Have you fired a gun before? If you had, you would know it goes PRAW, not BANG when fired (at least, my dad's three handguns do).

And Barry as in Barry Allen. By the way, has anyone seen "The Flash"? It's really quite amazing.

I peeked around the corner, careful not to – PRAW! I ducked back behind the wall as a bullet whizzed by. I briefly considered my options: run and hide – well, that's not worked well so far – run towards target and dodge the bullets – not likely with normal human speed – or figure something else out. The target was keeping his distance, so I would have to come to him. I glanced up to catch the time, only to realize that there was a small flaw in the design structure. Smirking slightly, I gathered my strength and leapt just high enough to grab one of the metal light fixtures. I swung up on top, hovering for a moment before letting my momentum carry through to land feet-first on the target's shoulders, "Gotcha!" I made a grab for the gun, and we tussled for several long minutes before he finally admitted defeat.

Later that night…

"I'm telling you, Bats, the girl's too good," I quietly eavesdropped on Bruce and Wildcat from my room in the watchtower. Strange, I had only been here a week, and they had already showed me their "top-secret" base. Then again, I had said that I knew its location and pretty much everything else about it. "I can't train her if she already knows all the moves. She has great technique, but there's something she just isn't telling… us." I could almost feel Bats glaring at him. "Not that there's anything wrong with that," Wildcat rushed on. "but I feel like this secret is hindering her training. She seems to know you the best, so…"

Bruce sounded a little… well, a little like my first night, "I'm too busy to take on another Robin."

"Of course, of course not," Wildcat hesitated. "but she doesn't have to be a Robin. She's going to leave eventually, so you probably won't even have her for more than a couple months. Just give the girl a little direction."

A little direction? my pupils slitted. OH, I have more than a little direction planned for you tomorrow. As usual, I kept such thoughts to myself, but it was still sometimes annoying to hear them talking about me like I was just a child. Then again, that's actually what I am – by bewilderbeast standards, anyway. I was about to turn back to the conversation when I realized they had separated. Man, I missed it! Oh well, I guess I'll find out soon enough. Pretty much everyone repeated Wildcat's thoughts anywhere between a few hours and a few days after I started "beta training" with them. Even Diana thought I would be better off with someone else and was more direct than most that it should be Bruce.

Still, if I was going to be trained by Bruce, I certainly was not going to be called Robin and wear that ridiculous costume. Whoever designed it must be color-blind! Red and green that brilliant did not go well together. Take it from someone who's been a hobblegrunt, who only see red and green. "Phoenix" was my stage name in Marvel, so maybe I could-

"What do you think?" Bruce walking into my room jolted me out of my thoughts. He smirked slightly, "I know you were listening."

I cocked my head, "And how would you know that?" He lifted an eyebrow as I made the connection. "I suppose it would make sense for you to know when telepaths are around, but sensing one when they're not occupying your mind or the mind of someone close is an entirely different matter."

"I convinced J'on it would be a good idea."

"I missed the last few minutes, but I would like to train with you. Just not as Robin," he frowned, so I rushed on. "Not that Robin is bad; I just don't personally like the name… or the outfit."

His face softened as he chuckled, "Fair enough. What do you have in mind?"

A few hours later, I had decided on a black scale jumpsuit with skin-pockets for gadgets. Like all my carapace clothing, it could change with my body, and I decided to test my luck with a more theatrical effect. I secreted monstrous nightmare saliva all over the suit and set it on fire. It burned a bright reddish-orange, but I decided to change it to a pale blue fire instead.

I spun in front of a mirror, watching the flames dance and sparkle like a dragon. Well, phoenix now, "Miss Kylrm, I must say that looks quite splendid."

I smiled and took one of the cookies Alfred brought, "Thanks, you look good, too." He was in a fancy black blazer and pin-stripe pants with a white button-up shirt. Apparently, this was typical butler wear, but it still amazed me how he could stand the heat of Gotham summers. I let the flames die and the saliva seep back into my skin so Alfred wouldn't have to stand the heat. "How was it that time? I'm trying to reduce the heat of the flame, but I need the blue fire to get the desired effect."

"Alfred, will you stop pampering my proteges?" typical grump came trotting down the stairs in a... suit? "I have a board meeting in 20 minutes and don't want her fat."

I chuckled, "I'm half-dragon. My metabolism is almost as fast, if not faster, than Barry's. I couldn't get fat if I tried." I rebelliously grabbed another double chocolate chip cookie from the pile. Bruce shook his head, but I could see a faint smile under the facade. He left a few minutes later, so I plopped down into his swivel chair in front of the monitors. "What do you think, Alfred?" I switched back into a billowy t-shirt and skinny jeans. "Happy Island, Starling, or West and 54th?"

Alfred set down the plate, shaking his head, "You really need to get a social life, Miss. It doesn't do you much good to spy on everyone without interacting."

I faked a pout, "Oh, come on, you know it's fun. Maybe I'll even see a little more than Nightwing's shadow for once." As I turned back to the monitors, my mind drifted to my brother. I silently mourned him for a few moments, realizing with a twinge of guilt that I hadn't thought of him in months now. Alfred sighed and left after a few minutes, so I decided to get at least a little bit of sleep in.

After that end, you know what's happening next chapter - at least, you should based on trend.