Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice or the Teen Titans. If I did Lord knows there would have been a third season.

Richard Grayson has always been my favorite hero from the adorable Robin to the kick ass Nightwing we know and love. The only complaint I have is the Earth 52 costume, blue suited him I can't believe they made him red again. Oh well nothing I can do about it.

The inspiration for the title came from Nightwing's famous quote in Batman the animated series.

In Five Years

In every man's life he asks the question, "Where do I see myself in five years?"

And Richard Grayson was no different.

Until he was eight, he believed he would forever be a part of the circus, flying with his family. When he was adopted by Bruce Wayne, he thought he would spend his remaining nights jumping the rooftops of Gotham until that dream was shattered by another psychopath.

Facing his early retirement as a hero the fourteen year old was inclined to agree with his surrogate father. It was time for the robin to return to the nest so a hawk may spread its wings against the pitch black skies. But he would never be able to make a proper name for himself.

As long as he stayed in Gotham he would forever be seen as the Bat's sidekick.

The next town over, Bludhaven, definitely needed a hero with crime rates easily matching Gotham's and one of the most corrupted police forces in the nation. But as much as he loathes to admit it he didn't have the strength, the skills, or the knowledge to protect an entire city single handed, let alone one as screwed up as this one.

He needed to go somewhere no one would make the connection between him and the boy wonder, where he could build a reputation as a competent vigilante. After looking over a map of the United States and criminal records from the past three year the best option was a city near San Francisco, California. Jump City. Apparently the hero's neglect of the western coast was encouraging quite a few idiotic villains to set up shop.

First things first he needed a new title "Robin" wasn't going to cut it anymore. Robin was the name of a red breasted bird that has sung to the bats of Gotham for the past five years. He refused to sing on request anymore.

But he couldn't leave without paying some form of respect towards the man who gave him a chance at a true life. Make no mistake he loved Bruce with all his heart, but there was no denying the man infuriated him to no end. The uniform was almost done, just working out the final details but the chest was bare. Something needed to fill that spot, a symbol, something that revealed the new him.

Blue had crossed his mind, according to the Leagues first Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, new colors of lanterns had been discovered. He was very interested in the Blue Lanterns; apparently the corps was formed from a Guardian that was banished from Oa for his constant aid of Jordan's trouble making. Figures the one Guardian that understood Jordan's desire to save the universe without the wasted time of the bureaucratic red tape gets kicked out of the higher ups. So he created the power battery for the Blue Lantern Corps powered by the blue light of hope. It was his wish that the two corps would one day work together to better protect to both will and hope.

Hope.

Such a simple yet powerful concept always needed in Gotham yet there never seemed to be enough for the city, let alone the world. That's what heroes are for, when a civilian sees a hero they see the hope and ideals they embody and know they are going to be saved. That's what the Batman was for, to show the people of Gotham there was hope for a new day. That they didn't need to live their lives in fear of the trigger happy psychos that called this hellhole home. It's what Bludhaven needed now, but no hero was willing to go within ten miles of that hellhole.

Cowards.

Richard Grayson's attention was drawn to the window; the bats had taken flight and were beginning their traditional circle around the manor before hunting.

Richard noticed that the sun was only half way below the horizon. "They're early." Normally they at least waited for the sky to turn a few shades darker before leaving their shadowed sanctuary. Bats only take wing at night.

Wing. Night.

Nightwing. Yes, that would do quite nicely.

The fourteen year old hero walked to his desk deep in thought as he slowly formed the design for his new identity, never knowing he was being watched.

In one of the hundreds of trees surrounding the manor glowing eyes watched the boy clothed in black leather and polished armor, unhindered by the lack of light. Under his black mask a cruel smirk formed, it appeared his little bird has finally taken the first steps to realize his true nature.

The masked figured disappeared into the tangle of bark and leaves, leaving the young hero to his work.

The scar over his heart burned as he thought of all those criminals allowed to live do to a technically. How many more had to die before a psychopath would be given a death sentence? It could be a million or a dozen but either way some changes would have to be made for this world to have a brighter future.

The League did good there was no doubt about that but they were of the present and soon to be past, he was of the future and he had big plans to ensure no child would be forced to go through the torment he endured ever again.

Placing the last section of armor on the chest he stepped back to evaluate his work. A black one piece suit of Batman's personal blend of kevlar and graphene. Black gloves, boots, and light weight armor around his shoulders and legs protected the rest of his body. A blue bird was emblazoned across his chest, its wings outstretched as if to take flight. A black utility belt was wrapped around the waist carrying standard equipment with a few additions of his own design.

During his time as Robin his mask was mostly white with a sim black border but now it was dominated by black with two white slits. His domino mask became sleeker with sharp points at the black border stretching out from his eyes.

It took longer than he would have liked, but he was finally finished. Being cut off from the cave made it tricky but he finally did it.

Tomorrow was a new day. Not just for him but for the entire planet.