A/N: Thanks for the reviews Blas and Batman Dude!

Chapter 13:

Batman stared in amazement as his partner took off after the villain. How did he have the strength to get up quicker than Batman and enter a footrace with a man who had minor head injuries and lots of fuel? If Robin still thought he was broken after this, Batman might have to call him an idiot to help him get his head on straight….

Chief O'Hara came running out of the station, frantically looking around for the villain. He saw the look on Batman's face and knew there was trouble.

"Where…" he started but Batman interrupted him.

"How did he get away from you?" Batman yelled at him. "He had Bat-cuffs on!"

"I'm sorry, Batman, but one of the junior officers made a mistake and…"

The chief was cut off again as Batman shouted incredulously, "You call this a mistake? The man who had us bolted to walls for four days and tried to break Robin gets away from you and it's a mistake?!" He shook his head and raced after his partner; Robin was strong but was also probably…and he saw the trail of blood. At least I can easily follow their path.

Kirik glanced behind him and was surprised to see the boy still running after him – it actually seemed like he was catching up! He had more energy than a kid who hadn't eaten in four days, however, so he increased his speed even though his head was pounding.

The wound on Robin's side was now bleeding profusely and his energy was starting to sag. Holy marathon! He watched in horror as the villain sped up and he almost wanted to stop and let Batman get him. Wind was blowing through a jagged hole in his uniform and memories of giving up were flying through his mind, however, so he pushed himself to run faster. Batman wasn't close enough yet to re-capture the man, anyway – there were no familiar footsteps echoing behind Robin – so there was no point in stopping. He was getting dizzy and was pretty sure his left leg was about to break but the man who had stolen his identity was not going to escape.

Batman saw a streak of yellow heading around a corner to the north. Robin needed this, needed to catch the villain but four days was a long time and running on a fractured leg, not to mention those ankles, was probably killing him. Batman kept running west, an idea forming in his mind.

Kirik took another quick look behind him as he followed the street north and saw no sign of the "Boy Wonder". He grinned; he had known the kid wouldn't be able to keep up so he started to slow down. Suddenly, there was a flash of red and yellow and the former sidekick's shoulder was in his gut: the kid was tackling him! Where did he come from?!

Robin knew the streets of Gotham City like the back of his hand; there was a dead end up ahead and the villain would be forced to turn right in another thirty yards. He whipped around a corner into an alley that took him north, jumped a short fence that led him west again – ripping away the rest of the Bat-wrap and scraping the bottoms of his feet in the process – then sprinted the last twenty yards. He rounded the corner at almost the same time as the villain and dove at him; tackling him to the ground and shoving the man's shoulders into the gravelly asphalt.

Kirik yelped in pain as he hit the ground and the grit on the street was pushed against his shoulders. No, no, no; this isn't how it's supposed to happen!

Batman rounded the corner and grinned when he realized that his idea had been correct: Robin had taken the back way and now the villain was pinned on the ground. His partner's arms were straight but his body was trembling and there was blood seeping from the wounds on both bodies.

Holy nick-of-time. Robin heard footsteps but knew if he looked up he would topple over so he waited for Batman – because he knew that's who it was – to get to them and secure the villain. He was startled when a pair of hands gently grabbed his torso and moved him off the man and to the right, setting him carefully on the ground. His vision was blurry and his breathing erratic as he watched Batman flip the villain onto his stomach and put Bat-cuffs on both his wrists and his ankles. Robin glanced down and pushed his right hand against the bloody knife wound on his side then laid down on his left side and curled in on himself. Now he could rest but he kept his eyes open, just in case Batman needed help from his sidekick. Then, as the events of the last four days rolled through his mind, Robin realized something important: winning the mental, emotional and physical battle against Kirik had redefined "Robin". Batman didn't have a broken sidekick, he had an unbreakable partner; a strong, proud, sarcastic, impulsive, sometimes-makes-unfortunate-decisions partner.

Batman was crouching by the tightly-secured villain, carefully watching Robin's face. He smiled when he saw realization dawning in his partner's eyes, replacing the sadness and shame that had been present during their captivity. He finally figured it out; he finally knows who he is, who he has always been.

"Batman," Robin whispered with a slight grin, "how's my hair?"