held his hand to his head, letting out a small whimper. What had happened? Oh, right, Batman knocked him out, he revealed his powers to the team, and he almost killed Artemis-

Wait.

He revealed his powers to the team?!

Robin shot out of the bed, ignoring the surprised shuffling of several bodies. "Oh no. No no no no no no no no no." He didn't just do that. Did he? No, he wouldn't have! Right? What was he mad about anyway?

He continued to pace around the room as he pulled at his hair, breathing in rapid, shallow breaths. A hand touched his shoulder, but he just shrugged it off as he continued pacing. But it came back, and he pushed it off a bit more forcibly.

"Robin. Calm down, son. Everything is alright."

That was a lie. It was all a lie. Because everything wasn't alright and oh god they were going to hate him now, weren't they? They were going to call him a freak and kick him out and call him a monster and oh god he has to leave. He has to go home and get soothing cookies from Alfred and-

Where was Bruce?

Robin whipped around, wide eyes searching the room for his father figure. He immediately spotted Superman behind him, and Flash staring at him from the floor with something close to fear. Oh god they knew too, didn't they? Now the league was gonna hunt him and he was going to die-

"Robin." The voice, rough and quiet, had tears of relief springing unbidden from Robin's eyes.

"Dad!" He yelled, rushing towards the voice. Robin enveloped his father in his small embrace, hugging him as tight as he could. His dad would protect him, he would always protect him, he had to. His hug was quickly returned, and for a moment all that existed was him and his father.

But good things can't last forever.

"Robin...I- I'm so sorry…" Memories came rushing back, and Robin immediately jerked back, expecting to be knocked unconscious again. But the arms around him tightened, hugging him tighter as cold droplets hit his face. So he relaxed again, silently crying into his father's chest.

"I don't wanna die. Now they know what I am and they're all gonna hate me and-"

His father simply silenced him, smiling comfortingly at him. That was when Robin finally realised his father had been crying. "Dad? What's wrong?" But his dad just looked away, staring at something Robin couldn't see. "Dad? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, I did." His father simply responded, looking down in shame.

"Dad? What do you mean?" Now Robin was scared, and he knew his father could tell. He let him go, and Robin immediately walked around him to see what he had been staring at so remorsefully.

He really wished he hadn't, as he stared at the figure on the cot. Because it was him. It was him, but it couldn't be him, because he was here and-

Oh. He got it now, why his dad had looked so remorseful. So ashamed. He… he was a clone wasn't he? He started hyperventilating, because that just couldn't be true. It couldn't. He was real, wasn't he? He had to be real-

"Robin, it's okay. You're not a clone." Arms wrapped around him, and he allowed himself to relax in the caring embrace. Okay, so he wasn't a clone. So that must mean the boy in the bed- "He isn't either."

Now he was just…definitely not traught. He looked at his father questioningly, tilting his head in confusion. "But dad, that kid looks exactly like me. What else could he be?" However, his dad said nothing, pressing a small, cool object into his right hand.

"Look." His father figure commanded.

So he did. And looking at what he had thought to be a harmless object, he felt his breath hitch, unable to breathe as tears stung his eyes. Because that object was a small, silver pin. A pin that belonged to his twin brother, who looked exactly like him. Unbidden, words tumbled from his mouth as he stared at the bruised and battered boy.

"No! Nu poate fi. Mort, plecat, fără să se întoarcă!" (No! Can't be. Dead, gone, not coming back!)

Robin shook his head as he trembled, gripping the pin tighter even as he sobbed. They searched so hard, for so long. He couldn't be here because he was gone and always would be.

"Nu Raven! Nu fratele meu- nu poate fi!" (Not Raven! Not my brother- can't be!) Bruce just smiled sadly, hugging him tighter. Robin gave no protest, sobbing harder as he held the pin tightly to his shaking frame. "It can't be…it cant- he's gone! Gone and not coming back!"

Batman just smiled, rubbing soothing circles onto Robin's back even as he himself cried silent tears. "I know… I know. But he's here now, Robin. He's here and nothing is ever going to take him away again. I promise."

For hours they just kneeled like this, eventually sinking to their knees from pure exhaustion. Superman and Flash had long since left them to their tearful reunion, both detectives too lost in tears to notice.

"Do you really think it's best to leave them alone like this?" Asked Superman, worried face turning to meet Flash's. The other man just shrugged, sighing.

"Trust me, when a Bat gets like this, it's really best to leave them alone. That, or risk their wrath. And I think we both remember how that went last time."

Both men shivered at the unwanted memories, quickly burying the event as far in their mind as possible. Nobody liked to remember the time Batman lost his cool.

Flashback

It was a slow day at the watchtower, and Superman was hanging around with all of the other leaguers. Everything was calm.

Until suddenly, it wasn't. Batman barged through the cafeteria doors like a bat out of hell. He looked like it too, he was so angry you could almost see the steam coming from his ears.

Clinging to his leg and looking quite tearful, was a young Robin. The Bat's young protegé and the second half of the dynamic duo. Everyone felt their breath hitch in fear as the dark knight stopped in the middle of the cafeteria.

Slowly turning, he glared each and every leaguer in the eye. Pure anger flowed off of him in waves, causing many leaguers to press them selves into the far wall, trying and failing to shrink away from the dark presence.

Finally, he spoke, growling low in the angriest tone any of them had heard. "Who. Has. It."

Nobody spoke, and that only seemed to make the dark knight angrier as he took a menacing step forward. "I'll give whoever it was a choice. You step up now, and I'll only beat you to a pulp. If you don't, then I am going to slowly and happily break every bone in your body to the point that you will be eating through a straw for the rest of your life. Am I clear?"

Everybody nodded, but still no-one stepped up. The Dark Knight's fury seemed to impossibly escalate as he scanned the room. Everyone was relieved when he looked down at Robin, who was tugging on his cape. When he was sure he had his father's attention, Robin pointed to something on the left side of the room.

Following his finger, the rest of the league could easily follow it to a rapidly paling Oliver Queen. Stalking forward, the dark knight was in front of him within seconds. Jerking back, Oliver made to run away from the terror inducing presence. But Batman was having none of that.

Before anyone could blink, he had Oliver by the collar of his green suit, holding him high in the air. He held out his other hand. "Give. It." The scared man frantically dug around in his pockets, dropping a small object into the bats waiting hand.

But before anyone could see anything more than a flash of gold, Batman had already handed it to Robin, who ran out of the room at a speed faster than an Olympic runner. But no-one noticed, staring in horror as Oliver screamed, being dragged by the front of his suit to who knows where in the watchtower.

And for any news crew that asked, Green Arrow was away on a mission and Oliver Queen was taking a vacation in the Bahamas.

After that event, every leaguer vowed to never, ever make a bat angry. And to never touch something that belonged to Robin, otherwise you would face the full wrath of an angry DaddyBat.

End Flashback

Both heroes shuddered as they walked into the living room, burying the unpleasant memory deep.

The men continued to talk, ignorant to the stares of four curious young eyes. The reflective orbs shimmered in the darkness as their gaze followed their targets, neither man aware of the danger they had put themselves in.

They pounced.