Takes place before Chapter 1: Friends

This is Canon!Traught, so there isn't going to be any romance between the two, at least not like that. I'm just letting you know ahead of time. I completely support that, I love the Traught pairing, but that isn't this story.

I apologise if I get things wrong. The only familiarity I have with the DC Universe is common pop-culture knowledge and what appeared on Young Justice. And what I've gleaned from my friend.

I can try to do AU one-shots if people request them and tell me what to do. I'd like to do some of those every once and a while. Requested AUs can be romantically inclined.

Number Two! Thanks for reviewing, those of you that did!

Wayne Manor
August 9, 2011

Chirrup chirrup. Chirrup chirrup.

It was a warm late-summer night- warm enough that the window had been left open, allowing the soft sound of the crickets to penetrate the near-silence of the darkened room. The only light was that from the moon and the glow of the bedside alarm clock. The only sound was that of the crickets and the even breathing of one young teenager.

Said teenager had no clue what time it actually was. He was certain it had been hours since he had last looked at the illuminate blue display on the timepiece. It was late- he knew that much. Or was it early? Had midnight passed already? He knew it didn't really matter- whatever time it was, he should've probably been sleeping by now. Any normal kid would have been told to go to sleep hours ago.

Then again, he wasn't really a normal kid. Normal biologically, yes. No special powers like superspeed or strength or anything like that. However, it can be said with quite a large amount of certainty that Richard Grayson – commonly known to friends as Dick and others as 'the Wayne kid' – was not a normal teenager.

A normal teenager would not have just spent the majority of the night trying to defeat an information-hacking, building-destroying swarm of tiny robotic insects called 'the FOG' before it managed to hack into a top-secret vigilante computer system that for some mysterious reason was linked to the mainframe of Wayne Enterprises.

It was the stuff of a normal teenager's nightmares. Surprisingly enough, though, that wasn't what was keeping the young hero awake.

It was the enigmatic blonde-haired green-clad girl that had recently joined up as the sixth member of the team. Or rather, it was the fact he had heard neither hide nor hair of this newest addition to their little squad beforehand. Batman didn't keep secrets from him- that just wasn't how they worked. Yet for some reason, the leader of the Justice League had kept his young protégé in the dark about an event that would have a direct impact on his everyday life.

Artemis. Artemis Artemis Artemisartemisartemis Artemis.

The black-haired boy groaned softly, rubbing his hands up over his eyes and back through his hair. He stared at the black expanse of the ceiling, a sight that had not changed within the past few hours he had been agonizing over the night's events. When he closed his eyes, he only saw the girl's unique Asian features with her perplexing grey eyes and her –what should have been impossible due to genetics – blonde hair.

He didn't usually do this. Not to this extent. He did have a habit of recapping missions, replaying moments that had gone awry and figuring out what he could have done to avoid the situation. Sometimes after a particularly difficult mission he would be up for hours, causing him to stumble down the stairs the next morning with dark smudges under his eyes. On mornings like that, either Bruce or Alfred would hand him a cup of coffee and send him back upstairs to get some more sleep while they called in to either excuse him from school or say he would be late.

An exhausted hero is a dead hero, after all.

So it wasn't the staying up late that was getting to him. The mission that evening had been fairly routine, despite the fact they had been going up against the League of Shadows. If anything was to be keeping him up, it should have been the fact the Batcave had almost been compromised and their secret identities almost blown sky-high. Strangely enough, he hadn't even thought of that.

It was that girl that was the issue. Green Arrow's 'niece.'

He could still recall it perfectly, even though it had been hours since then. She's my niece. I'm his niece. Even someone without tutelage under the world's greatest detective could tell that something was not quite right. It was too … planned.

Another niece? He remembered asking skeptically, nearly laughing as he shot a glance at his mentor-slash-father figure through the lenses of his mask. He seemed to be the only one suspicious, the others all-too-excited to have a new member on the team. Well, at least M'gann was. Connor probably could have cared less, Kaldur was the leader, so he had to accept it, and Wally was busy nursing his wounded male pride.

And yet she had just … integrated herself. Perfect for extortion, manipulation, power-broking … yeah, sounds like the Shadows. It was questionable just how familiar she had sounded with the Shadows. When Wally had expressed his doubt of her knowledge, she had just looked at him. Again no one else seemed bothered other than Wally, so he kept his mouth shut as he watched the exchange between the archer and the speedster with amusement. Whatever her actual story was, she was going to stick with the one she and her 'uncle' – and apparently Batman too – had concocted.

Back in the dark of his room, Dick sat up in bed. Finally giving into the temptation, he looked over at the digital clock lying on his bedside. It silently informed him that it was nearing three o'clock in the morning. Knowing he still wasn't going to be getting any sleep any time soon, he quietly swung his legs out of the covers and stood. He crossed the room to the open window and stared out into the night, wondering about what course of action he would take.

After thinking things over, the Boy Wonder knew he couldn't just ask Batman about the girl. If he hadn't told his young protégé, it was likely that even if Dick asked, all he would get was the same 'niece' story. It hurt to know that his mentor was keeping things from him, especially after they had been working together for so long.

No, he would have to go the more subtle approach. He would have to access the Batcave's files sometime when Bruce wasn't around, which was more difficult than it sounded. He couldn't hack into the system from an outside source without the Bat noticing. Even the computers in the public part of the Wayne mansion were considered 'outside' due to the secret identity paranoia.

Tomorrow, he told himself. He would figure this mystery out, no matter how hard his mentor tried to keep him out of the loop.

His resolution made, his thoughts turned back to the source of his troubles. Artemis. Heck- he didn't even know her civilian identity! Part of him told himself that he was a hypocrite- after all, no one except Wally knew his true identity, and he had been part of the team for over a month now- he was one of the founding members. Still, the other, less rational part of him told the other part that that wasn't the point.

Thought processes get muddled sometime after midnight.

You might cut her some slack- It was her arrow that saved your butt against Amazo. Honestly, it had only been a conclusion he had drawn from what little evidence he had. There had been an arrow found in the aftermath of their last mission, and then an archer showed up on the team. It was guesswork, yet he had passed it off as certain knowledge. Yeah, not so much.

That was the one thing that kept getting him over and over again. He had defended her against Wally, who had been his best friend for what seemed like forever. The girl had caused him almost nothing but suspicion all night, he knew nothing about her, and yet he stood up for her against the one person he trusted the most.

How about that for confusing?

Dick sighed heavily, moving to perch on the windowsill. The wind blew softly through the trees outside, and the crickets were still chirping calmly. The only movement was that of the leaves in the early morning breeze. He rested his head against the window frame, sitting precariously but quite comfortably with one knee bent up, foot on the sill with the other leg dangling along the outside wall.

He assumed she could fight well- he hadn't actually seen her in action yet. If her temper was anything to go by, then she would be a fierce fighter as well. Of course, he amended, that could just be Wally. They hadn't exactly gotten off on the right foot, and they both seemed to exacerbate the problem. He wasn't going to let that cloud his judgment- he knew his friend well enough. After a while, they would probably get used to each other and stop bickering so much.

Maybe.

The troubled teen didn't know how long he had been sitting there with his thoughts. His mind had been wandering in circles around the archer for hours already- he had begun to lose his sense of time. It could have been ten minutes to an hour later when he finally swung his leg back over the windowsill to land on the floor of his bedroom. He yawned widely, deciding it was time he actually got some sleep.

He refused to look at his alarm clock- refused to acknowledge just how much time he had spent wondering about his enigmatic new teammate. Lying back down in his bed, he was finally out like a light minutes later.

Dick woke later that morning to the smell of breakfast coming from downstairs. Despite the fact he's outrageously tired and still confused by his thoughts, the fact he hasn't eaten since before the mission yesterday prevails. He rubbed his hands against his eyes hard, trying his best to hide the sleepiness still residing there. He knew it didn't do much good, but he could pretend.

He practically stumbled down the stairs. Well, 'stumbled' for him, at least, which was more like a normal person's walk. Alfred was waiting for him in the private kitchen/dining room, where he had already set out a plate with pancakes and bacon. Dick sat down and ate gratefully, getting halfway through his food before asking about the absence of Bruce.

"Master Bruce received a call from one of the department managers earlier this morning. He left half an hour before you arose," the butler said. "He told me to inform you that you will be required at Mount Justice this afternoon."

The boy nodded in acknowledgement, hiding the thoughts that were turning in his head. If Bruce was already out, then he would have hours to pore over the Batfiles before he returned. Things couldn't have worked out better!

"Thanks, Alfred," he said upon finishing his meal. "It was great, as usual."

"You are most certainly welcome, Master Richard. Enjoy your day."

Dick smiled at the older man before leaving. He stifled a yawn as he navigated the expanses of the Wayne manor. He could sleep later, he told himself. For the time being, he needed to get down to the Batcave. He needed to figure out who this girl was before it drove him crazy.

As he knew he would be returning to Mount Justice later that day, he changed into his Robin getup once he reached the 'Cave. He considered leaving the mask off – at least for now – but he knew Batman would kill him if he was caught wearing the Robin outfit with his identity exposed. He adhered the mask to his face, albeit reluctantly, and approached the supercomputers Batman kept in their base of operations.

The young hacker plunked himself into the seat in front of the displays, wondering where he would start. He supposed he could just type in 'Artemis,' but then he didn't know if that was even her actual superhero name. Could she have lied to them all? He ended up searching Green Arrow instead. If she was his niece, or even just his protégé, she would be listed in the extensive files.

Or, she should have been. Nowhere under Green Arrow's files did it mention a niece. Neither did it mention him taking on a protégé. Warning flags began to appear in Robin's mind, but he cast them away for the time being. There was no need to jump to hasty conclusions or assumptions just yet. Perhaps the links between the files were just faulty? It was unlikely, though. Batman kept his computers and files in working order at all times. Then again, there had been the close call with the FOG the night before … perhaps that had scrambled things.

Getting a flash of inspiration, Robin quickly pulled up the 'recently viewed' display. At the top of the list was his own search on Green Arrow, but below that … he nearly grinned when he found what he was looking for. Then he looked a little closer.

Green Arrow – (Oliver Queen)
Artemis – (Artemis Crock)
Sportsmaster – (Lawrence Crock)

The list went on from there, but none of that mattered to the Boy Wonder at the moment. He was hung up on the fact his new teammate shared a last name with one of the villains they had recently encountered.

He didn't much want to, but he forced himself to click on his teammate's file. From there, he started to read. As he went through the information, he found himself getting increasingly angrier with his mentor for hiding such information from him. It certainly explained why it sounded as if she knew so much about the League of Shadows.

It hadn't just sounded like it … she had actually known what she was talking about. With direct familial ties to two active criminals and one retired, she must have grown up on the other side of the tracks her entire life. Robin suddenly felt guilty- it was no wonder she had wanted to keep everything secret. If she had come into the mountain saying she was the daughter of two known criminals, just how accepting would the team have been?

He sank back in the oversized chair, running his hands through his hair. It had been almost two hours since he had begun, and he knew who she was now-Artemis Crock (AKA Artemis), daughter of Lawrence Crock (AKA Sportsmaster) and Paula Crock (AKA Huntress) and sister to Jade Crock (AKA Cheshire). The new information sent his brain spinning once more.

The next thing he knew was the familiar voice of his mentor cutting through his consciousness. He sat up with a start, a lump of dread beginning to crawl its way up into his throat. Crap. He was still sitting in the large black chair. He realized with dismay that he must have fallen asleep after searching the files. His eyes darted up to the other figure in the room.

The large form of Batman-slash-Bruce Wayne stood over him, dressed in uniform but with the cowl pulled back to expose his face. Robin couldn't say he looked angry, but he definitely didn't look particularly happy as he stared at the teen.

"Imagine my surprise," he started, "when I arrived at Mount Justice to get a clearer debriefing of the mission last night only to find that my own protégé was missing."

Robin looked down at his gloved hands. He hated disappointing his adopted father. What had he been thinking, searching files for information his mentor had obviously withheld from him for a reason? All he had succeeded in was getting caught and missing the mission report. He glanced up suddenly when he heard the billionaire sigh.

"I should have known you would be here," the older man said, defeated. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"What?" Robin asked, confused, "I-"

He was cut off when a large hand reached over and peeled the mask from his face, revealing his tired blue eyes.

"Dick," Bruce said gently, pulling up a crate so he could sit across from the teen, "Artemis is not her father."

"Of course she isn't!" the black-haired responded vehemently. "Why would she be?"

A small smile formed itself on the man's face. "I see I didn't have to worry," he said, somewhat to himself.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Dick asked his adoptive father, intrigued by his quiet statement. "You usually tell me everything."

"Dick, while you understand that genetics and heritage are not all that makes a person, there are those that would not be as … understanding … about her situation. They would see her family, and make their decisions about her based on that alone. I didn't tell you because she deserved a chance. A chance she would only have if she were given a clean slate to work from. A chance to reshape her life into something she wanted it to be, not something that was forced upon her."

With that, all his earlier anger and misgivings toward his mentor subsided. He understood. He could see clearly why Batman had done what he had done. It was necessary. If he had been in the same situation, he probably would have done the same thing.

If anything, this taboo subject of her family made the girl all that more interesting. Dick decided then and there it didn't matter. It didn't matter who her parents were. It didn't matter what kind of upbringing she had. She was his teammate, and hopefully his friend. She could have been raised in the swamps of … Timbuktu … or something … and it still wouldn't matter.

Though he was pretty sure there were no swamps in Timbuktu. That must have been the lack of sleep talking again.

He decided to voice this to the older man. "It doesn't matter," he said aloud. He didn't explain his reasoning. He didn't have to.

Bruce reached forward and ruffled the teen's hair despite his protests. "That's my boy," he said proudly, as a real father would to his own son. "I'll have to work harder to hide stuff from you from now on," he added, handing the young hero his mask back.

Dick couldn't help it. He yawned. Despite his unwanted nap in the depths of the Batcave, he was still exhausted from his late night.

"Go back to bed," his guardian told him. "Alfred will wake you when it's time for dinner."

The teen did as was suggested; shedding his hero gear in favor of pajamas once he was back in his room. As he crawled into bed to catch up on some much-needed sleep, his last thought was once again of the blonde.

Why would she use her real name as her superhero identity?

So, not really Traught interaction, but it was still needed. I really wanted to explore this aspect after Robin said he knew all along. Also, 1,000+ words longer than the last one.

I also intend to explore that last question in a future one-shot.

Your reviews really do mean a lot to me. I just thought I'd let you know.