"I must point out that on the average day, you are all but excited to be fighting people like Bane or Harley Quinn, surely this isn't as bad?" Alfred commented, the hint of amusement only Dick could hear ringing through.

Dick just crossed his arms and glared out the front window of the sleek black Lexus Alfred was driving him to Gotham Academy in. September first had come far too early for Dick's taste, but at last, here he was in this stupid uniform with his stupidly combed hair and stupidly easy class schedule clenched in his very unhappy fist.

"I can be Robin then. Now I have to be Richard Grayson—stuck up brat and boring socialite. For eight hours every day! What is there to be excited about!?" He huffed back.

"There is nothing saying you can't be Dick Grayson—the charming young man you are. Master Bruce implied you should stick to playing a role far removed from your Robin persona, but that does not mean most don't already know you grew up in the circus and are hardly the 'brat', as you put it." Alfred pointed out calmly. "I'm sure Master Bruce would wish you to be happy first, you know that."

Dick huffed and glared out the window again. He liked to sit up front to talk to Alfred, not in the back like most people expected him to be chauffeured around like. Alfred may have been their butler, but he was also Dick's grandfather in every way, shape, and form except by blood. Even in the circus Dick never knew any sort of grandparent—Gypsies never tended to stick around for very long after all. His little nuclear family on the high ropes was a rare thing, and his extended family in the rest of the circus was all he needed. Maybe Pop Haley could be seen as a grandfather, but he wasn't like Alfred, who was always around and always there to answer the curious young boy's many, many questions.

Still, talking to Alfred today wasn't helping him. He still didn't want to go.

Earlier in the month, Bruce had taken him to the school to speak with the Principal about enrolling him there, and that was about as horrible as Dick wanted it to get. Seeing as Gotham Academy was super-secretly private (Bruce Wayne WAS known for his trust issues) and run exclusively by donations from the wealthy who send their kids here and Bruce Wayne… who OWNED the entire school…

Well, let the sucking up commence.

The Wayne family had owned the school forever, but Bruce himself had never gone there, and since for the time when Bruce was too young to run the empire of Wayne Enterprises the school had become largely self-sufficient on the annual automatic funds given by Wayne Enterprises and the extra donations of parents. Recently however, since about oh say four years ago, coincidentally when Bruce had adopted a certain six year old acrobat, Gotham Academy's funds had started going up and he himself had started getting more involved in it, creating harder and more prestigious course work, requiring more physical education, supporting more lavish and culturally enriching field trips, and all around making the school the palace that education should be.

All of Gotham's public schools were experiencing similar increases in fund, but since the school board and a lot of the teachers were rather corrupt, it wasn't going so well. But, a school strictly owned by such an honest businessman as Mr. Wayne was the envy of the nation, if not for the fact those kids would have to live in Gotham, which was not.

They didn't have to be detectives to figure out what Bruce Wayne was doing, and yet it still came as a surprise. Why else would he refocus his energies into his school the same time he adopted a child?

But noooo, they were still floundering and overly accommodating and all the crap Dick hated. Bruce wasn't like that, not really, but he was supposed to act like the snobby know-it-all owner of a massive empire-like company, and he hated THAT part of being Bruce Wayne's ward. Everything else was awesome—he was a pretty cool dad at home, and THE freakin' BATMAN at night, but during the day…

God he hated rich people. Or, what rich people expected other rich people to act like.

Anyway, the main point was that the teachers now all knew he was coming, but the students didn't. Bruce had kept this entire story very tightly under wraps—he knew Dick was already dragging his heels, and having to put up with reporters and paparazzi his first day of school on top of that would not be well received.

And, maybe Dick was a little scared.

After all, he already knew he could handle any course work they threw at him (nothing would be as hard as the things Alfred asked him to do) and he wasn't really expecting to make any real friends (because if he couldn't tell them about being Robin, what was the point really?), but the fact of the matter was that he had never been to school before. He knew all about it from pop culture and TV and other stuff, but even just that brief visit with Bruce had made him slightly nervous. He was smaller and younger than most kids going to this school, and the vast hallways were big and imposing, especially once they filled with kids who'd all know where they were going…

Of course, he'd hacked the blueprints of the school, so he knew where everything was even better than the teachers, but knowing wasn't the same as being comfortable.

He was a fast learner, he was sure he'd get the hang of it real quick, but this first day was still slightly unsettling. After all, Bats had to know and be prepared before every situation, and this wasn't something he could prepare for. Still, it wasn't like his life was on the line this time, so no one was particularly worried he was being tossed into the unknown.

"You are over thinking this." Alfred stated, not asking, breaking Dick from his inner turmoil.

He sighed heavily. "I can't help it." He complained, earning himself a small smirk from the old man.

"For better or for worse, I will have cookies ready for when you arrive home." The butler said calmly, and Dick turned to him with a smile.

"Bribery. Nice. It's definitely appreciated though." He chuckled.

"And feel free to invite Ms. Gordon once you track her down." He added in, and Dick straightened up, liking that idea a lot. Maybe he couldn't be Robin around her, but he could still be her friend, right? He was a circus kid, they still had gymnastics in common, even if he couldn't go all-out like he did as his vigilante side.

The main problem was that he didn't know how to get over the age difference here—he was a ten year old going into advanced classes (he wasn't in a specific "grade" so to speak, because he was mentally capable of taking and acing any class offered at this school, so he was taking a myriad of all different topics at all levels so that he could accumulate the credits he'd need to graduate, but he was still labeled a "6th grader") and she was twelve and though ahead a grade and in advanced classes, still had the social barriers of age barring him. Plus, she was a scholarship kid and he was at the opposite end of the spectrum, being the son of the man who gave out those scholarships.

So far, their friendship wasn't looking so socially ok.

Not that he cared, but Richard Grayson should care, and there was his dilemma.

He was taken from over-thinking it yet again when they pulled up to the school. He let out a pained sighed, glancing out the window at the tall white building in dread.

"You will be fine Master Richard. I will pick you up at 2:45, and I believe Master Bruce will also be there by the time we get home to hear about your day, yes?" Alfred said soothingly.

Dick sighed and banged his head against the door in frustration.

"Yeah… ok. See you later then Alfred." He inhaled deeply, adjusting the strap of his shoulder bag before opening the door and stepping out, giving his grandfather a morose wave as the butler smiled kindly and then drove away. He turned and faced the next few years of his life with a falsely confident gait and heavy heart.