So to take a break from my death-fic spree, we've got a bit of angsty stuff for ya :)
I just really wanted an excuse to have a protective!Robin...sooo...this was born. Also, I'm really missing little Billy Batson in YJ, since he's shown up as CM once in the new season...I want him back! He was so cuddly! :D

Rating: T
Set during Young Justice Season 1
Warnings: sight mentions of injuries, language, and hinted child prostitution(nothing actually happens though, nothing graphic. I swear.)

Billy Batson had a pretty good idea of how things worked in the world. Good things didn't always happen to good people. Good people died. But Billy knew, Captain Marvel, the League, police officers, and doctors, and so many more were around to help make sure the good people were safe and the bad people were punished or put in jail.

He thought he knew the extent of the bad things, growing up the streets did that to you. From his time on the streets he always noticed a select group of people who seemed to stay on the curbs of the streets. He wasn't one to judge, but the women in these groups always seemed to wear clothing that showed off their legs, chest, hips, etc. They'd always stay out real late at night into the early morning and sometimes he'd see them lean into cars that pulled along the side of the road and drive away with them moments later.

He never really understood why they were always so quick to go with strangers, after all isn't that what parents always said to their kids; don't talk to strangers?

Not only did he see women do this, but boys his age too. They'd cluster in groups along the road and drove off with strange people too.

Only, sometimes he'd see the boys return. On occasion the cars that picked them up would bring them back, but most of the time they would come back by the bus or walking.

He always noticed how they looked and acted too. They walked along as if they were in pain, limping and wincing. They also usually had marks and bruises covering their body as well. He had bruises as Captain Marvel before..but there was something about these wounds that didn't look they had come from fighting.

What he noticed especially was how their faces brightened up when one would brag to the group about how much they made, unfolding a wad of cash. Billy was always amazed at how much they would have three, four, sometimes five hundred dollars. Even so, he never found out exactly what they had to do to get that money.

Even after Uncle Dudley had adopted him, he still never found out. He and his "Uncle" had made a late night grocery trip one day and were just heading back to the apartment. Dudley gripped the bag of groceries with one hand and had his free arm wrapped snugly around his son's shoulders as the 10-year old munched happily on his Hershey bar.

That's when Billy noticed the boys again, getting in a group along the road. He swallowed his mouthful quickly and tugged on Dudley's arm.

He smiled warmly at the boy.

"Hm?"

Billy pointed.

"Uncle Dudley, what do those boys have to do to get all that money?"

Dudley looked and knew right away. He ushered the boy along the sidewalk faster.

"Nothing, Billy. You don't worry about them."

Billy Batson sat in the plush hospital room chair as he fisted his red jacket and stared at the floor.

Dudley was sedated on the hospital bed, lost to the world at the moment. He had royally messed up his knee at work and needed surgery.

Which in turn meant he would be off from work for quite awhile. That wasn't good.

Rent was due in a week. Utilities needed to be paid. Food was a little on the low side. Winter was almost in full swing.

This was most definitely not good.

Billy decided hours ago what he had to do. He fought all the reasonable voices in brain that said it was a bad idea. No, this was his last chance. He had too. He had to for his Uncle Dudley.

He stood up and clasped his Uncle's motionless hand.

"Don't worry, Uncle Dudley. Everything's gonna be fine."

His worn sneakers trudged along the sidewalk as light snowfall started. His hood was pulled over his head so that only a fragment of his black hair was sticking out. His hands were cold from the weather and he tried to warm them in his pockets to no avail. The street lights cast an eerie hue over the section of road and on the boys huddled at the bus bench trying to keep warm while waiting for "work."

Billy crept over to them and hesitantly pulled his hood down from his head.

He fidgeted with his thumbs a moment.

"Is..this where you wait for work...?"

They all turned to him and raised their eyebrows.

A boy in a blue flat back hat waltzed forward, he was the largest of all of them, so Billy assumed he was the leader.

"This is our turf kid, beat it."

Billy backed up slightly. He desperately wanted to yell "Shazam!" and make them back off. He couldn't, so he simply croaked. "I-I need the work...my...uncle's..sick.."

The group made mock "aw" sounds which ended in laughter.

The teen curled his fingers possessively around Billy's shoulder before hurling him into the ground.

The other boys immediately jumped up from their spot and joined their leader in beating the "defenseless" 10 year-old.

Minutes later the raven-haired boy stood up shakily. Bruises and cuts had started forming on his face and blood had begun dribbling down his nose. He hastily wiped it away with his jacket sleeve.

The leader had resumed his spot on the bench and smirked at Billy.

"Go home, kid. This ain't no place for a weakling like you."

Blinking away frustrated tears he walked the few feet over to the stop sign and leaned against it.

Minutes later a shady looking Chevy pulled up to the curb and rolled down the window. The leader waltzed over with a grin and began speaking to whoever was inside.

A moment later the boy frowned and looked to Billy. He gestured to him to come over and Billy hesitantly complied.

The man in the Chevy gave Billy the impression of a snake. A cigar stuck out of his mouth and he had a generous amount of stubble covering his chin. The grin he had made Billy feel incredibly uncomfortable.

His voice also seemed to come out in a hiss.

"Well hey there."

The group had backed off at this point and were heading further down the street.

"How much for the night?" The man stated bluntly.

"Um..." He paused. He still didn't know what he had to do. Either way, they needed money.

"Five hundred dollars..."

The man visibly blanched. "Fuck kid, that's expensive." He stopped and looked Billy up and down.

This made him feel even more uncomfortable, almost like a piece of meat. He wasn't sure why, but he could feel tears pricking at his eyelids again.

Robin had just made it down a back alley of Fawcett City. Gotham crime had been slow for once and he decided to make a quick stop to the other city. He hadn't see Billy or Captain Marvel for that matter for a long time, being away from the team while helping Batman didn't really give him any time to see anyone.

He was looking off to the side street as he sped his bike along when he noticed some boys walking along the sidewalk, no doubt working the streets. He'd seen the same things in Gotham. It was sad really. That's when he caught sight of a red sweatshirt in his peripheral vision. He immediately stopped and pulled his bike over before tapping the built in binoculars on his helmet. And there he saw it, Billy Batson getting into a strange car. It didn't take the world's greatest detective to figure out what was going on here. The child was shakily climbing into the car.

Oh fuck no.

Billy was visibly shaking with fear. He didn't have the courage of Captain Marvel right now, no matter how much he desperately wanted it. The man held the door open as the boy leaned in and sat inside.

The snake like man reached a hand out and touched the side of Billy's face with his thumb. The boy flinched and a tear managed its way down his face. He sucked in a breath and reached out to close the car door. Only it never happened.

The birdaraang lodged itself into the hood of the car before anyone else could even blink. The sudden outburst earned a surprised shriek from the man and a slight jump from Billy.

Not two seconds later an ominous looking figure jumped from the rooftops and stopped in front of the car door. He gingerly rested a gloved hand on Billy's arm and yanked him as gently as possible from the car. He wrapped his cape protectively around the scared child. Billy's brave face finally gave-way and he sobbed into the kelvar on Robin's side while clutching the cape in a death grip.

Robin wrenched the birdaraang free and looked to the man, eyes narrowing. "I ever catch you near him again, you will have me AND Batman to deal with. We don't take kindly to child predators. We may not kill but I am highly supportive of the neutering option." He ran a finger dangerously over the birdaraang.

"Now I'm going to give you to the count of three to leave."

"One."

It wasn't necessary, the man was gone in a squeal of tires in before he could even mouth the word "two."

The boy wrapped two arms around his neck while Robin placed his free arm under Billy's knees before shooting a grappling hook and taking off.

They ended up on the ground next to Robin's bike where he helped him on.

Next thing Billy knew he was on the ground again, this time with a certain Boy Wonder's arm over his shoulder.
He wiped at his eyes, embarrassed at how he completely lost in front of Gotham's shining light.

He looked up when he noticed the reflection of some bright lights. They were standing in a large diner parking lot presumably outside of the Fawcett City limits. Billy recalled passing it a couple times as Captain Marvel.

Robin ushered the boy inside. The bells on the door chimed as they entered and a few truckers looked their way, they all seemed to noticed Robin right away, and smiled, raising their glasses to him in acknowledgement. He gave a small wave before guiding Billy through the aisles and over to a booth.

Billy operated mechanically sliding in first while Robin slid in beside him.

A bright eyed waitress going to town on her bubblegum came over and placed two menus in front of them. She grinned widely at Robin and stared at Billy questioningly.

"What can I get you two boys?"

Robin ran his forefinger over his chin and turned to his dinner mate. "cake?"

Billy stared at the floor. "I..uhm...I guess..."

He nodded and turned back to the waitress. "Two slices of chocolate cake and some hot cocoa please."

She wrote is down hastily and went back to the kitchen.

Robin didn't make eye contact as he stared at the retro looking clock ticking away on the wall.

"You gonna tell me what you were doing when I drove by?"

Billy shook his head and rubbed at his nose with his sleeve since it had started bleeding again.

Robin reached out for his arm, backing off slightly as the boy inwardly flinched.

He motioned to the bathroom with his head. "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up."

Upon reaching their destination he swiftly grabbed the 10-year old's underarms and hoisted him up on the sink counter.
He pulled out a washcloth from his belt complete with the bat-insignia. Face it, those belts have everything.

He ran the tap for some warm water and dabbed it where the blood was, stopping his nose from bleeding and getting the excess off his lips. He pulled out some band-aids with the famous bat-logo and stuck them on the cuts of his arms.

Finally, he gingerly pulled out a Superman symbol band-aid and put a finger to his lips. "Shh...don't let Batman find out, he'll get jealous."

That elicited a small giggle from the boy and Robin smiled triumphantly as he applied it to the small nick on his forehead.

By the time they exited the bathroom the waitress had brought out their cake and hot cocoa. They settled and Robin took a mouthful of his cake while Billy hesitantly sipped the cocoa.

"You ready to tell me yet?"

He nodded. "My..Uncle Dudley's gonna be out of work...so...I had to get rent somehow...he took me in..it's the least I could do..."

Robin nodded briskly. "...but there are so many other things you could have done than...that..."

He fidgeted with the fork. "Uncle Dudley always told me to stay away from there...I know now...he was right.."

The teen placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your Uncle sounds smart, you should listen to him."

Billy smiled. "He's the greatest!"

The boys finished their cake and coca talking about their hobbies, Uncle Dudley, the hero business...anything.

Robin paid and moments later they were headed to the zeta beam to get back to the cave.

Robin insisted he stay there until his Uncle was better, after all, leaving a 10-year old alone like that again was not a good idea. Robin waited outside his room while he got in his pj's. The 10-year old exited his room and frowned.

"You sure you can say? Batman won't be mad?"

Robin waved his hand. "Nah. He'll understand. And if not, oh well. I'll just have to scrub the Batmobile for the rest of my life."

Billy froze in a fearful stare before Robin started chuckling, causing him to join in as well, realizing he was joking. Maybe.

They walked out to the living room and he turned to his little companion. "You like movies?"

Halfway through watching the Avengers, Robin looked to his left and noticed the kid sleeping soundly on the couch. He imagined that he hadn't gotten much sleep lately, so it was probably for the best.

He sighed with a smile before getting up and lifting the slumbering child from his spot and proceeded to carry him back to his room.

He brought the covers just below the boy's chin and smiled.

Oh god, he could just hear Wally now. "Dude! Since when did you turn into a chick?"

He shook his head before stealthily making his exit. Black Canary was walking down the hall and gave him a knowing smile.

"Thank You Robin. I'll make sure he's ok from here."

He grinned and headed for the zeta beam.

Billy Batson woke up with a yawn after a much need rest. He shuddered at the events from the other night, but remembered his time with the Boy Wonder and smiled warmly.

He leapt out from his bed and noticed an envelope on the dresser.

He opened it and found a Batman and Superman band-aid.

In case those cuts give you any more trouble.

-Robin

He smiled and headed out the zeta beam. Moments later, Captain Marvel was seen flying back to Fawcett City.

Two days later a very generous check was delivered to one Dudley. H Dudley. It was an anonymous donation, but Billy could have sworn he saw a bat-shaped shadow just outside the window...

END

So how was it? Feedback/ Reviews are greatly appreciated! :D