A/N: Hi guys. This is my first fanfic which isn't Young Justice, so I hope it's ok. Reviews are always appreciated! ~ Velvie
Disclaimer: I don't own Batman or any characters from the DC universe.
The latch on the door unlocked with a click and the door swung gracefully open. A young boy peeked inside the doorway, a terrified expression on his face. He withdrew his head and took a step back; he was too scared to enter the house. Entering the house meant entering a new life, and young Dick Grayson wasn't ready for that. It had only been a few days since parents had died, and already he was told he should try to be brave and move on. The boy looked up at the man he would eventually start calling dad. The 5 year old boy had tears trickling down his face. Bruce sighed and picked the boy up. He swiftly carried him into his home. Setting the boy down on the ground, Bruce bent to be at Dick's level and gestured with his hand.
"This, is your new home." Bruce smiled fondly at his new son.
It only took a few days for Dick to settle in. He quickly learnt everything he needed to know about the place; where the best hiding spots were and which pieces of furniture could be used for climbing on. Bruce watched as the young boy charged around the house, carrying toys and creating his own sound effects to go with the games he played. Dick's games were often narrated in Romani, because this was his main language. Bruce noted that he may have to teach the boy English. While lost in thought, Bruce felt a tug on his leg.
"Bwuce, will you play game?" Dick asked, big blue eyes beaming up at the older man. He offered up a toy car. Bruce smiled and took the car.
"So, Dick. What are we playing?" Bruce asked. He watched as the 5 year old boy struggled to think of how to reply in English. "It's ok, Dick. I know a little bit of Romanian."
"No" the boy replied firmly "I am in English speaking countwy with English speaking people. I will speak English." The words came out firmly and fluently and Bruce smiled in praise of his young ward.
"Have you figured out how to tell me your game?" Bruce prompted.
"Yes" Dick replied, smiling. "I will be Batman and you will be Joker."
Bruce's eyebrows raised and a thought flashed through his mind. Did the boy already know? He shook his head. Lots of young boys liked to play superhero games. He looked around to find that Dick had vanished. A sudden panic came over him. He then heard a voice from the top of the staircase.
"I am coming to get you Joker!" Dick yelled excitedly as he raced down the stairs. Bruce smiled and played along.
"Oh no you won't. I will defeat you, Batman!" Dick chased after Bruce, the two of them laughing happily. The game only stopped when Alfred called them to dinner.
"That was fun, Bwuce. We play later?" Dick asked excitedly.
"We'll see." Replied Bruce, ruffling the boy's hair.
Over the following few weeks, Bruce became increasingly fond of Dick. He helped him with his English, and in turn, Dick helped Bruce to learn more Romani. They played many games together, as well as reading stories and watching movies. Bruce had never felt happier. Until the nightmares began.
Bruce put Dick down to bed, and as usual Dick protested.
"But Bwuce, I want to play!" the boy whined.
"We can play tomorrow" Bruce replied firmly.
"But I want to play now!" Dick retorted.
Bruce just looked at Dick and sighed. "The sooner you go to sleep, the sooner the morning will come. Then we can play."
Dick accepted this and settled down. Bruce said goodnight and turned the lights out, thinking Dick would be fine just like he has been every night before.
It was just after 3am when Bruce heard the scream. He raced to Dick's room and threw open the door, Alfred following close behind. He flicked on the light to find Dick curled up on the floor with a stuffed toy, wrapped in a blanket and crying.
"What's wrong?" Bruce asked, worry plaguing his every thought.
"Coșmar" the boy whispered in Romani. It took Bruce a few seconds to work out that Dick had had a nightmare. The two continued the conversation in Romani, partially as an attempt to bring Dick back into his comfort zone. Bruce learnt that his ward had dreamt of the night his parents had died. He scooped the boy up off the floor in the blanket and cradled him in his arms. He knew exactly how Dick felt. The young child had soon fallen asleep in Bruce's arms. He gently set Dick down in his bed and tucked him in. Alfred gestured to the door he was holding open.
"I think I'll stay here tonight" Bruce said as quietly as he could manage. Alfred nodded and left without a word. Bruce moved over towards the wall and slumped against it. He looked over to Dick, who seemed to be sleeping peacefully again. He just hoped the nightmares wouldn't last long.
Bruce enjoyed spending time with his young ward during the day, and with the knowledge that Dick had settled into his new home nicely, could patrol as Batman without having to worry too much about Dick. He felt a little guilty about leaving the boy each night, but he knew Alfred was more than capable of looking after Dick, and he knew his son was fond of the elderly butler. Every night after he had finished patrolling Gotham, he would ask Alfred how Dick was, and every day he breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the boy was fine.
One night, while Bruce was out, Dick had a nightmare. Dick was used to the nightmares by now, and bit back the urge to scream. Silent tears escaped the boy's eyes as he quietly went down the stairs, clutching his toy elephant, Peanut. He walked into the sitting room, rubbing his eyes. He blinked away the tears to see Bruce appearing from behind the grandfather clock. His eyes widened and locked with Bruce's, who had an equally shocked face.
"What's the matter, Dickie?" Bruce asked, trying to avoid the subject of what the boy had just seen.
"I had a nightmare. Why were you behind the clock?" Dick replied. Bruce pulled Dick into a hug and carried him back upstairs without saying a word. He tucked the boy back into his bed and walked to the door.
"Why were you behind the clock, Tati?" the small child called to his father.
"You must be tired, Dick. Get some sleep. Goodnight." Bruce said, trying to avoid answering the question. Dick started to believe he was just seeing things because he was tired, and allowed himself to drift gently back to sleep.
The next day, Dick decided he would see for himself whether there was anything behind the grandfather clock. He walked over to the tall clock and tugged at it from the side. It didn't move. He slumped against it and thought about exactly what had happened the night before. He vaguely remembered Alfred winding the hands on the clock. Dick pushed a nearby chair over to the clock and pushed his small finger against the face. He started winding the minute hand round, hoping it would just click when he got the right time. After winding it for a few minutes, he heard a faint click, and the clock shifted. Dick jumped off the chair and tentatively entered the room hidden behind the clock. He walked down the dark stairway, looking around in wonder. He tripped on a step and tumbled down, landing with a thud.
"Huh?" Dick heard a familiar voice call. He looked up and saw Batman, without the cowl on. The man looked identical to his father.
"T-Tati?" the boy called out nervously. Bruce marched over and scooped the boy up. Wordlessly he carried Dick back up the stairs leading to the Batcave. Alfred was waiting at the top to see what was going on. Bruce put the boy down on the chair he had been standing on before.
"What did you do?" Bruce asked the young boy sternly.
"Yesterday you were behind the clock so today I came to find you. Tati is Batman!" Dick replied, squealing the last part with delight. Bruce put his face in his hand and sighed. He then turned to Alfred.
"What do we do now?" Bruce asked the older man. He greatly respected Alfred and knew he always had answers.
"I don't know, sir. I think you should punish him as you see fit, and make sure he knows not to tell anybody what he saw." Alfred replied. Both men's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Dick's voice.
"What were you doing, Tati?" he asked. Bruce looked over to Alfred, who gestured for him to tell the boy the truth.
"I was trying to track down the man who killed you parents" Bruce watched as a mix of emotions crossed Dick's face. He bent down to pull Dick into a hug, in case he started crying.
"I want to help" Dick told Bruce, pushing him away so he could look his adoptive father in the eyes. Bruce blinked in surprise.
"Dick, this man is very dangerous, and I don't want you to get hurt." Bruce told his ward. He saw the boy pouting angrily.
"I want to help!" he yelled. Bruce looked to Alfred for guidance. The two men left the room to discuss what had just happened.
Sometime later, the two men returned to the room. Dick couldn't read their expressions, so what came next was a shock to him.
"I will train you to become my sidekick. It will be hard, and intense, but we think you can handle it." Bruce's serious face turned into a smile as he saw Dick's face light up.
"Batman's sidekick, yay!" Dick squealed in delight.
"You will need a secret identity, one that you must promise you will never tell anybody" Bruce said firmly.
"I promise!" Dick replied happily.
"So what will your identity be?" Bruce said, smiling at the young boy. He could see Dick was thinking hard about this. The boy smiled to himself before replying.
"Robin."
A/N: That's the first chapter. I'm doing one for every Batkid that was a Robin (except maybe Cassie, I don't know whether to do one for her or not). Next chapter will be Jason. Review! ~ Velvie.
