Chapter Text
It’s the last week of August and the sun splashes vibrant colors across the water as it sets across the shore. Kids chatter, running back and forth down the boardwalk, throwing rocks into the harbor as their parents lazily trail behind them. Food vendors are out in full force - the smell of fried dough and hot dogs masks the ocean air.
Dick sits on the edge of the picnic blanket, watching the bustle of the dock as Donna naps with her head in his lap. They’re set up in the park, near the edge of the water, far enough away to avoid the crowd, but close enough to be part of the chaos. Once, he spots Roy and Lian at a carnival game. He spots Mal and Karen, waving atop the Ferris Wheel. Another time he sees Wally and Linda with Jai and Irey, all sporting handfuls of cotton candy. And there are some odder combinations he spots as well - Raven and Lilith talking by the edge of the trees away from all the others, and Gar talking Grant’s ear off towards the end of the pier.
The families are sweet together and it’s nice to see friendships blossom where so often connections wither away. The Titans love each other, that’s a given, but time and distance always strain the bonds they have. And more of his friends are moving on, with kids of their own. And other friends are missing entirely. His eyes drift to the water, where Garth and Ceredian splashed in the shallow waves just a year ago. A sigh escapes him at the empty sight.
He kinda wishes he’d asked Damian to come. He would have liked the arcade games. Maybe he could have gotten the kid to try out a few of the carnival rides. It would have been fun. Dick swallows.
Donna blinks at him. He hadn’t realized she woke up. “Are you okay?” She asks wearily. There’s a tiredness behind her eyes that betrays her light tone of voice.
He’s mostly okay. She’s clearly not. “Yeah, are you?” It was six years ago that she brought Bobby along and tied a little red balloon to his wrist. He was so confused by the thing, staring at it with big blue eyes, and cried when it popped. Cotton candy made him laugh. He wasn’t old enough to ride any of the rides. And he never will be.
Donna closes her eyes. He wipes a tear off her cheek. “No. But I will be.” He looks out across the channel to an empty island where a giant ‘T’ used to be. Things have changed. Maybe too quickly. “You can go have fun.” Donna offers, nudging his leg with her shoulder.
“I think I’ll pass.” Someone needs to watch their stuff. It’s been his job for the past five years, he’s not going to give it up now.
“How many years has it been?” Donna asks quietly. She looks past him, up through the sky, onto something more. He wonders if somewhere, the Titans of myth are staring back at her.
She nudges him again. “Six.” He replies.
“You should go have fun.” It’s time to move on, is what she means. But neither of them budge an inch. They’ve been singing this tune for the past four years.
“I like spending time with you.” The point is moot. Donna sighs and stretches, then gets up and starts setting up lawn chairs. “But I am going to run to the bathroom, want me to stop for anything on the way back.”
Donna looks at him with a haunted expression. “Anything but cotton candy.” And chili dogs.
He brushes off his hands as he stands, and heads back through the woods towards the park. The trails are empty, save mounds of litter that’s been caught by the trees. It feels so much more out of place surrounded by greenery than it does on the streets of Gotham. He picks up as much as he can carry, and drops off a load at the trashcan near the entrance to the park. He can’t pick it all up, but hopefully a little bit will help.
There’s a couple kids playing on the swings and their parents standing idly by. The vending machine is nearly empty, ravaged by hungry carnival goers on the way to the docks. Or perhaps no one’s bothered to refill it in a while. He takes a picture of the options, and sends it to Donna, then steps into the bathroom.
He makes it two steps before something cold is pressed against his temple. His heart races, but he forces himself still, raising his hands. “My wallet is in my back right pocket. Don’t do anything we’ll both regret.”
“Oh?” His assailant slams him face first into the marble wall. Unnecessary. Rough. Dick blinks stars out of his eyes and tastes blood in his mouth. The gun doesn’t leave the side of his temple. “And what if I don’t care about that?” The voice gives him away.
“Jason?” He broke out of Blackgate weeks ago, a bloody trail in his wake. A trail that went cold, he hasn’t heard a peep out of the Red Hood since. “What?”
“Don’t struggle Dickie, I planted a bomb.” Of course he did. “Only I know where it is. Only I know how to disarm it. Maybe you could get your friends to find it, but only I know how much time is left and no amount of torture will get me to talk. After all, I was trained by the late and great Batman.” Dick resists the urge to punch him in the throat. “I’m going to take the gun away and we’re going to talk.” And the gun comes away. Dick slowly turns around.
“Games aren’t your style.” Jason prefers the direct route. “Although you never had much style to begin with. Always stealing everyone else’s personas, no creativity of your own. Is this supposed to be your Batgirl getup?” He gestures to Jason’s black clothes. “I thought your Nightwing impersonation was better.”
Jason rolls his eyes. “And you always talked too much. Stalling, stalling.” There’s a boom in the distance. Dick’s heart drops. Jason shrugs innocently. “Fireworks.” Another boom rings out. Dick glances at his watch. He’s right - they’re on schedule. “Oh and I’m going to need that. And your phone. And whatever else you have. Fast. We’re on a tight schedule.”
Dick hands everything over. “Public space. Risky play.” Lots of unknown variables.
Jason just shrugs. “The kids’ parents work for me. I closed off all the other entrances. I knew where you would sit. And I knew you wouldn’t go on the boardwalk. You’re pretty predictable. Might want to work on that, oh, and on creativity too, Batman. What a load of hypocrisy.”
Dick whistles through his teeth. “You’ve gone to a lot of trouble for this.” The last time he met Jason, he was throwing together schemes. The time before that, playing copycat in a Batman suit. The schemes weren’t exactly well thought out. This is different. Quieter. Thorough. “What do you want?”
“Hmm what do I want? Now there’s a loaded question.” Jason grins. “I want you to stop stalling so your friends won’t catch up.” He gestures forward. “Let’s take a walk. Car’s in the lot. You know the drill, boy hostage. And be quiet, wouldn’t want to scare the kids.”
They walk out of the bathroom casually. “You’re not going to pull this off.” Dick hisses.
“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Jason hisses back. He stands out of reach and tosses Dick car keys on an old Gotham Knights lanyard. It matches the one he gave Jason when he got his license. It’s not the same. He held onto it for years. It blew up along with his apartment in Blüdhaven.
“What do you want?” Dick asks again as they reach the car. It matches the one Bruce gave Jason when he got his license. It’s not the same. Bruce sent it to scrap a week after Jason died. Not that he knew it at the time. But he found the records. And he saved the lanyard before it could get scrapped.
“For you to drive.” Dick ducks into the front seat, Jason sits in the passenger side.
“Where?”
Jason laughs. “Oh, don’t worry about that. I’ve always been great at co-piloting. It’ll be just like old times.”
“Hm.” Dick grunts.
“Perfect.” Jason crosses his arm behind his head. “Now drive straight out of here and take a left.”
The fireworks are in full view as they drive out of the park. Donna has to have noticed something, he tells himself. The path to the park takes fifteen minutes to walk. It’s been about five. Ten minutes can get them a few miles out, depending on the route. Then there’s the matter of the bomb. It’s going to be a long night.