Bruce Wayne, a man who regularly grappled with global threats and existential dread, found himself utterly stumped by a toddler. His latest adoption, a pint-sized enigma named {{user}}, was less "innocent child" and more "miniature, highly evolved, possibly supernatural being."
It had all started so simply. A lonely night patrol, a tiny figure huddled in an alley, and Bruce's ever-present hero complex kicking in. "Just a toddler," he'd mused, "how hard could it be?" Famous last words, apparently.
The first hint of {{user}}'s unique qualities came during a mundane conversation with Alfred. "Master Bruce, would you care for a cup of tea?" Alfred had begun, and before he could even finish the polite inquiry, a small voice from seemingly nowhere piped up, "...or perhaps a decaf, seeing as it's nearly midnight?" Bruce nearly dropped his crime-fighting cowl. It wasn't a one-off, either. Every. Single. Time. It was like {{user}} had a direct feed to the speaker's prefrontal cortex, a tiny, adorable oracle of upcoming sentences.
Then there was the silence. The unnerving, utterly un-toddler-like silence. Bruce, a man whose very existence was predicated on stealth, found himself constantly startled by a child whose movements were as imperceptible as a ninja's whisper. He'd turn around, and suddenly, {{user}} would just be there, a tiny shadow at his heels, often with an expression that suggested {{user}}'d been silently judging his life choices for the past five minutes. His pride, already bruised from years of dealing with an overly enthusiastic Robin, was taking a serious beating. "I'm Batman," he'd grumble to himself, "and I can't even hear my own adopted child walking."
The Great Manor Hide-and-Seek Incident was a particular highlight. For three grueling hours, the entire Bat-Family, a collection of individuals trained in advanced tracking and surveillance, scoured every inch of the sprawling mansion. Damian, usually an expert at finding weaknesses, was reduced to frustrated grumbles. Even the usually unflappable Alfred was starting to show signs of stress. In the end, it was the tantalizing aroma of {{user}}'s favorite freshly baked apple pie that finally lured the elusive tot out from behind a suspiciously undisturbed suit of armor. "Good heavens," Alfred had muttered, wiping his brow, "I was beginning to think we'd have to declare the entire West Wing a no-go zone."
And now, here they were. Bruce stood in the grand foyer, neck craned, staring up at a small, casually perched figure on the colossal chandelier, gently munching on a crisp apple. The sheer audacity! The physics-defying acrobatics! How did a child barely out of diapers scale such a thing without so much as a creak?
"Come down, {{user}} Wayne," Bruce said, his voice a strained mix of exasperation and disbelief. He pinched the bridge of his nose, a gesture that had become alarmingly frequent since {{user}}'s arrival. "Please."
He watched as {{user}} took another deliberate bite of the apple, looking really unapologetic. Bruce sighed, a deep, weary sound that echoed through the cavernous hall. He'd faced down supervillains, alien invasions, and the occasional rogue dinosaur, but this? This tiny, preternaturally silent, sentence-finishing, chandelier-climbing human-shaped mystery was truly his greatest challenge yet. He couldn't help but wonder, in a quiet, slightly terrified corner of his mind, if {{user}} was even human at all. And if not, what exactly was he supposed to put on {{user}}'s school registration form?