Batman, Robin and Kitty

Chapter Two: Aftermath

Kayden scowled and ducked another fist, using her gymnastics training to twist out of the older girls grip. Stupid detention American center. Stupid American child services. Stupid American people.
Finally, she saw an opening and went for it, hooking her foot around the girls ankle to trip her. Just as the girl hit the ground, the guards decided to do their job and gripped Kayden's upper arm, dragging her away.
She had only been here two weeks, but she already knew the drill. She would get escorted to the medical center, where one of the medical personnel would do a shotty job of patching her up, and then be escorted to solitary for the rest of the night.
She frowned slightly when the guard led her right instead of left. She hadn't been down this hall before, so she had no idea what to expect. They stopped in front of a door and the guard opened it, pushing her inside. She stumbled, but caught herself, wiping the blood from her split lip on the sleeve of the oversized grey jumpsuit.
"Kayden?"
Kayden flinched and whirled around to face the man sitting at the table. He had dark hair, blue eyes and looked vaguely familiar. "Hello," she said politely. "Are you my social worker?"
"No," the man said. "My name is Bruce. Bruce Wayne. I'd like to talk to you. I tried talking to your brother, but it seems like he doesn't know much English."
"He doesn't," she said. "We kinda let it slide until the kids are ten before we teach them. I've been working on it with him."
"Please, sit," Bruce said, motioning to the seat across from him. Kayden nodded and sat down. "Do you mind telling me how you got hurt?"
"This place sucks," she announced. "The inmates are rude, violent and disrespectful, and the guards aren't any better. The only reason I'm still here is because I need to look after Dick."
"Well, hopefully I can do something about it," Bruce said, pulling a packet of tissues from his pocket and offering them to her. She took one and pressed it to her lip.
"What do you mean by 'do something about it'?" She asked.
"Well," Bruce said. "It's tragic what happened to you and your brother, and I know that it's awful being in the system."
"How exactly does that pertain to us?" She asked.
"If you'll allow me," Bruce said. "I'd like to adopt you and your brother."
"Adopt us?" She asked, blinking in surprise. "Why?"
"Because I know what it's like to lose your parents at a young age," Bruce said. "And I enjoyed watching the two of you, you impressed me." He smiled. "What do you say?"
Kayden hesitated. This man was a stranger, but it meant getting out of this place. She'd have to discuss it with Dick, but she was pretty sure of his answer. She squared her shoulders and looked Bruce in the eye. "On behalf of my brother, we agree to the adoption."
"Great," he said. "I'll get the paperwork filed as quickly as possible." He smiled at her again and she smiled back.
The next few days were a blur. The other kids stayed away, for the most part, and Kayden was able to teach Dick English for longer periods of time. When the day came, Kayden and Dick were sitting on the steps of the Detention center, a small backpack of belongings between them. The swelling for Kayden's latest black eye was finally going down and her cheek was bruised, but she was smiling and laughing at something Dick had said.
A shiny black car pulled up and the two of them stood up, Kayden slinging the backpack over her shoulder. Bruce got out of the car and walked over, smiling at them. "Ready to go home?" He asked.
Kayden and Dick shared a look, linked hands and nodded, following Bruce to the car.