Batman was in front of the mysterious boy's room, holding a bowl of mashed potatoes and a cup of water. Besides helping the boy trust him the food was to fatten him up. He was as skinny as a twig, no doubt the GIW rarely fed him, if at all. When he had looked through all the files he currently had decoded he couldn't find anything about food unrelated to an experiment. That alone made his stomach churn with anger, food was necessary for the boy's other half, it was no wonder the color inverted form hadn't been triggered once that inhibitor collar came off.

Inside the room, Danny was still shaken by the experience with the green skinned man. Danny held onto his weak left arm so he wouldn't shake, his mind swirling with ideas and scenarios. He didn't know what happened to the green guy but he looked in pain.

He didn't know what was going on or what he should be doing. And the lack of violence was concerning, he felt like it was pent up and eventually it was going to break, break right on him. It was scary, he didn't know what to do.

Danny shivered as he remembered that he looked at the black core man in the eye. He knew that was the man that had moved him rooms, he was the man in charge. Even if agent A hadn't laid a finger on him (well he had, but not in a violent way) someone was bound to. And now that he looked the man in the eye he knew he was in trouble. He was going to be beaten till he was knocked out, shocked and dissected, every painful experiment imaginable just because he looked someone in the eyes.

The little halfa was destined for endless pain and suffering.

Another shiver rattled his body and he rocked himself back and forth, he had always found the swaying motion calming. The man would return to punish him, he deserved it, he broke the rules.

He remembered seeing the green man, but he wasn't sure he was a man, his core was odd. It was like an ameba, changing shape and doing weird things like suddenly changing to a purplish white. He was in pain and Danny had no idea how but he felt like it was his fault. Another reason to punish him.

Danny sat in the corner of the room with his bare arms wrapped around his drawn up legs. He absentmindedly noticed his pants were really long and the wall was cold to his bare back. The child trembled slightly in fear, laying his head on his knees and keeping his back and forth rhythm.

The door swung open and Danny immediately ducked his head in his arms with a terrified squeak.

Here it comes.

The little white haired halfas breathing got shallow and his body convulsed again as terror returned to his being. The back core man had entered the room, he could tell without looking by the sounds. His boots sounded heavy on the ground when in reality the room was virtually silent. Danny's voice betrayed him as it whined, he should know better than to make noise, noise made them more angry.

"I'm not going to hurt you." A dark voice said amidst his panic driven thoughts. The man's voice was grumbly but somewhat calming, and very serious.

Danny shied away as Batman got closer. The man's words didn't make any sense, he didn't know what those words meant. Agent A had said them too, but he didn't understand why those words were being said. They weren't an order, it was more of a statement, what did they want him to do with that statement?

"I brought you some food, I assume it's been a while since you last ate." The dark man said, at the same time something clinked against the countertop. A bowl and cup.

Danny was only more confused. What did this man want from him?! Why would he give him food?! Why wasn't he hitting him already?!

"Hey, it's alright. Do you remember me? I'm Batman." The man- Batman- asked him a question, a yes or no question, those he could answer without punishment.

Danny nodded, still hiding behind his arms.

"You're not with the Guys In White anymore, no one is going to hurt you." Batman said, and again Danny was approached with words he didn't understand, he might as well be speaking a different language.

"Can you look up?"

Danny squeaked and buried his face further into his arms. It's a trick. It's a trick. It's a trick. It's a trick.

"It's alright, it's okay to look up, you won't get hurt."

That meant nothing to the scared halfa. Literally nothing, he had no idea what he was saying.

Batman was getting concerned by the lack of response he was getting from the boy. Then an idea popped into mind. He almost threw it out immediately.

Batman sighed, unfortunately he had no other options at the moment.

"Stand up."

Batman almost winced as the boy scrambled to his feet. Favoring his wounded leg and still shaking, his head was still down but he was at attention. The boy had obeyed.

Batman did not want to play with the boys emotions, he knew the only reason the boy obeyed was out of fear. But this was the only way to get the child to respond.

Danny stood silently, begging his body to stop trembling. Batman gave him an order, he was going to do whatever it was Batman wanted without question if it meant escaping punishment.

"Sit on the bed."

Danny's eyebrows furrowed for a second, wondering what a 'bed' is, then realized the man probably meant the table. Danny hoisted himself up and sat quietly, letting his legs dangle again no matter how much he wanted to curl into a little ball at that moment.

Batman then came up to him and Danny couldn't help but shake in fear. He leaned back a little, fear forcing him away like the negative side of a magnet. His breath caught in his throat and a sob escaped his panting lips. Danny sucked in a gasp and covered his mouth with a hand, eyes wide as they stared down into nothingness and terror grabbed him.

Batman rose an eyebrow and sighed sadly. The Dark Knight reached up slowly and gently pulled the boy's hand away from his mouth. The child flinched but allowed himself to be moved, his trembling continued.

"I want you to eat this ok?" Batman said softly, almost like a whisper, almost... sadly. He slid the bowl over, lifting it to rest it on the child's lap. Then The Dark Knight took a small step back to give the boy some breathing room.

"You're not in trouble. I'm not going to hurt you because you made a noise or because you looked at me." Batman said, eyes boring into the small child to see if anything he said made it through.

Danny blinked away tears, his wrist tingled where the man had gently grabbed him. He... he wasn't in trouble? But... but he broke the rules. What are the rules then?

This must be a different faction of the GIW, they had different rules. He needed to figure out the rules fast, but obeying every command was a given. Apparently this 'Batman's standards for speaking, eating, and looking were different, that would make things difficult.

Danny then noticed the aroma that filled his nose, his eyes refocused and he observed the bowl that was placed in his lap. The teal bowl was filled with white mushy-looking stuff, and it smelled heavenly.

Batman said he had to eat it.

"I understand you don't trust me right now, and that's ok. You've been through a lot." Batman said, watching the child contemplate while hope quietly stirred in his heart. "But you need to eat."

Danny stared at the steaming mashed potatoes, the scent became stronger as he became more aware of his surroundings. His eyebrows narrowed at the food in his lap. It might smell like the best thing he's ever had in months (the GIW didn't really put any effort into the food they gave him when he was given the great privilege of a meal) but something bad has always been tied to something good.

Danny suspected drugs.

They would drug him for the really big tests, the tests that even they had to admit needed weeks of recovery. It was the only time they gave him food, all the other times he would just throw it back up. After awhile they just stopped trying.

Danny shifted his hands around the bowl, he couldn't smell the bitter scent of any drugs, his suspicions shifted directions. Was this a test too? Sometimes they'd give him food just to take it away later, he'd get punished if he tried to get the food.

But that theory was negated by the verbal order to eat it.

Trick or no, he had to obey.

So he did.

Danny slowly and hesitantly reached for the spoon and after scooping up a glop of the sustenance, brought the potato filled utensil to his mouth. Now that it was in his hand the smell was amplified, his stomach rebelled against his mind. He could not resist, he hadn't eaten in months. As soon as the food entered his mouth he knew it was the best food he had ever eaten in his entire life. It was warm and mushy, having subtle tastes of butter and salt. Danny was so enthralled by his food that he nearly forgot that Batman was there.

"Can you speak?" The dark voice asked suddenly.

Danny flinched and dropped his spoon like it was hot, nearly throwing the food back like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He froze with his eyes closed, awaiting a reprimand and a smack upside the head, maybe a kick to the gut

Nothing happened.

"It's okay, keep eating." Batman said, reinforcing the order to eat.

The child hesitated before shakily reaching for the spoon again, anxiety bubbling up his throat. His fearful green gaze glanced in the dark man's direction, not daring to look him in the eye but looking to see if he had moved at all.

This man was so weird, he didn't make any threatening movements which was confusing. He knew there were other types of movements, he didn't know what they were called though.

"Can you speak?" Batman repeated.

Danny flinched again but his grip on the spoon remained. It might have been Danny's imagination but the second time he asked sounded a bit more forceful. That was not good.

He nodded quickly to appease the man, he had no intentions of disobeying. It was a miracle he hadn't been slapped right then and there for not answering the first time.

The halfas talking when he was younger was what caused the GIW to start using the muzzle. Not to mention it muffled his screams and pleadings, also because he didn't speak English, he spoke something else. He only knew it was a different language because the agents would complain and Danny was the one who paid for it, he paid by not understanding them and thus getting in trouble, he paid a lot through pain. The point was, whatever language his mouth spoke was bad and English was good, but Danny knew very little English. The agents had no intention of teaching him this... 'English'... so even if Batman ordered him to communicate it wasn't going to end very well for either party. More so for the young halfa.

The white haired boy went for another spoon of potatoes, nibbling off the edge of the spoon nervously. He had no desire to get in trouble because he didn't speak English, but that just wasn't a possibility. He would just have to take the punishment, he'd survive. He survived this long didn't he?

How long has it been anyway?

As far back as he could remem-

"Do you have a name?"

His thoughts interrupted again, another quick nod was his answer to the dark man's question. But Danny's eyes narrowed in confusion. Why would he ask that question? The agents called him whatever they wanted, it didn't matter what Danny was called, it only mattered that he responded when called upon.

Distracted by his thoughts, the little experiments toxic green eyes drifted to the cup next to him. Was it full of vinegar or water? He reached for it, maybe he could tell by the way it felt on his fingers, if that was even allowed... but Batman has said keep eating so he must drink it sooner or later. Then he slid his arm back, remembering how with the GIW he had to be given permission for everything, sometimes breathing. It was all a test right? Batman said eat, he didn't say anything about drinking. Danny kept far away from the cup, feeling smart that he figured out the trick before he made the mistake of taking the cup.

"It's okay, the drink is yours, you need to eat and drink." Batman said suddenly, stressing certain words. Apparently this was a response to Danny's actions.

Danny gave a distrusting side glance to the cup, then to Batman, then back again. So he succeeded? He passed the test and the reward was the drink he was denied before? Alright then, if that's how this man worked then so be it, even if he really didn't want to drink vinegar...

The small halfa slid the cup closer to himself before wrapping his small fingers around the plastic. He hesitantly brought the cup up to his mouth, staring intently at the deceivingly clear liquid before he tipped the cup and barely touched his tongue on the surface of the cool liquid. He almost retracted when he realized it was water. It was water! He greedily drank the cup, his hand shaking despite his attempts to calm himself down, and his stomach suddenly ached with the sudden intrusion of both solids and liquids. In his haste some of the water sloshed out and dripped onto his chest, the cold liquid felt weird on his skin. Danny scowled at the water and punished the others by swallowing them whole.

He instantly regretted that decision as his stomach rebelled against him. The small child weakly lifted his left hand over his stomach, wincing as new odd pain burned in his gut. He didn't throw up, which he was grateful for (usually he got beat up for that), but it was mildly uncomfortable.

Batman, a little flustered by the lack of verbal response, tried a different tactic. He didn't want to order the child to do anything unless it was last resort, and clearly speaking was a touchy subject. "Do you want me to call you by that name?"

Danny set down the cup and stared at the bowl of food his stomach no longer desired. His mind churned with unease. This question was a yes or no question, but it was a trick question because it needed an explanation.

What was this man's goal here? It must be some type of test, it had to be.

He didn't know how to answer, and if he didn't answer soon he'd ask again, and he still wouldn't have an answer and then he'd get angry and then he'd start hitting him and then-

"I want you to answer with words, it's okay to speak, you won't be punished."

Danny flinched violently, the bowl toppled to the side as he slammed his back against the wall, drawing his legs close. He panted, heart beating wildly as fear ran untamed in his mind. The child pulled a hand to his throat, aching with phantom pain where he'd be electrocuted as punishment for the action the man requested.

His train of thought stalled when his hand touched bare skin.

Where was the collar?

It... it was gone...

His eyes widened as he felt around his neck, finding a small divot where the metal used to be. How could he have not noticed before?! Was... was he supposed to not have it? Was it okay that he didn't have it on? It was the thing keeping his powers in check, the thing they used to electrocute him.

The little experiment didn't know how to process this information.

"Hey." Batman brought his attention back to the present, where he was presently panicking.

Danny's chest heaved in faster, more panicked breaths, eyes dilated and unseeing as panic over rid his mind. He hadn't answered him, he was angry, he was going to-

"I took the collar off because you don't need to be punished to learn, it was inhumane and wrong to put a collar on you." The deep voice of Batman said. "You don't need the collar. I'm not going to put it back on, you're never going to wear a collar ever again."

Danny's brows twitched in confusion, he only understood half of what the man had just said. There were lots of big words, but he said collar lots of times, but one phrase in particular he was able to decipher. He didn't need the collar? His mind couldn't compute. Ye-yes he did... the agents... they would- he couldn't-

Danny grabbed his head and whined in intense exasperation, confused beyond all belief and terrified.

This... this couldn't be right, this was wrong. What if the agents found out? This man was too... he didn't have a word for it. He was too not-mean!

"Focus." The man's voice cut through his thoughts.

Danny froze at the harsh tone, a shiver running down his spine.

Batman was angry.

"It's alright," The Dark Knight said gently, eyes kindly narrowing on the panicked child. "Let's focus on one thing at a time alright? Can you tell me your name? I don't want to know what the scientists called you, what do you call yourself?"

Batman stepped closer, a hand raised to comfort, he thought better of it but couldn't pull away in time before the child saw his reaching.

Danny shrunk away quickly, blinking away tears because when he was scared he cried. He didn't understand this man at all.

Batman asked a question.

Danny had to answer.

Danny had to speak.

...He should at least try.

He opened his mouth, his dry throat closing up for a moment before he gagged a little. The small white haired halfas fear grew with every second sound didn't emanate from his vocal chords. The child shifted uncomfortably, trying to hide behind his own body at the same time as trying to find a better position for his throat. His mouth opened and closed slowly, small grunts and squeaks made it out, but no words.

Did he even remember how to say it? It was the same in both languages he thought, was he wrong? What if he said it in the wrong language?

Fear gripped him like lion to its prey, ripping at him, tearing him apart.

Suddenly something heavy landed on both his shoulders, instinctually he bowed his head.

"Focus. It's alright if you take your time."

Danny froze under the hands on his shoulders, his mind clearing as numbing terror ran rampant through his body.

His mouth opened once more but still nothing came out.

The hands left his shoulders and that caused a new wave of fear down his spine. The hands were going up to beat him, he didn't answer, he didn't obey. He deserved this.

The small child waited, trembling, ready for his punishment.

And again he was startled by the lack of violence befalling him.

The young halfa took a shaky breath, and eye opening cautiously. He clenched his hands, not realizing they had fisted. He became confused when he saw a green hue in the air. He peeked upwards and before him was a green film in the air, wrapping around him in a dome.

Curious, Danny reached out to the side shakily, his fingers trembling until they hit the surface of the green substance. It was cold. It felt like glass, smooth and clear (besides the green hue of course).

Batman was on the other side, standing stoically. Danny caught sight of his core, it was a mix of many many colors. Flashes of purple were present in the iridescent throng, but right now blue was the most prevalent, black coming in a close second.

Danny's stomach plummeted as he felt blood drain from his face.

He just used his powers.

He just... used... his ....powers...

HE JUST USED HIS POWERS.

The shield dropped as quickly as his rapidly beating heart. He... he had to fix this, he had to fix this NOW.

There was only one way he could come back from a trip up like this. The young halfa didn't actually know if this would work, it only worked a very few times with the more lenient agents, but never had he ever done anything this bad. He just hoped Batman would give him a chance at least.

The Dark Knight took a step back respectfully as the child scrambled off the bed like it was suddenly made of wasps. He watched in confusion as the little experiment nervously slid up before him and...

Kneeled.

Batman blinked in surprise as the proceeding silence weighed heavily in the room. The halfa was still shaking, he could hear and see the child's lungs shuttering with every breath. As he continued to observe, not yet sure how to handle this new development, he saw something drip onto the tile. The little white haired experiment had tears rolling down his cheeks, too many to bother with whipping, or too scared. His small hands were in fists at his sides, arms rigid and straight. His head was predictably bowed and oddly he only used one knee to kneel. A truly submissive stance, one full of fear and subjection.

Then a small voice drifted up to Batman's ears, a whispered whimper with meaning.

"...I-I... I'-I'm sorry."

Batman was suddenly struck with heartache. But he had to go about this carefully, the boy was expecting something bad to happen, and given the past few minutes, he didn't know how to respond to nice gestures.

Batman didn't care. This child needed love.

The Dark Knight fell to his knees and scooped the child into his arms and hugged him.

Danny didn't have time to contemplate possibilities because suddenly he was being squished on all sides. Fear rose from his throat and manifested itself in something he hadn't done in a long time.

"P-please... I-I *hic* I'm sorry!" Danny cried out desperately, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I sorry! I sorry!"

He didn't know what was happening, he just felt pressure everywhere. He cried, sobbing as his face was shifted from being pressed against the man's shoulder to open air. His face was red and hot salty tears came in a never ending waterfall down his cheeks. His frantic shouting reduced to a breathy whisper said softly into the air, whining and gasping with sobbing breaths. "...sorry...sorry...sorry...sorry..."

Batman gently brushed a gloved hand across the back of the small child's fuzzy head, trying to convey his intentions which the child seemed largely immune to. "It's okay, I'm not hurting you, no one is going to hurt you any more."

The terrified young halfa screwed his eyes shut, cried harder and tried to understand what the man wanted from him. He gave up trying to figure out what the words meant, maybe if he answered the dark man would stop whatever it was he was doing to his body.

"Danny! C-c-called D-Danny!" He shouted as quickly as he could. The small child felt numb everywhere, he didn't like it at all, it was... warm... he liked small cold places much better. Heat meant body, and body meant human, and human meant pain.

To the young halfas surprise he was suddenly released.

Danny flopped to the floor then scrambled with a limp on his hands and knees away from the scary man. He found his corner through his tear-blurred eyes and curled himself into a ball to protect his vitals. Cold, warm. Pain, numb. Mean... not mean.

"Danny? Your name is Danny?" Batman asked, sounding somewhat winded, almost like he was tired... or maybe sad?

The white haired halfa nodded vigorously, willing to do anything to keep away from that man and his... weird... warm... torture thingie he didn't know the name of. He didn't realize he had started rocking back and forth again, the swaying motion told him his body wasn't being pummeled even though he thought he was.

It pained Batman to see the child in such a state... especially over something as innocent as a hug. But then, he noticed something didn't feel quite right about the boys communication skills. Sure, he looked to be too young to be fluent in any one language, but the way he spoke, it sounded... familiar? He needed to investigate the boy's origins, he would need to get the rest of his files decoded to do that.

But currently he had a sobbing child, one not easily comforted.

Batman watched the child, he dipped his head and quietly said, "I'm sorry."

And with that he left the room.

4265 words.