[Open]

[forceforlight]

Who: Dick Grayson/Nightwing forceforlight and YOU!
What: April catch all
When: During April
Where: Rooftops around the city; a park
Content Warnings: Updated as needed


He knows better than to complain, especially after the past few months in Blüdhaven. It's been a long time since he's had a quiet, even after coming to this world.

Which is why Nightwing sits on the edge of a high rooftop, a bag of bagels on the rooftop behind him and a cup of coffee warming his hands. After all, early spring isn't any warmer in Michigan than it is in New Jersey.

"I'm going to jinx myself if I say it," he says to whomever shows up, without looking their direction. He's just really used to listening for people coming up behind him. "But, damn, it's quiet."



The name "circusbrat" wasn't taken on TikTok. Not that Dick had any real plans of what to do with it. So far, he'd posted a few short videos of him at a local circus school, doing some tricks on the silks and the lines. There were also a few from the park, with him doing some simple, if impressive, gymnastics.

Which is what he's doing now: filming himself doing handstands.

However, every time he starts, he ends up in a heap of giggles as Haley runs in and hops up to lick his face. "Haley, no," he says, gathering the puppy up and ruffling her ears. "We really need to work on your stay, don't we?"

Comments

[forceforlight]

Being a little shit was DEFINITELY accurate. Dick reaches for a bagel as well, coming up with a cinnamon raisin one with a shake of his head. "There's a reason I sprang for a LOT of take out. Except for Wally. He had to chip in for his own." Nobody wanted to be the one who had to buy for the speedster.

[robintohood]

"Ouch," Jason says before taking a bite of his second bagel. "A Flash's diet would probably make a dent even in the old man's wallet."

[forceforlight]

"Probably also the reason why he learned to cook first." Cooking IS somewhat cheaper than takeaway, after all. If you know what you're doing and can afford to lay out for the starting stuff. "I think all those high calorie body building shakes come in handy these days, though."

[robintohood]

"Especially when you know you got a long patrol ahead you," Jason adds. "Maybe you can get one to sponsor you if you do enough of those videos."

[forceforlight]

Dick pauses, bagel most of the way to his mouth before he finishes taking a bite, an almost rueful look on his face. "I shouldn't be surprised you know about that. It's mostly just a bit of fun. Something I don't get a chance to do back home."

Showing off is only for patrols. Back home, the idea had been to get everybody to forget that he used to be a circus kid, after all. Here, it's harder to tie the various Bats together. Not a lot harder, maybe, but a bit.

[robintohood]

Jason lightly scoffs. Jason does try to somewhat keep track of his siblings and he figures they try to do the same to him. Better to know than be caught off guard when he least expects it.

"You got a whole new audience to show off all your flips. Get your furball in there somehow, and they'll eat that up too."

[forceforlight]

"I have a few things from the park the other week. Haven't posted them yet."

Dick reaches for the hip pouch he's taken to wearing, using the power this place gave him to reach in and pull out his phone. He pulls up the videos from earlier of him doing handstands and Haley deciding to lick his face instead. "I really need to work on her stay."

[robintohood]

Jason looks at the video and let's out a chuckle.

"And stop cute moments like that? I thought you had a heart, Nightwing."

[forceforlight]

"I mean, she's not good at listening to me, so it's going to take a lot more work." Dick grins, taking back the phone. "I may post it, though. Since everybody likes puppies."

[robintohood]

"Might as well," Jason agrees. "Apparently, people liking cute animals is a fact consistent across the multiverse. Sleeper's a good example of that."

[forceforlight]

"Yeah. I started following Sleeper once I found out about their socials." Dick considers the videos before picking the best one, turning off location and posting it. Late night posting seemed to be a thing, after all.

[robintohood]

Jason finds it strange to watch anyone in the family doing any social media postings but the risks on this Earth aren't on the same as back in Gotham and he knows Dick would be careful. They were all trained to hide their tracks.

"Pretty funny the fans still can't decide what Sleeper actually is. They like the attention."

[forceforlight]

It's still weird for Dick to do things like this. There's still some worry about the Joker in the world, but he's also 99% certain that the Joker knows who they all are. There's not much they can do to protect themselves against that.

"Cute. That's basically all people need, isn't it?" Dick finishes posting it, setting the phone aside.

[robintohood]

"Naturally," Jason says. He has genuine affection for Sleeper and is greatly amused by their antics. It's part of why they decided to become a symbiote bond. "Shame you can't give your dog a real Bitewing suit."

[forceforlight]

"Oh yes. Because that's exactly what I need to do: out myself on social media."

The stuff he does on TikTok isn't even THAT overly impressive. Not when compared to what a lot of others do. It's just that he happens to be a good-looking guy doing it. With an ass that won't quit.

It's gotten him a modest following, but nothing too major yet.

"Besides. Why would I want to go the influencer route when bartending is a lot more fun?"

[robintohood]

"True. A lot more valuable too. Amazing what people will say when they're not paying attention to servers," Jason admits. "What got you bartending anyway? Never thought of you as much of a drinker."

Or at least the Dick Jason knows back home didn't appear to be one.

[forceforlight]

Dick's as good at hiding his emotions as any other member of the family. It's just that, when he's been chatting and even laughing along with somebody, the physical shut down is NOTICEABLE. Which is why he tries not to do it. And fails.

It takes a moment before Dick shakes himself, setting the coffee to the side. "Not really. Usually just a beer or two if I'm with the rest of the Titans, that sort of thing." Times when it's safe to let his guard down because it's impossible to get Wally and Donna drunk, Roy mostly doesn't drink and anybody who managed to get past the three of them would have to deal with Garth.

"Moonlighted as a bartender back when I was undercover on the 'Haven police force, then again...a few months back. Amazing how much of it is actually muscle memory."

[robintohood]

Jason's surprised that he managed to catch Dick so visibly off-guard. He didn't think he was asking his older brother anything close to a loaded question. He could name at least a dozen other topics that would be much heavier for them to talk about.

"You had amnesia?" he asks.

[forceforlight]

Dick reaches up, brushing some of his hair up to show off the impressive scar underneath. "KGBeast. I think he was being paid. Woke up in the hospital some time later, though I'm pretty sure nobody was certain that would happen." Not for a while, at least. "The Court of Owls decided to take advantage of it and had one of their people fuck with my memory to try to make me into a Talon. Mostly what they succeeded in doing was giving me a fear of heights."

And that had to be the worst part of it, right? That he'd nearly lost the sky.

Another pause there as he reaches for his coffee. "And an alcohol problem. Turns out getting your memory back is better than AA, though."

[robintohood]

Jason frowns as he listens to Dick's story and sees the scar. Getting shot was always a real danger to their work. They've all been trained as well as they could but eventually something was going to happen, especially when none of them have superpowers. Then there's the Court of Owls. Jason supposes he shouldn't have been surprised that something from Gotham lore turned out to be real, on top of the other rogues that run around in the city.

"How'd that get fixed? One of the Justice League's magic users?" He asks.

[forceforlight]

The Joker used a memory crystal that the Court of Owls created to brainwash me into thinking I was his adopted son, but Barbara was able to get it back and my then girlfriend used it to give me my memories back so that I wouldn't shoot Barbara or you, even though it meant we were pretty much finished.

...Yeah, Dick's not going to mention the Joker part, at least.

"Magic, yes, but not the League. The Court of Owls was using something called a 'memory crystal' to try to brainwash me into being one of their Talons. Babs was able to steal it and my girlfriend at the time smashed the crystal to let me have my memories back." Dick takes a drink of his coffee and shakes his head. "Why are our lives like this?"

[robintohood]

"We're costumed Gothamites. It comes with the territory," Jason says dryly. It's not as though he expected anything close to what Dick's telling him. But it's certainly a given they would all have chaotic lives at this point.

He then finishes his second bagel before continuing.

"So it's just like the nursery rhyme? They went after some heads?"

[forceforlight]

Dick holds out his free hand and seesaws it back and forth. "Partly. But also because my grandfather on my father's side is apparently a Talon? I don't entirely understand it myself, but I know B spoiled their plans for me by taking me in. So now they take occasional shots at bringing me to heel."

Which actually reminded him. Now that Melinda was thinking about changing her name, he should probably give her that heads up.

[robintohood]

This night is just full of surprises. The Talon connection Jason hadn't expected at all.

"So you were always destined for the birds," he says. "It was just a matter of which one."

[forceforlight]

"I like the ones I fell in with best." He's made his own family. Bruce may have started it, but Dick does his best to keep things together.

It doesn't always go well, but he tries.