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It all started with a letter. Well… it didn’t really start with the letter, but last say the letter was a great eye opener for the whole situation they found themselves into. A situation that was months – possibly years– in the making.
It was a fairly normal night. The family was gathered at the Cave, getting ready for patrol together, as it was becoming more common since Bruce came back. Except for Dick, who still hasn't showed up. Tim reluctantly noticed that he had been acting weird for a few days, less flashy, more silent.
Maybe he was finally realising how faking his death had affected everyone. He should have known better. He was supposed to be better than Batman. He was supposed to be here for them, like a good older brother should be. Like he used to be before. He shouldn’t have gone play spy while his friend and family mourned him.
Immediate Letter of Resignation
Richard John Grayson, a.k.a. Nightwing
When Dick finally showed up in the cave, he was in his civvies, talking to Alfred in a rushed tone of voice. He didn’t seem to be in a hurry to change into Nightwing’s suit, which was certainly odd.
Jason didn’t acknowledge Dick’s presence when he greeted them. He continued going over the stake out plans with the Replacement, only absent-mindedly registering Steph’s and Damian’s saying hello to the Golden Boy.
“Are you joining us for patrol, Richard?”
“Not today, Lil’ D. I have something to discuss with your father, then I’m heading back to Bludhaven.”
That caught Jason’s attention. There was trouble in paradise.
The others might not have seen it for what it was, considering they had met Bruce and Dick when they were on better terms – good enough to fake a death, as if they needed any more traumatizing crap in this goddamn family. But Jason had been present in countless fights between the Golden Boy and the great Bruce Wayne. The Pit might have messed up some of his memories, but he could still recognize when they were about to explode at each other. They hadn’t reached that point yet, but they weren’t too far from it.
Now that he was thinking about it, they had been like that for a while. Maybe for weeks.
Please accept this letter as my formal resignation from Batman Inc. effective immediately.
“We are living to patrol, Nightwing.”
“This is important, Bruce, and I’ll be brief. This won’t take ten minutes of your time.” Damian’s eyes kept moving between Richard and his Father.
He was certain something was wrong. He had seen Pennyworth squeezing Richard’s hand before returning to the Manor, the way he did to provide his support. And Richard was tense. Damian could still read his Batman’s body language very well, just like he knew his brother – dad? – could read his.
“We can talk later.”
Damian was well aware that being rejected and cast aside by his family, by his siblings specially, was taking a great toll from Richard. He could see the sadness and the longing in his eyes and in the lines of his Richard’s shoulders.
As Richard’s Robin, it was Damian’s duty to try and make it better. He couldn’t make the rest of the family see reason, but he could try to be more present and more accepting of the affection Richard was always ready to give.
It was still a work in progress, but it was all he could do at the moment. He could only hope it would be sufficient.
I sincerely apologize for the abrupt timing of this announcement, however due to unforeseen circumstances and personal reasons, I have decided to resign.
Cass had seen Dick sad-angry-hurt many times since he came back. But she never gave much thought to it. She was still feeling betrayed. And he was a really good performer. Even when she was searching for the signs, sometimes he could elude her.
She was not used to people who could deceive her with their bodies. Sometimes, she forgot her brother was one of them. Dick had such an expressive face that people were easily fooled by him, lured to believe he wouldn’t to hide things or to lie to them. Only because he showed so much emotion.
“Fine”, Dick’s voice was the coldest she had ever heard from him. He marched up to Bruce and slapped an envelope on Bruce’s chest, before storming out of the Cave, only bothering to say goodbye to Damian and Steph.
I am grateful for the opportunity to serve on board of this organization for the past 16 years.
Steph doesn’t exactly get why they were so upset with Dick. She and Jason also didn't come back to the family right away after their coming back from the dead shenanigans.
The others had never really held it against her. Nor against Jason. She couldn’t understand why everyone was so furious at Dick.
She had asked Tim about the reason behind the anger. He said something about Robins and brothers and about how Dick was supposed to be better than that. And that he also shouldn’t have followed Bruce’s plan and faked his death.
But Tim still refused to turn that anger towards the mastermind behind the whole Death Faking It seemed a little too much like a double standard. It must suck to be on a pedestal as high as the one where the original Boy Wonder perched.
After interviewing Robin number 3 on the matter, Steph went to Number 2. Jason’s motives were very similar to Tim’s. So she decided to keep her opinions to herself and avoid all that mess, even when she knew Dick probably didn’t deserve all of the animosity he was getting.
I learned a great deal from you and my colleagues and I will sure use these skills in my future endeavors. I hope they had also learned something from our shared experiences
Bruce left the Dick’s letter on one of the keyboards of the Batcomputer.
His first Robin had been acting strange since Bruce came back from the time stream. His changing behaviour was becoming more and more evident. He had every intention to look into it, but there was no time to deal with that. Gotham needed him.
As they left for patrol, his mind went back for when Dick was a tiny little Robin, fliping through the corridors of Wayne Manor. Things were easier then.
He would be more concerned about the earlier outburst, if it were any of the others, but Dick did always have a temper. And was more well adjusted than his siblings – it must have been John and Mary Grayson’s influence. He certainly didn’t get this from Bruce. Different from the younger ones, Bruce could always rely on Dick coming back. He had experienced it first hand, on more than one occasion.
He would read whatever there was on the letter when he finished his report from that night’s patrol and he would give Dick some space, until he calmed himself down and returned to the next family dinner at the Manor.
I wish you and the other Batman’s associates the very best going forward.
Sincerely,
Richard Grayson
(Nightwing)
Going to the Manor that evening, Dick had imagined he and Bruce having a talk to sort things out between them. He thought they could go over all the things that had happened since the moment they heard the news of Bruce’s dead.
He had given not only blood, sweat and tears, but his whole damn life for the sake of a family who so easily cast him aside, for the sake of Bruce’s precious mission and for the man himself, without getting anything but scorn and heartbreak
When he came back from Spyral, he tried to explain the whole situation, but his siblings wanted nothing to do with him. They were furious at him for faking his death, and wouldn’t ever believe he really died, even if his death didn’t last for months, like Jason’s. They hated him for going undercover, but he had no choice in the matter. He had woken up after his funeral and had begged not to go, pleaded to tell the family the truth, but Bruce was unmoved.
Dick waited for Bruce to come clean to his siblings, but the moment never came.
The whole family seemed happier when he wasn’t around. There were more team ups and closer relationships, but none of that included Dick. The family finally was becoming everything Dick had dreamed of, everything he had tried so hard to make them achieve. But he was left behind.
He already knew would never come first to Bruce – the one that wasn’t worth adopting, the one who got fired and kicked out of the house, the one he could send undercover on a hostile organization with no extraction plan. It really showed how disposable Dick was for the man.
But he thought he meant something to his siblings.. The joke is on him. They made abundantly clear that he wasn’t wanted. He felt like he was barely tolerated. They’d rather he stayed dead and wanted Dick gone.
He had already given all he had to Bruce’s family. The only thing he had left was the hope of being part of it again. He would give that up for them to, and make their wish come true.
Dear Mr. Wayne and family,
In addition to my letter of resignation, I would like to return the keys to your home. I promise I made no copies.
I thank you for letting an orphaned circus boy into your house. I’ll no longer be the cause of disturbance for your family. You can all thrive without my presence to hinder the progress made while I was gone.
Nightwing remains on the Justice League’s and on the Titans’ roster, but I’ll keep myself out of Gotham. I’ll operate mostly solo in Bludhaven, but I’ll still answer to “all hands on deck” situations, if the need arises.
I am persistent, but even I know when to give up when I’m not wanted.
So this is goodbye.
I wish you all the best. Keep safe and keep together.
Dick Grayson.
He had left the keys and the letter addressed to the family with Alfred, after tea and a promise to meet his father/grandfather weekly on Gotham proper or on Bludhaven. He was sure Damian would show up to see him. He left another letter to his little Robin, inside his sketchbook.
He would miss them all terribly, but he was at a dead end, and he could think of no other way out. Seeing them behaving like a family and not being part of it was killing him bit by bit. He couldn’t take it anymore. He just hoped it was the best decision for all of them.