Title: First Time: Chapter three

Word count:2,164 words

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters and I write completely for fun and not for profit! Life would be different if I owned Young Justice… or anything DC.

Beta: youngjusticefanatic is my fantastic beta! I will send you a fruit basket... or maybe muffins, I'm not sure yet! But thank you for beta-ing!

Summary: It was the first time - for the most of the team - that they have ever lost a civilian during mission. Robin is the only one who has the experience, who knows how to cope. Bruce is reminded of how much Dick has changed, the little bird gives some advice and the team grows just a little closer.

AN: I am so sorry for this to take so long! THIS STORY IS FINALLY DONE! This is the end of the story though, so I hope you guys enjoy it! I don't really like the end, but I don't plan for more.

I was going to wait until tomorrow to post this... but I changed my mind.

I hope you enjoy and please REVIEW!

NOW GO READ AND REVIEW!

Megan wiped away a stray tear with one of her shaking hands; the other had a death grip on Superboy's fingers. "What happened?" She whispered, as if scared to ask.

"Harvey Dent was knocked unconscious when he hit the floor." Robin said, letting the shoulder of his sweatshirt slide down revealing his left shoulder. "But one of Two-Face's men had a gun." He muttered, placing a finger right below the mark. "It was through and through; missed the bone and any of the important things."

"But it still hurt." Artemis stated her gaze locked on the scare, her knuckles turning white as she clenched her fists. "You were still shot."

"Yeah." The Boy Wonder breathed, shrugging his sweatshirt back into place. "But at least I lived."

Megan's gasp seemed to suck all the sound out of the room, leaving a heavy silence to settle in.

"It was my fault." Dick announced, raising a hand before his friends could protest. "But it wasn't." The teen tore his gaze away from the floor to catch the eye of each of his friends. "If I had just listened to Batman instead of getting over my head, maybe Bat's could have saved all the hostages. If I had acted just a few seconds sooner I could have stopped Two-Face. If I pulled a bat-a-rang I could have knocked the gun out of his hand." Robin trailed off, gripping the edge of the counter to hide the trembling in his hands. Superboy's hand ghosted over the smaller teen's arm. The Boy Wonder flinched away, flashing an apologetically smile at Connor. "It ate me up inside for months and the guilt only seemed to grow. It took me a while to figure it out."

The team stared at the Boy Wonder expectantly. "Figure what out?" Wally asked.

"How to accept it." Robin said, "I had to accept that I did my best. And no matter what happened it could have been worse. Because I was there one person died, but if I wasn't, more people could have been injured." Robin continued. "Asking 'what if' goes both ways. What if I hadn't been there to distract Harvey; he could have shot another hostage. Or Batman might not have been able to make his move. Maybe things could have gone better but it could have gone a whole lot worse too. You can think about it as much as you want but asking 'what if' won't change what happened."

"So we have to accept it to forget it." Superboy growled.

"No, you have to accept to move on." Robin explained, "You can't forget." He added with a bitter laugh.

"A hostage died." Wally spoke up, "Because we were too slow." Everyone could hear the guilt; because I was too slow. "How can we just let that go?"

"You can't think about it that way Wally," Robin said, "You need to accept it or else it is going to eat you alive. Every time you close your eyes you will see their faces, you will hear the screams. If you don't accept that you did your best, you will be haunted for the rest of your life." Robin glared down at the floor.

"How do we…" Wally trailed off, wincing at the crack in his voice. "How?" he finished helplessly, blinking back tears.

"How do we accept failure?" Artemis continued for him running her shaking fingers through her blond hair. "How do we accept the fact that someone died because we couldn't do our jobs?"

"By deciding that you will do something about it," Robin said, his shoulders pulled. "Instead of spending the next two weeks, or months, or however long you were going to wallow in self-hatred, channel that emotion into getting better. Sometimes you can't save everyone, but the more time you wait to think about it, the more lives that might be lost."

"We need to train through it?" Artemis said, tilting her head to the side.

Robin gave a half shrug, "Kind of. Turn it into motivation to work harder. Just don't let it become your obsession." He let out a humorless laugh, "Obsession can leave you blind to everything else."

"You know this from experience?" Connor asked, brow furrowing.

Robin gave a pained smile, "That's how I got the job."

Megan gasped hand flying to her check, "But I thought…" She muttered, her eyes' flashing to Robins covered shoulder.

Robin dropped his gaze to the floor. "That was the first time I was the cause, but not the first time I have dealt with death." He whispered. They could hear the edge in Robin's voice telling them not to push it. "Plus, obsession is kind of the Bats thing." His voice had a forced lightness to it. "It takes practice to not let it completely blind you."

"So we train more," Wally said, glancing around the room.

Aqualad caught his eye, "Learn to be ready if the situation arises again," he continued.

Artemis nodded in agreement "Learn from the experience," she finished.

Robin nodded, "This won't hold you back from being a hero unless you let it," he said.

"How many have you…" Artemis trailed off.

Robin shook his head, "You can't compare. I'm from Gotham."

Connor snorted, "So?" clenching his jaw.

"Gotham has the highest murder rate in the country and that's just based off the bodies that are found. That's not including the missing persons, both reported and unreported."

"What does that have to do with it?" Connor interrupted.

Robins face went dark, "How do you add it up Con? Is it just the people I was there to watch die? What about the people are who caught in the crossfire? Every time a villain brakes out of Arkham or Blackgate and goes on a killing spree, should I add those numbers to the list too? I started when I was nine, I don't recommend doing the math. Normal villains sign their crimes with spray paint or send a letter to the press. The Joker stapled a playing card to the forehead of a dead guy and dropped him off on the front steps of city hall. It all depends on where you draw the line."

Robin paused, breathing heavily though his nose. He did a scan of the room; Megan looked on the verge of tears again. "I'm sorry." He muttered, raining his emotions back in and back peddling. "There is no need to make this worse. We just got off track. I'm just trying to help." Robin rolled his shoulders and let out a sigh. "I guess what I am trying to say is: don't fall to far either direction. There is nothing wrong with grieving. Take a couple days and appreciate life and the people you have in it. Then come back turbed."

Silence fell between the team, but some of the tension had melted away. It was Kaldur who finally spoke, "We should probably be getting back to bed." He said, glancing around uneasy.

No one moved, "I don't think I am ready to try and sleep yet." Megan admitted in a whisper.

"How about a movie?" Wally offered.

"Something distracting," Artemis agreed, shooting a look to Robin, "just for the night of course." She added.

Robin smiled back, "Something happy."

"Farris Bueller's Day off?" Wally said.

Megan shook her head, "Can it be something animated?"

The red head nodded, "Lion King?"

Robin shook his head vigorously, "Something else."

"How about Madagascar? Wally asked.

Artemis made a face, "Pass. I don't need that song stuck in my head."

Wally stuck out his tongue out, "You make an offer!" he snapped playfully. The tension in the room melted a little bit more at the usual banter.

Artemis rolled her eyes, "Finding Nemo?"

Wally was ready to argue when Megan interrupted, "Mulan!" she announced, stopping the argument before it could escalate.

Wally let out a playful grown, and Artemis punched him in the shoulder. "Sound good Megan." She said.

Robin jumped off the counter, "I'll make some popcorn." He offered, watching as most of the team trailed out into the living room; Kaldur stayed sitting at the dining table. Robin busied himself with the popcorn bag, waiting out the team leader to make the first move. Kaldur moved around the room, pulling two plastic bowls from one of the cupboard, waiting the microwave timer to run out.

The first bag finished heating and the smell of butter filled the room. Kaldur remained silent until the second bag started. "You have a number." He said. It wasn't a question.

Robin turned towards the team leader, "Don't we all?" he muttered. The thirteen year-old looked well passed his years. He held out the first bowl of popcorn as the timer counted down for the second.

The duo wondered out into the living room with popcorn in hand. Wally grabbed Robin by the arm, pulling him down on the couch wedging the little bird between himself and Connor. Megan was curled up in the clones lap while Artemis sat on Wally's other side. Kaldur settled down on the arm of the couch next to the team archer. The two armchairs remained forgotten and no one said anything about the closeness as the opening music began to play.

Batman and Black Canary stopped short in the living room doorway, the Young Justice team asleep around the couch.

Megan was tucked under Superboy's chin. Wally was on the ground, sprawled out on his back in front of the couch, an arm thrown over his face. Artemis was propped against Kaldur who was wedged into the corner of the couch. Robin was curled up over the two, using the armrest as a pillow.

Batman took a step back, Black Canary following suit. "I think therapy can wait a few hours." She whispered, following the Dark Knight to the garage.

Batman nodded in agreement, "They might not need it at all." Black Canary raised a questioning eyebrow, but and he continued, "When they wake up do a quick evaluation anyway and see where they stand. We can go from there."

"Bats?" The duo turned to find Robin standing in the doorway. The teen peeled off his mask, rubbing his bright blue eyes with the back of his hand before replacing it. The mask hung a little loose around his eyes, but still did its job. "Is there a problem?" Robin asked through a yawn.

Batman had to hide a smile, "Everything is fine Robin. Black Canary is here for some quick psych evaluations."

"What he means," Black Canary interrupted shooting the Dark Knight a glare, "is we are just going to have quick therapy sessions today."

Robin frowned, "Do I need an evaluation?" he asked, looking towards his mentor for the answer.

"Just a couple of minutes Robin," Batman said. The dynamic duo stared at each other for a few seconds until Robin nodded.

"Is the gym at least open?" the teen asked, with a roll of his shoulders. The Dark Knight nodded once. "Good," Robin muttered, more to himself than the adults. "I'll be there until you're ready, BC." He said, turning back out the door. "Call if you need me Bats!" he added before disappearing from view.

"Robin seems fine." Black Canary said.

"You and I both know what he has been through, Dinah." Batman stated as an explanation, turning towards the computers.

"He is wise beyond his years." Black Canary agreed.

"I know." The machine whirled to life and the Dark Knight disappeared in a small flash.