Robin POV

Titan Tower

I hate feeling like this. Defenseless. Not that there was much to defend myself from. It was so childish, being afraid of a stupid anniversary. I mean I am almost seventeen and I still cry myself to sleep ever year on that stupid day! God why did I have to be so pathetic? "Robin?" I looked up to see Raven looking at me with worried eyes. "What's wrong?" She asked. I wanted to just blow her off and leave but I knew it wasn't that simple. Raven was an empath and had bonded with me, there was no way I could lie to her about my feelings.

"Just some baggage that I need to get rid of." Yet again her confused eyes dawned upon me. Sometimes I forget that Raven is also an alien. She seems so used to our customs that you almost couldn't tell. I guess though even Raven could pick up a culture in a year. "Something in my past is bothering me." I explained.

"In my experience to get over something you should talk about it." I sighed lowering my head at her suggestion. If only it were that easy. "Listen I know you have your secrets, but if it is eating you up inside then you should talk to someone. It doesn't have to be me but it has to be someone." I met her determined stare with my version of the 'Batglare', but she did not falter.

"It isn't that easy Raven." I sighed. "Talking about it is…difficult for me. And anyways no one would understand."

"Why?" Raven asked with general curiosity.

"It would give away my secret identity." I had a feeling I wasn't going to be able to get out of this one so easily. Why couldn't I have just lied to her and left before she could get to me? Why couldn't I have just been smart?

"Well there has to be someone that you trust." Her voice sounded hurt, as if she was upset that I didn't want her to know who I really was. In all honesty I wanted to tell her. I knew Raven could keep a secret and she is such a good listener, but if I did tell her then she would be endangered. That information could put her life at a greater risk.

"I trust you…I just can't hurt you." Yet again I had confused the sorceress. "If you knew who I was, you would be hunted down. Villains would stop at nothing to try and get you to talk, including k-kill you." Idiot don't stutter! Now she is going to know that you have past issues with death! "I don't want you to get hurt Raven…you guys are my friends. I shouldn't have let you guys get so close…but I have and now I have to protect you guys. If you got hurt…I couldn't forgive myself." Somewhere in the speech I had found my feet a better place to look then in her eyes. I just couldn't face her with all of this weakness hitting me at once. At least the others were not here. Starfire was at the mall and had dragged Cy and BB with her so Raven and I were alone in the common room, but that didn't make this any easier.

"I understand." My head shot up to face the purple haired girl in shock.

"What?" I asked, still completely surprised.

"I understand and respect that you cannot talk to me about what you are going through. But I want you to understand on your part that though I'm not very good at this comfort thing, my door will always be open for you. But only for you." She ended it very stern to get her point across.

"Thanks Raven I appreciate it." I hadn't noticed that she had been making herself some tea until she just now brought it to her lips. She pushed me a cup across the island and I saw that she had made me some coffee. Though most of the team thought Raven to be dark and isolated I knew her better. She was really a caring person who was just misunderstood. All she wanted was to do good, but sometimes just didn't know how. One thing I could always say about the girl is that she was more willing than most to go out of their comfort zone to help others. Raven may not even know it herself but she really was an amazing hero.

Bruce POV

Batcave

It was close to two o'clock in the morning when there was a signal requesting transmission. Checking the coordinates the call was coming from Jump City, where Robin currently resided. It was about time the boy called. All of us had been so worried though I tried to hide it from Tim and Alfred. The last thing they needed was to see me losing it. I had to hold it together for my family even though I had lost what originally convinced me hope wasn't lost in such a concept. I accepted the transmission but to my surprise, though I didn't show it, Robin was not the face on the screen but a young girl with violet hair and deep blue eyes.

"Before you end the transmission I am calling about Robin." That struck my interest. What would this girl know about Robin? "I know I shouldn't be doing this but it is necessary. Robin needs help. Psychologically he is a mess. His emotions are all over the place and his dreams are turning into nightmares almost every night. He refuses to show any weakness to the team so he blocks it out only so it can return to haunt him in the nights. I know that you two have had your differences but I have been in Robin's mind and I know he still cares about you. Right now he needs you. He needs his father." The girl ended but did not let her gaze shift once from my eyes. I could tell that she was not going to back down.

"How bad are these nightmares?" I asked. I already wanted to get in the car and go but I knew that I Dick would have my head if I just waltzed in for a petty nightmare.

"While he was on a mission yesterday I went into his room to find his sheets had blood on them. It appears that as the dreams get worse he grips the sheets so hard that he causes his hands to bleed." Looking over to a calendar I saw that in only two days it would be the anniversary of the death of John and Mary Grayson.

How could I have been so stupid as to not notice? "I'm one my way." I said getting up and ending the transmission. There was no way I was letting my little bird suffer like this.

Robin POV

Titan Tower

One day later

Last night was a hard one. The dreams had been so real. The smell of my mom's hair and the feel of my dad's arms around me. It was just so life like that it hurt. "Hey dude why do you keep spacing out?" I saw a hand flying back and forth past my face only to match the voice to Beastboy's. "Earth to Robin wake up!" He shouted.

"Will you stop? Why do you have to be so annoying?" I asked extremely irritated. Beastboy quickly backed away from me with his hands up in surrender. I turned from the team and ignored their questions as to why I was so harsh with the youngest member. Right now all I wanted was to be alone.

When the door to my room shut I collapsed to the ground. The sobs were to strong and I let them leave me. There was no way I was going to get through today. The memories were just too painful to be forced to relive every second. Tears erupted from my eyes and my body trembled with each cry I let out. "WHY?" I yelled looking at the ceiling. "Why did you leave me?" I could barely bring myself to speak it hurt so badly. "Now I'm alone." I whispered into the ground.

"You aren't." That voice, it was Bruce! But why was he here? Two strong arms wrapped themselves around me and pulled me into Bruce's lap. "Why do you do this to yourself?" He asked with such worry filling his voice. At this moment it didn't matter to me that I was still mad at Bruce, right now I needed someone to hold me while I cried. I needed someone that I could trust and rely on to catch me. "You don't have to always be strong Dick. You are allowed to be weak sometimes." Tears came again and I found my face in Bruce's chest. I didn't want to talk, I just wanted to cry and listen to him tell me what I needed to hear. "You may have left the manor Dick but you haven't left the family. If you were struggling so much you could have just called and I would have come to help you."

"How… how did you know to come?" I asked in a low whisper muffled by his chest.

"Your friend called me. She was right to be worried." Raven. It had to have been Raven who called him. But how had she gotten the transmission codes, and what exactly did she say? Oh well, now wasn't the time to worry about that.

"Bruce?" I whimpered. His arms tightened around me as a response. "I'm sorry I left…I just wanted to…to prove I could handle myself." My hand clutched onto and pulled at his cape. I felt so bad for leaving like that. I knew that he was only worried for my safety but I was just so sick of being babied, even if I had been shot my immature brain just didn't understand why I wasn't treated as an equal. "I'm so sorry!" I said while trying to push myself further into him for comfort. He only responded by rubbing circles on my back and whispering, "Everything is going to be alright. I'm here now."

"Please forgive me." I begged. Normally I would never lower myself to such a standard but at this moment I didn't care. All I wanted was to know that my father did not hate me for such a stupid mistake. I don't regret leaving Gotham, but how I did it was unacceptable. I had hurt so many people all because I had a fight with my daddy. If I wanted to be treated like an adult so bad, then why did I act so childish? And right now just proved that point even further. Here I was being held by my dad while crying my eyes out like some toddler.

"You were always forgiven." Bruce said pulling me closer so he could kiss my forehead.

"What?" I asked.

"Richard you are my son and I will always forgive you, even before you ask for it." Looking up I smiled at him. It was the first time today that I actually wore a genuine smile.

"Thank you dad." I said and for the first time in a long time I saw Bruce smile as well.

"You never called me that before, even when you lived in Gotham." Bruce said with caution in his voice.

"I may not have said it…but I always felt that way." Both of us stood up and had a proper embrace. "Thank you for coming and reminding me that I'm not alone, and that there is a light in the darkness." Bruce took his hand and ruffled my hair.

"Richard the only reason I know that is because of you." I smiled at the knowledge. Maybe Bruce and I could work things out. And hey, every angsty teenaged boy needs a father to guide him. Now that I had finally opened my eyes to see mine…then just maybe I stood a chance at having a life my parents would be proud of.

A/N: This is just something that I just thought of but had to write. Now the relationship between Raven and Robin can be read however you want it. I'm not saying they are a couple and I am not saying that they can't become it. But thanks for reading and please review.