Work Text:
"Mom? Dad? Where are you?" Dicks small voice was echoing through the void of darkness. His bare feet touching the cold ground and making small *splat splat* sounds. He wore a blue pajama with small elephants on it. Some were balancing on a ball other were spraying water from their noses. In his small hands he held Zitka, his stuffed elephant that he named after his childhood friend from the circus.
He was walking slowly through the seemingly ever growing void in front of him.
"Mommy?" In his eyes were gathering tears that he wouldn't let allow to fall
"I'm here little Robin. Come on over, daddy and I are waiting"
At the voice of his mom Dick turned, searching desperately for him Mommy.
There in the distance he finally spottet her. She was standing on the other side of the slope in front of him. Around him played circus music and his mother waved to the people in the audience. Since when was there an audience? His mother smiled at him from the other side. Then she and his Daddy jumped on the swings in front of them. They performed breathtakingly. Their moves elegant and smooth.
His mother was reaching for him, holding out her hand. He was about to take it, but suddenly she was falling down, down, down, into the abyss of darkness.
Dick screamed for her, reaching out desperately, but to no avail. He was down on his knees calling for his momma, but she was not there.
Suddenly the ground beneath him began to tremble and he as well was falling down, deep down into nothingness.
Dick woke up screaming. He was covered in sweat and tears were rapidly streaming down his small cheeks.
He sat up in bed, hugging his knees close and cowering as close to the headboard as he could, making himself as small as possible. He hid his tear streaked face behind his knees and was shaking so bad you could practically hear it. The door to his room opened slowly, letting the dim light of a hallway lamp shine inside the room.
A tall figure entered the room and sat down on the edge of the bed. Then a hand reached for Dick, gently pushing aside a streak of black clammy hair, tucking it gently behind his ear.
"Hey Chum," The voice was a soft grumble, soothing Dick even if it didn't really say anything. He was still shaking and didn't look up from where he hid his face behind his knees. "You"re alright, Chum. You're safe."
Quiet reassurances. After a few minutes of those Dick calmed down a little. He was still trembling slightly, but uncurled slowly. He looked a little over his arms, seeing Bruce smile softly at him.
Without saying a word he leaned forward and crawled into Bruce's lap, curling his hands in his shirt and leaning his head on Bruce's chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. Bruce cradled him in his arms, wrapping them around Dicks trembling form. He brought a hand up to his head and ran soft fingers through his hair, untangling some knots that formed during his short and probably restless sleep.
Dick had his eyes closed, taking in the familiar smell of coconut shampoo. "Chum, what do you say about sleeping with me tonight? Do you wanna do that?" After a moment of consideration Dick nodded against Bruce's chest, pushing himself a little more against the steady presence holding him, as if he could sink in it.
Bruce hummed in acknowledgement and stood up, carefully cradling Dick against his chest and turning to leave the room with him.
Zitka. He didn't have Zitka. He couldn't leave without her.
Dick started squirming and whimpering in Bruces arms, reaching out towards the bed. Bruce noticed and stopped. "What is it chum?" He asked. He looked to where Dick was reaching and after a quick search of the bed his eyes landed on the elephant stuffy that Dick went everywhere around the manor with. He only ever left it in the room when the left the manor, and even then it was noticeable that he wanted to get back as soon as possible to reunite with his best friend.
So he walked to the bed and picked up Zitka, placing her in Dick's small hands. He embraced it immediately and snuggled back into Bruce's embrace.
They left the room and walked to a room across from Dick's. On the bedside table was a turned on lamp and some papers Bruce was probably reading before he had heard Dick scream from across the hallway.
He closed the door behind him and sat back down onto the bed, turning off the lamp and slipping under the blankets with Dick still cradled in his arms. He continued running his fingers through the small boy's hair, massaging his scalp and occasionally running a hand up and down the smaller child's spine.
His eyes began to droop as sleep overtook him. After around 20 minutes the boy was fast asleep in the taller man's embrace, holding Zitka close and drooling on his father's Bruce's shirt.