You weren’t supposed to be here.

That thought repeats in your head as you crouch in the industrial corridor beneath Wayne Enterprises, the chill of polished concrete seeping through your knees. Somewhere past the next door, you can hear the rhythmic clatter of tools and the soft whir of servomotors being tested.

You should be in the Cave, running drills, but tonight your restless curiosity got the better of you. Being the newest Robin still feels strange, like wearing a cape two sizes too big. You’re good at fighting, sure, and you’ve learned to follow his rules on patrol, but during the day you’re left with questions. So many questions. Questions about where the gadgets come from, who designs the armor, who keeps the Batmobile purring like it was built yesterday.

You push the door open just far enough to slip inside.

Lucius looks up from his workstation, eyebrows raised. Behind him, the lab is a cathedral of invention — reinforced walls lined with prototypes, blueprints glowing on holo-screens, and unfinished WayneTech models that look like they came from a decade in the future.

“Well,” Lucius says mildly, putting down the tool in his hand, “I don’t recall scheduling an audience with a Robin tonight.”

Your stomach flips. For a second you think he’s going to call Bruce, or worse, Alfred. But Lucius just smiles — the kind of smile that makes you feel like he already knew you’d come sneaking down here eventually.

“I— I just wanted to see,” you admit, voice soft.

Lucius studies you for a long moment, then gestures toward the workbench. “Come closer, then. If you’re going to wear the toys, you might as well know what they can really do.”

Relief floods you so fast you almost sag with it. You step into the warm glow of the lab’s overhead lights, careful not to touch anything — though your eyes can’t stop darting over everything at once. There’s a new grapple gun design lying open like a dissected insect, its sleek internals humming faintly. You can see schematics for next-gen Batsuit upgrades projected on a holo-table: reinforced gauntlets, lighter armor plating, a cape with adaptive glider tech.

Lucius sees where your gaze lands and chuckles. “That one’s still in the prototype stage. Your mentor has a habit of field-testing before I’ve even signed off on safety checks.”

You can’t help smiling at that — the idea of Bruce being reckless is oddly comforting.