Chapter Text
“What even happened to Catalina anyways, Dick?” Barbara casually asks, leaning back in her cushioned wheelchair.
“What? Who?” Jason asks, raising an eyebrow at a frozen Dick. He raises it further as he notices dick is staring at the floor, frozen in place despite the humid temperature in the batcave.
”N.. Nah, it’s nothing, Jay.” Dick dismisses, happy mask fully back into its usual place on the stupid golden boy’s face. The perfect smile. Maybe Catalina was an ex? Jason raises his eyebrow higher, (if it was even possible to raise it any more) crossing his arms.
“She sounds important. Well, sounded, by the way Barbara phrased it.” Jason comments, his crossed arms holding together tighter, ignoring the Drake behind him.
“What? Who’s she?” Tim asks, now facing away from the Batcomputer, the computer screen illuminating Tim’s face, making him look more pale then he usually is.
”Nobody, don’t worry.” Dick says, smiling.
”She didn’t seem to be nobody when she almost married you, Dick.” Barbara comments, now also with her arms crossed, a slightly stern look plastered onto her face, a few ginger locks falling onto her face.
”…” Dick’s fists tighten. “I was young and stupid.” Dick says, this topic obviously being a straw that might actually break this happy-go-to camels back.
“It was three years ago, Dick.” Barbara says, unimpressed. Jason shivers at her expression. God, she’s scarier then Bruce.
”Let’s just drop this topic.” Tim warns, but atleast his warning is subtle and not as rude as bruces’. Jason is suddenly glad that Bruce didn’t raise this kid.
”Yeah. Batburger?” He suggests.
Dick’s fists tighten, his hands shaking at the mere force of his clenched fists. Jason notices. Tim doesn’t. Somehow.
Jason raises an eyebrow at Dick, glancing at his hand. Dick follows his gaze and stops squeezing his hands. “Nah, sorry. I’ve got places to be tonight.” Dick says, smiling.
Yeah right. “Okay.”
“Don’t wait up, Kay?” Dick flashes them a grin, walking away.
barbara catches Dick by the wrist, making him jump in suprise. “What?”
”Dick.”
”Barbara.”
”why don’t you bring her up? What happened? She was a nice person. She was kind, dick.”
”oh my fucking god.” Dick murmurs. “Let me go.” Dick attempts to pull his arm away.
”no. Why do you hate her?” Barbara asks, tightening her grip. “She loved you. More then you could ever know.”
”you don’t want to do this here, Babs.” Dick hisses.
”Yes I do, Dick.”
Dick mumbles something, something that makes Barbara freeze.
“Don’t you ever dare accuse her of that again.” Barbara hisses.
Dick laughs humourlessly. “Ask her, then.” He glares at Barbara. “After all, she’s the reason I fucking hate the rain.”
Barbara eyebrows furrow. “You turned off your footage for Nightwing when you patrolled with her. She was obviously the victim.”
dick snorts. Then he laughs.
”is that what she told you? Does she have proof?” He asks, after calming down his chuckles.
”do you?”
Dick tenses. “And I thought you trusted me.” Dick closes his eyes tight, forcing tears back. “Okay. Yeah. That makes sense. Especially after mirage.”
barbara coughs out a laugh. “You cheated on Kori, Dick.”
“She fucking raped me!” Dick snaps, then freezes, realising his brothers are still here.
“She—That wasn’t rape!”
“That’s what everyone says, Barbara. But it was when it was Catalina, it was when it was Liu!” He stops himself, before he spills more. No. His brothers shouldn’t see this, the stains in the golden boy’s life. He’s mean to be a role-model.
One hell of a role model he is, huh?
He clenches his fist so hard he swears he can feel a blood vessel in his fist pop. “It was what.” Jason hisses, glaring at Barbara.
Sure, Jason was still fuming at that Dickhead, for faking his death, and making the whole family grieve over nothing. “Dick. It was W.h.a.t.” He hisses, green overtaking his blurry vision, already being slightly faultered by the tears threatening to spill over, to show everyone he was still weak and-
He stops himself from spiraling. (Ha) This is about dick, not him. “What the FUCK is Catalina, Dick?”
“She’s an e-“ Barbara starts, but gets cut off almost immediately by Jason, him fuming.
“I wasn’t asking you, Barbara.” Jason cuts off, finally unclenching his fists, putting his arms against his sides so hard it hurts. “Who. Is. She, Dick!” He hisses. “I’m trying to stay calm here.”
“She’s… nobody. Don’t worry-“ dick attempts to reassure, but also g ets cut off by Jason.
“Don’t tell me to not worry, Dick! You just dropped… dropped THAT bomb and expect me to ignore it?!” He exclaims, his arms flying up into the air.
“Sorry- sorry. She.. she uhm..” he sighs. “Sorry- I just.. can’t tell you. It’s my problem. You have enough on your plate, especially after… spyral.” Dick murmurs. “I think I’m gonna go check on Dami.”
Jason glances at his side to gauge Timmy’s reaction, but he’s gone. Probably ran up to his computer to check files on who the fuck is Catalina.
“Why can’t you, dick?” He asks, purposefully softening his voice to maybe make dick trust him more.
It’s tough luck, because he ignores Jason and walks upstairs.
Oh well, it was worth a try.
His eyes glide to Barbara, trying to read her expression, but he’s shit at that.
If only he was dick.
But he doesn’t really want to be dick.
It’d probably suck.
he stares at Dick’s back as he retreats up the stairs.
huh.
damian is on a mission.
why is he going up?
jason sighs.
stupid pretty boy.
he glances at Barbara, who is exiting the batcave, her wheeling herself her personalised car.
”don’t wait up.” She repeats, and he swears he can hear the slightest bit of mockery in the words, but he aims to ignore her sharply spoken words, turning to the computer instead.
now, about that Catalina…
he pulls up a search, only Gotham-wide. Huh, he’ll have to ask timmers for a Blüd one, if he can’t find Catalina.
was she a random? Or was she a hero? Probably the latter, nobody normal can pin that man down.
he slides the mouse onto the ‘heroes’ category.
he types ‘katalina’, nothing. He groans. He backspaces, then types ‘Catalina’.
a few results, but only one was a hero, one that hasn’t been spotted in a while.
Tarantula.
huh. Maybe that bitch was a spider, like spider-man or something, and had super strength.
he closes the tab, turns off the computer, and leans on the metal desk.
what the fuck did she do to dick?