The Sparrow and the Song Bird

Hunting in Smoke

Damian knew all about St. Agnes' Group Home for boys. Usually it was the first stop for kids who were fresh out of Juvy and had nowhere else to go.

It was well over capacity, severely underfunded and understaffed, and horribly unsafe. Kids didn't get sent here for no reason.

And Damian, for the life of him, could not understand why Grayson had been sent here of all places. It wasn't close to any police station, Grayson had no history of being a problematic child and came from a loving home, is being targeted by the mob, and (as if it can't be restated enough) is the only lead/witness to several murders.

It was incredibly easy to lose kids in Gotham's child care system. Grayson would hardly be the first child to slip through the cracks unfortunately. But, because of all of the other details, the negligence was obscene.

Even in his suit Damian felt chills rush down his spine as he wandered through the halls of St. Agnes. It reeked of mold and mildew. He could hear children crying behind closed doors, he could also hear other children fighting. He knew he had it rough growing up but he would gladly take his childhood over anything these children went through.

Once his current case was taken care of Damian felt he needed to do something about this.

The office that had all of the information was laughably unsecure. It wasn't even locked.

He scanned the files, he started in the G's and found nothing. He switched over the R's and still found nothing. Damian switched gears and began reading through every single file in that office. Looking for anything that would match the Grayson boy's case and unsurprisingly there was nothing. He had no idea how this place was run. He found files for kids who would be in their late thirties mixed in with kids Damian knew didn't belong based on their age alone.

He found files for infants and toddlers. They weren't even supposed to be sent here but of course neither was the child he was looking for.

It took hours. The sun was rising by the time Damian had finished combing the office. There was nothing that showed Grayson had ever been here other than the police file Gordon had provided that was already in his possession.

Damian couldn't believe this. Grayson was missing and this place didn't even record he'd been here at all.

He needed to talk to the staff. Or maybe the kids. He has no leads.

The universe must've heard him.

The door creaked open, revealing two, approximately, twelve year olds. One held a broom and the other had a waste basket.

The three of them regarded each other for a few moments.

The young boy's eyes go wide. "You're the Sparrow. I've you on the news." He whispers.

Damian nods once. "I am looking for someone. He was supposed to be sent here but he's missing. Can you help me?"

He looks back at his companion. There's clear mistrust in his eyes. He's been here for a while.

"If he's missing then he ran away from here. Lord knows I would if I could." he shifts just slightly on his feet for Damian to catch a glimpse of the ankle monitor.

"He could be in trouble." Damian tells him, trying to look and sound as unthreatening as possible. "I just want to help him."

"Can you help us?" The first boy asks him.

Based on his tone and general appearance Damian suspects that he's in a similar position as Grayson. he came from a loving stable home and was brought here for some odd reason.

"I plan to. But I need to find him first."

"Really?" His dark eyes seem almost hopeful for a split second. He desperately wants to believe Damian. He's been betrayed too many times.

"I will do everything I can." Damian knows it stupid to make promises like that. But he also knows in this situation Damian Wayne will be able to do far more than the Sparrow. This is a reasonable promise to make. One he wants to keep.

He chews his lip before looking out into the hallway. "What do you need?"

Damian smiles lightly. "Have you heard about the murder at the circus? It was about a month ago."

He hasn't heard about it, Damian can tell by the body language but the other one has. There's recognition in his face.

"Yeah, there was a kid here for a little bit." he tells him. "I remember he was quiet, he stayed out of everyone's way. Some of the bigger kids made fun of him because he had an accent and didn't speak English very well."

English not being his first language is hardly surprising but Damian hadn't been certain, it's useful information but it's not a lead.

"When did you see him last?" Damian asks, he needs this to actually lead him somewhere. Anywhere.

"I saw him when he first got here, but we're not allowed to be around the younger boys very much."

"Do you know if there's anybody who would know where he might've gone."

He shook his head.

The defeat sinks in his stomach. This isn't exactly helpful. It only reaffirms what he already knows. Damian steps a little closer. "That's alright. Thank you, both of you, this was helpful."

"We'll see you again?" he asks.

"You may not know it's me, but I hope so."

"There's a side door down the hall that will be easier to slip out of discreetly if you don't want to get caught." The second boy tells him. "It's probably easier than how ever you got in here."

"Thank you." He moves to walk past them before turning just enough. "Stay strong. I will be back to help you."

The look in both of their eyes kills Damian a little bit. They want to believe him so bad. He plans to keep this promise. After he rescues Grayson.

Unfortunately he wasn't provided with information he can reasonably use. It's only word of mouth, Damian doesn't feel that those kids lied to him. One of them saw Grayson, but it's still not enough. He doesn't know when Grayson left. He doesn't know if Grayson was kidnapped or ran away or if CPS moved him.

He does know that Grayson isn't here and Gotham is too big to search on his own. He needs help and he knows just who to ask.

There is the matter of not only finding this person, which will be next to impossible, but also convincing him to actually help.

This just got needlessly more difficult.

Fantastic.

A short one, I have the next chapter pretty much finished and almost put them together but decided against it. You'll have to wait a little longer to see who Damian's gonna reach out to (even if you can probably guess who). Have a great rest of the week.