Hello everybody! So this is based solely off of my personal knowledge of Batman. I don't read the comics, but I feel pretty good about the knowledge that I do have. This is also my first Batman/DC universe fic (I don't know why we all feel the need to say something like that).

Anywho, this story is going to be a slight AU fic. I was originally intended as a oneshot...but it got kinda long...so it's a multi-chapter fic now. At most it will be four chapters long...probably.

This is actually going to be the first fic in a series set in the "Shifter" universe as I call it, based mostly on the Batfamily (because it's awesome!). I apologize for any OOC-ness, especially with Bats. I will also be including an OC in these fics, just a heads up.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

P.S. Robin is nine and has been Robin for about a year.

Now ONWARD!

Fear.

It was the only thing she felt; coursing through her veins, locking her feet in place. She opened her mouth, to cry out in surprise, to scream, to beg of mercy, but all of her words died on her trembling lips. The man looming before her regarded her silently, his masked eyes holding her in place as time seemed to stand still. The man had many names, all of which struck fear to the very core of her being.

The Caped Crusader.

The Dark Knight.

Batman.

Her breath caught in her throat. She didn't understand; Batman only came after criminals; she hadn't done anything wrong. She was only helping the people who had taken her in and off the streets. How was that bad? She hadn't done anything wrong!

But you have done something wrong. Whispered a voice in the back of her mind.

She clamped her eyes shut, trying to will away the fear, the guilt, the pain, the memories. A sudden explosion and the sound of a young boy calling out to the Dark Knight, and suddenly, time was moving again. Rough hands grabbed her from behind and threw her into the back of a van. The doors slammed shut, and the sound of tires screeching against pavement was the last thing she heard before her world went black.

"Batman…was that a girl?" Robin asked as he came to stand by his mentor. "She looked like she was my age."

Batman frowned before turning on his heel and heading toward the batmobile, Robin following after a moment.

"Hey, wait!" he called, "Aren't we going after them?"

Batman shook his head. "No."

He had research to do.

"You ungrateful little brat!"

A fist connected with her jaw, snapping her head to the side and knocking her back a few steps. She didn't say anything as the man in front of her continued to beat her. A woman and a teenage boy stood off to the side, watching the exchange, their smoldering eyes boring into the girl's small, vulnerable form.

"Well?" the man asked, "What's your excuse?" He grabbed her by the collar of her shirt, hauling her up so she was at his eye level. The girl swallowed. Her body screamed in pain. They had never beaten her this bad before; she must have really messed. The only problem was, she couldn't figure out what she had done wrong. He shook her. "WELL?"

"B-Batman…h-he was t-th-there…"

"SO? You're a damned meta! You should have used your powers to take him out!"

Her eyes widened. "But Batman is a good guy." She said it so softly, he almost didn't hear.

"And we're criminals!" he yelled, shaking her to get his point across. She froze. Criminals…She felt her eyes fill with tears, not because of pain, but because of realization. In that back of her mind she had always known, but had never wanted to acknowledge what these people were, what she now was.

"B-but…"

"If Batman catches us, we'll be thrown in jail! Is that what you want? IS IT?"

He continued shaking her and her vision started blurring. She didn't know how long she would be able to stay conscious.

"Sam." The man finally stopped and dropped her to the ground with a heavy thud. He turned to the woman, who had walked up behind him. "If you keep this up, you'll kill her. And she isn't any use to us dead."

"I know, Joan, I know! But this brat doesn't understand! She just -"

"I know, baby." Joan said, placing a hand on Sam's arm. Sam stepped back as she walked toward the girl. Grabbing a fistful of her chocolate brown hair, Joan pulled up the girl's head so that green eyes met her own black ones. "Sophia," Joan said softly, Sophia gulped, Joan's voice may have been gentle, but it was emotionless and her eyes were cold, "if you let Batman take us to jail, then you won't have a home anymore. Is that what you want?"

Sophia's crimson eyes widened and she frantically shook her head, ignoring the fact that Joan still had a tight grip on her hair. To lose her home, no matter how bad it was, was her greatest fear. Joan tightened her grip on Sophia's hair, forcing the girl's terrified eyes to stay locked on her hard, cold expression.

"Then the next time you see Batman," she hissed, her voice low and deadly, "use your powers to end him."

Sophia's eyes widened in horror. They wanted her to kill Batman? Before she could fully process this, Joan threw her across the room, her already bruised and battered body slamming painfully into the wall.

"Harry." The teenage boy stepped forward. "Take care of her."

A cruel smirk tugged at Harry's lips. "Sure thing, Mom."

Sophia became dimly aware of Joan and Sam leaving the room and Harry walking up to her limp, helpless form. Harry's voice cut through the air, sending chills down her spine.

"Sweet dreams."

A sharp pain shot through her skull and then everything want black.

Bruce Wayne rested his elbows on the control panel of his computer, lacing his fingers together in front of his face as he re-read the results of his research. He found files on everyone but the one he wanted: the girl. She was different from the other three; the air around her was innocent, but fearful. Not malevolent or greedy like the others.

"Got anything yet?"

Bruce leaned back in his chair as Dick came up to stand beside him. "Samuel and Joan Corson. They've been arrested and convicted before after a string of robberies. They primarily target priceless jewels. They made parole about sixteen years back, shortly afterward, Joan gave birth to a son named Harry. He has never been convicted before, but from what we've seen he is not innocent."

Dick raised an eyebrow. "What about the girl?" Bruce frowned. "Nothin' huh?"

"She is not part of their family, biologically or through legal means. My suspicion is that they took her off the streets. The question is why. The Corsons wouldn't take her in unless they had something to gain."

"Well they've been using her in their heists, so she must have some kind of skill." Dick said.

"She does." Bruce pulled up a tape from the security camera of the place the Corsons robbed last night. Dick's eyes widened as he watched the girl raise her hand and lift the guards off the ground.

"Telekinesis? She's a meta?"

Bruce nodded. "She's not you're run of the mill criminal that's for sure. But something about her is different…"

Dick rolled his eyes. "Well duh. She can make people float with her mind!"

Bruce leveled him with a look, Dick rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Did you see how she looked when we showed up?"

"Yeah. She was scared out of her mind, just like any other bad guy."

"It wasn't just that, Dick. She was surprised when she saw us, like she wasn't expecting we would come after them, specifically her."

"Why the heck would she assume something like that?" Dick asked, raising an eyebrow and cocking his head to the side.

"If I may, Master Bruce," The Dynamic Duo turned to see Alfred approaching them with a tray of tea. Bruce and Dick each took a cup and drank, letting the warm liquid melt away some of the stress in their bodies. "If this girl was indeed taken off the streets, it would have been at a very young age. Perhaps she does not realize what she is doing is wrong."

Dick blinked and looked at Bruce, who had a contemplative look on his face. "The thought has crossed my mind…still, even if she is homeless, there should still be some sort of documentation on her."

"She doesn't have any?" Dick asked.

Bruce shook his head. "I've looked through the database for someone matching her description: age nine, long brown hair, green eyes. She doesn't come up. Meaning she has no records…"

"Or that isn't what she really looks like." Dick finished.

Dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnnnn...psych. I don't really think that is much of a cliffy, but it's the end of the chapter anyway, so deal! Let me know what you think and I will post the next part soon! ^^

~Angel