At least until the boy came of age, Batman could help him, guide him, restrain him, and become that safety rope tied around Theodore's waist.
He hadn't yet decided whether to train Theodore to become Robin.
But being adopted by Bruce Wayne could at least allow Theodore to become someone with a bright future.
Batman raised his hand, and under Theodore's surprised gaze, gently patted Theodore's soft black hair.
He could feel Theodore's guardedness towards him.
But it didn't matter, Batman happened to have raised a child very similar to him.
Referring to Jason's sample, in such moments, Batman knew exactly what he should say.
Like now…
—Are you hungry?"
"…"
Theodore was a bit unsure what the subtext of this question was.
He was definitely hungry, as six or seven hours had passed since dinner, and the food in his stomach had long been digested.
But even a three-year-old knew not to casually eat things offered by strangers.
If he answered "hungry" directly, perhaps in the next second, Batman would warn him that this was what he deserved for running away, making him remember the lesson.
Or, Batman would take out some strange things to feed him, and after eating them, he would become very obedient—this world even had aliens, so a couple more magical drugs wouldn't be surprising.
The most terrifying possibility was that Batman's "hungry" was a metaphor.
As soon as Theodore nodded, the other party would press him against the alley wall and feed him some bat guts or something…
Don't say Batman couldn't do such a thing.
Before tonight, Theodore couldn't have imagined Batman would submissively work for Wayne!
He shivered subtly, Theodore firmly shook his head: "No, I'm not hungry at all, I'm going back."
However, as if his body was deliberately working against him, before he finished speaking, Theodore's stomach let out an extremely loud rumble.
Theodore: "…"
The situation became a bit awkward and intensely anxious for a moment.
Just as Theodore instinctively wanted to step back to avoid being harmed for lying, the man above him seemed to let out a soft, amused breath.
Theodore looked up uncertainly.
Just now… did he see Batman smile?
The man's exposed jaw, his lips, did indeed curve upwards by a very tiny margin?
"Come with me, child." Batman said calmly, "Before I take you back, I'll take you to get something to eat."
So now, Theodore and Batman sat side by side on the eaves, staring at the Bat-burger in his hand, doubting life.
Between them, there was also a steaming box of Robin fries, the kind with ketchup.
The burger meal was ordered fresh at the fast-food restaurant, completely eliminating any possibility of tampering.
Theodore poked the burger, then looked at Batman with an incredulous gaze, surprised that he was actually willing to treat him to normal food.
"You, you… I mean, Mr. Batman…"
"What is it?"
Batman asked knowingly, even picking up a fry and dipping it in ketchup.
Watching the sauce-covered fry naturally go into the other's mouth, Theodore's mind went blank.
Theodore: "!!!"
Oh my god, someone pinch him, this wasn't a dream, was it?
Batman actually ate fries!
Perhaps the potatoes for the fries were some special energy material, the crimson ketchup was actually concentrated blood, and the Bat-burger in his hand… well, Theodore couldn't make it up anymore.
He tentatively took a bite of the burger: the flavor was actually quite good.
He lifted the bun to look: the patty was the most ordinary round shape.
Noticing the boy's dilemma beside him, Batman spoke: "What's wrong?"
"I thought, since it's called a Bat-burger, the patty might be bat-shaped or something…"
"It's just a regular burger, with a bat printed on the packaging." Batman recalled, "It tastes pretty good."
Occasionally, after a night patrol, he and Robin would secretly enjoy a meal together, hiding it from Alfred.
Hearing this, Theodore was greatly shocked.
"You've eaten Bat-burgers too!"
"You even eat fries!"
Didn't everyone say Batman was shadow, darkness, the devil's shadow, a vampire lurking in Gotham's dark corners, only coming out at night?
Did non-human creatures have such a wide and casual diet??
Unless, unless…
Theodore's throat moved, as if swallowing a hard, difficult lump, finally realizing something belatedly.
He said in a strange tone: "Oh, I understand…"
"Batman, you're actually a human, right?"
Batman: "…"
The last time he heard such an absurd deduction was the last time.
No, Batman had never heard such an absurd deduction!
What was wrong with his newly adopted child?
When he treated Jason to food that time, things went very smoothly.
Beneath his cowl, Batman couldn't help but look at Theodore's brain with a skeptical gaze.
For the first time in his life, he wished he had Superman's X-ray vision.
Compared to the current Robin's talent—Tim was a keen detective, excellent enough to uncover Bruce's true identity.
As for the previous two Robins: Dick and Jason also possessed outstanding investigative abilities.
As for this boy in front of him…
Batman silently dipped the second fry into the ketchup.
Unable to tell if it was relief or exasperation, at this moment, Batman felt that perhaps the family would finally have a child who could neither become Robin nor any other vigilante.
Hmm…
It's pretty good.
It's actually really good.