Work Text:
Dick Grayson was an idiot. That was something Tiger considered indisputable. The kind of idiocy that Tiger was baffled hadn’t gotten him killed yet. He made a point to tell Grayson this, as often as he could.
Today, they were on a mission somewhere too close to Tiger's homeland to be comfortable, but he was a professional and he would deal with it. He and Dick were staked out on top of a warehouse in the middle of the desert, trying to listen in on the illegal dealings going on inside that had made the inhabitants a target of both Batman and Spyral. Tiger may have left, after Dick dismantled it, but he had enough files and names memorized that when Dick had thrown this case out, Tiger had agreed to accompany him.
Tiger had refused to stay in Gotham, too cloudy and cold and close to Dick, but he kept in touch. Occasionally, he was persuaded to accompany Dick on missions distributed by the Batman, this one being something filled with talks of arms deals and idiotic names that Tiger associated with Dick and his city and it’s people. However, he understood that if this deal wasn’t shut down, it would mean disastrous things for Gotham City, and a handful for Batman and his family.
At present, Tiger crouched on the edge of the building, binoculars to his eyes. He was trained on the large Jeeps cutting across the sand, black and starkly industrial against the burning desert backdrop. He nudged Dick, angling his head towards the incoming cars. Dick, the insufferable child he was, made grabbing hands at Tiger's binoculars, which Tiger only relinquished with a sharply placed elbow to the ribs.
“Ouch, Tony. Watch the elbows.” Dick hissed, hand moving to rub at the offending spot.
Tiger glowered at him. "I am watching them. Perhaps you should watch our targets.” He turned away from Dick, who had just stuck his tongue out at him. He was painfully juvenile. Something else occurred to him. “And do not call me Tony, Dick Grayson.” Dick, in typical fashion, ignored him save for a smile, focusing his attention on the Jeep which had now parked, the driver and a companion getting out and heading towards the door of the warehouse to join their counterparts.
“Those dudes are probably the buyers, which means the goods are with the guys inside. Any ideas?” Dick handed the binoculars back to Tiger, cocking his head. The movement sent a few strands of jet black hair falling into his face, where he blew them away with a huff. Tiger told himself this was in no way endearing.
He looked back out at the horizon, trying to come up with a strategic way to handle the problem. Unfortunately for him, Dick Grayson was a distracting partner. Despite being ignored for only a matter of seconds, he had begun doing handstands on the roof, walking himself in small circles. Tiger wondered why he didn't just kill him himself.
"Grayson, cease the horseplay and pay attention. There's a ventilation shaft on the other end of the roof, you drop through there to do surveillance." Tiger ordered. Dick straightened up and nodded.
"What about you, big guy? You just gonna sit up here and look pretty?"
Tiger scowled at him. "I am not as suited for stealth as you, nor can I fit into those small spaces. I will be acting as a distraction."
Dick looked displeased. "T, that's dangerous."
"So is fighting crime in tights. I was Agent 1, remember? I think I will be fine, 37."
Dick ignored the jab. "Just...be careful, okay?"
Tiger nodded curtly and allowed Dick to lift the grate of the vent, lowering himself inside before Tiger clambered down the side of the building and barged through the front door.
--
"Dick Grayson, you are an --"
"Don't even say it, T. Trust me, I know."
This did not stop Tiger. "You're an idiot, Grayson. You could've been killed, or does death not matter to you? I was the distraction for a reason, why is it so difficult for you to follow instructions?"
Dick rolled his eyes. Tiger considered removing them. "Are you done? I saved your ass back there."
Tiger glowered. "An ass that didn't ask to be saved! Do you ever stop playing hero, Nightwing? You went completely off book and jeopardized the entire mission, and got shot!"
The plan had been simple: allow Tiger to take them head on while Dick retrieved the weapons, ensuring their safety before returning to handle anyone Tiger hadn't managed to. However, missions are never as easy as they should be when Dick Grayson is involved. He'd completely disregarded the plans, attracting too much attention to himself with the use of acrobatics and bad jokes, getting himself shot in the calf and forcing Tiger to, per usual, clean up his mess.
"It's just a flesh wound, Tig, promise." Dick assured, but he winced when he said it, shattering his credibility. Tiger, thankfully, had made it out unscathed, which was useful when he had to carry a barely conscious Dick to their pickup point. They were currently in the med bay of one of the strange planes named after bats, Dick on a cot and Tiger frowning down at him.
"Would you let me look at it, you absolute terror?"
Dick snorted, hoisting his leg up onto the cot with a hiss. "Well, since you asked so nicely. Be gentle, though, I'm fragile."
Tiger muttered something in his native tongue about Grayson and his fragility, but kneeled down to examine his bloody limb.
It looked worse than it was, the bullet having gone straight through the meat of the calf, blessedly missing the bone. Dick was lucky.
"How bad is it, Doc? The suspense is killing me."
"I know I say it often, but it bears repeating. I trust you know that--"
For the second time today, Dick cut Tiger off, but this time it was by surging forwards and pressing his mouth to his, noses and teeth bumping uncomfortably. "I'm an idiot, I know, I know. Would you quit flirting and kiss me?"
"I was not – your leg, Grayson," He sputtered, exasperated. Tiger was severely out of his depth here, and hadn't the slightest idea what was going on. Not to say he was displeased with it, but confused nonetheless. Dick's hands coming up to grip his waist distracted him from further complaining about the flirting accusation.
"You so were. And my leg isn't connected to my mouth, so would you mind getting this show on the road? God, you don't know how to take a hint,"
Tiger wrapped a hand around the back of Dick's neck, the other one wound in his shaggy hair, and pulled him in. "You're an idiot," Tiger growled against his mouth. Dick grinned, nipping his lower lip.
"You love it."
It’s quite possible that he did.