[June 2015]

Roy hummed quietly to himself as he paced a few feet outside the Woman's Resource Center. The summer sun, while warm, wasn't warm enough for him. 'I still have to go back to my office today,' he thought. 'I need to grab those files and start conducting interviews for the runaway wife and take some photos for the affair case.' He should also drop Mia off at home first though, so she could eat. 'Food is probably a good idea. I'm still supposed to be feeding them.' The sound of the door opening behind him made Roy spin around.

"Hey," Mia said in surprise. "What're you doing here? I thought I was supposed to walk home after therapy?"

"You are, but I decided to walk you. I was feeling…restless and decided some fresh air would do me good." If the creeping anxiety that made it difficult to focus on anything of substance could also be classified as "restless".

"Ok."

The two of them walked in silence for a couple minutes before Roy started talking again. "How was therapy today?"

"Uh… Good. We played with make-up during Group."

"…You played with make-up?"

"Yeah. I mean, I've worn make-up before but this was…different. Before, I always and to do it because I had to look good for the clients and it was always done very strategically to make me look older than I was. But today, I got to play with make-up just to…play with make-up. I put on this horrible, bright purple eye shadow and blue lipstick. There was also a ton of blush, so I looked like a crazy person."

"Did you have fun?"

"I did actually. All the girls at school would always talk about how much they like putting on make-up, but I never really related. Make-up was always this…chore that I had to put up with. Today though, I could see the appeal."

"Do you think you'll put make-up on regularly?"

"Hell no. But…I wouldn't be opposed if we had another day of therapy just playing with the make-up and doing whatever."

"That's good. You should tell your therapist. I'm sure she'll be happy to see you taking such an interest in Group."

"Yeah, probably. She's really impressed with how I've been sharing and stuff."

"That's good." Roy was quiet for a moment. "I know that therapy has been a difficult thing for you to…see the benefit of, but I'm really proud of how much effort you're putting into participation in the last couple of months."

Mia shoved her hands into her pockets. "I just want out of the program. And that won't happen if I don't talk."

"No matter your motivation, I'm proud of you for trying."

"…Thanks." Mia looked away and Roy let the conversation drop. It was only a half an hour walk back to the apartment, which they spent in silence. It was a tense silence though. The silence was a mutual one due to neither of them feeling the need to speak.

When they got home, Roy stopped Mia just before she went into the building. "I have to go back to my office to get some work done. Tell Connor I said it's his turn to make lunch."

"Ok. Thanks, Roy."

"You're welcome. Behave."

"Of course."

Roy smiled a little as he turned and walked back toward his office. 'Hopefully, therapy will help her, even if she's just doing it to get out of the program,' he thought as he walked. 'I'll take it as long as it helps her.' And the walk had calmed him down enough that he felt like he could focus on his work for the rest of the afternoon. Despite it being such a small victory, Roy couldn't help but feel proud of himself for calming himself down from a prospective anxiety attack. And with something as healthy as a walk in the sun. 'It's nice to feel like I've regained some grain of control over my life.' Which was ironic, considering he had a pregnant ex-assassin living with him, who he was maintaining a purely platonic relationship with. 'Guess control comes in many forms. Plus, I have several months to work toward having a good grip on…that.' (It still felt unbelievable this was happening to him at all.)

Upon arriving at his office Roy gathered up the files he needed for fieldwork that afternoon. As he worked his mind wandered. Thankfully it didn't take him down any paths that induced anxiety, but it did pull his attention away from his work, no matter how many times he dragged it back. His brain kept going back over his earlier though. There was several months ahead of Roy that he could use to prepare for the arriving baby. Which brought him to a situation that had been weighing on him. Including the baby, there would be 5 people living in his small, two-bedroom apartment. Besides the fact that Mia and Connor were slowly accruing enough possessions each to make their shared room look cramped, Jade would be staying with them for the time being. And the baby would need a proper nursery, not just a bassinet in the corner, which was his and Jade's current idea on how to handle things.

There was an obvious solution to this problem, Roy needed a new apartment. Except he needed one place close to his office for professional and vigilante reasons. And finding an apartment with enough bedrooms wouldn't be an easy task. Roy sighed a little as he stood and wandered around the room. He ambled into the backroom with the stairs case. When he saw it, he stopped for a moment and stared. He hadn't been upstairs since he'd bought the building when he first came to Star, but a feeling, the fledgling of an idea spurred him forward and up the stairs.

The top floors of the building had once been apartments, back when the building had been operational. Now though the floors creaked under Roy's feet as he walked. The carpet was dirty and dingy, with colors so faded it was difficult to make them out. It was torn in some places, giving him a good look at patches of wooden boards underneath. 'It's still structurally sound,' Roy thought, trailing his hand along the wall. It came away dirty and he wiped the dust off on his pants. 'Electrical wiring and plumbing still work in the whole building.' He put his hand on one of the doorknobs and gave it an experimental twist but it was locked. Unfazed, he took a step back, then kicked in the door.

It banged open and Roy stepped inside. 'These walls could be removed to make an entryway and living room,' he thought as he walked around the living room of the rundown apartment. 'This whole floor…. 7 apartments, one room per person… One apartment per room….' Roy stopped and put his hands on his hips. "It would be a lot of work to renovate this whole floor. Tearing down the walls and everything. It's… On top of everything else, it would be a ton of work. Plus, it'd go against my reasoning of not living near my headquarters. Even if it would be nice to be closer in an emergency. And I wouldn't have to worry about getting Connor or Mia home if they're hurt; or myself." Not to mention, he would have more space. The kids could each have their own rooms, which he was sure Connor and Mia would appreciate. And they could have their own bathrooms, which may streamline getting them ready for school. "They'd have a longer walk to school, but only by like 10 minutes." He sighed a little. "It would probably be worth all the work.

There was also the small matter of him not knowing how to do quite a bit of the construction work. "I can learn though," Roy smiled. "And I'll have plenty of time. It'll give me something to work and focus on." There was also the feeling in his chest of wanting to take care of his family. 'I- I can give them a good place to live. Where they have plenty of space to grow. I'm capable. I can do this.' It was a difficult task, but he needed something to work on. Something to help him deal with all the changes that were coming. Roy nodded to himself, then went back down to his office. He dug through a filing cabinet before he found a set of blueprints and spread them out on his desk. His work now forgotten, he began making plans.

— —

When Roy got home later that night, he went right to Connor and Mia's room, knocking lightly on the door before opening it. "I have a surprise for you, guys," he said as he walked in.

"What is it?" Connor asked while Mia set her magazine down slowly.

"Another baby?" Mia added.

"…No. We're moving."

"….Moving?" Connor frowned. "Where?"

"My office building." When they gave him confused looks, Roy smiled. "We're going to be really cramped in here once the baby comes and it seems like you two could use some more space, so I"m going to be renovating the second floor of the building where my office is."

"We're going to be living above the Quiver?" Mia asked, now more relaxed and interested. "Cool."

"I thought you said that was too dangerous?" Connor asked.

"I did but…it'll make things easier in the long run. I'll make it work, don't worry."

"So, you're renovating the whole thing yourself?" Mia asked. "Do you know how to do that?"

"I don't, but I can learn. I have a pretty good track-record with learning things. I'm already looking at the blueprints and working out the layout of our new place but I want some input from you guys. You're each getting your own rooms, so I thought you could help me design them."

"What'd you mean?" Connor frowned.

"I mean, I want you guys to think about how you want your rooms to be decorated. Anything you want."

"…Really? Anything?"

"Anything."

"So…" Mia began slowly, her hands clenching into fists on her blanket. "If I wanted my room to be hot pink with sparkles?"

"That'd be fine."

"Really?" Connor asked, almost in shock. "She gets to have a hot pink, sparkly room?"

"Do you want one too?"

Connor shook his head quickly. "That's…great, Roy. Thanks."

"Yeah…" Mia echoed. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. I've got more work to do, but you guys get on your ideas. Got it?" They nodded, then Roy smiled at them before he left.

After the door shut, Mia swung her upper body down from the top bunk to look at Connor. "Is he really serious?"

"I've never seen him not serious about stuff like this," Connor shrugged.

"Yeah but… He's going to basically build us any dream room we want? Why?"

"I don't know. Maybe he just-"

"I swear to God, Connor, if you say just to be nice I'll come down there and smack you."

"Well, it's true, Mia. Roy just does stuff like this." He could tell the repose wasn't making her feel better. "I know getting gifts from Roy makes you nervous-"

"Nervous? I get nervous when it's small stuff, not a God-damned bedroom!"

"It's just the way he is, Mia! Besides, Roy's never asked for anything in return for stuff he gives you, has he?"

Mia rolled her eyes. "It's never too late to start."

"You should see this as a good thing. If Roy wants to give us our own special rooms, then he's not planning on getting rid of us."

"Why would he get rid of us?"

"Because- Because he's having a baby. He'll have his own, biological kid to raise. What if- What if he decided to it was too much work and got rid of us?"

Mia hesitated for a moment, not wanting to admit Connor had a point. "So you think this means he won't get rid of us."

"Yeah. It's a good thing. I don't want to leave, do you?"

"Of course not."

"There you go then."

There were a few seconds of silence. "So….if Roy's going to keep us, then are we basically adopted now?"

Connor froze and slowly looked up from his book. "You think we're adopted?"

"Well if he never gets rid of us, aren't we basically his kids?"

"…I mean… I guess?"

"So we're basically adopted. Cool." Mia swung herself back onto the top bunk. "I have no idea where my parents are and I'd rather be Roy's daughter than theirs any day of the week. You know?"

"Yeah…" Connor looked back at his book but didn't really comprehend any of the words. 'Has Roy basically adopted me? He doesn't really treat me like a son-' Except doing all the things Connor's mom had always done like help him in school and give him a good home. And it wasn't like Connor knew what having a dad was supposed to be like. 'I- I don't- I mean… I don't want it to be like I'm replacing mom…but Roy can't replace her because he's you know…a guy. Plus…mom would want me to be happy.' While Connor definitely wasn't sure where his relationship with Roy stood, he wanted to believe his guardian cared about him and didn't just think of Connor as some kid that fought crime with him. 'I guess I can start with…designing my own room and go from there…'

— —

Despite not having done any of his work that day, Roy continued to work on his blueprints that night. (He had all day tomorrow to work on his cases after all.) The planning had to be intermittently disrupted by looking up different construction and engineering concepts. Thankfully, his work with trick arrows and the years he'd spent cooped up in Wayne Manor with nothing better to do than read gave him a basic knowledge of everything. Some ideas needed double-checking to make sure they were structurally sound though. The more Roy planned and imagined, the more excited he got. His muscles practically jumped under his skin as he itched to start the work. Unfortunately, his phone started working, interrupting his work.

"Hello?" he answered without looking at who it was; still looking at his blueprints.

"Roy," Bruce said in greeting.

"Oh. Hey, Bruce. What's up?"

"I… I was wondering if you'd be interested in…coming home this weekend?"

Roy froze, his pencil falling from his limp hand. "You- You want me to come to Gotham this weekend?"

If Bruce noticed the slight change in word-choice that Roy used, he didn't comment on it. "Yes. I know it's been…a while since you've been here."

'Try two years.' Two years where a lot had changed in Roy's life; all of it without Bruce being there. "Yeah, I know."

"Well…"

There was a hesitant pause, which immediately had red flags going up in Roy's mind. People hesitated, but not Bruce. Bruce Wayne didn't hesitate. Batman didn't hesitate. It sent anxiety buzzing down his nervous system. Horrible scenarios began picking at the edge of his brain, but Roy forced himself not to focus on those. Instead, he took a deep breath and slowly asked, "What's wrong?"

"What do you mean? There's nothing wrong."

"You're hesitating and inviting me back to Gotham out of nowhere after over two years. What else am I supposed to think is happening?"

"There's nothing wrong, Roy. I swear. Everyone is fine. Barbara and Dick are fine…and so is Tim?"

Roy frowned, his brow furrowing as his brain processed that. "Who the hell is Tim?"

"Tim Drake. The Drake's son." Another second of hesitation. "And…the new Robin."

Everything froze. Roy's muscles, his breathing, heart, even his thoughts. It felt as if time itself had stopped. It took Roy some…unidentifiable amount of time to pull himself out of his shock. "The- The new…" He swallowed, then anger suddenly burned through his body. "The new Robin?! Are you insane?!"

"Roy-"

"You're really letting another boy- another child put on the Robin suit?! After what happened to Jason?!"

"Roy-"

"And it's not even your kid! It's someone else's kid! What the hell, Bruce!" Roy stood suddenly, one hand on the table keeping him steady. Behind him, his shouting had drawn the other three inhabitants to the doorway of the kitchen. "How can you possibly justify this?!"

There were a whole ten seconds of silence before Bruce started talking again. "He knows Roy. Tim knows who we are. He came to Dick, and then to me. He wants to be Robin."

"He's a child. You're an adult, you should be setting him straight."

"I tried, Roy. Believe me, I tried. But Tim was instant. He wanted to be Robin and honestly, I don't know if I would've been able to stop him." There was a second of silence. "I didn't want to do this, Roy. I really didn't, but…he's going to be great at it. I've been training him for months and he's more than ready."

Roy sighed and slowly sat down in his chair. "You've been training him?"

"Yes. For a while. He's ready to go out on the streets and I wanted to offer to let you come with us on his first patrol?"

"…Us?"

"Yes. Myself, Tim, Barbara, and Dick."

Roy had to stop himself from answering yes right away. It was everything he'd been dreamed of for months. Going back to Gotham, having his family back. Being with the people he loved and who'd supported him through the worst times of his life. But then he glanced back and saw Mia and Connor still standing in the doorway with Jade. The two teens were giving him equally concerned looks, while Jade just scrutinized him carefully, one hand resting on her hand resting idly on her stomach. Roy's gaze lingered on her abdomen before he turned away. "I- I don't know, Bruce."

"I understand if you don't want to come-"

"It's not that! I want to come! I really do, but…I have a lot of responsibilities in Star. It's not so easy for me to just…get up and leave."

"I know. But it would mean a lot Dick and Barbara if you came. And Tim."

"Even though he doesn't know me?"

"Dick's been talking about you almost non-stop throughout Tim's training. It's certainly piqued the boy's interest in you." Bruce chuckled quietly. "You're basically a legend to him at this point."

That made Roy smile a little bit. Again, the idea of seeing his family tugged at his heart-strings. "I don't know… I miss you guys and I miss patrolling with you, but… I do have a lot going on right now."

"Why don't you just come for patrol, then? You have access to the zetas, so you can come to Gotham for patrol, then go back to Star when we're done."

Roy opened his mouth to turn down the offer again, but then part of his brain pointed out how insistent Bruce was being. (For Bruce at least.) It wasn't like the man to continually argue with people about something like this. 'He misses me,' Roy realized sadly. 'He wants me to come back.' And given how Bruce was usually incapable of showing any emotion, using Roy's siblings and this Tim kid seemed like his best way to get Roy to come back. "Ok… Ok, I'll come back for one patrol this Saturday. But when it's done I have to come back to Star."

"Ok." There was another second of hesitation. "See you this weekend."

"See you this weekend." Roy hung up, then sighed and sat back in his chair.

"Are you going to tell him about us?" Connor asked after a few seconds.

"Hm?" Roy twisted around in his seat a little it. "What'd you mean?"

"You're going to Gotham this weekend. Are- Are you going to tell Batman about us?"

"Uh… Not right now. Things are still weird and…with this new Robin… We'll just wait for a while." He'd kept Connor and Mia's vigilante actives a secret from Bruce so far, what were a few more months? Roy looked at the time. "Time for dinner."

"So will Jade be in charge while you're gone?" Mia asked.

"Yeah, probably." Roy stood and gathered up his things. "She is the only other adult here." He put his stuff in his bedroom, then started cooking dinner, thinking about what was coming. Saturday he'd finally begging back to Gotham. He'd be stepping foot in the Bat Cave after two years. 'Hopefully, this is a sign everything's finally going to be ok. Maybe the worst is behind me. Again. God, I really hope so.'

A/N: Ok, a couple of things here. First, the third chapter of Sunbeams (entitled Tim) takes place between this chapter and the next one. Second, a heads up that there will be a big, time jump after this chapter. Let me know what you think!