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[ He laughs again, still feeling more bemused than frustrated while he makes the leap to follow her. Now where is she going? Is she leading him somewhere? ]

Don't think we're finished!

[ He can't give up the chase now. And he already knows he can't match her running, so out the grapple comes again. A quick launch and he zips in, closing a little more distance. ]

We will be!

[ She points up to the spire, it's the finish line, shakes her fist comically at him as he sails past on his grapple. ]

You dirty rotten cheater!

You're the one that didn't set the rules! [ And he's pressing the advantage while it's there, with a quick glance back over his shoulder to stick his tongue out playfully. ]

[ Rose gives him a mock-indignant expression, and arrives at the top a few seconds after him. ]

Okay, I admit. That one's on me.

[ Looking out over the view, ]

So. We should do this more often.

You think? [ If there's a hopeful tinge to his voice he's working on keeping it hidden.

After a moment: ]

So what did I just win?

[ She catches it, and for a moment debates ignoring it, but she can't help the honest smile she gives him. ]

Follow me.

[ There's a different quality to way she descends, no competition, just looking to see how best to run beside him. ]

[ He watches her a moment, uncomprehending. But curiosity beats confusion every time; he hops to his feet and falls in behind her. ]

You know I was kidding, right? [ Should he be worried, is the more important question. ]

I was going to give them to you tomorrow morning anyway.

[ She gives him another pleased smile (he trusts her enough to follow). They're coming up to a section of Haven West that's especially bare, and Rose comes to a stop, hunting for something, and then finds it. Reaching into the dirt, she pushes over a rock and holds out a small bundle wrapped in an old cloth for him. It's a pair of escrima sticks, carefully carved to be sturdy and light for him. She's embellished with the Robin insignia at one end. ]

Go on, try them.

They're... [ The sentence trails away. He's tongue-tied, stunned into disbelief. ]

Those are for me? [ He turns them over in his hands. They're beautiful. ]

You see any other [ Dick Grayson, but no, no names in the field (and there was another Dick Grayson here) ] little birds around here?

[ Amused exasperation, as she folds her arms and watches him. ]

[ He can't help it; a broad, unguarded grin steals across his face while he swishes them once, letting them balance out in his hands. ]

Okay, I'm listening. [ He's still clutching them like a prize. ] There's a catch, isn't there?

[ There's a sharp stab like a knife through the ribs (and she has cause to know what that feels like). There's always a catch. Dodge all the bullets and you can sleep, Rose. You can join the team if you try your hardest not to be yourself. Everything was a transaction. From him it hurts worse, he's the only one - not the first, but the only one - from after Ravager, who offered her the least. ]

[ Playfully, ] Sure there is. [ she leans down and taps her cheek ] You have to give me a kiss.

[ He holds it only a split second longer, that careful, cautious gaze. Then with a grin he leaps forward to give her a wet, messy kiss on the cheek. Then, if she lets him, he throws his arms around her middle; a tight, fierce hug. ]

...Thanks.

[ She likes to think that no Rose Wilson in any universe out there would ever turn down a hug from Dick Grayson. ]

Hey, it's no problem. You might not know your future team, but this is what Titans do for each other, okay?

I know a few now. [ And he's marking it down as one more thing to question her about some other time. But right now there's new sticks. He swishes them again, grinning while he twirls them in both hands.

Weapons are for the cave. That's always been the rule. But the threats are so different in Haven, so much more daunting when he's so used to fighting with assets, fighting with the car a block away, with a strong, dark shadow to stand in. He's needed these for months now, even if he hadn't been able to say it to anyone in words. ]

So this means you're gonna teach me, right? [ He's only alright on escrimas. ]

[ Blink and you miss it: an unguarded smile, inexplicably fond, as she watches him. The man this kid grows up to be - yeah, she sees it all, splayed out as clear as a blood trail on a carpet. ]

I'll think about it.

[ Playfully, as she steps across from him and parries the blows as he uses his new sticks, so he can test out how they feel against an opponent. Grayson, you idiot, she's supposed to be an aloof elitist about who she teaches, but she can't resist showing off. ]

[ He returns the parry with a few gleeful strikes; he may be rusty on the sticks themselves but he can catch the rhythm of a spar and follow it like a pro. ]

Guess I’ll just have to convince you. [ Somehow without beating her in a fair fight. He’s not optimistic enough to be delusional.

And a new thought occurs to him suddenly; his brow furrows mid-overhead slash. ]

Wait- what about the other Robin? [ Already he feels a pang of guilt at the thought of coming home with a prize like this without something for Damian. ]

Easier than you think.

[ She has a soft spot for him and Damian, which, she realises as she blocks, is a dangerous weakness. ]

Well - he can get his when he beats me in a race.

[ Damian gets weapons from her on a regular basis, but if she says that... it's obvious favouritism. It's not healthy for a child. ]

[ The concern in his face dissolves, replaced with an easier smile. ]

Just don't tell him there's a prize at the end.

My lips are sealed.

[ She makes a zipping motion across her mouth, and then focuses fully on sparring with him. ]

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