Dick Grayson Trash

Leader in Training

-I am *This* close to writing a part where Dick cries about Spitfire. I've been listening to Satisfied too much-

It was a closed training: Batman teaching Aqualad to teach Robin how to be a good leader. Dick wasn't so comfortable, He still wasn't sure about the whole... leader thing, but Kaldur was doing his best to help him.

It was also just hard to focus, the team was in the mountain too, and Dick kept getting distracted by all the laughter outside the training room.

"Robin, focus." Batman ordered. 

"Yeah, sorry." He shook his head out. "I guess we've both got our heads in the clouds today." Dick nodded at Kaldur. "Where were we?"

Bruce sighed, he'd just had to repeat his once already for Aqualad. Of course the two potential leaders were the two of the most distracted kids in the universe. Dick needed a refill on his meds before they tried this again.

"Aqualad, I'll give you time to explain, let me know when you are ready to continue." Bats left them alone.

Kaldur snapped back to reality after a second. he was doing his best to educate Robin, but it had been a while since he was in Atlantis, and he was feeling nostalgic. "Batman wants us to read a case file and plan what our procedure would be for tackling the mission."

Dick blinked. "What? oh- right! let's read it!"

He made it through about a paragraph, when there was a shout, and the door flew open. Wally smacked into him.

"Hey Rob." He said sheepishly, pulling himself off the floor. "How's your 'privet training' going?"

Robin frowned. "It's going." He replied. He still felt uncomfortable with the rest of the team knowing about his tutoring sessions; they'd expect too much of him. "Please get out."

"Cool. so, what've you learned?"

"If you were supposed to know that, then you would've been predicted as our leader." Dick stated, maybe a little harshly, but what was said and learned between Him, Kaldur, and Bats was meant to stay that way. "We're working right now, so if you can..."

"Kay." He pulled himself off Robin and turned to the doorway. 

Artemis was leaning in it. "Come on, Kidiot, I told you they wouldn't tell us."

Wally sighed. "We should've just bugged the room."

"Guys, get out, we're working on something." Dick repeated.

"Working on what? Come on, what if you and Kaldur are both out, and you need a third potential leader to step in?"

"Then they'll call me, seaweed brain!" Artemis scoffed.

"How are you more qualified than me? you've been a hero for, like, nine months?"

"Guys!" Dick exclaimed.

She rolled her eyes. "You've been doing this two years longer than me, and we're at the same skill level."

"GUYS!"

"I never said you weren't talented, I just said that you're not leader material."

"Oh, and you are?

"Artemis, Wally, friends, may we have some privacy to keep with our training?" Kaldur asked, not even raising his voice.

"Oh, sure!" Wally ruffled Dick's hair. "Bye bye birdie!" He hummed.

"Come on, Baywatch!" 

They left, with no further argument.

Kaldur strolled across and casually closed the door, locking it. He returned to reading aloud the file Batman had given them (He was practicing his English vocabulary).

Dick watched, jaw hanging open. "How Do You Do That?!"

"Excuse me?" He looked up.

"Every time you speak, they just listen. and obey! you don't even have to yell? How do you do that?"

He looked slightly confused, as though he, himself, was not fully conscious of his charisma. "I suppose it is a skill I acquired."

"Teach me!" Dick ordered- well, more like squealed, since he wasn't exactly commanding. "You saw that back there! They didn't listen to anything I said!"

Kaldur didn't reply for a time, deep in thought. Dick didn't know whether he was going to answer, or just got distracted again. finally, after about thirty seconds, he spoke: "I think that when I don't speak much, people listen more hen I do."

Robin sighed. "Sorry, my contract requires that I have at least six quips per fight." He joked, only to realize that was the exact conversation fodder that made people tune him out. "I could never, I prattle too much." He sighed. "I lean too far into my brand."

Kaldur thought a little longer. "Maybe we can think of a compromise."

Dick smiled a little. "Let's finish this task for Batman."

-How would you feel about a short series of Kaldur tutoring Dick to be the next team leader?-