Our arrangement wasn't a monogamous one, which didn't trouble me at first-"
"What do you mean it wasn't…uh…continue." With effort, Dick bit back his rant and Damian quietly continued, but he was talking to his feet instead of looking Dick in the face.
"As I was saying, it didn't trouble me at first, but when he requested we forgo the use of condoms I proposed monogamy and he wouldn't have it. He said I'd have to propose to him. That was the first time we almost ended the relationship."
Dick tried to think of something to say, but this conversation had turned so far from what he'd expected that he had no stock phrases of comfort, or even comparable experiences to draw from, to counsel Damian with. He couldn't picture his little godson, at age sixteen, demanding an open relationship. And it sounded an awful lot like Jai had been using his sexuality to manipulate Damian. "Uh…you never caved on the condom thing, right?"
"Considering his activity?" Damian snorted derisively. "He made your actions look downright prudish. I was persistent about the use of protection."
Dick was positive he didn't want Damian to elaborate on Jai's actions. "So Jai was more, uh…explorative than you, huh? So was that it, or…you just look like…you know I'm here for you if you want to talk about it, okay? So, so don't shut down on me."
"Perhaps you should stop rambling and listen then," Damian suggested wryly.
"Sure. Shutting up."
"Alright. We'd settled into an almost agreeable arrangement whereby he understood that I'd prefer to be the only person he slept with, but as I couldn't promise him a long term commitment then him having other partners was…was an accommodation I had to make. I did my best to respect my promise to you in regards to his feelings, but I fear I did a poor job of it. It would have been easier if someone had forced him to promise to respect me though."
Dick swallowed, as his throat was suddenly dry, and nodded for Damian to continue.
"I got Jai to accept that I would be his only partner when we were together-"
"Wait, what?" Dick exploded.
Damian quirked an eyebrow, looking up to face Dick again. "Perhaps I'd made too much of your reputation. Jai and his companions assured me that three ways are…what was the term they used? Butterscotch?"
"I think you mean vanilla, and they're not standard," Dick said, feeling flustered. "And I've ruined a relationship with a poorly thought out three way, so they are something to be careful with."
Damian nodded. "It didn't feel right to me, having others present."
"I'm sorry Damian. I had no idea Jai was so different from you about this stuff. He always seems so withdrawn and, well…innocent."
"Dick…if I tell you about something, will you promise not to repeat it? To anyone?"
"That kinda goes without saying." Dick tried to smile reassuringly, but it was difficult to do when his insides were churning from guilt. Would Damian had tried all of that uncomfortably kinky sex if Dick hadn't blindly made him promise to be careful with Jai's feelings?
He didn't really want to know whatever it was Damian was holding back, but he was always going to be there for the kid.
Damian lowered his head again and let out a small sigh. "Jai liked it when I hurt him."
"Oh. Uh…yeah, some people do get into that."
"I don't wish to be one of them. He asked me to-to do things, say things that I…and when I wouldn't he deliberately provoked me, trying to make me lose control. He made me feel like I was becoming the kind of person Mother wanted me to be. Cold. Ruthless. I don't want to be as foolishly empathetic as you, but I…I don't want to be what they want either."
Dick pushed off from the table, closed the space between them, and stood in front of Damian. "Alright, get up."
"Excuse me?"
"Just shut up and hug me."
"Grayson, don't-"
"I said shut up and hug me. I'm not arguing with you about this."
With a scowl, Damian rose to his feet and his posture went rigid as Dick pulled him into a hug. Dick inhaled shakily, and tried to tamp down all the guilt he was feeling. "Damian I am so, so sorry. I thought you'd hurt Jai at first too. I had no idea he was playing head games with you, I swear. I never would have told you to put up with any of that. Please, please keep me in the loop from now on. I don't want to have anything to do with you getting hurt like that again."
"Will you please get control of yourself? I'm fine."
"I know." And yet Dick clung harder.
"How long do these things have to last?"
"Sorry." Reluctantly, Dick released him. "Thanks for letting me do that."
Damian sighed. "You're welcome. But we're never doing that again."
Dick nodded. "Sure. So, uh…I know you're okay-" in that that was the pretense he'd keep up, "but…is there anything I can do? Believe me, I know from experience how much break ups suck. If you want to be alone I'll go, but…"
"You don't have to leave just yet," Damian said. He seemed like he wanted to say more, but nothing came out.
By this point Dick knew when he had to step in with suggestions. "Wanna go for a drive and hang out at my place? We can marathon the Ken Burns Civil War special and get some greasy tofu pad thai."
Damian smiled weakly. "I'd like to change first, but that sounds…agreeable. Dick, thank you."
"Not a problem."
- 17
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Birds and Bees