Dick was alone crying in a corner. Sirens blared and drowned out the sound of his sobbing. This couldn't be happening. His mom and dad they….they couldn't be gone!
He tried to convince himself it was a dream. It was hallucinations. It was a horrible nightmare. But,as hard as Dick tried he couldn't fool himself.
His grandparents had all died before he was born or when he was very young. He had one uncle in a vegetable state whom he'd never really got to know. It wasn't that Dick didn't want any extended family, but he'd always had everything he needed from his parents.
He'd never had any brothers and sisters, no pets, no grandparents, no aunts and uncles, just his mother and father. And now they were dead.
Dick clung to the little robin bracelet in his hand and let the tears fall. His mother's favorite animal had been robins. He'd bought the bracelet at a gift shop last month. Dick had been planning to give it to her for her birthday that was supposed to come in two weeks.
Now his mother's birthday wouldn't be coming in two weeks, or ever again. He would never have the chance to give the bracelet to her. Dick was never going to see her again.
He would never get to tell her how much he loved her, what a great mother she'd been, that he was so sorry, how badly he would miss her, that he forgave her for everything he'd ever been mad at her for. He couldn't tell her any of that.
Dick realized that he would never even see his parents smile again. They couldn't comfort him the way the used to. They couldn't teach him new tricks for the trapeze. They couldn't even just give him a hug. They were gone. And Dick was all alone.
Bruce slowly sat down next to the boy. "I'm Bruce Wayne" said Bruce. "What's your name?" The child kept crying. "You don't have to talk if you don't want to".
"I'm-D-dick Grayson" coughed the kid.
"Okay, Dick. Just breath," said Bruce "everything will be okay". Then Dick started crying hysterically.
"No it won't"
"What?" asked Bruce.
W-why didn't I…" Dick bent over and buried his face in his knees.
"Why didn't you what?" asked Bruce slowly. This was going terrible. Bruce wished he had better people skills. How could he help Dick without coming off as confrontational?
"I understand what you're going through" said Bruce. "When I was about your age, me and my parents went to go see a movie. On our way back we walked through an empty alley for a shortcut to next street where we could catch a cab. Then this guy with a gun jumped out and made my parents give him all their money. And he shot them both. Right in front of me".
Dick looked up at Bruce. Bruce took a deep breath. "When the cops arrived, this Detective Gordon, Commissioner Gordon now, he sat down next to me and he told me this". Dick gave a slight nod so Bruce continued.
"He said "when I was about your age a drunk driver hit our car, and killed my dad. I was right next to him". Then he leaned next to me and said "I know how you feel right now. But I promise you, no matter dark and scary the world might be right now, there will be light!" I promise you, there will be light, Dick".
To his surprise Dick leaned next to him. "Just, promise me you'll be strong, okay? I know you can get through this" said Bruce.
"I-I s-saw a guy I didn't recognize going in the equipment-I-why didn't I say anything?" cried Dick.
"It's okay, it's okay, what happened is not your fault" said Bruce.
"Bruce Wayne!" called a familiar voice.
"I have to go now" said Bruce to Dick. "Speak of the devil" mumbled Bruce as he looked up to see Commissioner James Gordon.
Jim looked over everything on the notepad. Tony Zuko. He threatened Mr. Hallie and who refused to pay a tax to the mob. Responded by loosening the ropes of the trapeze. Worried Zuko might try to shut Richard Grayson up.
For a moment Jim wondered why he agreed to come down here himself. Then he remembered the victims. The Graysons.
He and Lee Tompkins had helped the Grayson's back in his first year as a detective. Most times when he thought of that date at the circus adventure he thought of his first meeting of the twin child of a snake charmer and fortune teller, Jerome Valeska, who'd murdered his mother.
Oh yes, Jim much preferred to think of the two feuding families starting a physical fight in the middle of the circus show over a literal dead horse. And he much preferred to think of the happy ending of the Romeo and Juliet love story between two of the acrobats.
Now the only one left of either of those families was 12 year old Dick Grayson. The poor child had just seen his parents murdered. Jim looked over at the kid and then immediately looked away.
I must be seeing things thought Jim. There's no way he's here. Yet when he looked back he saw Bruce Wayne talking to Dick Grayson.
I give up! thought Jim as he stomped his foot on the ground. Bruce somehow always managed to show up where he was least expected. How was it that Bruce always happened to accidentally be involved in something or be at a crime scene?
There was the time Galavant wanted to kill the last Wayne so he devised that stupid Death to the Son of Gotham plan. That had led to Jerome and Jeremiah Valeska being obsessed with murdering Bruce Wayne.
He'd been taken and replaced by a clone by the Court of Owls who apparently Bruce had been investigating months longer than Jim. He happened to be Ra's Al Ghul's heir (Jim still wasn't sure exactly what that meant). Oh! There was also the time with the Ra's Knife thing.
The point was ever since Jim had known Bruce he'd been showing up everywhere, 80% of the time on accident.
"Bruce Wayne!" called Jim as he walked to him.
Bruce stood up "Hi" he said. Sensing the question before it was asked Bruce answered "I was in the audience. I couldn't leave after this".
Honestly what else could be expected from Bruce Wayne? He'd seen Bruce always try to comfort children. Now he was comforting another boy who'd seen his parents murdered. "I can see why after what happened to you" said Jim.
"When it happened to me it was horrible. But I had you, Alfred, others. What about Dick? Does he have anyone?" asked Bruce sounding very concerned.
"No" said Jim."No family, except one uncle who's a vegetable so can't take care of him. There's a small chance one of the circus people might take him in, but frankly I'm afraid Zuko might try to shut him up. And the chances of people in a circus wanting the responsibility of a 12 year-old boy aren't very high".
"So he's going to have to go to a group home?" asked Bruce.
"Unless I have to find a safe house, yeah" said Jim. "Hopefully he won't need witness protection though" he said.
Bruce got that look in his eyes. Anyone who knew Bruce Wayne well knew that look. "Maybe I can help him?" asked Bruce.
A/N Thanks everyone for reading! If anyone has any feedback please review. The reviews are very helpful to me.