"So what brings you here?"

The young hero known as Robin, the Boy Wonder, jumped slightly upon hearing the deep voice from behind him. "Nightwing! Ya know, one day I'm going to be able to scare the pooh out of you," the teenager said, through a grin.

Nightwing walked up and punched Robin's arm lightly, as he quipped, "Yeah, I once said that same thing to Batman, and I'm still working on it." At the mention of Batman, Robin scowled and turned his back to Nightwing. "Whoa! What's that about?" the older hero asked.

"Nothing…" Robin started.

"Well, you didn't travel all the way to Bludhaven to confuse the heck out of me. Talk, man!" Nightwing encouraged.

Silence reigned for a long time. Then Robin finally broke the stillness. "He told Stephanie about me."

"Who told?"

"Batman."

Nightwing's eyes narrowed, as he asked, "What exactly did he tell her?"

"My name…Tim Drake."

"Batman gave away your secret identity?" Nightwing questioned in disbelief.

"Can you believe it!?! Of all the stupid, selfish things! You know, just for once I wish I could hit as hard as Kon, because I wouldn't hesitate to knock some sense into that thick, Kevlar-lined skull!" Robin ranted angrily.

"That doesn't make any sense," Nightwing stated. "What's gotten into him lately?"

"I don't know…I don't really care, either. I just want him to leave me out of it!" Robin sighed deeply.

"Hey there, Sport! It's not the end of the world. I know you're pissed off at Bruce…you have every right to be. But things like this tend to work themselves out," Nightwing said, as he placed a comforting hand on Tim's shoulder.

"No! This can't be undone! I can't believe he betrayed me like this… all for the sake of his hurt pride! He didn't want to face Alfred, so he decided to send Steph after me instead." Robin's voice was shaking, as he said, "I hate him! He doesn't care about me…he never has!"

Nightwing grabbed Robin by the shoulders and gave the boy a sturdy shake. "I know you are upset, Tim. But don't think for a second Bruce doesn't care about you. He just isn't good at expressing his love for others."

"Well, Bruce needs to grow up!" Robin spat out angrily.

"And you can get glad in the same clothes you got mad in!" As soon as the words escaped his mouth, Nightwing's face fell. "Oh God! I know I did NOT just say that!"

"Oh yes, you did," Robin managed to mutter, with a somewhat smug half- grin.

"Man oh man! I sounded like Alfred," Nightwing mumbled.

Robin frowned deeply, as he said, "I just wish I could rewind the past couple of days…start them over again. Or make all of this go away like it never really happened."

"Life's not that simple, Robin." Nightwing suddenly closed his eyes and shook his head. "Crap! I did it again! Good gravy, I'm turning into Alfred!"

"Look, can we just go bust some bad guy's head or something? I need something to distract me from all of this mess," Robin said, in a tired voice.

"Sure…," Nightwing muttered, his mind a million miles away. He was jerked back to reality by a light punch on his shoulder and Robin calling, "Tag, you're it!" Then Nightwing took off to chase his "little brother" across the rooftops of Bludhaven.

Robin happily leapt across the ten-foot space between the warehouse roofs. He had been out of Nightwing's sight for the past 2 blocks. Now if he could circle back without detection…

"Well, well…an early party crasher!"

Robin stopped short at the menacing voice to his left. A large, well- muscled man, dressed in cowboy attire, leaned against the roof's access door. Stallion! One of Blockbuster's goons that Nightwing talked about. From what Robin could remember, Stallion was not much of a threat…alone.

"Ah, young Robin!" This new voice was to Robin's right. Whipping his head around, the Boy Wonder had to look up to meet Blockbuster's predatory gaze. "Now Batman is sending a boy to do a man's job? What a pity! I had been expecting Nightwing. But I suppose you will do for a warm-up. What do you think…Shrike?"

Robin watched as a very formidable man emerged from the shadows. The young hero felt as if time were crawling.

"I think I shall enjoy it immensely!" Shrike's laughter sounded deep and evil to Robin's ear. Robin thought back on the past few days and his conversation with Nightwing. He found himself wishing he could go back in time again. Then, just as Shrike began to move against Robin, the boy heard Nightwing's voice inside his head saying, "Life's not that simple, Robin." Like Batman's betrayal, this encounter could not be undone.

It had been 20 minutes since Nightwing had given up the chase and hidden in the shadows of the tall building. He had expected Robin to double back.

"Where'd that brat go? He's taking too long," Nightwing worried out loud. Deciding something must have held up his young partner and knowing the city of Bludhaven, Nightwing took off in the direction he had last seen Robin going.

Five minutes later, Nightwing's attention was drawn to the top of an old warehouse building. He couldn't make out exact identities from his position; but several big, familiar, costumed people were surrounding what appeared to be a fight between two opponents. This could not be good!

Nightwing raced to the roof hoping Robin had avoided this crowd. As he approached, Nightwing began to fill a dark anger rise. Blockbuster and his gang were watching someone beat another person mercilessly. The dark anger became a raging storm as Nightwing finally recognized the victim. Robin! The boy lay on the ground while being attacked by what appeared to be a new assistant of Blockbuster.

Without hesitation, Nightwing swooped in and tackled his "little brother's" attacker. The enraged hero barely registered Blockbuster's voice yelling, "Kill him!"

"He's mine!" Shrike growled, as he rose from the ground where Nightwing had knocked him. "I want him to suffer for his past sins!"

Nightwing looked around and measured the odds. He had to get Robin out of there and to the Cave. Fighting would be time consuming, plus dangerous to his health considering the overwhelming odds. Time for a distraction! Nightwing reached over and flipped open a compartment in his gauntlet. Throwing the well-aimed gas pellets, Nightwing simultaneously moved over to grab Robin up and run. Jumping off the roof, Nightwing accessed his boat, since they were close to the waterway.

Within 2 minutes, Nightwing neared the wharf, where the boat sat waiting. He could hear Blockbuster's men behind him, but kept moving. Suddenly, the new goon appeared in Nightwing's path. Sliding to a stop, Nightwing began to think of other options when a voice caused him to pause.

"You don't remember me now. But you will. Just ask me my name!" the newest member of Blockie's gang taunted.

Something began to nag Nightwing at the back of his mind. He knew this person…but who? "Who are you?"

"Shrike!"

Nightwing felt the world spin several times around. It couldn't be… but maybe it was…how? Then a low groan reminded Nightwing of the need to escape. Taking a final look at his enemy, Nightwing shot off a line and swung back to the rooftops. On the run again, he accessed the Nightbird. The car was only 5 blocks away at this point.

In under a minute, Nightwing and Robin were secure in the vehicle and on their way to Gotham. With the auto pilot working, Nightwing was able to get his first good look at Robin's injuries. To say the damage was extensive would be an understatement. Robin's breathing was labored and shallow, probably from internal injuries. He had been stabbed twice, his right arm was broken, his left kneecap was out of socket, and added to all of that the boy was badly bruised and cut from head to toe.

Immediately, Nightwing contacted Oracle. "Babs! Get Alfred and Leslie to the cave! Now! Connect me to Bruce!"

"What's wrong?" Barbara asked, upon hearing the serious tone Nightwing used.

"Robin's hurt…bad. It's real bad, Babs!" Nightwing rubbed his eyes and looked back down at Robin. "Can you reach Bruce?"

"I'm hear," Batman answered from behind Barbara. "I'll meet you at the cave." With that, the Dark Knight was gone.

It was a long night for everyone. Tim fought hard against his vast injuries. Leslie and Alfred both had their doubts as to who the victor would be; but in the end, the young hero had won out. However, it would be a long, hard road to a full recovery.

As Tim lay in the cave's infirmary, Bruce came in and sat down beside the boy's bed. Reaching over, Bruce picked up the small hand and gave a light squeeze, as he said, "Tim, I know I'm not your favorite person in the world right now…and I'm sorry for that. I wish I could go back and do that all over again. You were right. It was your decision to make. Guess I let my hurt feelings get in the way. I'm truly sorry, son. If I could take it back, you know I would…" Bruce trailed off into silence.

"Yeah, but…I've got it…on good authority…life's not that simple…" a weak voice managed to say.

Bruce looked back to Tim's face and saw the slightly opened, blue eyes staring back. The older man smiled and said, "Who's that? Alfred?"

"Actually, Dick," Tim muttered.

"When did Dick get so smart?" Bruce asked teasingly.

"Hey! I've always been that smart!" Dick protested, as he entered the room.

"I thought…I was…the smart one…in the family." Tim's eyes started to close again.

"Oh…well I'm taking over until you get back on your feet, Squirt!" Dick said gently.

"Okay," came the muffled answer. Soon Tim was resting fitfully, with both Bruce and Dick guarding his bedside.

"So what are you going to do with this new found knowledge?" Bruce inquired.

"Maybe drill some sense into your head," Dick countered.

"I am afraid that is quite a daunting chore, Master Dick. I have been endeavoring to accomplish that since Master Bruce was in diapers," Alfred said, with a sigh.

"So I lack common sense! I make up for it in other areas," Bruce claimed.

"Like what area?" Dick challenged.

"…" Bruce thought hard. "Well, you know…"

"Yeah, we know, Bruce!" Dick and Alfred both began to chuckle softly, as Bruce rolled his eyes and frowned.