Tim stood atop the Time-Warner Building, one more gargoyle on the Gotham skyline, his cape shifting and flowing with the night wind. He only ever took a little joy in looking like a badass—maybe a little more when he was with the Titans, and he dropped out of the ceiling with a plan and a good one-liner, and they all reacted with shock and awe. In Gotham, though, he was about a head shorter than anyone and generally in the same area code as his girlfriend. That would take the winds out of anyone's sails.
Steph's voice trilled from his cell-phone. It just
looked
bad, him holding a smartphone instead of some nifty little earpiece... "So are you done brooding or
what
? There's a new store opening at Lakecrest Mall, everything's going to be fifteen percent off. Cass is really excited."
"Cass isn't 'really excited' about anything."
"Not true! There's Halloween candy, Ariana Grande music..."
Tim sighed. "Listen, Steph, it's like I said. It's best if things stay professional. I can't operate worrying about someone, let alone two."
"Are you pushing-us-away-for-our-own-good again? God, that is so emo. I thought you were through your emo phase two emo phases ago!"
He raised his voice. "It's not a phase, Steph! I gotta go, Batman wants me to patrol with someone else."
"Just whatever you do, don't start to care about them in any way," Steph said bitterly. "Might lead to you having normal human interactions with someone."
"I have normal human interactions with plenty of people!" Tim protested. "Kon. Me and Kon do stuff all the time."
"Are you getting blowsies from him? Because I could take you being gay, it would actually explain a lot—"
"Goodbye, Steph."
"Bye Tim, I'll just be out on patrol myself, doing my duty while also having a valid emotional connection to you. So hard!"
He hung up, tucking the phone into his utility belt, switching to the OS in his visor to check for crimes in the area.
"That your girlfriend?" a voice came from behind him.
Tim swooped around, hand diving for his bo staff, when he saw it was the woman Batman had sent to him. Roxy Rocket, her ride hovering in the air with a muted jet wash he could now discern.
He ignored her question. "You're pretty stealthy for someone with rocket in your name."
"I set it to Quiet. Handy when you steal stuff. So you're Robin, huh? Thought you'd be shorter."
Didn't get that a lot.
"'Nother Robin. I'm Red Robin."
"Oh, there's more than one of you? Just like there are a couple Batgirls?"
"Yeah."
"So am I a Robin too or do I have to be a Batgirl? I could be Robin Rocket. Keep the alliteration thing going."
Tim could see impressing the seriousness of their job on her was not going to be done in thirty seconds. He checked his police scanner again. "Hostage situation on Fourth and Ninth. You up for that?"