Chapter Text
One year earlier...
"Are you sure about this, Alfred?" Bruce asked, giving his butler one last look.
"Sir, after decades of working for the Wayne family, I am not getting any younger."
"Alfred." he turned to fully face him with a smile. "You'll bury us all."
"And I might break a hip in the process. Which is why I need an apprentice."
"...You do know I can't keep my secret identity for long with someone that lives under the same roof as me."
"Which is why we have to make sure they are a trustworthy person."
"Alright. But we will both be conducting the interviews."
"Certainly, Sir." he nodded.
Bruce turned to the computer and pressed send, sending the job offering to almost all of Gotham's newpapers.
As suspected, any kind of job offering coming from the Wayne family attracted a lot of attention. Bruce and Alfred had to organize group interviews there were so many applicants from all over Gotham. It took them a whole week. Only a few were selected for a trial period that would last a couple of days. However, if they were to success and be hired. They would end up quitting soon after because they truly got a grasp of how hard the job was, or they turned out to be spies for a rival company.
After a month or so, things were looking quite dire... There were no more applicants.
That was until there was a knock at the door. Alfred went to open and a little girl was there.
"Good morning, Sir." she bowed. "You're Alfred Pennyworth, I presume."
The butler was taken aback. Not only was this child speaking like an adult, but she also acted quite refined for someone looking so...ratchet. She was clearly from the poorer parts of Gotham.
"And who might you be, miss...?"
"My name is (Y/n) (L/n). I'm here about the apprenticeship."
His eyes widened. Before he could say anything, she asked where 'Master Wayne' was.
"In his office upstairs but-"
"Thank you very much." she bowed again and walked in.
Bruce was equally as surprised to be greeted by a child.
"Good morning, Master Wayne." she bowed. "I'm here to apply for the apprenticeship."
"Uh, hello little lady." he smiled with a raised eyebrow, keeping up his casual persona. "No need to call me 'Master', you're not hired just yet.
"Apologies." she nodded. "I'm just very determined to get the position."
He blinked twice and glanced at Alfred who was by the doorway. He shrugged and Bruce cleared his throat.
"Please, take a seat."
"Thank you, Mr. Wayne." she nodded again before sitting on the chair across from him. "Should I give my resume to you or Mr. Pennyworth?"
"You have a resume?" he repeated with a hint of disbelief.
As an answer, the girl looked into her duffle bag and took out a paper than she then carefully placed on his desk. Bruce picked it up and examined it. He immediately noticed the stamp from Gotham's public library that she tried to erase. If he didn't have those detective eyes, he would've missed it. He deduced she didn't have access to a computer at home and so she used one of the library's.
"Says here you're nine years old."
"I'm mature for my age." she smiled. "And I'll be ten in just three months."
He kept reading her 'resume'. Obviously the 'experience' portion was the smallest he's ever seen, and she clearly compencated with the 'skills' portion. At some point he raised an eyebrow.
"You worked in construction?" he said, not believing that.
"My father would sometimes need help."
"With construction?"
"Administrative work." she corrected. "There were times where he couldn't afford a secretary."
"And now he can?"
"No. But with time he learned how it works."
Bruce just hummed. He stared at the paper and didn't say anything for a bit to see how she would deal with the silence. Eventually, he glanced at her. She was still sitting straight with good posture, patiently waiting for him to say something. Although her hands were gripping her bermuda shorts.
"Why do you want this apprenticeship so badly?"
"I'm poor, Sir. I need a job."
The two men couldn't help but find her bluntness refreshing, after so many applicants saying different versions of the same speech.
"Don't you have parents for that?"
"They're poor too, Sir. That's why I need a job."
"You know this is an apprenticeship, it's not a paid position."
"But it will be, once I become an official maid."
He noted her confidence there.
"Don't you have school?"
"No. And that means I can fully dedicate myself to this position." she smiled.
'She's good.' he admitted.
"Do your parents know you're here? Are they even okay with you not going to school?"
"No. And I had to stop going when it was getting too expensive."
"Do you think they'd agree to this apprenticeship?" he raised an eyebrow with a little smirk.
"If they learn that I'll be working at Wayne manor, they'll probably cry of joy."
"Look kid," he put her resume down. "I like you. You're definitely unlike any other applicant we've seen so far. But..." his voice trailed off.
"Sir, if I may speak frankly..."
It took him a moment to realize she was actually asking for permission.
"You may." he gestured her to go ahead.
"When I say I want this, I'm not saying this because I wish to be an adult already. I really want to work, I want to work for something important. Someone like you." she paused, looking at him in the eyes. "I understand if you want someone who had a more solid education. I do admit that it is a flaw of mine. But when it comes to manual labor, I'm a fast learner. If I ever ask Mr. Pennyworth for help with a task, I guarantee you that I will never have to ask again."
There was a moment of silence.
"Well," Alfred stepped up. "I suppose there is only one way to find out."
"Alfred." Bruce rolled his eyes. "You're not actually agreeing to-"
"Not at all, Master Bruce. Which is why she must go through the trial period."
(Y/n) gasped softly, her eyes wide open.
"Alfred."
"I like her, Master Bruce. She reminds me of me when I started working, I was only a few years older then." he smiled.
"I won't disappoint you." she spoke. "I swear it."
Bruce looked back at her.
"Let me make sure you understand. This is a position in the Wayne manor, this isn't like your household chores."
"I'm well aware of that." she nodded. "I'm prepared for it."
"If you get the apprenticeship, you'll have to live here. You won't have a lot of personal time."
"That's alright."
"You might not see your friends often."
"I don't have any friends, so that's not a problem either."
A moment passed, the two men silently acknowledged how sad that is. Finally, Bruce sighed.
"I'll trust your judgment, Alfred."
(Y/n)'s face lit up.
"But I'm calling her parents first." he pointed.
"Naturally." the butler nodded.
"I'll contact you to tell you when you can start your trial period." he turned to her.
"Yes sir!" she quickly stood up and put a hand to her forehand like a soldier.
Despite what the young child said, she was not ready for all of the work that came with being a servant of the Wayne family. However, she made up for it with her determination and perseverence. She was right when she said she only needed to ask for help once.
Once Alfred told her how Bruce liked his waffles. She stayed up all night to make sure they were just like Alfred's. Ever since she started her trial, anytime Bruce would see her, she would work. He began to feel a little bad after the second day.
"Do you take any breaks at all?" he asked.
"Of course, Master Wayne. I just want to make sure I polish my skills to perfection."
Concidering the fact that she was in the middle of polishing the tiled floor, Bruce hoped this wasn't a pun. Based on her genuine tone, he figured it wasn't.
"You seem happy to have so much work. I have to admit, it's unusual."
"Unusual? Really?" she wiped sweat off her forehead and looked at him. "This is the busiest I've ever been!" she beamed.
Bruce couldn't help but smile.
Needless to say, (Y/n) was later hired as Alfred's apprentice, she proved to be a wonderful new addition to the staff. She brought a certain light-heartedness to the manor. Despite her professionalism, she was still just a kid.
After a few months (and a thorough background check of her and her family) Bruce shared his secret to her and she was showed the batcave. She swore on her life to never reveal this secret.
[Just wanna share how I picture her in my head 🥰 But of course, you do you with how you imagine her!
She looks very tomboyish in her casual clothes, but that’s just appearances, she’s still very polite and elegant 👌😌]
