The team happened. They didn't have a name, and they didn't do much for a while. But Dick was clearly happy and he talked about Superboy and Miss Martian and the whole group a lot. It seemed to annoy Damian, but the boy held on and listened to Dick talk. Eventually, Dick calmed down and steadied it out. He talked about the team still but once it became a normal occurrence the excitement died down until Artemis joined and then Dick talked about how he was bitter about her replacing Roy.

Apparently he didn't voice these thoughts at the cave, not that he was happy about it but he knew not to alienate your teammates. It wasn't until their first operation altogether that she seemed to grow on him.

"Wally is acting so… so… childish!" Dick complained one morning at breakfast, three months after the creation of the Team. "It's getting so annoying with him being so rude to her. They just need to get a room!"

"You're one to talk about acting childish," Damian remarked, a half-smile on his face.

Dick scowled at him before he slumped over. "I'm just saying they need to act less like children."

"And you're not a child?" Damian replied instantly. Tim stifled a laugh.

When Dick didn't respond, he looked over. The boy was concentrating on something, as if he hadn't correctly heard what Damian had said.

"I don't know," Dick said honestly.

Tim put down the newspaper he was reading, the front cover talking about the plant Lex Luthor had shut down in Smallville, Kansas. He leaned forward a little and furrowed his brow. "Dick, what do you mean you don't know?"

"I just feel older than my age sometimes," the boy replied honestly. "Like I feel tired about things. And the one time Two Face got me, I thought 'not again' but that doesn't make any sense. I've never been caught by Two Face before. And then I've always had these dreams that I'm older or something." Dick's brow furrowed, his eyes staring ahead of him unseeing.

"Who's in them?" Tim asked quietly, his voice strained.

"Um, you guys. And you're younger than me. And Bruce is there sometimes with Alfred. And Miss Gordon," Dick whispered, his face blushing at the mention of Barbara. It seemed Dick had developed a crush on Batgirl, not that he'd ever admit because god she was almost old enough to be his mother. He just really liked her. A lot. "I just see you sometimes. We're not really doing anything but still… it's weird."

Tim hesitated, unsure of how to proceed. In almost three years, Dick had never mentioned dreams once to Bruce or Tim. The kid was unusually bright and optimistic, something Tim hadn't quite believed until after a week of living with a younger Dick. It made the older version of the boy look tame in comparison, something Jason had noted several months before. But Dick had made no indication that he had any memories of Before, because normally the boys bright personality made him chatter all day long. Normally, Dick would make an off-handed comment he wanted someone to talk to him about later, it was a subtly he'd adopted after living with Bruce. It seemed to be so integral to his personality now that whatever had affected him had kept it.

Tim knew he'd alluded to the past subtly but Dick had never caught on. He didn't think it was because Dick couldn't, but just that he simply couldn't make a connection because he didn't remember.

Jason referenced things more brusquely. He would ask Dick about things that happened back when Jason was still Robin, an unusual feat in and of itself, and Dick took the references as jokes now. Jason would probably never admit it, but there was a deep hurt in his eyes. Damian was the only one who seemed to act the most appropriate. Aside from being his normal demon self, Damian never once talked about who Grayson was Before. At least not to Dick and rarely if ever to any of the other members of the family.

Tim wasn't sure if it was healthy or not.

It wasn't like they had the best relationship anyway.

"I was Batman in one," Dick said suddenly. "In my dream. I was Batman and I had… you were my Robin D." Dick had stopped calling Damian Lil' D once they got older. Damian was almost fifteen now, hardly a child, and Dick was two years younger.

Tim paled.

Dick shook his head. "That's all I remember. It's so weird. You'd be more like my Batman, right!" the boy laughed, but even Tim could see it was half-hearted. Dick was perceptive and a people person— he knew they were both uncomfortable.

Tim looked over to Damian. The fifteen year old was holding his coffee cup so tightly that his knuckles were white.

"Don't be ridiculous," Damian whispered.

Dick blinked. "D? You okay?"

Damain sat up and set his shoulders back. "I'm fine. Drake, I need help on a case. And Grayson, don't you have your training simulation today?"

Damian hopped off the chair and was out of the kitchen before either of them could reply.

Apparently the simulation went badly. Dick had gone straight to his room after changing out of his uniform, not even bothering to send them a hello.

"What happened?" Tim asked.

Jason was back again. He was looking over at the entrance where Dick had disappeared with a frown before he turned back to Tim and Bruce. Barbara was there too, her red hair up in a tight ponytail and her cowl off her face. She too was watching the interaction with interest.

"The simulation went badly," Bruce said.

"We need a little more than that!" Tim said. "You know Dick isn't gonna talk about it!"

Bruce sighed. "Artemis was killed in the simulation. Miss Martian's sub-conscience could not differ reality from simulation and it took over. She fully believed that Artemis had died and thus they forgot they were in a training sim."

Tim and Barbara paled.

"So he—."

"It was a no win simulation," Bruce said, his voice tired.

"He died, or as close as he could to it," Jason concluded, his eyes darkening as he looked over his adopted father.

Bruce nodded. "He and Kid Flash sacrificed themselves in the simulation to save the planet. That's all he told me before we left." Bruce's eyes strayed up to the direction of the manor.

"Are they going to talk to Black Canary?" Barbara asked. Her eyes widened. "Does she know?"

Bruce paused a moment before slipping off the cowl. "Most of the members who know my identity know Dick isn't the age he's supposed to be. She said she'd look out for anything that might seem like something he shouldn't know as a thirteen year old."

"Actually," Tim's voice shook, "I have to tell you something."

Jason, Barbara and Bruce turned to Tim. Damian was slouching behind him, eyes dark as he frowned. But he seemed more worried than anything else.

"Dick mentioned that sometime he feels older than he is. He mentioned thinking 'not again' when Two Face got him but then said he's never been captured by Two Face before," Tim explained.

"What else?" Bruce asked sharply, his voice tight.

Damian spoke up. "He had dreams of being older and of being Batman."

Bruce blinked and Barbara shook her head. "Why hasn't he mentioned this before?"

"I just thought they were dreams."

They all turned to find Dick in his civilian clothes. He stood there with a confused look on his face.

Barbara sat up and turned away. She didn't approve of Bruce hiding the truth from Dick. But her argument of 'I'm his fiancé!' lost to 'I'm his father!' and she knew it wouldn't have done any good to argue instead of finding a way to fix it all. She touched where the ring on her finger would be softly.

"Hi, Miss Gordon," Dick said, his voice quiet. She noted the blush crossing his face and smiled.

"Hi, Richard. You don't have to call me Miss Gordon," she said, for the nth time.

The boy scrunched up his nose and shook his head; it was his response every time. He turned to Bruce and frowned. "They're dreams. Why is it a big deal?"

"You're right," Jason replied before Bruce could. The man glared but Jason ignored it. "They are just dreams. We didn't realize you wanted to be Batman when you were older."

Dick hesitated, his eyes looking sharply to the left as he lied. "Of course I did. You know, after you guys. I always expected to be Batman. I just thought it was weird. Why does it matter?"

"Expected—?" Tim began.

"I can't be Robin forever!" the boy yelled, standing up on the balls of his feet. He looked stricken for a moment and fell back to his feet. "What else am I gonna do?"

It was surprisingly Jason who strode forward and put a comforting hand on Dick's shoulder. The boy looked up at him with desperate eyes. "You don't have to be Robin forever. I wasn't, and neither was Tim. Or even Damian."

Dick swayed a moment, his eyes hazy. He'd still known who he was when Damian had handed the Robin mantle back over to him. "Yeah," he mumbled. "I knew that."

"Did you?"

The boy squirmed. "No," he whispered.

"Come on, bed."

Jason glared back at Bruce before he guided Dick back up to the manor. They came to Dick's room, which looked like a thirteen year old lived in it. There were old game stations that Dick was dismantling. Books and homework all over his desk. There were several pictures of his parents and of him growing up again. Bruce and Alfred had removed all the pictures with grown-Dick Grayson in them. They were currently sitting in Bruce's room in the manor, the one room Dick wasn't allowed to go in.

They sat there in silence before Dick spoke.

"Jason, I don't want to be Batman anymore," he admitted. "I did. And the hero bit, I'm still all in. But that thing that makes him sacrifice everything for the mission… I can't do that. I don't have it."

Jason hesitated. "You won't kid," he said, thinking of the Dick Grayson he'd always known. "You'll never be him. You'll be better." He hugged Dick tightly, because god he wanted his older brother back but this kid was so confused and tired and had an urge to grow up that he couldn't explain. It wasn't fair.

Their lives weren't fair.

Robin had been hurting ever since the strange spell had taken all the adults away. He felt pulled, like he was being stretched in two different directions, and the only thing that was keeping him where he was was the fact that he still hadn't been able to get in contact with the cave.

"We need to leave soon, Robin," Aqualad instructed. "What is so important?"

Robin could feel the eyes of the team on him. "I need to contact Nightwing. He can help us. These are five League worthy villains."

"You don't think we can take them?" Superboy snarled, his hands curling into fists.

"I'm not an idiot!" Robin snapped in return. "And I'm worried." He turned back to the computer and his comm. One of the Zetatube's began to power up and before they all knew it, they were washed in blue light.

"Nightwing B-010."

Robin turned around just as Nightwing materialized out of the portal. The team was immediately on the defensive.

"No!" Robin insisted, grinning despite himself. "He's my brother! He's Nightwing!" He ran forward to hug the older teen. Nightwing was barely sixteen, his birthday several months away, but he had already hit a growth spurt. He didn't tower over Robin, not like Batman and Red Hood did, but the younger boy still felt dwarfed by the teen.

"So this is the team?" Nightwing asked, raising one eyebrow "Tt."

"You got a problem?" Artemis asked, folding her arms. "I don't see you working with the League." With being a strong word. More like 'for'.

"I work with Batman," Nightwing answered honestly. "That's all that matters."

"Well whomever you are with, Robin trusts you. That is all I need," Aqualad said. He held his hand out. Nightwing looked down at it for a moment before he shook it. Wally nodded, his eyes shining a little as he looked at the hero. He knew all about the Bludhaven vigilante.

"Where are we going again?"

Robin opened his mouth to speak as a splitting headache nearly cracked open his skull. He fell to the floor, grasping at his hair. He cried out in pain and he heard yelling and strong arms pick him off the floor.

"I'm fine!" he insisted, his head clearing.

"You are not!" Nightwing said. "One who is fine does not collapse on the floor."

Robin jerked his hand from Nightwing's. "It doesn't matter how I feel anyway, we have to help them!"

Nightwing looked to Aqualad. "You're his leader," he said.

"You're his brother," Aqualad said seriously. "And I am also his friend. I trust him. I might not agree, but I trust."

Nightwing narrowed his eyes and looked down at Robin. He felt the sudden urge to knock the boy out and stick him in the medical room of the cave. He needed to keep Grayson safe so that when they found the cure, he'd have his father again.

After a moment, he nodded. "Fine, you can come."

Robin threw his hands up. "Yes!"

Robin skidded across the dirt, falling in to place next to Nightwing. The older teen had pulled out his sword and was holding it at the ready.

"Did you hear Marvel?"

"The stone," Nightwing said. "Yes. But we must get that shield down."

Robin's eyes narrowed. He watched Superboy be flown across the field before turning back to Nightwing. "The cat," he whispered. "That's what keeps Klarion to this place right? The familiar keeps him tethered."

Nightwing gave his brother a side glance, slicing a beam of magic from hitting them. Dick ducked. "Yes, that is correct."

"So we take out the cat!"

Nightwing only needed to point for Robin to follow his gaze and pointed to where Artemis and Kid Flash had apparently had the same idea. But the cat was now the size of a tiger and was trying to rip both of them to shreds. Robin frowned.

"I'm going!"

"Robin, no, wait—!"

But Robin was gone. The boy leapt forward to attack, running alongside the Archer. Before Nightwing knew it, Klarion had thrown a bolt of electricity at Robin and Artemis, launching them away from his shield. They went flying where they landed at Zatanna's feet. Nightwing roared, leaping forward to slice the shield with his sword. Klarion blasted him back, laughing.

"Silly boys and girls!" the Lord of Chaos shrieked. "Little, little children! So helpless!"

Nightwing gritted his teeth. "I'm no child."

"Ah, ah, ah!" Klarion said, wiggling his finger. "The spell says otherwise!"

Nightwing moved to attack again when a blinding gold light overcame the clearing. When he turned, he found the young magician, Zatanna (who reportedly had a crush on Robin, as per Wally) had placed the magic helmet of Fate on her head. She was transformed, her black hair whipping around her.

"Klarion!" Fate screamed. "This ends now!"

Nightwing watched the Witch Boy's features twisted into something less than human. He heard the sound of Marvel screaming shazam and a bolt of lightning strike the ground blared in his vision. He stood up, wiping blood from his mouth. Fate and Klarion blasted each other with bolts of gold and red. But the Lord of Chaos was reduced to a sphere. Fate pulled back and moved forward, the attacks becoming more and more dangerous and electric.

Nightwing launched himself forward and slid across the ground to where Robin and Artemis were. Artemis was holding Robin in her lap, where the boy was screaming and holding his head.

"Robin!"

"You're not all here, Nabu!" Klarion screeched.

Nightwing turned for only a moment to see the Helmet flicker off of Zatanna. He turned back to Robin. "Give him to me. Robin, listen to me!"

The boy seemed to quiet down, but tears streamed down his face and he held on to Nightwing's uniform, gripping the slim material with his hands. Artemis looked on, worried, and Nightwing could see the fear in her face. "He'll be alright," he promised, but his voice shook. He didn't know what was wrong with Robin and until Batman and the adults returned, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Damn, why hadn't he insisted on more medical knowledge when Alfred offered to teach him?

He saw Fate steel themselves against an attack, throwing down a final electric gold blast. Klarion was thrown back into the dirt and the shield dematerialized. Fate rushed forward and grabbed the stone, holding it in their hand.

"No!" Klarion shrieked. But it was done.

Fate said the final words of the spell. The world was blinded by light and suddenly the League was there.

Nightwing held on to Robin tighter. Artemis gripped the boys hand. M'gann came up behind them and stood there, her brown eyes worried as she looked down at the boy. He was still crying. He clenched and unclenched his fist and his mutterings differed between Romani and English.

The other magicians were swiftly dealt with and in the confusion, Klarion had disappeared. Batman rushed over and brushed Artemis and M'gann out of the way.

"What happened?"

Nightwing frowned. "We're not sure. He got blasted but this isn't the first time since the original spell that Robin's head has hurt him."

"Fate, release my daughter!"

They turned to see Zatara addressing Doctor Fate.

The gold and blue cloaked magician paused. "No."

"What!" Wally exclaimed.

"She has her own life to live!" Artemis snapped just as Superboy growled.

Zatara looked destressed. "Please. She is young."

"Fate requires a host. She is acceptable," Doctor Fate decreed, floating down ever so slightly.

"Kent Nelson would never agree—," Wally began. But Fate held up their hand.

"Kent Nelson did object. Adamantly so. Thus, I have released him to the afterlife," Fate replied.

Wally felt his knees shake. His eyes widened. "What? No, you can't…"

"Take me, instead," Zatara interrupted. "I'm older. Wiser. I have more experience in magic than my daughter. Let me give my life for hers."

Fate's eyes narrowed. They landed on the ground and stared up at Zatara. "How do I know you will place the helmet on your head after I remove it?"

Zatara sighed. "You have my word. Please."

Fate nodded. "It is a deal, then."

Slowly, the helmet was removed. Zatanna stood there, eyes closed as the tears threatened to leak out of her eyes. Her father slowly walked forward and wrapped his arms around her, holding her there for a moment before whispering he loved her in her ear. The girl's tears began to leak.

"I'm sorry dad. I love you too," she whispered. Zatara nodded and kissed her forward, holding on to her shoulder for one last moment before he took the helmet and put it on. In a moment, Zatara was gone and Doctor Fate had returned.

They turned to where Batman, Nightwing and Robin were. Zatanna stood behind the man that had been her father, her eyes widening when she saw Robin. She couldn't lose him too. The team gathered around, along with the other leaguers.

"I can return him to as he once was," Fate said.

Nightwing and Batman looked at each other, eyes wide. The team looked at each other strangely.

"What are you talking about?" Artemis asked slowly.

"Quiet, girl," Nightwing snapped, despite the fact that they were the same age. "You can return him? Do not use tricks on us, magician."

"Nightwing," Batman said. His son turned to look back at him before nodding, returning to the groaning Robin again. Batman looked at Fate. "You've stolen a father from his child. And now you are offering to return one."

"His soul and his body were split between the worlds. If I do not fix him, he will die," Fate said, ignoring Batman's comment. "The effect of the return is too much for the boy to handle."

A pause. "Do it."

Fate lifted their hands, chanting a spell. Batman and Nightwing moved away as gold light enveloped Robin. After a minute, it faded. Robin was still there.

"He will return to you soon," Fate decreed before they turned and took the other magicians and disappeared.

Batman picked Robin up. The boy groaned.

"We'll go back to the mountain. We'll explain there."

Batman laid Robin down in the infirmary. The team was milling around waiting for an explanation for the exchange and Nightwing was standing several feet away with his arms folded and a worried frown on his face. The boy had groaned and cried the entire way back to the mountain and there was nothing they could do until they got there.

Black Canary was waiting for them, along with Agent A.

"Is he asleep now?"

"I think so," Batman replied. He turned to Alfred.

"What happened last time?"

Last time being over three years ago. Alfred hesitated. "Master Robin literally seemed to shrink down. It seemed incredibly painful, but he woke up fine. You saw him," Alfred said. "I'm afraid growing muscle and height that fast will be painful."

Batman nodded. "Probably. Can we put him under for the time being?"

"Drug him?" Nightwing said, shocked.

Black Canary pursed her lips. "I might be best. He won't feel the pain and we don't run the risk in assuming he'll be out for all of it. Agent A and I will take care of that. You two owe the team an explanation," she said, her eyes settling on Batman. She'd never met Nightwing before, but she knew who he was and how he was a part of this.

"You're right," Batman sighed. "We should tell them."

"Father!" Nightwing hissed.

"Let's go, Nightwing," Batman said, ignoring his son. "Robin… Dick needs to rest."

They left the infirmary and walked down the halls silently next to one another.

"They don't need to know," Nightwing said.

"They're his friends. His teammates. They deserve to know why he won't just return one day," Batman explain, giving his son a side-eyed glance.

Nightwing huffed.

They arrived in the cave's living room where the team were standing. The only one who looked mildly disinterested was Superboy but he was staring at the static on the TV. It wasn't until Nightwing cleared his throat that the clone looked up and shut the TV off.

Zatanna and M'gann were standing close to each other, the alien's arm around the human girl. Zatanna's face was red but she wiped the tears off her face and stood up when Batman and Nightwing walked in.

"What's going on? Robin's my best friend, I deserve to know what's happening!" Wally insisted, his green eyes pleading as he zipped forward to stand in front of Batman.

Nightwing held his tongue, only moving to look at Batman.

"I lied to you," Batman said honestly. "Robin is not thirteen years old."

That seemed to shock the team enough. Artemis and Wally jerked back, their eyes betraying their confusion. Aqualad frowned and he rocked back and forth on his feet a moment before he caught and steadied himself. Only Superboy seemed unaffected, given that he was barely a year old. M'gann and Zatanna looked at each other.

"We don't care if he's younger—," the magician started, though he voice cracked a little.

"Older," Batman corrected. "Three years ago, Robin, as the original Nightwing, was de-aged somehow into a ten year old. At first, he remembered who he was. But it caught up and eventually he forgot. We had to tell him several not quite truths. We've been searching for a way to return him back to his rightful age ever since." The room was silent. It was probably the most they'd ever heard Batman speak and the fact that Robin wasn't actually a child, but supposedly much older.

Artemis looked up. "He didn't know?"

"No," Batman said. "He forgot almost all of us aside from the important details." He was my ward. I was his father. Batman brushed the thought away.

"How old was he?"

"Twenty-two," Nightwing said. "He would be twenty-five now."

Zatanna covered her mouth. "Oh my god," she whispered.

Artemis fell back down to the couch, holding her shoulders, and Wally had a deep look of betrayal in his eyes. Either for them or for his friend, Nightwing couldn't be sure. Aqualad looked deeply troubled and he was looking away with a pained expression on his face.

"He had to relive childhood," the Atlantean said. "He had to grow up again."

"As if Grayson could ever actually grow up," Nightwing muttered. Batman shot him a dark look before he turned to Aqualad.

"Yes, he did. He lost a lot of things."

"When will he be back to normal?" Wally asked, his voice quiet.

"Two or three days at most," Batman said. "We'll keep you updated." With that, the two were gone.

Wally fell down on the couch next to Artemis. "Oh my god," he said.

"Twenty-two," Artemis replied.

"He's older than me! That is so not right!" Wally exclaimed, trying to keep his outlook upbeat.

Zatanna leaned into M'gann. "I really liked him," she whispered. "A lot. I really liked Robin a lot. And he wasn't even himself."

The team looked at each other, each in varying levels of disbelief. Would the Robin they knew be the same almost ten years older? Would be remember them? Did he still mess up the English language and did he climb on things all the time?

"I'm sorry, Z," M'gann said softly. "It's awful."

The magician balled her fists, leaping up from the chair. "It is! I finally have someone who I liked and who I think liked me and then he has to go and be ten years older than me! It's not fair!" Tears streamed down her face and they heard glass shattering in the kitchen. The girls eyes widened and she wiped the tears from her face. "Sorry," she whispered. "My father was taken from me. And now Robin is leaving."

"We have to remember that we cannot feel angry at Robin. He is more of a victim in this than us. His life was robbed. Three years of it was stolen. He had no memory of who he once was," Aqualad said. "That said. I am sad for our friend. Robin was like a younger brother to me."

"He was even more to me," a voice said. The team turned to see Nightwing standing there.

"What… do you mean?" Superboy asked, his voice cool.

"When Robin was Nightwing, the original, he was like a father me. At first, yes, an older brother but then a father. He was… he was Batman and I was his Robin," Nightwing explained.

"No way, Rob was Batman?" Wally asked, slight awe in his voice.

"Only for a year," Nightwing said quickly. "There were complications with the Batman you know now. But he gave me a chance. He became for more like a father than… it's been three years," Nightwing's voice cracked. He squared his shoulders and jutted his jaw out. "You are losing your brother, but I had lost my father."

"Nightwing."

Damian whirled around to face his biological father. The man's face was unreadable, but Nightwing knew that he had heard all of what he had just said.

"We're headed home. We'll come back in the morning," Batman declared. He turned back to face the team. "Get rest. You did well today."

They walked to the Zetatube's in silence, the teams eyes on them even after they disappeared.

They materialized back in the cave. Nightwing turned to Bruce.

"Father—."

"Don't worry about it, Damian," Batman said.

Nightwing watched him disappear into the shadows.

Nightwing returned in civvies and glasses over his face. Batman was still at the cave but Damian had snuck down in the early morning and arrived in the cave to sit by Dick's side when he woke up. It'd been a week.

Robin was gone. In his place, at around yesterday at 2:17 pm, was Dick Grayson. They measured that, biologically, Dick was twenty-five. Exactly where he should be. The team hadn't been permitted to see him yet and technically neither had Damian, but he'd snuck in anyway. He'd been sneaking updates to Barbara who still wasn't permitted to come to the cave. Damian knew she was pretty close to it anyway, just like he'd been. But she was older and had a little more patience.

Damian slipped into the infirmary where Dick was sleeping. The wounds he'd contracted before he'd been de-aged had appeared when Dick's body returned to what it once was. It'd been a surprise to see various cuts and bruises and a stab wound where there hadn't been the day before, but Alfred had stitched Dick up just fine. And now the man was just sleeping. Damian reached forward to hold Dick's hand.

"Please wake up, Grayson," he whispered. "I miss you."

Grayson only breathed.

"Todd told me to tell you that you needed to 'fucking wake up soon, Dick' or else he'd kill you," Damian said. "I threw a butter knife at him. It is now lodged in the wall where Todd's head had been. Drake framed it." He frowned, feeling unsettled. He didn't know what about Grayson made him feel like a child, but he hadn't felt this way since… probably ever, really. Or maybe the first time they'd gotten ice cream.

That had been fun, despite what he told Dick.

"Finally taller than you now, Lil 'D," a voice whispered.

Damian sat up. "Grayson!"

The man winced. He heaved himself up so he was sitting somewhat upright before he squeezed Damian's hand. "Yeah, try not to yell. I feel hungover," Dick said. He grinned at Damian. "You're older, Damian."

Damian paused, her face dropping at Dick's tone of voice. "Grayson, I should—."

"Wait, before you call the Big Man," Dick said. Damian's lips twitched at the nickname. He hadn't heard his biological father called 'Big Man' in three years. It had always annoyed him, but Damian found himself glad to hear the name again. "I'm so sorry, D."

Damian cocked his head to the side. "For what?"

"Three years, Damian. I've been… I've missed three years of your life. You're fifteen. You… you're grown now," Dick said, his voice strained. His eyes looked desperate, as if he'd forget everything again.

"Grayson," Damian said seriously. "You were there. Maybe not… how you wanted to be, but you were there. I learned much from you. Even that way. I was angry. I'd felt as if you left me." He watched Dick's fall. "But you hadn't! Not of your own volition and…" Damian paused. "I love you, father." The words tumbled from his mouth before Damian could think twice about it.

They stared at each other for a moment. Just as Dick opened his mouth, the door swing open.

Batman stood there, cowl off. "Dick…"

"Bruce," Dick whispered. He glanced at Damian for a short moment before he smiled. "I remember!"

"You're you again," Bruce said, walking forward to squeeze his sons shoulder. Dick immediately pulled Bruce into a hug. The man stiffened before he wrapped his arms around Dick's torso.

Dick pulled away sooner than expected. "Still sore. Ow." He rolled his shoulder a little. "Oh, fuck," he whispered softly.

Bruce only raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"How do you feel?"

Dick shrugged, not the least bit embarrassed by his language. "Sore and everything aches. But fine, aside from the cuts and stuff. Where are Tim and Jason?" His eyes widened and he shot up. "Barbara!"

Bruce shoved Dick down in to the bed.

Damian stood up, looking between the two.

"Once you're feeling a little better, you can have visitors. Damian wasn't supposed to be here," Bruce explained.

"I'm glad he was," Dick said, "It's good to wake up and see someone you know. Especially in a med bay."

Bruce nodded, looking over the charts. "Damain, do you mind giving us a moment?"

"Not at all…" a pause, "Father."

Damian left and the door swung close. Dick sat up.

"Why didn't you tell me the truth?" His voice was dark, and the humor disappeared from his eyes.

"You were ten."

"Twelve? Thirteen? I wasn't a stupid kid, Bruce. I would've understood. I knew you all talked about me, I ignored it because I thought it was because of the memory loss. Which, ugh, admittedly is a good cover up," Dick said. His voice was tight and his eyes were narrowed.

"I'm doing a blood test."

"Answer me."

Bruce sighed. "Would you have understood? Would you, at twelve or thirteen, understood that you were actually supposed to be 25? That you were a cop and lived in Bludhaven? That you were dating 'Miss Gordon'? If we had told you that you have almost twelve years of memories just gone, you'd have felt guilty. You would have blamed yourself somehow."

Dick blushed at the name he'd called Barbara, but he still looked serious. "Probably would have. Where did you put all the pictures anyway?"

"My room."

Dick laughed then, his shoulders relaxing. "Makes sense." He leaned back into the pillow, wincing as Bruce drew the blood. "I might not have, I guess.'

"Barbara was against it the entire time."

"You won the argument then," Dick mused, a smile on his face at the thought of Barbara going up against Bruce.

Bruce's lips twitched. "Father trumped fiancé."

Dick laughed louder.

He was still in the med bay when the door slid open and a figure slipped in. Dick's wound were healing nicely, but he was confined to the bed for the time being. He was getting restless.

"Dick, you up?"

Dick blinked out of the haze of drugs. "Jay?"

He saw a flash of teeth in the darkness and then the light turned on. Jason was older now too, Dick could see it. He wore his leather jacket and jeans and the Red Hood helmet was tucked under his arm.

Jason sat down next to Dick's bed and the older man slowly turned his body to face his younger brother.

Jason looked serious, but not in the serious 'I'm-going-to-kill-you-way', it was the 'we-have-something-heavy-to-talk-about serious. Jason rubbed his eyes and leaned back into the chair. "God, I missed you Dick."

Dick blinked. This didn't happen often. "Oh. I'd say I missed you too but…"

Jason shook his head, scowling. "Work with me here, asshole. I'm trying to… I'm trying to say that I missed, uh, having you as my older brother."

Dick's eyes softened. "I understand Jason. I appreciate it."

"I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like I hated you. I didn't. Well, I don't. I mean," Jason huffed, "I mean that I don't hate you now. And I've said, in the past, some really shitty stuff to you. I guess I always figured that you'd, you know, get over it because you always seemed so sure of yourself that words couldn't hurt you."

Dick looked away, blinking. "I guess I do give off that vibe."

"When the kid… when you didn't recognize me when I came to the cave, our second first meeting, it terrified me," Jason admitted, his voice quiet. "I didn't realize how much you did for me until you were gone. And you weren't dead, but suddenly I was no one to you. And you're my brother, my big brother. I didn't want that."

"Thanks, Jason," Dick said, smiling. "That does mean a lot. You'll always be my younger brother. I love you a lot. You actually remind me a lot of John."

Jason frowned. "Your dad?"

"Cousin," Dick corrected. "When I was a kid. You were like my older brother in the same way he was one to me."

Jason hesitated. "I didn't realize you'd thought of him that way." Jason never thought much about it, but Dick really didn't talk about the circus that much. For someone that could talk for 24 hours straight, he sure had a lot to talk about that didn't directly involve his personal life.

Dick nodded. "He was angry as a kid. I think he was bitter toward my Aunt and Uncle about being in the circus. My parents were talking about eventually pulling out and settling down and having another kid. I think John was jealous for a bit, but he loved me a lot. He was… god, I mean, I miss him. And now I'm almost older than he was when he died. But even though he was jealous of our family, of what we had, he still cared for me." Dick turned to look at Jason, who had a stricken look on his face. "Even though you… hated me and were jealous, you didn't have to care for me as a kid. You could've gotten rid of me, dumped me. I was a kid. I wasn't competition for Bruce's attention like I had been."

"I wouldn't have done that," Jason said. "Honest, Dick. It's not like that anymore."

"Really?"

Jason looked at Dick's face. The older man always had a way to make one feel something about themselves. Jason didn't know what it was. Dick could read people so well and Jason could read clear as day the honesty Dick was letting him see.

"I wouldn't have done that," Jason said, his voice firm.

Dick stared at him for a long moment, his eyes searching. Jason felt immense guilt. He wondered if Dick had ever felt this as a kid toward Jason. They knew now his memories and feelings toward certain things had echoed back in his younger self.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"When I discovered you guys talking about the dreams I'd been having. You were talking about double meanings when you took me back up to bed. You helped me through what I was struggling through," Dick said.

Jason paused a moment. "Yeah," he confirmed. "You'll always be better than Bruce. I've always tried to be like him. I should've focused on you."

Dick's lips twitched. "You're not the only one who thinks that, I think."

Jason waited for Dick to explain, but the man was blinking heavily. Shit. Right. The drugs. Jason squeezed Dick's hand.

"Go to bed, dork," Jason said to his brother.

Dick let out a small laugh before his eyes closed and he was asleep.

Jason turned off the light and only paused briefly in the door. He knew how Dick felt. Jason had died, and Dick had nearly missed his chance to be the older brother he could to Jason. He had been for a while and then afterward, but Jason hadn't wanted Dick to. He was bitter. Why had he only tried to be family after Jason died? He should've tried harder before.

But now he understood. And for three years he had to look into the face of his older brother and see a boy, a man, who didn't recognize him. Jason shivered. He slipped out the door and out to the cave.

Dick was finally able to return to the cave, but he knew he needed to talk to the team first. It was odd. He had the memories he'd had over the past three years. He knew the thoughts and feeling and emotions. He was still himself, still the man he was, just a little different. It hadn't clicked yet, he mused. He pulled on the civvies Bruce had dropped off. Apparently Dick still had some growing in him at twenty-two, most of his old clothes didn't fit. He wanted to laugh.

Jason and Tim were apparently waiting for him Batman and the Team, and Damian. He recalled Jason's talk with him from several days ago and smiled. It would work out. But he wasn't excited about confronting Wally or Zatanna. Wally because they'd been best friends, and Zatanna because he'd had somewhat of a crush on her and now he just felt gross. Plus, he was engaged. Not that he'd known that at the time, but still.

He let out a breath and left the infirmary and walked down the hall. The living room was a lot fuller than it had been in years, probably. Everyone turned to look at him. He saw the team's eyes widened at the sight. He opened his arms up wide, fell into a roll and landed perfectly on his feet. He bowed.

"Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all night," he exclaimed.

Jason turned to Batman. "Turn him back."

Dick laughed. "No can do, I'm here to stay."

Jason couldn't help himself. He grinned and punched Dick in the arm. He winked. Clearly their late-night talk wasn't known by the others. The older man frowned. "Wow, okay."

"Robin?"

Dick turned to look at the team and his eyes softened. "Hey, team."

It was M'gann who'd spoken. She was holding her hands in front of her, tears in her eyes. There was a pause and then she burst forward and engulfed him in a hug. He smiled and patted her head, looking down.

"Talk about little brother huh?"

M'gann laughed.

"You're really Robin?" Artemis asked, walking up behind M'gann. The team followed close behind, all wary.

"I was the first Robin, back in… like… 2006? I think. I was eight. But yes, I'm also the Robin you knew," Dick replied honestly.

Aqualad rigidly stuck out his hand. "A pleasure to meet you."

Nightwing looked down at his hand, a pained look in his eyes. "You too, Aqualad. But you know me."

"I knew a version of you," the Atlantean said. "But I'd like to know this version too."

Nightwing smiled a little. "Well, I'd like that too. Call me Nightwing."

He heard a 'Tt' behind him and grinned.

"I'm sorry this happened," he said honestly, turning back to the team.

"Why couldn't you stay? Why couldn't you stay a kid?" Zatanna asked, the girls eyes red.

Nightwing sighed, his eyes betraying the sorrow he felt. His shoulder dropped. "Because I know if I lived… and grown up to the age I should've been and found out the truth, I would've been devastated," he explained. The girl's eyes glistened. "Listen, Zatanna. I'm sorry this happened. Really." He turned to all of them. "To all of you, actually. I know you've lost someone that's important to you but he… I haven't been that kid in a long time."

"You're not my best friend, you're not him," Wally snapped, crossing his arms.

"Kid!" Barry exclaimed. Black Canary let out a similar cry.

"Hey, it's fine. I understand. Hopefully we can still be friends and work together in the future when you want it," Nightwing said, a smile on his face. "I'll be willing. I'll be in Bludhaven."

Wally's eyes bugged. "Wait… you're that Nightwing!?"

Wing stood up straight. "Yeah, I was. Then I got de-aged. I became Robin again and, eh, he," Dick jerked his finger back at Damian, "he took over the Nightwing mantle."

"Whoa," Wally breathed, most of the animosity towards the man in front of him forgotten. "That's so cool."

"Recognize: Batgirl B-014."

Nightwing jerked up and turned to the Zetatube. Batgirl materialized out of nowhere, already moving. She didn't even stopped to point her finger at Batman.

"I deserved to know." And then she stalked forward and threw her arms around Nightwing.

"You're here," she breathed. He quickly engulfed her. For a moment, they stood there while they embraced each other and everyone looked on.

"Who are you?" Artemis asked, glancing between the two.

Batgirl held up her hand, where a small diamond ring sat. She was in her civvies, glasses over her face. She still had her face into his neck, hugging him tightly. "Fiancé!"

"Wait, you proposed! Dude, when?" Tim exclaimed, his eyes wide. He turned to Barbara. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Bruce had a small smile on his face.

"Three years ago," Dick answered, pulling away from Babs. "I had already gotten de-aged. And I didn't really propose it was just… I wanted her to have it, in case I wouldn't ever get to tell her." They understood the implications. In case he never returned back to normal and aged from ten on up. In case they could never get married.

"You really did have a life?" Wally asked. "You're…"

"I'm me, Wally," Nightwing answered truthfully. "There's just some things we don't know about each other yet. We can still be friends, if you want."

"He has a thing for red-heads!" Jason exclaimed.

They watched Nightwing blush. "Not true!"

"Mm, Babs, Josie, the one girl Leoni, Anna, Eva, Anita, Caroline—."

"Okay!" Nightwing said, clearly embarrassed. "Enough!" He could feel the teams stares on him. He turned back to Batman.

"Let's go home, please?"

Damian materialized from Batman's side to Nightwing's, standing close to the man. He wasn't letting Nightwing go anywhere without him. Nightwing rubbed the boys head, even though Damian was almost as tall as him.

"Ready, kid?"

"I hardly doubt you can call me kid, now," Damian replied, but there was a small smile on his face.

Nightwing laughed. Jason and Tim bade the team farewell, well Tim did, Jason grunted in their direction, and disappeared through the tubes. Batman followed behind them closely. After that it was just Nightwing, Damian in civvies, and Batgirl.

Nightwing turned to the team. "I'll see you guys around," he said awkwardly. "I'll… come around again, when you're used to the idea."

The Team glanced at each other, clearly having a mental conversation. Aqualad looked at Nightwing, holding out his hand again. Nightwing grasped it.

"We'd like that," Aqualad said.

The man grinned. "Glad to hear it."

He turned to Black Canary and Flash. "Thank you for… putting up with me. I wasn't an easy kid."

Canary laughed. "Easy enough. I liked you as a kid, you were cute."

Nightwing grinned with her. "Alright," he said, clapping his hands together. "I have three years to catch up on. Who wants ice cream?"

Damian groaned and Batgirl smirked.

"You never change," Barbara laughed.

They disappeared into the Zetatube's.

The coming weeks were hard for the team. Zatanna was angry, but she'd mostly wheedled out of it after several sessions with Black Canary, who helped the girl deal with her losses. Wally felt abandoned by his friend, but Dick kept up with texting and invited him over to his new apartment. They played video games, and after a while, Wally felt like he'd never lost his friend. And, in reality, he'd gained a mentor.

Artemis didn't find that she minded Nightwing much, and neither did Superboy or M'gann. He came to the mountain several times. They lost a younger brother but gained an older one. Nightwing would bring food and games, insisting they all hang out and get team-bonding time.

But he was so different. And the tension still existed sometimes. Nightwing didn't crack jokes as much. He was a little darker, a little more serious when it came to missions. They'd gone on some with Nightwing and Robin. But he still was no Batman, despite having actually been Batman, because he'd smile. In fact, despite the almost darker personality, Nightwing was more open than Robin. They found that Nightwing chattered almost constantly.

When Superboy sat down and asked him why that was, Nightwing frowned. "I don't know. I grew up, I grew into myself. I wasn't trying to be anyone else. Some things are always going to affect you, true. But I'm me."

The clone still wasn't sure what that meant. He was going to ask Canary.

The second Nightwing had returned to being Robin. Watching those two fight was incredible. Canary had brought them in to show the team and fight sequence. Nightwing was more, if possible, acrobatic than he'd been when he was Robin. But the moves weren't frivolous or misplaced. They were calculated, planned, and certain. He was a hero.

They'd get used to it, eventually. It would take time. But they would.

"What did you mean by, 'I love you, Father'?" Dick asked. He and Damian were sitting in his and Bab's new apartment, in Gotham. Barbara was gone at work and he had invited Damian over to hang out and watch movies. They had done that every Wednesday before Dick had been de-aged and Damian insisted the tradition continue even now.

The fifteen year old looked over at Dick before scowling. "I was emotional."

Dick frowned. "D, I'm only ten years older than you—."

"And still more of a father than Bruce Wayne has ever tried to be to me," Damian said quietly.

Dick was quiet, his eyes trained on Damian's face. It was clear he wanted Damian to continue. The teen sighed and gritted his teeth. "You gave me a chance to be Robin. It was you, no one else. Not Batman without your permission, and not Todd or Drake. It was you. You opened up to me and you loved me, like a brother. And that's alright, if you only see me as your brother. But you became… more to me than a brother, Grayson. When you asked why I called you by your last name instead of Dick or Richard back when… when you were younger, I said I was reminding you of your place. Originally it was, that was the truth, but then… it's not right for a son to call his parents, his father, by their first name."

It was quiet. Damian looked up to see Dick staring at him. The man's face was emotionless, but Grayson's blue eyes betrayed the feeling. Damian looked away sharply.

"I'm sorry if I've—."

"I saw you as my son in a lot of ways, Damian."

Damian froze.

Dick sighed. "I know it was… I know it was hard these past few years having me be a child. And then I looked to you as a son, but when I woke up and I saw you sitting there I know how my parents felt. How Bruce feels. I'm only ten years older than you and that's… obviously hardly the age difference to have a kid. And I didn't want to say anything so you wouldn't feel as if I were replacing Bruce," Dick explained. The man was quiet. The movie was paused and in the distance, sirens rang. They ignored it.

Damian smiled. "I think Bruce already knows how I see you."

Dick raised an eyebrow. "Bruce?"

Damian shrugged.

"Okay, kid, your death wish. I know he liked it when you called him father."

Damian repeated the motion.

Dick rested a hand on Damian's shoulder.

"You'll always be my Robin, Damian."

Damian looked into the man who-was-not-his-father-but-actually-was's eyes. "Thanks, dad."

Dick let out a sharp laugh. "I don't know if I'll get used to that. Think you'll call Babs mom?"

Damian scowled and rolled his eyes. "Not a fat chance, Grayson."

"There he is!"

"Turn on the movie!"

Fin.

Ahahahaha fuck. This was so hard to write wtf. I'm sorry for massive OOC-ness bc I haven't watched the show in like… three years. This is a combination of Pre-New 52 comics, the Batman shows, and Young Justice. But it's mostly in the YJ world so I just stuck it there. Also I love Dick and Damian with a father/son bond. So, I'm taking prompts. Hit me up. I don't want to work on my Merlin/Artemis Fowl crossover so give me something else to do. Also, I'm sorry for the teams reactions? Like that mini-bit was awful. I probably will continue this as One-shots of over the years, but this was just setting up the story really and messing around with the idea without committing to a full multi-chapter fic. I love De-aged stories. And Nightwing. So. There you go.

Be a slut for the good things, my dudes.

R&R. Peace.