Vienna
It’s six forty-five by the time Peter finishes all the tasks he was given today, he could have finished earlier but he purposely took his time so that he could waste time before having to go and decide on a place to stay. He still hasn’t given much thought but he will figure it out, he always does.
Walking up to the front desk, he sees Barbara typing away at an insane speed on her laptop instead of the computer in front of her. He doesn’t want to interrupt her but before he can decide she looks up at him with a kind smile.
“Hey Pete, you all done?” she asks him as she turns her chair around to reach the coffee cup behind her. Peter realizes that one of the bottles of water he left her is almost empty and almost feels smug until he sees the plant next to it that seems to have a bit more life than it did earlier. If he manages to keep this job, he is going to make it his life mission to get her to actually drink water that isn’t laced with caffeine.
“Yup, all done! Is there anything else you need from me before I go?” He asks her. She tells him to wait where he is and wheels into the office behind her. A minute later she comes back out with an envelope with his name scrawled on it.
“Usually these jobs aren’t cash in hand, but I think we can make an exception. This is for today, it's a bit less than minimum wage but after the week is up we can sort it out more.” She hands him the envelope and for some reason, he feels guilty taking it. He knows he worked for it, but it feels wrong like he doesn’t deserve it.
“Thank you so much, Miss Barbara, are you sure about this?”
“Of course, a lot of people struggle to make ends meet in this city, so waiting two weeks for a paycheck isn’t ideal. It may not be entirely legal but it’s common for businesses to pay off the books, not everyone trusts banks, cash is easier for people here.” She tells him. It’s strange considering in his universe a lot of people went cashless, especially after Mr Stark introduced Stark Pay. It made it so much easier for people and in his experience made it better. But every place is different.
“Thank you again, do you still want me to work tomorrow?” Peter responds shyly, he doesn’t want to sound desperate.
“Yeah if you are still up for it! You are a really hard worker, and it’s been helpful having another person to help around here.” Thank god. He really needs this job.
“Yeah, that’s fine with me. Thank you Miss Barbara, I will see you tomorrow morning then.”
“See you tomorrow, stay safe Pete. And get something for dinner, you didn’t eat lunch today.”
Oh yeah, he completely forgot to eat lunch. Now he is aware of it, he realizes how hungry he actually is, his stomach cramping slightly at the thought of food.
He says goodbye and makes his way out of the library. The sky is almost fully dark now and he still has to find something to eat now he doesn’t have the shelter.
Looking into the envelope Barbara gave him, he realizes he was given seventy dollars for the day. He knows he is lucky for getting this job so easily, and some part of him wants to run back in there and tell her to hire someone who needs it more than him. It’s easy for him to forget the state of his life.
Not knowing what else to do, he decides to walk in a random direction, which probably isn’t the best idea in an unknown city.
Although seventy dollars may not be a lot to some people, to him, it’s like carrying diamonds. He can’t help but walk along gripping the envelope tight, this is all he has.
For the majority of Peter’s life, he was used to having little money. Always having to be told he couldn’t have a certain gift because they couldn’t afford it or never having a birthday party. It was common for them to get some supplies from the local food bank, having to get creative with the meals they had so it felt like they weren’t eating the same canned food every day.
He remembered Aunt May trying to make Peter eat when he was younger by creating little scenes with his food. One was a mountain scape made with powdered mash, frozen broccoli, and spaghetti hoops. A lot of their meals didn’t have meat in them, even to the point that he was asked if he was a vegetarian by his teacher just in case he had dietary needs.
It may not have been the easiest childhood, but he was given the best people to help him through life. By ten he was walking around the neighborhood with a bucket and sponge asking if he could wash people's cars. And by fourteen he was able to get a small Saturday job to help out as much as he could with rent. Peter was always aware of their financial situation, never asking for an allowance, always finding videos on how to fix things at home, and how to make the things they had stretch further.
It's why now, when he stands outside a fast food restaurant he feels so guilty. Knowing that the money he is about to spend could have made him and his aunt at least three meals. But he isn’t there anymore. It’s just him. So as well done for surviving his first few days in another universe, he decides to splurge some of his money on crappy processed food.
This restaurant doesn’t exist in his universe, but honestly, it probably doesn’t exist anywhere outside of Gotham. ‘Bat Burger’ turned out to be a strange Batman-themed restaurant with the menu all being themed around the Bat clan and the local villains. Some of them feel slightly insensitive, such as the limited edition ‘Two-Face Tower’ which was Frankenstein's monster if it was a burger. With half a dark bun, it had some spicy chicken filet as well as a regular one, and contradicting condiments.
It was meant to imitate the split villain but Peter thought it was just a weird thing to profit off of. Like if they made Thanos Tacos. Instead, he decided to get a Bat-Mite kids meal, a Bat-mini, and a soda called The Dark Sprite. It only took him down around twelve dollars but it still made him cringe as he paid the man behind the counter.
There wasn’t anyone behind him, and the man seemed kind enough, so Peter took out the list of addresses Dick gave him earlier.
“Sorry Sir, I was wondering if you could tell me if any of these roads are close by? I am kind of new to the area.” The man just said okay so Peter listed out the roads of the addresses.
Turns out he was only a five-minute walk from one, so that was easy. If that place doesn’t work out he will just have to ask someone else for directions to another.
After being called for his food he took the tray and sat down near the corner of the restaurant to have a view of the whole place. He was right next to a window with a peeling sticker of the Batman logo. This city must really love him.
The kid's meal box is decorated with all of the Bats with a silhouette of Gotham behind them. It’s quite cool art if he’s honest. After opening it he realizes they come with some blind bag toy which he puts aside for afterwards.
The food was decent, he didn’t really pay attention to what he was eating, more focused on what he would be doing after he left the restaurant. Peter knows he shouldn’t stay out on the streets of Gotham at night, but the idea of heading straight to this stranger's building makes his heart stutter with panic. He has no idea whether he should go or not. For all he knows everything could be a big front for something really messed up (even though he knows he is probably letting his irrational paranoia control him).
After finishing the food, he sips his drink while tearing open his blind bag toy covered with green question marks. Inside he finds what he thinks is a small figurine of Red Robin, he confirms this by matching it to the image on the side of the box. The red and black costume was crudely painted, and the plain white model was showing through in some places, but for some reason it still made Peter smile. He never really had toys or anything growing up.
Sometimes he was able to go to thrift stores with May and Ben and find toys with a few missing parts. As well as building legos with Ned, but it was actually Ned’s Lego that he let Peter share. It was cool to have a real little figurine, even if he did get it in a kid's meal.
Sliding it into his pocket, he decided it was time to leave considering he had finished his food and it would be weird to just sit there staring into space by himself.
There was a small chill to the air as he left, his joints feeling stiff as the wind rushed through the gaps in the buildings. As he walks along aimlessly fiddling with the miniature Red Robin, he notices some of the sketchy-looking people start to emerge like creatures of the night.
Deciding to do what he would back home, he finds a stable-looking ladder and climbs his way up to the roof of a semi-tall building. It is cold up here as well, but he ignores it in favor of the peace it gives him being higher up away from people.
As he sits with his legs dangling off the edge, he swings them, letting his heels lightly hit the crumbling brick each time.
Taking the toy in his hands, he fiddles with it as he looks over the alien city beyond him. The sky is heavy with pollution, giving the streets a gray wash that clings to its people. It’s nowhere near as alive as New York at night, but there is a tension that floats between the people who risk staying out.
It is completely different from home.
The only thing that could even give him a sense of familiarity was the looming building of Wayne Enterprises. The brightest building around, with people working all year round to create new technology. It wasn’t much different from the Stark Tower.
Tony would have people working night shifts because his business didn’t have time to sleep when they could be making such great scientific strides while others rested.
He misses him.
It was then that Peter remembered the EDITH glasses he had put in his bag for safekeeping. Fishing them out, he puts his Red Robin down next to him, holding the glasses between his fingers delicately.
It’s hard to look at them without being filled with a deep longing for someone he will never see again. ‘Even Dead, I’m The Hero’. Tony never saw himself as a hero. Despite being Iron Man, he was always trying to make up for the mistakes he made beforehand. But it was just his humor to try and brag about something even after his death.
In the end, he really was a hero.
Peter puts the glasses on, stupidly hoping that the tech would work in this new world. Nothing happens like he expected, but it still hurts.
As he is folding up and putting them back in his bag, a chill runs down his spine, like someone had given his spine a small electric shock.
That’s when he hears someone talk behind him.
“You know, it’s not safe to be out after curfew, kid.”
Peter turns around to see who was weird enough to start speaking to a teenager sitting on a roof and sees what must be one of the Bat-themed vigilantes. The man's step falters for a second, something akin to surprise crossing his face before he continues walking towards Peter with calculated carelessness.
The man was dressed in a skin-tight black and blue costume, his eyes covered in a domino mask. On his back are two Escrima sticks which Peter is pretty sure is used in the Philippines. Peter is trained in a few different kinds of martial arts himself.
After his parents died, he wasn’t very good at handling his grief, and often took the anger out at himself and the people close to him. Luckily, one of Uncle Ben's friends taught kickboxing classes and allowed Peter to join them for free as a way to channel his anger. He started just before his seventh birthday and continued it up until his uncle was killed.
He realized he still couldn’t help people. Despite what he had learnt he still felt weak. That’s when Ben’s friend introduced him to Krav Maga. He said it was more focused on real-world situations and would protect him to himself better. He loved it.
Black Widow would train with him sometimes, but she told him he was too violent and was still driven by anger. She guided him more towards Karate so he was learning more defensive blocking instead. It was a lot more disciplined and taught him more about mental attitude and rituals of respect. He did enjoy Kick Boxing and Krav Maga, but with Karate, he felt at peace.
The man in front of him was clearly trained in some form of martial arts, but he wasn’t necessarily muscular, more like the muscles you would see on some Olympic gymnasts.
The guys sat down next to him confidently, not looking at Peter, instead, he was looking at the city in front of them.
He didn’t speak, they both just sat there observing the world around them. After a few minutes, he looks down next to Peter and picks up his Red Robin figurine that he forgot he left out.
“Hm, I must say, my toy is much better.”
Peter can’t really remember what the rest were so he has nothing to reference.
“Hi, I’m Nightwing.” The man - Nightwing - says to Peter while holding out his hand for him to shake.
Peter isn’t planning on telling a stranger his name, but he sees no harm in shaking his hand. As he grips his hand he hears Nightwings glove squeak a little and the man sucks in a breath. Ignoring the weird behavior, Peter turns back around to look at the sky.
They sit in silence again until Nightwing speaks up.
“Did you know that the artificial light humans have created has drastically disrupted nocturnal creatures? The light from cities is thousands of times brighter than they were two hundred years ago, and now the animals that would thrive at night are being changed on a biological level, because of our species. It blurs the line of night and day.” He tells Peter in a slightly somber tone and tries to cover up the dark fact with a joke.
“Maybe that's why us Bats don’t sleep well, we can’t tell the difference between night and day at this point.” he ends with a slightly nervous laugh.
“I wish we could just turn everything off, restart. I miss the stars.” Peter replies, looking longingly at the gray-smudged sky above.
“Humans may not be able to see in the dark, but it would be a kind of peace we rarely experience. Just us and the real world around us,” he adds.
Peter can see pretty well in the dark, he can clearly make out the dark allies below, and the shadows aren’t unknown to him. He likes to think it’s because he ate his carrots growing up.
Nightwing glances at him with a strange look before humming and looking at the sky with him.
“Yeah, that would be nice.”
The small bit of peace they felt is interrupted by a crackle of static and a small voice coming from Nighwings ear. Peter glances over at him, listening into the man's comm despite knowing he probably shouldn’t be.
A lady starts telling him about someone else needing him, so Peter’s calm moment with this stranger is over. Peter furrows his eyebrows slightly, trying to remember who the people the voice is mentioning are.
Nightwing glances over at Peter, probably to tell him he needs to go, and sees him already looking over with slight shock. He answers the lady who he calls Oracle, which is an awesome name, and says he will leave now.
“You really shouldn’t stay out much longer kid, get somewhere warm. Listen… if you ever need help, there are people who care. Even when you least expect it.” he says with a soft voice. It makes Peter want to throw up. He misses that kind of worry.
“Uh, sure thing Mr Wing.” With that, the man jumps off the building and disappears into the night using a grapple gun built into the sticks
Peter doesn’t stay much longer, the cold really starts to set in. He climbs down the ladder, gripping his Red Robin tight as he makes his way to the closest address on the detective's list. He may not trust people easily, but he has to give some people the benefit of the doubt, and shelter worker Julia seems to be trustworthy. She wouldn’t have let Peter listen Dick if she didn’t trust his judgment.
It doesn’t take him long to get to the address, the building is a few stories tall and a bit run down, but he has lived in worse.
After knocking he is greeted by a middle-aged lady who doesn’t ask any questions after Peter tells him who gave him the address. It seems she is used to random people turning up and being sent by some detective.
She shows him to some room on the top which is pretty small, but honestly, he is just glad to have his own space. After explaining the rules and giving him a key, she leaves him. He is allowed to stay two nights for free before he is expected to pay a week's rent of seventy dollars. Luckily with his new job and Barbara paying him each day, he will be able to afford it.
He makes sure the door and window are locked before he dumps his bag on the floor and lays down on the bed with fresh(ish) sheets and falls asleep listening to the chatter of people in other rooms and the scuttering animals that must be hiding in the walls.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Despite his age and being a well-trained assassin, Damian's father still insisted on supervising him on patrols. It’s only been recently that he started to loosen his reins now Damian has stopped using life-endangering techniques on people who definitely deserve it.
He had just taken down a drug deal and was busy searching the imbeciles for anything else when he came across a vial of some bright purple liquid. Growing up in the League of Assassins meant he was trained to identify an extensive range of poisons and drugs (most of the time being the hard way), however, he had never seen anything like this before.
He slides into a padded section of his utility belt and makes his way back to Batman who is only a few minutes away. Just as he arrives on the roof, Nightwing grapples up from the other side.
The others have been primarily focusing on helping clean up after the Firefly attack and helping civilians. Batman isn’t too comfortable with him talking to civilians after an incident where he insulted a mother's baby. Apparently, he was meant to lie and say the child didn’t embody a deflated balloon.
Since then he has been having ‘lessons’ on how to form a conversation in the correct, non-offensive way. It is safe to say he isn’t going to be cleared for public speaking anytime soon.
Damian feels like staying out any longer is a waste of time, the others have it all covered and he would rather go back to the cave and test the liquid he found. But alas, he is stuck on this roof in a dingy rundown part of the city. Well… more rundown than usual.
He decides to lie down in the middle of the roof, despite his disgust in the state of it, as a form of protest against not being allowed to help with more.
“Red Robin, have the tests for the ashes come back?” Batman asks over his comm as he scans the city.
“Yeah one sec, it’s taken a while as we are busy with Firefly stuff.” He hears Red Robin typing away for a minute before he hears a confused sound come through his comm.
“Red, what is it?” Nightwing asks with slight worry in his voice.
“Just, this doesn’t feel like it makes sense. Somehow it’s human cells mixed with radiation and something else it can't identify. But these ashes aren’t like if you cremated a body, it’s like flakes of paint.” Now that is strange indeed.
They had been tracking the radioactive energy around the city, and it seemed to pool in certain areas.
Batman pulls up the lab results Red Robin had just sent over on the screen on his arm, and Nightwing steps towards him to get a closer look. It’s then that a small alarm on Batman’s body starts going off.
Damian shoots up, prepared and alert for the reason for the alarm, just for it to be Batman’s Personal Radiation Detector. As he takes it out, Damian sees the number flashing between one and two, low radiation, but radiation nonetheless.
“Nightwing, did you enter one of the contaminated areas? It seems to be going off due to your presence.” Damian states.
“No, none that we marked before we left. How could it even stay with me?” he denies.
The day prior they had placed Radiation Portal Monitors around the city to measure the levels of radioactivity. There were some key hot spots, one near the Diamond District shelter, which Dick investigated earlier that day, and one near Gotham Library that they had been keeping an eye on.
The levels are too low to be a weapon that someone is carrying, so Damian suggested it being some kind of radioactive meta. Of course, no one listened to him as they thought it didn’t sound entirely plausible. Damian still thinks he is onto something.
He glances over at Nightwing who seems to have a thoughtful look on his face, he is ever so slightly fidgeting, like he knows something but won’t share.
It is not like Dick to keep secrets, especially around something like this. Even if no one else is paying attention, Damian will figure it out.
He will be watching Dick, he knows something is up.
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