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Nightwing heard the heroes approaching much sooner than he saw them, much sooner than they probably thought he did. He chose to wait for them on a rooftop, looking down at the city (at his city) as if he were merely allowing himself a moment of calm surveillance.
Three people approached him from behind, careful not to appear as threats, and he turned around to face them. To face the Justice League and see what they wanted.
Batman wasn’t with them. Of course he wasn’t. Dick had long since given up on being B’s priority (his heart ached at the thought, because, once, he had been — back when he was small enough to fit under his cape without any effort). Instead, there were three other heroes that, in any other situation, Dick might’ve been excited to see.
The first one was the Flash (‘Barry Allen, 35 years old, forensic scientist’, a voice that sounded just like B’s echoed in his head). He’d met him before, through Wally, but he wasn’t sure he’d made the connection between Robin and Nightwing. Considering the lack of recognition and the professional smile, he probably hadn’t.
The second was Wonder Woman (‘Diana Prince, appears to be in her late 20s, but is at least in her 40s, Amazon diplomat’, the same voice echoed). He knew Jason had met her once, had bugged B until he introduced them, but Dick hadn’t been to that meeting (just like he hadn’t been there for anything that mattered with Jason) and he’d only seen her once, when she’d caught him with Donna after a movie night turned sleepover as Dick Grayson (she’d thought she’d caught Donna with a boyfriend before she explained Dick was just a friend). Much like Flash, she didn’t seem to recognize him at all.
And then… Superman. All the thoughts and voices in his head came to a stop as he finally allowed his eyes to take in the kryptonian. The big crest of the house of El on his chest, glowing bright even in the dark of Bludhaven’s night, the cape flowing softly in the wind, the imposing posture of a leader. It took so much effort to force his eyes to focus on his face and…
‘He’s so big’ Dick thought, immediately, and it took all the bat training he had not to cry on the spot. Kal-El looked so big, all grown up, even though Dick could still remember his little baby face like no time at all had passed. He’d grown into his features, the pointed-up nose Dick used to boop to make him laugh, the soft curls of his hair that their mother used to style every morning, the soft blue eyes that had watched the world around him with such wonder. He wondered if he still laughed the same, if his tears were still silent, he’d been such a quiet baby…
But the man in front of him is all grown up; he’d grown up away from Dick and probably didn’t remember him, wouldn’t recognize him even if he had. Kal was never supposed to be older than him; he was never supposed to one day look at the man and realize he’d missed his first steps, his first words, his first flight. Oh, how he longed to embrace his little brother, to cradle his face in his hands, to keep him safe from all harm.
“Nightwing” Superman’s voice interrupted Dick’s thoughts (he realized he sounded just like their grandpa, just younger) “Are we interrupting?”
“Just a quiet night of introspection” He forced himself to laugh “What do I owe the pleasure of the visit of the Justice League itself? Surely lil’ old Blud isn’t packing anything new?”
He knew it wasn’t. He’d chosen Bludhaven both because it was a city in desperate need of help and because there were no special villains, no end-of-the-world threats, just your everyday bad guys, organized crime, and overall chaos. And there was nothing he could hear in the whole city that suggested otherwise.
“Do not worry, your city remains safe” Wonder Woman reassured him “Our visit today tends not to any matters of fight nor bad news”
“Quite the opposite, in fact” Superman, Kal, said, with the same smile Dick had seen over and over again in the news “We’ve come to offer an invitation to join us, the Justice League”
“The Justice League…” Dick repeated, dumbstruck, he didn’t have to fake the surprise in his voice. He never thought he’d hear such an invitation, not after B and he had begun fighting more seriously, certainly not after he’d failed to protect Jason. And yet here they were.
It wasn’t an easy decision, not like it’d have been for most heroes (he could almost hear Wally and Victor yelling at him for not immediately jumping to the offer, what kind of idiot hesitated at an offer to be a member of the Justice League?). But there’d been a reason he'd been careful about never meeting them, not even when he was younger and B had hinted at being open to the idea.
He couldn’t bear the idea of having to interact with Kal and treat him like just another colleague, treat him like he didn’t hold him when he was just a small baby. He didn’t like that he didn’t know what kind of man his baby brother had grown up to be when he wasn’t around, if he’d been treated well, what things he liked or didn’t. He was scared of saying something in kryptonese and Kal not understanding it, because Dick hadn’t been there to teach him.
And now, over a decade later, he had the confirmation that perhaps Kal had been lucky to grow up away from him, that he was no good as a big brother and would have probably failed him just like he failed Jason.
“Nightwing?” Kal’s voice called him. How long had he been silent?
“Sorry, it’s just… unexpected” He apologised “Didn’t wake up today expecting an offer like that”
It would be a good idea, if he put his personal issues aside. He could help more people, maybe even help the Titans to collaborate more with the League. He had no real reasons to refuse.
“I still have my city to take care of” He warned them “And you probably know I’m still kind of part of the Titans. But if none of that is a problem, I’d be happy to accept the offer to join”
He saw the moment Flash relaxed, his smile turning a bit more sincere, as did Wonder Woman’s, but he hadn’t expected Kal’s look of relief, like he’d been scared of Nightwing rejecting the offer. Did he have a different reason to want him on the team? Did he remember? Did he know?
“We’re glad to have you with us” Wonder Woman extended a hand that Dick didn’t hesitate to shake “We’ll send you where to meet us tomorrow at 0800 for your proper introduction”
“Already found the way into my tech?” He asked lightheartedly, he knew B would do that, regardless of whether he approved of Nightwing’s indication or not.
“We have our ways” She simply said “We’ll let you go back to you nightly duties”
Dick thanked them and said goodbye as each of them left by their own means, though he noticed Kal’s eyes lingering on him for a bit longer before leaving.
With a shaken sigh, he allowed himself to sink to the ground. Perhaps he should call it an early night; he was of no use to Bludhaven, shaken up like this. Maybe he could play his music box until he slept and hope that he wouldn’t dream neither of explosions nor of falls.
He could do this; he could be the hero Bludhaven and the Justice League needed, expected, him to be.
He’d already been hiding Nim-El II for fourteen years; he just had to keep doing what had always worked, even if his heart ached to embrace his baby brother, who had now over a decade on him.
0o0o0o0o0o0o
The Justice League’s message told him to be at the location at 0700, rather than the agreed 0800. Dick did confirm that the message came from the League, just in case he hadn’t noticed anyone spying on them the previous night (highly unlikely, but you didn’t spend over a decade under Batman by not being paranoid), so he decided to show up that hour anyway. Worst-case scenario, they had just mistyped it, and he’d get brownie points for showing up early or something.
So, there he was, almost outside of Bludhaven, in one of the least populated neighbourhoods of the city, in his Nightwing city. He could barely remember the last time he had suited up while the sun was up and, even though his current costume offered much more coverage than the previous, he could still feel himself charging up from the warmth that hit his skin.
He settled against the wall at an angle that got him as much of the sunlight as the early morning of Bludhaven would offer (which was, still, much more than Gotham, god only knew why that whole city was allergic to the sun).
The moment didn’t last long; he heard Kal arriving after only a few minutes and took a deep breath before turning to smile at him.
“Quite the early birds, no?” He joked.
“Oh, uhm, I apologize” Kal said, running a hand through his hair as if he was nervous, which… looked weird in his Superman get-up. From all he had surveilled Kal (which Jason had labeled as a ‘high effort stalking mission’), he’d found him to be quite put together as Superman, only allowing himself to show nervousness as Clark Kent “I know you spend your nights active, but I had to ask you to come earlier than planned”
Dick hadn’t expected that. Why would Kal want him there earlier? He dared not to hope, just like he hadn’t the night before. Was this some kind of impromptu interrogation to make sure he was trustworthy? He could see that being reasonable, especially since Batman was the one who made most of the League protocols. But if that was it, why would Kal be so… nervous about it?
He just waited in silence, letting Kal recompose himself.
“This may sound like a strange question, but… could you tell me the origin of your hero name?” Kal finally sighed, looking at Dick like he was searching for something.
Dick took a sharp breath. He knew something like this was bound to happen when he’d chosen that name (he had even, in some of the most lonely nights, hoped it would be recognized). He had a cover story for it that would explain it perfectly, but he’d never had to use it. The Titans hadn’t asked, probably because they’d been more worried about his spiralling mental health at the time, and he’d told an almost-true reason to Bruce, Alfred, and Jason.
He should tell the cover-up; it’s why he had it. But, when he looked at Kal’s eager face that reminded him so much of his mother, he found himself unable to actually force the words out of his mouth. The silence was stretching on between them, and his hesitation was getting weirder by the second.
“It was from an old story my mom used to tell me” He finally said in a low voice, unable to lie to his brother’s face “Nightwing was a protector who hunted evil in the dark and a symbol of rebirth. It seemed… appropriate”
Kal had frozen in front of him, his eyes shining with hope. Dick felt all of his resolve to keep a distance crumble brick by brick. Even if he was no good as a big brother, even if he wasn’t even old enough to be Kal’s big brother, he wanted nothing more than to hold him and never let go. He’d already lost so much family, couldn’t he be allowed to get a part of one of them back?
“There was also…” Dick mumbled, suddenly desperate to convince Kal of, at least, their shared home “It was a love story. There was a god of destruction, Flamebird, who was in an eternal reincarnation cycle with Nightwing. I guess I’m… I’ve always been quite the romantic”
His eyes were stinging, and he thanked the fact that his mask covered them up.
“You’re…” Kal sounded like he was at a loss for words “From Krypton, as well”
“I am” He confirmed, as further proof, he allowed himself to barely float off the ground before going down again.
Kal dragged his hand through his hair again, staring at the ground. Dick let him process whatever thoughts and emotions were traveling through his head; meanwhile, he attempted to get his own emotions in check. It’d do no good to have a breakdown at seven in the morning in the middle of the street.
“I didn’t think- I mean, I certainly hoped, but…” Kal said “Even after Kara, I’ve tried not to hope, but you’re- and you look so young, how?!”
And wasn’t that a knife to the gut? Dick was young. Much younger than he should, younger than the destruction of Krypton. He crossed his arms and looked away, not trusting his own voice at the moment.
“Damn it, sorry, I’m being too much right now” Kal apologized and dragged his hands through his face “You don’t have to answer my questions right now. I’m just- I’m happy to meet another kryptonian”
‘Another kryptonian’, like Dick was just some other person from the same planet, rather than someone who cradled Kal in his arms whenever he could. But he couldn’t blame Kal; he didn’t know, he had no way of knowing.
“I can answer your questions” He told him “I’m just… It’s a lot for me too. And some might take… a while”
“We’ve got time” Kal said with a glint in his eyes that Dick could bet he usually reserved for his reporter work “I’m supposed to fly you to the closest zeta in 50 minutes, give or take, we can- we can talk”
“It’s not the most secure location” Dick pointed out. It was a deserted street at the moment, but there was no guarantee it would continue to be.
Kal grumbled a bit under his breath before grabbing Dick’s wrist and dragging him so fast he could barely react to what was happening before finding himself in a field in the middle of nowhere. Were it not for the fact that his instincts refused to acknowledge Kal as a threat, he probably would have responded to the action by throwing him to the ground. Instead, he just freed his hand from the hold and tried to steady himself from the dizziness.
“Sorry, I just thought maybe here would be better for the conversation”
“Where is here?” Dick wheezed out, still trying to catch his breath.
“A farm I know, we’re miles away from anyone listening in on this” Kal reassured him “It’s still close enough to where we need to go that we won’t be late, and we still have time to talk”
Talk, right, that’s what they’d been doing before Kal had surprised him. Maybe stunts like these were the real reason Bruce always carried Kryptonite with him, for revenge. Dick took a deep breath and straightened his posture.
Talking, he could do that. At least the surprise just then had knocked him out of his feeling-spiral.
“Well, then, ask away” He joked, resting his back against a nearby tree.
“You look… young, for a kryptonian” Kal said “Krypton’s explosion happened 35 years ago, you don’t look much older than 20”
“I’m not” He admitted “I just turned 19 this march”
Kal’s expression showed his conflict between suspicion and curiosity. Dick could admit he probably wasn’t sounding like the most trustworthy guy at the moment, but he himself was conflicted as well. Should he just say everything? Should he lie and make it so he was just another kryptonian? Did he have the heart and strength of mind to interact with Kal under such a lie?
The answer was no, he could reluctantly admit. Throughout his life, he’d always been one to wear his heart on his sleeve, despite rarely revealing the complexities or origins of his feelings. Either Kal or Bruce would eventually realize something was deeply wrong, if he was going to be working with them relatively frequently.
“Phantom Zone, same as Supergirl” He said, bitterly “Was stuck there for, I think, 18 years, give or take some”
“The Phantom Zone, of course. I should see about doing a search there, that’s at least two people who were stuck there already” Sighed tiredly before his face twitched into a frown “Wait, how did you know Supergirl was stuck there? That’s not public information”
“I’ve been… keeping up with you two for a while” Dick admitted.
“Through private channels” Kal added “And yet you never connected either of us?”
Dick gulped. That was it. The moment of truth, if anything went bad after it, Dick might just have to give up on family altogether.
“I- Since I’ve found out about you two, I’ve been- I considered talking to you so many times” His voice cracked a bit, tears threatening to come out once again “But it was- I could never bring myself to-”
He hid his face with his hands and took a deep breath, aware it probably sounded like he was holding back from sobbing (which wasn’t a wrong assessment). Kal’s hand rested on his shoulder, and he risked a glance at his face, seeing his face painted with worry, but too scared of interrupting and ending up making Dick stop talking altogether.
“I’m not supposed to be this- this- I shouldn’t be younger than you!” He finally choked out “I couldn’t bring myself to meet you for so long and- and then Kara arrived, and she’s barely older than me and-”
The words were jumbling in his throat, and he couldn’t force them out anymore, so he just lowered his hands to hug himself, eyes locked on the ground in between him and Kal.
“You… you knew us” Kal whispered in wonder “In Krypton”
“Knew you?” Dick laughed bitterly, forcing his head to rise to look him in the eyes again. Kal looked so hopeful, so amazed at meeting someone who knew him “I’ve known Kara since I was born. I held you when you said your first word”
He heard Kal take in a sharp breath, but he was already started, and he needed to get everything out while he still had the momentum. He couldn’t bear to let it fester inside of him for even a single moment.
“And then I woke up here, and you were so big. Already a man, wearing the House of El on your chest and making jeju and uki proud! I couldn’t- I’d already failed to keep you safe, to even try to watch over you, and- and-” A hiccup tore through his throat “And then it was Kara, and she looked almost my age, and both of you seemed to be doing so well! I didn’t want to- You already had a whole life! And I wasn’t even able to be your xaiue through it!”
He kept looking at Kal, unsure of what to do next. He had so much to say, but no words seemed to fit.
“Jeju and uki…” Kal repeated slowly “It can’t be… Nim-El?!”
He knew. Somehow, Kal knew of him, and the last of his resolve came undone as Dick openly sobbed, pulling his baby brother, who was now so big, into a crushing hug with all the strength Earth’s sun had given him. He whispered apologies in broken kryptonese, too scared to let go, even as Kal returned the hug.
“I never thought-” Kal said “They recordings mentioned you, but Kara said she didn’t see you enter any of the pods, I thought you were-”
Dick didn’t say anything back; he had barely gotten into a pod, too stubborn to try to leave before his jeju had shoved him inside one with the few seconds they still had.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you, polue” He apologized again.
“You’re here now” Kal said, breaking up the hug to properly look at him “It took a while, but you’re here”
“This is so weird” Dick laughed weakly, allowing himself to bring a hand up to cradle Kal’s face “I imagined this so many times, but… It’s still so weird to see you this much older than me”
“I imagine it must be” Kal agreed with a small laugh of his own “I often wondered what you were like; I never thought we’d be so alike in our career choices”
“Not quite that similar, Superman” Dick told him “I’m a powerless vigilante, rather than a superpowerful hero. You’re much more than I could ever dream to be”
“Really? Because I’ve heard that you’ve been protecting the second most crime-ridden city all on your own for the past three years. And I doubt you’ve got no powers of your own” Kal argued.
“Nothing as trained as yours” Dick said, face tinted red at the compliments “I barely know how to use some of them”
“I could teach you” Kal blurted out, surprising both of them “I mean, we don’t- you don’t have to accept, but I want to- we could get to know each other. And training is a good way to do it”
“I’d like that” Dick agreed softly, taking his hands to his face, to clean the tear tracks, even though there was nothing he could do to about his eyes until taking off his mask “I’d like that a lot”
Silence fell between them as they both drank in each other’s features and the fact that they were together after so many years. Before the conversation could keep going, Dick realized they’d already been talking for close to 40 minutes, and they’d have to leave for the League at any moment.
“I’ll give you my number” He said, taking out a small piece of paper and a pen from his suit “We can- We’ll figure something out after the meeting with the Justice League”
“We’ll make it work” Kal agreed, smiling in the shining way Dick had seen in the grand amount of footage he’d watched throughout the years.
He gave him the paper with his number, and he watched Kal fold it with care and put it in a small hidden pocket.
“Can we… keep this between us, for now?” Dick asked “I know- I trust the Justice League, but-”
Bruce was there; he didn’t want the man to know, not yet. He wanted to cling to the illusion they could still be a family for a bit longer. Plus, this still felt so… perfect, so much better than he’d ever let himself hope for. What if letting more people in broke it?
“It’s new” Kal admitted “So long as none of us are in danger for it, I’m okay with waiting a bit longer to announce it. I want to- I also want to keep this between us a bit longer before bringing in anyone else”
Dick smiled, his shoulders relaxed as he finally felt himself getting rid of the weight he’d been carrying for sixteen years. His little brother was in front of him and, well, maybe he wasn’t so little anymore, and maybe Dick wasn’t any good as an older brother, but at least they were there together at last.
“Let’s go meet the League, then?” He said “You might have to drag me again, I’ve got no idea where we are”
This time, Kal’s hold was much softer as he led Dick to the nearest zeta (though that didn’t make the dizziness any less disorientating). He hesitated a bit before entering. During his entire childhood, he’d promised himself never to enter one of those, after all, but, as Kal squeezed his shoulder to encourage him, he thought maybe little him wouldn’t be mad he’d broken their promise.
There went nothing, he thought as he finally stepped into it with his brother, ready to meet the Justice League for the first official time.