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Point A to Point Batburger

Summary:

Robin: Must you call me every time you need something more complex than the Batburger menu read to you in the field?

Batfamily comms shenanigans and a little light bullying (affectionate) of Tim. They are definitely siblings, Your Honor.

Notes:

This was supposed to be a light little silly ~400 word thing for tumblr.

So, here's about 2000 words of rambling Batfam comms fic that was too long for tumblr.

(With extra thanks to Flowerparrish for the read over and structure check.)

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Robin: Must you call me every time you need something more complex than the Batburger menu read to you in the field?
Red Hood: But you're so good at it.
Spoiler, distracted: You even do the voices.
Robin: There are no voices.
Black Bat: Then you're doing it wrong.
Robin: I would like to see-
Black Bat: Shh. Sneaking.
Robin: Then turn. Off. The input.
Red Robin, exasperated: Come on, Robin. The handwriting is a nightmare.
Nightwing, quickly: And, as your predecessors, we like to encourage your development as a well-rounded Robin.
Robin: Nightwing.
Nightwing: Yeah?
Robin: I am well past half way to beating your record for time spent as Robin. How many of your skills have I not mastered?
Red Robin: The quadruple somersault is still right there for you to learn, Robin.
Nightwing, rallying: That's a goal. I mean... never stop learning, right?
Red Robin: Right. You don't use a net when you do that trick, do you Nightwing?
Red Hood, absently answering Nightwing, clearly not paying much attention either, fortunately for Red Robin: That's what they say.
Robin, absolutely done: Please tell me I'm not the only multilingual Robin in a family of illiterates.
Red Robin: I can read six languages. This just isn't one of them, okay? I don't even know what it is.
Robin: Elamite cuneiform.
Red Robin: How even did you l-
Red Hood, still audibly distracted: I mean, I read three languages?
Red Robin: You do?
Red Hood: Yeah? And I am offended by that shocked tone of voice, Red. I was bilingual before you were born.
Red Robin: Fine, whatever. English, Spanish---what's the third?
Red Hood: French.
Red Robin: Let me guess. You wanted to read old timey French chick lit-
Red Hood: Fucking seriously? For your information, I read Dumas.
Red Robin: And old timey chick lit.
Red Hood: ...The phrase "chick lit" is sexist and offensively reductive for a genre characterized by authors who aren't cis men, writing about human emotion and interaction from the historically ignored perspective of strong independent women.
Red Robin, overlapping: Who don't need no man? Your devotion to chick lit is possibly the weirdest thing about you.
Red Hood: I literally rose from the grave.
Red Robin: I said what I said.
Red Hood: Say it to my face, you fuckin'-
Nightwing, with the instinct of an eldest child who's learned it's easier to change the subject than break up a fight: I can speak eleven languages pretty okay.
Red Robin: Eleven??
Red Hood: Since when?
Nightwing: To be fair, I only read two.
Red Robin: Since when?
Nightwing: Uh, since I never need to?
Robin: Under the current circumstances, I would disagree. What would you do if I was not in the field tonight?
Red Hood: Blow up your phone.
(All pause to take in the existential question of whether Hood means that literally or figuratively. Jason does not clarify.)
Nightwing: The Batcomputer takes amazing Dick-tation in all eleven.
Red Robin: Do you mean...?
Batman, sighing over the comms, having long since given up on curtailing the chatter: He means what he said. He reprogrammed the Batcomputer to accurately transcribe his wordplay when he was ten. In eleven languages.
Red Robin: Please tell me he didn't-
Batman, long long suffering: Yes. There is a Dick-tionary too.
Red Hood: Does that count as civilian names over comms?
Red Robin: Well it does now
Nightwing: Excuse me, dictionaries are a thing?
Robin: I am surrounded by undereducated heathens.
Nightwing: Are we ignoring the entire part where I reprogrammed the Batcomputer's language recognition when I was ten?
Red Hood, overlapping: Hey, I was a street rat, and then I died. I missed a lot of critical developmental phases in my education.
Batman: You were ranked third in your entire year at the Academy. Twice.
Red Hood: And then I died.
Batman: Hood.
Red Hood: Bats.
Batman, a man who can project the impression that he's pinching his nose through the exact shape of his silence: And then you died.
Red Hood: Thank you. Acceptance is the first step. Anyway, the years I missed were super critical.
Red Robin: It's not all about formal education. I dropped out, and I still read more languages than Hood and 'Wing combined.
Red Hood: I heard you almost got kicked out.
Red Robin: That's also true.
Robin: So here I am, translating ancient Elamite for you all.
Red Robin, slightly defensive: I'd have taken Ancient Elamite if the Academy offered it. You're not that special, Robin.
Red Hood, at the same time, fully defensive: I may not read ancient Elamite, but I spend more time reading than the rest of you combined.
Red Robin: And I've run a multinational Fortune 500 company since I was 16.

--explosion in the background and shouts, followed by a succession of smaller explosions--

Red Hood: What's the last book you read for fun? Actually--hold that thought.

--Hood's shitkicking boots pounding on the ground, clearly sprinting away from the fading sounds of chaos--

Red Robin: How to Win Friends and Influence People.
Red Hood, breathing audibly: You've gotta be shitting me.
Red Robin: I am one hundred percent shitting you.
Robin: Pity.
Red Robin: What's that supposed to mean?
Robin: You would benefit from Carnegie's wisdom.
Red Robin: Hey. I have friends. I influence people.
Robin: Name two--who are not on any team with you.
Red Robin: Catwoman-
Robin: Arguably on our team.
Red Robin: Since when?
Robin: Since father-
Batman: Catwoman is on the team.
Red Robin: Arsenal?
Red Hood, faint clangs of a fire escape in the background: Since when are you friends with Arsenal?
Red Robin: For the purposes of this conversation, our mutual appreciation of guerrilla robotics counts as friendship.
Red Hood: Huh.
Red Robin: You can even ask him, if you-
Red Hood: No. No, actually. I'm pretty sure Arsenal counts that as friendship too.
Robin: If you can think of a second friend in under a minute, I will translate your text with a minimum of personal commentary on your deductive skills, your literacy, and your insistence on that dire hair style.
Red Robin, promptly--and peevish: Bernard.
Nightwing: But you said when you broke up that-
Red Robin: Bernard. Now read.
Robin: I will be confirming that assertion.
Red Robin: Okay? Can you un-read it?
Robin: No. But I can make your life a misery.
Red Robin: Fine. Deal. Whatever. What's it say?
Robin: ....This is from Grandfather.
Red Robin: I know.
Nightwing: Ra's writes in cuneiform?
Robin: Occasionally. When the mood strikes him. How long have you been pen-pals, Red Robin?
Red Robin: We are not pen-pals. He likes to harass me via courier.
Robin, reading: Dear pen-pal-

--rustling, sound of punch to soft tissue--

Red Robin: It does not say that! Give. Me. That-
Nightwing: Are we going to talk about the fact that Hood just blew up a toy factory?
Red Hood: Fink!
Nightwing: Well you did!
Red Hood: Everybody went home at nine and the security guards are taking a nap at Motel Lucky 7 down the street.
Batman, suspicious: Everybody?
Red Hood: Everybody who matters. Anyway, my shit's done for the night. Want an extra body on patrol?
Nightwing, despairing mutter: I can't take you anywhere.
Red Hood: Technically, you can. You might not have the time you're expecting, but you can absolutely take me anywhere. I have impeccable table manners. Pennyone said.
Nightwing: This is patrol, not a date, Hood.
Red Hood: I am crushed.
Batman: I would like to revisit Hood's standards for who would not matter.
Red Hood: You don't get to come on any of my dates.
Batman: Why would I want to go on-
Red Hood: And Pennyone has the shotgun thing handled.
Batman, sighing: Pennyone's shotgun is for use in highly specific circumstances.
Red Hood: New boyfriends.
Nightwing: New girlfriends.
Red Robin: New boyfriends or new girlfriends.
Robin: New friends who happen to be metas. And where did he obtain kryptonite-laced bullets, father?
Batman: ...There are contingencies for every member of the Justice League-
Robin: Superboy is eleven!
Nightwing: In all fairness, Pennyone pulled the shotgun on Kon, not Jon.
Red Hood: Ooh. Yeah. That is fair.
Red Robin: For the last time, it was a phase!
Red Hood: The mini Lex Luthor journey of self-discovery?
Nightwing: Red has a type.
Red Hood: Just wait. Bernard's going to turn out to be a supervillain.
Red Robin: I only wanted one piece of mail translated so I could tell Ra's to fuck off with context. I did not ask to be bullied.
Red Hood: I mean, a love letter from Ra's is a pretty good reason for sibling bullying.
Red Robin: It is not a love letter.
Nightwing: We're just looking out for you.
Red Robin: I don't need looking out for!
Red Hood: Considering some of your past choices....
Robin: On second thought, perhaps I will translate Red Robin's letter.
Red Robin: Oh no. No. You just want to translate it to snoop now.
Red Hood: You do realize your romance with Ra's is fascinating to everyone who isn't you?
Red Robin: For the last time! It is not a roman-
Robin: There is a poem right in the middle of the letter.
Red Robin: Ra's al Ghul can stuff his poetry up his-. Look, there's a distinct line between romance and ending up a supervillain's babydaddy.

--Chatter in the background, laughter.--

Red Hood: Arsenal confirms there was no romance involved in his supervillan babydaddy adventure. Just lots of-
Red Robin: Stop.
Red Hood: -bad decisions.

--Sirens in background.--

Red Hood: Shit. Uh. Anyway, lemme know if I gotta kick his ass.

--more running and jumping rooftops--

Nightwing: Did he just offer to kick Ra's al Ghul's ass?
Robin: ...His tenure with the League was full of surprises.
Nightwing: I'm surprised he's still alive.
Red Robin: Technically...

--hard landing, body rolling on gravel, more running--

Red Hood: Too soon!
Robin, ignoring Hood and Red Robin: As are we all.
Red Robin: Actually, why is he still alive after kicking Ra's's ass?
Robin: He was a husk at the time. Grandfather didn't consider it sporting.
Red Robin: Denial, huh?
Robin: Very much so.

--Red Hood grunts. Distinctive sound of a body hitting a wall. The body is probably Red Hood's--

--Gunshot.--

Red Hood: Fuuuuck. Yeah, no. That's it. I'm done for the night.
Batman: Red Hood, report. Casualties?
Red Hood: Uh, maybe a pigeon? Anyway, Batburger's on me, fellow quitters.
Batman: Hood, no. Nightwing, no.
Nightwing: You're not the boss of me.
Red Robin, whispering: Oh my god. I can see the face B is making through the cowl.
Red Hood, gasp of delight: I am buying you your body weight in Night Wings if you caught that on camera.
Oracle: Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. I, on the other hand, have it from three separate angles.
Red Hood: Batburger offer's open.
Oracle: Red's body weight in Night Wings sounds pretty good.
Red Hood: I can't tell if you're kidding or incredibly optimistic.
Oracle: Let's find out.
Red Hood: We'll bring you a Quakemaster Shake, B.
Batman, sighing, because this may as well happen: Chocolate, please.

Notes:

Thank you for your indulgence. These silly interludes really help me clear my head when I get stuck on other projects. I hope a few someones also enjoyed a little humorous distraction. (And if you did, I'd love to know. My comments are always kept cheerfully open.)

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