(A/N: I am so happy with the response from chapter 6! I'm glad you guys liked it and Batman's shpeel~ I worked hard to word it right to a way that would sound like something he'd say~ Now, let's see how this affects their regular lives the next day… Enjoy~)

Robin and the others were watching the meeting go by silently as instructed, always holding their tongues no matter how much they sometimes wanted to speak up.

That's when Batman started his little rant. Robin only watched in shock, mouth open in his sudden surprise as his father went on.

The words hit home though, and with each sentence Robin slowly realized just how deep they were in. He couldn't even see the way out at this point of the pit Bullock had so graciously started for them, the news had continued it, and the entire population of Arkham Asylum had taken away their light…

Dick watch as Bruce stormed out of the Watchtower. Once his mentor and caretaker was out of sight, Dick closed his mouth and rose without a word.

"I should be ready to go," he whispered very softly, "he'll be here soon…"

The team also went along and followed him. Just as Robin headed towards the kitchen to get a quick drink, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and met the grey eyes looking at him with the various other eyes behind it.

"We are here for you Robin, remember that," Kaldur told him firmly, squeezing his friend's shoulder. "Don't be afraid to call on us, either."

Young Justice all nodded in agreement with their mentor including Roy, and Robin smiled.

"Thanks again," Robin said to them, meeting each of their stares before ducking out of Kaldur's grip and heading towards the door. He'd easily picked up the sound of the Batmobile's motor.

Just then, as Robin knew he would, the computer announced Batman's arrival.

The Dark Knight strode in and noticed Robin, whom he nodded at. Robin nodded back and went around his mentor and outside. Then, Batman gave each person in the room a quick look over, a genuine look came to his face, a slight smile on his lips (as much as can be expected from him).

"Thank you for being there for him," he said simply before he followed his partners move and went out of the Mountain.

The Next Day

Dick packed his bag for school at around three that morning. He was too nerve racked to sleep. He'd been up all night thinking. Every sound made him react, every shadow made him jump… his whole body was on edge and he wasn't looking forward to returning to Gotham Academy. Those stuck up people who liked him were going to be the first one giving him side glances and all of those people who were his friends would be the first to start whispering behind his back in the morning…

"Back stabbing, stuck up, goodie two-shoes…" Dick muttered under his breath, scowling as he fiercely zipped his bag shut.

He'd promised Bruce he would try one day and then they'd go from there… Even though he'd promise, didn't mean he'd like it. He'd try to be nice, but he knew how it'd be…

Dick sighed, running an angry hand through his hair as he rose from his bed. He felt like he was being watched as he headed out of his room and down the hall. Of course, being raised by the Batman he always felt like this, but right now it was worse. He knew Gordon was sending cops here in the morning to help "guard" the place… but it wouldn't help, not at all.

Dick headed into the library and opened the door to the Batcave. He stalked down the steps rapidly, muttering under his breath as he did.

The second he reached the bottom, he chalked his hands before launching himself into the air.

It seemed like he was air-borne for minutes, the world was in slow motion and he felt he would never touch the ground or his goal, he even started to fall a bit, but the second his hands latched onto the bar and Dick instantly felt at home. He closed his eyes, taking out all of his frustration in his fluid movements as he swung and flipped between the bars with practiced ease. He somersaulted, tucking in his legs, hugging them to his chest as he flipped in the air. At the last second, his arms and legs shot back out and he latched onto the next bar. Then, he flipped his legs up and landed on top of it in a balanced squatting position which is where he stayed for a while as he caught his breath as the sweat dripped off of his hair and landed with a muted "plop" onto the rock floor.

Finally, Dick stood and stepped off, landing soundlessly on the ground on the balls of his feet and heading over to the punching bags near-by. He went into a sparring session with the oval opponent.

"High punch, round house, knife hand, sidekick, duck," flew through Dick's head as he moved fluently through the attacks.

Just then, Dick heard a soft sound high up to his right. He flipped back, twisting in air so he could see who was coming, instinctively getting into a sparring stance. He only relaxed after he realized who it was.

"I heard you moving down here…" Bruce told him as he came down the stairs, hands in the pockets of the sweatpants he was wearing. "Not able to sleep?" he guessed, looking up at his son.

Dick nodded, blinking and wiping his forehead when sweat dripped down his nose again. Both stood there for a while, Bruce at the bottom of the stairs and Dick on the mats when Dick suddenly sunk down onto the ground, burying his head in his knees. Bruce went over to his son and squatted down next to him.

"Sunt speriat tata," Dick suddenly breathed, looking up to meet his father's concerned look. Bruce instantly sat down and pulled his son closer, despite the fact that he was hot and sweaty. He brushed his hand through his son's hair.

"Pasăre mică Sst, totul va fi bine," Bruce whispered soothingly into Dick's ear as he continued to stroke his hair.

Dick tilted his head back to look up at Bruce. "What are we going to do?" he asked quietly, the fear clear in his bright blue eyes.

"We're going to try and live through it… We'll tough it out, we've been in tight spots before," Bruce told him. He sighed before continuing, "If it gets too rough though, you know we have people to back us up…"

Dick nodded, looking back down. "Do I really have to go to school tomorrow?" he unexpectedly whined.

Bruce actually chuckled and stood up. "Yes, you promised me one day," he said to his son. Then, his expression turned utterly serious and father-like, the "Daddy Bats" look as Wally had so aptly named it. "If it gets to be too hard, though, or something happens you call me and defend yourself, no holding back. If people have to know this about us that means you can act like both out in public if necessary."

Dick nodded. "Alright," he said, also standing but using a different method. He rolled back on his back and whipped his legs up and forward, efficiently sending his body up and flying, making him land in a standing position. He snickered as Bruce rolled his eyes.

"Okay Mr. Show-off Acrobat, go hit the showers," he said, hitting Robin in the back. Robin let out his signature laugh before back flipping up the stairs and out of the cave.

Bruce shook his head in disbelief. His son could be so bipolar sometimes…

…. …. …. …. ….

Alfred drove Dick to school at the usual time of 7:20 after he'd eaten breakfast. He sat quietly in the backseat as Bon Jovi "Runaway" played softly in the background. He was dreading this day more than he should be… Of course, the cop car following them didn't help his feeling much at all. It was curtsey of Gordon and they'd be near-by all day, as if the words and side glances wouldn't be bad enough WITHOUT them, now there'd be some snickers too.

Perfect.

Alfred stopped in front of Gotham Academy and Dick took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly before shuffling over to the right door.

Alfred's hand reached back and placed a hand on Dick's shoulder. Dick glanced back at the butler.

"Good luck Master Dick," he told the boy.

"Thanks Alfred," Dick replied before stepping lightly out of the car.

It seemed like everyone's conversations stopped whenever Dick got out of the Porsche. He kept his eyes averted from the crowd by the doors and headed quietly over to a shade tree, stopping under it and leaning against the trunk there.

Dick listened as a car door stopped a bit behind him. He noticed the two police men standing nearby out of the corner of his vision and he rolled his eyes. Then, he finally looked at the group of his peers… He scanned the crowd, taking in each cluster of teens. A little over half of them kept glancing at him as they whispered to each other.

They were already talking about him… great.

Just then, during his scanning, Dick spotted someone in the crowd that actually made him feel a little better about the outcome of the day.

A blonde head had noticed him and was now weaving through the crowd to get to him. Once she was out she came over to where he was standing.

"Hey Dick," Artemis greeted in her usual tone, but a touch of friendliness and familiarity was in her eyes as she spoke.

Dick smiled. "Hey Artemis," he replied. It was sort of nice that his team knew his identity, now he and Artemis could be friends at school.

Of course, no one knew Artemis was Dick's teammate, so it was just another act to keep up. They couldn't just leap into being friends because Artemis and Dick weren't really friends, not close ones at least… It was all just another charade to keep up.

"So, you're not freaked out that I'm Robin?" he asked her curiously, tilting his head to the side a bit.

Artemis laughed, effectively drawing the attention of the crowd. She even went on to speak loud enough that the eavesdroppers could hear her.

"Nah," she scoffed, "I think it's cool that you're a superhero!"

A couple of kids nodded and murmured in agreement at that. It seemed to break the tense ice around Dick a little… but then one kid spoke up and it made another layer creep back on.

"I think it's all a lie!" a rich kid named Josh spoke up rather loudly. The crowd split to reveal him and his friends. His Dad owned a big restaurant chain in Gotham and Metropolis, along with several other cities, which is why he was here. He was very rude and full of himself though so Dick didn't really ever associate with him.

Dick took a step forward, coming out of the shade as Josh continued.

"I mean, why would a weakling like you be THE Robin?" he scoffed, only ruder than Artemis's playful one had been.

"I don't know," a random kid piped in. "Have you seen him in the gym? He's got some moves."

"Yeah, remember he was raised in a circus," another kid added.

Josh rolled his eyes. "I still don't think it's true. It could all be just another publicity stunt to give the GREAT and powerful Bruce Wayne some media attention."

Dick clenched his fists. He hated it when people insulted his father. Artemis placed a hand on his shoulder, holding him back.

The cops weren't doing anything. They just watched. Dick could care less, though; he'd only want them to help if someone who was an actual threat appeared. Not that they'd do all that much good, but it'd bring him some comfort if they helped in that sort of situation.

Josh's words made him think though, what if enough people didn't believe he was Robin? Could this whole thing blow over and there cover would be safe again?

Bullock would always know, and so would the Commissioner… and while he trusted Gordon, Bullock was another matter entirely.

"I bet he couldn't even through a punch if his life depended on it," Josh continued with a sneer.

Before Dick could even think about what he was saying, words poured out of his mouth. "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is Fairbanks? I'd like to see YOU throw a punch."

"Great, no NOT exposing myself now without a bloody nose," Dick scolded himself mentally.

Josh sneered at him and pushed up his sleeves. "Bring it on Grayson!" he challenged right back.

Dick just put his fists up, not going full out just yet.

The cops still weren't doing anything. They were all but useless it seemed. I guess they figured they weren't needed for a small fight, especially if they truly believed he WAS Robin.

Josh's muscles tensed and Dick saw his charge before it happened, so when it did he was ready. He flipped over his opponent and landed on his feet. He'd held back a kick to Josh's spine, knowing it would have sent him flying and he didn't really want to attack the kid, no matter how annoying he was.

Dick stood there, acting as if what he did was nothing big (which it wasn't to him), but the crowd around him seemed to beg to differ. They were all murmuring in shock… and some in fear, which made Dick wince mentally. Then he noticed Artemis at the very front of the crowd near him, ready to step in if needed. That's when he realized he didn't really care what those other kids thought; he only needed his true friends, his team.

Of course, that didn't mean he wanted them to fear him. Robin wasn't someone to fear, he was a hero, a protector with Batman not a criminal. Just because he had moves didn't mean he'd use them for bad, good guys needed to be able to defend themselves, too.

Josh spun around, his eyes filled with shock, but he quickly composed himself. "You got lucky," he growled before coming at him again, fist pulled back.

Dick caught his fist in midair and Josh's shocked expression came back.

"I don't want to hurt you Josh," he said firmly, "but I will if I have to."

Josh scowled and pulled his arm back. He appeared defeated as he turned his back and walked away. Dick was about to turn around and walk away, but he knew better to fully take his eyes off of his enemy.

Lucky him he did know this, being trained by the best and all, so he saw Josh suddenly spun back around and charged at him.

Dick's instincts kicked in and he flew up in the air, legs spinning around, one pushing Josh's second punch out of the way and the other kicking Josh square in the jaw, sending him flying to the side.

Dick landed on the ground with a stern look on his face as he watched Josh slowly sit up, a hand on his bleeding mouth in utter surprise and realization.

The next four words he said guaranteed that there would be no going back for Dick. His life was stuck as it was and there was nothing he could do about it…

"You really are Robin."

(A/N: YEAH! This chapter came very easily, I wrote like HALF of it in one day! I hope you guys liked it, all of your reviews meant a lot to me! I hope I'm keeping you guessing~ Please feel free to share those guesses, they help me with the thinking process to consider how you thought that up and it even motivates me! ^-^ I'll try to get another chapter up soon~ Review!)