You have to start smaller than flips if you want your bones in one piece. [ and he knew the question was coming, knows it's bound to happen whenever he mentions the circus, and-- he'll always be upset about it, but he likes the older memories too much to not even attempt to share those, so: ] My family was murdered when I was nine. During a show. One of the people in the crowd that night was a superhero. He took me in, helped me bring the guy responsible to justice. I've been doing this since.

[ he's staring at his hands. it's been a decade, now. he's been without his family-- with batman-- longer than with. it's wild to think about. ]