Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Conner 

Sometimes people ask Conner why he spends so much time in Gotham. 

Surely with all the time he spends there, there must be something redeeming about the city? Right?

Wrong.

Conner was personally of the opinion that Gotham was probably the worst city in the world. The only reason why he was here in the first place was because his best friend lived here, and he figured long ago that he'd do pretty much anything for Tim. So when his friend called him to hang out after patrol, he immediately flew in to help out. Because when Tim Drake says leap, Kon says how high. 

Conner had been this way for so long that it was just a fact of life for him. The sky is blue, the grass is green, and Conner would punch out the sun if Tim ever told him to. For as long as he had known Tim, this was how it was. He had never even considered it was abnormal to think about Tim in this way. He had accepted that everyone always dreams of Tim Drake kissing them on a beach, because how could they not after knowing him. 

After some self-reflection, he probably doesn’t know what’s normal.

According to Cissie, he might like Tim. Like, like-like Tim. Bart told him he doesn’t think like-like can even encompass how much Conner obviously likes Tim. Cassie told them to shut up because Bart was bleeding out. 

It’s not like he’s in love with Tim or anything. He just can’t say no to him. And wants all of his attention. And also thinks he has a nice ass. 

It’s just… A crush. A crush that grows stronger now that he’s finally acknowledged it, but a crush nonetheless. Anything stronger than that would be super lame and pitiful, and he's not lame; he’s Superboy . And Superboy doesn’t pine over boys who don’t like him back.  

Superboy landed on the building next to Red Robin. 

“Hey, Rob.” He smirks, popping the collar of his leather jacket. “Come here often?” Red Robin let out a loud exaggerated sigh at his antics before looking over at him and grinning. 

“You’re here early.” 

“I’m punctual. It’s polite.” Conner replies, his feet lifting off the ground to float around Tim. 

“I’m pretty sure showing up 2 hours early is also considered rude.” Conner rolled his eyes at his response. 

He was a little early, sure, but it had been a while since they had the chance to hang out and he was missing his best friend. 

“Wow, I’m really feeling the love here.” Conner sighs dramatically. “Maybe I’ll just leave then.” 

“No!” Tim blurts, “you can stay. I miss you too, dude.” 

Conner grins and floats through the air around Tim, bending his wrists and placing his hands under his chin. “Awww! You miss me!” he coos. 

Tim can’t help but smile. “Come on, dude. We can loop around the East end then head in. It’s been quiet.” 

“Gotham’s definition of quiet probably includes a bank robbery and at least 4 murders," Conner said, following Tim over the ledge and into the night.

--

To Conner’s surprise, it was a quiet night in Gotham. They had patrolled around most of the East end without issue, only needing to stop one or two robberies. He was starting to get excited over the night ending so early. A bat would probably be paranoid and say the night was too quiet, but Kon thought he was just lucky.

Maybe he should listen to the bats when he's on their turf. 

Tim and Conner were standing in the middle of an alley, catching their breath after running off a small squabble, when the first shot fired. The two lept to attention, scanning the surrounding sky for the shooter.

Conner moves in front of Tim as the second shot rang out. 

“We should’ve known better than to stop in a Gotham alley,” Conner complained as a bullet bounced off his arm.

“They’re not all bad.” Tim replies, “There.” he says, pointing towards an overlooking third-floor window.

“See, you say that-” Conner superspeeds his way to the window, grabbing hold of the gun in the man’s hands. The shooter’s face is halfway covered with a black bandana, but Conner can see the panic in his eyes at being caught. Before Conner can think, he grabs a second, more experimental-looking, gun from his back and shoots it and the floor below him. With a metallic-sounding clap, a sparkling blue portal opens and swallows him, leaving Conner alone surrounded by softly glowing blue particles. “Huh.”

Conner flies back to Tim, original gun in hand.

“So, good news! I got the gun! Bad news. He had two guns.” 

Tim looked at him. “Okay, but where is he? I thought you had him, Superboy .” Conner couldn’t tell if he hated or loved it when Tim said his name like that. All serious and sarcastic, with just a hint of fondness. 

“Okay, even badder news- the second gun was, like, a portal gun and he got away.” 

Tim groaned at the news. “Just what we need. Another bad guy running around with experimental tech.” He sighed before continuing. “Were you able to get anything at least?” 

“Yeah, he’s-” 

Conner was interrupted by a familiar metallic clang from the end of the alley. He quickly turned around to see the portal guy walking out of a swirling blue hole in the wall. The sound of metal started to fill the dark alley as he fired off more shots in all directions, leaving glowing blue spots in random places around them. If the shot hit an item, it disappeared, blinking out of existence in an instance. 

Conner dodged another shot. 

"Well my good news," Tim starts, leaping out of the way of a newly formed portal, "is that I found our guy." 

"Really, now." Conner deadpans. He drops to the ground to avoid a bolt. The shooter runs into one of the holes only to come out of one even closer to them. 

“Any ideas?” He calls to Tim.

“Don’t get hit. I’ll let you know if something better comes up.” He retorts, clearly annoyed by their lack of progress. 

The alleyway is a sensory mess, a cacophony of noise and light. 

At this point, the shooter is running in and out of the portals, sticking his arm through one to shoot more holes, before pulling it out and running into an entirely different one. It’s disorienting and chaotic to witness, in addition to being incredibly annoying. He couldn’t predict where the gunner would be, leaving his only option to dodge and hope he pops out closer. From the grunts he could hear next to him, even Tim seemed to be frustrated at the unpredictability. 

The walls were almost all covered in holes now, and as much as Conner hated to leave his back so vulnerable, he had no other options. The alleyway was tight and oppressive, leaving no room to escape with all the bolts being fired at them. 

Conner swears as the bad guy runs into another portal, spinning around only to see a portal in front of him, a set of arms coming out at him. The hands push at him and Conner, taken unaware, stumbles backward in surprise. With a yelp, he falls back. He braces himself to hit the wall.

The wall never comes. 

--

The flash of bright light was blinding, leaving him disoriented as he crashed onto the ground. He groaned at his own misfortune. There was no way he was making it back in time to hang out with Tim. 

“Who are you?” Conner heard a voice call out from nearby. It sounded strangely familiar. Conner opened his eyes, blinking away the flashing colors as he took in his surroundings. He was in the Batcave, somehow, with a Superboy standing defensively a few feet away. The other superboy is in a different suit than him. It kind of reminds him of Tim’s old suit, complete with a domino mask.

“Who do you work for?” He calls out again. 

Conner looks at the other him, taking in the cape and short sleeves. It takes a second to process.

Oh shit. He’s been here before. 

“Hey! It’s me!” he holds his hands out placidly, “From a few years ago?” Robin-him doesn’t seem to be satisfied with his answer and starts to walk menacingly towards him. 

“Woah, uh…” Conner wracks his brain, trying to figure out what to say to prove he wasn’t another Black Zero clone. “This is New-Earth, right? We met before? You tried to kill me and you said, like, ‘I’m the only clone trained by Batman’ or whatever? Then we got a bunch of other uses to fight Black Zero?” That makes the other him pause. Conner is still for a moment while Robin-him thinks. 

He looks him up and down before brightening. “Oh hey! It’s you!” 

“Ayy!” Conner grins, pulling himself up to his feet. He walks over to the other man and claps him on the back. 

“How’ve you been, you handsome son of a gun?” He asks.

The other him gives him a smile. “Better without Black Zero. And how about you? I’d say you look good, but I figure that’s a given.” He says, waggling his eyebrows under his mask. Conner laughs before the Robin continues. “What are you even doing here? I thought you could never come back?”

“Ugh. Don’t even get me started,” Conner groaned. “I thought I couldn’t either. Got flung into a portal and landed here- Don’t know why.” The other him crossed his arms and made a sympathetic noise. “Gotham villains, am I right?” He jokes, knowing the other will understand. 

The other Conner laughs at his misery. “Don’t I know it. What were you even doing in-” His words stop in the middle of his sentence. His whole body freezes, his eyes caught on something behind Conner. 

“Superboy? You alright?” Conner starts to turn before the other him interrupts him, flying past at a dangerous speed.

Turning around fully, he can finally see what the other him must have seen. 

“ Tim. ”

Tim 

When Superboy fell through the swirling hole in the wall, Tim didn’t even hesitate before running in after him, bad guy with experimental tech be damned. Wherever Conner was, Tim would always follow. That’s just how it was. 

His heart had stopped when he saw Conner disappear. For one fleeting moment, it felt like he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t lose him again. 

So with a shout of his name, Tim sprinted towards the portal, ready to face whatever was through it. 

Maybe it wasn’t the smartest idea he’s ever had, but historically, he never was when it came to Conner.

Tim was blinded as he stepped through the portal, blue spots of light shining behind his eyelids. 

He only was able to catch his bearings for a moment before 180 pounds of Superboy came flying at him, staggering back as the weight slammed into him. A strong hand wrapped around him to grasp his cape while the other cupped the back of his neck, forming a tight protective embrace. Tim was confused at Conner’s swift appearance. It had only been a minute since he ran in, but, then again, time could potentially work differently here. 

“Superboy?” He asked cautiously, going to wrap his arms around his best friend. “Are you okay?” The other boy started to shake. Tim could feel the vibrations from where Conner had tucked his head into his neck. 

Tim looked up, trying to see what had caused his friend’s distress. Tim scanned the room, searching for anything that could be a threat to them. They appeared to be in the Batcave, but there were no guarantees this was his Batcave. However, all seemed normal until he laid eyes on another Superboy. 

“Conner?” 

He looked back down to the boy wrapped around him, very quickly realising this Superboy wasn’t right. For one, his hair was slicked down in a neat short cut, in a way reminiscent of a young Dick Grayson, instead of being in an unruly curly fade. He could also feel the familiar indent of a domino pressing against his neck. The biggest tell, though, was the outfit. It looked just like Tim’s first Robin suit with short sleeves and tights, but with some Superboy flair. Yellow striping on the boots, a large S on his chest, and a red and blue color scheme as opposed to red and green. 

This wasn’t his Conner. 

By the way the other Conner slowly floated over, as if not to scare the other boy, he wasn’t a threat either. Tim slowly relaxed as he started to rub soothing circles into the distressed boy’s back. He could hear him murmur soft words into his neck as he cried. 

Conner approached, a grimace on his face. “So, uh.” He reached up to nervously scratch the back of his head. “We might be in another dimension.” 

Tim scrunched his face. “Again?” No matter how many precautions he took, he always seemed to be dimension hopping. The number of problems other realities were causing for him was starting to get annoying. 

“Good news though! I’ve been here before-”

“You’ve been everywhere at this rate.” 

“Har-dee har-” Kon snarked. “Laugh it up.” 

“Anyways,” he continued. “This is one of the hyper-time Earths from, like, years ago. And this,” he said, pointing to the boy still hugging Tim tightly, “is this world’s Superboy. He’s cool, though. Won't try and kill us.” Kon grimaced at the shaking boy, “He’s usually cooler than this, I swear.” 

Tim took a moment to inspect the Superboy clutching at him. He looked and felt just like Conner, but he had never seen Conner look this desperate. 

“Hey, dude. Are you alright?” He gently asks. 

The other Conner finally looks up. Tim can see tears spilling out the side of his domino and winces, having known from experience how uncomfortable crying in a mask can be. 

“Tim…” he says, with awe and desperation, as if having witnessed a miracle. “You’re- I’m-” 

He shudders.

“I’m sorry. Tim I- I missed you. So much. I'm so sorry." He threw his face back into Tim’s hair. It seemed like the other Superboy could only focus on Tim, not even acknowledging Conner’s introduction.

"Hey, it's okay buddy. I'm here for you." Tim murmurs softly before shooting Conner a panicked look. Tim was fine comforting strangers and civilians, but anytime it was one of his friends he lost his mind. He never seemed to know what to say. The other Superboy looked close enough to Conner that he couldn't rely on his instincts to pull through.

Though, at Tim’s glance for help Conner looked even more uncomfortable than before. "Also, you might be dead here. And I- he replaced you." 

Realistically, Tim thought, he should be more… distraught over hearing about his apparent death. But it was something he had accepted long ago. He’s been in the game a while now, the idea of him making it to Bruce’s age or beyond was a hopeful idea. It wasn’t that he figured it was inevitable that he would die early, it was just a very likely possibility. 

He was also overwhelmingly flattered by the idea that, should he die an untimely death, Conner would take up his mantle. He knows that Conner is terrified of Bruce and despises Gotham. But apparently, he cares so much about Tim that he would drop everything to honor him. He would alter his whole life drastically just for Tim. It was good to have that reassurance, but more importantly, it made his heart pound with pure desire. 

Tim had been able to keep his long held affection for his best friend under wraps for a while now. But lately, with how seemingly increasingly affectionate Conner has been, it seemed to be spilling out. 

He remembers when he first realised he was in love with him. 

Deep underground, in the catacombs of Paris. The vivid hallucination he had of his best friend. Not just his best friend, though, his best friend believing him. How much longing he felt. How much he wished he was really there. He remembered wanting to kiss him, but not doing so in fear that if he touched Conner he would disappear. 

He felt honored, almost giddy that Conner would reach for him in his grief, just like Tim did. 

It definitely made him feel a little less weird for his obsession when Conner died. 

“Hey, Conner? Kon? Buddy?” He gently asks, patting Conner’s back. “Can you look at me for a sec?” 

The other Conner lifted his head to look at him, pulling back to swipe at his eyes. “Fuck- I- Sorry Tim. I’m sorry. I- I just missed you and I couldn’t save you and-” He swallowed back a sob. “It’s just been a long time.” He slowly pulled back, taking a whole step away from Tim, but keeping his eyes on him. “Let me just… get back into the zone.”

He took a moment to do a breathing exercise before continuing. Tim recognised it as one of the ones Bruce taught. “I assume you’re with this hunk?” He says, gesturing to Tim’s Conner with a watery smile. 

“Yeah, we’re from the same… Dimension? Plain? Whatever you want to call it.”

“Cool… cool… good. Your Superboy told me how he got flung into a portal.” 

The other Conner kept getting closer as the conversation progressed. He didn’t seem to be aware of it, just inexplicably drawn towards Tim. 

“Yeah, Conner, or my you, got flung-”

“Hold on- Conner interrupted, “Can we, like, establish names here? I know two Superboys is pretty much anyone’s dream-” don’t you know it “-but it’s getting a little confusing.” 

“You’ve been calling him Conner, right?” the other Superboy says, the whites of his domino looking directly into Tim’s eyes, “I’m Kon.” 

“Oh shit! You too?” Conner asks gleefully. 

“If you’re a Kon-El too then where did Conner come from?” 

“It’s my secret identity. Kon-El and Superboy supreme by day, and Conner Kent loser farmer by… also day.” Tim snickered, which Conner grinned at. 

“Oh. I’m just Kon-El. Or sometimes Kon Wayne.” He added on, thoughtfully. “Not much of a civilian life is needed since we’re still recovering from Black Zero’s reign.” 

“Okay,” Tim nodded. “You can be Kon and he’ll be Conner.” 

“Now that that’s been established we can continue.” 

Tim started. “At around 2330, we were attacked with, what we can assume is, a dimensional gun of some sort. There were multiple shots taken at us, some creating blue portals and others transporting items. During the attack, Conner was flung into a portal, which presumably led here. I ran into the portal approximately a minute after. The figure shooting at us was approximately 5’8 and wearing all black with a bandana around their face, but I wasn’t able to get a good look due to the circumstances. The whole thing took…” Tim thought for a moment. “About 3 minutes I would say?” 

“Any known motive?”

“No,” Conner replies, “They didn’t even monologue or anything. Just starting shooting.” He makes a gun with his fingers and pretends to shoot it at Tim, who unfortunately finds it endearing. He hated how even the stupidest little things could fill his chest with so much warmth. 

“Hmm… Not much to go off of.” Kon turns to Tim, quickly realising he was shoulder to shoulder with him and taking two steps back. “Sorry. Uh, Tim. What do you think we should do?” 

It was almost weird to Tim how quickly Kon had turned to Tim for leadership. He wasn’t even from this Earth, and yet he had put his full trust in Tim already. He knows Conner usually listens to what he says, but that’s after years of their built-up relationship. This Conner doesn’t have that.

“Well…” He thinks, “I think our guy is also bouncing around different Earths. He was able to move through his portals pretty easily. I can probably use the Bat-Computer to triangulate when and where he’ll end up here. Once we find that out we can take him in and use his tech to get us back.” It was a simple, but solid plan… If it worked. If their guy didn’t plan on visiting anytime soon they would have to scrap the plan and figure out how to travel back to their earth from scratch. No biggie. 

“Alright.” Kon agrees easily. “It’s getting pretty late, though. We can try in the morning.” Tim notices Conner’s weird look at Kon at his easy agreement from the corner of his eye. He made a note to ask about it later on when they were alone. 

“You guys can stay upstairs in the manor until you can get home. I’m alone for the week, so no one will bother you here.” 

“That works. Thanks.” Tim says, nodding. 

“S’no problem” Kon responds, turning to walk them towards the familiar stairs leading up into the manor. 

Tim watched the two Superboys as they walked up the stairs and through the clock, cataloguing the minute differences between the two. His Superboy, or Conner, lazily floated next to them, chatting casually with Kon. His knees were bent and he bobbed up and down in the air, making small gesticulations with his hands whenever he needed more emphasis. Conner wasn’t lazy, per se, but he could be fairly laid back at times. Kon, on the other hand, had his feet firm on the ground, like he didn’t even consider using his flight ability. He seemed… More tense than Tim was used to seeing on his friend. His words were casual, but he seemed to have a more serious tone. Working with Bruce and being part of a rebellion had clearly taken a toll on Kon.

“So where is everyone?” Tim asked in the lull of the boys chattering. The route to the East guest wing was familiar, even if he hasn’t traversed it in a while. “If it’s anything like our Earth, bats travel in colonies.” 

Tim figured it was a safe enough question. The manor looked well lived in, similar to his back home. He could see little knicks in picture frames, and remains of various hobbies littered around. 

“The good old days of being the only kid, am I right?” Kon replied. “Bruce is out of town for League stuff. Something about rebuilding Star? Dick is in Bludhaven, Damian is at the Kent’s, Duke is spending the week at his uncle’s house, and Cass and Stephanie are on a ‘girls trip.’” Kon said Stephanie’s name with slight hint of disdain, which surprised Tim because as far as he knew, Conner and Steph got along like a house on fire.

“I always forget you have that many siblings,” Conner said, scrunching his nose. “There’s so many when you list them out like that.” 

“I hate to tell you this, Conner, but that’s us on a light day.” 

“Ugh. ‘I work alone’ my ass .”

Kon laughed. “He said that when I first joined him. Unfortunately, I’m too stubborn to be stopped.” He sent a familiar Superboy wink towards Tim. Tim could tell he was trying to keep it light, keeping a humourous air to gloss over the heavy emotions from earlier. 

“Anyways,” Kon started, stopping at one of the empty rooms. “Conner, you can stay here. Tim,” He gestured to a room across and to the left of Conner’s “You can be in this one. I’m right next door so, uh, if you need anything just holler. I’ll be there faster than you can say ‘leaping lizards, Batman!’” Tim cringes at the phrase. 

“Not you too.” Dick’s days of alliteration were pretty much over by the time that Tim was on the scene, but goons seemed to love bringing it up. It was always worse when Nightwing was in town. 

“Sorry, Tim,” Kon says, unapologetic. “Come’s with the job.” 

Tim gives a dramatic sigh of disapproval before walking toward his room. 

“I’m gonna head to bed. I’ll see you guys in the morning.”  

“Ugh…” Conner gives himself a sniff and grimaces. “I still smell like sewer. I’m gonna hit the showers.” He turns to his room and disappears within with a lazy salute. 

Tim puts his hand on the doorknob before turning towards Kon and giving him a slight nod. Kon gives a small smile and a little wave. 

“See you tomorrow, Tim.” 

Tim smiles back and enters the room, shutting the door behind him. The exhaustion of the day was finally catching up and he was ready to crash. 

He yawned before he started to strip out of his suit. There was something soothing about taking off his suit at the end of a long night. It was methodical, having specific steps to remove the straps and belts attached to him. One latch, clasp, and zipper after another, until it was all off. However, by the time he was down to his compression shorts, he was hit with the realization that he didn’t have anything else to change into. 

Tim groaned and considered wandering over to Kon’s room to ask for something to sleep in. He thought about it for a moment before deciding against it. It’s not that he had anything against Kon, but it just seemed like he was having a rough day. Plus Tim hadn’t showered yet, he planned to in the morning, and Conner was right about their collective sewer smell. Surely, it would be rude to ask for something to wear while he was dirty. 

He ended up just stripping down to his boxers before climbing into the plush king bed. The soft cotton sheets were cool against his skin as he snuggled deeper under the luxurious comforter. Call him a bougie rich boy, but he was glad they got stuck in Wayne Manor with all its amenities, instead of, say, Kansas. 

In no time at all, Tim started to drift off. 

--

Tim internally groaned as he heard his door open for the 3rd time that night. It had become increasingly apparent how clingy Kon was, but this was getting ridiculous. Every single time he was about to fall asleep for the night he was awoken by the soft click of his door opening. 

Tim couldn’t tell if Kon was checking on him to see if he was real or alive, but both options were pretty sad.

Tim sighed as he sat up, his blankets crumpling around him. 

"At this rate, you can just come in.” 

Kon nervously crept over. He was shirtless, wearing only a long pair of pajama pants for decency’s sake. In the darkness, without the domino and cape, he could almost mistake him for his own Conner. There's no reason why they wouldn't be identical, but it still hit him that if it wasn't for a tired look in his eyes he would barely be able to tell them apart. 

"Here-" Tim lifted the covers. 

"Are you sure?" Kon asked hesitantly, still unable to pull his eyes off of Tim. 

"Yeah, yeah. Climb in dude. We've shared a bed before. Or- I have with my Conner." 

"Yeah, we used to. On missions sometimes." Kon carefully crept in and pulled the covers over the both of them. Tim felt a hand touch his shoulder. "Can I?" 

"If it makes you feel better." 

No sooner were the words out of time mouth did Kon latch onto him, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him close. Tim could feel his body heat and the warm press of his bare skin against his own. He was sure Kon could hear how fast his heart was thumping as his face flushed red. 

It had been a while since Tim had slept in the same bed as Conner. But, even back then it had never been like this. Never so close. Feeling Conner’s bare chest against his felt more akin to Tim’s fantasies than any memory he had. 

Tim threaded his hand through Kon’s hair. Kon’s head rested on his chest, listening to the repetitive thrumb of his heartbeat. His eyes opened halfway to look at Tim’s.

“Thank you.” he whispers, his words quiet even in the silent room. 

“It’s no problem dude. I get it.” Tim responds gently back. 

“I’m sorry I was such a freak today… I… I promise I’ll be better tomorrow.” 

Tim gives a soft hum. “Like I said, dude. Don’t worry about it. I get it.”

“It’s just-” He nestles further into Tim’s chest. “I always thought I’d see you again, but I was starting to lose hope. But now you’re here!” Kon says this with awe, as if Tim himself is a miracle. It’s almost scary how much that fills Tim with affection. “Your me has probably said this to you before, but you’re so important to me, Tim. Losing you was the worst day of my life.” 

“I lost you once too.” Tim quietly admits.

“Oh?” Kon looks up at him from his chest, giving him his full attention. 

“You were dead for over a year… I didn’t handle it well. It was a bad year all around, but… Losing you broke me.” 

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” Kon says earnestly. 

“It’s alright,” Tim replies, a soft smile on his face. “You got better and.. Well, I’m in a good place now.” 

Tim didn’t like talking about that era of his life. But Kon understood. He already could never hold anything back from Conner, but this was a Conner who knew what it was like. 

“I didn’t know what I had until I lost it,” Kon says. He unwraps one hand from around Tim and gently pulls down on the hand Tim is running through his hair. He threads their fingers together and holds it against his chest. “I don’t want to feel like that ever again.” 

The room is silent for a few moments, the two of them resting together in a thoughtful quiet. Tim could feel the exhaustion starting to drag him down. He shuffles down deeper under the covers, making himself comfortable under Kon’s weight. 

“Good night, Kon.”

“Night, Tim.”

Chapter Text

Conner 

Conner woke up feeling more refreshed than expected. 

Being Kryptonian meant he woke up with the sun, a task made easier when he was in Kansas, with his big bedroom windows and unobstructed sunlight. He always seemed to wake up groggy whenever he stayed with at the manor with Tim. Usually, though, they were staying in Tim’s room in the West family wing or crashed out in one of the TV rooms. On this side of the house, though, Conner could see the pink and orange rays of the sun as it rose over Bristol. 

He closed his eyes, basking in the morning light. 

Being here, being with this Kon, was weird. 

He knew how grief affected people, he knew how it looked on himself. Conner remembers when Tana died, how overwhelming it felt. He was so young back then. Fresh out the tube, it was his first time really mourning someone. The emotions felt like they would explode out of him. He felt like nothing was ever going to be okay. He was angry and afraid, and tired, and… just so distraught over what had happened. Conner would become better acquainted with those emotions in later years, but his first loss was an experience like no other. 

Kon was beyond that, though. He was just sad. 

When he was last here, Kon wasn’t volatile or emotional. In fact, he seemed to be the opposite. Kon was serious and cold. He couldn’t remember if he had seen Kon smile the entire time. 

It was like he was empty. 

He thought it had gotten better. It had seemed so when he first arrived since Kon was willing to joke and laugh with him. But then Tim appeared and he changed again. Instead of a friendly openness, he was desperate. Like he was drowning and Tim was the only one who could save him. 

Conner saw how he drank in his appearance, unable to keep his eyes off of Tim, even after they had been separated. The way he had been drawn to him, like being apart would be like killing Tim a second time. And wasn’t that the kicker? Because Conner got it. Conner couldn’t even imagine his world without Tim. But Kon didn’t have to imagine. 

His Tim was gone. 

Dead . 

He didn’t know if he would’ve been strong enough to last this long without him. 

So yeah, whatever emotional breakdown Kon was having, Conner gets it. He just wished he could do something to help him through it. 

Slowly, he floated out of bed, stretching his arms above his head as he touched down on the ground. 

His first order of business was getting new clothes. The only clothes he had was his suit and jacket and he refused to walk around in spandex all day. 

After he finds something to wear, he should probably touch in with Tim. They hadn’t gotten the chance to talk one on one last night after they arrived, and it was probably important to debrief when one gets sent to another reality. 

Or at least that’s what Tim would probably say.

With a yawn he opens the door, nearly falling over himself at the sudden sight of Kon. Kon was seated with his back to the wall, next to the door of what Conner can vaguely remember being Tim’s room. His eyes were closed, his head tilted back as he basked in the light from a small square lamp he held in his hands. 

His eyes languidly slide open at Conner’s arrival. 

“Morning.” 

“Oh uh- Good morning dude.” Conner scratched the back of his head. Things didn’t seem this awkward when they were fighting Black Zero. Although maybe that’s because they didn’t get much time for small talk. 

“What’s that,” He asks, gesturing to the device in Kon’s hands. 

“Oh. This is a sun lamp.” Kon says, holding it up for Conner to see. It’s just a small square of light bulbs tucked into a white plastic box. The lamp is bright, though and Conner can feel its warmth when it gets pointed toward him. It’s not as nice as direct sunlight, but he can still feel it in his blood rejuvenating him. It reminds Conner a bit of a small handheld floodlight if floodlights were powered by a tiny sun.  

“Not much sunlight in Gotham, huh?” 

“Nope,” He says, pulling it back towards himself.  “I get mandatory lamp time instead. Oh-” Kon turns to pick up some clothes sitting in a pile that Conner hadn’t noticed. “Here.” 

Conner grabs the clothes handed to him. It’s just a plain black shirt and jeans, but he can tell immediately that they’re way nicer than his back home. He can’t see any logo, but they’re definitely designer. 

Kon looks away politely as Conner strips. 

“You can look, you know. It’s your body too.” Conner mentions, his voice slightly muffled from behind the shirt he was pulling over his head. 

“I don’t know,” Kon starts, a sly smile appearing on his face. “I think my arms are bigger.”

“Bullshit!” 

“B’s training is effective, even for us,” he brags, flexing from his place on the floor. Conner laughs before freezing. 

Shit, they were right in front of Tim’s room and he’s always grumpy when he gets woken up early. Conner hoped he hadn’t been too loud. 

“Will he..?” He gestures over to Tim’s door. 

“Nah. The whole manor is soundproofed.” Kon pointed at his ears. “You know how it is.” 

Conner walked over to the wall and sat down next to Kon, his legs flat against the ground. “Phew. Got worried for a second there. He probably won’t be up for a while if we don’t wake him up.” 

“I still think it's crazy that you just… know that.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“How you just… know things about Tim.” 

Oh. 

Oh. 

“I still remember when I realised that I didn’t even know his favorite color.” 

He had forgotten how young Kon must've been when Tim died. Even younger than when Tana died. Practically fresh from the tube. He thinks about where he was when he was last on this Earth. At that point, Tim had barely even been his friend. He had never even seen his face. He wouldn’t even know his name until at least a year later. Despite his desire to be friends, they were really only teammates at best.

“I tried snooping through his room once to try and figure it out.”

Tim had been such a vital part of Conner’s life. Conner had lived his entire life and even 2nd life with Tim. He had him throughout every moment, good and bad, big and small. Tim was there when he found out Lex was his parent, and was there for Knockout’s betrayal Even when he broke up with Cassie! No matter what, Tim had been present in Conner’s life, even when Tim had forgotten about his existence. But this Kon had only had him for a year, if that. 

He had to go through it all alone.

Kon suddenly blanched, as if suddenly realising what he just said. “Sorry, I keep making it weird,” He sighs. “I’ve never talked about it, about him, before. It just…” He looks up to the ceiling frustrated. “It keeps spilling out. It’s why I’m sitting here. I tried to go downstairs. I was gonna work out like I usually do, but I just couldn’t! I had to be here.” 

Kon puts his head in his hands, his knees scrunching closer to his body. “I thought I was fine. I thought I was over it. Then you guys showed up and suddenly I can’t act normal for a single second. I feel like such a freak.” 

Jeez… There must not have been time for grief counseling between being Batman’s sidekick and leading a rebellion. Kon needed a therapist, like, yesterday. 

“It’s okay, dude.” Conner starts. He’s not really sure how to reassure Kon, but he figures he can at least let him know it’s okay to cry. “You gotta let it out at some point, you know?” 

“Yeah…” Kon takes a deep breath and looks up at the ceiling, his head thumping against the wall behind him. “I mean, you’re the only person I’ve ever met who knew him. Like, actually knew him. He was everything, you know?” 

Yeah. He knows. 

“I mean, Tim was just... There was no one like him. No one treated us like he did. He didn’t want anything. Tana, Roxy, Knockout… Heck, even Cassie wanted something from us. We were something to win to them. A commodity. Although I guess that’s kind of my fault.” He laughs bitterly. “Bart was the only other person who didn’t use me like that, but I had to look out for him, you know? Even though we were both kids, Bart just didn’t get it sometimes. I had to make sure he’d be okay. But Tim? Tim got it. We didn’t have to take care of him, he could do it himself.”  

Conner laughed softly. “He really was a character back then. He was such a hardass all the time.” He reminisced fondly, “I could never tell if we were friends or not! I always told myself I didn’t care but, man, did I want him to think I was cool.” Kon snorted. 

“We wanted everyone to think we were cool.”

“Yeah, but Tim was different! He was Robin! Batman’s sidekick! He was hard to impress.” 

Kon smirks at him, “Conner, I’m literally Batman’s sidekick. Like, right now.” 

“That’s not exactly a win in my book.” Kon sticks his tongue out at him. “Tim’s told me about Wayne. Being a bat would suck.” The other boy grimaces, probably remembering when he had to eat rats or whatever they do in the Batcave. 

The room is silent for a moment.

Kon thinks absentmindedly, chewing on his lip. 

“Do you-” he stops and starts again, hesitant to ask his question. “Do you think Tim would be impressed by what I’m doing? With the whole… Robin thing?” 

Conner can see how heavy the question weighs on the guy. He dropped everything to dedicate his life to the bats so it’s reasonable to wonder if it was worth it all. The title of Robin carries a huge weight and Kon’s been at it for a while. It must be difficult

But Kon looks like he cares more about how Tim would feel about him being Robin, rather than the toll on himself. 

He has to think for a moment to decide how he wants to word this. He honestly doesn’t know how Tim would feel, exactly, but he figures he can guess well enough. 

“I don’t really know if Tim would like it or not. I think the guy would be honored, sure, but I don’t know if this is what he would’ve wanted for us, you know?” 

Kon looks devastated. 

Conner backtracks. “Not that he would’ve hated you doing this, it’s just, uh…” He wracks his brain for the right words. “Being Robin can kind of... Weigh people down. He’s had a rough time at it too. I think he would be worried about us and, like, if we were happy. I think that’s what he would’ve cared about the most if he was like my Rob. Not about the title itself, but if it’s what we wanted.”  

Kon… still doesn’t look assuaged.

“I just wanted to make his sacrifice worth it. He told me he knew I was gonna be a great hero someday. I wanted to live up to what he thought I could be. I wanted to live up to him . It felt like the right thing to do.” Kon says, dejected. 

“Well…” Conner stops to look at Kon directly. “Here’s the big question. Are you happy? Doing all of this- Being Batman’s Robin?”

Kon looks down at the light still in his hands. 

“I thought I was.” 

The hallway is filled with a long, gloomy silence after that. It could almost feel oppressive, but Conner honestly thinks Kon needs some time to think. It was so early in the morning and their conversation was… heavy. He can’t believe that he had just... Never talked about Tim before. He can’t imagine losing Tim then just… Not saying anything about him, good or bad. If anything, Tim is one of his favorite subjects to talk about. And, well, Conner isn’t exactly the paradigm of mental health, but at least he can talk about his feelings. Although he usually talks to Tim about things like this. 

And Kon can’t. 

Man, this world is depressing. 

“You said before,” Kon starts, startling Conner from his thoughts. “That he was Robin,” He tilts his head at him curiously. “Is he not anymore?” Conner laughs.

“Oh boy, you’re in for a treat. He’s not Robin anymore, no, he’s Red Robin. ” 

Kon gapes at him. “But isn't…? Isn’t that just Robin but red ?”

“It’s not even his! It was Jason Todd’s first! Just like before!” Conner giggles as Kon shakes his head.

“I love Tim, but that is such a stupid name.” 

“I know, right?!” 

The two laugh

“That’s not even the worst-” Conner jumps as he's interrupted, the door next to them opening to reveal a bedraggled Tim Drake. The other Kon turns towards him with a beam, as if getting a shot of pure sunshine. You could hardly even tell he had been close to tears, like, five minutes ago. 

“You’re awake!” 

Tim wasn’t exactly a morning person. Once he lost his ‘must be in control of everything’ persona, Conner very quickly found out how groggy he could be after waking up. 

Tim’s hair was everywhere. Half of it was in his face, while the other half was sticking straight up. His eyes were still squinting against the bright light of the hallway, and Conner could see the shine of drool staining the corner of his mouth. 

He was so cute. 

“Morning, Sunshine!” he called out, floating off the ground to his feet. 

“I know you were making fun of me” Tim grumbled back, scratching at his stomach. 

His morning voice and abs were also super hot. Score 1 for Conner. 

Conner had a full view of his bare torso and legs, a sight that wasn’t unfamiliar, but not unwelcome. The silvery crisscrossing and freckled indents of scars laced Tim’s skin, painting a picture of his life. So many of his hardships in plain view.

 He was… Appropriately appreciative. 

“How did you know we were talking about you?” Kon asks curiously.

“He’s Robin. He knows everything.” Conner gloats. 

Conner floats towards Tim, grabbing his arm to pull him towards the kitchen. As soon as Conner’s hand wrapped around his wrist, Tim slumped against the wall, groaning. 

“Come on Timmy-” he crows, “It’s breakfast time.” 

“Noooooo.” he groans. “It’s too early.” 

Kon watches the two of them with a new grin on his face before standing up. With one swift motion, he picks Tim up, Conner's arm falling off in surprise. With a yelp, Tim is face to face with Kon, whose hands are wrapped around each of his thighs, holding him up. 

“Come on Tim,” Kon started, his nose inches from Tim’s, “I’ll get you something to eat.” Tim looks into his eyes for a moment, his face flushing a soft pink before sighing and wrapping his arms around Kon’s neck. Conner watches as Tim leans down to place his head in the crook of Kon’s neck, his eyes fluttering shut as Kon turns to walk towards the kitchen. 

Conner floated behind them as they walked. Watching them felt like he was intruding on something intimate, leaving an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach. He didn’t realise that he could just… Pick Tim up like that. He could imagine the feeling of Tim’s bare stomach pressed against his, the feeling of his arms wrapped around him. Tim's breathing against the back of his neck.

Would Tim let Conner pick him up again later? 

Conner began to sweat at the thought of touching the strong muscles of Tim’s thighs. 

Thankfully his thoughts were interrupted by Kon’s voice. 

“I think we still have some eggs left…” Kon muttered, still holding Tim as he walked towards the fridge. He paused for a moment at the door, trying to figure out how to open the door without dropping the boy in his arms. 

Conner reaches out, “Here I can-”

“ No! ” Kon snaps, his eyes wide. Conner nearly jumps at his shout. He looks at Tim whose eyes are wide in shock. The two make eye contact. 

Do you..? 

Tim shakes his head. 

It’s okay.

“Cool.” Conner says softly, slowly dropping his outreached arms. “That’s alright. I’ll just sit here.” He says, gesturing in the direction of the island in the middle of the room. 

Kon says nothing, his breathing suddenly heavy. Conner watches as Tim’s skin turns pale where he grips him harder. 

Tim said he was fine. 

Conner floats towards the island and sits at one of the barstools next to it. The air in the room is heavy with silence as Kon finds his footing. 

“I’m making omelets.” 

The door to the fridge opens at his touch, the carton of eggs floating out. Kon looks at Tim

“Sorry, do you mind?” Tim shakes his head. Kon works to move Tim to his side, shifting him until he can hold him one-handed. With one hand finally free he grabs a bowl and begins to crack eggs into it. 

“Tim usually likes cheese and onion in his.” Kon makes a noise of agreement before starting to whisk with a fork. “I’ll just take whatever’s easiest, though.” Kon pauses for a moment before setting down the fork to add more eggs. 

Rude. Someone clearly has a favorite. 

“Why don’t you ever make me breakfast?” Tim calls out from over Kon’s shoulder as he stands in front of the stove.

“Because you never stay over anymore, dingus. Next time you sleep over I’ll make you a full spread.” 

“Are you sure it’s not because you can’t cook?” 

“Wow, Tim.” Conner scoffs, “And we were having such a pleasant morning.” 

The clink of a plate in front of him interrupts their banter. 

The omelet looks perfect. Perfectly golden and gooey. There was even a nice sprig of garnish atop it, completing the professional look. 

“Wow, dude, this looks great!” He turns to look at Kon, only to find that he’s still holding Tim, his arm wrapped low around his waist as he sits in his lap. Tim had easily adapted to the new position and was tucked in even closer to him. 

Conner was not jealous.

There was no way he was going to be jealous of another him. Not even if he was getting to hold Tim the way he wanted. 

He kind of hated the way they seemed to fit together so easily. 

Kon reached up to brush a piece of egg off Tim’s lips. 

Conner kind of wanted to scream. 

Conner looked down and bitterly stabbed into his omelet, despising how it was cooked exactly the way he liked. His only solace was that, despite its perfect outside, the eggs themselves were a bit bland, lacking any outstanding taste. He preferred Ma’s omelets that didn’t have uniformity but were full of flavor from her years of experience in the kitchen. 

Sorry Alfred, but no British food can compare to a Southern home-cooked meal. 

“So,” Tim starts, amongst the clinking of silverware against plates. “Is there some sort of vendetta against me? Because right now I’m the only one still not wearing pants.” 

“I left some on the bed for you?” Kon says, his head tilted. “Did you not see them?” 

Tim groans. “There’s no way I would've seen that.” He complains. “I was too busy stopping Conner from humiliating me.” 

“You make it too easy, Red.” 

“Eat my shorts, Superboy.” 

“Gladly.” He sneers. 

Kon snorted. 

“I guess we never moved past the fighting stage did we?” Tim and Conner paused and looked at each other for a moment before looking back at Kon.

“Whatever do you mean?” Conner says, batting his eyelids. 

“Yeah, Kon. We’re best friends.” Tim adds, wide-eyed and innocent. 

“Uh-huh. Sure.” Conner laughs at the expression on his face, Tim grinning next to him. 

“Alright,” Tim says as his laughter dies down. He puts his hand on Kon’s shoulder and slides off his lap. “I’m gonna go get dressed. I’ll meet you in the cave in 10.” 

“Wait before you go-” Tim turns towards Kon, one eyebrow raised. “Did you enjoy breakfast?” Tim’s face softens. “Yeah. It was great. Thanks, Kon.” Kon preens under Tim’s praise. Tim gives him a small smile before turning to leave.

Conner watches him walk away, his eyes dropping lower towards Tim’s boxers as he leaves the room. 

God Tim was hot. 

He looked up to see Kon watching him, a knowing grin on his face. 

“Best friend, huh?” 

He should've just stayed in bed.

“It looks like we’re in luck.” Tims starts, staring at the screen. 

They’re all gathered in the Cave, huddled around Tim. A map of Gotham is pulled on screen, math acquisitions and coordinates appearing in different tabs littered in the corners of the monitor. 

“Our guy should be in Gotham, tomorrow night. Sometime around 11 at this location.” He mouses over a location on the map. Kon leans in intently. “I used a combination of the algorithm we used to find Bruce and this world's knowledge of different dimensions to track this guy. So I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure I’m right.” 

“I’m sure you are,” Kon says absentmindedly, still staring at the screen. 

“Do we know if he’ll be able to shoot us again?” Conner questions.
“Honestly?” Tim grimaces, “We know pretty much nothing about this guy.”
“Great.” 

“So our main goal will have to be incapacitating him as soon as possible. We don’t know if it’s just his tech that allows him to make portals, or if he’s a meta so we have to be fast and careful.”

Conner nodded. “That should be doable.”

“What does he look like again?” Kon asks, a serious look on his face.

“He’s like the most generic bandit you can think of.” Conner replies, “Wore all black, a bandana around the bottom half of his face, weird tech strapped to his back. The whole shebang.” 

“You’ll probably know him when you see him,” Tim adds, leaning back in the chair. “The real question is why he came back.”

“Oh?”

“Well, he tried to get us here, right? As far as we know he hadn’t stolen anything or committed any crime. He just started pushing us into portals. So what was his motive? Why did he come back?”

“Probably to check on us, right?” Conner starts hesitantly. “If he only tried to get rid of us, then that was his main goal. I don’t know if it was to get rid of us so he could go commit a crime or whatever or if he wanted us out of the way permanently, but whatever it was he succeeded. He’s probably here to double-check that we’re still here.”

“Or this is a whole nefarious plot that we can’t even comprehend yet because it’s so crazy,” Kon interjects.

“Or that.” 

“Well, whatever it is, we have time,” Tim says, standing up. “He’ll be out there tomorrow, so for now we just have to wait.” 

“So what do we do until then?” 

Tim turns towards Kon expectantly. He looks nervous to be put on the spot, especially by Tim. 

“I think Damian has some video games we can play?” He says hesitantly.

Tim grins.

“Perfect. 

Either his (apparently multidimensional???) crush on Tim was incredibly obvious when looked at from an outside view (which was terrifying) or Kon was just, really, really straightforward.

Kon spent the whole day following Tim like a lost puppy with Conner stuck trailing after the two, Kon almost ignoring him in favor of talking to Tim. He got it, but it still sucked. He felt like the world's worst third wheel. 

It also didn’t help that Kon was clearly inexperienced in video games and Conner kept feeling bad for beating him. 

Plus, he still needed to talk to Tim. Alone.

They’re all sitting in one of the living rooms, Tim and Kon on the sofa together while Conner lounged upside down in a plush lounge chair. They’re in the midst of a much-needed gaming break by watching the first movie they could find, some old cheesy comedy about airplanes. Conner is hardly paying attention, his focus torn between the movie and analysing Kon who’s blatantly watching Tim instead of the movie.

Tim doesn’t even seem to notice. 

He’s trying to figure out how he feels about this. About Kon. He thinks it’s mostly pity, but somehow there’s still a thread of longing for what Kon seems to have and Tim seems to freely give. It’s only been a day and the two are near inseparable. Although to be fair that’s mostly through Kon’s doing. 

His thoughts are interrupted by a distant chime. 

Kon sits, up looking stricken at the noise. “It’s 7. I- I have to patrol.” He turns towards Tim who sits up from the couch next to him. “I can skip and stay here-” 

“No, no. You don’t have to.” Tim interrupts, “we can patrol with you.”
“Absolutely not. You’ll stay here. With Conner.” he adds as an afterthought. “It’s dangerous out there.” 

Conner almost laughed. If Kon thought Tim was just going to lie down a skip patrol because he asked nicely, then he was in for a surprise. No amount of concern could override Tim’s sense of duty towards Gotham, even if it was a different dimension’s Gotham. 

“Alright.” Tim agrees. 

Or not. 

Huh.

Okay. 

There wasn’t even a fight just an easy assent to staying home. 

Which is so crazy because Conner can distinctly remember at least 4 different times he’s had a similar, if not the same, argument with Tim hoping he’d finally get him to stay home for once. 

Kon looks relieved. “Great. Cool. Okay. I’m going to-” He gestures towards the general area of Bruce’s office, his eyes never leaving Tim’s face. “I’ll be back soon.” He gives a quick glance towards Conner. 

“Keep him safe.” And with one last look at Tim, he turns to scamper towards the Batcave. 

“What? No ‘I can protect myself!’” Conner questions, his pitch growing nasally to mock Tim.

Tim scoffs and throws one of the decorative pillows at him. “Shut up, dude.” 

“No really, I’m surprised you weren’t getting ready to fight him for your right to get beat up by wazoos in clown costumes.” 

“At least they have a costume.” 

“Look, we all make mistakes. You don’t have to keep bringing up the t-shirt. Besides, you’re one to talk, Drake. ”

“Ugh,” Tim groans, “don’t remind me.” 

“ Mr. Sarcastic?” 

“ Dude stop!” Tim laughs, swatting the air towards Conner. 

Conner loves Tim’s laugh, his real laugh that he can only seem to make around him. He has a bunch of things he could be proud of, but his ability to make his best friend laugh is probably his favorite. Kon probably couldn’t make Tim laugh like he could. 

Tim stands up and briefly fixes the couch cushions before moving to leave. Conner scrambles to follow him at his sudden change in direction. 

“Hey, where’re you going?” He questions, drifting behind him. He follows as Tim steadfastly walks towards the back of the house. “We’re not going after him, right? I know I made fun of you but I’m pretty sure Kon would, like, kill me if he saw you out there.” 

Tim leads him to the back door. Conner watches as he slips on the first pair of slippers he sees, which are probably Damian’s considering they’re about 5 sizes too small. 

“I’m going outside,” Tim explains, opening the door and stepping out. “There’s a nice table we can sit at.” 

“Yeah, but why?” Conner asks, trailing after him. 

“The whole manor is soundproofed, right? I figured it would probably help Kon not freak out if he could hear my heartbeat.” 

Conner’s heart fluttered. 

Tim was always so considerate. He loved how compassionate the boy was. He just… Cared, so so deeply about those around him. It was one of his favorite things about him. Conner knew that if he had asked Tim to do the same thing, Tim would be outside any time he could, no questions asked, even though he preferred being indoors. 

Tim sat down at an iron table nestled amongst the roses. The sky was softening into golden light, dusk quickly approaching. The alcove felt private, intimate, and was shrouded in the last light of the day, softening any and all harsh edges. Conner took it in, making a note to visit again once they got back to their own world. 

He takes a seat atop the table, legs hanging off the side, basking in Tim’s presence. 

“Speaking of Kon,” Conner starts, “what do you think?”

“Like…” Tim scrunches his face, “About him?” 

“Yeah, like, is he cool? Do you trust him?” 

“Should I not?” Tim questions, suddenly concerned, “You said he was fine so I just…” 

“No, that’s…” Conner leans back on his hands and stares at the sky, “What do you think about him? In general.” 

“Oh…” Tim thinks for a moment. “It’s kind of weird. I can kind of see how you two are similar, but you’re both so different. It’s like a weird monument to nature vs. nurture. What parts of you stayed the same versus which parts of you are because of the way you grew up. Your paths diverged pretty early on, right? So you’re bound to be pretty different people.” 

“Huh. yeah.” Conner looks at Tim. 

“You know, all this talk about how ‘you’re the only person who truly knows yourself.’ Well, I’ve met a couple of mes and we all seem to be different.” He jokes. 

“Yep,” Tim says, smiling at him, “It just means you’ve all got something special.” 

“Aww” Conner coos, “do you have a favorite?” 

“Obviously.”

“Are you going to tell me which one?”

“Ha ha.” He deadpans, “it’s obviously Match.” 

Conner places his hands on his heart and gasps. “No! I’m wounded! The betrayal!” He collapses dramatically onto the table. “My own best friend.” 

“Laugh it up, Superboy. You know who my actual favorite is.” Conner grins. 

“Of course. It’s hard to beat the original model.” He crows, lifting one arm to flex as Tim giggles. “Kon wouldn’t know what to do with all this. Beauty and brawn.” 

“I don’t know,” Tim says, a mischievous grin on his face. “I think his arms are bigger.” 

Conner gasps. “No! You take that back. Look at my arms, Tim-” He says, flexing harder. “No way could he compare.” 

He couldn’t right? That was just a joke. No way was Kon stronger than him. 

“I’d rethink that, Superboy,” Tim says, smirking. After a moment, though, he grows serious again. “Anyways, what do you think about Kon? You’re sure we can trust him? I’m following your lead on this one.” 

“Ugh.” Kon drops his arms and leans back again, pulling one leg up onto the table. “We can trust him, or whatever, it’s just… Kon is fine, bless his heart, but he’s so depressing.” He blows out a long puff of air. “I mean clearly he’s not, like, mentally okay considering how clingy he’s been-” Tim grimaces, “and I want to do something to help, but like, I can’t. I mean- This world sucks, dude.”

“Yeah… I’ve been getting that.” 

“It’s like all the bad things that could’ve happened, happened and Kon just never recovered. Like, I can't even imagine you dying. Like, it doesn't even register in my head.” 

“I mean… it's not unlikely that it'll happen.” Tim says softly. 

Conner sits up and glares at him. “What? Dude, don't even- don't say that.” 

“You know what we do, Conner. You know how dangerous it is! I’ve had some close calls-”

“Yeah I know and I hate it every time!” 

“Yeah, but they happened . And they’ll keep happening . It’s inevitable. We go out not knowing if it’ll be our last night out. Maybe someday it will be.” Tim sighs. “I don’t like it. And I don’t plan on dying anytime soon. But it could happen.” the words it happened to you go unspoken. 

Conner hated this. 

He knew that his friend had always thought this way, but his outlook had only gotten worse after he died. After everyone had died. Things were… better. But some days Conner could still feel the grief that radiants off of him. He couldn’t help but notice all the small tendencies towards isolation that he had picked up while Conner was gone. 

He grabbed Tim’s hand in his, rubbing his thumb against it. “Hey, dude. We’re going to be fine. You're going to be fine. Because we’ll be together, right? I’ll protect you, you protect me, and then we’ll get all old and wrinkly and let the new gen take over for us.” 

Tim stared at their intertwined hands. Kon could hear Tim’s heart beating faster with emotions. It always seemed to get like this whenever they were close. The voice in his mind that loves to dream always tells him that Tim’s heart races for the same reason his does. But the logical voice, the voice he listens to, tells him it’s only because Tim is allergic to feelings. There’s no way Tim could want Conner, not the way he wants him. 

Conner squeezed his hand, feeling the rough callous and relishing in its warmth. “So don’t talk like that, alright? We gotta keep looking towards our happy ending.”

Tim’s ears were bright red, “okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay. Our happy ending.”

“Yeah! You just have to believe, bro.” 

Tim let off a soft laugh and squeezed Conner’s hand back. “You’re so sappy, dude.” 

“Ugh! It’s being here! I told you! This world is depressing I’ve had like 6 emotional pep talks with Kon already and we’ve been here, like, a day.” He sighs, “I don’t think most of them even went well.”

Tim cringed. “Yeah… Kon’s kind of… He’s doing his best. Grief is hard.”

“I know… It’s all you though. Sorry if he’s kind of clingy. Again, I don’t think he’s been to therapy, like, ever.” Conner thinks for a moment, “Also he works for Batman. That’s, like, 9 degrees of fucked up.” 

Well,” Tim says, using his free hand to gesture to himself. “Pot meet kettle.”

“Yeah but you’re fucked up in a weird cool way,” Conner explains, smiling. “He’s fucked up in a ‘Rhao this is just sad’ way.” 

“I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.” 

“Look, I’m just saying. If you told me one day I would live in Gotham and work for Batman?-” He shuddered. “I would’ve told you you were a fat fucking liar.” 

“And yet here we are,” Tim says with a smirk. 

He sighs. “Here we are.” 

The two are silent for a moment, watching the last of the sun drop below the horizon of the estate. The temperature around them begins to cool. 

“Hey, Tim?”

“Yes, Conner?”

“Next time we’re meeting in Kansas.” And Tim bursts out in that stupid laugh Conner loves so much, unrestrained laughter filling the air. Conner starts laughing with him, causing Tim to laugh even harder, adding to the cycle of joy. 

Conner barely even notices that they’re still holding hands. 

Chapter Text

Tim

Tim wakes up slowly.

There's a familiar arm wrapped around his chest, and the faint tickling of breath on his neck. Kon is pressed close behind him, heat radiating off him, making the bed outrageously warm. Their legs are intertwined in a perfect scene of domesticity. 

Tim feels like he might die. 

After all these years of near-death experiences, getting shot, falling off buildings, nothing compares to this. Kon was killing him with his affection. It wasn't quite the same as holding his own Superboy. He was stronger and held him with his hand grasped around his chest rather than reaching down towards his hips. His hair wasn't buzzed short on the sides, leaving the tickling feeling of hair on his skin when he nuzzled closer. It wasn't the same as Conner, but it was still close enough to make his heart pound. 

Tim snuggled deeper into the warm body behind him.

It wouldn't be wrong to say he was doing this for Kon’s sake. He can see it plain as day how much grief Kon still holds, and if this is a comfort to him then, well, he's willing to fall on that sword. He knows what it's like to be desperate for something, anything, even if it's not the healthiest way of coping. He of all people couldn’t fault Kon for that. 

That being said, it also wouldn't be wrong to say it wasn’t all for Kon’s sake.

So maybe he was living his dream of being wrapped in Conner’s arms, receiving casual touches and hints of affection. His domestic fantasies of being held and eating breakfast together are all coming true. It was stupid and very clearly taking advantage of someone mentally unwell, but he couldn't help himself. He kept telling himself it was just a taste, just enough to satisfy him, before he got back to his world where they were just friends and would stay only friends. Moments like last night when he watched the stars appear holding Conner’s hand keep messing with his brain and thinking, maybe, just maybe, he has a chance. But he knows better, and it's easier with Kon, whom he knows holds some sort of affection towards him. He doesn’t need to be a detective to see that. 

Conner was right, he is fucked up.

Ugh. He’s in too deep. 

As gently as possible, he slowly starts to extract himself from Kon’s arms. His arm is latched tight around his torso, but Tim knows Kon and he knows how to keep quiet. Slowly but surely, he makes his way free. With a quick swap, Kon is holding a pillow, sleepily rubbing his face into it. 

Tim sits on the edge of the bed and rubs his face roughly before glancing at a small light-up clock on the bedside table. 

8:34 am. 

Way earlier than Tim usually wakes up. 

Tim and Conner spent the rest of the night outside, waiting for Kon to return. And When he did, it was only midnight. Kon didn't say anything about his early return besides an off mention that it was a light night, but Tim could make a guess as to why he really came back early. 

Tim leaned over and put his hand in Kon’s soft curls, gently scratching behind the boy's ear. He looked.. tired. Without Tim there he was hunched over, his arms squeezing the pillow every couple of breaths. There were bags under his eyes, something he rarely sees on his own Conner, but seemingly normal on this Kon. Even still, Kon manages to unconsciously lean into Tim's touch, murmuring softly when Tim scratches his nails behind his ear. 

Superboy, Conner, belonged with people. He deserved to be admired and loved and bright. Tim loved to watch Conner bask in the spotlight, born to be adored by those around him. He glowed under praise, surrounded by his friends and family. How could someone not see Conner and be drawn to him?

But Kon had none of that. 

Maybe before Tim left he could introduce him to some people, get him out of his shell.

Tim stood up and stretched, groaning softly as his shoulders popped. Silently he crept out of the room. 

The manor was silent as he crept through the halls. It was weird to see it so… still. Tim was used to the manor being full of wayward kids, various animals, and injured vigilantes. Nowadays, it seemed to rarely be quiet, even though most of the kids had moved out by now. There was always some sort of movement, some ambient sign of life. Here, with everyone out of town, it was quiet. Peaceful. Tim almost likened it to when he first moved in, but it wasn’t quite the same. Despite Kons… behavior, there was no heavy atmosphere of grief. When Tim first moved in, the cold mourning seemed to seep into the walls, leaving the manor to feel imposing and empty. Here, he could see evidence of people, a well-lived in space. As he trailed down the hallway towards Bruce’s office, he smiled at the cracks in vases and scratches in the hardwood. The piles of textbooks stacked on decorative tables and Damian’s art hung on the walls reminded him of home. 

Hopefully, they'll be able to get back soon. 

Tim made his way into the cave, shutting the clock behind him. The comforting hum of technology and the chitter of bats fill his ears as he steps down the stairs and walks toward the workout section of the cave. After some stretching and katas, he begins his workout routine. Mentally, as he lifts weights, he begins a to-do list. 

One: Take down the baddie

Two: Figure out how to get home

Three: Make sure Kon has some friends. Maybe get him back together with Bart? (check to make sure he’s not dead too.)

Four: Go home.

Easy. Only four steps. Tim’s got this in the bag. 

“Tim!” Suddenly, where Tim was once lying down on the bench, he now stood with now familiar hands placed on his shoulders “Why didn’t you tell me you were going to the cave?! You can't just leave like that.” 

Scratch that. 

Step three is to get Kon a therapist that’s hopefully not evil. 

“I was just exercising, see? Can’t miss my katas.” Tim offers, trying to lift the mood.

“I had no idea where you were!” Kon’s voice is rising, his face nearly red with frustration. “I wake up alone and I can’t hear your heartbeat? What did you expect me to think?!” 

“Look Kon, I’m okay.” Tim raises his arms as if to show off his supposed health. His heart is beginning the pick up pace though,

Take it all back. Step three is to get Kon a therapist. 

Kon lets out a sharp huff  before taking a deep breath in then slowly letting it out. He does this a few more times before finally speaking again.

“Sorry, just-” Kon shudders with emotion. “Don't do that again. You scared me.” He looks away in embarrassment. “You can continue with-” he waves his hand flippantly, “whatever. I’ll just stay here.” 

The room goes silent for a moment as Tim hesitantly continues his reps. He only manages to get to 6 before Kon speaks again. 

“I'm sorry if I scared you.”

Tim is never scared of Kon. How could he be scared of the boy he trusted with his life? Tim sighs and gets up, wiping his sweat with his shirt before walking over to him. He sits down and leans against him, wrapping his hand in Kon's. “I just get so... Crazy sometimes. You just being here makes me feel crazy.” Kon says quietly.

“I know.”

Because Tim does know. It’s the thought that's been constantly plaguing him the entire time he’s been here, constantly reminded of that period where Conner was dead. “Do you know what I would've given to have Conner with me just one more time after he died? Anything. I would've given anything just to hold him for one moment more, so… I get it. Even if I can't do more, at least I can understand.“

Tim wishes he could do more. Find the problem and fix it for Jon before leaving but he can't. There's nothing he can fix, no mystery for him to solve. He can only hope that his presence is a balm to his aches and not something that makes the pain worse.

The two stay like that, the only sound the skittering of bats, until Conner walks in. He looks at them curiously, his brow furrowing as he sees their clasped hands. 

"D’ya mind making breakfast again?” Conner says casually, but his brow stays furrowed even after Tim looks at him questioningly. 

“Of course.” Kon stands up and dusts himself on before looking over at Tim. “I’ll call you guys up when I’m done. Feel free to continue your workout.”

“Thanks.”

After breakfast, the three of them spend the rest of the day sitting in the lounge playing games. It’s late now, and after beating Kon at every video game they own, they’re onto 21 questions, letting Kon ask all the questions he could want. 

“How'd you pass on Robin?" 

" Wasn't my choice." Tim says "Damian took it from me during that weird period where Bruce was stuck in time, wait-" he stops "Did that happen here?" 

"I'm counting that as your question" Kon grins at Tims pout. “And nope. I have no idea what you’re talking about. Are we still, you know, a team? Young Justice?" 

"Yup." He pops his p. "Not really officially anymore. More like a friend group than a team. We've added a few members over the years too. Whenever we're together though, we’re young justice.” Tim thinks for a moment.” Speaking of Young Justice, how are the girls?" 

Conner watches the two of them intently, a frown on his face. Tim can’t figure out what he’s thinking, but he looks like a man putting together puzzle pieces in his head. He’ll have to ask him later. 

"Hmm, it's been a while since I spoke to them. Cassie was on Themyscira for a while. I think she's back in the world of man. I'm not really close with Cissie anymore but she's in college, last I heard." 

"How could you not be friends with Cissie! She's the best!" Conner interjects, interrupting his pondering. 

Kon frowns. "We had a disagreement a while back. Never really made up afterwards." 

Huh. At least they're still alive.

“So you guys are still friends with the girls?”

“Of course. We all get lunch every-”

The grandfather clock in the corner chimes.

Kon stands up. “It’s 7. Our man will be out soon.”

“Think we’ll get him tonight?” Tim stands with him.

“We have to, don't we? This is the only time we know for sure when he’ll be back.” Conner says. 

“Don’t worry” Kon says, smiling, “I’ll get him and you’ll get home soon.” 

After Kon leaves, TIm gives Conner a look that Conner easily matches. “He’s not going alone, right?”

“No way. I want to see this guy in action again.” 

Tim smiles. “Guess we better get ready then. 

Kon’s decidedly less than thrilled when 5 minutes later Tim and Conner meet him in the cave dressed in full uniform. 

“We’re coming with.” 

Kon stares at Tim. 

“Absolutely not.” 

“We know this guy, we can make sure you’ve got the right one,” Tim argues. He refuses to sit around feeling useless for the second night in a row. 

“This isn’t your Gotham,” Kon argues back. “It could be totally different out there. I’m not gonna put you into any unnecessary danger.” 

“It isn’t unnecessary!”

“Yeah,” Conner adds. “Besides, with the two of us helping you, getting this guy should be easy! Way safer for you too.”
“He’s right. It’s dangerous for you to be alone! You need backup!”

“I-”

“Please?” Tim puts his hand on Kon’s shoulder. “I’d feel better if you weren't out there alone. We’re a team, remember? World's Finest?” Kon sighs and touches his forehead to Tims 

“Fine. But I’ll be keeping an eye on you… and Conner. So make sure you do as I say, okay? I’m serious about not wanting you to get hurt.”

“Hell yeah,” Conner says “Superboy and Robin, back together again. Or…” He looks at Kon’s suit. “Is it Robin and Robin? One and a half Robins and Superboys?” 

Kon lifts his head and smiles. “I tried going by superboy, but it seems like Gotham is really attached to having a Robin. After a few months of the gazette calling me Robin I just… Became Robin I guess.”
“Well,” Tim says, looking him up and down. “You certainly look the part.” 

“Your suit isn’t too shabby either,” Kon says, taking a step back and crossing his arms. “It’s the wrong colors though.” 

“They’re my colors” Conner buts in, a smirk on his face. 

“Oh. that's… that’s nice of you.” Kon says with a shaky smile. 

“Don’t listen to him. My other suit was your colors. This suit just fit the brand.” Tim defends. 

“Well, it’s great on you. Although…” Kon takes a moment, looking Tim up and down. 

Tim knows he’s in for a treat when Kon makes the same face Conner does right before he’s about to say something stupid.

“the cape should be shorter. Gotta show off your ‘assets’” Tim flushes red at his comment. 

“My ‘assets’ are just fine.” 

“No, no, he’s right Rob.” Conner cocks his hip and waggles his eyebrows. “Shorter cape ‘ought to do it.” 

“Do what exactly. ” 

“Don’t play coy you know what I mean.” 

Tim regrets everything. Putting 2 Superboys in one room was a mistake. 

“Whatever,” Tim huffs out. “Let’s just go.” 

Kon bends down and gestures to a bat-cycle sitting next to the batmobile. “After you.” 

“I'm gonna guess there aren't two of these?” Tim says, climbing onto the back. 

“Nope.” Kon says straddling the bike.” Hold on tight, bat-babe.” 

As they zip through the frigid Gotham air, Conner flying behind them, Tim takes note of the world around them. It’s strangely quiet. Too quiet. Hardly anyone is on the streets and those that are, walk with less distrust but more urgency than Gothamites back home. Whole city blocks are also different, a weird mix of old and new melting together on almost every street. 

“We’ve been rebuilding ever since Conner defeated Black-Zero,” Kon mentions offhandedly, shouting to be heard over the wind. “Everything was different afterwards. We were hoping the city would come out and be the way it used to afterwards but…” 

“Gothamites?” Tim says knowingly,

“Yep. They’re just expecting him to come back someday.” 

They manage to get deep into the city, before dismounting and transferring to grappling guns. They swing through buildings until they reach the old warehouse district, seemingly still untouched even after Black-Zero’s reign. 

The three of them land silently on the roof of an abandoned warehouse.“Here. He should be arriving in T-minus-” Tim glances down at the screen on his wrist. “-9 minutes and 33 seconds.” He glances up at Kon. “What’s our plan, Robin?” 

“I’ll take point. I’ll drop in and surprise him, hopefully without much effort.” 

“Our main goal should be getting the gun away from him,” Conner adds.

“Right. I’ll distract him and work on subduing him. Superboy, you sneak up and grab the gun from him. Red, you're on aerial support. Keep watch for anyone else he arrives with. If needed, feel free to join the party.” Tim internally huffs at being put on the sidelines. He knows what Kon’s doing, taking him out of the action, but he doesn’t have to be happy about it. 

With murmurs of agreement, the three lay in waiting for the bad guy to appear. Tim peers through the skylight below and inspects the room. It looks like a shabby safehouse, just an old moth-bitten couch and a worn table with a chair in the middle of the room. The room appears empty, with no one guarding the doors or prowling the catwalks. It doesn’t even look alarmed, although with Gotham you can never be too sure.  

It isn't long before they hear a loud clang, and a swirling blue portal appears in the middle of the room. From the look of the build and clothing, out of it steps their perp. He’s maskless this time and Tim can see his full features. 

Male, looks to be mid-40s, lean, short curly blonde hair, blue eyes. Completely oblivious.

With a loud sigh, the man walks over to the table, sets down the portal gun, and collapses on the couch with a laptop. He opens it and begins to search for something on WayneNet. He doesn’t even look around, let alone look up. It almost feels too convenient. Kon looks over at them and gestures to the guy below. This is the guy that got you?? Tim can only look at Conner and shrug in unison with him. Somehow, this is the guy that sent them to another dimension. He could admit it was not their finest moment. 

Kon mouths to them On three then holds up three fingers. With their nod, he begins to count down.

Three.

Two. 

One!

Kon springs down to the ground below, breaking the glass as he falls. Tim watches as Conner sneaks down with him, blending with the shadows as he silently flies towards the table to retrieve the portal gun. The man freezes as he sees Kon, his arms frozen above his laptop in shock. With one carefully measured punch, Kon manages to knock him to the ground in one swing before super speeding in with some handcuffs and cuffing him. It only seems to be a second and they have their guy bound and ready to answer. 

“Well, that was surprisingly easy,” Conner says, sidling up with the portal gun in his hand. 

“Almost too easy.” Tim replies, dropping below alongside them. 

The man looks terrified in front of them. 

“There’s three of you?!”

Lacks Gotham accent. Likely from across the river somewhere. Metropolis? 

“Not the welcome I usually get,” Kon says casually, his arms crossed, “but I’ll take it.” He leans in close to the man's face. “Now talk.” 

Either Kon is a spectacular Robin or their perp is an awful bad guy because he breaks almost immediately. 

“Look, I’m not who you’re looking for, I was just hired to do this.” The man blurts out. “I just- Oh god, don’t do that thing again- It was Scarecrow gang. They hired me to get some bats out of the way. Just so Scarecrow could break out. I didn’t- Shit who are you?!” 

Unfamiliar with the workings of Scarecrow gang. Doesn’t know their MO includes leaving no employee ungassed by the end of a heist. Definitely just some out-of-towner they hired to do their dirty work. I’d call him a clown but that’s a different gang. 

“Holy Gothamite, Red, This guy doesn’t know who Robin is.” Kon smirks

“Ugh, must be from Metropolis then.” Tim shoots back, hand on his hip. 

“There’s no one more clueless than a citizen of Metropolis in Gotham.

“Uh Dude. We’re from Metropolis.” Conner says affronted, gesturing between the two of them.

Kon shrugs. “I’ve spent more time in Gotham than in Metropolis.”

“Sorry Superboy. He's ours now.” Tim grins at the face Conner makes before freezing “Wait a minute, go back.” He turns and points at their perp. “You’re telling me you sent us to another dimension. For no other reason than an Arkham breakout? Are you serious?”

The man in front of them gulps. 

“...Yes?” 

“You're a clown.” 

“Red!” 

“What! We were all thinking it.” 

“I don’t know Red.” Conner says, “Aren’t Arkham breakouts a big deal?”

Kon and Tim look at each other before giving twin snorts.

“In this town?” He ignores Conner’s sour face and puts an arm around his shoulder “If I had a nickel for every Arkham breakout, I’d have enough to actually fix Arkham Asylum.”

“So what do we do about this guy?” 

They all glance at the tied-up man in front of them. 

“Take him to the Batcave’s holding cells, right?” offers Kon.

“Right. I should be able to get us home fairly easily now that we have the gun.” Tim adds. 

“Great, now can we get out of here? This place is giving me the heebie-jeebies.” 

One superspeeded criminal later, the promise of a continuation of their earlier game of 21 questions, and a battering of Tim’s eyes in exchange for a night of patrol, the three are back in the depths of the city.

“So.” Kon starts, Swinging down into the alley below, scaring the group of thugs at the bottom. “Is Red your favorite color, or..?” 

“Get them, boys!” 

Tim mentally names the one running towards him “Big Nose” and ducks underneath his swing, slamming his bo-staff into Big Nose’s stomach as he falls through. 1 down, 5 to go. “Do you want 13-year-old me’s answer, or current me’s answer?”

Kon hands the victim back her purse before picking her up and speeding her out of the alley. In the blink of an eye he returns, not a hair out of place. “Give me both.” 

“Used to be red, I think, but now it’s blue.” 

“Question for us-” Conner picks up one of them and throws him into the two guys that had been circling him

“Augh!” 3 down. Halfway there.

“ Still have the jacket?” Conner dusts his hands off as the two men get up. 

“Nope,” Kon runs over to Tim and with a nod of affirmation, picks him up and throws him feet first at Thug Number 4, bowling him down to the ground and leaving two perfect footprints on his already less-than-pristine shirt. “ Favorite ice cream flavor?” 

“Pistachio.” 

Kon makes a face. “Gross.” 

“If you think that’s gross.” Conner says, lifting the fifth crook from his foot with his TTK and shaking him wildly before dropping him, “Wait ‘till you see what he likes on his pizza.”

“It’s good!” Tim looks at Conner in protest as his crook scrambles away. “Fine. What do you-”

“Tim!”  

Tim turns at Kon’s shout and the world seems to freeze. Suspended in the air, mere inches from his head, is a single bullet. The final thug stands there, his arm still raised holding the gun, eyes wide as he stares at the small piece of brass floating in midair. For a moment, the air is still, then, faster than Tim can react, the man is dragged back by an invisible force, a shout falling from his lips. He falls back into Kon, who takes his head in his hands, grip tight, and smashes it down onto his invincible knee, once, twice, three times before dropping him onto the wet concrete. 

“Don’t fucking touch him.” 

The bullet drops to the ground with a soft metallic clink. Kon superspeeds towards him, wiping the blood off his hands onto his suit before gently grasping Tim’s face with his hands. 

“Are you okay?” 

Tim feels a deep pressure start to envelop his legs, traveling up until it covers his whole body. Distantly he recognises it as Kon’s TTK, the familiar feeling of Superboy checking his vitals the best way he knows how. But all he can do is stare at the red pool forming below the man sprawled on the ground. 

“Holy shit!” Conner also seems to be in shock at Kon’s violence. 

“We-” Tim tries to snap out of it, fall back into Red Robin mode, but it’s difficult when he's looking directly into the head that his best friend caved in. The same best friend who’s using those same hands to gently cradle his own head right now. “We have to get him help. Holy shit, Robin, what the fuck was- What did you do?!” 

There’s blood splattered across Kon’s Robin costume. 

Kon freezes from where he's searching Tim’s face for scratches.

“I-” He swallows. “He was going to hurt you. He’ll be okay.” he drops one hand to press a button on his belt. “There. An ambulance should be coming.”

“Dude, what was that?! We don’t-” Conner looks like he’s going to be sick. 

“Its fine!” Kon snaps, his grip on Tim growing tighter. “I know my own strength. Would you rather Tim died?”

“You didn’t have to-” 

“Shut up!" Kon interrupts, "He was going to-”

“That doesn't mean you have to-” 

Tim felt like he was watching a train wreck in motion. The two were getting increasingly heated the longer he stayed frozen.

“I know what it’s like! You’re lucky I was-”

“Guys, shut up!" Tim finally snaps. Kon immediately snaps his mouth shut and turns to look back over at Tim. Conner huffs and crosses his arms glaring at Kon. He steps back, pulling his arm out of Kon's grip, and takes a deep breath. Tim pinches his nose and sighs. "Here's what's going to happen: We're going to go home. Robin, you will get this man to medical attention then you will also head back to the cave. We will talk there. Okay?" 

Kon hesitates but still gives him a slow nod. "Okay." He takes a step back, still keeping his eyes on Tim. "Stay safe?" 

"Yeah. You too." Kon seems satisfied and levels a telling glare back at Conner before turning to help the man on the ground. Thankfully, Tim can still see the rise and fall of his chest.

Tim turns toward Conner. 

"Let's go."

Conner floats over and picks him up before super speeding their way back into the cave. Normally they would fly back, but Tim appreciates not having to deal with any complex emotions that may arise from Conner holding him the same way Kon was this morning. 

With a gust of wind, they're in the cave. Tim feels the TTK around him drop as he's placed in one of the conference chairs. 

The air is tense, the two sitting in silence until Kon appears before them. “Are you-” 

“What was that?!” Tim explodes, interrupting him. “That wasn’t-” He pinches his nose and huffs, before glaring back at the boy in front of him. “That wasn’t anywhere close to okay. You could’ve killed him!” Kon looks down in shame, “That was wildly inappropriate Robin. He’s probably going to have lifelong injuries because of us.” 

The room is silent. Conner watches from the corner, his arms crossed in disapproval.
“Well?” He says finally, staring at Kon. “What do you have to say for yourself because I saw you earlier with the portal guy. This isn’t how you’re supposed to act.”

A beat.

“I’m not sorry.” 

Tim squints his eyes at him. “Excuse me?”

“He was going to shoot you. the bullet was right there.” He turns to glance at Conner. “And I stopped it.” He turns towards Tim and takes Tim’s hand into his own. “Look, I’m sorry I hit him that hard. I shouldn't have done that. But I’m not sorry for saving you from that asshole. I’m not letting you die. Not again.” 

The room grows heavy with the stark reminder.

“I don't need your protection, especially if it's at the cost of another person's life. I don't need it and I don't want it.”

“I’m sorry.” At the very least he looks apologetic. 

Tim sighs. He’s never been good at staying mad at a superboy. “It’s alright.” He pulls his hand back and Kon’s face falls. “Just… don’t do it again.” 

“Alright.” 

“You also used my name out there.” 

It’s a statement. A peculiar thing Tim noticed. Batman should have trained it out of him by now, and yet he used Tim’s real name in the field.

“Oh, um. Yeah.” Kon still can’t look Tim in the eye. “I’m sorry that was… It was a mistake.” 

“The only good thing to come out of this is that I don’t think he’ll be able to remember you saying it,” Tim says wryly.

Conner snorts. “That’s one way to put it.”

Kon takes a step back. “Um… I’m gonna-” He gestures towards the showers. “Don’t leave the cave, uh. Please.” He looks away. “I just need to hear your heart. It was too close tonight.” 

“Yeah, sure.” Kon nods in acknowledgement before leaving. 

Conner stands from where he was leaning. The air is still heavy from what happened and he waits a moment, making sure Kon is out of the room before speaking.

"That was-" he bursts out, pacing the room, waving his hands as he speaks.

"Yeah." Tim sighs.

"That was fucked, right? He took that way too far."

"He did."

"That wasn't me, Tim. I wouldn't do that, right?"

"I know that, Conner. He-"

"And don't give me the grieving excuse! He needs to know that's not okay-"

"Yeah, I'm not-"

"Like, super not okay

"Conner!" Tim snaps, suddenly annoyed. "I know. I told him." Conner sighs, the fight pouring out of him

"Sorry, Tim." 

Conner floats over and sits down on the table next to him. He leans onto his shoulder and Tim has to clench his fist to stop himself from instinctively wrapping his arm around him. "It's just… he's really not okay."

"Yeah, this was… I don't think the other me would've liked this either. You think he'll listen to me?"

"Of course he will! You've seen how he is."

Tim gives Conner a small smile "A Superboy listening to a Robin. You don't see that every day." "Hey! I listen to you when you have good ideas"

"So apparently I never have good ideas. Huh. Good to know."

"I don't know," Conner says casually, sitting up to move his face closer to Tim's. His arm swings around to wrap around Tim, his hand settling on Tim’s hip bone. "I can think of a couple." The air seems to grow warmer all of a sudden. Tim flushes red, his heart starting to sound loud in his ears. If Tim was a stronger, smarter man, he'd be able to take it for what it is; a joking flirtation from his stupid best friend. But he's not and he can't help himself and glance at Conner’s lips that are inches from his own. 

Tim takes a step back, out of Conner's arms. Out of temptation. 

"I think the worst part was I was just about to compliment him on how well he does. He's a good robin."

“Yeah well. I know an even better one.” Tim smiles at Conner’s compliment. 

“Shut up, dude.”

“So are we going home tonight?”

Tim sighs. “I don’t think so. I need to go through their dimensional files and examine the gun first before I try to get us home. The last thing we need is to be sent to another alternate dimension. Plus-” he looks wryly at Conner, “I don’t think Kon would let us leave.”

“Yeah… Tonight seems like a lot for him.” 

“Maybe. But we’ll get home soon. Don’t worry.” Conner smiles at him and maybe, Tim thinks, this night hasn’t been too bad.

Later that night, after Tim hears the door open, and after he welcomes Kon under the covers, he swears that the arms wrapped around him are tighter than usual.

Chapter Text

Conner

Conner’s been thinking. 

All of yesterday he’s been watching Kon and Tim and the way they interact with each other. The way Tim just… Embraces it, embraces their closeness. Something is going on between them. He can’t pin his finger on it but it goes beyond just the translation of grief. He knows Tim, Knows his best friend and he wouldn’t be like this with anyone else. Something’s up (and it’s NOT because he wants whatever Tim and Kon have) and he’s going to get to the bottom of it. 

Meanwhile, though, maybe if he’s a little more like Kon, he can prove he would be a (super) boy friend and maybe it could bring them closer together. Or at least that’s the thought process of him making the team a breakfast that will totally blow their small Bristol brains. He goes all out with whatever he can find in the fridge. Bacon, cheesy eggs, hell he even makes a fresh banana and peanut butter smoothie because he knows Tim is a health freak who will appreciate the extra protein. As Conner tastes everything he deems it perfect. Just like Ma would've made. 

With a skip in his step, he makes his way towards their bedrooms to wake up the team.

Kon knows that Timll be in bed till noon if he gets the chance and he also knows that if Kon is anything like him, he will also be asleep for a while. Though this Kon probably wakes up at like 6 am in some sort of Batman dedication to their cause. That freak. He hums a song as he floats down the halls to Tim’s room. “Knock knock, Robby.” He sings out, knocking on Tim’s door. “I made breakfast.” he waits for a moment to see if Tim will come out. After a few moments of silence, he knocks again. “Tim? Time to wake up.” A thump, then shuffling as Tim pulls the door open. His bare chest drew Kon’s gaze like a moth to a flame. 

“ What.” 

Conner jerks his gaze up.

“I made breakfast.” He hums out. “hurry before it gets-”

Conner stops and watches as familiar tanned arms wrap around Tim’s bare chest, pulling him back slightly. A flop of curls rests on his shoulders “Come back to bed.” He hears Kon murmur.

What the fuck. 

No, seriously, what the fuck? 

He can only stare, his mouth wide in shock as he watches TTK and strong arms gently tug at TIm. Tim almost lets him drag them away before Conner grabs his wrist and pulls him out of his grasp and out the door, shutting it behind him. 

“Wha-” Tim stumbles out.

“What was that?” kon manages to spit out.

He thinks he’s figured out what’s going on between Tim and Kon. 

“Huh?” Tim blinks himself awake now and slowly gains recognition “Wait-”

“Are you two sleeping together?!” Conner’s not jealous. He’s just a little upset for purely rational reasons. He’s actually feeling a healthy amount of rage, he thinks. 

“What are you- Don’t- Don’t say it like that!” Tim says, flushing red “It’s not like that.”

“Then what is it like?!” Conner pushes a hand through his hair as he paces back and forth. “Because it totally can’t be that my best friend is sleeping with an alternate version of me!” And okay, he’s mad. Like totally, seriously mad. The little part of him that’s coherent through the jealousy whispers over and over Why Kon? Why not him? fueling his anger. “We can’t stay here Tim, he’s not yours to keep.

“Conner, I know, alright! It’s not- It’s not what you’re thinking.”

“I’m serious Tim, I get you guys are like, connected or whatever but we can’t stay- you can’t stay.”

“Conner-”

“Did you even-”

“Kon.”

Conner freezes at hearing his name, his real name, from Tim’s lips.

“Let me explain, alright?” Conner crosses his arms and huffs, but motions for him to go on. “Thank you.” 

“Like I said, it’s not like that or whatever you’re thinking.” Tim’s ears go pink with embarrassment. “We’re just sleeping nothing else. He just wants to hear my heartbeat at night and this is the easiest way.”

“Yeah that’s not all he wants” 

“Shut up dude that’s- he’s you.” Exactly. That’s the problem. Conner loves Tim in ways that he can’t even put into words. 

“Look, I just think…” Conner trails off trying to figure out how to phrase the idea that Kon wants Tim. “I don’t think this is good for him, alright. You’re going to leave. Be gone. Disappear from his life again, and then where is he?”

“You don’t get it, Conner,” And now Tim is defensive, a cold look in his eye. “Anything is better than nothing.”

“This is about the cloning thing again, isn’t it.” And he doesn’t like it. Before they had glossed over it. It was better not to think about it but clearly, it still affected Tim in ways that Conner hadn’t even realised. 

“I missed you when you were dead. A lot. And what I did was…” 

“It was wrong Tim, I didn’t- I wouldn’t want that. You know how I feel about that”

“I know but it was something and you were gone and I was so screwed up that I would take anything that was you. That’s where Kon and I are alike. We both know what it’s like to grieve.”

Distantly, he thinks that the eggs have probably gone cold by now. 

“Don’t say that like I don’t know what it's like to lose people, Tim, I know grief.” Tim looks down in shame. “Don’t get me wrong, but this-” Conner gestures “This is beyond grief. Tim he’s- he’s obsessed with you. I don’t want you to be attached to him, or him to be attached to you.” Conner doesn't know much about religion, but Kon looks at Tim like he's worshipping him. Like he would be on his hands and knees bending down at the altar of Tim Drake.

“You’re worried about me.”

“I’m worried about Kon too.” 

“You don’t have anything to worry about from me, you know that.” 

Conner sighs and unfolds his arms. “I know, but… I do anyways. Kon freaks me out and you getting like this, like you were before, freaks me out too.

“I know Conner, but- I’m better now. You know that right? I know I was wrong and- I guess I can see where you’re coming from. It’s our last day- it’s over now, okay?”

“You’re not gonna stay here with Kon?” Tim laughs.

“God no. Besides,” Tim puts his hand on Conner’s cheek and he can’t help but lean into the touch, “You know I can’t leave my clone boy behind. 

“Robin and Superboy. Together forever.” 

“Yeah, man. 

It's times like these where Conner really believes there could be something between them. Look, he’s been around the block a few times, he knows what it looks like when someone is into him. He’s just… Afraid. What if this time he gets it wrong? Tim is too precious to lose, even as a friend. 

They stand like that for a moment before Conner hears Kon knock on the bedroom door. It opens just a crack. 

“Uh, can I come out now?” 

“No.” He uses his TTK to shut the door and leans deeper into Tim’s touch.

“Conner…” Tim scolds, pulling his hand away. 

“Fine.” The door swings open to reveal an equally shirtless superboy. “Put on a shirt first. Then join us, Robin. ” Tim laughs

“You’re so mean. I’m shirtless too.” 

“Well you’re fine,” He says picking him up into a bridal carry and swinging him around “I just didn’t think you could handle two Superboys in your proximity,” He says, flexing one arm. 

Kon laughs along with Tim and Conner is only a little bitter about that. “Can you handle it, Tim?” He says, flexing along with Conner. 

“Yeah, yeah, pack it up Superboys,” Only because he knows Tim so well can he tell that he’s a little flustered. Conner grins. “Set me down, Conner!” 

“Nope!” He sings and carries him in the direction of the kitchen. 

Conner manages to get both of them at the table and eating by 10, surprisingly. An early morning for Bats. 

“Breakfast is good today,” Tim says saluting Conner with his smoothie. “My compliments to the chef.” Conner preens at the praise. “Oh it was nothing, just some good old fashioned midwestern cooking. No biggie.” 

“It really is good, Conner” Kon says.

“Thanks.” He says a tad drier. He might still be a little pissed off after this morning. 

The three of them eat in relative silence, save for the clinking of forks against plates. 

“You look different than I imagined,”  Kon says suddenly.

“Oh?” Tim tilts his head in interest. 

Conner still doesn’t trust this Kon. He seriously leaves him for one hour and he's caught in the same bed as his Robin. Untrustworthy for sure, but at least they’re leaving today and it will all be over soon. 

“Yeah,” Kon says. “You do.”

“What’d you think I’d look like?” 

“Well for starters,” Kon says, reaching out to brush a lock of hair from his face, “Your hair is longer than I thought it’d be.” Conner swats at his hand. 

“DIdn’t Batman ever teach you that touching someone's face was rude?” Seriously, this guy needed to stop. 

Kon ignores his swatting.
“I don't know you’re just… different.” He says thoughtfully. 

Tim and Conner give each other a glance. 

“Well, I hope I’m better than you expected.” Tim jokes. 

“Yeah… You are.” Kon says with a smile. “It’s our last day and I just want to say thank you, you know, for everything.”

“No problem, dude. Thanks for having us.”

“And not being, you know,” Conner gestures absently, “Evil or whatever. 

“Glad to be of service” Kon replies. 

They suit up after breakfast and reconvene in the Batcave.

With a push of a button and a metallic clang a swirling blue portal appears in front of them. With a quick shove, their crook stumbles through the portal and disappears. 

“Well,” Conner says, hands on his hips, “This is it.” He turns toward Kon and pulls him in for a hug. It’s hard to stay mad at another one of his clones just trying their best. “Good seeing you again, man. Stay safe out there.” Kon gives him a small grin.

“Will do, Conner.” 

Tim steps forward and Conner watches Kon’s face fall. “Goodbye, Kon. It was nice to meet you. And hey,” Tim tilts his head in a way that reminds Conner of a puppy, “Keep your head up, okay? It’s what I would’ve wanted.” Kon doesn’t say anything, just nods. 

“Let’s go.” Tim turns towards the portal, his cape whipping behind him.
“Ladies first,” Conner says with a grin, gesturing towards the portal. Tim grins back at him and curtseys, before taking a step towards the portal. 

“Tim, wait-” 

Conner watches as Kon grabs Tim’s wrist almost desperately. “I-” Tim turns to face him, but Kon doesn't let go. 

“Kon, what’s up?” 

“You-” Conner suddenly puts on a face of determination. “You could stay. We need you here. I need you here.” 

Oh. Oh no. 

For just a brief second Conner worries. Worries that, despite what Tim said earlier, he’s going to have to leave this dimension alone. Then he sees the look on Tim’s face. 

“Kon…” Tim’s face is full of pity. “I can’t do that. You know I can’t.” 

“But-” 

“Kon. My world, my Superboy-” Tim gestures over at him, “They need me too.” 

“Please, Tim!” Kon begs, “I didn't call Bruce or Steph because I needed to spend time with you and I thought it would be enough. But it's not! It's not enough. Please… I- I need you. I can’t live without you I know that now.”

Kon reeks of desperation. He looks moments from collapsing, his eyes filling with panic. And all Conner can feel is pity. 

“Tim you have to understand! Jason came back! Damian came back! And you... You didn't. I keep listening, hoping that I'll hear you again. And i never do. I just want you back. Please. You don’t have to-” Kon quivers, “to want me the way I want you. I'll take whatever you can give me if I can just know you're here. That you’re okay.” He’s breathing hard, his chest heaving with every word. 

“Kon, I’m sorry but we both know I can’t,” Tim says gently, reaching for the hand that grips his wrist.

Conner feels it before anything else, the way the air seems to get syrupy and thick around them. He can only watch in horror as the grip around Tim’s wrist tightens.

“Kon, let go.”
“No.”

“Kon-El, Let go right-”

“ No.” 

The hanging lights in the cave begin to shake and swing as the air grows thick with TTK. No, not TTK, Just full blown telekinesis. 

“Why can’t I be selfish just this one time.”

The whole cave seems to be in motion as Kon’s feet lift off the ground, dragging Tim into the air with him.

Oh Fuck.

Chapter Text

Tim

So Tim might have made a mistake 

But in his defense, this isn't his fault!

The air is thick with telekinesis, so thick that Tim feels like it's in his lungs expanding and contracting with every one of Kon's heavy breaths. He can hear papers flying around the room, sparks flying off of electronics as they crack and rip as TTK ripples around them. Kon is pulling him as he flies higher, his impenetrable grip tight around his wrist. 

“Kon, let go.”

Okay, maybe it’s a little his fault.

“Kon-el,” he orders, “let go of me now!” The lights of the cave flicker, and the sound of ruffling paper surrounds them. 

He stares into Kon's face as he pulls him up, looking for some sort of emotion he can play on, but he can't get a read behind the mask. He grips Kon's arm, trying to rip himself from his grasp, but it's no use. 

Without warning, Superboy flies in and swings a heavy punch across Kon. In his surprise, he drops Tim. He manages to land safely on the ground, but as he looks back up, he sees Kon swinging Superboy around in a circle before slamming him into the ground in retaliation, the stone cracking underneath him.

Okay, Robin, assess. 

His first thought is just to make it through the portal. If there's anything Batman has taught him, it's that it's okay to run sometimes. But Kon could follow them through, or make plans to get a gun of his own and find them and potentially kidnap him sometime in the future, which wouldn't solve anything, so that's not the answer.

“You can't have him!” He hears Superboy yell. 

He doesn't have any contingency plans against Superboy. It's stupid of him, but he trusts his friends. The only thing he can think of that could affect Kon is kryptonite, but he's not sure where Batman would keep it in this universe and it would affect Superboy. Batman’s probably trained Kon to deal with kryptonite better than Superboy can as well.

“Don’t tell me what to do!” Kon yells back. 

The only answer is…

Man, he's gonna have to do this the hard way, isn't he?

“Just- Stay there!” Kon yells. Red Robin watches as Superboy tries to stand, but can't seem to move. 

“Fuck! Red, I'm stuck!” Superboy calls out to him, unmoving from where he’s been thrown into the concrete.

“Kon,” Tim calls out, his arm stretched out in a placating manner. “You don't want this.”

Kon turns towards him and looks at him with an intensity he rarely sees on Superboy's face. He floats down to him till they are face to face. “I do. I want this more than anything.”

“It won't be enough. What comes after, huh? You're gonna keep me in a cage? “

Kon swallows. “If it means you're safe, then that's what I have to do. I would- I would treat you well. You wouldn't want anything!”

“Robin- Kon, I'm needed back in my dimension.” Tim tries to plead. “ I can tell you, I know from experience that this won’t be enough. It may feel like it's enough at first, but I can’t be what you want.”

Kon scoffs. “Don’t condescend me, Tim! You don't know that! You don't know anything about this, you didn’t get a second chance. You couldn’t do it, you told me so.”

“No… I- I did! Did I ever tell you about the Titans of Tomorrow?” Tim stutters.

“Don’t tell me. If I can't convince you, then I’ll have to just force you.” Kon leans in close to his face, his glare tightening as he reaches for Tim. 

But with Kon distracted, Tim can only watch as Superboy creeps up from behind and pulls him back into a choke hold. 

“At least I could keep my Robin alive! Who's to say you wouldn't kill him again!” Superboy cries as he wraps himself around Kon. Kon flies back, away from Tim, and slams himself into a wall, dragging his back and Superboy across the wall until he's forced to let go. 

“Superboy!” Tim calls out angrily. Not the time! 

“You may be Superboy, but I'm the only Superboy that's been trained by Batman,” and suddenly, a force takes over his body. It's pervasive around him, feeling even more than a force across his body. It’s like every atom, every molecule of his body is suddenly still in a way he can't control. It’s like someone stuck their hand in his body and gripped every nerve until they’re stretched tight. It’s a total loss of control and, beyond as weird and invasive as it feels, Tim just hates it. He can’t move, he thinks, panicking. He can't move.  

Superboy flies towards Kon, his arms outstretched in front of him, but is batted out of the air by an invisible force. Tim can only watch from his place on the ground as his friend is thrown in front of him. 

“I would keep him safe. I've kept him safe already, or did you forget he was almost killed just last night?” 

Superboy falters. “Yeah, but that was just a fluke,”

“It only takes one fluke,” and Superboy is picked up by the force and slammed to the ground again. 

“Man, I forgot he could do that...” he hears Superboy mutter. 

“Come on, Tim. I don't want to hurt you or Conner just- just stay!” Kon pleads to him. He floats closer towards Tim as if Superboy isn’t getting picked up and slammed over and over behind him.

“I can’t Kon” He manages to whisper out.

“I need you” He presses his forehead against Tims.

“Kon…” Tim would shake his head if he could, but he can’t, not when every blood vessel is locked like this. 

“Please. I told you- I’ll make you stay.” Kon trails his fingers down Tim's arm before placing both of his hands onto Tim's hand. He feels his feet leave the ground as they’re slowly lifted into the air.

“Kon, look around you.” He whispers, looking into his eyes.  “Look at the destruction you're causing. Look at the people you're hurting? Is this what I would have wanted?” 

“No, but-” He shudders, "Maybe it’s not about what you want, what about what I need?”

“Kon,” Superboy chimes in as he's thrown around, “-is this really what you need? Can you really tell me that this is making you feel better? Or is this all just making you remember what you lost?”

Tim can feel the air shift around him. The wavering of the lights and the papers slowing until they’re frozen in the air. The room, Kon, Superboy, Tim, everyone and everything is still. 

“Think about it, Kon. I know you, I know you're a good guy. This isn't what I want. This isn't what you want either. I can't be what you need. Just- just let us go home. Please," Tim begs.  

There's a beat of silence.

Everything drops. 

With a thud, Red Robin drops to the ground out of Kon’s hands. Tim regains control over his body. He sighs with relief and watches as Kon slowly touches down, staring down at the ground.

“I’m supposed to be a hero.” He whispers. 

Tim walks over and grips his shoulder, trying to catch his eye. Kon just looks down, refusing to look in his eyes. “You are, Kon.”

“I tried to keep you here. That's not- you should hate me.” 

“And yet I don't.” 

And it’s the truth. Even after all of that, after threatening him and after his impressive show of force, Tim doesn’t hate him. He mostly just feels… Sad for him. Superboy, busted and bruised, walks over to them and crosses his arms, looking at Kon with pity written all over his face.. 

“Look, Kon,” Tim starts, “I've been there. I would have done anything to keep you around if I had the opportunity. But I'm not your Robin and I know deep down that what I am- who I am, won’t bring you what you're looking for.”

“I know.”

“Yeah?”

Kon looks up, finally looking Tim in the eye. “I'm really gonna miss you, you know?” 

“I know.” Tim says sadly, ”But it will get easier.”

A tear runs down Kon’s face. “It never feels like it does.”

“Maybe not easier, then, but lighter to carry. With people, with help.” 

“Yeah…”

He hates to do this, but their guy is still on the other side waiting. And he’s not sure staying any longer would make this any easier for Kon. 

“Superboy?” Tim says softly.

“Yeah?”

“I think it's time we leave.”

“Are you sure?”

He looks over at Kon. He stares back at the ground, unable to look at them, tears now streaming down his face. .

“I think we have to.” 

He doesn’t feel right leaving Kon. But there's nothing left for them to do.  Nothing they can do to save him. 

“Hey, Kon, buddy, you gonna be alright?” Superboy asks

Kon nods solemnly. “I have to be.” 

Kon steps back from the portal, leaving it clear. 

Red Robin and Superboy approach. 

“Ready?” 

“Ready.” 

“Goodbye, Kon,” he says sadly. He watches the subtle quivering of Kon’s shoulders for a moment before turning towards the portal. 

“Bye, Tim.” 

Tim steps forward into the portal, and everything goes white.

Chapter Text

Conner

They’re found almost immediately by the bats. Not a surprise considering they appeared in the cave next to a Batman who had been investigating their disappearance since the day they left. Apparently, everyone had been freaking out since they stepped through the portal. First, Batman noticed they were gone pretty much the instant Tim’s tracker went off the map. Then Ma and Pa called in Superman once Conner never visited them as promised the next day. So Superman, Batman, and the entire gaggle of Bats were all looking for them. And of course, they never would have guessed that they got whisked to a whole other Earth. Thinking back on it, they probably should have guessed, just based on Tim and Conner’s history. 

Their guy, their stupid, stupid, criminal that sent them to New Earth, didn’t even get Scarecrow out of Arkham. He only managed to zap Tim and Conner, so they still had the whole roster of bats as a defence against the potential breakout. Scarecrow must have seen his failure and decided it wasn’t worth the risk. So their whole expedition? The whole, give terrible talk therapy to an alternate him, then fight the guy? The whole thing was pretty much worthless. Whatever. It’s fine. Conner is totally fine losing another 3 or 4 days of his life. Sure, why not.

That is to say… The whole thing isn’t totally a bust. He did get to watch all of the Tim and Kon interactions. And look- look, there’s gotta be something there. There’s just gotta, right? Tim wouldn’t do the things he did with Kon if he didn’t have some sort of attraction to him. I mean, he slept with the guy for god's sake. So maybe he can play on that. Kon is used to be desired. He likes it even. So Tim being attracted to him would be fine. Great even. It’s what he wants, right? He can have freaky nasty bird sex with Tim and just because he wouldn’t get the moments before or after it would be enough. He can live without the tender moments, without taking him to the county fair, without introducing him as his boyfriend, as his fiance, as his husband. Conner can be totally cool with that. 

Distantly, he’s terrified that maybe Tim knows and doesn't care. Kon wasn’t exactly subtle with his declarations. So if Tim knows that Kon, and by extent Conner, is into him but hasn’t made any moves, it’s because he wouldn’t want to. Because he’s not even interested in Conner, not even in the way everyone else is.

Honestly? Conner is kind of scared. Not easy to admit, but he is. It’s the only reason why he avoids Tim. After they’ve been checked out by Batman and given their full reports, Conner flies home. For the next week, he saves the day all over the world, fights aliens, destroys some robots. Hell, he even visits Ma and Pa and plows the field for them. Anything as long as he doesn’t think about the consequences of introducing Tim to Kon. The days blend as he dodges thoughts of Tim, until finally, after a full week, Tim texts him asking him if he wants to “hang out”. It’s a normal message, and it makes sense since they didn’t really get their scheduled hang out the week before, but what if he knows! Conner stares at the message for an hour, overthinking the text before finally shooting one back, agreeing. He sweats the whole time he gets ready. There’s no reason to think there’s gonna be a rejection that night, but there's also no reason not to think Tim’s getting ready to reject him and tell him he’s gross for even thinking that someone as cool as Tim would be attracted to him. 

No, he has to believe in himself. He’s Superboy! He can play the game as well as anyone. He throws on some eyeliner, puts on an outfit that feels good, and begins to make his way towards Gotham. He’s gonna throw some hints out, maybe feel Tim out and see how he feels, and then, at a later point,  if Tim is amenable to it, politely ask if he can hit it. As friends, obviously. (and maybe, he thinks as he flies through the night, maybe he can win him over without this whole thing imploding their friendship.)

It isn’t long before he manages to get to Gotham. He manages to track Tim’s heartbeat to the garden, finding him in the same alcove that he remembers from New Earth. Tim’s staring into the sky as he touches down, smiling at Conner all pretty like as he spots him. Conner can tell he’s freshly showered, thankfully having cleaned himself after patrol. He can smell his shampoo in the wind and briefly wonders what it would be like to smell his hair. He looks cosy in his sweats, his knees up in the garden chair, warming his hands on a cup of tea. Conner distantly wonders if his outfit is as appealing as Tim’s. 

“You didn’t use the front door?” Tim asks, a grin on his face.

“Not my style,” Conner says, drifting towards him. He floats just inches off the ground in front of Tim. 

“I’ve seen you on the news. You’ve had a busy week.” He says this like he knows something. It makes Conner sweat under his jacket.

“I’ve been antsy.”

“Over what?” Tim says, tilting his head.

Fuck he can’t say that he’s been thinking about Tim, so he says the only thing he can think of: 

“I don't know. Kon?” 

Ugh. Stupid! Why did he have to bring him up?

“Yeah…” Tim sighs.

“I still don’t- I mean, you slept with the guy! The whole trip was crazy.” 

“You’re still thinking about that? I told you it's not like that. Get your head out of the gutter, Superboy,” Tim looks embarrassed, like he’s been caught. It’s not a face he sees on him often. It’s cute. 

“I don't know, man, seems like you two were getting pretty friendly…”

Kon reaches over and places his hand on Tim’s arm, testing his reaction before slowly rubbing it up and down. Tim flushes red in a way that creeps up from under his shirt, towards his ears. Huh. That's one point in the “Tim is attracted to Superboy” basket. 

“Yeah… well,” Tim levels a stare at him and gently shakes him off.  “I keep thinking about Kon too.” Conner holds himself back from groaning. Great. Of course, Tim is thinking about Kon and not Conner. 

“What about him?” he says, leaning back.

“I mean, I feel bad for him still, you know?” 

Conner sighs. “He was in a real bad place. Honestly, I don't think we left him any better.” Not their greatest moment. As jealous as he was, there probably won’t ever be another Kon that he doesn’t feel for. 

“Yeah, you don't have to tell me again. You were right. I messed up.” 

Conner grins. “Say it again, babe.” 

There, he hears Tim’s heart beat jump at the pet name. Another point in his favor.

“Shut up.” 

“Never.”

Tim grins back at him before going back to his pensive thinking face. “Okay- okay,I feel bad for him, you know? And I feel terrible about leaving him, but I just keep trying to think: why?”

Conner crossed his arms. “We know why.”

“No, I mean, why would he do all that?”

“What do you mean?” 

“Think about it. We all know I went crazy when you were gone, but I think I know you well and- Well. You know-” Conner stands up and frowns, crossing his arms.

“No, Tim, I don’t know.”

“Come on, don't make me say it.” Seriously? Is he saying what I think he’s saying? He’s honestly kind of mad now. 

“No. Say it.”

“I don't think you would care that much. Ugh, I take it back, that sounds mean and I know you- you’re not mean. You wouldn’t not care. I just… You could take your life back.” Is Tim actually being serious right now?

“Tim, what- What are you even saying?!” 

“I-”

“No, seriously, what the hell, man. I thought we went over this.” Kon runs a frustrated hand through his hair as he looks down at tim. He looks him in the eye as he speaks. He has to convey this to Tim, to his stupid stupid best friend. “I don’t even want to think about you being dead. I don't think I’ve ever said this, man, but I thought you knew. Tim, I- Dude, you mean everything to me. I would be, like, destroyed if I lost you, you know that, right? Tell me you know that.”

Tim is frozen, his mouth agape. 

“Seriously, Dude. I think I’d lose my mind. I'd probably go crazy like Kon if I lost you. Maybe even worse. You matter so much to me and- I mean to everyone- and I don't even want to think about my life without you.” 

Tim stares at him for a moment, his mouth agape.

He’s frozen, his hair gently stirring in the breeze. Conner can't help but fidget under his gaze, flushing red at the silence. 

“Look-”

“I’m in love with you.” Tim blurts out.

Now it's Conner’s turn to freeze. He stands there in shocked silence for a beat before-

“What!” He shrieks.

Tim turns bright red. “Fuck! I’m sorry I didn’t- Conner, I didn’t mean that.” He waves his hands in front of him like he’s trying to erase it from the air. But Conner doesn’t want it gone, doesn’t want to just forget it ever happened. 

“No! Tell me you mean it.” 

“Conner-” He leans in, dropping to the ground as he grabs Tim’s hands.

“Tell me, Tim. Tell me right now that you meant it. ” If this is fake, if Tim is just getting his hopes up… Conner doesn't think he’d be able to stand it. 

Tim stares at his face, searching for something. A moment later, he seems to find it. 

“I- I’m in love with you. Are you..?”

“Tim, I am desperately in love with you.” Conner can feel the heat rise to his cheeks.

Tim grins and grips Conner’s hands back. “Wait, you’re serious?
“Serious. More than anything.” Conner says.

“That’s sick!”

“Seriously, wonder boy?” Conner smiles. He doesn’t think he’ll ever stop smiling. “Sick is all you got?”

“That’s so sick!” 

Conner feels all mushy inside, like his insides are all bubbling up and he’s gonna burst. “God, you’re so stupid, dude.”

“Don’t call me dude.” Tim whines, the smile never leaving his face.

“Why? Waddya wanna be called, Tim? Sweetheart? Babe? Baby?” Tim is bright red now and Conner can't help but touch his forehead to Tim’s.

“Stop!”

“Whatever you say, babe.” Conner crows, “Man, I can’t believe I thought I was gonna be rejected tonight. This is the best night of my life.”

Tim pulls his head back, his eyes wide. “You seriously thought I was going to reject you? And you dressed in what looks like your tightest pair of jeans? And wore eyeliner?”

“Don’t say it like that.” Conner whines.

“I don't know. I think it’s cute.”

He tries to pull his hands back to cover his face, but Tim doesn't let go. “Ugh, don’t say that!”

“Why? You are cute!” 

“Tim…” he whines. Tim smiles and leans in until they’re nose to nose. “Yeah. Super cute.” Conner barely notices what he says, only able to comprehend their closeness and the way Tim keeps glancing at his lips. “Can I?” Tim murmurs. Conner doesn't hesitate, his eyes fluttering shut as he leans in. 

As their lips touch, it’s like fireworks go off in his system. His stomach swoops like he’s been flying loop de loops all day. It's everything he ever could have wanted and more because it’s Tim. He barely even notices that as he grips Tim in his arms, his TTK picks them off the ground. They float in their embrace, high off the ground. 

Tim pulls back, and Conner has to resist the urge to chase his lips. He leans in and touches foreheads with Conner’s, their noses brushing.  

“I’ve been wanting to do that,” Tim says, breathless.

“Do it again?” 

And Tim leans in and kisses him again. And again. And again and again.

Huh. Maybe there is something redeeming about Gotham.