A/N: Hey guys. Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I hope you enjoy this chapter. ~velvie
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Dick awoke to a knock on the door. He figured it wouldn't be anyone special, so he just gave his eyes a quick rub before telling whoever it was to come in. The door opened and to Dick's surprise Conner and M'gann walked in.
"Hey guys. I'd say I wasn't expecting you, but I kinda was." Dick said as he tried to smooth his hair down with his hands.
"What happened to you?" M'gann asked worriedly.
"Joker attack. I'm fine now." Dick replied, trying to comfort his concerned friend. "So how have you guys been?"
"We're fine." Conner replied in his usual blunt manner. "What were you doing in Gotham, anyway? I thought you moved to Blüdhaven."
"Batman's gone AWOL. I figured it couldn't hurt to take over the night patrol sometimes until he got back. How wrong I was." Dick chuckled.
"Wait, Batman's missing? Since when?" M'gann asked.
"Couple days. I thought he'd be back by now but there's been no sign of him." Dick sighed. While everyone else was worrying about him, he was worrying about Bruce.
"Are you gonna be able to continue being Nightwing?" Conner asked. Dick let out a long sigh and shrugged his shoulders.
"I really don't know. I want to be, it's everything I've worked for. But I don't know if it'll be possible anymore." Dick said quietly, sadness plaguing every word. M'gann reached over and hugged him tightly.
"I'm sorry" she whispered as she pulled him close. Conner placed an awkward hand on Dick's shoulder.
"Ah" Dick drew a pained breath.
"Oh, sorry! Did I hurt you?" M'gann gasped. Dick shook his head.
"No, no. Don't be sorry. It's just a little painful that's all." Dick whispered as he grimaced in pain.
"Shall I get the nurse?" she asked. Dick shook his head again.
"I'll be fine." He replied, regaining composure.
"Can I see the scar?" Conner asked inquisitively. Dick was slightly taken aback by Conner's question as it was a little out of character, but none-the-less he raised the hospital gown to show off the horrific scar. M'gann gasped when she saw it and even Conner's eyes widened at the sight of it. Dick was starting to get used to showing off his scar and knew he'd have to do it a few more times yet.
"That looks… painful." Conner commented. Dick let the gown settle back over the scar.
"It's not so bad thanks to my good old friend morphine" Dick joked. Seeing Dick smile made M'gann and Conner smile too. They knew that he was in for a rough time but seeing him so positive made them happy. They left with confidence that their friend would be fine.
Dick was woken yet again by a knock on the door.
"Whoever it is just come in" He yawned. Kaldur poked his head around the door before entering the room.
"My apologies if I woke you. I can come back later if you wish to sleep more." Kaldur apologised.
"It's cool, I was just waking up anyway." Dick said, lying to make his friend feel less guilty.
"So I heard that the Joker is responsible for this?" Kaldur asked. Dick nodded.
"He's responsible for a lot of things." He replied.
"Raquel asked that I apologised to you for she will be unable to visit soon." Kaldur said. Dick shrugged and smiled.
"Tell her no biggie. Oh, and tell her I say hi." He knew that Kaldur and Raquel had remained good friends since first meeting 9 years ago on the team.
"I'll be sure to pass on the message. Now, if you don't mind me asking, may I see the scar? I'd like to know what damage this criminal has done to you, my friend." Kaldur asked. Dick smirked because he knew Kaldur would ask. He also knew that Kaldur was just curious.
"Kal, I know you're just curious like everyone else. You're probably telling the truth about wanting to know, but I can tell you really want to see the scar." Dick said, grinning.
"That is true." Kaldur sighed, smirking back. Dick pulled up the gown for the second time that day to reveal the scar he'd been left with. Kaldur raised his eyebrows in surprise. "That looks painful. Does it hurt you still?"
"It never really did. I've been on a morphine drip since I woke up so I don't know whether it ever hurt. It hurts when people touch it, though." Dick said honestly. He once again replaced the gown.
"How long will recovery take?" Kaldur asked.
"I have no idea. Hopefully not long, but who knows?" Dick replied, letting out a little yawn at the end.
"I can see that you are still tired and you need to rest. I can come back some other time." Kaldur said, moving towards the door.
"It's okay, Kal. You can stay, I can sleep anytime." Dick yawned. He silently cursed himself for yawning.
"No my friend, resting will help your recovery. I will be sure to come by again." Kaldur told him. He turned to leave, and as he closed the door, he saw that Dick was already asleep.
"Hello Boy Wonder" a voice sounded in Dick's ears. He blinked his eyes open to find Zatanna stood right beside him.
"The others had the decency to knock." He said jokingly as he ran a hand through his hair.
"I didn't want to disturb you." She replied simply, smirking. Dick knew she'd probably been up to something, but she'd never tell.
"Haha. Anyway, how have you been? It's been a while." Dick said. It really had been a while. The two had not seen each other in months, despite being very close.
"I've been… fine." She hesitated, and then smiled to try and cover it up.
"You sure? Took you a while to say that." Dick questioned. He could tell something wasn't right.
"Yeah I'm sure. I'd ask how you've been, but I guess this situation sums it up pretty well?" she laughed. Dick decided to let it go for now, he could always find out what was up another time.
"You could say that." Dick sighed. He smiled to relieve some of the sadness behind the words but it was no use. Zatanna could always see through his act.
"What's up?" She asked, frowning worriedly. She took the seat next to his bed and ran a hand through his dark hair. Dick cursed under his breath as a tear that had been threatening to escape ever since he woke up finally rolled down his cheek.
"That may have been my last night as Nightwing." He sighed as he clenched his eyes and fists to stop the wave of tears from coming. Zatanna pulled him into her embrace and held him tight.
"I'm so sorry, Dick." She whispered. Dick pulled away from her.
"Don't be sorry for me. It was my fault; I got what was coming to me. If Batman had seen this, he'd be ashamed. He's taught me better and I shouldn't have turned my back on the Joker for one second. I'm ashamed of myself, and I don't deserve to be Nightwing anymore." Dick buried his face in his hands and completely broke down in front of Zatanna. He could only ever be like this in front of Barbara and Zatanna; only they had seen the scared little boy behind the hero's mask.
"But Dick, this is you. You are Nightwing. What will you do now?" She fretted.
"I guess I'll take my place at Wayne Tech. With Bruce gone I-"
"Woah, hold up. Bruce is gone? Gone where?" Zatanna cut him off.
"I don't know. He's been gone for only a few days, but it's unlike him to disappear without trace and leave us completely unable to contact him. That's what brought me to Gotham in the first place." Dick shrugged. He was starting to accept that Bruce may or may not come back soon. Although to begin with he had forgotten that Bruce was missing, when Barbara had said she didn't know where he was, the memory of his disappearance had become crystal clear:
3 days ago
"Grayson! Get over here you jerk! Father's gone!" The message that was being left on his phone jolted him awake. Bruce was missing? He picked up the phone and dialled the manor. Damian picked up.
"Hey Dami, what's going on?" Dick's sleepy voice asked down the phone.
"Father's gone. I woke up this morning and apparently he never came back after patrol." Damian said. He was trying to sound like his normal self but his fear gave a slight edge to his words.
"Wait, why weren't you on patrol with him?" Dick questioned.
"He said I couldn't come. Maybe he knew he wasn't going to come back. Maybe he planned this." He speculated.
"Calm down, Damian. I'm sure Bruce is fine." Dick soothed, although he couldn't help but wonder about the awful things that could have happened.
"Whatever. Alfred's not here either and I don't want to be left alone with these losers. Will you come over?" Damian's question made Dick smile. He knew that the young boy had respect for him. He also knew that the respect was a sign of affection.
"I'm on my way, Dami." Dick said. He hung up the phone and sighed; why now?
"Nothing's really going your way right now, hey Boy Wonder?" Zatanna sighed.
"Did they ever?" Dick said, smirking a little to hide the sadness. The two sat in silence for a few moments before Dick let out a big yawn.
"Aw, is somebody sleepy?" Zatanna teased. She ruffled his hair and he scowled playfully.
"Haha" Dick scoffed before yawning again. Zatanna giggled before getting up.
"I guess I'll leave you to sleep then. Good night, yoB rednoW." She said quietly before kissing him on the forehead. She smiled to herself as she left the room and Dick fell asleep with a big grin on his face.
A/N: I hope you like it. I hope to get the next chapter up soon. Review! ~velvie