Blackbirds

PART 3

Alfred Pennyworth, longtime manservant to Bruce Wayne, sounding board to Batman and confidante to Nightwing, was getting married. To Dinah Lance. Black Canary. Martial arts expert, superhero and ex-girlfriend of Ollie Queen.

Dick shook his head. The situation wasn't wrong exactly, just--unexpected. He watched Alfred dab the perspiration from his mustache then flick the handkerchief into tight, neat folds and repocket it. Very, very unexpected.

Of course, the fact that Alfnow now bore a striking resemblance to Erroll Flynn made the physical attraction more understandable. Dick frowned. The change had been caused by an accidental dip in a Lazaras Pit. He glanced at Bruce. Dick still hat het heard all the details on how that had come about. Certainly Alfred deserved his recent happiness. And Dinah--Dick looked back to Alfred as if seeing him for the first time--Dinah deserved some stability in her life. He wondered how much influence Babs had had on the relationship. He had questioned her about it. Her response? A smug, satisfied look and a quip about Alfred's "amazing tiramisu".

There were bright moments while watching the guests arrive. Roy Harper entered with Lilith Clay on one arm, Sharon Tracy on the other and daughter Lian skipping in front with her flower girl basket.

And not so bright moments. A brief exchange between Diana of Themyscira and Donna Troy left both women looking unhappy. Dick made a mental note to touch base with Donna later. See how she was doing. He caught the flash of a wedding band on her hand. Smiled to himself. Added a reminder to congratulate her and Mia as well.

Dick lined up behind Bruce, the best man, and Barbara Gordon--Babs--the maid of honor. As Mia took his arm, he tapped the wedding band on her finger with a sly smile. She grinn He He whispered a quick "congrats" before they walked down the aisle to join the rest of the wedding party at the altar.

Oliver Queen had given him new ideas about what it meant to be a hero. Now, watching him escort Dinah Lance, Dick was getting new insight into what it meant to be a man. His eyes flicked over to Barbara. He couldn't imagine being in Ollie's shoes. Couldn't imagine standing aside and watching Babs marry someone else. On the other hand--he watched Ollie brush a kiss across Dinah's cheek as he handed her over to Alfred--if she was happy with someone else–

Ollie's eyes met his.

Dick searched the depths of those intent green eyes that usually showed every emotion. His failures. His triumphs. The great, lost loves of his life side by side with the not so great and soon forgotten one night stands. Dick had fallen for him at 16. Hard. Fast. Completely. And now, he was discovering years later, irrevocably.

It wasn't until Ollie raised a quizzical eyebrow that Dick realized he had been staring. He quickly looked away. Back to Barbara. He wasn't being fair to her. He could still see Ollie out of the corner of his eye. He wasn't being fair to himself.