"Hey circus freak! Show us your tricks!"

There it was. The ribbing. The verbal abuse of the bullies he dealt with daily. He pretended it didn't hurt, it was easier that way. Thankfully his dual identity both as Dick Grayson and Robin allowed him to separate it from his crime fighting.

But it was small consolation for Dick. He only knew a specific set of circus 'tricks' and they were acrobatics and trapeze. And he had sworn he would never have anything to do with the trapeze ever again, his parents were still too fresh in his mind despite the 7 months he had already spent as Robin. Suffice to say, he was getting little to no sleep between patrol, the nightmares and school.

"Go away."

A fist impacted with his shoulder. It hurt a lot, even for him. He stumbled back a bit then looked up at the towering bully. The kid's pitbull face was repulsive with sadism.

"What you say to me circus freak?!"

A fire ignited behind Dick's eyes. Anger started to bubble up and he snapped.

"I said go away. You think you're so big, so tough, picking on me 'cause I'm small? Newsflash; you're not. Just because you can beat on other kids doesn't make you any more important. You just think it does, you do it for the kicks, the feeling of dominance."

The bully's fist hit his cheek this time. And again. Again and again and again. Blood began to drip from his lips. Dick didn't cry out, he didn't say anything, he just kept getting up and taking it. And the fire in his eyes just got brighter. It burned so fiercely, scaring the bully, daring him to keep going.

A redhead girl was watching from the crowd in disbelief. This was Barbara Gordon, the only daughter of Jim Gordon, the police commissioner of GCPD. And her disbelief was due to the sight she was witnessing. The new boy, a small boy was standing up to the biggest bully in the school, just taking the hits and standing.

Finally the bully stopped. Dick was still standing, his eyes now hauntingly fierce. He stayed still but spoke clearly, so everyone could hear.

"Not so easy when your target can take a beating is it? And guess what. It's even harder when they fight back."

And he walked painfully away.

Barbara ran to catch up to him. "Excuse me."

The small boy turned around and looked her up and down analytically. He looked guarded, withdrawn. Cautiously, he answered.

"Yes?"

She stumbled over the words a bit.

"You're uh… gonna need some help cleaning yourself up." He looked her in the eye honestly.

"Are you offering?"

"Yeah." Barbara blurted out before her brain could catch up with her mouth. "I… I mean, if you want me to."

'Way to put your foot in your mouth Barbara, you've done it again.' She cursed mentally. But the boy just looked thankful.

"If it's not too much trouble."

Calming herself down, Barbara sat the black haired boy down on the bench round the back of the playground where no one went. Taking a tissue from the packet in her bag, she carefully wiped away the blood as not to make it worse. It took a while to clean him up, but she managed to make him look presentable again. In fact, the few differences between now and earlier were his cut lip, roughed up face and his now chaotic hair which contrasted its previous slicked back state.

Speaking of his hair. It was partially gelled back now, the front hanging free. To remedy the controversial look, Barbara ruffled his hair until it was free of the gel's hold, then combed it with her fingers so it looked quite good in her opinion. His new appearance, despite the signs of the beating, was actually a fairly good look in him in her opinion.

"There you go…" Barbara struggled for his name but realised after a moment that he hadn't given it to her. "Sorry, I think I missed your name."

"I'm Dick Grayson." Dick replied with a smile due to her kindness.

"Dick, is that short for Richard?" She asked and he nodded in reply. "Nice to know. I'm Barbara by the way, Barbara Gordon."

"Thanks for helping me out Barbara."

"You're welcome Dick." She smiled back at him. She could tell he wasn't used to talking to kids his age, or kids in general. It was the way he carried himself, shy, reserved. Like he'd never really talked to them. She guessed that was because he'd grown up in a circus full of adults.

"Tell you what, why don't you come with me to meet my friends?"

He suddenly looked in guard again. "I don't want to be a bother."

"You won't be." She insisted. "Come on."

He ended up letting her take him by the hand and over to her friends. They were quite nice to him, and they didn't care about what the bullies said. There was Bette, Millie, Janine and Ariana. They made him feel welcome into their circle, and when it came time for classes Barbara gave him the seat next to her.

She helped him with his work but didn't give him the answers either. Come the end of the day, Dick was positively beaming when his new friends said they'd see him tomorrow. Each one of them waved goodbye to him as they left with their parents. Alfred pulled up in one of the many cars belonging to Bruce and he got in, waving goodbye to Barbara who gave him a kind smile before he got in and closed the door.

"Dear lord Master Dick, what happened today?"

The boy shrugged, still high on the prospect of his new friends. "Nothing much Alfred, just a bully decided to beat on me and a nice girl called Barbara cleaned me up and introduced me to my new friends."

A smile graced the butler's face.

"Sounds like quite an adventure Master Dick. I'm sure Master Bruce will be delighted to hear that you are making friends at school."

'But I fear he will not take well to the beating you received.' Alfred silently added, pulling the car out into the road and heading for Wayne Manor.

-T.I.P-

Dick and Barbara were waiting for their lifts when out of the blue, she asked, "Hey Dick, wanna come to a sleepover with me, Bette and the others?"

He looked happy and sheepish at the same time. "If you're sure it won't be any trouble, then yeah, thanks."

Wrapping an arm around his shoulders, she smiled and ruffled his hair as she always did. "You're never any trouble Dick, we all love having you around."

His wide eyes made her smile.

"Really?"

"Yeah, no trouble at all." She smiled even wider. "Come on Dick, grow a little self esteem. You're a great guy, and we all love you for it."

"Uh… thanks. Let me just call Alfred so that he can get my stuff and Bruce knows."

So he called Alfred. Fortunately, the butler had been held up by a call from his family and was still at the manor, so grabbing his sleepwear and casual clothes was easy enough. The butler quickly turned up with the requested items and promised to tell Bruce about the film night. No patrol for him tonight, just friends.

The commissioner turned up a bit late too, work having kept him. Due to the number of people, Alfred lent a hand, driving Dick Millie and Ariana to the Gordon's house with their stuff. Once there, the butler helped bring the bags into the house and then left with, "I shall pick you up tomorrow morning Master Dick."

"Thanks Alfred." Dick replied.

Commissioner Gordon left shortly after, going back to his duty as a cop. Everyone chamged into their sleepwear and sat in front of the TV chatting whilst they watched.

"Dick, is that guy your bodyguard or something?" Bette asked.

Dick looked up and said, "No, he's the family butler."

"Family butler? Just who do you live with?" Janine commented. No one expected his response.

"Bruce Wayne."

All the jaws dropped.

"For real?" Millie inquired once she got her voice back. Dick nodded. "What's he like?"

"Kind, understanding and just… warm, even though his relationship status is constantly on the fritz." Dick looked so happy when he spoke about his guardian.

"Honestly, I'm just lucky he took me in."

"He sounds great." Janine sighed dreamily. Dick, being unfamiliar with people his age, wasn't aware of how a 'crush' worked and just nodded. Barbara giggled at his obliviousness quietly and after a few minutes of conversation, suggested they play a game.

"Hey, let's play Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare."

Everyone agree but Dick who asked, "What's that?"

"What?! You've never played Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare?!" Bette looked and sounded scandalised. Dick just looked embarrassed.

"I grew up in the circus, the daily routine was wake up, practise, eat, practise, an hour or two spare time, eat, take care of the equipment and animals, eat, practise or a performance, bed."

"That's that, we're playing Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare! It's a rite of passage!" Bette declared. And so the game began.

They spent a few minutes explaining the game to Dick. Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare was a common variant of the basic Spin the Bottle game, combining the rules of the game with those of Truth or Dare, the classic pranking, secret-telling game played at sleepovers all over the world. To play spin the bottle with Truth or Dare rules, begin as you normally would by having someone spin the bottle in the center of your circle. When the bottle lands on someone, the spinner asks him or her 'Truth or Dare?' and if the person answered Truth, the spinner got to ask a question. If he or she answered Dare, they had to perform the dare that the spinner chose.

Since it was Barbara's house, she spun the bottle first. It landed on Ariana.

"Ari, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

Barbara struck a thinking pose for a moment before asking, "What's the best holiday you've had?"

"Barcelona with my cousins."

Ariana spun the bottle and it landed on Dick. "Truth or Dare?"

"Dare." He responded calmly. Barbara had noticed he was getting more confident by the day.

"I dare you to call Bruce Wayne and sing 'I'm a Barbie Girl'."

Dick put on his serious face. "That depends…"

"On what?"

"Does anyone here have a loudspeaker and 'Barbie Girl' on their phone?" Dick smirked and some of their mouths dropped wide open.

Turned out Bette had quite the collection of music. And Millie had brought her speaker. The girls got the song up to the right point and got ready. Dick went to his phone settings and turned off his caller ID so Bruce wouldn't know it was him. Then he called. Bruce picked up.

-T.I.P-

"Bruce Wayne."

Bruce, sitting in the Batcave, in full Batman attire, was surprised when he got a call from a withheld number. Alfred walked in as his jaw dropped. Because he, The Goddamn Batman, was not expecting this.

"I'm a Barbie girl in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!

I'm a Barbie girl in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation

I'm a blond bimbo girl in a fantasy world
Dress me up, make it tight, I'm your dolly
You're my doll, rock'n'roll, feel the glamour in pink,
Kiss me here, touch me there, hanky panky…

You can touch, you can play, if you say, 'I'm always yours.'

I'm a Barbie girl in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation

Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!

Make me walk, make me talk, do whatever you please
I can act like a star, I can beg on my knees
Come jump in, bimbo friend, let us do it again,
Hit the town, fool around, let's go party
You can touch, you can play, if you say, 'I'm always yours.'
You can touch, you can play, if you say, 'I'm always yours.'

Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
(ah-ah-ah-yeah)
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
(uu-oooh-u) [2x]
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!

I'm a Barbie girl in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation

I'm a Barbie girl in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation

Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!
"

His phone hit the cave floor with a clatter. It had fallen from his hand. He heard the distinct sound of girls giggling in the background as the music was shut off and the call ended. There was a chuckle. He turned around slowly.

Alfred was laughing so hard that he was at risk of dropping the platter he was carrying!

And it was at this moment The Batman knew… he'd been prank called!

-T.I.P-

The bedroom was filled with laughter as all six of them cried with mirth at Dick's prank call.

"T-that was t-too funny!" Barbara giggled, hands over her mouth. Dick was writhing on the floor with amusement and laughter.

"His reaction though! Did you hear the phone hit the floor?!"

"Yup!"

After a good lot more laughing, everyone calmed down enough to continue with the game. Dick span the bottle and it landed on Bette.

"Truth or Dare?"

-T.I.P-

Robin leapt into action as he saw Batgirl at it again. The girl had appeared a month or two ago and, while she sported some decent self-defence skills and had great gymnastics, she was just needlessly endangering her life in Batman's opinion. Robin wasn't so sure. He'd never spoken to her. Yet.

One of his circular throwing disks hit a gun aimed at her back, slicing open the hand holding it and making the mugger recoil, shooting into the air instead of at the female vigilante. She whipped around, surprised that he was there. Her spacial awareness wasn't on his or Batman's level.

More of his throwing disks found themselves tripping some more or the thugs that were outnumbering Batgirl.

'Time to rescue a potential ally.' Robin thought, firing his Batclaw, grappling to a pipe as he threw a few smoke bombs with the other hand. They exploded into clouds of smoke around Batgirl and he pulled a 'Batman', dropping down on the cable and grabbing her around the waist, going back up without actually touching the ground. He dropped her off up on the rooftop above and flashed her his trademark Robin smirk.

"You may want to note some areas for improvement Batgirl. Class is in session and I will be the demonstration for tonight."

Before she responded, he went back down on the Batclaw. He socked a still blinded mugger in the face and pulled him up, tying him to the pipe with a cord and delivering a swift kick to the head to knock him out.

He let out his signature. The 'bat-ninja-cackle' as the witnesses of his nighttime activities called it. The muggers panicked.

"Oh crap, it's Robin!"

He dropped from his perch, driving his feet into the back of one's head. Gravity did the rest. One down, three to go. As silently as he had disappeared into the shadows, he emerged from them, grabbing the fire escape with his hands. His legs locked around the criminal's neck and he used the momentum of the swing to smash the mugger's skull into the wall. As the other two turned, he snuck behind them and, holding his breath, gassed one with knockout gas. Last one.

He did a sideways flip to disarm the man of his gun, kicking it away too. The man drew a knife. It was an Italian Stiletto Switchblade. The adrenalin pumping through his veins spurred him on. The mugger lunged with the knife, fast.

Robin raised his left arm and let it pass by his side, locking his arm around the mugger's. His legs wrapped around the criminal's neck in a chokehold and he floored the man. He sharply wrenched the guy's we beyond what was natural and he dropped the knife in pain. Robin maintained the chokehold until the robber fell unconscious. It took about a minute. He released the man and set about thing them all up fast. By hanging them like the first. He looked at the guy getting mugged.

"Call the cops."

And with that, he used his Batclaw to grapple up to where Batgirl had been watching from. "Lesson concluded. Any questions?"

"Nope." Batgirl responded, pointedly.

Suddenly Robin felt lightheaded. He dropped to the roof, blackness claiming him.

Batgirl, AKA Barbara Gordon, was instantly worried and rolled the younger half of the dynamic duo over. To find a knife cut along his left side. He'd been cut! And it was fairly deep. With great hurry, she quickly took off his cape and tied it around his torso, tight to keep pressure on the wound. Finding his grapple gun on the back of his utility belt, she lifted him and grappled away, learning to use it and hold onto him as she went. Making her way back to her home, she pulled him in through her window and laid him on the floor.

She untied his cape and spread it under him to make sure no blood got on the floor while she helped him. She pulled back her cowl and got to it.

Searching through his belt, she found an emergency medical kit. It would have to be enough. She carefully removed the upper part of his suit and found the wound beneath all the blood by mopping up the red substance with a cloth she found in one of her draws. It didn't look as deep as it could be. Cleaning the cut, she decided to try her luck at stitching it up with the kit he had.

Taking off her gloves, Barbara took up the needle and threaded the stitching into it. It would be unpleasant, but she was Batgirl dammit! She could take it. Thankfully Robin was out of it. Starting at one end of the cut, she put the needle through the two sides of his skin and started sewing them back together. It wasn't any harder than making her Batgirl costume she told herself. She was halfway done when it started to get to her. But she pressed on. In, out, repeat. Just as she was about to toss her cookies, she finished.

Ending the stitches, which weren't the best by any means, but she hoped would be sufficient, she cut the thread and cleaned the cut one more time before covering it with a patch and taping it to Robin's bare and no longer bloody torso. Pulling him up gently, she managed to get him onto her bed and left him there while she went to clean up.

As she was washing out his cape and top in the sink, it hit Barbara like a bullet tram.

How would she explain this to her dad?!

Finishing with the washing, she washed out the sink so it wasn't full of red stained water and threw the clothes into the dryer for a quick spin to dry them out, which it seemed would be all it would take given their density and weight.

Going back into her room, she changed out of her Batgirl costume and stowed it away so her father wouldn't find it. Back in her civvies, she looked at the Boy Wonder, unconscious on her bed. She knew she shouldn't but she really just had to know who was under the mask, if only to explain to her father. Reaching for the domino mask, she peeled it away to reveal the face of…

… Dick Grayson…

Wait what? Dick was Robin? Well it did kind of make sense, he did come from the circus, he had acrobatics training and it wouldn't be too hard for Batman to build on that. Batman! He had to be Bruce Wayne right? He did take Dick in.

Deciding to put the matter aside for the present moment, Barbara went over to her closet and started searching. Within a few minutes, she found the pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt he'd left behind by accident during their last sleepover. Taking the clothes, she put them on the unconscious Boy Wonder and hid his suit with hers, going back to the kitchen to collect his top and cape.

Switching on the lights of the rooms she'd been in, she carefully inspected the house for any sign of blood. There was none. She turned off the unnecessary lights and started to think of a cover story to tell her dad. A good thing she did. About half an hour later, Jim Gordon came home and inquired,

"What's Dick doing here Barb?"

With a believable demeanour, Barbara went into her story. "Oh sorry Dad, I was going to call you to say Dick was coming round to help me with my homework but I forgot to charge my phone so I couldn't. It really helped having him here. He fell asleep about an hour ago 'cause he had trouble sleeping the last couple of days."

The Commissioner's face softened and he smiled. "It's fine honey, just make sure to charge your phone tonight and we'll take Dick home in the morning. I'll just call Bruce to tell him he's here."

He hugged his redhead daughter and chuckled. "I swear that guy worries so much about Dick, he might go grey before I do."

The pair parted and went back to their nightly routines. Barbara changed again, this time into her pyjamas, and got into her bed alongside the injured boy. She tucked the sheets over them and held him close, making sure to be on his right side.

"Please make it through the night Dick."

She didn't want to lose him.

-T.I.P-

Barbara woke up as she felt a shift from Dick. Blinking, she sat up and saw the Boy Wonder's feature contorted in pain in his sleep. As her hand touched his skin, he woke up, hissing in pain.

"Dick, calm down! Lie down, you're safe." She whispered, turning his head to look at her. His eyes widened in recognition.

"Barbara?" She nodded. "What, where am I?"

Gently trying and failing to push him back down, she replied.

"My place. I took you here after you got injured and passed out. I did my best to patch you up."

"You're Batgirl?"

She nodded again. "Surprise."

He looked as if he would have responded, if he hadn't just leant his head against her chest. His breathing was steady, paced. He was asleep again.

-T.I.P-

Dick did his best to hide the pain he was in as he got out of Commissioner Gordon's car. Alfred was holding the door open and Bruce was looking worried. They shared glances.

Dick glanced at his side and, given the policeman couldn't see him, let his pain show for a moment. Bruce gave the barest of nods. Carefully but casually, Bruce let Dick hug him and closed his arms around the boy's head. "Don't worry me like that okay?"

"Sorry." Dick's voice was muffled. "I'll take my phone next time I'm going to Barbara's after school."

He turned back to the Gordons. Barbara stepped up and hugged him carefully like Bruce did, her arms over his shoulders. She was a bit taller than him.

"I'll give your suit back at school." She whispered. He turned his face into her neck.

"Keep the 'Claw."

A moment later.

"Don't ever leave me."

"I'll always be with you." She whispered softly.

"This I promise."