Robin found the boy when he was making his usual rounds around Section I. He and Artemis had been placed in the first section because of their lack of powers. They were branded as Class Three for mildly dangerous and thrown into one big compound together. To say Robin was mildly insulted would be an understatement.

At least they had all still been given shock collars. The cold metal pressed into Robin's skin, pinching and freezing. The collars shocked any unruly prisoner and exploded if anyone attempted to remove them. Robin had witnessed this first hand, when a girl who went by the name of Katana had her head blown off. The boy shivered from the memory.

The compound "yard" was not a terribly inviting place. The grass was sharp, yellow, and dying, with the earth torn up from the masses of people walking through it. Towering above the heroes was the Wall. It brushed the sky with its massive height, casting a long, oppressive shadow against the prisoners.

Robin hated it here. He hated the new policies and laws. He hated seeing all these young, distraught faces pleading with him for answers. He hated that he still had no idea where his father was. He hated the Hero Control Unit, whoever they were. And most of all, he hated not knowing what to do next.

Maybe that was why he liked 'patrolling' the compound. Every morning, as they were let outside for a breath of fresh air and a reminder of their imprisonment, Robin walked. He simply followed the Wall, one step after the other, trudging the mile-long- circle around and around until he was either called back inside, or collapsed from exhaustion.

If he was being honest with himself, he didn't do it for the exercise, or to keep in shape, or even to just do something, like he told himself. He did it, so he didn't have to sit with Artemis. She was waiting for him to tell her what to do. He knew that. He could see it in her face as she watched him. Her hope was ebbing away as every day passed with his silence. Faith was replaced with worry every time he had to be hauled in, kicking and biting, by a guard. Of course he wasn't the only one at first, but after two weeks they were all too tired to resist. Now Artemis simply stared as he took off, the unspoken question left unanswered. What now, Robin?

He still wasn't sure if he was the only one left with some hope, or if he'd never had any to begin with.

He found the boy after his fifth march around the Wall. On his fourth lap he certainly hadn't been there, because Robin would've noticed. But on his fifth lap, the boy had suddenly appeared. Right up against the wall he sat, legs sprawled out, right in Robin's path. The Boy Wonder growled.

"What're you doing?" Everyone knew this was Robin's path. He'd worn grooves in the ground from his constant walking for Pete's sake.

"Stopping you from walking."

"Why?"

"Because it's getting you fucking nowhere. You're hurting yourself, and you're going to be worth shit in an escape attempt if you're too exhausted to walk at the end of the day."

Robin blinked. He was speechless. No one had talked to him like this. Other than Batman, of course. But still, this was different. He was the first sidekick, the mysterious protégé, the planner, the genius. He was not someone to be talked down upon or contradicted. Whenever Robin did something, especially in the field, there was always a reason to it.

Until now…Now he was lost. Now he did things without reason or logic. Now he was wrong.

And no one had even considered forcing him back to reality until now.

"I've been watching you since you were brought in. Rumor has it your the man to get us out."

There it was. That was why the boy wanted to speak with him. He expected Robin to save the day! To share with him the big plan.

"Not that I believe in rumors," the stranger continued. He grinned at Robin cockily, "Your just one kid, right?"

Robin didn't answer, but the strange boy didn't seem to mind his silence. He hadn't talked since the arrest, and he wasn't about to start now. He was told to sit, which he did, and then they sat in peace.

Robin looked the stranger over. His hair was a dusty brown and cropped short. He had a long face, with a small mouth, and very prominent cheekbones. Chocolate skin was stretched tightly against his face, like he didn't quite have enough to spare. But that wasn't what stood out.

Half of his face was metallic, branching out in overlapping squares. His left eye was bright red and Robin could hear metal against metal every time the orb blinked. The iron pattern continued down his whole body, turning dark skin into white metal and red wires. The young hero couldn't imagine what had happened to the older boy.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you it's rude to stare?"

Robin blushed, shrugging as he averted his eyes.

"It's alright. I'm just messing with ya'. You can call me Cyborg, by the way." He stopped to think for a moment. "Or Victor, I guess. I mean, secret identities don't really matter too much by now, do they?"

Robin said nothing. He found Cyborg a very intriguing character, and he couldn't help but like him. But he still wasn't about to break his silent oath for a stranger. Silence was a defense mechanism born within Robin since he was born. When his parents died, he hadn't spoken until a week after his adoption. Bruce had helped him then. But where was Bruce now?

It was Robin's turn to help his Father, and he was failing.

"Not the talkative type, Robin? Interesting. I would've never guessed from the newspapers. You always seemed so…" His brow creased and he paused, thinking over his vocabulary, "Light hearted? Merry? Cheerful? I don't know…happier?" Vincent chuckled to himself, his one good eye rolling. "What am I saying? How can anyone be happy here, right?"

Robin nodded. Cyborg seemed very pleased with himself for pulling a reaction from the boy.

"And to make it worse they put us in Section I. Mild threat my ass. Well, at least they're moving me to Section VI tomorrow."

Robin's eyebrows rose questioningly.

"Yeah, that's right," Vincent told him proudly, "I've been upgraded. Apparently, being able to shoot a laser from my arm now counts as a physical superpower. I'm a medium threat now!"

"Section IV," Robin thought, "That's where Kid Flash is…" For the first time in over a month, Robin smiled, as a plan slowly formed in his mind.

Please review!

I have to make sure enough people are reading for me to continue.

Plus it makes me happy. And I need the happy to battle the big bad school.

Sorry for the super long wait. I was thinking, since I've started to continue with Kidnapped, I might as well work on this as well. So this story is officially in process. I couldn't update over the summer for varying reasons, but now school has started I'll try to update as much as possible. Please review! It makes me happy. And I need the happy to battle the big bad school.