In Dick’s mind, only one sentence was now echoing in absolute chaos:
Robin is actually in Blüdhaven?! Why?!
He tried to stay calm, racking his brain for any reasonable explanation—229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAntAgSgMdY
Was it a mission? Emergency backup?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqjetM8Ma68
A covert operation arranged by Batman?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZahA372iVj
But none of these scenarios had anything to do with… a casual dinner date.
Claire didn’t bother checking his expression,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCmb0aSGWY6
nor did she turn to confirm if he was still following along.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUzlXjbcQ60
She simply raised her right hand, forming a circle with her thumb and index finger,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡATlTq0QXYK
then brought it to her lips—
FWEEEEEEEET—!
A loud, piercing whistle cut through the quiet evening.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ83FCFyJECj
Fortunately, there weren’t many people around.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE9iUEubcVd
The few passersby only glanced over before quickly averting their eyes.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvgSDZPZZvR
This was Blüdhaven—minding your own business was the only way to survive.
But—Robin heard it.
He was just swinging across the rooftop on the opposite side of the street when the sound reached him.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3E11nD7DE2
He turned immediately.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYpCj3Ft2a7
From where the whistle came, he spotted a familiar silhouette standing next to a woman he didn’t recognize.
He didn’t hesitate.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkCZRCYpUpG
His grappling line shot out again.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF76QZM2JYl
He twisted mid-air, soared across the gap, and landed with precision—229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76HM86N6nJ
as if he’d practiced that exact landing a hundred times.
And when he landed in front of Claire and Dick—229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkcXDzfbI2Z
there was a pause.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcI2ZTlDafL
The three of them stood there, wrapped in a silence so heavy, it felt like someone had hit the pause button on reality.
Dick didn’t know what to say first.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOEuzCUiupx
Robin didn’t know what to say first either.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA1GJ5HnYEF
Claire simply stood there watching the two of them, curious to see if either would break the silence.
This wasn’t some random encounter.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDQuDroEaD
This was Claire’s doing.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTXwQ462sE
She wanted to see exactly what kind of relationship this “informant” had with the Bat family.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4QbgQpxJmG
She needed a controlled experiment.
The three of them looked at one another—eye contact full of signals,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡplhbYfdpsC
but still not a single word.
Dick’s gaze shifted first.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsie1ueDyE
He quickly flashed a look at Robin, trying to convey:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTIQUTwxsPt
“Why the hell are you here?”
Then he immediately followed up with a second, more urgent expression:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSo74WNifB4
“I’m just plain ol’ Dick Grayson right now. Don’t blow my cover.”
Robin, on the other hand, eyed the pair with mild suspicion.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaYf8EuQmom
The girl was clearly dressed up.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hHeZwg486
The guy looked relaxed but well put-together.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs8v2icujTx
They were walking together down the street—
Wait… is this a date?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdYGca9GuY8
Did I just interrupt a date?
But if it’s a date, why did the girl call him here?
Claire watched them continue their silent exchange,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9T04gO885P
and then shrugged—like she’d already seen through everything,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFVKw5r1gSC
and had no intention of letting this awkward silence drag on.
She stepped forward, her voice clear and calm, instantly snapping both men’s attention back to her.
“Do you two know each other?”
Both of them shook their heads at the same time.
Identical motions.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhhiDHG5CG9
So fake it was almost insulting.
Claire raised an eyebrow, giving them a subtle “you expect me to believe that?” smile.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPEqRgQBpb
But her tone remained utterly composed:
“Is that so?”
Without waiting for their answer,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHIhRfhbd26
she calmly lifted her hand and pointed to Dick:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuovEfVI0tA
“This is Officer Dick Grayson.”
Then she pointed at Robin:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNAOCOGBEuZ
“This is Robin.”
Finally, she pointed at herself:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzBsfQF5Lm5
“I’m Claire.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqdhxWdQhWx
Nice to meet you both.”
Her tone was pleasant, her smile faint,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEAj7OgE6b
as if she were hosting the most polite and bizarre matchmaking event in Blüdhaven history.
229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIjNgAaThG0
Three people—familiar yet unfamiliar—stood together on the streets of Blüdhaven.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDB02TPc8qs
A cold wind blew past, lifting the corner of a newspaper by a trash can, sending it fluttering briefly before it dropped back down in the dark.
Claire’s introductions had ended like a sterile handoff in a lab—cold, but undeniably effective.
After introducing herself, she promptly announced,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYPhEQFNzXJ
“Alright, let’s go eat.”229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡudVsbBVhKe
Then she turned around as if this gathering was nothing more than a dinner reservation she'd made in advance.
If Dick hadn’t been here—Robin swore—he definitely would’ve declined.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfWwI06fQFS
Seriously.
Even if this woman was suspicious,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoEsnW0QH52
even if she somehow knew his name,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAdIY5kWPpx
he could’ve come up with a hundred reasons to walk away.
But the problem was—he had too many questions.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgZsj1wL2DC
And the source of those questions was standing right in front of him.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmZkHjsh3xu
His name: Dick Grayson.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsVEhqG9lbc
Current status: “normal police officer,”229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMBA9DBTL0
currently on a date with this mysterious woman.
Now he had to pretend not to know Dick…229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hjsefV2I9
and join Dick’s date.
What the hell kind of scenario is this?
He glanced sideways at Dick, his expression crystal clear:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuqCBE80yzs
“Bro. What are you doing?”
Dick was already looking at him—his face pale as chalk.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxkczZr0T4E
“I don’t know. I really don’t know.”
Walking beside Claire, Dick had completely lost his grasp on logic.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSknLvYbG3
His brain felt like it had been stuffed with bagels—twelve of them—229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjdeoBdvKMb
jammed in all at once, and not a single one swallowed.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzxNlGr2eqf
Too many questions, too many contradictions, too many puzzle pieces with no edges.
And now he had to pretend he didn’t know Robin.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWAwJEgxnv2
And the three of them were going to dinner.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPB7LLRaai5
Together.
What kind of bizarre combination is this?
If Batman found out, he might just blow up the kitchen in the Batcave.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ARF75pM8O
Was this a leak in their intel network… or some kind of multiverse misalignment?
So—did Robin know Claire?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ikecxU4JT
The thought suddenly popped into Dick’s head.
He deliberately let his arm fall to his side, slowed his pace slightly to trail behind a step,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrLhz5sqb7M
then subtly pointed a finger at Claire, silently asking,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWpIGuquvoj
“Do you know her?”
Robin shook his head.229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM6JFBb7Rql
Clean, crisp, and absolute.
Dick let out a small breath of relief.
Great. He doesn’t know her.
Which meant—now the questions became:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKopzNFJ9f7
How did she contact Robin?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtmWxuW7PT
Why did she invite him to dinner?229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZrx5cfFoJ
And why drag Dick into it too?
Even more absurd—229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnDWfeUaqCs
two out of the three people here knew each other,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRFGHj3XBU5
but had to pretend they didn’t,229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO1izp8aTyK
all while being herded together by the third person…229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpR4xwHGf1g
for dinner.
The two brothers silently watched the woman walking steadily ahead of them—Claire.
One thought passed between them:229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxGfUXNNj3
This dinner... there are going to be questions.
229Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGQEY4etZaB
and then Add to home screen.