Chapter Text
The first time Damian saw the boy, he was out as Robin. A very rare night when he was allowed to patrol alone, when Gotham was recovering and quiet.
The boy, who couldn't be older than himself, was sitting on the edge of an apartment building roof just inside the Narrows. Training dictates that he had to at least check on the boy, so that's what he did.
Making sure to turn the mic of his com off when he landed on the roof, he said, "There are other ways to go about solving your problems."
The boy jolted, obviously surprised, and fell onto his back onto the roof. He curled onto his side and held his head, favoring his left wrist. "Ow! What the hell, dude!"
Damian raised an eyebrow. "A fall like that could hardly have hurt."
The boy shoved himself to his feet, glaring at Damian. "Only if you manage to catch yourself."
"Then catch yourself next time."
Damian scanned the boy for injuries. He was standing hunched over, his left wrist cradled fairly obviously against his ribs. And, despite the sloppy stance, he was ready to defend himself. Other than his wrist, he was fine.
"Robin," the boy said, though he didn't sound particularly thrilled to see him.
"That's my name, yes." It was now and he was going to keep it that way.
"What're you doing here?"
"Keeping you from jumping off the roof."
The boy snorted. "Blunt."
Damian didn't respond.
The boy said, "I wasn't gonna jump."
"Then why were you sitting on the edge?"
"Because it's comfortable?" At Damian's disbelieving eyebrow raise, the boy rolled his eyes. "The fire escape was under me. It woulda caught me if I fell."
True, but Damian knew how much landing wrong on those hurt. Not that he'd ever landed wrong. "You'd rely on metal rods woven into a series of platforms and stairs to catch you should you have fallen from the roof's edge?"
"Yes."
Despite himself, Damian smiled. "Bad idea. Landing wrong would hurt more than falling back." He didn't wait for a response, "You're injured."
The boy turned his left side away defensively. "No I'm not."
"Liar." He stepped closer and held out his hand. "Let me see."
The boy glared and took a step back. "Not a chance, bird boy, I don't know where you've been."
"The rooftops of Gotham."
"Exactly."
Damian sighed. "I'm medically trained and approved by several medical professionals. Let me see your wrist."
"No way."
"What're you hiding?"
"Who says I'm hiding anything?"
"If you have nothing to hide, then you'd let me treat your wrist."
The boy paused. Reluctantly, he turned and extended his wrist for Damian to examine. "Are all you furries this pushy?"
Damian blinked. Furries? "I'm trained to help civilians."
"See, now that-" the boy poked Damian's nose, "-sounds way too rehearsed to be a genuine response. You wanna try again?"
Despite his training, Damian froze when the boy touched his nose. He'd not ever seen anyone boop another person's nose before. Animals, sure, but never humans.
It was weird.
He pulled a wrap from his utility belt and moved on. "Your wrist is sprained. Try not to use it too much or put pressure on it." And, despite himself, "What happened?"
The boy, he noticed throughout their interaction, could change moods faster than the tide. He wasn't quite glaring, but there was a mix of anger and fear in his eyes as he stared at the floor. "Nothing."
Damian didn't believe that for a second. "Liar." He finished wrapping his wrist. "What happened?"
The boy ripped his wrist away and started stomping to the door back inside. "Nothing happened!"
Thunder cracked harshly, covering the sound of the door slamming and bringing down a blanket of rain over the city.
"Robin!" Batman called through the com, "Turn in for the night. I don't want you out here in such low visibility."
Damian bristled at the perceived underestimation of his abilities, but he knew better than to argue back anymore. They'd been doing the same song and dance for two years now and he'd since learned to suck it up and do as he was told.
So, under the sheet of torrential rain, Damian called his bike and lowered himself to street level. When his bike arrived, he used the nearby parking garage to enter the caves under Gotham to go back home. He was tired anyway.