I know, there are already a lot of Origin stories for Dick, just in the comics. But we never saw any of those on screen - and this one has a specific point of view: Dick's.

Because, some day, I found myself wondering what would be needed to make a good Robin movie, and the answer was: to make it a Robin movie, not a Batman one.

Since I'm no billionaire nor producer, here's the fic based on that idea ;)

xoxoxoxo

Chapter 1

The sun shone high in a spotless blue sky, keeping the air warm despite a chilling wind more suited to this late October. The leaves had put on their brightest colors, yellow, orange, a few already darkening, their dance putting some color in the dark, gloomy city for Gotham.

This year, however, not only autumn pared the place with its colors. In a disused playground park from Gotham Village, stripped marquees were now raising brightly. And not only that! Fascinating folks were preparing their show, two tigers yawned in their cages, candy shops were erected where there had been none.

At the entrance of this unexpected little borough, a shining sign announced that this was Haley's circus in town, only 10$ for kids, a magnificent show! Clowns, tigers, flames, elephants! And the best of all – the Flying Graysons in their Flight of Death!

Fearless, certainly, because perched on the 9 feet high sign, a kid seemed busy with a multicolored paper chain the other end of which was already tied to the very top of the circus' big top, flapping at the wind.

"Dick!" someone called from one of the caravans. "Dick, are you done? We have to rehearse before noon!"

"Almost, mom!" the kid swore, grinning while finishing to tie up his end of the paper chain. "I just have to get down, now."

It wouldn't have been a problem for him to slide down to the ground – 9 feet wasn't all that high – but when he prepared himself to do just so, something grabbed him by the collar and lifted him gently from the sign.

He squealed, surprised enough to let go of the wooden plank, his eyes widening as he was put safely back to the ground. Baffled, he turned around – and started laughing when he realized who had so offhandedly helped him: the local elephant.

"Zitka!" he chuckled. "You're not supposed to run around like this! Also, how did you manage to make so little noise?"

Obviously, Zitka the elephant didn't answer. Dick still hugged her huge leg, then poked her to make her turn around.

"Come on. Mom is waiting for me and I'm sure someone's looking for you, too."

Good humored, Zitka followed him to the section where they had assembled the tigers, Zitka's fence, the horses, and the serpents' cages. One of the men busy there, Peter, folded his newspaper and came over thanked Dick for his help.

"We had just realized she was missing, and she's just that good at hiding for such a huge lady."

Dick raised his eyebrows at the newspaper Peter was still holding. It titled "Incorruptible Dent cleanses Gotham" – how was that interesting enough for him not to realize his elephant had gone for a walk?

Rather than pushing, Dick still choose to laugh it off.

"She is, isn't she? She actually managed to startle me!"

"Care to give us a hand with Gunther and Gurbel?" he proposed, waving at the tigers yawning in their section.

"Sorry, mom's already waiting for me. Tomorrow?"

"That's a deal!"

Dick grinned then ran back to his family's caravan, hoping his mother wouldn't be too mad at him for being late. She was waiting for him at the entrance, hands on her hips.

"Here you are! I didn't see you around the sign anymore, where did you go?"

Despite the frown, her eyes were smiling, so Dick grinned.

"Just helped Zitka back to her fence. Should I put on the training suit?"

"No, use your performance second-best. This city is a big one, the show will have to be perfect. And the only way to do that…"

"Is training", Dick finished for her.

She grabbed him as he tried to get pass her, kissing his hair.

"That's my little bird. Go change, your father and I will be waiting for you in the big top."

He nodded and ran at his bed, where his suit had already been prepared. He smiled while changing. With the sun outside, they expected a lot of people to show up this evening. It was going to be an amazing show.

Ten minutes later, he was running toward the big top in his green and red thighs. They were starting to be a bit too small for him, his mother was going to curse his growth spur for sure.

"I'm done being patient, Haly", a voice said from the other side of a caravan. "This is my town, it goes by my rules. Do you understand me?"

Dick froze at the menacing tone. He didn't recognize anyone from the circus. What the hell was happening?

Silent as a ghost, he slipped between two caravans to take a look at whoever was talking. Three sinister men were standing right outside Haly's place. They wore pointy hats and one of them was smoking a cigar. Dick could smell its stench from where he was hiding.

Why was he hiding? They weren't supposed to be there – he was. And yet… Yet he felt scared for some reason. His instincts insisted for him not to show himself. You should always listen to your instincts, son, his father kept telling him. In the air like in life, they are right more often than you think.

"Listen, Mr Zucco. We're only here for a few days, that's all. Then we'll be gone."

"I don't care how long you're here", the smoker pointed out. "I made you an offer. If you refuse… Heh, who knows what might happen?"

"It's only for a few days. You won't even feel like we're here. I don't want trouble."

The men laughed. It didn't feel funny nor nice.

"Then you should pay, Haly. I'll send someone later on. Don't be surprised by the consequences if your answer is still the same."

The three men left at last. Dick didn't feel relieved at all. He waited for them to be totally out of sight before getting out of his hideout – but he didn't dare to talk to Haly. Instead, he slipped on the other side of the caravans, getting back on his way to the big top.

He had a rehearsal to start and that required his full attention. Soon, he'd forgotten everything about the accident.

xoxoxoxo

The big top was packed full, as planned, and until now the show was a success! Dick felt the usual thrill of adrenaline while getting prepared to climb on the mat, dressed in his very best, this time. His dad nodded at him and they slipped at the mat's base, climbing while Jefferson, the ringmaster, distracted the crowd by talking, starting his presentation of the Flight of Death.

Dick beamed while observing the sea of people above them. A lot of kids, families, but also couples who wanted to enjoy a magical evening. He couldn't wait to start! Performer born and raised, he loved to see all those faces turning to him in awe. It was an amazing experience.

Then finally the spotlight turned to them – his father and him on one mat, his mom on the other. Dick grinned, waving at the crowd, then specifically at their surprise VIP of the evening: Bruce Wayne, who attended without notice, taking them all by surprise. All performers had been told to pay a special attention to him anyway.

The show began, his parents soaring into the void, flying. His mother let go of her trapeze, curling in the air in a perfectly calculated curve – until his father caught her by the wrists. People were already making ohs and ahs while the couple swung back to Dick's platform.

Dick prepared himself, still grinning, delighted to make people smile, and jumped to join them in. The crowd gasped as his father let go his mother to catch him, Dick and her exchanging places on the trapeze.

"And here is the Boy Wonder, Dick Grayson of the Flying Graysons!" the ringmaster was announcing, while the crowd cheered at their success.

Dick had been grinning for so long his cheek ought to hurt. His father winked at him while they landed back on the platform.

"Feel ready for the quadruple?"

"You bet!" Dick answered, feeling up for anything.

His dad nodded at him then sent him back flying for the next part. Dick only made a double to reach his mother who was waiting to catch him. At next pass, he grabbed the trapeze to be next to her, shoulder to shoulder, making his body move alongside hers like a smaller shadow.

This part of the routine was new since, at twelve, Dick was finally close enough to his mother's weight to pull this one off. They jumped together, following the exact same curve, and caught together the bar John Grayson was now holding in his hand like an extension of the trapeze.

People cheered again, clapping. Dick could see a lot of them were on their feet already, fascinated by the performance. This was good!

His mother and he let go his father's bar at the same time to go back to their platform. His mom smiled at him.

"You're sure about the quadruple?"

Dick nodded, serious all of a sudden. He hadn't missed one in months, but hadn't performed so many of them during a real show, and never without a net like tonight. Yet, he knew he could do it.

"Alright. Now is the time then."

She made a sign to the ringmaster, who in his turn waved at the musician for them to start rumbling at their drums, warning everyone that something special was being prepared.

"And now, the most difficult trick of them all, the very one only three people on Earth can do… but our Boy Wonder can… The quadruple somersault!"

Flying was as easy as walking, as easy as breathing. But this – this one was hard, this one Dick had had to work to reproduce. However, he felt no fear at all while soaring from the platform. He felt the wind, heard the almost-silence beneath him, then just… flew.

One second – and it was done, his father's hand clasping safely around his wrists. He had made it! He grinned at the crowd in answer to their ovation, then went safely back to the platform while his parents finished the show.

He had made it! People looked so happy! One of the kids wasn't even watching the end of the performance, staring at Dick with so much awe he was gaping from it. Dick winked at him, hoping he would see it even from so far away.

Then a strange sound slammed under the marquee. Dick's attention snapped back to his parents. One of the trapeze's ropes had broken.

His dad was still holding on by one arm, his other still clinging to her mom's wrist.

The music was stopping.

Someone screamed.

One of the trapeze's ropes had broken.

"Mom!" Dick shrieked. "Dad!"

Another snap echoed in the ring. The other rope had given in. People screamed. There was movement beneath him.

All Dick could see was his parents falling. Falling. Falling.

"Nooo!"

He jumped, not caring about his own safety, one hand grabbing the remaining trapeze while his other tried to catch the rope – but too late. Way too late. They had reached the ground in a horrifying, humid noise.

Dick was left alone on the trapeze.

xoxoxoxo

Even much later, Dick never remembered exactly how he had gotten down from the trapeze. Peter and Jefferson were there, and Joey and Pedro and all the others, while Mr Haly tried to calm the crowd down. Dick felt cold. His legs were trembling. His vision wasn't exactly blurry but he couldn't really see anything, either.

"Kid?"

Someone was talking to him. Somehow, it didn't feel very important.

A hand landed on his shoulder.

"Your name is Dick, right?"

His name brought some of his attention back into present times and Dick focused on his interlocutor at last. He was a tall, good-looking man. He was studying his face. His clothes seemed nice. The face wasn't familiar and yet, not entirely unknown, either.

A name finally emerged from Dick's foggy thoughts.

"Mr Wayne?"

"Yes. Yes, please call me Bruce. Dick, you should sit down."

Why had the others let him near? Outsiders weren't allowed backstage. But this was a VIP. Maybe that was why.

The hand on his shoulder guided him gently yet firmly to a chair. Dick felt too exhausted to resist. He sat down. Something warm landed on his shoulders. It was the man's coat, Dick realized. He made a movement to protest, but Bruce Wayne stopped him.

"Keep it. You need it more than I do, right now."

Dick didn't insist further. It was so cold… He grabbed the coat's tails to close it around him. It smelled of expensive cologne. His eyes were wet. Dad…

"Why aren't the cops here already?" Peter was asking, his anger audible despite his undertone.

"Those things take time…"

"Two people just d…"

"Hush!"

Dick ducked his head. Mom. Dad. He couldn't… He didn't manage to… It didn't sink in. Not really. This felt like a dream. Nightmare. Whatever. Not real.

"Don't worry", Bruce Wayne told him in a strangely shooting voice. "They will be there. We will find out what happened."

Did it matter? Dick wondered, before deciding that yes, it did. They had rehearsed the routine in the afternoon and had of course checked the ropes in prevision of the net-less performance. Everything had been normal.

Everything, except…

Dick grabbed the man's sleeve.

"This wasn't an accident", he whispered in confidence.

It pained him to admit as much, especially since he wasn't sure, not sure at all. He didn't know what would be worse, actually. An accident was dramatic and devoid of any meaning. A murder… That meant someone had to pay.

"No, it wasn't", Bruce confirmed, startling him out of his thoughts.

He looked up at the man once again. Seeing that, the richest man of Gotham got down on one knee to talk to him face to face.

"Don't worry about that right now. Whoever did this will be stopped. You know what? Since the cops aren't here yet, I'm going to call the best detective in town to put him on the case. What do you think?"

Dick nodded. This would be… good, right? Bruce didn't get back on his feet to make the call, waving at someone to bring him a chair instead. Weirdly enough, someone did, so he could make his call without leaving Dick.

Only then the kid realized he was still holding the man's sleeve. He hesitated to let it go, but he didn't want to. The others were all glancing at him while trying not to look him in the eye. They were nervous, they were… painfully familiar.

In comparison, Bruce Wayne felt strangely steady. Strong? Like he knew how Dick felt. Like he knew what would happen, what should happen, and that he'd actually make it happen. Because he was so rich? Dick didn't know.

"Jim? This is Bruce. There's been a double homicide in Gotham Village, at the circus. Yes. No, they still aren't there. Of course someone called 911! Yes, I'm sure. I'm with their kid right now. … Yes. … Thank you, Jim."

He hung up. Dick stared at him, but the man seemed lost in his thoughts. It took him a few seconds before noticing.

"He's on his way. You will see, Jim Gordon is very nice. He… You can trust him. Okay?"

Dick nodded. Bruce's face softened.

"I'm staying here until he arrives. Is that alright?"

Dick tried to smile. It didn't work out, but Bruce seemed to get the meaning anyway. He gently put his free hand back on Dick's shoulder.

"I'm here."

So he was. They waited.

xoxoxoxo

Outside, the night was cold, despite Bruce Wayne's warm coat still hanging around him. The medical assistant who had arrived at the same time as Jim Gordon had given him some tea before declaring him fit to answer the detective's questions. He had then left to go inside. Dick tried not to think of what he was doing now.

He concentrated on Jim Gordon instead. Bruce Wayne had left him in his care after having made the presentation. Lieutenant Jim Gordon from Major Crimes, he had said. The man wasn't wearing a uniform, which Dick felt reassuring. Somehow, his Columbo-like trench-coat and the smell of cigarettes floating around him helped as well. Then again, he talked softly but confidently.

"We will follow this lead, of course, son. Not certain it's related to what happened, but we will follow it anyway. Would you be able to recognize the men if you saw them?"

Dick brought back his memories from the afternoon, thinking hard.

"The one with the cigar, Zucco, I could. He did all the talking. The other two… I didn't really look at them."

The detective nodded.

"Good. It's better than nothing. I know you would like to stay here for a moment, and get some rest, but do you think you could come over at the police station to see a sketch artist? Maybe tomorrow?"

"Now is better", Jim Gordon's partner interrupted. Dick didn't think much of him. That one smelt of alcohol. He recognized the signs. His mother always told him to stay away from such men. "If they realize the kid saw something… We'd better get this wrapped up asap."

Jim frowned at his partner but didn't contradict him. Dick squared his jaw. He didn't care about being in danger, but he wanted those men stopped.

"I can come now."

"We can wait for tomorrow. Honestly, the sketches aren't easy to do. People's memories are bad."

"You could also ask Mr Haly."

"We will, son."

Jim's partner snorted. Bruce Wayne had presented both of them when they had arrived, Jim much warmly than the other man. What was his name again? Bullock, Dick remembered.

"What are you implying, detective Bullock? That I'm a liar?"

"After an accident like this, people don't like talking, that's all what I'm saying."

Jim glared at Bullock again, but too late. Dick paled. God, would those men hurt someone else? Would they do worse if they talked?

"We'll be leaving a patrol for the night", Jim reassured him. "They will accompany you to our office tomorrow."

Dick shook his head, careful not to spill any of his tea.

"Really, it's better now. Like you said, memories fade quickly. The sooner the better."

The two men exchanged glances over his head, too quickly for Dick to read the conversation they weren't having. At the end of it, Jim sighed.

"Alright, let's go, then. I don't want this to last longer than necessary. Harv, can you take a look at the scene?"

"Sure thing."

Dick looked at the fat man critically, then turned back to Jim.

"I can wait for you two to be done."

Jim's mustache twitched. Bullock rolled his eyes and went back inside the big top. Dick frowned.

"He is a good cop", Jim assured him.

Dick guessed he had to take his word for it. Jim called a patrolman from afar, asking him to bring them both back to the precinct. Probably a fancy name for the police station, because Jim invited him to get in the car. Dick hesitated on what to do with his drink.

"Just take it along", the patrolman told him while coming near. Ah, no, it was a patrolwoman. She had dark hair. Like his mom. "You'll be careful, won't you? And it's only tea."

Dick settled on the backseat, buckling his belt. Both Jim and the patrolwoman seated on the front. The busy noises from the outside faded as the door closed. Soon, only remained the engine regular rumble and the radio faint cracklings, bits of conversations and announcements Dick couldn't quite make out.

He looked outside to cast one last glance at the circus – and frowned. He could have sworn to have seen a strange, moving shadow at the top of the marquee.

xoxoxoxo

Notes:

For those who wonder: yes, those were Easter eggs (yes, there were more than one :p).

Please let me know if you like the concept so far :)