A/N: I started this story back in 2012, when I was just a kid. It gave me purpose and motivation through years when I didn't know what I was doing day by day. Writing is an incredible outlet, and the ability to build and create with beloved characters is a great way to write.

I've wanted to pull this story down for years, because I look back on it and it seems like it was written by someone else, but then I think about how many old, abandoned stories I revisit for the memories and change my mind. If anyone is still reading, hey. You're great, and I hope your days are bright. Thank you for finding something of value in this little project of mine.

I wanted to give the story one clean, final edit. I do not own the characters, they are property of DC Comics.

Richard Grayson's baby blue eyes opened slowly. He rolled over in his bed and curled up in a tight ball, feeling small in the dark room. He hated waking up in the middle of the night. Sure, he was almost 6 years old, but he was still scared of the shadows that danced across the walls. He never particularly liked the dark, but he wasn't afraid of it either.

Correction. He was scared of the dark. He just didn't want to admit it to Bruce.

Richard sat up and rubbed his eyes, his hands curled up into small fists. His ebony hair was sticking up in all directions, mused from the tossing and turning he'd done in his sleep.

The boy was new to Wayne manor, and the adjustment period between his old life and his new one hadn't been easy. His mind churned constantly at night, filling his dreams with images of Haly's. His room still felt foreign, often cavernous in the dark. He'd never had so much space to call his own, and in the absence of recognition, his mind filled the unfamiliar space with foreboding shadows.

Richard pulled his short legs up and tucked them under his chin; his dark blue pajama's snug and warm over his body. He glanced around the room warily, watching the shadows dance across the walls. They were everywhere, creeping in from behind the curtains. He whimpered.

'It's okay," he told himself steadily. 'they're just shapes, don't bother Bruce.' He could handle it.

More shadows came now. Some quick; flashing across his vision. Others lingered, moving slightly in a swaying motion.

Richard's eyes filled with tears. Ok. Maybe he couldn't handle it.

He remembered when he was younger, how he would jump out of his bed and run for his mom and dad as soon as he saw the first shadow creep through their trailer. Mary would pull him into her lap and rock him back and forth while John told him stories about dark knights catching bad guys and saving the day. He remembered his favorite story, about a man that could run faster than light, chasing circles around villains and capturing them before they could even blink.

While his dad finished the stories, his mom would tuck his favorite stuffed animal, Peanut, under his arm and promise that she would scare the shadows away.

Richard's eyes burned as he remembered this. He missed his parents so much. He didn't have much left of them; he was only allowed to take a few things from his old home. A poster of 'The Flying Grayson's' hung proudly in his new room, creased from where Pop Haly had folded it into his suitcase. He still had his old costume, as well as his parents wedding rings which he kept on a silver chain in his nightstand, and Peanut, his stuffed elephant.

'That's it!' Dick thought happily.' Peanut can chase the shadows away again!'

Richard sniffed slightly and searched his bed for the beloved stuffed animal.

When his hands came up empty, he crawled off his bed and looked around room. The toy was nowhere to be found.

He sniffed again. Tears were starting to well up in his eyes. The shadows danced some more, as if they were taunting him. Where was Peanut?

'Maybe the shadows took Peanut when I was sleeping,' Dick thought, wrapping his arms around his middle helplessly.

The thought sent the tears rushing down his flushed cheeks as his search became more frantic.

"Peanut!" The small boy whispered urgently. "Peanut! Where are you?"

No answer. Richard sobbed again.

The small boy got down on his hands and knees, crawling halfway under his large bed. "Peanut!" He called a little louder, hoping that his beloved stuffed animal would hear him and come back.

It was pitch black under the bed. He swiped his arm back and forth, desperately feeling the cold hardwood for Peanut's worn fabric. Nothing.

Richard crawled out, slumping down on the rug by the bed. It was so dark, the kind of darkness that made everything look menacing. The kind of dark that made you want to curl up in a little ball and block it all out.

So, that's what he did.

Bruce Wayne sat at his polished oak table, trying to stay awake. In front of him was a pile of papers, all needing to be read, approved, and signed. By him.

The billionaire groaned, stretching him arms above his head as he yawned loudly, grimacing when he felt his shoulder pop. He rolled his arm gingerly, glancing at the clock as he did so.

2:35.

'Great.' He thought glumly. 'At least I finished patrol.'

At the moment, however, he would have rather dealt with Gotham's worst than scan another bland block of legal text.

Bruce sighed, cracking his fingers and picking up his pen yet again. He skimmed through another document, scribbling his name sloppily at the bottom.

'I might regret that later...Ah, screw it,' He thought, quickly read through two more papers, adding his initials when needed.

He set his pen down once more and ran a hand through his hair, wishing he could be anywhere else.

"Is there a problem, Master Bruce?" Alfred, his trusted butler asked as he walked through the office door, silver tray in hand.

Bruce jumped slightly, surprised that he had not heard the man coming.

'Man, I'm having an off day.' He thought.

The older man placed a mug in front of Bruce, eyebrow raised knowingly.

"You could say that." The billionaire sighed, gesturing to the papers covering his desk.

Alfred set down his tray, picking up the closest document and studying it briefly. Bruce sipped the piping hot coffee, thanking the butler mentally for his foresight.

"Well," The Englishman started, an amused smile tugging at his lips. "Considering that you signed an agreement to paint the Tower's conference rooms purple, it would be a safe bet."

Bruce's eyes widened. 'Paint the…. Who the heck would want to...'

He groaned, dropping his head to his hands tiredly. "I don't even understand why I have to do any of this anyway."

Alfred chuckled, patting Bruce's shoulder. "That, Master Bruce, is just part of the job. Someda-"

Suddenly, a small noise sounded through the hall, causing both men to look over in confusion.

Bruce stood up quickly, eyes flitting to Alfred, then back to the hall. "Was that..?"

The two exchanged glances momentarily, before bolting out of the room.

Bruce stopped in front of his young ward's door, pulling it open swiftly. The two men scanned the roomed with worried eyes, hearts breaking at the sight before them.

Richard was lying on the floor by his bed, his small body tucked into a tight little ball. Tears poured out of his eyes which were clenched tightly closed in fear. His tiny shoulders shook as he cried, sobs escaping his trembling lips.

The billionaire ran forward, kneeling down on the ground and pulling Dick into his lap. The boy turned into his guardian's chest, sobbing louder.

Bruce's eyes were wide with worry and confusion. He hugged the small boy close, trying his best to console the boy. He shot a look to Alfred, slightly panicked.

He waited until the boy calmed himself down a little, before asking "Dick? What happened? Are you ok?"

Richard opened his teary blue eyes, snuggling closer into Bruce's arms. He balled his tiny hands into fisted and rubbed his eyes, whimpering slightly as he thought about Peanut.

"I-I was scared. I saw the shadows, and they were all over the place. And I 'membered what my mommy and daddy-" He paused, eyes glistening. Bruce squeezed him closer. "- What mommy and daddy used to do when I got scared. They used to give me Peanut to scare the shadows 'way, but I ca-can't fin-d h-er any-where." He finished, hiccupping around a fresh batch of tears.

Bruce hugged the boy close, his expression saddening. The poor kid was terrified. He could still feel his slight frame shaking, his breath unsteady as he cried some more.

'Peanut? What's Peanut?' Bruce thought in confusion. He felt bad for not knowing what it was and kicked himself mentally. The boy had only been at the manor for a few months and Bruce hadn't been as present as he would have liked. Between work and…work, he hadn't been able to spend as much time with his charge as he'd hoped, and it made him angry.

'What kind of guardian am I anyway?' He thought bitterly as he tried and failed to comfort Dick.

After a moment, Richard squirmed, trying to get out of the man's hold. Bruce let his arms drop and the child got to his feet, sliding slightly on the wooden floors.

The boy steadied himself as he took a shaky breath, scrubbing an arm over his eyes resolutely. Light poured from the hall, pooling on the floor, but the shadowy shapes still trailed across the darkened corners by the closet. Without warning, Richard bolted out of the room.

"Dick!" Bruce called after him, jumping to his feet and racing after the boy.

"Richard! Wait!" he ran down the hall after the blue clad boy, who, at the moment, had a head start.

Richard ran down the stairs of the mansion, desperation pumping through his veins.

"I gotta find Peanut! He's gonna make the shadows go 'way!" the little boy called behind him, running right past Alfred, who had gone downstairs after hearing his tearful explanation.

"Master Richard!" The Englishman called as Bruce raced down the stairs. The billionaire finally caught the tiny boy as he zoomed past the two adults once more, re- checking the living room for his stuffed elephant. The boy kicked his legs from his spot under Bruce's arm, trying to escape his grip.

"Let go, let go!" he cried, voice shaking in a way that made Wayne's heart drop.

"Dick! Calm down!" the billionaire pleaded, holding tight to the squirming child. "I'll help you find Peanut, just stop for a second! You're going to hyperventilate!" He was desperate. It was late, he was running on no fuel, and his heart was pounding with worry.

"Master Richard." Alfred said softly, stepping forward with a tray of hot chocolate. "I should have informed you about this sooner, but I didn't expect that Peanut would be missed so soon." The butler set the shiny silver tray down, revealing a newly washed stuffed elephant that was tucked securely under his arm.

"Peanut!" the boy shrieked, stretching his arms out excitedly, opening and closing his fists eagerly. Bruce gave a sigh of relief as he set Richard down, who grabbed the elephant and squished it close to his body. He buried his face on the stuffed animal's head as he steadied his breath, hugging it as tight as he could.

After a couple moments, the little boy ran forward, hugging Alfred around the legs.

"Thanks Alfie! I thought he got kidnapped!" The little boy smiled up at the butler. Alfred smiled back warmly, patting his head.

"You're quite welcome, Master Richard. I do apologize for not informing you about this. I thought it would make a nice surprise."

"S'okay!" Richard replied, his normally bubbly personality returning as he held Peanut under his arm, pulling himself up onto the chair next to the one that Bruce had slumped into.

"Bruce?" The ebony haired boy asked, poking the billionaire's arm.

"Hmm?" was his tired reply.

"I'm sorry..." Dick said quietly, using Peanut as a pillow on the cold surface of the kitchen counter.

Bruce lifted his head, opening his eyes to meet the boy's bright blue ones. "You don't have to apologize for anything. It's ok to be scared sometimes."

Dick looked down. "Batman doesn't get scared," He grumbled, causing Bruce to chuckle.

"Well, you gave Batman quite a scare tonight. So I'd say he does." He said, ruffling the boy's messy hair.

Dick smiled sheepishly, cheeks flushing under the tear tracks.

Alfred smiled as he placed the mug of hot chocolate in front of Dick, who beamed, sipping it gratefully. He swung his little legs against the chair, eyes dropping tiredly as he winded down.

Alfred turned to Bruce. "I suspect you would prefer a different drink?" he joked, already knowing the answer.

Bruce nodded, smiling as he watched the boy fondly.

Then, sparing a quick look at the clock, he stifled a yawn. 'Ugh. The paperwork.'

"Oh yeah…Coffee. Black."

Until next time,

-Arrow