Chapter 7 – Lost in the Fire

A/N: Well then, here is chapter seven, hope you like it.

^Bruce's POV^

I was fast asleep for at least a couple of hours. It was really early in the morning when I woke up. Something wasn't right. As I opened my eyes groggily, I coughed. There was smoke around the room, which meant the mansion was on fire.

The mansion had been on fire before, so I wasn't in a hurry to get out. The fire didn't scare me, and I wasn't in the center of the house. I opened the door and stepped back, the whole hallway was set aflame. This fire had been burning for some time.

I groggily closed the door and walked to the window. I still wasn't completely awake yet as I opened the window. It opened gracefully and I slipped out.

I could hear fire-fighters so I knew the mansion would be okay, it wouldn't completely burn down, and the last time it burned I re-enforced it with steel, the bottom floor's walls had metal support beams.

I was glad my room was on the lower half of the mansion so I didn't have to find a difficult way down. I simply jumped out into the air, bending my legs to absorb the impact as I hit the ground.

Adrenalin definitely wasn't pumping because I was still tired. The fire didn't seem like a big deal.

As I walked to the front of the house, the fire truck's sirens started to clear my head. As I walked up to Alfred, I felt that there was something I was forgetting. Something irreplaceable.

It all became clear when I saw the worry on Alfred's face.

"Master Bruce, where is Master Dick?!" Alfred asked concerned, "Have you seen him yet?!"

I looked back to the mansion, my face turning white. "Dick?" I whispered under my breath, and I broke into a run towards the burning mansion. A fire-fighter caught me by the arm and another came to help him.

"DICK!" I called out.

"I'm sorry Mr. Wayne, you can't go back in!" I struggled in their arms, trying to break free, "We'll do everything we can to find him," The fighter said as he motioned to the others. As the fighters neared the house, something strange happened.

Unexpectedly, there was an explosion. The fighters all stepped back, but I froze where I was. A few seconds passed, but it felt like hours. I fell to my hands and knees.

What have I done?! What did I bring him into?! I thought. Then the full force hit me. I remembered his big, blue, shining eyes as I tried to blink back tears. I killed him…

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wayne," A fireman said. He knelt down and placed a hand on my shoulder. "We have just conformed that the house was intentionally burned, and a bomb was placed on the second floor."

I looked to the ground and felt a few tears slip down my cheeks.

If I was Batman, right now, Dick would be safe. I could have saved him. And I wouldn't be so weak, and I certainly wouldn't cry.

My fists clenched the grass and I arched inward. Dick, he was really dead. His parents murdered, he gets adopted by Joker, he is beaten, and now he just dies. And the worst part of it, I could have stopped it all.

I could have saved his parents, I could have stopped joker from escaping jail, and I could have adopted him before he went to the Juvenile Detention Center. In truth, there was a lot I could have done, but I didn't.

Suddenly, the fire-fighter next to me stood and stumbled back. I barely noticed as tears strolled down my face. I was startled by a sudden voice next to me.

"Mr. Wayne, are you okay?!" it asked. The voice was small, smooth, and concerned. I looked up slowly.

There, sitting on his knees, was Dick. He looked at me, his eyes big and worried. I sat up and stared at him for a moment. Without warning, I took him into a tight embrace. He squirmed a little, but didn't push away. I sobbed and kissed his hair.

I held him back to look at him and saw that he only had a few burns on his face and the cape was draped over his back. Dick looked down, almost guiltily.

"Dick, what's wrong? Are you okay?" The boy turned his head to the side, and then looked up at the burning remains of the mansion. The fire glistened in the tears in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered, looking back to the ground. "I'm so, so sorry."

"Dick, what happened?"

"I-I, I'm the reason it burned down." He whispered, still barely audible. "I'm so sorry," he repeated. The tears fell down his face and he turned away further.

"Dick, what happened? Did you start the fire? There was a bomb, you couldn't possibly have…"

"No," he interrupted, "I didn't start the fire, but if I were you," He said standing, "I would send me back where you found me."

I watched as he walked away and some fighters checked him over.

A/N: I know it was short, but I'll try to make it longer next time. Please Review!