conversations overheard through the batkid com lines pt 69 (masterpost here) (league days)
Damian: ok one more, quickly before Father shows up.
Dick: you should release this app y'no littlewing, it's honestly impressive that you coded it by yourself.
Jason: stop trying to get my league days app code, i told you i'm not letting you skip ahead.
Dick, whining: come on,,,
Tim: shut up and give us the next one.
*distant car alarm*
Jason: ...d'you reckon that's a robbery alarm or a 'pigeon just flew into my parked car's windshield' alarm?
Tim: i... *deep sigh* honestly my arms are really tired from pulling a double-patrol; let's just say pigeon alarm so i don't have to stand up again.
Damian: can't wait for that news article. 'Robin, Red Robin, Red Hood and Nightwing spotted sitting on a roof playing an ice breaker game while two streets away the Joker steals a car with a baby inside from it's weeping mother'.
Jason: *snort* 'when questioning Batman on his co-workers clear apathy to the suffering of Gotham's people, our great protector responded 'they thought it was a pigeon''.
Tim: *snicker*
Dick: well, i hear no screams and the Joker's dead, so i'm gonna go ahead and say we're good for the next few minutes. hit us, Day.
*long pause of silence*
Jason, wryly: why are you lookin' at me like that? what does it say?
Damian, audibly exasperated: 'i've always been quite pleased with the fact that nobody ever questioned my decision to be a vegetarian, because it's very embarrassing to explain'.
*another pause*
Tim: oh for fuck's sake-
Jason, already laughing: what- what's wrong-?
Tim, flat: no.
Dick: *amused* whaddya mean no,
Tim: no- because you know how unfair this bullshit is? i can't even decide if it's more helpful to play this game in person or just over the ear pieces, because they're- THEY'RE FUCKING LOOKING AT EACH OTHER,
Jason: *wheeze*
Tim: -LIKE WHAT DOES THAT FACE MEAN?
Damian: *quietly chuckling* i don't- it doesn't mean anything, Drake. it's fine,
Tim: no- that has to be, like, you're looking at him because you're pissed about how vague he made the lie. Jay made the lies and you made the truths, so if you're looking at him like that it has to be a lie.
Dick: don't- fuckin' *light wheeze* stop ruining the game before it even starts! even if it is a lie, are you not curious about what the fuck he comes up with?
Tim: no. i've learned, Dick. the best way to get out of this game calmly is to just use your instincts and shut it down straight away. it's my new strategy, ok? i'm hacking the code.
Dick: *wheeze*
Jason, fighting back laughter: well you don't- i don't think you can make that assumption, you know? letting Damian pick all the truths in the game is a big responsibility, who knows what he'd avoid writing down just to get out of talking about it. maybe i slipped a few more truths in there to force it out of him; maybe that's why he's glaring at me.
*a beat*
Damian: *wheeze*
Tim: no fuck off, you aren't just changing the way the game works, that's not allowed.
Damian: w- it's a made up game, Timothy, what are you talking about?
Tim: *incredulous huff of laughter* no! no, this is a lie. nay, end of, i'm out. you aren't getting me with this one.
Dick: pussy. Damian, why is it embarrassing that you're a vegetarian?
Damian: *snort* uh,
Tim, mocking: -oh do you not remember? shocking.
Damian: *wheeze* it's because i became a vegetarian after losing a bet.
Dick, curiously: wait so it wasn't your choice?
Damian: no, i actually used to love eating meat.
Jason: that's what she- *quieter* no i can't make that joke in reference to a young child, my bad.
Dick: *abrupt cackle* JASON.
Damian, also laughing: fuck you.
Tim: are you actually claiming you don't eat meat ever, all because you lost a bet as a child?
Dick: yeah, what fucking bet was this? what happened?
Jason: *snicker*
Damian: *sigh* so, Jason had to take some of his men to one of the villages near the compound, i'll admit i can't really remember why,
Tim: convenient.
Dick: *laughs*
Damian: -i just remember that everybody seemed to think the reason they'd been sent was bullshit. i'm fairly sure my grandfather had sent them and they were just going to make him stop talking about it or something? so they weren't actually doing anything, they just went to the village and were hanging out, talking to the locals and stuff. and Jason thought it would be a good opportunity to get me out of the compound for a few hours, so he snuck me out and took me with them.
Dick: this village- was this like, a normal village, or a league connected village, or�
Damian: normal. or- er, *pause* i guess you could say league connected? it was basically- the compound was very far from modern civilisation, but although Grandfather didnāt want the world to know he existed, he did want to take advantage of some modern supplies,
Jason: -cause heās a fuckinā hypocrite-
Damian: -so you keep telling him- anyway, thereās quite a few settlements and small civilisations or villages within on-foot travel distance, and although theyāre all local and technically not affiliated with the league, he does use some of those villages as supply drop offs or neutral meeting spots, so like⦠they are kinda connected but only in the way that an amazon warehouse would be connected to Jasonās phone. yāknow?
Jason: leave me and my fucking amazon app alone.
Dick: ok so the people living there-?
Damian: not league employees.
Dick: got it. so you and Jason are at this village, not working.
Damian: exactly.
Dick: what happens next?
Damian: well, one of the most recent shipments Grandfather was having Jasonās men oversee was weaponry; guns and rifles and stuff. so, because theyāre all childish idiots, Jason and his most trusted squadron start playing with the guns.
Jason: *snort*
Damian: one of the locals we were more familiar with used to make these clay statues, like little animals, yāknow? and Jason blew i think, like, six months of his pay on ridiculously overpaying for a bunch of these little clay birds.
Tim: hold on- you actually got paid at the loa?
Jason: *disinterested noise* i mean i guess you could argue it was more my allowance, but yeah.
Tim: unbelievable. we donāt get paid.
Dick, dry: Tim you inherited millions from your parents.
Tim: still.
Dick: ok- anyway, what happened with the clay birds.
Damian: they were taking in turns using them as targets while trying out the rifles, you know- like clay pigeon shooting? and i decided i wanted to try.
Dick: shooting?
Damian: yes. i didnāt have that much practice with guns at that point, because Grandfather preferred i sharpen my more traditional combat abilities. but i was young, and i wanted to copy Jason and his friends, i guess.
Dick: Jason- what face even is that?
Jason: iām- iām *audible struggling not to laugh* just shut up- leave me alone, iām not part of this.
Dick: uh- *wheeze* ok, so Day, did he let you use the gun?
Damian: he thought it would be a bad idea, but i was⦠insistent.
Jason: *whimper*
Tim, flatly: why the fuck wouldnt he want you using a gun? he gives you guns now,
Damian: when i was younger i was⦠more sensitive to animals, and i had a tendency to get attached. *pause* to objects. occasionally.
Dick: waddaya mean?
Jason, muffled, high pitched: āe āad a pet rock,
Dick, in disbelief: what??
Damian: LOOK,
Jason: *wheezes uncontrollably*
Damian, over him: LISTEN. you already know i was like, never allowed out of the compound. i didnāt speak to people that werenāt assassins, i didnāt get much alone time, and attachments were very much not encouraged. i was⦠a little bit behind, on my emotional affection regulation, i guess. i wasnāt allowed to care about any pets or guards because, well, they could die at any time. so, i would get attached to objects instead.
Jason: -yeah, you say that; you did also get attached to the animals and guards around the compound, you just refused to fuckinā admit it. it was like you thought youād be punished for smiling at Isla in the kitchens, but screaming bloody murder any time any of us tried to separate you from the fuckinā snake skull you found and decided was your friendāoh that was ok.
Tim, amused: you made friends with a snake skull?
Damian: your parents are dead and they hated you when you were alive, mind your business.
Dick: *abrupt cackle*
Tim: man, fuck you.
Dick: ok- ok stop, you still havenāt even said what the bet was.
Damian: *sigh* well Jason thought iād get attached to the clay birds, and that iād throw a tantrum when they then got shot, so he didnāt want me using the gun in case i got sad. and i told him he was being ridiculous, because he was, and iād be fine. and we argued back and forth for a while until Jason eventually threw out something like āyouāre so fucking sensitive to this shit, itās a wonder you even eat chicken.ā
Tim: stop laughing.
Jason, high pitched: m- trying,
Damian: and i think at this point i must have been like, seven. so iām instantly like, āwhat are you talking about, chicken is great, youāre an idiotā. and Jason goes āyeah, chicken is great until youāre the one killing and preparing the bird, and thatās what this basically is you know, weāre shooting fake birds.ā and iām a little rebel, right? so i get in his face and iām like āi could do that easily, youāre just a coward.ā
Dick: oooh~
Damian: yeah- by the way? *amused* iām seven and heās fresh out the pit. āin his faceā is him sitting on the floor cross-legged so i can reach him.
Dick and Tim: *wheeze*
Damian: yeah. and he goes āok then, how about when you do get sad that the target is dead, you arenāt ever allowed to eat chicken again.ā and then he adds on āeven better, youāre never allowed to eat meat againā. and iām like, youāre on. and i take the rifle.
Jason: *barely audible snickers, clearly muffled*
Dick: see- i know you said about the āDamian didnāt know it, so clearly Jason wrote it and itās a lie thingā, but i dunno if Jay would laugh this hard if it was a made up story,
Tim: are you kidding me? Jason thinks Damianās the funniest motherfucker on the planet, heāll laugh at anything Damian says, itās honestly annoying. plus, if you think this is true then youāre saying you believe that the only reason Damian does not and will not EVER eat meat, is just because he said he wouldnāt get sad when a clay bird broke, and then got sad anyway.
Dick: ā¦he has a point. like i know how good an actor Day is, thereās no way you couldnāt have just pretended not to be sad.
Damian: well- *snort* well hold on now, because i never said thatās what happened.
Jason: *weeps*
Damian: ā¦i should probably specify that this wasnāt Jasonās fault. he didnāt know that it would happen, so he didnāt like- he didnāt set it up.
Dick: wait, what happened?
Damian: i had the rifle, and i aimed it up so one of Jasonās men could throw the clay bird and i could shoot it, right? except what we didnāt realise, was that one of the other locals bred and raised doves as a hobby,
Dick, gasping: no,
Damian: and one of them happened to get free,
Jason: *muffled choking noise*
Damian: so little seven year old me expected to shoot a piece of rock with no further consequences, hit a bullseye, and was suddenly engulfed in an explosion of blood, bird organs, and feathers. and the dove died in front of me.
Dick, in awe: oh my god???
Jason: *starts wheezing louder*
Damian, also holding back laughter: and so- and so- Jason fuck off, *laugh* and so i started crying, throwing up, just losing itāJason had to take like forty-five minutes to calm me down and wipe the blood off my face, he had to pay for the dove,
Dick, incredulous: he had to pay for the dove-!
Damian: he took me back to the compound while i was clinging to his neck, and i just refused to be let down all day. Mother was furious with him, and i remember all of Jasonās subordinates taking turns trying to cheer me up while i was like, clinging to Jasonās chest.
Dick: oh my god,
Damian: yeah, and then after all that i sat down to dinner, still a little shaken, and we had boiled chicken. and i still remember reaching out my like, trembling hand to grab my forkāand Jason just slides the plate away, looks me dead in the eyes, and he goes ānot for you, we had a deal.ā and-
Dick and Jason: *instantly lose it*
*loud, echoing cackles*
Damian, barely audible over them: -AND EVER SINCE THEN, I HAVE BEEN HONOUR BOUND.
Dick: THATāS SO- *cough* THATāS SO MEAN,
Jason: *noiseless wheezing*
Tim, flat: and again, itās a nice story. creative, sure, but it is a lie.
*hands slapping against concrete*
Damian: Jason- shut up,
Jason: *high-pitched laughter-*
Dick: well- *cough* wait, hold on, Tim, Tim, because- *wheeze*
Tim: what.
Dick: itās just- listen, i hate to be the bearer of bad news, but⦠do you remember like, a while ago, where we were talking about Damian not having friends growing up? and Jason was telling us about his closest subordinates? *pause* ā¦ā¦didnāt he mention that Damian shot a dove?
*silence*
Jason: *breathless gasps for air*
Dick: ācause that wasnāt part of the game, so thereās no reason for him to have lied. if this is- if this is that incidentā¦. then what are the chances of it being true?
Damian: *snort* uh, iām gonna need a yay or a nay from you both now.
*silence*
Dick: Tim?
*more silence*
Dick, amused: Tim, do you smell toast?
Tim, very quietly: donāt wanna play the stupid game anymore.
Dick: *mid-laugh* Tim-
Tim, abruptly, very loud: NO.
Damian: thatās what i said when i shot the dove.
Jason: *wheezes again*
*crashing sounds* *screeching* *yelling*
Tim: YOU CHANGED THE RULES-
Jason: GET HIM OFF ME-
Dick: TIM-

























