It was a warm morning in Gotham City. The summer was coming to an end, so the air wasn’t dry or unpleasant and held the slightest chill to it, a sign of the oncoming autumn. Still she pulled at the school tie uncomfortably, gripping the strap of her bad a little tighter as she walked up to the large, very intimidating building. All around her students walked past her, happily chatting to their friends after summer break, completely oblivious to her discomfort and nervousness. It was strange being so intimately close to so many strangers. True, the circus was always crowded but she knew each and every person there, trusted them. Here any time someone came too close to her she cringed slightly, as if afraid that they might suddenly attack her. Summer wasn’t shy perse, just a little unsure of how to act around people. In the halls she was bumped and pushed as other students walked past her and she spent a lot of her time feeling and looking very lost. She, by some small miracle, managed to find her locker and put her bag inside, happy to be rid of the weight and extra bulk before taking out her schedule and trying to figure out where and what class she was actually supposed to be attending. Through some small miracle she managed to make it to her first class without being late, then again she’d prepared for it by giving herself a lot of time to account for getting lost. The school was big, but well designed, so it wasn’t that hard to find her classes as the day went on. Regardless she was more than happy when lunch rolled around and she was given a moment to just take a breath and not have to worry about being late to her next class because she was lost or being suffocated by the hoards of students.

*Beep* *Beep* Crash went the alarm clock as Dick hit it off of the nightstand, he rolled out of carefully and walked groggily into the hot shower. It was another long night he stopped several robberies and nearly had his butt handed to him by a gang of joker wannabe's when the Bat showed up. He was given another of his long winded lectures and humiliated once more. There was a time when Dick had no one at all, that he had looked up to Bruce. Now that he was older Dick anted to be treated like an adult but Bruce still treated him like a child. He had even left for awhile and spent some time with other heroes, including his good friend Cyborg. He left the Titans to finish high school in the esteemed Gotham Academy. He also secretly wanted to prove to Bruce once and for all he could take care of himself. Dick pulled up to the Academy in his Shelby Cobra; stepping out of his car he straightened his tie and headed to his first class. The first day was always interesting just to see who would be in his classes. Dick walked down the hall and sat in a desk beside a girl that seemed vaguely familiar.

Eventually, though reluctantly making her way into the cafeteria. She watched the kids in line but had packed her own lunch today, unsure if she would have liked anything offered at the school. Looking at the food on offer though she realised her worries had been unfounded. Apparently the private school prided themselves on gourmet lunches. Still, after looking around she moved to sit over on her own in the corner of the lunch room. Now for most of the day Summer had her head down, trying not to draw attention to herself of be noticed. Now though, she felt a little more confident and actually looked around. Already she could make out the clique tables. The popular kids, the jocks, the nerds, as her eyes scanned over the room however they fell on one figure, walking over to a table with another group of students. Unconsciously she stood and began walking over to him, her hazel eyes fixed on that mop of black hair, completely forgetting about her lunch on her table. At first she thought maybe she had been mistaken. Even as she got closer she still wasn’t sure. It had been so long and he looked so different after all these years. Approaching the boy shyly, Summer tried to move into a position where she could see his eyes clearly. “Dick?” She asked quietly, looking at him hopefully. “Dick Grayson?”

Dick made it through his morning classes, it was pretty lame stuff considering Alfred had tutored him at Wayne Manor, and he knew most of this stuff if not more. Second period was a bit better, Chemistry was something he had been studying with Cyborg and the Titans before returning to Gotham. Third Period was English Literature something ALfred had turned him onto rather quickly. The old butler loved to read in his spare time and was really into it. At the sound of the bell Dick entered the cafeteria, finally a break, he thought. He went through the line but only grabbed a couple of bananas for lunch. He was about to begin eating when he noticed a girl walking his way. "Could it be?"" he thought to himself, "After all these years she's here?" She walked up to him and said his name almost as a question, "Dick? Dick Grayson?" He stood up from his seat and hugged her. She was the first person he'd seen from his cicus days in years. "Summer, What are you doing here? I haven't seen you since we were kids." Turning to the guys at the table he said,"Make room she's with me." They complied quickly maing room across from Dick so they ould see each other as they spoke. "What are you doing here in Gotham, Is everything ok?"

For a few moments as the question hung in the air Summer was afraid she’d made a mistake. This certainly could have been Dick, but it also could easily have not been him as well. Puberty had changed him a lot. But then what if it was him and he didn’t recognise her? That thought was almost as scary as if she’d made a mistake and she was starting to seriously question her decision to come over here. However when he stood up and hugged her suddenly, all those feelings of doubt and worry seemed to vanish and she hugged him back gently, not wanting to seem too relieved. She smiled gratefully at him as he asked his friends to move and she sat opposite to him. She quickly nodded to dismiss any fears he may have. “Everything’s fine. I just thought it would be a good idea to finish off school without the distractions of performing so I can really ‘apply myself’.” The way she said the last words hinted that it was more someone else’s idea over her own. She then sighed softly, letting herself relax a little more. “You have no idea how good it is to see you again.” She wanted to say more, about how the circus missed him and his family but she knew it was a topic she shouldn’t bring up. No one wanted to be reminded of the deaths of their parents. “I was worried that I was going to spend the entire year sitting on my own.” She didn’t want to admit her true feelings about the place, that it was big and scary for fear of looking stupid. These people probably wouldn’t understand. But if they were Dick’s friends then Summer knew they must be nice people, it was still a little intimidating. “But what about you? What have you been doing all these years?” She eventually asked, curious to know how her friend had spent civilian life.

"It's great to see you too," he listened as she spoke but studied her body language as Bruce had taught him. She seemed a bit tense as she mentioned being here to focus on school, but she did seem genuinely excited to see him. "Let me see what have I been doing these last few years? living like I'm still in the circus," he teased. The days in the circus were some of the best and worst memories for him. He had still been unable to find the culprit that planted the bomb in the tent that killed his parents. Though he did have some new leads. "I've been living mostly here in Gotham, I lived in Jump City the last couple years as kind of an exchange type program. I stayed with a group of kids kind of like me, either orphaned or abandoned. I learned alot from the those guys, and it really made me think about who I am and who I want to be. Now that I'm back here I'm staying in Bruce Wayne's guest house, I'm too independent to share a house with. So I come and go as I please, all he cares about is seeing my grades."

Summer smiled slightly as Dick told her about what he’d been up to. “I’m sure Bruce cares about more than just your grades.” The girl decided to add. She’d seen in the news papers that Bruce Wayne, the billionaire had adopted Dick after they’d left Gotham the first time around. The way she saw it anyone who’d gone out of their way to adopt someone and spend all these years with them had to care about more than just school scores. It was hard to tell for sure, since she’d never met the man, but he seemed nice on the TV when she’d watched him. Summer did have a theory but she decided to keep it for later, if she and Dick got a chance to talk privately. Suddenly she became a lot more aware of the people around her, all these people she didn’t know at all and she sank in her chair slightly, casting her eyes down to the table. Summer had always been a little shy, but this was mostly due to the fact that she’d never had to socialise with strangers on a personal level like this. In the circus there had only been Dick, herself and a couple of others around their age. But even then she knew everyone so well. She also realised that she really had no idea who Dick was either. Back when they’d been at the circus they’d known everything about each other. Now there were years of his life she had missed. His personality could be completely different from the boy she remembered. What if they weren’t compatible anymore? A past with someone could only get you so far if your personalities clashed. What if he decided he didn’t like her anymore? “So have you decided?” She finally decided to ask. “What you want to be I mean? You said your friends in Jump City made you think about it. Do you know yet?”

"Bruce has had me privately tutored for years, I've already learned French, Spanish and I'm working on Russian. He knows I can probably teach half of these instructors in here but he wants me to graduate from the Academy so it looks good when I try for college. I told him several times I'm not going to college because I'm going to be a detective and most of their training is done on the job. I want to find my parents killers and I want revenge. After that I'm going to work so no one else sees their family murdered in front of them. It may not seem like a grand ambition like a doctor or lawyer but it is important to me. I guess I've been rambling a bit. I'm sorry." Dick rubbed his chin for a moment, it was an old tic that he did sometimes when he was nervous or anxious. He had no reason to ask and she probably would say no anyway. It's not like they were still kid's at the circus but he decided to ask anyway. "After class do you wanna get a burger and shake? It'll be my treat."

“You’ll have to give me tips then. French class in killing me!” Summer said with a small laugh. She went slightly quiet at the mention of his parents, as it had been a topic she had been trying to avoid and she looked down shyly. However at his question the girl looked back up at him and smiled gently, nodding. It wasn’t that she had anything against his friends; it was just that she didn’t know them yet and she wasn’t sure how to act around them. Even with Dick… despite everything it was just always so easy. Sure they hadn't seen each other for a while, and it would take a while for her to figure out how exactly to act around him, what she could talk about and what to avoid. But he still seemed to be the same kind-hearted guy underneath. His thirst for vengeance was something new to her and although Summer tried to understand it, it just didn’t seem like the old Dick Grayson she’d known. There were bound to be changes over the years. Eventually she nodded slightly, brushing some of the dark brown hair out of her face. “That sounds nice.” She eventually agreed. “But don’t tell the circus… pretty sure they’d fire me if they found out I was eating burgers.” She laughed softly.

"I could help you with your French, in fact one time Bruce sent me and Alfred to Paris when I was having trouble with it. He had Alfred drop me in the middle of the town and left me to figure out how to ask directions and find my own way to the hotel we were staying at. He did that kind of stuff to me everyday for several weeks, in fact I got pretty good at ordering McDonald's in French though Bruce & Alfred never found out about that," he said joking. He smiled at the mention of the circus, he had grown up in the circus and had alot of fond memories there, "You know I haven't been to a circus since, well you know," he said quietly. "So listen, I have Chemistry, World History, and English Literature this afternoon, What classes do you have? Maybe we got lucky and have one together, if not I can see if I can transfer to one of your classes."

“We visited France for a while with the circus. It was pretty there, but I didn’t really get to see much of the city we were so busy performing. We haven’t really been overseas much since you left.” She said, trying to put it lightly. “Next time they come to town I’m sure everyone would be happy to see you again, although a lot of new people have come and gone over the years.” At the question she pouted for a moment, trying to remember before she reached into her pocket, pulling out her timetable. “I think we may have chemistry together?” She asked, sounding unsure as she offered the piece of paper to him so he could check since the whole concept of school timetables confused her. “Other than that I think its math and then… P.E? They said they tried to fit me into classes that I’d be good in, but with most of the classes being full I kind of had to take what was left.” Shrugging slightly. She didn’t mind too much what she’d been given. Al these classes were more than a little confusing for her either way, school was different to being tutored.

"Chemistry will be fun, it's something my friends and I did back in Jump City for fun. You'd be surprised what you can do with common household items. We used to grow our own snowflakes with pipe cleaners and Borax as well as other stupid things. PE should be fun for you, seriously coming from the circus I know you'll be in pretty good shape, your probably in better physical shape than most of the girls in here. Don't worry though I'll walk you to your next class if you want since we're both in Chemistry, I mean if you can stand being around me that long." There was something about talking to Summer that put him at ease, he was rather surprised that he'd told her as much as he had already, Dick never shared like this with anyone else. Maybe it's just because they were kids together and he was feeling nostalgic. Either way it was great to see Summer again.

“Chemistry? For fun?” Summer gave him a sceptical look as the bell rung, signalling the end of the lunch break, which seemed to pass by far too quickly for her liking. “I have to stop by my locker first to get a book… there are so many books.” She said with a sigh. “But I’d love if you walked me to class. I’m getting sick of getting lost. This place is huge; honestly… please tell me it all gets easier?” She was really glad that Dick was here. It was good to see him again after so long. Standing up Summer began walking back to her locker. “So um…” Something she’d been meaning to ask about the whole time. “Your… friends? They seem… quiet?” She didn’t want to seem rude in front of them and she hoped that he didn’t get mad at her for not making more of an effort to talk to them. But she was quickly getting used to the fact that Dick just seemed genuinely happy to see her. “Your friends from Jump City sound wonderful though” She quickly added. “I’d love to meet them one day.”

"Chemistry is a blast, literally, did you know if you add mentos to a two liter of coke it will blow up; it's a chemical reaction. Now those guys just hang around me because of Bruce's money. We get along but I don't really hang out with them after school or anything. Now friends from Jump City are pretty cool. They stay busy though traveling and what not; but if they are ever in the area I will definitely introduce them to you," he said as they walked to her locker. "So are you still doing the flexible gymnastics act or did you move to the trapeze or something like that? Are you staying with family or friends here or are you in one of those boarding houses?"

“I’d seen videos of it online… have to admit I never tried it myself.” She said with a small giggle. Getting the large, in her opinion overly large, text book from her locker she closed it and began following Dick towards the classroom. “Still do a lot the contortion stuff yeah, but I’m getting a bit big for the aerobatics side, they prefer using younger kids. I graduated to something that can more easily carry my weight. They’ve got me on the trick ponies now, I get to do basically the same thing but with horses.” She missed her pony. She’d gotten quite attached to Star before she’d left. “That’s about as high as I’m comfortable with going, sorry to say. And I’ve moved in with my mum, I’m staying with her and her boyfriend. She never left Gotham whilst I travelled with the circus.” She explained. “If I’m being honest it was mostly her idea, me coming back here to finish off the last year of school properly. She doesn’t believe that the circus’ tutoring program is enough of an education. Being here… I’m starting to think she’s right.” Everything here was so confusing. She’d never learnt any of the stuff she’d been introduced to today.

"Well tell your mom I said hello, I remember when she came to some of the shows to visit she always brought her homemade cookies. I know what you mean about the circus education though, Bruce had to have tutors to get me to where I was supposed to be; afterwards he just kept pushing academically and to tell you the truth I enjoyed the challenge. Tell ya what if it's cool with your mom maybe you can come riding with me one afternoon at the stables. Bruce always keeps a few horses on the property, though the only time I ever see him ride is when he has a lady friend over. Anyhow Chemistry is right down the science hall here," he said as he turned down a long corridor. "It looks like we have Professor Jackson for this one. Let's go ahead and get a seat in the back, if we're lucky he'll make us be lab partners."

“You can always come over and say hi yourself; no doubt she’d be happy to see you. Now I think about it… I wonder if she knew you went to this school when she enrolled me here? She was always trying to encourage me to hang out with people who weren’t in the circus; more ‘normal’ people.” It wasn’t that she had exceptionally disagreed with her life choice, it was more just that she wanted her to be something great like a doctor or a lawyer. ‘Make a difference in the world’ her mother had always said. But the circus had always been where her passion had been. She enjoyed it there. The offer of a ride, however, was too good to refuse. “You can count me in.” She said excitedly as they made their way down the corridor. Although the fact that a building had an entire section dedicated to science. Following Dick in she walked over towards a desk at the back with him, sitting down. “You do realise that if you get stuck with me for a partner I’m going to be no help to you at all.” She said with a small laugh.

"I may have to come see her then, and I don't know if she knew I was going to be here, I highly doubt it considering I enrolled just a few days ago. Now I don't expect you to help much as a lab partner. I was a circus brat once too remember? I was thinking if we were together I could help you get through the class so we can graduate together. There will be a lot of math and terms and stuff used in here, but if we work together we'll get through it."

“The good old days.” Summer replied with a smile. “But thanks… I don’t know how many times I’m going to say it but I’m sure you’ll get sick if it eventually but I’m glad you’re here. I have no clue how I was going to survive this place without you.” As the teacher came in she fell quiet and looked towards Dick before the teacher began speaking. The class went by in a blur of confusing terms and equations on the board. Even when Dick tried to explain it a lot of the time she was still left feeling perplexed. Through all the madness they did end up being assigned lad partners, for which she was incredibly grateful. However once the class was over they had to part ways once more, Dick heading off towards History and she to math. At least she hope she’d have a better chance at understanding math. After all there were so many numbers and equations in the world right? Needless to say, by the end of the day she was exhausted. Summer couldn’t even be bothered changing out of the P.E uniform, it was more comfortable anyway. Grabbing her bag now overloaded with homework she made her way to the front of the school, deciding she’d wait for Dick there.

Dick had gotten lucky his History class was right by the door closest to the parking lot for Seniors. As soon as the bell rang Dick went out to his car and threw his books in the backseat. The cherry red Shelby Cobra purred as he started it up. Dick turned on the radio to a satellite news feed. It had been a habit formed by years working with Batman and the Titans. Always know what is happening, pay attention to what is and isn't being reported. He waited for Summer to exit the school building, by the time she exited he had already taken the op down on the car. He opened the car door for her and helped her get in with her books. "So how was the rest of your afternoon?" he asked as he pulled out of the parking lot.