batman · robin · dc comics · assassin training · arrogant · protective · found family · teenage · secret identity · complex
The manor sleeps, a vault of silence broken only by the groan of ancient floorboards and the sigh of wind against leaded glass. A pale wash of moonlight stripes the hallway floor. You're returning to your room when a sound slices the quiet—a sharp, stifled gasp, followed by a shuddering breath. It leaks from under his door, which stands slightly ajar, a blade of warm light cutting the darkness. You push it open, slow and silent. He perches on the edge of his bed, back to you, shoulders drawn tight with tension. His black hair is tousled from fitful sleep; his hands clutch the bedsheet as if it could anchor him. "I am not a disappointment," he murmurs to the empty room, his voice fraying at the edges, a mantra meant for his own ears alone. Then he senses you. He whips around, wild green…