Adoption
When Bruce and selina arrived at the court house they were surprised that there were a lot of reporters in the lobby. Someone must have leaked information about their adoption case but thankfully the security guards were able to help them past the reporters without much incident. When they stepped into the courtroom they saw Richard was sitting next to his social worker on one of the side tables.
They greeted him with a simple smile and wave and he acknowledged them with a nod. Once they sat down at their table it wasn't long that the judge and bailiff entered the room.
"Good Afternoon" the judge greeted "We are here today on the matter of the adoption of Richard John Grayson. That is you correct?" she turned to the only child in the room
He nodded
was called up to the stand by the Wayne's lawyer
"Would you state your name and position?"
"Janine Russuel, I am a social worker at child protective services"
"And you are the social worker assigned to Richard's case?"
"Yes I was assigned to his case the day after his family died"
"And why was he placed in the Juvenile detention center without any known criminal record" Richard twitched at that criminal statement and selina sent a worried gaze at him
"Well the orphanages were already crowded enough and placing children in the center has always been an option for social workers so it is not illegal"
"I see. you know that Richard was kidnapped over two years ago but recently brought back correct?"
"Of course"
"During that time period were any children in the orphanages adopted or placed with foster parents?"
Janine eyes widened
"Please answer the question " the judge asked
She nodded "Yes some amount were adopted"
The lawyer nodded "So why when Richard was brought back was he once again placed in the center when there was room in the orphanages"
"He seemed dangerous to be placed with other young children in an orphanage" she crossed her arms
"Why would you say that?"
"Because he is obviously different from the last time I saw him. He was a six years old skinny short circus performer but now have you seen him" Richard narrowed his eyes
"I would think that would be from the kidnappers influencing his personality"
"He still has not revealed any information about them so how is it not possible that he had not escaped the center and was off doing who knows what"
The lawyer saw Richard's angered expression "Why don't we move on shall we. Now did the Wayne's manor seem like a suitable living environment for a child"
"Yes there was nothing that he could be harmed by" she huffed
"Was everything working properly? The electricity, plumbing, thermal…"
"Everything was fine it should be expected regarding their financial status"
"Do you know if Richard has had a proper care at the center?"
"He should he gets a proper bed, three meals a day, educational classes, and time in the courtyard"
"Yes but do you know if he eats the meals or if he has been hurt in the past by inmates"
"I wouldn't know"
"Alright what about his clothing I can see from how he's dressed today that he hasn't been given proper clothes" Richard looked down at his white shirt and tan cargo pants to see they were slightly dirty from the rain he hadn't been given another pair yet
"It is not my job to give him clothing. The center is supposed to take care of that"
"Yes I understand that but it is your job to look after him as your case and if you have seen that he has not been properly cared for isn't it your job to see to it he is?"
"I am a very busy person I do not have time to just go and visit him"
"Alright then let's move on. Richard is eligible for adoption yes?"
"Yes the Wayne's have personally paid for a new visa so that he may stay in the states"
"Now would you say that Richard does want to leave the center and be adopted by the wayne's"
"He hasn't really shown any emotion to back that up so he would have to answer that" Richard looked down he was really getting tired about people commenting on his emotionless personality
"Are there any other couples wishing to adopt Richard?"
"No"
"Have you made any plans to move Richard from the center?"
"No"
"If it was not for the Wayne's purpose of adoption would it not be better for Richard to be moved to a therapeutic group home? Given the trauma he has been through witnessing his family's death, being kidnapped for two years, that therapy would be a good option for him?"
"I doubt he would need therapy he should be used to having a rough life being a circus gypsy performer it's in his blood" the lawyer frowned at this
"That's all for this witness, your honor" Ms. Russuel snorted and went back to sit by Richard
Bruce had noticed Richard had been angered by the conversation and was struggling to keep it under wraps, that had already caught the attention of some people in the room but hopefully they wouldn't question it. Bruce was called to the stand next by social services lawyer
" would you tell us how you met Richard?"
He thought back to the night at the circus "I was funding a charity function for Haley's circus and was the guest of honor during the show that night. I had heard a lot about eh Flying Grayson's act hearing they were quite talented acrobats" he looked over to see Richard was gripping his pants "I had seen the grayson's perform when the trapeze wires broke and saw them die when they hit the ground"
"Did you have any contact with Richard that night?"
"Yes I had helped comfort him from experiencing their deaths. I had told him about the similar experience I had with my own parents and helped him to his trailer to pack"
"Why do you wish to adopt Richard?"
"My parents were killed just like his were so I know what it's like to move on from that"
"That is very well Mr. Wayne but having the same experience isn't enough. A child will require stability, consistency, and supervision. What makes you fit to take care of this young boy"
"Well I'm not entirely alone. In addition to my close friends, I reside with my wife selina and our butler Alfred pennyworth who raised me during my childhood"
"That is all, your honor" Bruce moved to sit back next to selina until she was called next up to the stand
"How long had you known Bruce before you got married ?"
"I had known his for a number of years about 4 at least"
"When did you met Richard?"
"I met him the day Bruce told me about his intention to adopt him. We had gone to the center to visit him before he was kidnapped and he was a very sweet boy"
"Why did you into adopt another child when he was kidnapped for all you knew he could have been dead these past two years"
She glared "Because we only had the intention to adopt Richard. We felt it would hurt him if he ever found out that we adopted another child because he was missing"
"How do you feel about the changes in Richard since you last saw him. I have learned that before he was really happy, smiling, and talkative. Now he's emotionless and scared"
"That should be expected from such a traumatic experience. I already knew he wouldn't be the same once he returned but I'm sure we can help him heel from that"
"Do you think Richard will cause any problems in your home?"
"Of course not"
"That is all, your honor" selina got up and went back to sit with Bruce
The social services lawyer turned to the child "I'd like to call Richard Grayson to the stand"
Richard felt everyone's eyes on him so got up from his seat and moved to sit next to the judge. He didn't really know what he was going to be asked but knew he had to keep his temper under control to not cause any problems and rise his head for once
"I'd like to ask you a bit of questions on your backround, if I may" he twitched and sighed "How old are you?"
"I'm nine years old"
"How long were you a performer in Haley's circus?"
He internally took a deep breath "I had been trained in acrobatics since I was able to walk. I joined the act when I was four years old but had practiced with the net so I would not be hurt"….'probably to make sure I was alive for the court'
"Where did you live in the circus?"
"In a trailer. It was rather small but sufficient enough to house us"
"Did you ever live anywhere else?"
"No'
"From records it says that you were born in Bucharest, Romania. Did your parents own any property there?"
"Not that I know of"
"Were you and your parents close?" Richard twitched and looked down
Bruce and selina got a worried glance at him hoping he wouldn't explode
"Yes. We were a family act so that meant we had to train together…..D...dad..Taught me about the trapeze and acrobatics….and…M-mom..Kept up my school work to make sure I was well educated. I was always kept busy with my…family" he felt sick just calling them that
"You met the night they were killed correct"
"Yes"
"How did you come to know Mr. Wayne and selina"
"I had met Mr. Wayne after the accident he helped me to my trailer and talked for a while before I was taken to the police station. I met both of them once more at the center when they came to visit me"
"Yes the same day you were kidnapped correct"
He nodded
"Where were you during your kidnapping Richard?"
He flinched "Objection!" the Wayne's lawyer yelled
"Why is that?" the judge asked
"The kidnapping does not have anything to do with the adoption case"
"Yes but the Wayne's should know where the boy has been all this time shouldn't they"
"Correct proceed" the judge nodded
The wayne's looked at each other already knowing about where he had been and wondered what Richard would say knowing he couldn't reveal being an assassin
He sighed "I am not aware of where I was during the time period"
"You had been gone for quite some time. Your saying you were never told where you were?"
He shook his head
"Care to explain why"
"The night I was taken I was unconscious after being taken from the cell. I woke up in darkness which was later revealed to be a basement of a compound and I had never left there until I was rescued"
"Do you know who your kidnappers were?"
"No"
"Now Richard you have changed a lot since you returned. You have scaring on your wrists, neck, and ankles where did those come from?"
He looked away "I had been chained to the walls and floor so that I could not escape. And had a shock collar for punishment if I attempted to"
"I see." he didn't look convinced "Your speech has also gotten quite formal now why would that be?"
Apparently everyone had been suspicious of that since they were all staring at him "The people wanted me to be the perfect 'child' so they taught me to speak formally to the point I had forgotten to speak any other way"
"Why about your newly grown muscles?" he looked to the small muscles on his arms "You say you had been kept chained so I doubt you could have moved very much"
He shook his head "I was only chained when kept alone. They had been taken off when they wanted me to exercise to grow my muscles with the shock collar on my neck they knew I could not escape"
"I see. now I have received reports from the center's infirmary that there have been multiple boys injured by you so how do we know you will not harm anyone when you are out"
He narrowed his eyes at him "If you had done your research thoroughly you would know that when I had first arrived at the center two years ago I had been injured by those same inmates but was never helped. Now that I have returned I have used my skills to defend myself when they once again tried to harm me I do not intend to critically injure them"
"Alright then no further questions" Richard got off the stand and went back to sit by
"We'll have a lunch break, folks" the judge eyed Richard "Come back at 1:30.
/time skip/
All the people were in their correct places when the judge walked back into the room.
"Although the boy Richard has gone through some traumatic experiences I see that social services has not cared for the boy properly seeing that he has malnourished a bit, harmed by the inmates of the juvenile detention center, and not properly clothed. Mr and Mrs Wayne seem very caring and suitable parent figures for a child to have. I have decided to grant the Wayne's legal custody of Richard making him an official member of your family" he turned to the social worker for the adoption papers "Please give me the order to sign"
sighed and went up and gave him a folder with the papers inside
The judge signed the papers then handed them to the clerk "Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to thank you for your impassionate efforts on behalf of this child. Mr and Mrs wayne you can expect to have Richard at your manor soon once he has packed up his belonging at the center"
oOo
"Congratulations Richard I'm so happy for you" hugged Richard once he had all his belongings together at the entrance
"Thank you " he nodded
"Well you should get going don't want to keep your new family waiting Richard Wayne" she smiled as he nodded once again and was taken by and impatient to their mansion
After a long ride, silent drive the car pulled up to the black gates of Wayne mansion with a giant W engraved into the middle of the gate. This caught his attention, he had never really seen the mansion so he was surprised that this place was going to be his home.
Once the gates opened he was a yard with bright green grass, a stone driveway in a semi circle leading right to the entrance of the giant mansion. There was a marble fountain in the yard and a few stairs leading up to the doors. He hadn't stopped taking in the scene even after Ms. Russuel got him out of the car and hadn't really noticed when she knocked on the door and Alfred opened up to let him in as she left
"Ah, you must be young Master Richard" the man had a friendly British accent "My name is Alfred pennyworth, I am the butler to the Wayne family, it is very nice to meet you" he held out his hand
Richard shook it and felt a bit comfortable with him going to be there too cause he could feel a bit odd if he was the only one with an accent in this house. He looked around to see the giant circular foyer just where they were all standing
Bruce and Selina let him take in the scene before they moved on and looked around as well although it was nothing special to them since they had lived there for years already. The ceiling had a large chandelier above them and a staircase up to the second floor that was on the far end of the room, there were fancy pillars holding it up from the bottom floor. The floors were made of black pure marble as red carpet cover the stairs except for the middle that had a circular marble with a capital W in the middle and the left and right were hallways leading to different parts of the mansion.
"Why don't we show you to your room?" selina looked down at him as he nodded and followed them up the stairs still looking around as they past some statures and paintings. They stopped at a door on the third floor that was made of ebony wood
Bruce grabbed the doorknob and they turned around to him "This is your room" they let him go in first
He hesitated at first but stopped immediately after taking a few steps inside and observed his surroundings. The room was very large, the door to the room was on the far right side of the room, the walls were dark blue and the floor had carpet instead of marble. On the wall opposite from them there were two small windows looking out to the yard and on another wall was a large window with a built in lounge seat. On the wall opposite from the bed was a build in fireplace, above it was a large flat screen Tv some feet back was a comfy looking couch with a small table in front of it. The bed was against the back wall and it was a large king size, the frame and tall headboard were made of black ebony, the blankets were mainly dark blue and had intricate designs on it. On both sides of the bed were nightstands with lamps on them then a door next to both of them his eyes widened at the large fancy room and thought they might be in the wrong room
Bruce smiled down at him seeing his expression "The bathroom is trough that door" he pointed the far door beside the right nightstand "And that one is a closet" he pointed to the left door
He nodded in acknowledgement and continued to inspect the room seeing a large dresser by the windows and a desk.
Selina saw he might want to be alone for a bit "Why don't we let you settle in just so you know our room is right across the hall ok" he nodded as they left and he heard the door close
He let out a huge breath he didn't even know he was holding he was completely shocked at the room that was supposed to be his. He walked to the closet to see it was a walk-in filled with designer clothes on two large racks on both sides with a mirror on the end, he took a once hanger off the rack too look at a fancy v neck shirt and felt it was silky. He quickly closed to look back around the room and as he was looking around his eyes widened at what was sitting on top of the fireplace
He walked over to get a better look and picked it up to see it was….his stuffed elephant zitka but how did it get here, he then remembered from selina's letter that his stuff had been brought here two years ago so of course they would have it. He felt silly having a stuffed animal now though but his gaze turned to the toy looked at its plastic black eyes, gray fabric, and the tiny hat on its head. He sighed and set it back down on the fireplace moving away from it to move to check out the bathroom. He froze again once he opened the door it was as huge as three cells from the center he thought it would just be big enough for him to walk a few steps inside but there was enough room for a lot of people in here.
The walls and floor where made of blue and white tiles. On the left there was large marble sink, with wooden drawers and cabinets underneath and a large mirror on the wall. On the other side was a white toilet with a rug underneath it and another in front of the glass door leading to the shower that seemed to have its own little room. There were blue towels hanging on hangers from the wall next to it and he looked over to see a oval shaped bathtub build into the wall with small tiles surrounding it.
He had known that rich people sometimes had separate showers and bathtubs in one bathroom but he had never guessed that he would have one. To say he was shocked would be an understatement he knew wit would take a while before he got used to this life of luxury and then there was still the rest of the mansion
'I've only seen the foyer and hallway so far I can only guess what the rest looks like' he then remembered that they were virilities' as well and wondered if they would tell him about the legendary batcave
He wondered if he should go and look for Bruce or Selina but didn't know if he should he didn't know if they had to come and get him or if he was free to roam around here. After a bit of debating he decided to stay in the room so he went over and sat on the couch and it was extremely soft and it was a weird sensation for him. He looked up at the large flat screen Tv then to the remote on the table but decided against it since he had never really watched Tv so wouldn't even know what to watch.
oOo
"How is Master Richard taking his new home?" Alfred asked once the couple came back down
"I would say he's pretty overwhelmed by everything but that is understandable, he's experienced something like this before" selina told him
"It is quite shocking for any sort of child"
"We're just letting him settle in up there then let him come down for dinner later"
"Are you sure that is wise sir?" Alfred lifted an eyebrow
"What do you mean?"
"I do not think he will leave his room unless one of you goes to retrieve him remember sir he was not allowed to do anything without permission from his elders his entire life"
"Oh right we'll have to explain to him things will be different here" selina looked to bruce "When will dinner be ready so I can get him?"
"It should be ready within a half an hour but by the time I have everything ready you should be settled so why not go and retrieve him now?"
"I'll do it I'm sure he's gotten over the shock by now" Selina offered and went back up the stairs and once she opened the door she saw Richard was sitting quietly on the couch "Richard?"
He lifted his head and looked over to her waiting for what she was going to say "Why are you just sitting in here?"
"I do not have anything else to do"
"Why didn't you watch the Tv?"
"I have never watched television much in the past so I do not know how to work it or what I would watch?"
"Oh ok well I can show you later but right now it's time for dinner so why don't we go down to the dinner table to eat" he got off the couch and followed her back down the stairs to the dining room
Again he was surprised by the setting. Since it would only be three of them eating he assumed it would be a small circle dining table in a small room but this was a long rectangular table enough to sit over 50 people with a red tablecloth over it, there were painting on the walls again and on the ceiling was another chandelier. 'This is overwhelming' he looked up and down the long table
Selina smiled down at his expression "Were going to sit at the head of the table" she led him to three seats at the head of the table where Bruce was waiting with Alfred.
He looked down at the meal on his plate to see: lasagna, filet mignon, and garlic bread. His eyes widened down at the food
Bruce saw his face "I take it you've never had something like this?" he shook his head "What would you normally have for dinner than?"
He thought back "Not much mostly health food such as vegetarian meals I rarely ate proteins"
"Well if you don't like it I'm sure we can get you something else?" selina asked
"It's fine thank you" he nodded
While they began to eat they talked for a while about what life would be like at the manor for him and he was told all the new freedoms he had and that he didn't need their permission to leave his bedroom or do anything he wanted as long as it wasn't dangerous
"We'll give you a glorified tour of the mansion tomorrow so you can know your way around here alright?" Bruce assured him and he nodded
To be continued
I never know how to end a chapter. He's finally home though and at some point I want him to start calling Bruce and selina mom and dad because they're so caring but I don't want to write where he asks them if he can call them that. I'll probably have him become robin in soon once he's adjusted to the mansion but I'm trying to figure out where that name would come from.
Ideas for robin's origin: Miranda and the other kids gave him the name, He got it from the robin hood movie, or Selina sees him on a trapeze and takes mary's place as the one who gave him the name.
