I'm having to type this up from writing it down and it's taking so long. Pray for my hands

A few hours had passed and Robin was still wide awake. Well he guessed he was Dick now since he didn't have his mask on anymore. Either way, he was awake and staring at the white ceiling. He traced the patterns in the paint with his eyes, hoping the tedious task would put his mind at rest but it didn't. Why did he have to have such a strong tie into the people he worked with? This would be so much easier if he saw his teammates as just pieces of paper to be used and thrown away. Yet he couldn't bring himself to think an ill word of them now. He wanted to be sat on that couch in the manor, watching the fire crackle. Bruce would be his personal human pillow and going on about ideas he had for weapons or suits. Dick would listen patiently, suggesting something silly before being serious. The fire would keep him warm but not too warm that he had to retreat from Bruce's embrace. He would notice how Alfred lingered whilst cleaning a lamp, keeping a watchful eye on the pair. He supposed the butler felt like a grandfather nowadays since Bruce was basically his son and had fostered a son of his own. He did act like a grandfather sometimes, sneaking Dick some sweets under the table even though Bruce had said he'd eaten enough and constantly mumbling about the youths of today. There was that familiar ache in his heart when he thought about the things that were supposed to warm his insides. 

Finding it pointless to just wait in his room until he heard his babysitter get up, he took to going somewhere where he could see the sun rise. It was a ritual that he had adopted in the recent years that whilst out on patrol, even when he wasn't for that matter, he would watch the sun rise over the city from the tallest point he could get to. He tip toed out his room, putting on his mask although there was no real point in the action. These people didn't have a clue who he was behind the façade of Robin but it was somewhat comforting to feel the material against his cheeks. The room that belonged to his babysitter was quiet inside and he presumed the older was still asleep. He kept his pace quick yet silent just in case there were any queries about him leaving his room so early in the morning. The layout was fairly simple to follow and he soon found himself on the roof with little difficulty.

Traffic and bustling crowds of early commuters filled the air of this strange place, providing a safety net Robin didn't know he needed so badly. He sucked in a deep breath of the polluted air that reminded him of his home turf. He took a seat on the edge of the building. Wind blew his hair forwards and made the shirt he wore billow around him due to how it hung onto his small frame. It was only now that he realised that the shirt had a science pun emblazoned on the front with bright letters. Tears sprung from his eyes, slipping underneath his mask to run down his cheeks. Wally would've loved this shirt. He probably would've begged Dick to give it to him, offering a kiss on the cheek in return. "Wow, a shirt's got me all choked up," he said dismissively. He cracked a nervous smile and laughed pitifully at himself. Things that wouldn't have triggered such a reaction before had him close to a blubbering mess. "Stay whelmed Grayson," he muttered. Subconsciously, his legs came close to his chest and he rested his chin on them. Sounds whirled around his head, pushing random upsetting thoughts to the front of his mind and making him cry more. The sun shone obnoxiously at him, as though it was saying "look at me! I'm so happy!" Staring off into space didn't help stop the tears that were now dripping onto the metal structure he was sitting on top of. His head sunk into his arms, seeking comfort from within them but found nothing. Everyone would probably be worrying about him so his added upset wasn't going to help. He needed to put his training to use but that was easier said than done when he was left alone in some place far from home. He hated that he wished someone had been sucked into this world with him. Admittedly, it would be nice to have someone who knew exactly how he felt because they were going through it too. Just another thing to add to the therapy pile. Yay.

Robin sighed, not finding what he wanted sitting outside in the cold morning air. He got up yet lingered a moment, taking off his mask and wiping at his wet cheeks. If things didn't turn out the way he wanted perhaps this world could earn a new hero. With no Batman to follow in the footsteps of, maybe he could reinvent what it meant to be a young hero. Then again, who was he without his mentor's protective arm around him? Who was Batman without Robin? He snuck a glance at the city's skyline, the buildings blocking out the sun's light from the passerby. "I promise I'll be good while I'm here. If I don't get back, I'll make sure no orphan is made to suffer alone. Just like you," he vowed, talking to a thought of Batman. He waited a little longer, hesitant to see anyone in this fragile state, losing track of time as he stared at the pink clouds melting into white. It was only when he heard Tony shout "Breakfast! Get it or starve!" that he noticed how much time had gone by. If he didn't show up then Spider-Man would come looking for him. With his emotions pushed back into the cage he installed through years of tough lessons, he sauntered inside. He could cry his eyes out when he was back home but right now, well; he may as well make the most of where he was now. 

Inside, Captain America was at the stove cooking something Robin couldn't discern. Spider-Man was at his side attentively. Black Widow was having banter with a man. Where were these guys coming from? It seemed every five seconds there was another Avenger he hadn't met or noticed before. Tony and Dr Banner were muttering off to the side, not making eye contact with Robin when he appeared at the doorway. Thor was sneaking whatever that was being made into his mouth, smiling innocently when the Captain turned to see what he was doing. The sight made Robin chuckle a little, grabbing their attention. "So you're the new kid Pete's been going on about? I didn't think you'd be wearing a cartoony mask," the mysterious man joked. Pete? Who in the world was Pete? "He's not supposed to know my real name!" Spider-Man exclaimed. Oh, he was Pete. "He's going to be here for ages, he may as well know your name," he argued calmly. Robin raised an eyebrow at him, opening his mouth to ask what he meant. Unfortunately, he was interrupted by the combined glares of Tony and Bruce being directed at the man. "We were going to let him down easy dumbass," Tony snarled.

"What does he mean by ages? Are we talking a week here?" Robin asked. There was no answer. "Two weeks?" He was getting frantic now in the quiet that followed. Robin didn't like the way that Pete stared at the ground solemnly or the way Thor offered him a sad apologetic smile. "Three weeks?"

"We don't have a time frame for you," Bruce said finally. He seemed truly regretful to deliver that information to the teen. That didn't help one bit.

All the colour from Robin's face drained, leaving him deathly pale. This couldn't be right. There had to be a way to get home quickly. If criminals could get their hands on a device that could do this, couldn't these scientists whip one up for him? Then again, this wasn't his world. They could be behind in technology or have advancements in fields other than the dimensional science one instead. Robin found himself frozen like Wally was when he had urged him to save Artemis. What was the last thing he had said to them? It wasn't I love you guys or I'll be back before you know it. It was a shout demeaning them for what they were. Teenagers. Young Justice was a team of teenagers juggling social lives with hero business. They were bound to have spats with one another from time to time but the timing couldn't have been any worse. He desperately wanted to rewind time and say sorry but he couldn't. Robin was stuck. "Are you okay?" Pete asked him, raising a hand to place on his shoulder. Robin winced away from the hand, slowly backing out the room. "I could be stuck here forever?" he whispered. Manic laughter erupted from his throat as tears welled in his eyes. He tried to muffle the laughs by putting a hand over his mouth but they could still be heard. He was setting them on edge, he knew that. He could tell by the way Tony was slowly moving so that he was closer to Pete, the way Thor was about to walk over to offer anything he could, and the way Black Widow and the mystery man rose from their seats ever so carefully. "I'm pretty sure he's not okay," the man said cautiously. Robin stared at him; he thought he looked so desperate. A sickly feeling grew in his stomach and he felt light headed. He was going to go down. "Catch," he whispered when Thor got close to him. "Catch whAT- BY GREAT ODIN'S BEARD HE DIED!" Thor yelled, barely catching the now limp teen. 

Peter let out a less than manly shriek and ran to the boy's side, checking his pulse. He sighed in relief after finding that it was still strong. "His death is on Bruce not me," Tony announced. Bruce paled instantly at the suggestion. "He's fine sir, he just fainted. I would too if I got that news,"  Peter reasoned. He heard them all let loose a breath. Believe it or not, they didn't fancy burying a thirteen-year-old somewhere where they wouldn't find his remains. Thor frowned, adjusting his grip on the child so that he was holding him bridal style. "He's as light as a feather. This is what happens when a growing boy doesn't get his mead," he said.

"No Thor that's not right," Steve sighed. They've had this conversation a million times over by now. "Should we get him to a medical bay?" Clint asked as Peter poked Robin's face lightly to see if that would wake him. It didn't. He just got a whimper. "No just get him to his room. When he wakes up we'll explain the situation better." Tony answered. Peter looked to Thor and held his arms out to show he wanted to carry Robin. "You stay and have breakfast and I'll take him back to his room. I want to make sure he's okay when he wakes up," he said brightly. Thor handed over Robin, happy to get back to stealing bacon.

Carefully, Peter walked through the hallway and laid Robin on the bed. He couldn't help but move the raven locks out of his eyes. He seemed so young but so confident in himself, Peter was almost jealous of how confident he seemed. The way he smirked before lunging himself off the damn building showed it. How long had Robin been doing this job to get like that? He seemed so experience so he must've started early, much earlier than Peter had. Peter pondered on what got the boy into crime fighting. Maybe he was like Peter in that sense; he'd experienced something awful and knew that he could've stopped it. Or maybe he'd done something bad and thought this was the only way he could make up for it. Or perhaps he was one of those anti-heroes, deciding to do good when it suited him because the world wasn't fair to him. How he got to be a hero didn't really matter although Peter would really like to know. Curiosity was one of his most troublesome traits.

Minutes later, Peter became more agitated by the lack of movement from the younger. Was he supposed to be out for longer or for shorter? Had there been a complication? He didn't see Robin hit his head, as far as he knew Thor had caught him before he hit the ground. Then again, he recalled that he heard Robin moving around throughout the night and eventually left his room early in the morning. Fainting was probably the closest he had got to sleeping ever since he got here which was hours ago. Cautiously, Peter went to poke Robin's cheek again. He just wanted to make sure the kid hadn't died in between fainting and being carried to the spare bedroom. Instantly, Robin's hand gripped around his wrist and pushed him off the bed. Peter fell to the floor with a thud, successfully waking Robin the rest of the way up. He hissed in pain, sitting up on the bed, and then looked at Peter on the floor. "I see you're awake," Peter grumbled, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry Pete but this is a no-touch zone unless I'm dating you or you're family," Robin explained briefly, halfway through a laugh. His shocked face was enough to chase away most of the shock that had made him faint. "Just call me Peter, I prefer it," Peter replied, getting up off the floor to sit beside Robin. "Are you feeling any better? I don't want you fainting again when we go back to talk through our options."

"What options? By the sounds of things, I don't have options. I don't want to get my hopes up only to have them dashed," Robin replied. Peter frowned, thinking of what was best to say. "Didn't you say you had a boyfriend? Wally right? He'd want you to keep your hopes up. So would your mentor and your family." Robin's head snapped up to look at Peter. He was right. Wally would want him to exhaust all options until there were none left and then discover more. "When you're right, you're right Peter. I just hope that they haven't lost faith in getting me back."

On impulse, the brunette wrapped the younger in a tight hug. Robin looked up at him in confusion but didn't deny that he felt much better after the hug. "I'm sure they haven't. Us heroes never do, that's what makes us different from the civilians we protect," Peter reasoned. Robin scoffed at the wise words. "I think the colourful suits make us different from the civilians somehow," Robin quipped, pulling away from the older. He didn't need to look like a child in front of the hero. "Alright smartass." Peter laughed. He stood up with a grin on his face. 

"I'm going to head back and let them know you're okay. When you're ready, feel free to join us. Maybe Thor has saved some bacon for you." Robin nodded, watching the older start to walk out the room. "Err Peter," he called out. "My name's Dick. You said before I tell you my name you tell me yours. Thought I'd uphold the deal." Peter chucked lightly. "If you tell anyone I'll break your nose." He held up his hands in surrender. 

"I promise I won't Dick."

Next one is gonna come up soon