Hello Internet.

This is because I love Connor being a big brother, even though he has no clue how and Robin certainly doesn't need it.

Best. Brothers. Ever.

(Except the Dick/Jason relationship—I'm gonna say it's a tie…)

Anyway, enjoy!

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"Connor."

Superman's clone automatically looked up. A second later he wondered why.

Robin grinned a toothy, devilish grin at him. "Perfect." He nodded to himself.

"What's perfect?" The clone frowned at the tiny boy who was perched on the arm of the couch he was sitting on, staring at the fuzz on the TV screen. It had a pleasant, numbing sound to his super-sensitive ears that others didn't seem to notice or simply found boring. Robin, however, often took to sitting beside him and watching as well, though Superboy suspected he was thinking of other things rather than listening to the fuzzy sound, and sometimes he even fell asleep with his head resting on the back of the couch or his shoulder. And it was always late at night when Superboy found sleep unpleasant from the images slumber caused his brain to see and he rather sit and listen to the fuzz—Robin, unlike what Superboy had learned of other humans, didn't remain in his room for the night and sleep as well, but was often just as active as he was during the day. Strange as it was for normal human behavior, Superboy had come to accept and even like Robin's silent presence. He didn't know why.

But today Robin had taken to crouching on the arm of the couch like he was preparing to jump for the rafters and stare intensely at Superboy. He'd been doing it for over two hours now, but Superboy simply contributed it to another one of his strange tendencies and simply stared at the fuzzy screen and ignored him as usual. The little Bat had occasionally said a word or two, but the clone ignored him, dismissing the words as the things Robin often said to himself when he thought "out loud"—something he'd explained to Superboy (who could hear him even when he was just mumbling to himself) when the clone kept asking what he meant by the random thoughts Robin didn't intend others to hear. He didn't understand that either, but had come to accept it.

He didn't understand any of the words Robin had said so far today either, having not heard or recognized them before in normal daily conversation. Well, perhaps he knew them somewhere, but they were deep in the "Cadmus programmed" section of his brain and labeled as trivial information. Besides, Robin had told him it was better to experience things for himself than to go by what his fake memories told him he already knew, and he therefore tried to ignore that part of his brain as much as he could and focused on his own memories of things he'd learned in his short life.

So when Robin said "Connor", it was beyond him why he instinctively glanced over at the bird.

"'Connor' is perfect for you." Robin clarified, his triumphant grin doubling in wattage.

"Perfect for me for what?" The clone frowned.

"A name silly!" Robin cackled. Superboy felt a surge of a feeling he couldn't place in his stomach at the mention of a name. "If you want it that is. Connor just sorta fits you, ya know?" The boy explained, finally relaxing and hopping down to sit beside the clone properly.

"…Connor?" He repeated slowly.

It was then that he realized all the words Robin had been saying were in fact other names. He replayed them in his head, noting all the different languages and types that Cadmus had implanted in his mind, remembering how they sounded when Robin had said them.

And only for Connor had he automatically glanced over for.

"Superboy is a hero name," Robin continued happily. "But you can be more than just a hero, right? You can be a boy too, and as that boy I thus dub you Connor." He said in that tone Batman used to signal no one should argue with him.

The clone frowned in concentration. "Isn't… Superman…"

He didn't want to talk about it, but Superman was supposed to name him. He was created for the sole purpose to protect the lives of others and of Superman's. It was programmed into every aspect of his being—that he was meant to protect and fight for Superman above all else. His name had always been Superboy. He was crafted for the single reason to be Superman's aid, and even his replacement if it ever came to that. The concept that Superman had a secret ID and that he pretended to be human with a normal human life was not something he'd been prepared for or could even accept, even now months after having everything explained to him once he left Cadmus and joined Young Justice.

So, since he was technically supposed to be Superman, Batman and Robin had pointed out that he should pick a regular, human name so he could pretend to be human as well.

But that went against everything Superboy was programmed to think.

The idea Superman and he could ever not be in superhero mode was such a foreign and incompatible thought in the brainwashed clone's mind that he'd simply stared, unable to say anything in response to the others' suggestions and questions about what his name is.

Because they said "name" as if he didn't already have a name. Like they were asking for his real name rather than his hero name. Like he wasn't really a hero, like he had to be something else and be a hero part time. Like that's what everyone else did.

But he lived in a cave and stared at a blank screen with pleasant fuzz when he wasn't a hero.

Was this being "Connor"?

"Superman lost his chance to name you." Robin said slightly tensely, but still with a broad smile. "And since you seem unwilling to pick one yourself—I'm just going to start calling you Connor!"

Superboy frowned. "So… I'm Connor, but only when I'm not Superboy?" He puzzled.

Robin tilted his head to the side curiously. "Well… it's more like you're Connor all the time but you tell people you're Superboy so they don't know you're Connor."

The clone gave him a blank look. "That makes no sense." He said bluntly.

Robin let his smile fall some as he thought of a way to phrase it. "Ok then, think of it like this: you are who you are, and that person is Connor. But, we don't want people knowing who you are because as a hero, you have to keep personal and professional work very separated or enemies can take advantage of it."

"Like you and Batman not telling others your identities." Connor agreed.

Robin looked pulled up short by that, but eventually nodded. "…Yes, I suppose it's a lot like that. You keep who you are secret, and give everyone else a different name to keep that secret."

"But I don't have anything to keep secret." He shrugged. "I am Superboy and I'm Superboy all the time."

Now Robin was really frowning.

"But you don't have to be." He insisted.

"Why would I be anything else?" The clone demanded, and they stared at each other for a long time in silence, refusing to be the one to break… well, Superboy not looking away simply because he didn't know whoever stared longer would win.

Robin tisked. "You are Connor because you're my friend. ME- the person behind this mask loves you like a friend, while the person with the mask is obligated to mistrust you on principle in the case of mind control and in the name of contingency plans, understand?" He said briskly, and the clone nodded, having had this reasoning explained to him by both Batman and Robin, as well as all military strategies being implanted by Cadmus—it was nothing new.

"As Superboy, you are Superman's clone and his… backup I guess." He frowned deeply at that idea. "But I've known Superman since I was seven, and you not him. You're your own person, and my friend in a very different way than Superman is my friend, ok?"

Superboy frowned deeply too. "I don't think you said that to be insulting but… aren't I supposed to be Superman? If I'm not him, then I've failed." He was greatly upset by this in a way that made his throat close up.

"No, no, no!" Robin sighed, leaning into his shoulder which distracted the clone enough to let his throat open up again. "Physically being someone doesn't make you them—there are memories and upbringings and friends and family that shape you as you grow up and… you didn't have that. You're getting a very different upbringing than Superman did, so there's no way in hell you're going to be him—or even think you should be him! I know Cadmus beat it into you that you need to be him, but if you never listen to a thing I say again, please believe me when I say that is an outright lie. Cadmus was wrong—you are Connor, a person and my friend, not a mindless weapon and a plan B for when Superman kicks the bucket."

They were quiet for a long time while Superboy thought that over.

"… why would I ever not listen to you? You're smart." He finally said and Robin tensed in surprise before letting out a cackling laugh.