Gotham was the same monochromatic array of gargoyles and gloomy buildings that she last remembered. It seemed as if nothing there had changed.

But not long had passed with her in that city when she realized a lot had changed.

She went to Drake Manor first but found it locked with the neighbors telling her that it had been sold off and the current owner wasn't Jack Drake. They had no idea where the man was so Sayuri had no other option but to go to Drake Corporate's building.

And that was where the shocking truth was revealed. When she met the caretaker CEO Daniel Sanders, he told her about the case Jack had been involved in as a result of which he had been sent to prison.

She couldn't believe that her father could have shot somebody but right then, there was another pressing issue. If Jack was in prison and that was why she couldn't contact him, then where was Tim?

Daniel explained the situation to her and through him, she got the contact number for Wayne Manor.

She didn't remember them being acquainted with Bruce Wayne back when she had been living with them in Gotham. So all she could do was to get in touch with him and inquire about Tim.

She left Drake Corporate and without wasting any time, she went to the nearest phone booth and dialed the number she had gotten.

A few rings later someone picked up the phone and a very cheerful voice greeted her from the other side. "Morning from Wayne Manor. Richard Grayson at your service; how may I help you?"

She paused, not expecting that unusual greeting but at least the person was speaking from Wayne Manor so she had dialed the right number. "May I speak to Mister Wayne, please?"

There was a short pause but then he answered, "Bruce isn't at home. I suppose you were going to call his workplace but accidentally got this number?"

She checked the note Daniel had given her but there was no other number written on it. "This is the only number I have. I really want to meet him, it's urgent. Could you please arrange that for me?"

"But Miss, I hardly even know your name, nor do I know what reason you have for meeting him. How can I possibly arrange anything for you?"

"Mister Grayson, I don't know who you are either," she remarked straightforwardly, "but it has come to my knowledge that Mister Wayne recently adopted Timothy Drake after his father Jack Drake was imprisoned. I wish to speak to him regarding that."

Surprise was evident in his tone at her words, "it wasn't that recent...? Tim has been living with us for three years now."

She sighed, of course, she had no idea when exactly Tim had been takin in by the Waynes. She had no means of keeping in touch with him since the past many years.

"Well, I hadn't known that. I recently found out," she corrected herself, hoping that he would give the phone to Bruce Wayne quickly so that she might get things over with, "but I assure you that I really have to talk to Mister Wayne about this."

"Alright then, can I have your name and your relation to Timothy at least?"

"Sayuri Drake. I'm his elder sister."

By the shocked silence she was met with from the other side, it was safe to assume that Tim hadn't told his foster family about her.

"Well... As I said earlier, Bruce isn't at home. So it won't be possible for me to do anything right now."

"Hey wait, this is Wayne Manor, right? Can I talk to Tim then? Is he at home?"

The abrupt change of her tone, from solemnly formal to slightly hopeful, wasn't missed by him, "he left for school, Miss Drake."

"Oh... I... Thanks for the help, Mister Grayson," her voice dropped.

However, just as she was about to hang up, an idea flitted through Richard's head and he spoke up, "wait, don't hang up. I know what I can do for you. Tim will come back around 2, and I'll let him know about you and we'll call you back. On this very number, I suppose?"

"No no, it's a calling booth," she replied however, the lilt in her voice was back.

"Do you have a personal phone?" He asked and she considered how to respond to that.

"Yes, but..."

"Rest assured, Miss Drake, I'm not going to ask you to give me the number while you're in a calling booth. However, you can note down mine and text me later with your own phone. And then soon as Tim returns, he'll call you."

There was a while of silence after which she spoke again, "thank you, Mister Grayson."

"May I give the number now? Pen and paper at the ready?"

"Yeah sure."

She quickly noted his number on her phone saving it under the name Grayson. After giving her the number, he hung up but the cheerfulness of his voice still rang around her.

Either he was genuinely a very happy person or that was his way of talking on the phone.

Whatever the case, she was more eager to hear from her brother. And so she couldn't wait for him to come back from school so that she'd finally call him and talk to him.

She knew that Tim must have been through a lot too back when Jack was imprisoned and he had no one else to count on. But now that she had come back, she wanted to assure him that she was always going to be there for him.

***

"Hey Tim, I've got to talk to you."

Tim had just placed his bag down when he looked up to see Richard standing at the door, "hi Dick, come in."

He looked quite tired and Richard noticed that as he gently ruffled his hair, "are you going to take a nap?"

"I will after I take a shower. But first, tell me what you came here for."

Richard considered letting the boy freshen up first, but then he recalled the urgency in the mystery Drake girl's voice. "Someone called for you today when you were at school. She wanted to talk to you urgently."

"She?" Tim raised an eyebrow quizzically, "that's a bit unexpected."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly. She was asking for Bruce initially as she wanted to discuss your adoption case with him. But when I told her he wasn't at home, she asked to talk to you instead."

"Dick, you're terrible at making situations suspenseful, just tell me what was her name please."

"Sayuri Drake."

Hearing the name, his expression changed from uninterested to thoroughly shocked and he looked up at him with wide eyes, "you're not kidding, are you?"

"Does this seem like the time for me to crack stupid jokes?" he shook his head, "I'm dead serious."

"Oh my gosh..." Tim was quite still for a while even though it was evident from his eyes that he was more than just shocked at the moment. Gradually, a smile spread on his face, "I knew she'd come back."

"Hey wait a second here. Is she really your sister?"

"Of course she is! I've got to meet her. I'm going right now."

Richard grabbed hold of the overexcited boy, making him sit back down. He had never before seen him so excited that he forgot what he was doing. "Tim, wait, do you even know where to find her?"

He paused, then turned to face him, "well, you tell me then."

"I don't know either."

Surprise took over his face, "what? Hadn't she given you any way to contact her; a phone number at least?"

"I don't have hers, but I had given her mine."

He took out his phone and sure enough there was a text message from an unknown number. He opened it and Tim craned his neck to look.

Don't tell Tim straight away or else he won't be able to have his lunch. Ask him to call me after he's fully refreshed, I know school can be tiring.
Sayuri.

"See, she wants you to have lunch first, take a shower and then call her."

Tim's eyes were shining with happiness, "it's her... I can't believe it."

"Come now kiddo, lunch's getting cold," Richard patted his back lightly, pushing him towards the bathroom so that he could freshen up then come downstairs with him for lunch.

***