:)

EPILOGUE

-2007-

Bruce tried to smile, but his mind was stuck on that goddamn kid.

He was so brave. Not fearless, but…a smile in a pit of despair.

He'd brought technicolor into Bruce's life—idiotic yellows and reds into Batman's.

He hoped with all his being that the boy made it out alright.

He deserved it.

"Ladies and Gentlemen…the Flying Graysons!" the ring master announced, and the circus music began, and Bruce felt entirely out of place in such a ridiculous atmosphere full of tricks and makeup. Somewhere out there, a teen was fighting for his existence.

A boy walked out behind the family in red, small but grand in his presence.

He smiled brightly at the world, taking hold of the trapeze in his hands.

Eyes—blue as oceans.

Bruce stiffened, and his date glanced at him curiously.

"Bruce?" she asked, tugging on his sleeve.

But he hardly paid her any attention.

Robin.

Robin was here.

No.

He was too young. Eight or nine at most.

But that gait, and those eyes….unmistakable.

This was him. His past self. His…present self. Still as ostentatious and madly inspiring as ever.

Bruce watched in awe as the boy performed his quadruple flip, and the crowd roared in approval.

He stared as the mother and father concluded the act.

He shot to his feet as the wires unhinged, and the pair crashed to the floor of the Big Top with a sickening crunch.

The pieces fell into place, and he gazed up at the boy on the platform, a broken child. A mirror.

And he knew in that moment this was it.

This was the beginning of a very different chapter.

OoO

Later, when child care services finally agreed to let him keep the boy, and Dick had grown adamant about aiding him in his nightly escapades, the question came up. Inevitably.

"What should my name be?" Dick asked, wolfing down his third bowl of cereal. "It needs to be something cool. Something that goes well with yours. Like, Batman and Batkid. Or…Batman and Boy Wonder. Batman and…mmm…."

Bruce raised the newspaper to hide his knowing grin.

"…Robin?"

End.

YAY. We made it. Pretty sure I butchered science and all logical reasoning, but hey. What's fanfic without glorious blunders?

Anyway. Thank you all for supporting this story. It was a blast. Writing Dick Grayson will always bring me so much joy, and I hope this story brought a smile to your face.

Until next time,

Erica