[Third Person's PoV]
"God damn it," Dick muttered under his breath, rubbing the bridge of his nose before placing a firm hand on Danny's shoulder. "Alright… this is going to be a pain. I'm Robin, and your name is Dan—"
He stopped abruptly, mid-sentence, as he noticed Danny's lips twitching. The faintest grin tugged at the corners of his mouth, and his shoulders quivered with restrained laughter.
"You're messing with me, aren't you?" Dick asked, deadpan, staring at him with an unimpressed glare.
"Phttt—" Danny tried to hold it in, but failed spectacularly. "Phtt–Hahahaha! I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. Ugh!" He suddenly winced and doubled over, clutching his side as pain lanced through him. "Owie…"
"That's what you get, you dickwad," Dick grunted, rolling his eyes before punching him lightly in the shoulder.
"OW! Dude, I'm in critical condition here!" Danny groaned, eyes squeezed shut as he rocked back and forth, cradling his battered body like a wounded animal.
Dick's eyes narrowed. "Can you transform?"
Danny closed his eyes again, trying to summon what little power he had left. A white ring flickered faintly around his waist—then shattered into dim sparks before fading completely.
"Nope…" he muttered, exhausted. "Used too much energy in that last fight. I'm tapped out. Gonna need time to recharge."
Dick's gaze dropped to Danny's clothes, soaked in deep crimson. The blood was still spreading. Too much. Too fast.
"Alright," he said, tone suddenly more serious. "We need to treat those wounds. Help me get this off."
"Whoa, slow down there, Boy Wonder," Danny teased weakly. "Buy me dinner first. I don't undress until the third date~"
Dick ignored him, scowling as he peeled back Danny's jacket. "I hate it when you're seriously injured. You turn into a damn stand-up comic."
"Sorry, man. It's just how I cope with the pain. The more pain I'm in, the funnier I get," Danny said, wincing as Dick ripped his shirt off. "It's either laugh or scream…"
Dick grimaced as he saw the full extent of the damage: deep gashes, swelling bruises, and gory abrasions. He quickly pulled a medical kit from his utility belt, wrapping bandages around Danny's waist with expert hands.
They were quiet for a while, the only sound being the hiss of fabric and Danny's labored breaths. The silence settled thickly around them for a few seconds until Danny finally spoke up.
"Robin…"
"What?" Dick looked up, hands pausing—and blinked in surprise. Danny's eyes were glassy, tears brimming at the corners as he bit his lip.
"I'm in so much pain," he whimpered, voice trembling as his head wobbled side to side.
Dick burst into laughter, a genuine belly laugh that shook his frame. He clutched the bandages still in his hands, trying to hold them in place.
"It's not funny!" Danny wailed. "How do people do this?! I once cried for fifteen minutes after stubbing my toe. This—this is a whole new universe of pain! How do people just go home after battles like this and not cry in the shower? I just don't get it!"
Dick chuckled softly as he moved on to wrap Danny's arms, shaking his head. "I remember my first few field missions. I came home black and blue, laid on my bed, and cried myself to sleep because I couldn't move without it hurting. You're not alone."
The moment quieted again. Danny leaned back against the ventilation unit, visibly trying to steady his breathing, his eyes were closed for just a movement, his face deep in thought. His lip quivered, and he bit it to stop it from shaking.
"..."
"…People died because of me—" he started, voice barely audible.
"Don't," Dick said firmly, voice low but commanding. "It's not your fault—"
Before he could finish, he saw Danny's eyes go wide in panic. In the next second, Danny tackled him to the side with a burst of energy.
A shnk! echoed through the air—a kunai whistled past the space where Dick's head had been, slicing across Danny's cheek before embedding itself in the metal of the ventilation unit behind them. The two rolled across the rooftop, landing in a heap, panting.
Dick blinked in shock. "Dude… you just saved my life."
Danny wiped the blood trickling down his cheek with the back of his hand, trying to catch his breath. "Yeah, yeah. Buy me lunch next time. I like burgers."
They exchanged a quick nod, then planted their hands behind their heads and kicked up into ready stances.
They dove in opposite directions as a fresh volley of kunai rained down from the shadows, slicing through the air with deadly precision. Danny grimaced as he tucked the glowing amulet into his pocket, rolling across the rooftop before yanking two embedded knives out of the ground where he landed.
Meanwhile, Dick pulled out and twirled his staff with practiced ease, deflecting the incoming blades with sharp, rhythmic clacks.
Danny joined in, spinning his stolen blades in reverse grip as he batted away several kunai mid-air, his movements desperate but precise. When the assault finally began to slow, the two boys ended up back-to-back, breathing heavily, eyes darting across the darkened rooftop.
Danny huffed, flipping the knives into a tighter grip. "Come out, you cowards! I've been trained by Batman and just fought a dragon! One clearly scarier than the other! So you don't scare me!"
Around them, ten silent figures emerged from the shadows—members of the League of Assassins, all encircling them with cold steel glinting in the moonlight.
"Danny, please," Dick groaned under his breath, half in embarrassment, half in disbelief.
Danny leaned in, whispering, "Okay, okay. Here's the plan—when I start losing, I'll scream for Superman to come save us. Loudly."
Dick pinched the bridge of his nose, already regretting everything. "Danny, I swear to God… if you embarrass me like that, I'm disowning you as my partner."
Before another word could be exchanged, the assassins charged. They didn't yell, didn't taunt—just moved with lethal precision toward their prey.
Danny barely dodged the first strike as they went to meet their opponents, ducking beneath a curved blade as he shouted, "What the hell do you want me to do?! I'm exhausted and bleeding!"
He retaliated instinctively, stabbing one of his kunai into an attacker's hand and rolling to the side just in time to avoid a sword. As he landed, he grabbed another blade off the ground and slashed upward, unbothered by finesse or precision—just trying to survive.
The assassin lunged at him, and Danny dove forward between the man's legs, slicing both Achilles tendons in one quick motion. The man howled and collapsed as Danny pushed off the ground, flipping backward and kicking behind him in a double-footed strike.
"Maybe try having some dignity!" Dick snapped as he broke his staff into two and slammed them into the faces of two advancing enemies, dropping them effortlessly.
Danny spotted another assassin sprinting toward Robin's back. Without hesitation, he hurled a kunai straight into the attacker's knee. "Is dignity gonna keep me alive?!"
Dick didn't even look back. He felt the grunt behind him, heard the fall, and kicked backward, slamming his heel into the assassin's face.
Suddenly, Dick crouched as twin swords swiped for his neck. In perfect sync, Danny used Dick's back as a launching point, leaping forward with a flying dropkick that sent the enemy hurtling across the roof.
Danny rolled into a low crouch as two more assassins closed in. Before they could land a blow, Dick planted his hand firmly on Danny's back spun around, using rapid footwork to knock them both back with stunning kicks.
"Batman will kill you if you call Big Blue! Don't even think about it, Danny!" Dick yelled over the chaos.
"They'll kill me! That's why I'm considering it!" Danny shouted back, dodging a slash and jabbing a blade into an attacker's thigh. The two worked together to take them all down one by one, all the while they argued.
"So what, you'll call Superman every time you're losing?!"
"If it keeps me alive?! Hell yes!"
"Have some shame!"
"Shame comes after I'm done almost dying!"
Dick grunted as he roundhouse kicked the final assassin in his way, sending the man tumbling backwards. In the same fluid motion, he dropped to one knee and laced his fingers together.
Danny took the cue, sprinting toward him and planting a foot in Dick's hands. Dick launched him skyward.
Danny flew up, then came down hard, slamming his knee into an enemy's face with a brutal crunch, blood spraying as the man collapsed. Danny rolled on landing, gasping, blood seeping from his side as he struggled to stay upright on all fours.
"See?" Dick said, stuffing the collapsed staff back into his utility belt. "No need to call Big Blue."
Danny wheezed, breath too ragged to speak. Instead, he raised his middle finger weakly, which only made Dick laugh harder.
"Come on," Dick chuckled, pulling Danny to his feet and looping one arm over his shoulder. "Let's make sure you don't die on us cry baby."
Just then, the sharp sound of cables latching onto the building echoed through the air. The sound of the cable retracting sounded through the night.
Both boys looked up in time to see a dark shape fly past, landing in a crouch at the edge of the rooftop.
A he unfurled its wings—tall, imposing, and unmistakable.
Batman had arrived.
Danny stared at the figure, exhausted, barely able to keep his head up. "You really are a hero, man…" he wheezed. "Your timing is just, in one word…impeccable."
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