Disclaimer: I don't own Justice League Unlimited.

New Shoes

Chapter Two: Troubling

Wally still hadn't decided if he liked this Watchtower more than the old one. The old one had been a club house in space, whereas this one felt like an office building. But it was less lonely.

And all the girls in their costumes didn't hurt either. That green haired one was driving him nuts.

Bad Wally. Keep eyes on the food. You're dating someone now.

He pictured the stunned looks on everyone's faces.

Flash? Dating? As in… a relationship?

But Flash doesn't have relationships.

Not that he was doing this to prove a point. He genuinely liked Barbara, even though he hadn't expected to judging by the way that Grayson guy was talking about her. Wally didn't get what his problem was now.

Barbara was great. She laughed at his jokes (always a plus), listened when he talked, didn't treat him like an idiot, even though he acted like one sometimes. And, of course, she had a fantastic body.

He mentally slapped himself and took a bite of his burger.

Batman had only just returned to regular duty on the Watchtower two days ago. Busy in Gotham, apparently. Wally was rapidly alternating between wanting to talk to him and just running away every time he got close.

"Flash?"

He knocked the chair over as he sprung to his feet in terror.

Elongated Man grabbed the chair with a stretchy arm.

"Whoa, buddy. Not here to hurt you."

"Oh. Sorry."

"What's got you so worked up?" he said, slipping into his chair and watching Wally as he sat in his.

"Uh… nothing. I'm just…"

"Batman?"

"Huh?"

"Batman. You're dating Batgirl now, right?"

Wally frowned. He had only met Elongated Man a few weeks before the Thanagarian invasion, but the good impression he had left led Flash to sponsor his inclusion in the new League. Of course, the only other superhero type guy Flash had known was Mophir, so they probably took Ralph to avoid the alternative.

"Creeper's one too many as it is," Clark had said.

But did Wally trust Ralph with such a potentially gossip worthy piece of news?

Hell, yes.

"Oh, yeah," he said, grinning and leaning back in his chair. "She's great."

"You gone out with her yet?"

"That's kinda part and parcel of dating someone," he whispered.

He rolled his eyes. "No, I mean have you gone out with her yet?"

"Oh, you mean- no, no crime fighting." Wally idly dipped a fry in some ketchup. "Why? You think I should?"

"Well… just to see if you've got a good working relationship. She's not in the League, is she?"

"No."

"Why is that?"

"Could you turn off the detective stuff for one minute?"

"Nope." He wiggled two fingers against his temple. "It's embedded."

"Figures. But yeah, I don't know why. She's on a break from college at the moment, so maybe it's because of that."

"But Robin and Nightwing aren't in the League either."

"Robin and who?"

"Nightwing." The look Wally gave him made Ralph sigh. "He used to be Robin."

"Oh, I met him."

"At the party?"

"Yeah, at the-" he paused. "How'd you know about that? Were you there?"

"No, I wasn't invited."

"Oh. Wait, so…" he looked from side to side. "Do you know why I was invited?"

Ralph didn't talk for a moment or two as he tested his soup. Too hot. "Photographer, or something like that."

Flash's face did something funny under his mask, and Ralph couldn't help but smile.

"Is there anything you don't know?"

"Let's see…" Ralph tapped his chin with an elongated finger. "How come you're back up here? I thought you'd taken a leave of absence to look after Central City."

"I did. I mean, I have. I just wanted to come up and check on everything. See how it's going, you know?"

"So you were lonely."

"No! I have plenty of friends in Central City."

Ralph didn't reply, instead opting for another cautious sip of his soup. Just right. "When are you seeing her again?"

"I don't know. We've both got schedules to work around."

"Starcrossed lovers, huh?"

"Drink your soup."

But it didn't stop the grin on Wally's face.

Nothing could stop the scowl on Dick's face.

It wasn't something that Tim had seen in Nightwing a lot. Batman, yes. Batgirl very occasionally (usually after some off-handed comment from Batman), but not Nightwing.

But then again, the ex-Robin was rarely in the cave long enough to sit brooding at the computer, tapping an idle finger on a bare space of control panel.

"Uh… there a problem?" Tim asked, moving over to the booth where the Robin costume was displayed.

No response. Tim shrugged and started getting changed.

"You know, if she sees you here waiting, she's gonna think it's about her…"

"It's not."

Tim gasped. "He speaks!"

Dick shot him a dirty look. "I'm looking up some case files on Poison Ivy. I think she's up to something."

"Isn't Bruce looking into that?"

"Yeah, but he's away with the League again. I figured I'd catch up on his case load."

"Why?" Tim grinned as he attached his cape. "Trying to take your mind off of Wally and Barbara?"

"No."

He answered way too quickly.

"Oh, come on, how jealous are you?"

"Zero. Nothing. As in, 'not jealous'."

"Whatever you say, but from where I'm standing it looks like your stunning blue eyes are taking on a shade of green."

"Good. Adds to my exotic appeal."

Tim groaned and walked over to the computer, domino mask dangling loosely in his hand.

"Wait…" he suddenly shot his hand out and pressed a button before Dick could react.

"I don't believe it! You're looking up Wally?"

"Well… he might be… bad news."

He smiled slyly. "For Barbara?"

"Yes. No. Yes."

"You're gonna have to pick one, chief."

"Yes, for Barbara. But it's just about her effectiveness as Batgirl. Believe me, romantic stuff can really put you off your game."

Tim nodded, seemingly considering it. "Yeah. I remember how Bruce was when he was engaged to that plant lady."

"Exactly. So you understand why I'm concerned."

"Sure I do."

"Good."

"You're jealous of Wally and Barbara, and you're covering it up by pretending to make it all about business. I swear, you're getting more like himevery day."

Dick glared. "Like him?" he said, pointing to a picture of Flash holding a Light Speed energy bar.

"No, not him. I wish."

Dick started, but Tim put his hands up.

"I don't mean, like…" he sighed. "Look, Wally's just a bit more relaxed than you. That's all. You're kinda tense."

"When am I tense?"

Tim cocked an eyebrow. "Well for one thing, you've been crushing the armrest with your hand the whole time we've been talking."

"I-" Dick's head whipped down to look, and he blinked. He hadn't realised he'd been doing that.

He scowled and looked back at the screen. "Just go to your Teen Titans meeting."

Tim smiled and turned to go, but thought better of it for a moment.

"He's an okay guy, Dick. You don't have to worry about her."

"I told you, that's not why I'm worried."

He rolled his eyes, slipped on his mask, and left the cave.

Diana tried not to roll her eyes at Wally's behaviour.

"Flash?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you doing?"

He peeked out from behind the chair. "I thought you said Bats was coming."

"No, I said Batman was on his way."

"Oh. Okay." Slowly, he rose, still looking around before he decided all was safe and flopped into the command center chair.

J'onn rarely elected to sit for his duties. It worried Diana sometimes.

"Why are you hiding from Batman?"

Wally very nearly shot her a sarcastic look, but quickly remembered who he was talking to.

"Because I'm dating his sidekick."

Instantly Diana tried to remember.

"R-"

"Batgirl," he intervened quickly. "Batgirl."

She nodded, hiding her smile. "And… why would that make you want to hide?"

"Have you met Bats? Moody, pointy ears?" he asked, putting his fingers up on either side of his head to emphasise.

Rather than replying verbally, she just gave him a look that instantly made him shrink.

"So… uh, yeah. He wouldn't exactly take it well."

"Why not?" Something clicked in her head. "Are they…?" She didn't finish the sentence, but it was enough for Wally to eventually get the gist.

"What? Ew, no! Yikes, what makes you think Bats would go there?" He put up his hands. "Okay, totally didn't mean that like it sounded. But Batgirl's my age and Bats is… what? Fifty?"

Diana smiled. "Not exactly. But I get your point." She frowned. "So why are you hiding from Batman?"

He sighed. "Not gonna let this go, huh?"

Her smile returned.

"Okay… Bats is a protective guy. And, y'know, he doesn't like me much, so I don't think he'll be too happy."

"What makes you think he doesn't like you?"

"Well… maybe 'doesn't like' is a bit harsh. But I'm not exactly best buds with him."

"Who is?"

This time Wally shot her a look, but instead of responding she just walked to the control panel and started pushing some buttons.

"I think you should give Batman a chance," she said plainly. "He might not react as badly as you think."

"…right. And what happy pills have you taken this morning?"

"I'm serious, Flash," she replied, turning to look at him. "Just talk to him."

He crossed his arms and half-heartedly stamped his foot. "But I don't want to…" he mumbled.

J'onn strolled over from the other side of the command center.

"Batgirl?" he asked, and Diana nodded. After rapidly tapping away on a few different control panels, he turned to look at Wally. "By the way, Batman is now on the Watchtower."

Flash almost leapt out of his chair. "Oh! That's good."

Diana directed a 'well?' eyebrow in his direction.

He sighed and relaxed in his chair. "Guess I should go tell him, huh?"

"I would think that he already knows," J'onn added.

Both of his companions looked at him.

"Do you know that? Did you take peek in his head?"

"No," he said quickly, sounding insulted. "I am merely saying that he is the World's Greatest Detective."

Wally lit up. "So I can just assume he knows and go out with Batgirl, right? Because he would have done something about it if he already knew, right? So I can just…"

A black leather clad hand landed on his chair and spun it around.

The nervous smile on Wally's face only got worse as he spoke. "Hey, Bats… how's it going?"

He leaned in far too close.

"You hurt her, and I will maim you."

After holding Wally's gaze for about a year, he suddenly stood up to his full height and walked over to J'onn, talking to him about how the Javelin bay doors could open faster.

Diana patted his shoulder. "See? Easy."

He nodded and laughed, but it sounded more like a hiccup.

The sound of his earpiece beeping was more annoying than it usually was. Dick put it down to the fact that he was trying to concentrate.

"Yeah?"

"Hey, it's Robin. How's it going?"

He frowned and put the binoculars to his face. "Fine."

"Any problems? Because I can be there like a Flash."

"Ha, ha."

"But seriously, I can be there if you need me."

"It's under control."

"What is it? Poison Ivy?"

"Not exactly."

"Harley Quinn?"

"No."

"Joker?"

Dick didn't respond.

"Ventriloquist?"

The silence continued.

Tim voice went deadly low. "Killer Croc."

Nothing.

"Oh, man… tell me you're not spying on her."

Dick still didn't say anything, and Tim groaned loudly.

"Geez, why are you trying to act like Batman?"

"I'm not. I'm just looking out for her."

The smirk was audible. "So you are jealous."

"I'm concerned. And the big bad Dark Knight doesn't seem to be taking an interest, so somebody's got to do it."

"That's because Batman knows him. He trusts him."

"Batman doesn't trust anyone, Tim."

"He trusts you not to do stupid stuff like this."

For a moment, Dick was without a retort.

"You really believe that?"

"Yeah, I do." A loud yawn came over the comm.

"You sound tired."

"I'm okay."

"Go to bed."

"I'm okay," he said again, more insistent.

"I'll tell Alfred."

Silence.

"Fine. But try to leave her alone, okay?"

Dick adjusted his binoculars.

"Okay?"

"Yes, okay."

"Good. See you tomorrow."

"Night."

"You should listen to him."

Dick whirled around, throwing stars wedged between his fingers. He relaxed when he recognised him, but not much.

"God… You should warn a guy."

"Not when he's got throwing stars." Batman walked over and stood beside him, looking over into the building opposite.

An eyebrow rose. Did Batman just make a joke? Bruce hadn't made a joke in his presence since he was Robin.

He held out a hand to Dick. It took him a few seconds before he handed over the binoculars.

"They look like they're enjoying themselves." Batman continued looking at them, but spoke directly to Dick. "Maybe you should be, too."

Dick was starting to feel a bit embarrassed. "Look… I just wanted to-"

"I know what you wanted to do," he said with surprisingly gentility, looking over at him. "But I think you should let it go."

"But he's…" he drooped. "He's not good for her."

"That's not for us to decide."

Old wounds stung for a moment, and the familiar anger rose.

"That's a bit rich, isn't it? Coming from you?"

The Dark Knight didn't reply. At least, not to his question.

"Let her make her own decisions, Dick."

He went to the other side of the rooftop before firing off a line, trying to avoid being spotted by Barbara and maybe Wally if he was observant enough.

Dick stared down at the building opposite, and watched as Wally held Barbara's hand across the table.

Smiling.

Laughing.

He groaned quietly and rubbed his eyes through his mask.

What the hell was he doing?

"What the hell was that?"

Dick rubbed his eyes as he sat up in bed. The haze cleared when he saw the yellow bat symbol glowing in the darkness.

"Barbara?" he asked sleepily.

"Don't you 'Barbara' me. I saw you hanging around on that rooftop. Let me guess, Intergang was having a get together a few tables away from us, was that it?"

"Uh…" he sighed. "Listen, I'm sorry, I just-"

"Damn right, you're sorry. I like Wally. Just leave it alone, okay?"

Dick frowned. That sounded like a plea.

"Barbara… what do you think I'm going to do? Stalk you?"

"Isn't that the technical term for what you were doing?"

"Nah, I was just suggestively looking in your direction."

"This isn't funny, Dick."

He shuffled himself until his back was against the headboard, then reached over and turned on the bedside lamp. In the half cast light, Barbara resembled Bruce when he wrapped his cape around himself.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"What's up with you? I was expecting this from Bruce, and for you not to give a damn. Instead-"

"Wait, hold up. You were expecting Bruce to…" A bitter smile crossed his face. "Should've known."

Barbara cocked her head to the side, her hands on her hips. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Don't shut me out like that, Dick. It's like talking to Bruce, except he's getting better and you're getting worse."

Dick got out of bed. "Maybe I've got reason to," he muttered, making his way into the dojo area downstairs.

"What?"

"Nothing. Look, Barb, you're angry, I get that. But I've apologised and I'm not gonna do it again. So could you please just leave it at that? This isn't worth picking at, trust me."

She followed him down the stairs. "Why? Something you don't want me to see?"

He clenched his teeth. "For one minute, could you just…" A sigh relieved the tension in his body. "Just leave, okay? I won't bother you about Wally again."

He expected another retort.

"Good."

The window opened.

"See you, Dick."

He heard the faint noise of the grappling gun, and swoosh of air.

Dick, standing in front of his Nightwing costume, thought about going to bed.

A few hours later, Nightwing was on the prowl in the streets of Gotham.