DickTim Week Day 6: Slade’s Apprentice Meets Ra’s Heir
Rating: Explicit, word count 8483, no archive warnings would apply. It is omegaverse though. A lot of characters get to make an appearance in this one. Hope you all like it!
@dicktimweek
Dick had a handle on things. Or, well, he at least felt like he did… He would…God he hoped he was doing the right thing. Tim had left though, Dick needed the omega and he left. Gotham needs Batman, and Dick was the only one who could fulfill that role. He was the only one of Bruce’s sons who could step into the suit and god is he didn’t hate that that was the truth. Dick looked over at Damian before nodding.
“Robin, that’s enough for tonight. Go back to the cave and I’ll be there soon.”
Damian stared at him for a moment and then that look of disgust came over his face. “You’re going to look for the pretender again aren’t you?”
Dick grit his teeth and took in a deep breath. “I’m going to see what progress Oracle has made in tracking him down, yes.” Damian went to speak again but Dick held up a hand. “Robin, you will return to the cave. I don’t want to hear anything more on the topic.”
Damian held his stare for a moment and Dick knew that if he could see through the whiteouts he would see Damian’s eyes lit up like fire. Finally the teenager nodded and ran off.
Dick reached up and pressed the button on his com. “Agent A, I’m sending Robin home. If he’s not back in the next twenty minutes please inform me.”
“Roger that Batman.”
Dick let out a sigh and then started his way to the clock tower. He wanted to see how Babs was doing, and he actually did have a small bit of hope that maybe she had found some trail of Tim.
He landed on top of the tower and waved at the camera that she had set up next to the bat entrance. It took less than five seconds for her to open the hatch, but it was enough time for him to worry that she wasn’t going to let him in.
“What do you need Batman?” She asked as he landed behind her.
“How are you doing?” He asked softly.
“I’m fine.” She won’t look at him and he knows why. He knows that she is angry, but god it hurts.
“Babs, I-” He tries to talk to her, but then she turns her head and looks at him.
“Don’t. I have the birds looking for clues, but no one has seen him. If Tim doesn’t want to be found then he won’t be.” She looks back at her setup and sighs. “He’s good, and if he needed help he would reach out. If he accesses any of the bat tech then I’ll know, but he’s gone to ground. Maybe this is a good thing, maybe he’s out.”
Dick hangs his head and squeezes his hands tight. “You know that he isn’t. He’s out there somewhere, and I honestly don’t know that he will reach out. Cassie hasn’t seen him, Steph can’t track him, he hasn’t called or written…”
Babs kept typing for a moment while Dick stood there hoping she would say something else. “If you keep that up then the scent blockers are going to fail you before you get back to the cave. Gotham still thinks Batman is a beta.” Her cutting tone was harsh, but it snapped him out of his head.
“I’ll head home.” Dick gave in.
“Be safe out there Batman,” Babs called out to him and Dick waved at her before leaving the tower the same way he came in.
Dick ran his hand over the cowl and glared, he hated this stupid suit. Dick started his way back to where the batmobile was stashed in an alley. He kept an ear out for anything that was happening, but it was starting to crest into morning and crime had slipped back into the shadows for the day. Dick made it to the car and then stopped short. Because there was a bright red note on the windshield, and the tires were stacked next to the car with a tire iron sitting on top.
“HOOD!” Dick screamed.
He smelled the other alpha before he stepped out of the shadows. “Might want to get it together fast. Sun’s comin’ up in little over an hour,'' Jason snarked at him through the voice modulator.
Dick launched himself at Jason and tried to strike fast. “What the hell?”
Jason easily sidestepped his strikes and danced further into the alley. “Needed your attention,” Dick growled loudly and Jason just laughed. “Oh, is the big bad bat playin’ at bein’ an alpha?”
Dick sneered at him. “Don’t make me bite you.”
“Cool it, golden boy, I have information.” Jason struck out and Dick had to back up to avoid the fist.
“What is it?” Dick demanded.
“Deathstroke,” Jason responded. “He left a message with me.” Jason nodded to the car. “Don’t know what it says, but he paid me good to give it to you.”
Dick pulled back and turned to look at the letter. “Why not just drop it off?”
Jason shrugged. “Because he told me that he’d know when you read it, and that if you didn’t then he’d make my life miserable.”
Dick glared at the paper as though he could make it disappear.
“What does orange and black want with you?” Jason asked.
“Nothing good,” Dick muttered.
“Well, read it, yeah? I’ll put the tires back.” Jason walked over to the tires to start the process.
Dick walked over to the letter and picked it up carefully. He didn’t know what Slade wanted, but he knew whatever it was, it was gonna be bad. He looked at Jason and stepped into the alley so that he wasn’t too close in case there was poison or something inside the envelope. Turning it over he saw there was nothing on the outside, and the seal was just the normal glue seal that envelopes came with. With shaking fingers, he grabbed a Batarang from his belt and sliced open the envelope. No puff of smoke, but he could smell that Slade had scented the paper. He pulled out the letter and unfolded it.
Renegade,
I know whom you seek, and better yet, I know where the wayward Robin is. You know what I want, you know I can deliver, and you know that this is how it will always end. Come back to me, and I will help you get your omega back.
-Deathstroke
Dick held his breath. No one knew Tim’s dynamic, not even Bruce knew that Tim was an omega, hell even in her brainwashing of Jason, Talia had never known that Tim was an omega. Damian only found out because when Tim left he had left the cave filled with the scent of an omega in distress. Dick assumed that Alfred knew, but nothing made it past the eyes of him. He looked over at Jason, did he know? Did Babs? He took a moment to wonder if Kon or Bart knew before…
“So, anything interesting?” Jason asked from where he was putting the second tire back on.
“Just more of the same old same old.” Dick lied. “He wants to meet with me, I’m not going to give him the satisfaction.”
Jason studied him and then turned back to the tire with a small hum. “Any word on the replacement?”
Dick shook his head. “Not yet.”
“He’s still out there, Oracle will find him.” Jason walked over to grab the third tire and then tilted his head. “What?”
Dick shook his head and swallowed back his instincts. “Just worried about him, he’s been no contact since Steph.”
Jason stared at him for another moment. “Take my bike and go home. I’ll bring the car back.”
Dick gave a small smile. “Thanks Little Wing.”
“Whatever, just give me your keys.” Jason tossed his bike keys at Dick and Dick tossed back the keys to the batmobile.
He made the trip back as fast as he could. Damian was most likely waiting up for him, and he needed to get him to bed before the pup fell asleep in the cave again. He let himself pull on his bond with Tim just once, hoping that maybe the omega would respond this time, but like every other attempt Dick was met with a wall of nothing. Tim’s bond was still there though, so he was still alive, and for now, that was all Dick could know. Tim’s silence was hard, but he had survived so much, and he would come home… probably.
---
Tim could admit that maybe his plans were not always the most thought out. Lying in the dessert bleeding out next to the only remaining member of his team he could see how this could have gone a little differently.
“B-b-b,” Pru tried to talk but Tim just shook his head.
“Not dead yet,” he gasped out. “I’m gonna get us out of here.”
He slowly turned on his side and clicked the emergency beacon that Ra’s hadn’t taken from him. There was a slim chance that he’d make it back to the hotel for the drop, but maybe Dick would come for him. Curling up in a ball for just two seconds he allowed himself to close his eyes and imagine the alpha scruffing him and telling him it was all going to be okay. “Get up,” he hissed at himself.
He pulled a pressure bandage from his bandolier and applied it to the hole in his side. It wouldn’t do much about the blood loss he was already suffering, but maybe it would at least keep him alive long enough to get Pru safe.
He stumbled into the motel room and laid Pru on the bed. “I’ll contact the league, it’ll be okay.”
One moment he was holding the radio and the next he was kneeling on the floor trying not to throw up. Taking in a deep breath and clenching his eyes shut he kept himself together. Tim reached out to the radio and flipped it on. “We’ve been attacked. Two losses, myself and one asset are back at base.”
If a reply came Tim wouldn’t have known. The last thing he heard before passing out due to blood loss was footsteps and a deep voice.
“Finally caught you little bird.”
---
Tim woke up in a room that was glowing. Shit. He rolled away from the source of the light and stood up to see that he was indeed in the Lazarus room. His fingers itched to grab a weapon but he was in a loose gown without anything on him.
“Ah, Detective, you’re finally awake.” Ra’s sauntered toward him from the side of the room. “I was beginning to worry that we would have to throw you in the pit after all.”
Tim grasped at that information and reached for his side to feel where the stab wound was.
“Fickle things stab wounds, yours wouldn’t stop bleeding so we had to remove your spleen. The stitches will come out in a few days and you’ll be back to finding the Bat.” Ra’s was within arm's distance now.
Tim cleared his throat. “What about-”
Ra’s held up a hand. “You’ll have very few questions when I am done, I’d save them.”
Tim glared but held his tongue. If there was one thing he was good at it was getting adults to not lash out at him.
“Prudence was brought back with you, her failure in keeping her team together will be punished after her own healing is done. The man who brought you here let slip a beautiful nugget of information that was quickly confirmed. I believe you know Ms. Fox? Or at least her father?”
Tim went cold. Tam Fox was a good person who as of yet hadn’t really been wrapped up into the whole Batman thing. If she was here…
“You’ll be escorted back to your chambers and she is there waiting for you.” Ra’s continued shattering Tim’s hold on himself. He was endangering a civilian. “I have a proposal for you, one that I believe you will be interested in this time. But, before I tell you I think you may want that reunion first. You’ll have time to ask your questions later.”
“Ra’s-”
He held up a hand and Tim fell silent as the doors opened and a few assassins came into the room. They surrounded Tim and Ra’s made his exit before he had another chance to talk.
“Come with us, detective.” One of the assassins turned and started to lead him down the hallways.
He couldn’t decide what was the worse reason for being escorted through the compound. Because on the one hand, were they afraid he would get lost because he didn’t know his way around? Or was it because he was a threat and Ra’s wanted him observed closely even while in his sanctuary… either option was a bad one.
He stepped into the room that Ra’s had been keeping him in while he was here and stood by the door when the scent of angry scared beta came over him.
“Stay right there.” Tam hissed from the bedroom. “I’ll come out there.”
Tim stayed still and waited, attempting to control his scent like Pru had been teaching him to do since blockers weren’t allowed to be worn within the compound. “Tam, it’s Tim.”
The sudden movement into the room by the beta woman was a lot and Tim acted on instinct to avoid her.
“You idiot! Why are you out here? Why haven’t you reached out! What are you doing!” Tam yelled at him.
“Back up, why are you here Tam?” He asked softly.
“My father sent me, we need you back at WE. Things are going back and Dick isn’t handling anything well with having so much on his plate. We need you back so you can help.” She went for the logic route and Tim couldn’t hold back the half growl.
“He’ll be fine. He has the rest of them, and I’m needed here. Besides, I’m almost done.” Tim had the last bit of evidence he needed to prove to the JL that Bruce was out there. “All I need to do is to get Ra’s to deal.”
“Drake, you’re an idiot if you think he’s gonna let you leave here.” Tam sat down at the coffee table and glared at him. “He’s taken me hostage so that you can’t, and you know it.”
Tim nodded sadly. “Yeah, yeah I know.”
---
Three days. That’s how long Ra’s gave him before summoning Tim to his inner sanctuary again.
“Detective,” Ra’s greeted him.
“Ra’s,” Tim responded, refusing to bow to the insane man and give him any semblance of submission.
“Timothy, you know that there was a time that I sought out the Bat as my heir.” Ra’s started in.
“And put his son on the path to kill me, yeah, I remember.” Tim snarked. “What’s the point here?”
“I have a proposal for you. I want you to be my heir, I want you to carry on the league and lead it into a new era.” Ra’s smiled at him. “It would be so simple, for you to take over the league would take very little.”
“Be your heir? Or bear your heir?” Tim felt the need to clarify before anything more came of this conversation.
Ra’s laughed. “Detective, not to offend, but I am an old man and it has been a long time since I have kept up with another Omega, the league can only be headed by someone with a strong mind, holding onto the bonds of loyalty for all of the league members is something you will need to be trained into. It will be easier if you have a mate, but obviously, I have proven that with a strong enough mind you don’t have to have one.”
“What would I have to do?” Tim asked.
“Simple, give up the Bat’s way of thinking. Accept a bond from me so I can teach you the league’s ways better. Finally, if there comes a time that you wish to mate you would need to understand that you will be mating for the good of the league, love has very little to do with that.” Ra’s smiled at him. “You are already a trained fighter, you need only history lessons and the passing over of the league would be ready once I am ready to let go.”
“Can I think about it?” Tim asked quietly.
“I will expect your answer at dinner.” Ra’s agreed and then motioned for Tim to leave.
Tim started forming his plan as he was escorted back to his rooms. There was a way to get Bruce back to Gotham, and that’s what mattered really wasn’t it? That Bruce was Batman again, and that he was safe. Tam also needed to get home, and he now had something that the demon’s head wanted.
He walked into the room where Tam was writing something in the little journal she had been allowed to keep. “Listen, I’m gonna get you home. There’s just one thing I need you to do for me.”
She looked at him warily. “What?”
“I need you to tell Oracle that I’m dead, and I need you to give her this.” Tim walked over to his suit and fished the hidden flash drive out of it.
“What do you mean you’re dead?” Tam demanded. “Tim, what are you doing?”
Tim sighed. “Okay, I’m not dead dead, but I do need them to stop looking for me okay? Gotham needs Batman, and he needs to keep his head there and not go looking for the lost Robin. Hood came back, Oracle is established, and Nightwing chose the next Robin already. They don’t need me, they need to get Batman back, and they need to stay away where they’re safe.”
“I’m not telling your family that you’re dead,” Tam responded.
“They will get themselves killed coming after me if you don’t.” Tim glared. “Just trust me, please.”
Tam finally nodded. “Fine.”
---
Barbara was having a typical night, running coms from her clock tower, keeping her ear to the ground for any sign of Tim, and making sure that her boys didn’t do anything too stupid. So she was very taken aback when someone was waving at the camera hidden in the broom closet on the main level. She turned on the mic from that room to listen.
“-and I know you don’t really know me, but I have a message that I’m supposed to bring straight to you.”
“Who are you?” Barbara asked.
“My name is Tam Fox. He told me to say the birds only fly because the augury watches over them.”
Barbara hit the button to open the door to the hidden elevator before Tam even finished the code that Tim told her. It was an old joke of his that she was reading the skies by the trails of her birds so she was less oracle of delphi and more an augur.
Tam stepped into the room and Barbara looked her over. “Where is he?”
Tam nodded. “I have a line I’m supposed to say, but before any of that happens you need this. He told me that you’d be the only person who could decrypt it.” Tam handed her a flash drive and Barbara looked at it. It was one of hers that Tim had borrowed some case files on years ago.
“What’s on it?” She asked as she plugged it into a spare laptop that wasn’t connected to anything just in case it was corrupted.
Tam bit her lip and then nodded to herself. “Tim said it’s the proof he was looking for. He said if you use this you’ll find the real Batman.”
Barbara stilled for half a second and then started typing quickly to get the files off the drive. That idiot had done it. He actually found Bruce.
Tam fidgeted and Barbara looked up to see her playing with the bracelet on her wrist. “I-I think that Nightwing needs to be here to hear the rest of the message.”
Barbara studied her and then nodded. If Tim wanted them to know something he sent the right person. Tam was strong, she had her father’s strength. Barbara turned back to her computer and flipped on the line to Dick. He was on his regular route and nothing major had popped up so he could come here for a quick update. “Batman, you’re needed in the tower. Feel free to bring Robin-”
“No!” Tam interrupted her.
Barbara looked over and tilted her head.
“Trust me, please,” Tam whispered. “Oracle? Everything okay?” Dick asked in her ear.
“Nvm on that, I need you, let Robin patrol solo or send him home. Either way, you need to be here five minutes ago.” She nodded at Tam who relaxed a little.
“We’re kinda in the middle of patrol right now O.” Dick sounded conflicted.
“There’s someone here who’s spotted your wayward bird. They have a message for us from him.” Barbara responded.
“I’ll be there momentarily.” Dick’s response was curt and she knew that he was going to be angry.
Barbara set aside the laptop after seeing that Tim had everything organized the way he usually did and knew that she’d be able to get everything to whom it needed to go in the right order. “Can I offer you some tea?” She asked Tam.
Tam shook her head. “Actually, do you have a coke? Or something carbonated in general? I’ve had so much tea in the last month I’m not sure I can stand another glass for a while.”
Barbara laughed and motioned to the fridge in the corner. “Help yourself, will you grab me two bottles of water?”
Tam went over and grabbed the drinks and then Dick’s tracker showed him on the roof. “Incoming,” Barbara said as she wheeled over to accept the waters after having opened the trap door for Dick.
Dick landed in the room and looked around before zeroing in on Tam. “Where is he?”
“Hello Batman, how are you? Do you know Tam Fox?” Barbara interrupted.
Dick turned to glare for a second. “Oracle.”
“No, it’s okay.” Tam gave a sad smile and then gestured to the chair. “You might want to sit down.”
Barbara stilled her fingers on the laptop and saw that Dick was standing completely still for the first time in a long while. “Where is he?” She whispered out.
Tam steeled herself. “Tim’s exact words to me before I got out were. ‘Tell them I’m dead because there’s no way I’m breaking us both out of here alive. Not without compromising who I am.’ Then I was being led out of the compound as quickly as possible.”
“What compound?” Dick asked. “Where is Tim?”
“He’s with Ra’s Al Ghul.” Tam looked at them with a fire in her eyes. “And if it weren’t for my stupidity then he would probably be delivering that flash drive himself, but he isn’t. He wants you all to be here, he wants you to save Batman, and he wants you to let him go. Ra’s offered him a choice and he took it. If you care about him, if you ever cared about him, you’ll let him do this.”
Barbara winced when Dick let out a slightly hysterical laugh. “He told you to say that, didn’t he?”
Tam nodded at him. “Told me that it was the only way to get a group of stupid alphas to trust his judgment.”
The stunned Dick into standing still again and then he looked at Barbara. “Find Bruce, he’s gonna be the only one who can convince the little shit that self-sacrifice is an idiotic move.”
“Tim already found him.” She replied, having gone back to looking in the folders. “We need a time machine, but Bruce is located and will be okay. I’m calling Clark.”
Dick nodded at her. “I need to run. Ms. Fox, thank you for getting this information back to us.”
Before either of the women could say anything Dick was grappling out of the clock tower and Barbara just stared, wishing she could give him better news.
“Nothing ever happened between Nightwing and Tim did it?” Tam asked.
Barbara shook her head. “Not to my knowledge, besides, as far as I’m aware Nightwing is only into Omegas.”
Tam snapped her head to look at her and then just nodded in understanding. “Oh, I see.”
“I’m about to have a lot of company, you should leave the way you came in.” Barbara turned to look back at her system. “Seriously, thank you, you have no idea how much this means to all of us. If you ever need anything, get in touch.”
Tam gave a small smile and nod and then headed to the elevator. “Please, if you guys do get him to come home, tell him that I didn’t say a word more than he told me to.”
---
Two weeks, it took two weeks for Bruce to be back in the watchtower. Another week and a half to get him decontaminated so that he could come back to the cave, and a fourth week was spent letting him rest before Dick finally cornered him in his office.
“We have to go get Tim.” Dick opened with the only thing he cared about.
Bruce nodded like he had known that that’s what Dick was going to say. “I know he’s important-”
“He’s the only reason you came home, ‘important’ doesn’t begin to cover it.” Dick cut him off.
“Dick, I know. But he made his choice.” Bruce was talking to him like this was when one of the Titans left the team to quit the hero life.
“What are you saying?” Dick demanded.
“Tim has asked us not to come after him.” Bruce tried the gentle voice again and Dick growled.
“He is in an unknown situation, where he was keeping a civilian safe, he doesn’t need us to sit back and do nothing!” Dick clenched his fists and could feel his nails digging into his palms. “He didn’t give up on you-”
“Enough!” Bruce cut him off this time. “I’m not giving up on Tim. I’m respecting his final request. It’s likely he’s dead Dick, based on the message he sent to me with Tam he made an impossible choice, and if we go after him they will dunk him in the pit and hope for the best. He begged me not to come after him, told me he’d rather stay dead then be whatever twisted form that the pit would bring back.”
Dick held impossibly still not daring to even breathe. He took two seconds to try to control himself before turning and stalking out the door. “Fine! If you won’t go find him, I’ll find him myself!”
Damian scrambled out of his way as he stalked past. Dick knew that the pup would be upset, but he couldn’t think about that right now, his omega was out there in the hands of the demon himself and Dick needed him back.
Cass stepped in front of him when he reached the front door and held out a notebook in one hand and the keys to his bike in the other. “Find him, save him, come home.”
“I’ll do my best,” he whispered. “Watch out for Dami?”
Cass laughed and nodded. “Pack will still be standing when you get home. Rescue your omega.”
He accepted the items from her hands and pulled her into a hug. “Promise.”
His first stop was his apartment. He had a go-bag stashed there and there was only one more person to see and the easiest way to do that was to be suited up. He slipped into his apartment and then paused. There was a scent lingering in the room, one that he hadn’t been this close to in months. Dick rushed to his bedroom and changed as fast as possible. The other alpha clearly hadn’t been there in a few hours, but he had left his scent for a reason. Once he was suited up as Nightwing once more Dick grabbed his go-bag and slipped out the window. If he was going where he thought he was then he wouldn’t need the bike again for a long while.
Dick slipped his com in his ear and waited for Babs to contact him while he made his way in the direction of Crime Alley, he didn’t miss the fact that the other alpha’s scent was going the same direction.
“You’re being an idiot, but I get it. Bring him home yeah?” Babs’ voice came through the com unit.
“If no one will help then I need to do this on my own. I’ll do my best to bring him home.”
“Just don’t get dead yourself.” She responded. “I’m gonna scramble your unit. Take it with you and use it if you need extraction.”
“Love you too Oracle.” Dick smiled and then pulled the unit out of his ear. He placed it into a lead-lined container that Tim had given to him months before his disappearance.
“Yo! Golden child!” Jason’s voice came from his left and Dick stopped short to see him approach. “Daddy bats back up and moving?”
“He better be.” Dick nodded.
“You going after the wayward bird?” Jason asked seriously.
“Someone has to,” Dick smirked.
Jason nodded. “Get Deathstroke out of the alley before you leave yeah? He says he won’t leave until he talks to you and he’s makin’ my guys nervous.”
“Don’t worry Hood, I think he’ll be leaving real soon.” Dick smiled. “Keep them safe, yeah?”
“Don’t get mushy, just bring the bird home.” Jason rolled his eyes.
Dick nodded and then went back to tracking Slade’s scent through Gotham. He found him sitting at a little rooftop cafe near the alley and recognized some of Jason’s men milling about trying to remain inconspicuous.
“Nightwing.” Slade greeted him and gestured for him to sit down.
“Help me.” Were the first words that Dick could get out of his mouth.
“I can help you get to your Omega, however, it will take time. Time that you will need to follow my orders, and time that you will need to do what must be done. Are you willing?” Slade asked him with a voice that bordered on straight out commanding.
“Two years.” Dick held out a hand. “You have two years or I’ll go get him on my own.”
Slade smiled at him and nodded. “Let’s go.”
~~~
“I want a mate.” Tim requested one day.
Ra’s looked him over for a moment and then tilted his head in a motion to continue.
Tim steeled himself for the conversation. “My heats last a week and a half on average, this is fine, but I know that they would be shorter, and far less painful if I had a mate. You wish for me to take on the league’s bonds, I believe that I will have a clearer head to learn from you if I’m experiencing heats in a regulated fashion.”
“Detective, it’s been a while since you’ve stepped foot out of the halls of Nanda Parbat, do you have a suitor in mind? Or-” Ra’s paused as Tim held up his hand.
“My chosen mate will fight for me. Let the champions come, and I will choose the one who can one day help me carry the league into a new era.”
Ra’s smiled and nodded. “I’ll arrange a tournament.”
Tim had made this decision with a lot of thought, but he was still nervous about letting just any alpha touch him. A part of him hoped that Talia let slip to Bruce that he was going to be mated, but the rest of him knew that the beta wouldn’t let any of his sons come after him, not after Tim’s ultimatum. It was comforting in a way that he had been left alone for this long already. Ra’s was a difficult teacher, and each fight against him had been fought tooth and nail, but it was going to be worth it when he finally took control of the league. He could change things, he had to change things. Maybe Bruce would even let him come home… six months and counting was making it seem like maybe Bruce wouldn’t.
“Stop it,” he whispered to himself. “You can’t think like that.”
It took Ra’s three days to let Tim know that the tournament was on. Three of Ra’s best fighters, someone hand-picked by Lex Luthor himself, and two other champions that were chosen by mentors that Ra’s had contacted. Tim knew that the Justice League would know something was going on when all these people showed up in Pakistan, but Tim was just hoping that either Bruce would keep them away or would be one of them.
The tournament was set to be in a week, the actual fighting wouldn’t start until Tim’s pre-heat started softening his caramel smell, but he would have a chance to have dinner with the potential suitors before the fight began the next day. He needed to remember that whoever won would be a faceless nobody, someone who didn’t know him, and he needed to keep his head on when he came out of a loveless heat.
Slade was the first to arrive at the compound. His apprentice was tall and strong and unfortunately wore a mask just like his master to hide his features from the world. Slade referred to him as Renegade and told Ra’s that the man had been trained by the best that Sade would accept. Tim felt like a bug being inspected anytime Renegade was in the room. He moved silently like most of the league, but Tim could feel the alpha’s eyes on him whenever he stepped into a shared space. Ra’s champions were often following Tim, one of them had been his bodyguard when he first got to the compound, and the other two were unknown to Tim. The next to arrive at the compound was Lex Luthor, his champion was promised to be there at dinner but Tim hadn’t caught sight of the alpha yet. Finally, Ra’s informed him that Lady Shiva had accepted the summons and brought her own alpha champion to fight for his heat. When she arrived the league went silent at the sight of the young alpha in her wake. The One Who Knows All hadn’t been back on league territory since she joined the bats and Tim was ready to destroy everything he had fought for if it weren’t for the fact that any fight he started would end with him jumpstarting his heat. He may love Cass, but he didn’t expect her to be the bat that showed up first. In fact, he had partially expected Dick to find his own way into the compound to fight for Tim’s hand. But he couldn’t think about the alpha that could have been right now. He needed to figure out how he was going to get Cass out of Ra’s hands when she won the right to his heat.
The dinner came and Tim suddenly had a whole new problem.
Tim walked into the hall behind Ra’s and then froze. Because sitting next to Lex as his champion was Conner. “Kon,” Tim breathed out and Kon looked at him and lifted his mouth into a smile.
“I reject you.” The words were out of his mouth before he could think. Ra’s had told him that he was allowed to reject one of the champions, he had thought originally he would use this on one of the league alphas, but seeing Kon sitting there he knew what he needed to do. “My lord, I reject Kon-el, Connor Luthor, champion of Lex Luthor. We would make a poor match.”
“Tim-” Kon tried to step forward but Renegade was suddenly before him with a knife that looked to be tinted green from where Tim was standing.
“He rejected you kid, get out.” Renegade’s masked voice was deep and gravely and Tim hadn’t heard it before. Cass was just watching what was happening from her own seat but he could see that she was conflicted.
“If you don’t leave it will take me three seconds to out the identity of the second superboy to everyone sitting in this room, and I’ll make sure the knowledge goes public.” Tim hissed under his breath and Kon paled. “Do not think for one second that I’m bluffing, ask Batman why he hasn’t come for his wayward bird and you’ll know I’m a bigger threat than any of you have ever faced.”
Kon studied his face and then nodded. “Okay, I’ll leave… I just needed to know that you’re alive.” Kon turned on his heel and then in a burst of air he flew out but not before Tim felt his TTK brush a lock of his hair back from his face. Lex followed his son out of the room.
Tim blinked the tears that had formed while he was threatening his best friend back and looked to Ra’s and bowed low. “I apologize, my lord.”
Ra’s smiled at him and gestured to the table. “Come sit, it’s time to eat.”
Tim gracefully sat down on the cushion on Ra’s right-hand side. This put him right next to Renegade and that made him nervous. The alpha still hadn’t fully removed his mask, rather he had just taken off the bottom so he could eat. On Ra’s other side was Lady Shiva and then Cass who was watching Renegade as closely as Tim was. Tim knew that he could take any of the league champions in a tussle even when all heated up, and Cass would be gentle with him, but Renegade he had no idea about.
Tim watched as everyone selected food and waited for Ra’s to eat. Tim followed suit and pulled some food onto his own plate. Ra’s took the first bite and then everyone started to eat quietly. After a time Ra’s struck up a conversation with Lady Shiva and Slade about their travels. Tim kept watching everyone else and started doing statistics in his head as to how the battle for his heat would go. Without knowing Renegade well enough he had to assume that he would be out earlier than one of the assassins, but he also didn’t want to discredit the unknown completely. Cass seemed to be watching him closely so he was someone to watch out for, according to her, but maybe that was just because he was also unknown to her? What if he’s gone up against the bats before though? Dick had been dealing with Slade for a long time, what if the mercenary wanted to test his protege against Nightwing? Fuck, has the alpha fought ‘wing before? What if Dick-
“You should eat something,” Renegade whispered to him, startling him out of his thoughts.
Tim tilted his head to look at him more properly and then noticed that Renegade was holding a bite out for him. “I’m not-”
“You’re in preheat, you must be starving. The nerves of the fight are getting to us all, but you’ll need your strength when the victor carries you to bed.” Renegade reasoned with him and Tim nodded. Opening his mouth he allowed Renegade to hand feed him a piece of lettuce that he had piled with rice and a little fish and mango.
“Thank you,” he responded after swallowing.
Renegade gestured to Tim’s plate. “Eat, and don’t worry too much. The stone is rolling and only the most worthy will lay with you tonight.”
Tim nodded and turned back to his plate and ate slowly enough that it didn’t look like he was following an order. He couldn’t show weakness to these alphas, he’d already accidentally shown favoritism to Renegade and that was sure to bite him in the ass later when the alpha lost. Tim could already feel Cass’ eyes on him after the exchange.
Dinner finished and they were led out to the training yard. Ra’s had a chair there and Tim had his matching cushion next to it. He followed Ra’s and gracefully sank down to kneel. He watched Lady Shiva and Slade speak to their proteges and then move to the sides of the arena to watch. They both stood with precision and looked at Ra’s. All five of the remaining alphas lined up in the center of the arena and turned to look at the Demon’s Head.
Ra’s stood up and the silence was palpable. “Thank you all for coming to witness the battle for Timothy’s heat and position as his mate. As league tradition, I have summoned champions that are worthy to be called consort to the heir. These five warriors shall battle according to Timothy’s rules, and after the last alpha is standing they will have the privilege of a chase to Timothy’s quarters. If they can catch our prince and bond with him, they will become his mate. As per tradition, Timothy has been allowed to determine the rules of the battle.”
Ra’s stepped back and gestured to Tim who stood up. “You can all kill a man in many different ways, but that’s not what I want to see. I was originally trained to incapacitate a man but leave him alive, I want to see that. To win the privilege of my chase, you will need to incapacitate your opponents without killing them.”
The three assassins shared a glance towards Ra’s but when he didn’t object or contradict Tim they bowed. Neither Renegade nor Cass seemed phased about Tim making this rule and Cass even spared a smile toward him. He stepped back and kneeled back down and the five alphas took their stances. Ra’s declared the start and the alphas started. Renegade looked at Cass and nodded and then the two of them turned toward the assassins. The three assassins were going after Cass as a team in an attempt to take down The One Who Knows All first. The apparent team-up of Renegade and Cass is lost on them at first before Renegade uses their distraction to nerve strike one of the assassins and take him down to the ground. When he falls like a sack of potatoes Tim is a little nervous, but then can see the man twitch his fingers in an attempt to move. The remaining assassins split up, each taking on one of the other alphas. Tim keeps a watch on Renegade’s fight, watching the man move fluidly in a way that reminds him of Babs when she was still Batgirl, or maybe Dick’s Robin days before he started streamlining in the Nightwing mantle. Cass must have taken out her opponent because she was approaching Renegade’s battle. He tilted his head at her and then did a flip over the assassin that looked so familiar. He turned in the air at the last minute to strike at the assassin and he went down. Renegade then turned his attention to Cass. The two of them bowed to one another and then started to circle. Tim glanced at Ra’s who smiled, he seemed happy with the outcome no matter what way it went. Slade hadn’t put his mask back on after dinner so Tim could see the smug satisfaction on his face that his protege had made it this far. Lady Shiva just looked bored, like she knew the outcome from the beginning.
Then Cass spoke. “Sure?”
Renegade nodded once and then she stood still.
“Home?” She asked.
Renegade shrugged and glanced in Tim’s direction then looked back at her.
She took up a stance and walked forward to him. Then spoke looking straight at Tim. “I yield.”
Tim gasped and Ra’s started clapping. “Congratulations, Renegade. Detective?” Ra’s turned his attention to him and smiled. “Run.”
Tim scrambled to stand up as fast as he could and started the run to his nest. If he could make it there before Renegade caught him then he would get to fight in his own room without an audience, if he couldn’t then tradition dictated that Renegade mate him wherever he was caught and defeated, regardless of how out in the open it was. Tim had started really getting hot as the alphas clashed in the ring, but the chase and knowing that a worthy alpha was on his heels was starting to make his hindbrain scream to be dominated. Tim chanced a glance behind him and almost tripped over his own feet when he saw Renegade so close to him. He was playing with him, teasing him. Tim purrs and Renegade lets out a soft rumble in return.
“You gonna lead me to your nest Sweetheart? Or do I need to take you here?” Renegade asked.
Tim was torn, he wanted to feel the powerful alpha now, but he also valued his privacy, but the league was his, or it would be, and he wanted… everything. Tim whined and then made a decision, darting to the left and in the direction of his nest.
He heard Renegade still close and put an extra burst of speed in as he saw his open doors. Renegade must have seen them too because suddenly he was tackled to the ground. They rolled into Tim’s rooms and Tim heard his attendants closing the doors behind them. Renegade had him facedown in a pin and reached up to finally take off his mask. Tim could hear the thing fall to the ground and then felt lips at his ear.
“Don’t freak out Babybird,” the alpha whispered to him and Tim was filled with urgency to see Renegade’s face.
He struggled and bucked himself up, toppling the alpha to the ground. He turned around and pounced on him and then paused looking down at the face of Dick Grayson. “Dick?”
“Hey, sweetheart.” Dick brushed his hand over Tim’s cheek and held his face in his hand.
Tim felt the tears well up and whined in frustration. “No, you can’t-”
“Please don’t reject me.” Dick stopped him. “Timmy, I’ve wanted you for years, and you disappeared before I could explain, but please don’t reject me again.”
Tim gasped and then lunged away. Dick grasped his ankle and pulled him back and rolled them so Dick was pressing him into the ground again. The alpha leaned in and inhaled his scent. “Your heat smells so sweet omega.” He rumbled into Tim’s ear.
Tim let out his own purr and then pressed his lips to Dick’s hair. “If you want me, then take me,” he whispered and then started to struggle again.
Tim felt his robes loosen from the rolling around and struggled to get out of Dick’s grasp. Dick, for his part, was holding Tim’s wrists in one hand and kissing his neck and scent glands again. Tim felt Dick’s other hand between them and assumed that the alpha was pulling out his cock, something that was confirmed when Tim felt the heavy weight against his thigh.
“You’re going to look so pretty on my knot,” Dick whispered in his ear and that was all the warning that Tim got before Dick struck and bit his mating gland.
Tim whined and felt himself start to finally drop. Dick held his teeth in and Tim could feel the feedback of arousal that Dick was experiencing combining with his own. He moaned lowly and released one of his hands so he could reach down and feel Dick’s cock. He received a low growl from him as he stroked him using the precum to make the glide smoother.
Dick finally released his teeth and then was dragging Tim’s clothes off of him. Tim gasped when Dick slipped two fingers into his pussy and start to fuck him on them quickly. “Babybird, if you keep doing that I won’t last. Let me make you feel good so I can claim you properly.”
Tim gasped and moaned as Dick played him as an instrument. “Please, don’t tease me. I’ve been so empty, I need it, please Dick, please alpha.” Tim begged.
Dick took the hint and lined himself up and slowly filled Tim with his cock. Setting a pace that was brutal and harsh Tim could barely hang onto Dick’s biceps and cling to the alpha. He felt Dick’s knot start to grow and squeezed down on it to make sure that Dick tied them together. He didn’t need to worry though because then Dick was thrusting in as hard as he could and Tim felt his knot pop as he was filled with the alpha’s cum.
Tim grasped Dick’s shoulders and pulled him against his neck again. “Please, mark me again, make me yours,” Tim begged him.
Dick bit down on his gland and then as the bond started to flesh out he pulled back and led Tim’s face to his own neck so that the bond would be two-sided. Tim bit the alpha and felt the bond snap clearly into place over his other bonds. He felt everything else fade away and Dick’s mating bond was golden.
“I love you,” Dick whispered into his hair. “I have for a long time.”
Tim pulled back and let his head fall to the ground. “I love you too. So so much.” Tim looked to the side where his perfectly good nest was just waiting. “Think you can get me into the nest before the next round?”
Dick chuckled. “Yeah, Sweetheart, I’ll carry you there in a moment.”
---
Three days later Tim's fever broke. He sat up in his nest and felt the bond between him and Dick and smiled. This was a better outcome than he dared to imagine when he went to Ra’s about getting a mate. He brushed Dick’s hair out of his face and frowned at the new scar over his eyebrow. He hadn’t had that one before Tim left.
“You’re thinking too hard,” Dick mumbled, reaching out to grasp Tim’s hand and pull it so he could place a kiss on his palm. “You don’t smell as strongly as caramel anymore.”
Tim leaned down and kissed Dick’s lips softly. “My heat’s over.”
“We need to figure out the future,” Dick whispered.
“I made a decision Dick,” Tim warned him.
“You saved Tam, now let me save you. Cass is expecting us home,” Dick countered.
“Ra’s will never let me leave,” Tim whispered.
“He will if you let me take care of it.” Dick kissed Tim softly. “Please, let me?”
Tim pulled Dick into another kiss and sent his love through the bond. “Okay,” he said, pulling away. “But if you get hurt I’ll kill you.”
“We’ll be back in Gotham before the week ends.”
