117Disclaimer - I do not own and, unfortunately, never will own any of these characters or the world itself. I make no profit from this piece of fiction and I take no credit for the characters.
Disclaimers are so obnoxiously goody-goddy. But a big shout out to DC! Not that your reading or anything ... That's besides the point. Hello fellow fanfictioners. This will be my first YJ or any DC fic but I have been consumed by this obsession and had to write it down. I hope you like it.
On with the story my noble readers ... Alas, what fate do I impose upon our dear Robin? (Dick) ... I'll shut up now and carry on.
It was raining. Not just the casual, 'Oh dear, I seem to be stuck in the rain' rain. It was the storm of all storms, power cut and everyone drenched within an inch of their skin. Unfortunatly, a few short hours ago, all power inside Mount Justice had failed. The Zeta Beam and any other mode of transport was too dangerous to risk. So, the team and a few mentors were stuck inside a cave, waiting for the storm to pass. Only, it seemed to be taking awhile. 4 hours had already passed.
M'gann was sat with Conner, both quietly discussing some new Earth tradition they had witnessed on the TV the previous day. The two speedsters were running round the room, throwing a football to one another. Canary and Red Tornado were trying to salvage some food so everyone did not get too hungry. They also had the job of keeping the food away from Flash and his protege. Artemis and the Green Arrow were checking the conditions of their arrows, a soft conversation passing between them and the tedious job. Kaldur was surprisingly not in the pool. Instead he was relaxed on an armchair, reading a novel from Atlantis.
Suddenly, the heros were stopped in their actions by the sound of the hatch opening. Everyone was ready and alert in case it was an intruder. Lightning flashed ominously in the background and succeeded in casting a silohette of a large and itimidating figure and a short, yet lean, shadow. A torchlight, courtesy of Black Canary, lit the faces and the Team let out a sigh of releif, one they hadn't even realised they were holding. Batman and Robin entered, completely soaked. After watching BC hand them a towel each, they all went back to what they were doing.
Not for long. Beore the hatch was closed, Robin let out a high pitched whistle, causing Connor to wince. Then, 2 canines quickly made their way inside the cave, just in time before the doors shut. One was white and of average build with a red cape around its neck. The other was tall, dark and intimidating in comparison. It was a great Dane and it was built powerfully. Its face was covered by a cowl similar to Batman's and only was it's muzzle free form it's confines. The dane also adorned a black cape.
Batman glanced around the room and frowned, not enough for anyone to notice, but Robin wasn't anyone. He quickly headed over to the common area and coughed loudly, clearing his throat. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his mentors hand twitch. Black Canary, seemingly only just notciing the canines, looked bewildered. "What's Krypto and Bat Hound doing here?" Through their combined effort, Black Canary and Robin had managed to gain everyone's attention.
"Bat Hound? Krypto? ... You brought wet dog in here? Dude, not cool!" Wally pouted. After an incident which shall forever remain confidential, he wasn't a massive dog lover. Artemis, however, seemed the complete opposite and ran over to the dogs, peppering them with comliments. The Bat Hound looked disgruntled whilst Krypto looked to be in heaven. Batman and Robin both contained a snort at the similaraties between owner and dog.
"Blame Robin for that. Agent A was supposed to be looking after them whilst we were on business. However, he left yesterday for an emergancy in England. Robin refused to let them stay alone through the storm." His cape, whilst designed to stop him from getting cold, did not stop him from getting wet. His cape was dripping water onto the floor and Robin was wringing out his own.
"And you let Robin go through with this plan ... why?" Connor asked, looking at Krypto with mistrust in his eyes. Wolf, who appeared only moments after the unexpected arrival, stood protectivly infront of Connor. Robinjust grinned at him in response. He swore that he heard the Batman mumble "The only weapon that can truly defeat me ... so blue ... too adorable ... illegal... damn eyes." Not understanding completely, Conner just dropped the subject.
"Well, I'm bored," Robin said. He quickly did a flip and a few other arobatic techniques before landing on the couch perfectly. He threw a wink at Batman and spoke again. "Everyone, lets play a game!" The inhabitants, curious, all found a seat. Except Batman.
"The purpose?" He asked, his voice the usual monotone, although to Robin it sounded teasing.
"Simple, Team Bonding. A more trusting and closer team has many advantages during battle." Robin easily responded, no hesitation. The Young Justice team got the impression it was a regular occurance.
"An example of said advantage?" Batman tested.
"Again, the obvious. It allows a more in depth knowledge of actions, reactions and thought processes of your team, allowing you the advantage of synchronising yourself to their stratigies in battle." Robin finished, not concealing his smug smirk. Batman just nodded at his son.
"Proceed. Although, I shall not be included in this exercice,"
"I already counted on it. So, what should we play?" He asked, his legs crossed and leaning forward slighlty in excitement. The two dogs sat on either side of him, theire heads resting on his lap. They looked like guard dogs, but more friendlier toward Robin.
"Let's play the game of Truth and Dare." M'gann squeeled, grinning at the prospect of immersing herself in another Earthling culture. Robin looked a bit worried, but then figured he would be able to manipulate any situation to avoid revealing his identity. Black Canary seemed to agree with the game as she inclined her head in agreement.
"A perfect team building exercice. I shall even join in. As well as the other League members here." They all thoughtfully forgot to mention Batman.
"Better than facing boredom," Flash sighed. Perking up abit, he grinned at Wally. "I'll get to know all your secrets!" Wally paled dramaticlly.
"I'll start! Robin, truth or ... drum roll please," his uncle kindly provided the drum roll whilst everyone else sighed or rolled their eyes. "Dare ... dun dun duuuunnn!" Everyone, including the dogs, just looked at Wally. He blushed a soft pink under their stares.
"Truth," Robin replied confidently. Wally, spying Batman in the corner, smirked inwardly. If he was going to reveal secrets in front of his mentor, then so was Robin.
"Name one thing that Batman does that really annoys you." Everyone looked at Wally fearfully. Did he have a death wish? Robin just grinned and turned towards his mentor.
"Well, there is two things. Number one, no matter how much I beg, he's never" ('and never will' Batman interupted) "said - To The Batmobile! I mean, it's part of the image." Wally looked heartbroken. Such an oppurtunity for greatness, so blatantly ignored. Flash snickered quietly to himself and Balck Canary also tried to surpress a smirk. Red Tornado seemed to have no repsonse (surprise, surprise) and Green Arrow was chuckling under his breath. The YJ team just shook there head fondly at the young boy. Batman sat, typing away at his holgraphic computer, seemingly unbothered by the fact. I suppose it wasn't a secret to the World's Greatest Detective.
"Number 2?" M'gann asked. Robin looked completely irritated just thinking about it.
"You see, Batman can be a bit too," He was cut off, however, from a series of violent sneezes. He sniffled slightly and coughed quietly to himself. Then he looked up at Batman in fear. Everyone noticing this also turned to him. His movements had stilled, his head tilted slightly toward Robin. His hand curled into a fist and he slowly rose from the table. He turned around and looked at Robin.
"I'm fine, really. Just a little cold!" He protested. The Batman's glare did not lessen. Then, quicker than Flash could have followed, Batman was by Robin's side. His gloved hand rose to his forhead, a built in thermometer concluding his thoughts. He rested his hands on either side of the Bird's throat, checking for swelling.
"I told you, I'm fine!" Batman just stood up.
"I would not suggest that a temperature 1.25 degrees over average is considered fine. Also, there is a slight swelling in your throat, suggesting further illness." He looked at the two dogs, who were nugding and nuzzling the young bat. "Krypto, Bat Hound, round up blankets, he needs to be kept warm." The dogs instantly obeyed his command, leaving the common area.
"Batman!" Robin protested, pouting and crossing his arms. He looked so childlike then, the team was once again stunned that this boy had gone toe to toe with some of the toughest villains. The Man of Bat's did not reply, just glared at his younger charge, conveying his worry and concern to the his son. Robin heaved a melodramatic sigh and let his shoulders slump in defeat. Batman nodded. Suddenly, the super dog and Bathound came back into the room and in their jaws was a few blankets and a thick duvet. Krypto, flying, laid it gently over the boy he had worked hard to protect. Bathound then pulled another blanket over him. When that was done, they both snuggled up to Robin, and tried to give him more heat.
Batman watched his charge critically. He turned to Black Canary. "Keep him in your sights at all times, he is not to move of the sofa. If he does, you may restrain him." Black Canary nodded her consent, mildly amused at seeing this side of Batman. When Robin was younger, it was a common occurance, which shocked the League even more. However, it seemed he still struggled with a bad case of Daddy Bats Syndrome.
"What will you be doing?" She asked, her tone curious.
"I'll be trying to get some power so I can get some warm fluids down him, to accelerate the rate of his immune system." He then left, keeping a careful eye on his Baby Bird. Robin groaned, now lying down on the sofa. He glared up at the ceiling, not wanting to see the smirks, no matter how confused, on his team's faces.
"Number two, he's extremely over protective. If I get an injury on the field, he can work through that. He can go get justice and put away whoever hurt me. He can take into account the risks and prepare him self for any conclusion. However, natural illness' seem to set him on edge. He has no control over it." Robin pouted adorably at the ceiling, his brow furrowed in annoyance.
"So basically, your saying Batman is a control freak with a serious over protective streak?" Connor asked. Robin turned to him and gave him a full force bat glare. He took that as a yes.
"Dude, that totally sucks ... Now back to the game! Your turn to pick!" Wally exclaimed. Roibn just rolled his eyes. Some things never change.
Do you like it? If you don't , that's fine. It's not nearly as good as I imagined. I guess I need to improve my writing! But as the smart voice in my head always says - always room for improvement! Criticism and feed back would be invaluable so if you have the time, could you review? It would be awesome :)
I don't know if I'll make this into more than a one-shot. I think it doesn't really need any more. Just give me your views, ok ... So,
Tattie Byes,
Vickie1996 xxx