Author's Notes: Hey there, guys! Just a little something to work the lethargic muscles in my brain. I've been thinking a bit about two specific stories in the Silver Age, regarding the World's Finest on two separate occasions and how they both were jerks for ridiculous reasons and decided to have a more satisfying reaction from the recipients of their behavior.

Then I got another idea recently to write about scenes in DC from films, comics, or shows that I felt or fans felt were badly executed or outright horrible and unnecessary. Basically, a series of one-shots that come from two different stories surrounding idiotic actions. Wow, weird how ideas appear...

Disclaimer: All Rights to Batman Belongs to Bob Kane and Bill Finger. All Rights to Superman Belong to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Everything seemed to have been going according to plan that night. The gangsters had taken the dummy as bait as a fish would take to water. But somehow, Batman was still overwhelmed and found himself outnumbered.

Things started to fall apart even further when he was captured and shoved into the space between a brick wall, sentenced to suffocate from the decrease in oxygen. His hands were tied behind his back, his tools confiscated as soon as he was overpowered. It seemed like it was going to be the end of the Batman, the Dark Knight, the World's Greatest Detective.

If it hadn't been for Robin...

"I don't need a partner!" Bruce had all but shouted, his stature fixed with resolution. He turned and began to walk away, briefcase in hand, towards the door.

Dick sounded like he had just been slapped across the face. "Bruce, I don't understand. You've got to be kidding!"

The boy flinched at the glare that Bruce was now giving him, his body still facing the door, as if he didn't wish to waste anymore of his time with Dick.

Bruce leered at him. "That's the problem with you. You always think that everything's a joke, nothing to worry about. No matter what sort of danger you manage to get yourself into, you don't seem to get a grasp at what's going on! Even that stupid costume of yours is a joke. It's like a giant signal fire screaming 'Come and get me, criminals. I'm a stupid little boy wearing something that would draw the attention of pedophiles!'"

The look of concern and shock on Dick's face was quickly replaced with that of confusion at the end of the last word.

Bruce shook his head mockingly at this. "You don't even know what I'm talking about do you? This is why I don't need a kid running around with me. I can't look after you while I'm fighting the likes of the Joker, now can I? You'll only get in my way.

"There's some money on the counter, in case you get hungry and want to order out." Bruce gestured carelessly to the counter where a small pile of dollar bills rested. "Be in bed by nine fifteen or else!"

He continued to walk towards the door before he noticed something resting on the lamp table. It was a picture of Dick dressed as Robin, posing with a charming smile on his face. Bruce caressed the glass framing, remembering how Linda had questioned him on the picture at least three hours after it was taken.

Bruce had said that Dick was a fan of Robin and wanted to pretend he was a superhero for a little bit.

He suddenly remembered that the boy in question was still looking at him and let his voice become cold and distant.

"Almost forgot."

And then the picture frame flew right against the wall, glass scattering all around, the picture fluttering freely in the air.

That was enough to send Dick running out of the room, as if he were afraid of being thrown next.

Bruce walked out the door, trying to keep himself from letting out a choked sob. He slowly made his way down the pathway, passing the living room window where he could hear Dick muttering to himself, pacing by the large couch in front of the even larger portrait of Bruce himself.

His rantings started off with statements of disbelief...

"I've never been a bother..."

...it then quickly developed into moments of recollection...

"Scarecrow almost got him that time when...if it wasn't for me...Joker tried to gas him...I saved him..."

...before finally dissolving into grief and sadness...

"I was never a bother...he was jealous...he hates me!"

He could still hear him crying himself to sleep on that couch, under the belief that he was hated, unwanted. Bruce felt his heart clench at the noise and did everything in his power not to go back into the Manor and let Dick cry his poor little heart out into his arms. He bit his lip to the point of breaking skin, a thin trail of blood dripping down from the fresh cut. He was doing this to keep the boy safe, he'd understand later.

He folded the picture of Robin in a pose oh so carefully inside of his pocket, brushing off glass from that frame that once held it in place.

He was doing this for him, this had to be done.

Leave it to the Boy Wonder to find his way into the mess of things. The feeling in his heart strengthened, choking Batman with a new mixture leaving him breathless. What was that feeling? Fear?

It might as well have been, all things considered. The boy wasn't supposed to be here, he was supposed to be far away from this mess as possible. Out of sight, out of the way. Except he wasn't. The view before him kept on changing to the action unfolding to Robin bleeding on the floor to both of them beaten to a bloody pulp to even more unsavory images that Batman was willing to do everything in his power to prevent.

Was it elation? Yes, Batman was overjoyed to see his young partner again through the cracks in the brick wall that were forming from repeated tackles into the weakened concrete. But that wasn't the urge tugging at his chest at the moment.

As fate would have it, Batman found himself able to free himself from his bonds and join in on the beatdown Robin was giving to the crooks. Soon, the excitement wore down, ending with the Dynamic Duo victorious in the end. As he started tying up the criminals for the police, Batman felt a rusty chuckle crawl out of his mouth.

"I would have been bat-flavored chum if it wasn't for you, Robin."

He didn't realize how good it felt to be speaking to the boy again. He could already feel his arms surround the boy, holding him close to his chest, vowing never to let him go. There would be laughter again. Lame puns that started with holy and ended with Batman. Everything would be back to normal.

But instead of a lame retort, Batman only heard a mumbled response back. "Cool. Guess I better be going then."

He turned around to see Robin sulk away from the victory he had just ensured. Maybe this wasn't the moment for Robin to be telling jokes again. It was time to tell the boy the truth.

"What are you talking about?" Batman demanded, his voice void of the previous anger thrusted at Robin earlier that day.

Robin didn't even look back, yet Batman still saw him flinch. "You don't need me anymore."

"Don't be an idiot, of course I-"

BAM!

Batman tumbled on the ground, his cheek already swelling up. He looked up to see Robin facing him with his arm outstretched, his hand clenched into a fist. His new demeanor did not suit him. No nine year old should ever have that look on their face.

"I get it!" Robin snapped, the new anger in his voice matching his demeanor. His squeaky voice made him sound even more pathetic and miserable. "You don't want me anymore, you never did! You don't need to keep reminding me how worthless I am! I'm leaving you alone, okay?"

Batman sputtered, spitting out blood as he spoke. "What are you talking about!? of course I need you, old chum. I'd rather lose both my arms than you!"

"Then why did you say all those things to me earlier?" Robin's eyes were clenched shut now, his face shaking in an effort to control himself. Perhaps this was to make up for the lapse of control he'd just demonstrated just a moment ago. "You said I was a bother! That you couldn't keep an eye on me and fight crime at the same time! That I kid around too much..."

His voice slowly faltered into a whisper as he spoke.

"That I was stupid..."

"Old chum, I only said those things to protect you." Batman rummaged through his utility belt until he found the letter from Commissioner Gordon and held it out to his youthful companion. Robin hesitated for a moment before snatching the paper from the older man's grasp, his hands still shaking.

As Robin read the letter, Batman continued, as if Robin weren't able to understand what the contents of the letter meant. "These men we just captured threatened to shoot you on sight, and shoot to kill. I knew the only way to keep you out of harm's way was by making you think I didn't need you."

It was catharsis that Batman was feeling. It had appeared the moment Robin had come into view and grew with the anticipation of setting things right between mentor and student.

Between father and son.

His son.

It was the feeling that things would be back to normal now. They could both go home, maybe have a cup of cocoa before retiring for the night. Everything would be alright now.

He continued. "I knew you would be eager to get into the scrap, regardless of the danger. I figured that you wouldn't want me to handle this by myself. But you know that I could never replace you."

Batman began to rummage through his utility belt for the picture of Robin, the one he had smashed out of its frame earlier and kept on his person since then. Showing it intact would cement himself as Robin's friend again, he just knew it. Things were going to be alright now. It took several moments of searching, retrieving, and flattening the picture, but when Batman looked down at the small image of a beaming Robin, he felt that it was worth it.

It was a bit wrinkled, but it wouldn't matter. As long as the picture was relatively undamaged.

Batman held up the picture in his hand, his face transformed into a beaming grin only for it to fade away like snow on a hot day and become a frown of concern.

Robin's hands stopped shaking, and for a moment, Batman believed that he understood. But when he looked into the boy's face, he didn't see the return of the usual, cheerful attitude that defined his partner. There were tears dripping from his chin, but his expression didn't convey sadness. Or anger. Or relief.

It was as if Robin were trying his hardest not to feel anything at all.

Batman pushed himself off of the ground and made his way over to the Boy Wonder. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and shook him gently, hoping to get a reaction. Robin flinched at the contact and tried to step away from the touch, only to trip and land on his back instead.

Batman's eyes widened with worry. Maybe he didn't think this through as well as he should have. He gently picked up his son and held him close to his chest.

This time, Robin didn't flinch, he seemed too preoccupied with keeping his head turned away from Batman, his eyes shut from the world.

As the police sirens blared off in the distance, Batman made his way towards the Batmobile and delicately placed Robin inside of the passenger's seat, buckling him up when the boy made no effort to do so, his lips moving silently now as fresh tears began to slide down his cheeks.

The drive back to the Manor was longer than usual. It was as if the road had stretched out three, four times the length it usually was, prolonging the arrival back home. Robin gave no sign of being present in the Batmobile; no jokes, no comments, no recollections about the adventure the two had shared that day. Batman tried to speak to him a few times, asked if he were hungry or wanted the man to read him a bedtime story. The boy always did love to hear Batman try to imitate each individual character that was speaking, no matter how silly it came out.

Robin had been very eager to start Treasure Island, and after what they had both been through, Batman was eager to grant him that wish and more. He had even asked the man if he could dress up as Long John Silver as he read it.

But Robin gave no reply.

When the vehicle finally made its way through the secret entrance into the Batcave, Batman unbuckled himself and got out of the car. He looked back inside to see Robin's eyes were closed, his face still wet with tears and his lips moving silently. Batman pulled off his cowl and was once again Bruce Wayne. He got into the passenger's side door and gently unbuckled Robin, pausing only for a moment to peel off the simple mask adorning the child's face.

It only seemed to make Dick look even more vulnerable than before.

Bruce unlatched his cape and gently wrapped it around Dick, and then enveloped the boy once again in his embrace. He gently rocked Dick back in forth in his arms as if he were an infant, trying to quell the fear that began to blossom in his soul as he made out the words that Dick seemed to be repeating in his disturbed slumber.

"You don't need me...you don't need me..."

What had he done?

Author's Note: My original plan was to post both endings with more realistic results all in one shot, but I couldn't stand not letting anyone know I was still alive and ticking, so I'm going to have a few chapters for this instead.

Thought it was high time for Batman to see how Robin would really react under the circumstances given. Next time, just tell the kid he's in danger and lock him out of the Batcave.

Happy Readings!