To the students and teachers of Gotham Academy, he was Richard John Grayson: A happy, cheerful, carefree student. To all citizens of Gotham, he was the ward of Gotham's Billionaire playboy, Bruce Wayne. To the Young Justice and the Justice League, he was Robin: Partner, Boy Wonder, and protégé of the Dark Knight, Batman. That's what everyone thinks of him: A thirteen year-old kid, who has everything, and nothing to worry about... Sadly, they don't know how wrong they are about him. Because deep down, he is Dick Grayson: A sad, lonely, orphaned, broken wing bird, who can no longer fly... The Last Flying Grayson...
I've been looking in the mirror for so long...
That I've come to believe my soul's on the other side...
Loser... Freak... Cursed Gypsy... Circus Freak... Mr. Know-it-all... You-... Dick could tell when he's not wanted, especially when he's at school. Because he skipped a few grades, it has seemed to make everybody ignore him and turn their backs on him. Because he has to act weak like everybody else, it made him become the bullies favorite-little punching bag. Nobody bothered to help the boy out, and the teachers seemed to not care if the bullies would someday put him into a hospital. Alcohol and drugs hurt his lungs whenever he breathes into the school air, and the sight of knives and guns would bring back painful memories of Tony Zucco and what he did to his family.
Pathetic... A Burden... Failure... Act your own age... You're not like us... You're just a-... Besides Artemis and Wolf, his team has powers and he doesn't. Because he's the youngest and has no superpowers, they would shove him out of the way from battle and then blame him for not helping or getting in their way when battling. The only thing they were proud of him for, is hacking and hiding within the shadows.
Roy hardly visits them, and when he does, he'd push Robin aside and ignore him until it was time to go help the Justice League. Wally ignores him, Kaldur and Conner wouldn't let him join in their training exercise, M'gann wouldn't let him say anything to her when she would ask him about what she should make, and Artemis would shoo him away before he could say something to her. Black Canary would scold him for his mistakes in training, and Red Tornado would say nothing to him at all. The only one who seems to notice and acknowledge his presence in the cave, is Wolf. Whenever Robin would go into his dorm to try and control his emotions, the white-animal would come inside and try whatever he could to comfort the boy with his presence... And to Robin, that's all he needed. However, even with Wolf at his side, the large animal couldn't fill in the gap or stop the pain from increasing.
What is he doing here?... He's only in the way... Get lost, kid... We don't have time for you... You're a-... Ever since the Young Justice has been created, Robin barely sees the Justice League. They usually call to check up on him and talk about their day, but now they never seem to call anymore. His aunts and uncle figures seems to have forgotten their little nephew, as if he has never existed at all. And whenever he would come up at the Watchtower, they would give him weird glances, as if he was a stranger.
The only one who seems to enjoy and acknowledge his presence is M'gann's uncle, J'onn. Whenever Dick would feel left out and would head towards Batman's dome, J'onn would guide him to his own room and try to get the boy to socialize with him. Though it may had helped the boy to know at least one League member enjoys his company, it still didn't help that the rest of the Justice League are pushing him away from them.
Circus Brat... Charity Case... Spoiled Orphan... Little Brat... You-... In Gotham, as Richard 'Dick' Grayson, he could tell by the way people at charity or donation give him the look that they don't acknowledge him as Bruce Wayne's ward or son. In fact, none had liked him the moment the word had spread that Bruce Wayne took him in. They talk behind his back, act like they like him, and the girls would only smother him just to get closer to Bruce. He could hear them saying that Bruce will eventually kick him out sooner or later, and that thought of being abandon again brought great fear to the boy.
A specimen... Weakling... A Broken Birdy... Bird Boy... Boy Blunder... Wonder Boy... Our Little-... The villains seems to like to use him as a hostage, or a shield to get Batman to stop fighting and catch him off guard. Because of how small he appears and how Batman would have him stay away from the fights, they would always go after the Boy Wonder with every chance they'll get. That made the boy think on how he's a magnet for trouble, and why Batman would make him go to Mount Justice or stay at home.
You let your family die... It's all your fault they're gone... Worthless... Useless... A problem... A Distraction... A mistake... A-... His home, the Wayne Manor, was only a building made of glass and walls. Alfred seems to have already begun to forget about him, for he would at times forget to make Richard his meals or that he has to take him to school and pick him up. Richard knows it wasn't because of old age, since he's getting closer to his sixties. No, it was because the butler no longer sees him as his grandson anymore. It was all becoming like the day he just moved in, five years ago, back when he was eight. To Richard, history is repeating itself once again to punish him for his failure as Batman's partner and Bruce Wayne's ward...
Bruce, that one man who took him in when he had nothing, that one man who changed his life and made him the boy he is today, seems to no longer care about him. Heck, Richard no longer sees him anymore, and it seems like Alfred is following his charge's ways.
Everyone... His friends, aunts, uncles, siblings, grandfather, father... His family, they're all treating him like a... A word that he wished to never hear, but has already know what they're thinking of him as...
A Nobody
Oh, the little pieces falling, shatter...
Shards of me too sharp to put back together...
So, here he is. Locked in his bathroom, curled in a fetal-position against the wall, in nothing but his shorts, covering his head with his arms to not look himself in the mirror, as that painful word keeps repeating itself in his head by a voice.
Nobody... You are a Nobody... You always had, and will always be a Nobody...
"Stop..." He whispered, as tears streamed down his bloodshot Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes.
Stop What?... Saying what is true?... If what I say is false, then I dare you to look yourself in the mirror and tell me that I'm wrong on what I and everybody else sees in you...
"No... I can't!" Dick cried, slightly turning his gaze up to stare at the upper-part of the mirror and the sink counter. He then turned his gaze to the side, closing his eyes to block his sight of everything around him.
I knew it... You're too scared to even look at your own reflection, especially in the eye, for it'll only remind you of them. And it also proves my point, and everybody else's point: You are a Nobody!
Dick snapped his eyes open from the voice's words, its words hitting him right at the target of his heart.
"No, I am not a Nobody..." He whispered, his hands trembling while making an effort to remove them off his head.
What was that? Did the Nobody say something?
"Shut up..." The boy then slowly went to stand, using the wall as support to keep his balance for the lack of food and sleep.
Sorry, I can't hear you... Care to speak up?
The taunting of the voice's words finally made Dick snap, and lean over the sink.
"I told you to shut up!" He yelled, lifting his head to stare at the mirror... The sight of himself haunted him dearly.
His skin, that used to be a light-tan, has now became a near pale-white. Underneath his skin, he could clearly see his bones than his muscles. The cause was made by the extensive training he would do on his own, and skipping his meals made him believe he's helping everyone by being skinnier. The cuts, bruises, burnt marks all over his face, limbs, chest and back were proof and evidence enough on how the villains and bullies like to use him as their punching bag. His hair, which would be nicely combed like Conner's, was now sticking out like somebody just gave him a painful noogie... But the worst sight Dick ever laid eyes on himself, are his own eyes. Dark circles underneath the bloodshot Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes... No, his eyes were no longer bright and shining like they used to be. Instead, they more like silver or dull-grey... Which shows the signs of somebody who hasn't slept peacefully, who has been having nightmares, who has been crying, and... Who is broken.
See? What did I tell ya?
Dick raised a hand towards his face, placing the palm to rest over his right-cheek that held a bruise.
Do you honestly believe that your friends really did liked you? That the League actually cared about you? That Bruce ever loved you?... Tell me that I'm wrong, if you still don't believe me...
Deep down, even when he said that the voice is wrong, Dick knew that the voice inside his head was right all along. Tears began to form once again, and he let them glide down his cheeks. Now, instead of seeing himself in the mirror, he now sees two people staring back at him... His own parents, John and Mary Grayson. Both of them smiling at him, their gazes holding love and acceptance to him.
Ha! I was right! And because I am right, now you get to see what you truly are!: A Burden, a mistake, a failure... A Nobody! Even your own parents think so!
Dick shook his head, keeping his gaze at his parents in shock.
"You're wrong, they don't think that about me!" He cried, placing a hand on the glass of the mirror. And to his surprise, his mother did the same with her right-hand towards his, which made him think and feel like she was really there with him. Soon, John's left-hand went over hers and the hands stayed in place in front of Dick's hand.
You're living in a fantasy world, kid! And right now, you're imagining your parents are still there for you and that they actually do care about you! But the truth is, they hated you! The moment they and your relatives fell, they all knew you were the cause of their deaths... You let them fall, you didn't tell them in time, and they had to pay the consequences of your mistakes. So, in other words, that makes you the murderer instead of Tony Zucco!
Dick blinked his eyes from the voice's words, and was soon gazing back at himself instead of his parents.
"No..." He whispered, as his eyes swept through the mirror, hoping that his parents will comeback and be with him. "Mamă, Tată, revenire! Nu mă lăsa, te rog! Imi pare rau!(Mother, Father, comeback! Don't leave me, please! I'm sorry!)" No matter how many times he cried, no matter how many times he begged, no matter how much he cried in Romany, his parents didn't came back and the only one in his view of the mirror is his haunted reflection.
I tried to tell you, but you wouldn't listen... You know? If you were the one to die that night and not your folks, then they would've been so happy and better off without you... Your team wouldn't have to settle for your childish games, the League would get the job done faster than babysitting you, and Bruce would've found a woman he would love and have his own children who can actually live up to the family name and carry on his blood...
Dick remained silent, as he turned his gaze back at himself.
You know that I'm right... Why not do it? No one will notice you gone, and they'll soon be happy by the time they find you dead... So, why don't you do everybody a favor and just kill yourself?
The boy could feel his blood going cold, his mind slowly turning off, and his heart growing numb while beating from the thought of killing himself.
Though it may seem too late, but you have plenty of time to do it now... You can drown yourself in the tub, cut yourself with the razor, everything in this bathroom you can use to end your life...
Dick's nails began to slowly scratch at the smooth yet hard surface of the mirror, his eyes narrowly at himself.
What are you waiting for? Do it! Or are you just too scared to take your own life away?...
His right-hand curling itself into a fist against the mirror, his teeth clenching to each other, and his breathing turning into slow pants.
That's right, you can't do it! Because you're a Nobo-
Dick couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't take listening to the voice in his head, couldn't take knowing that everybody wanted him gone, and couldn't even stand staring himself in the mirror. So, he did the only thing he knew to get rid of his own reflection...
*Crash!*
The sound of glass breaking, hitting the counter and falling towards the floor to break even more, was heard within the bathroom. The thirteen year-old knew very well what he has done and thought he should've been scared on what he just did, but he didn't. He didn't seem to care on what he just committed, now that the damage has already been done. He has destroyed the mirror of his bathroom with his own hand, surrounding himself in the pieces of the once whole mirror, and caused his hand to bleed. He could see some of the pieces had embedded themselves into his skin and drawing out more of his life-given blood, but he made no move to remove them or stop the bleeding. Instead, he placed his back against the wall and slid himself back to the ground to sit in another mess of his failure.
Too small to matter, but big enough to cut me into so many little pieces...
If I try to touch her, and I bleed... I bleed... And I breathe... I breathe, no more...
He could see himself in the pieces, both big and small pieces that came to his view. Then, with his mind no longer working clearly, either from the lack of food and sleep or losing blood from his hand, he began to see faces of his parents within the pieces. Instead of together, they were apart from each other.
There, now that wasn't so hard, was it?... It's a shame though, how you just destroyed Bruce's mirror when you were taught to never break what is his...
Dick raised his right-hand towards a piece that held his mother's face, not caring that he's letting that glass or the other pieces to leave more markings to himself as he picked the piece up. The shape makes him think of a stake from the movies people used to kill vampires, only they used a wooded stake to kill the vampire... And him, he was going to use this glass stake to end his life. His right-hand tightened around the glass, letting it leave cuts into his palm and smothering it with his own blood.
Do it, before you chicken out and fail another task that is very simple to complete!
With the glass held in his right-hand, which hadn't ceased to stop bleeding from punching the mirror or causing new cuts on his palms, as he placed the pointed edge towards his left-wrist.
Just one cut, and it'll all be over...
Dick was going to listen to that voice, follow its instructions, and hope that he's making the right decision on ending it once and for all... No, he knows that he's making the choice on ending it: No more Richard John Grayson, no more Robin... No more Dick Grayson, the Last Flying Grayson.
He didn't hear the door knocking from outside, as he pressed down onto his skin. He couldn't hear the sound of voices calling out his name, as he let out a sob. He didn't hear the door being kicked down, as he released that cut to his skin, feeling the flow of blood escaping his body through the cut of his skin. He didn't even hear Bruce calling out to him or feeling somebody putting pressure onto his bleeding-wrist, as he closed his lifeless Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes and allowed the darkness to consume him into an eternal slumber.
Take a breath, and I try to draw from my spirits well...
Yet again you refuse to drink like a stubborn child...
Beep... Beep... Beep... A sound that seems to be matching Dick's heartbeat from the darkness, is slowly causing the thirteen year-old to come out of the darkness.
'Did it work?' He wondered. 'Have I actually taken my own life?' As his eyes slowly opened a bit more, he noticed some pains in his hands. 'Wait... I'm in pain?' He then noticed some voices coming from outside of the room, even when he still couldn't see where he is.
"How could we not have seen the signs? How could we be so blind?"
"Who would've thought he would!... He's too young to be thinking on doing that!"
"We should've been there for him, but we ended up tossing him aside like a trout instead."
"I can't believe he would attempt to take his own life away, when he seems to always be so happy..."
'Those voices, I know them.' Dick thought, as his eyes began to show him a white-ceiling. 'I'm not in my bathroom anymore?... If I'm not in my bathroom, nor am I dead, since I shouldn't be feeling any pain if I were truly in the Afterlife, then where am I?' He then heard a door opening from afar, with the sound of heavy footsteps entering the room.
"How is he, Leslie?" That voice sent shivers down Dick's spine, as his vision grew to show more parts of the ceiling above him. He then closed his eyes when he finally noticed how bright the lights were.
'No, it can't be him!' But he knows that it is him, for he could never forget the sound or the voice of his foster-father. He then heard a tiring sigh from another voice.
"Bruce, I'm not gonna lie to you. Throughout all my years as a doctor, I've never seen a child obtaining this much injuries, even if that child happens to be a sidekick and on a team of superheroes. But I'm mostly startled on the fact that he would go to this level, without anybody noticing." The voice replied, sounding very worried and sad. "It's a good thing that Alfred called for us, or else we would've lost him if we were a second late on reaching the hospital... Now, if you will tell me, Bruce, did you ever noticed when Dick's behavior changed?" Nothing answered the doctor's question, which caused Leslie to sigh again. "Alright, has he been distance from you lately?" Again, silence answered Leslie. "Any problems at school? Problems at home? Bullies? Drugs? Girls? Sleeping or eating habits?" Every answer was greeted with silence, but Dick knows all the answers to all the questions without having a second thought.
'Yes, my behavior had changed ever since the Training Simulation. I've been a bit distance lately, which started after coming back from the mission with Mr. Haly and the circus. Teachers and the Principal are stressing me out with school work while I was still recovering from the Training Simulation, and hearing from other students about their relationship with their families. No problems at home, since I'm always alone or I would mostly be at Mount Justice. Bullies and villains like to use me as their punching bag, and a lot of people are trying to get me to do drugs to make me 'cooler'. Don't have a crush on anybody and not interested on having a relationship, so no girl problems. Having nightmares of my families deaths, so I'm refusing to sleep most of the day and night. Have been doing both Anorexia and Bulimia, also been taking pills, thinking I'm getting fat and could be one of the reasons why I'm slowing down the team.'
"Bruce, according on how you're not answering any of my questions and from the sight of Dick's wounds and body condition, it's clear to me that he's been suffering for maybe a long time." Even with his eyes closed, Dick could sense Bruce staring at him in pity. "If this has been going on for more than a month, then we'll have to get him into therapy to find the problem on why he's hurting himself once his wounds have been treated. Until then, he'll have to stay and be supervised." Though the sound of somebody who actually cares about him made Dick feel a bit better, the sound of being watched over like a prisoner caused the boy re-open his eyes.
'No, she can't do that to me!' Dick thought, fighting to keep his eyes open from the lights while fighting to sit up from his bed.
"Dick, don't sit up!" Bruce cried, heading towards his son and gently but forcefully pushed him back into a laying position. "You have to rest, you mustn't overexert yourself." His words made Dick's heart clench and the feeling of his hands on his chest made him want to breakdown from the hands touching his bruises, burns, and stab wounds. Knowing it would be pointless to fight back, the thirteen year-old stayed down and turned his gaze towards the window.
The sight showed him it was nighttime, with the moon shining brightly upon him as clouds began to cover it and the stars. He was mostly trying to avoid Bruce's gaze, thinking he has failed on not being able to take his own life but has survived when he had welcomed death with open arms.
He then felt a hand stroking his hair, something that usually calms Dick down whenever he was too upset to go back to sleep, and that trick seems to always put him back to sleep. However, this time, the gesture isn't working like it always do, for he hadn't felt this gesture ever since he came back from counseling with Black Canary four months ago, and he could feel from the other hand clenching onto his shoulder that Bruce was either getting worried or was fighting back tears of the boy's lack of response.
"Dick, please go to sleep." The thirteen year-old turned his gaze away from the window and had them stare at the doctor, who looked stunned and horrified from the sight of his eyes.
"Bruce, I think it would be best if you leave." Leslie said, placing a hand on Bruce left-shoulder while keeping a hold of the clipboard that held Dick's condition in her right.
"No," the playboy said. "I have neglected and ignored Dick for far too long, and look what it made him do!... I'm not going to abandon him again, especially when he needs me right now." While the adults talked, the voice inside Dick's head came back.
You did it again, you failure! And now look what you've done, Bruce is disappointed and unhappy to find you being cared for in the hospital!
'I tried, I really did, but he and Alfred must've came into the bathroom and called 911 to save me.' The boy replied, feeling the hurt building up inside of him again.
Well, then you should've killed yourself sooner! But now it's too late, because you had to screw up something so simple that even a Nobody could actually accomplish!... Now, instead of a Nobody, you'll soon become something even worse than a Nobody... A Nothing!
Tears began to form into Dick's eyes, as his heart clenched in pain from hearing that new word that seems to pains him more than a Nobody.
'No, I don't want to be a Nothing!' He cried, lost in his own mind than listening to the doctor and Bruce.
It's already too late for that, Nothing...
"Dick? Dick!" A voice called out his name, bringing the thirteen year-old back to reality. Bruce was lightly shaking him by having his left-hand on the child's right-shoulder, and using the other hand to place a hand on the boy's left-cheek to guide Dick's gaze to stare into his navy-blue. "Dickie, speak to me. What's wrong, Putin Pasăre?(Little Bird?)"
Still being called 'Little Bird'? Ha! What a wasteful use of a name for a Nothing, which is more weak than being called 'Little Robin'! The way he keeps calling you his 'Little Bird,' is more like he's pitying you or is reminding you on how you fail everything!
'No, he calls me that because he loves me!' Dick cried out. 'He told me so himself!'
But don't you see? Whenever he calls you that, the softer you grow and the weaker you get! And because of that pet-name, it's also a reason on how and why you fail him!
'But...' The boy didn't know what to say to the voice, or what to say to Bruce, except for one. "Am eşuat...(I failed...)" Those words felt like a knife is stabbing Bruce's heart, and a cry of a robin to Leslie, even when she knows little of Romanian.
"Failed? What did you fail in, Dick?" The Billionaire asked the boy, trying to stare into the boy's lifeless eyes and not turn away from the startling sight of the colors. The next words that came, Bruce could've sworn that his heart had stopped and the air has been sucked out of his lungs.
"Moarte...(Dying...)" The hand that still laid on his cheek and shoulder slowly slide off of him, but not without shaking and trembling in fear or shock. Dick then turned his gaze to his left-arm, which has been bandaged and covering the scar that he has implanted himself to end his life. "Celestaz ar trebui să-am fost atât de uşor pentru a finaliza, şi totuşi nu am putut chiar să ia viaţa mea departe.(It should've been so easy to complete, and yet I couldn't even take my life away.)" He then used his right-hand to clench onto his left. "Vocea are dreptate, eu sunt un Nimeni... Un Nimic...(The voice is right, I am a Nobody... A Nothing...)"
"Voice? What voice? Dick, how long has this been going on? When did this happen?" Leslie decided to stay out of this, and watch how the two communicate with each other since the boy is speaking Romanian while taking notes. With each passing seconds with no answers, the billionaire grew more desperate and impatient on waiting for an answer from his son.
"Pe zi, am văzut familia mea a murit în fața mea.(On the day I watched my family died in front of me.)"
Lie to me, convince me that I've been sick forever...
And all of this will make sense when I get better...
Four Months... Dick Grayson has been suffering with those feelings for four months, and nobody from the League or the Young Justice knew about it. Well, all except for Wolf and J'onn. Now everybody now knew how and why Robin is Batman's protégé and they had to learn that the hard way, especially the Team: Showing no emotions, and lack of expressing feelings.
The moment Black Canary told them of Robin's recent absents, they were all devastated from the news.
When Superman gave word to the rest of the League about Robin's suicide attempt, everyone went completely silent and terrified for the boy they thought of as their own son, nephew, or brother(for Captain Marvel, since he's really ten years old).
Gotham Academy had also been told about Dick's condition, and the word spread like a wild fire to the students and teachers.
However, when the villains heard about the Boy Wonder attempt to take his own life, they simply laughed in pleasure or glee.
At Wayne Manor...
"When he said those words Alfred, I practically felt my own heart stop." Bruce told the butler, sitting in the chair in front of his parents picture and staring at dancing fire in the fireplace. "He was speaking in Romanian, and he sounded so lost... He was acting like the same eight year-old boy I took in, broken and in pain." He then placed his face into his hands, feeling tears threatening to spill. "I broke him... We, broke him, Alfred!... The team, the League, our villains, his school... But mostly me! I ignored him, pushed him aside, and I didn't even know that he was hurting all this time!" The tears finally fell, and then he cried. For the first time ever since his parents had died, Bruce cried. Alfred could feel the exact pain his charge is feeling deep inside his heart and could also feel the tears wanting to fall, but he knows that the man he raised as his own needed his help and guidance once more. He then walk towards the weeping man, and placed a hand on Bruce's left-shoulder.
"Master Bruce," he said. "You are not the only one to blame for what happened to Master Richard... I have also ignored the Young Master's presence, and would forget to either take him to school or pick him up when he is suppose to be home. He may be becoming a teenager, but he is still a broken child... Just as you are still, Master Bruce." The billionaire lifted his face from his hands and turned his gaze to the butler who has became a father to him when his has died, staring into Alfred's eyes with his tear streamed navy-blue eyes.
"Alfred..." He whispered, as he wiped away the tears off his face while pulling himself together.
"Don't forget, Master Bruce, you were suffering just the way he is when your parents had died. Now that history seems to had repeat itself for the Young Master from that training you placed him and the team on, we'll have to get him back on his feet and help him heal once more." Bruce then let out a sigh, knowing that everything he and Alfred had done for the boy for the last five years is going back to square one.
"Thank you, Alfred." He said, getting out of the chair and staring at the picture that held his parents. 'Mom, dad... I promise you both, that I shall not lose my son and your grandson again.' The adults then heard the sound of footsteps coming down from the stairs, both knowing that it was Richard. Wasting no time to spare, Bruce immediately left the room to see the thirteen year-old, who looked completely lost, confused, and in pain.
Three Weeks Ago...
"Bruce, I think you should reconsider on what you're asking of me." Leslie told the billionaire playboy, both standing outside of Richard's room after getting him to fall asleep. "It would be best if he remains here, and-"
"Be treated like a prisoner under lock down? Like a bomb about to explode?" Bruce interrupted, looking rather mad but completely worried when he heard what Dick had told him in Romanian. While he and the doctor talk, the Original Seven of the Justice League that came to see the boy had left to give them more privacy and to make sure nothing bad had happened to their cities while they were gone.
"I didn't say he would have to be locked away in the room, Bruce. I'm just saying it would be best if he remains in the hospital, so he could be supervised more closely and get the help he'll need." Again, the playboy didn't like the sound of that.
"That sounds more like being kept as a dangerous prisoner," he said.
"I'm sorry, Bruce, but it'll be best for everyone and the boy if he were to stay in the hospital."
"So that he would believe that his friends don't like him even more? Think that those who care about him are abandoning him? Think that I no longer love him anymore, and only took him in as some charity case?" The reaction that Bruce was giving off startled the elder.
"Well, Bruce, according to all of Gotham, they all believe you only took Dick in as a charity case... And according to his records and with me being a friend of the family, you have yet to adopt him during the five years he had been placed under your care ever since his parents had died and had taken him out of the Juvenile Detention Center." The information pained the billionaire greatly. "So, in my opinion, Bruce, he's been suffering with these emotions for years rather than months." The next thing the doctor told Bruce, the billionaire could've sworn his entire being went numb. "And so, for the best we believe it is for Dick, we'll have to remove him from your care and place him up for adoption for a family that can actually heal him." That did it. The moment those words left out of the lips of Leslie, Bruce immediately went into a panic attack.
"No," he said. "You can't! You can't do that, Leslie!"
"I can, and I'm afraid that I'll have to, Bruce." The elder woman said, turning her back at the billionaire while opening the door to go back into Dick's room, knowing that Bruce is right behind her. "He's showing signs that he feels unwanted, that he doesn't deserve to live, and think that death is the only way to escape the pain he's going through." Anger boiled inside the billionaire, the need to protect the boy was kicking in, and he seems to not care if he would have to frighten Leslie to get her to change her mind.
"I won't let you take my son away from me, Leslie!"
"He isn't your son, Bruce! If he were your son, you would've adopted him long ago than had kept him as a charity case and not show any affection to let him know that you truly care about him!" They both soon heard the sound of whimpering from the bed, and caused both adults to turn and see the sleeping boy curl himself into a ball and shaking from the sound and volume of their voices. Now going by his parental instinct, Bruce swiftly made his way towards the child and began to comfort him, like he would do whenever Dick would have nightmares.
"Shh... It's okay, Dickie. It's okay." He whispered to the child, gently gathering the boy into his arms and slowly rocking him back and forth. "There's nothing to be afraid of, Micul Meu Pasăre(My little Bird). I'm not going to leave you, just as I promised." Leslie could tell how much the boy means to Bruce and that he would do anything to have him back home at Wayne Manor, even if were to give up crime fighting and reveal his secret to the whole world that he is Batman. However, the comfort that the billionaire is giving to the boy was failing miserably, from the lack of response Dick is giving while still in his sleep and has curled himself away from Bruce instead of curling against him. The playboy laid his head against Dick's head. "Micul Meu Pasăre... Please, forgive me." He whispered. Not sure if she's making the right choice but knowing that there is a family that needed this child more than anything, Leslie made a final decision.
"Bruce," she said. "Though I may not be sure if I'm making the right choice, I'm going to give you and the Justice League another chance to help Richard." A smile of gratitude was placed on the man's face.
"Thank you, Leslie." He whispered, as he turned back to the child and placed a kiss onto Dick's forehead.
"However, I wish to have Dick in the hospital for at least a few weeks. To see if we can speed up some of his wounds from being Robin, and to make sure he's stable enough to head back to the Manor." Although he didn't want to be away from his son for that long, he knows that it'll help Dick recover from the recent battles. Not to mention, he won't be losing his son and he could trust Leslie one hundred percent with the boy.
"Fine," he said. "But only if I get to check up on him, either by day or night." The elder smiled softly at the man she helped raised with Alfred like a son.
"I'm pretty certain that the Dark Knight will still come, even if I were to forbid him from seeing his Little Robin, especially after visiting hours." She replied, which meant a 'yes' to the playboy.
End of Flashback...
True to her word, after two weeks in the hospital and having some of his wounds treated, along with the cut on his wrist, Leslie allowed Bruce to take Dick back to the Manor. However, until he was deemed 'cured', Bruce has been given orders that he was to keep the boy within the Manor, Mount Justice, or the Watchtower so he could be closely watched in case he would try and pull another suicide attempt once more. Which meant he can't go to school, can't be left alone without him or the others he trusted with the boy, and needs to be sure the child doesn't bring anything that he can use to harm himself when leaving the Manor with Bruce. So far, things were not going very well for the whole week. In fact, it went horrible.
On Monday, The moment morning came to Wayne Manor, Dick practically destroyed his room while trying to break something and use that piece to cut himself again. Unfortunately for him, Alfred and Bruce had removed every glass and any other sharp objects in his room, even his bathroom mirror has been removed with the glass that can withstand weather conditions. Because of that, he ended up with bleeding hands, along with bite and scratch marks all over his skin when he decided to use his own teeth and nails. Alfred wasn't home at the time, for he had to go and visit his niece in Europe for the week, so it was Bruce who had to drag him out of his room and tend to his injury in the living room instead of the Batcave.
At Tuesday, When Batman had to take care of Gotham on his own and with Alfred still gone on his trip, he had the Justice League to look after the boy at the Watchtower. Instead, the moment they turned their backs, they had lost sight of the child and nearly lost him after Superman located him with his x-ray vision, finding the boy in a locked bathroom and had his head buried in a tub of water, his left-arm also buried in the water and bleeding from a slit made, his right-hand holding on to a blood-covered razor. It was a good thing Flash was able to go through the walls and pull the boy out of the water before he ran out of oxygen or bleed out quicker in the warn-water.
During Wednesday, After pleading and begging with the Dark Knight, Batman decided to give the Young Justice, along with Roy's assistance, a chance to watch over Dick, since he had to go to a banquet and Alfred was still gone. So far, the team were doing very well on watching over their little brother, when M'gann suggested they watch the movie 'Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe'. However, since they were all caught up to the movie, they didn't realize the little bird quietly leaving them and heading to the kitchen until Wolf smelt fire and then they all heard his cry. Kaldur had to put out the fire with his Water-Bearers, along with Conner's assistance with the fire extinguisher. Both Wally and Roy had to pull Dick away from the stove, while M'gann and Artemis went to bandaging up his left-arm that he just had over the fire.
On Thursday, Batman was very disappointed to hear that Dick nearly roasted his arm off that night while he was at the banquet, but he knew it wasn't the team's fault. So, he decided to give them a second chance on watching over Dick. Thinking it would be a good idea to get the boy into the sun, Wally decided they go out and see a movie. Since Bruce didn't tell them to keep the little bird inside the mountain, the rest of the group got into their civilian clothes and went to the theater to watch 'The Lion King' in 3-D. Though it may seem like a great movie to the teens and Roy, it was actually a sad and painful movie for Dick, for Mufasa's death made the boy rethink on how he watched his family fall to their deaths. And when Scar died, even though he was evil, Dick recalled the call he gotten from the hospital when informing him of his uncle's passing four weeks after the Flying Grayson's fall and going into a coma. So, when the movie reached to Scar bringing the news of Mufasa and Simba's deaths, he quietly left his spot and made a beeline towards the bathroom. When fifteen minutes passed by, Wally finally noticed about Dick's absence and quietly asked M'gann to track him with her mind. The martian did found him, but was completely startled when she looked through his eyes that he's been forcing himself to vomit all the food he had eaten earlier today. So, the team had to leave early before it gotten to the part of Simba heading back to Pride's Rock, and immediately took Dick back to the mountain to get him to eat and rest.
At Friday, Bruce had an emergency call from Wayne Enterprises and since he couldn't rely on the team or Roy, after hearing Dick had been forcing food out of his stomach last night, he asked Barbara to watch over the boy since Gotham Academy was off the whole week. The commissioner's daughter couldn't reject to help when she heard it was Dick she was going to watch, and came to the Manor in minutes. Unknown to Bruce, that the moment he left, Barbara invited Artemis to help her watch the boy, and that moment gave Dick the perfect opportunity to escape. So, for nearly the whole day, both girls had to search high and low for the boy, until they found him standing on the edge of the rooftop and staring at the setting sun. He had his sunglasses on, but he also had pills in his hands. He was only able to swallow two of the pills and put a foot over the edge, but wasn't fast enough to let himself fall or eat another pill before Barbara and Artemis made a quick grab for his arms when he nearly fell asleep.
By Saturday, Alfred finally came back from his trip and was more than happy to watch over Dick when Bruce had to go back to work at Wayne Enterprises. However, since Alfred didn't came over to see Dick when he was in the hospital, he hasn't been expecting the boy to be withdrawn from him or to commit another suicide attempt. In fact, when he went into the child's room, he was more than horrified when he saw the warm, comforting nest had turned into a dark and gloomy disaster area. And while he was cleaning the room, he didn't hear or seen Dick heading towards the kitchen when passing the room until the butler heard some coughing and the smell of a nauseating gas. When he put two and two together and had found the child on the floor with the bleach bottle and ammonia spilled together, he made an immediate call for Clark at the Watchtower and demanded he immediately come to the manor and get them to the Zeta-beam to be sent to the Watchtower. Both J'onn and Zatara were able to stable the boy, and Clark was able to remove the harmful chemical out of the manor. However, they had to restrain the boy while being treated and to keep him restrained to the bed until Bruce came back from work.
Now, today was Sunday. And so far, nothing bad had happened... Yet, that is. Since Alfred hadn't been told about Dick and his behavior at the hospital, Bruce had decided to give him the information that morning. Now that the butler knows about the child he thought of as a grandson is suffering and how he should've noticed his attitude when he would be home, he knew that he and Bruce are going to have to heal the child again from step one.
Bruce stared up at Dick, watching the boy's every move that would give him a warning call that he's going to do something. Ever since the billionaire brought the boy back, the child has remained mostly silenced and would only nod or shake to yes or no questions. He is now wearing his usual workout clothes whenever he was to train, though Bruce had decided to keep the boy off training and locked all the doors and windows to keep him out of the Training Room. When Dick finally made his way to the bottom of the stairs, Bruce tried his very best to put a smile on his face and made his way towards the boy.
"Hey Dick," he greeted. "How are you? Feeling any better?" Dick slightly shrugged his shoulders to answer the question, not bothering to look up and see Bruce's face, and slowly made his way towards the living room. The smile soon vanished, as the playboy watches his son quietly made his way towards the living room. He followed the boy's direction, stopping at the entrance to watch the boy sit on the couch and turning the TV on the news, with Vicki Vale in front of the monitor.
"And in other news, Richard John Grayson, ward of Gotham's Billionaire, Bruce Wayne, has been released from the hospital for a week now and yet there has been no word of the boy's condition since then. Rumor has it that the boy has been continuously plotting more of his suicide attempts, and those actions alone has been-" Dick turned the TV off to cut off her words, his expression completely blank but his eyes shining with disgust, anger, and pain. Bruce went towards the couch, sat beside the boy, and placed a hand on his right-shoulder. Dick shrugged it off, however, and turned his gaze towards the window, where the sky is cloudy and dark-grey sky looks as though it's going to pour heavy rain soon. Bruce now has no idea what to say to the broken child and now that Dick has rejected his offered comfort, he was completely stumped and uncertain what to do now.
"Cât de mult?(How Long?)" Dick asked, startling the playboy out of his thinking. Not only has Dick been awfully quiet, but he has also started talking in Romanian ever since he woken up in the hospital.
"How long what?" Bruce asked.
"Cât mai ai de gând să mă ţină?(How much longer are you going to keep me?)" The boy's words confuses the playboy.
"What are you saying, Dick?" Without warning, the child turned his view from the window to Bruce, and the billionaire was very much heartbroken when he saw the tears streaming down the boy's cheeks.
"Doar recunosc, Bruce!(Just admit it, Bruce!)" He cried. "Tu doar ma luat în ca m-ai milă, pentru că mi-ar face un caz de caritate perfect pentru tine!(You only took me in because you pitied me, because I would make a perfect charity case for you!)" His words not only pained Bruce, but it also angered him on how the child he raised as his own would think of him that way.
"What gave you that idea that I was only using you as a charity case?" The billionaire really hoped that the boy didn't hear his talk with Leslie from the hospital.
"Eu nu cred, am ştiut tot timpul... Inca de la ziua în care am asistat la moartea a familiei mele şi când m-ai luat de la Centrul de detenţie pentru minori, am ştiut că am fost de gând să fie folosit ca un caz de caritate pentru cineva.(I didn't think, I knew it all along... Ever since the day I witnessed the death of my family and when you took me from the Juvenile Detention Center, I knew that I was going to be used as a charity case for somebody.)" Bruce shook his head, not wanting to believe what Dick was saying to him. He then placed both his hands on the child's shoulders.
"Dick," he said. "If I had wanted you as a charity case, would I have kept you for this long? Would I have made you Robin the moment you wished to fight by my side?" He then bent his head over, and placed a kiss on the boy's forehead. "Would I have cared and loved you, whether it's in public or in private?" He then pulled the child towards him, hugging him as closely as he can to his heart. "Would I have called you my 'Little Bird,' a nickname to a child who is like... No, who is my son?" He then hid his face into the boy's ebony raven-hair. "Te iubesc, fiul.(I love you, son.)" No words, nor movements came from the boy being held in the billionaire's arms, only the sound and feel of his slow breathing against his chest was all that told Bruce that he's alive. "Dickie?" Again, nothing came to his reply. In an act on fear, Bruce pulled away from the boy and lifted the child's chin to get him to look him straight in the eyes. He was still completely startled of the haunted look being held within Dick's Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes, but he pushed the thought aside and waited patiently for the boy to say something to him. Finally, a response came through. However, it wasn't the response Bruce was hoping for... Because Dick's response was a smirk, a low-smirk.
"Dacă aceasta este tot, dar un vis, atunci trebuie să fiu într-adevăr bolnav.(If this is all but a dream, then I must be really sick.)" He whispered, bowing his head as if admitting defeat, while staring down at his bandaged hands. "În cazul în care acest lucru este un vis, apoi am dori să mă trezesc.(If this is a dream, then I wish to wake up.)" Bruce tightened his grip on Dick's shoulders.
"Dick, listen to me!" He cried. "You're not dreaming! This isn't a dream, not in the slightest! This is reality, as in the real world!"
"Apoi, o dovedesc!(Then, prove it!)" Dick yelled, pulling himself out of Bruce's grip and hopping off the couch. "Dacă acest lucru nu este un vis, să se dovedească atunci!(If this isn't a dream, then prove it!)" Bruce seem to know what to do, for he had to go through a dream that he thought it was real, but only to find out that the life he went through was created by the Mad Hatter. The billionaire leaned towards the coffee table in front of the couch both he and Dick was on, brought up the newspaper, and thrust it into the boy's arms.
"If this is a dream, Dick, then you shouldn't be able to read." He explained, as he watch the boy open the papers and staring down at the small black-words. "You can't read, while dreaming at the same time." He could see Dick's hands trembling, his eyes widening in shock, and his breath being held inside his lungs when he gasped. "You know that I speak the truth, and you already know that this is all real." He then launched a hand towards Dick's bandaged arm, grabbing the gauze that's wrapped tightly around the wound, and gave the bandage a quick tug to reveal half the burnt marks on Dick's skin. "You're even still in pain, and in dreams, you can't get hurt in one." The boy simply stared down at the angry red-skin.
"Dar in vise, te poti visa la durere.(But in dreams, you can dream yourself in pain.)" He said, clamping his right-hand over his injured one, hanging onto the remaining bandages still wrapped around his arm and slowly digging his nails into the wound. "Chiar şi în vise, inca se simte durere.(Even in dreams, you can still feel pain.)" Small droplets of blood slowly glided down the burns, staining through the gauze, causing Bruce to panic.
"Dick, stop that!" He cried, wrapping his hand around the boy's wrist and forcing the smaller hand away from the arm. "Stop hurting yourself, you're only going to make the wound worse!" That seemed to make Dick angry, as he yanked his wrist out of Bruce's grip.
"Şi de ce vă pasă?(And why do you care?)" He asked, ripping the rest of the bandages off his arm and holding the blood-stained gauze. "Sau mai bine, de ce nu vă pasă brusc dacă mă doare? De ce nu vă pasă brusc dacă am sângerare? De ce ai decis brusc sa se comporte ca cineva care de fapt grija, atunci când ar impinge mereu ma departe sau arunca-mi o parte ca pe un instrument care nu mai poate funcţiona?(Or better yet, why do you suddenly care if I hurt myself? Why do you suddenly care if I bleed? Why do you suddenly decided to act like somebody who actually care, when you would always push me away or toss me aside like a tool that can no longer work?)" Bruce couldn't find the words to answer Dick's questions, for he has no idea how to answer them or explain why he's been treating him like that. So, he decided to do something he never thought he would do unless it was necessary: Lie to the boy he sees as his son.
"Dick, you're simply confused." He quickly made up. "You've been sick for a while now, and all this yelling and commotions that has been going on this past week is making you delusional." He then got up to his feet and placed a hand on Dick's shoulder, making sure to keep a firm grip on the shoulder. "Come, lets take you to bed. Once you get your sleep and your strength is back up, this will all make sense once you get better." His words did get through to the boy, but not the way Bruce was hoping it would. Instead, his words were like knives stabbing Dick in both the back and chest, mostly to where his heart was beating.
Though he had been lied to by Batman when a patrol would be too dangerous for him and when he was still new to Wayne Manor, he had never been lied to by Bruce with no reason whatsoever... But, then again, he had always been lied to by many others long before he came into Gotham. His family had told him they would always be there for him, along with his circus family, but they left him the moment they fell and then the circus left him behind the day after the Flying Graysons perished. His teammates had promised they would work together as a team, a family, but the teens seem to have forgotten their promise when not on missions and simply ignored the boy to do what they wanted to do. The Justice League promised him they would always be there when he needs somebody to know how he feels, but they completely shut him out and silenced his voice from their minds. But Bruce's promise, a promise to never lie to him unless he needs to, was one of the most sacred promise that had made the boy very happy. Because to him, that promise meant he was one of the few people the Dark Knight truly trusted...
But now that he has broken his promise, now that they all broken their promises to the little bird, his wings are now permanently broken and his feathers have been ripped off of his arms. That small speck of light that remained in his eyes finally vanished, that one single speck of hope finally shattered, and is now replaced with complete empty windows of his eyes. Numbly, he allowed Bruce to take him to his neat and fixed room, which may seem like the colorful nest to Alfred and Bruce. However, to Dick, it was just a replica of his once colorful nest.
"If you need anything, you let either me or Alfred know." Bruce told the boy, bringing him to the made bed, pulling the dark-red covers back and helping the boy to lay down. "Though it may still be daylight, try to get some sleep." He then pulled the blanket back until it was underneath the boy's chin, letting it hide the boy's damaged and scarred body from his sight. No words came out from the boy, and his eyes only stared at the ceiling from above instead of his fa... No, not the 'f' word. His mentor, his caregiver, that was all the billionaire playboy is to him now. Bruce smiled down at the boy, seeing his eyes slowly closing and knowing that the boy is allowing himself to fall asleep. He then placed another kiss on his forehead, and gently stroked the boy's ebony raven-hair. "Sweet dreams, Micul Meu Pasăre... Te iubesc...(I love you...)" He then quietly left the room, not stopping to give the boy another glance, and close the door behind him.
The only light in the boy's room is the sun's light coming through the black-curtains, blocking most of its light so the room would still be dark but at least have some light for Dick to still see. As his eyes slowly closed to get him to the dream world, he turned to lay at his side and stared at the four pictures on the dresser at the right-side of his massive queen-size bed: A picture of him with the Young Justice Team, a picture of him with the whole Justice League when he was eight and a half... The last two, and most important pictures, are a picture of him with his whole circus family when he was four... And a picture of him, with Alfred and Bruce when they came to his eighth grade graduation when he was eleven. Just as he let himself to go into the dream world, he allowed two tears to stream down his face and let out a small message.
"La revedere de la voi toţi, şi pentru lumea pe care am cunoscut odata...(Goodbye to you all, and to the world that I had once known...)"
I know the difference, between myself and my reflection
I just can't help but to wonder, which of us do you love?
Darkness... That is all he can see, complete darkness. Surrounding him and the darkness, is grey-fog and white-mist circling and twirling around him and the empty darkness. But with each footstep he takes, he could hear the splash of waters underneath his bare feet but could feel no water splash onto his skin.
"Where am I?" He wondered, hearing the echoing sound of his footsteps going throughout the darkness.
"Where do you think?" A voice, low and serious, replied, startling the boy and getting him into defense.
"Who's there?" He called out, trying to see through the darkness and fog, wondering where the voice was coming from.
"Only you," another answered. This time, it sounded light, but it also sounded scared and in pain.
"Where are you?" Dick hollered out, hearing two more sets of footsteps coming his way.
"Here," the low voice answered. The moment he turned around, a figure leap in front of him. And soon, he was face-to-face... With himself, his own reflection. The only complete different, this reflection is wearing the Robin costume, which technically makes him Robin. He then saw another figure coming their way, through the misty fogs, also revealing himself as Dick. Only this reflection of Dick was wearing his Gotham Academy clothes and his hair being smoothed down with gel, automatically making him Richard John Grayson.
"You are both... Me," he said. Both Robin and Richard shook their heads.
"We may be the same person, but we are who others believe we are to them." The one in the Robin costume said, folding his arms out in front of him.
"To be more specific, our appearances is what tell others who we really are." The one in the Gotham Academy uniform explained, placing his left-hand into his pants pocket.
"Okay... Then, who are you guys?" Dick asked, earning a glare from the one as Robin and lowered glance from the other Richard.
"You know perfectly well who we are, since you are us." The one as Robin then let out a tiring sigh. "Never mind, something told me you would want some explanations." He then placed his left-hand on his hip, and jerked his right-thumb at his chest. "I am Robin: Protégé, and... Sidekick of Batman, obviously." The second reflection gave Dick a friendly smile, though it was perfectly clear to the boy that it was just for show.
"I'm Richard John Grayson..." He then paused for a moment and lowered his head again with a hidden frown, looking as though ashamed on saying the next part before looking back up at Dick and putting on a fake smile again. "Ward of Gotham's playboy billionaire, Bruce Wayne." He then extending a hand out towards Dick, even though he knew that he wouldn't take it to shake. He then pulled his hand back.
"Now that we've introduced ourselves to you, though you already know us perfectly well and we know of you too, it's time for you to introduce yourself to us." Robin said, tapping his foot a bit impatiently. Even up close, Dick was still having trouble seeing his two reflection. Richard cocked his head to the side.
"Are you alright?" He asked. "Shouldn't it be hard for you to see in the dark, when you're wearing those shades?" Dick's eyes widen in shock.
"Shades?" He said, placing both his hands at the side of his head, feeling the dark-glasses attached to him. He then pulled them off, making his vision a bit more clearer to see the two in front of him but could still see the darkness surrounding them.
"Well, are you going to introduce yourself to us or not?" Robin pushed on, tightening his grip onto both of his hips. Instead of answering, Dick stared down at the clothes he was wearing: A hooded sweater with blue on the left and black on the right, a shirt that has green on his left-side, red on the right, and black in the center, skinny blue-jeans that he can run in, and black-and-white running shoes... The exact clothing he wore on the first day he came to Mount Justice, and the exact day the Team was made, only he was wearing a full-red shirt instead of half of three colors.
'But then again, I have been wearing either a green-shirt or a red-shirt when I'm at the mountain, besides my Robin suit.' He thought, placing the sunglasses into one of his sweater pockets. "To be honest, I'm not really sure on who I am." He replied, rubbing the back of his head with his right-hand, while keeping his left into the pocket with his shades. "Although, I only know one thing that I'm known for."
"And what would that be?" Robin asked, who seemed to have calmed down from the waiting. Richard noticed the how uneasy Dick was, but remained where he stood. Dick soon let out a sigh.
"My name is Dick Grayson," he said. His teeth soon clench against each other, his right-hand falling from his head and clenching into a fist, and the pain in his chest rising from what he is pained to say next. "And to everybody to the world, I am a Nobody... Only a sad, lonely, orphaned, broken wing bird who can no longer fly... The Last Flying Grayson... Most of all, a Nothing..." Both Robin and Richard turned their gazes to each other, then back at Dick, who had lowered his gaze to the ground. Robin soon smirked.
"Though we may be different people right now, that's one thing we all have in common." He said, walking over to Dick and placing his left-hand on Dick's left-shoulder.
"We are also Nobodies, Nothings, to everyone." Richard informed, also putting a hand on Dick's other shoulders. "Heck, we've been Nobodies to everyone, ever since we've been created... Just like you."
"For instance, I've been made to track down the bad guys and take them into justice." Robin turned away from the two boys. "However, 'DaddyBats' has to keep me away from most of the fights to claim all the glories, and more than half of them are easy pickings... I always knew he never needed a sidekick, and yet he keeps on training me and still has me be on Batcomputer duty. If he doesn't want me to fight crimes anymore or be at his side when there is danger, all he has to do was say 'You're fired' and then I'll be gone before he can say 'La revedere'."
"And what of the Young Justice?" Robin growled from Dick mentioning about the Team.
"Those guys? We wouldn't had become a team, if it weren't for me. Instead of a simple 'thank you' or a chance to prove myself that I'm a member of the team, they simply pushed me aside for being the youngest and smallest, but mostly because I'm human. I know, Artemis is human also, but she's older and they think she can take care of herself more than I can take care of myself... Hell, I practically throw my own life on the line for them and hack into the enemies information to make sure they get to see another day. But no, they had to keep me in the back of the row and yell at me for saving their lives." Both Richard and Dick lowered their gazes from the news on how Robin felt and what he has to go through, even though they already know how he felt. Richard then smiled sadly at Dick, even though he wasn't looking at him.
"If you think that's bad, wait until you hear my story." He said in his cheering up voice, though it still sounded as if he's in pain. "Every Monday through Friday, days when I would have school, everyone would pick on me, especially the teachers. Everyone makes fun of me because I'm shorter and younger than all of them. But deep down, I can tell they're only jealous of me for being smarter and more intelligent than any of them in my young age... And every time at lunch or after school, bullies would pick on me and call me names since everyone knows that I used to live in a circus. Even when students would come by and see the fight, they would either walk away and not help or stand around and watch the bullies beat me..." Dick could see the pain and sadness held within Richard's eyes, but the reflection refused to let his smile down. "Teachers would try and get me to crack on impossible problems, even when they could clearly see me injured or worn out from either Extreme PE or fights. And whenever the principal would call Bruce and tell him about my encounters with the bullies, he would simply shrug it off and not bother to come check on me or ask how I was doing... Barbara's always too busy hanging out with her friends and school work, that she barely says a word to me or about my injuries from patrol or bullies." He then removed his hand from Dick's shoulder, and slowly backed away from the boy and to the spot he was at.
"And no matter what we do to make things alright, it ends up making things worse to everyone, including ourselves." Robin then reached for his domino mask, and peeled it off of his face and stared down at the mask held in his left-hand. "But despite our failures and foolish attempts to prove ourselves..."
"We just keep going for them, and mostly for Bruce." Richard came in.
"Batman especially... It always has been, and will always be for either one of them." He then stared at Dick, as he also went back to his spot he was first at. "But there is this one thing we can't help but wonder, and that is something you obviously wonder also." The three boys then glance at each other in the eyes, as if all are thinking the exact thing the others are thinking right now. "Which of us do they, he, actually care for? Which of us do they, he, need more? Which of us do they, he... Love?" They soon all thought about their past, starting how they all got into this whole mess, precisely on the day the Flying Graysons had fallen to their deaths. Soon, it came to the Juvenile Detention Center, stopping Tony Zucco, fighting and enduring the battles of Gotham's Villains, meeting the Justice League, meeting the other sidekicks, forming the Young Justice... It became very clear to them, and that alone gave them the answer they've been trying to find for so long.
"Neither..." Dick whispered, pulling the shades out of his pocket. "At the very beginning, the moment we've watched our family's fall..." He then shook his head, with Robin and Richard doing the same. "No, much longer than that... Perhaps, the moment we were made, when we were born, brought onto the world... Our destiny is to never have a family to be there for us, to comfort us in our time of need... To love us." He then placed his left-hand over his chest, with the sunglasses being pressed between palm and clothed-chest. Robin did the same with his mask, and Richard placed both hands instead of one.
"Looks like we were meant to be alone... And for that, to also die alone." Robin suggested, placing the mask back over his eyes. He then fished out his grappling hook, aiming it behind him and towards the darkness. "Which means we'll have to try and take our life away to fulfill our purpose in life." He then released the hook. The three boys watches the line going through the darkness and misty-fog, waiting for it to either stop or to hear it latch onto something. The line soon stopped, and Robin soon prepared himself to let it pull him away. Richard got down on one knee, pulling out a black-helmet out of nowhere, setting a skateboard, that has also came out of nowhere, towards another direction.
"Wait!" Dick cried, stopping the boys from making their departures. "You haven't even told me about this place... I mean, shouldn't this all be a dream?" Robin simply smirked at his question, while Richard gave the best heart-full laugh he can let out.
"After all this time, you still haven't figured it out?" Robin said, turning away from the direction of the grappling hook and Richard doing the same with his skateboard.
"If this is not a dream, then where are we?" Richard simply chuckled.
"Where else do you think we are in?" Dick had no idea where, but he is one hundred perfect curtain that he isn't in the Afterlife, knowing perfectly well that he isn't dead. "Dick... We are inside of your heart." Dick was having trouble to believe that he was inside of his heart, not sure on why he has darkness inside of him when he had tried to do good deeds.
"Of what is what you've been holding within you, that is. Trust us, you're not evil, if that's what you're thinking from the darkness around us." That seem to have been a full relief to the boy, but it still didn't explain his other question.
"How did I ended up in my heart, when my dreams should be in my mind?" Both Robin and Richard just smiled at his question.
"Well, like the body and soul, the heart and mind are very important to everyone... They even say both heart and mind are almost as one with each other."
"That's what Alfred used to tell us, remember?" Dick smiled from the reminder, and then did something he had always wanted to do for a long time... He laughed. And soon, Robin and Richard joined him on laughing, despite the pain they feel in their hearts from the lesson they had learned from the person was was their surrogate grandfather.
'It feels so good, to actually be able to laugh again.' The moment their laugh-fest was over, the three boys knew it was time for them to depart.
"Well... It's been fun and all, but I'm afraid it's time for all good times to come to an end." Robin said to the two, waving a hand at them. "See you next time... If there will be a next time, that is." After that, he turned back to the grappling hook, pushed the button, and allowed the line to pull him up. Soon, he was gone and the fog made sure to leave no trail behind him. When they were certain that Robin is truly gone, Richard let out a sigh and got on his skateboard with his left-leg and readying his right-leg to kick.
"Remember our motto, 'Get Traught or get Dead?' Looks like we'll have to abandon that motto, and get dead when the time is right." He told Dick, also giving him a wave. "However, we should try and stay whelmed, at least for the last time." And with nothing else to say, he kicked at the ground and skated away. Now, it was only Dick Grayson remaining inside the darkness. No Robin, no Richard John Grayson... Just Dick Grayson. His Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes stared down at the sunglasses, the same shades he had worn for so long and yet for very little time... The shades that had helped keep his identity safe and covered from his teammates and many other people.
'And these shades shall help keep my identity protected, even in death.' He thought, slowly putting the shades back on his face and glancing to where he had seen his reflection for maybe the last time... He then, for the very first time in so long, he allowed a true smile to appear on his face. "And I've said it before, but I'll say it again... La revedere de la voi toţi, şi pentru lumea pe care am cunoscut odata..." He then placed his hands into his pockets, turned on his heels, and walked into the darkness like Robin and Richard had done. Before he could feel himself starting to wake up, he could clearly hear two crackling sounds from the darkness... The same crackling he would do to appear or disappear to his enemies or... Friends. He then also let out a crackling, letting it echo and sing with the other two crackling before he felt himself opening his eyes.
So, I bleed... I bleed... And I breathe... I breathe no-
The moment he re-opened his eyes, was the moment Dick recalled what just happened while he slept. Even if both Robin and Richard John Grayson are really him in different clothing, he knows that both of them also felt the same as he does... And now, all three of them, rather as really one person, wish for this pain to be gone. Dick turned to his alarm-clock, staring at the blue-highlighted numbers on it: 8:49 PM. The boy slowly got himself out of bed and lightly push part of the black-curtain aside to see the sky, seeing dark-clouds had gotten darker and flash of lightning releasing its wrath greeted him. The boy smiled sadly at the sky, pulling the curtain back to cover it from his sight and staring at his dark room.
'If I pull this off, this will be my last time seeing my room.' He thought, going over to the dresser that had the four pictures and bringing out the one item that will help him go into a painless sleep: The Pills. Even though Barbara and Artemis had taken the pills he used to fall asleep while falling off the roof, they didn't know that he had kept a couple of more batches of the pills in case someone were to take the first pills from him. He then pulled out the second item he will need at his side: His pocketknife. Twelve days before they fell, Dick's cousin, John, gave him a pocketknife for his eighth birthday and Dick has always kept the small blade close by ever since he left the circus. Then he got out the third item that would help him the moment he leaves the Manor: His utility belt. He quickly placed the bet down, opened the exact pocket that has what he needed, and pulled out his grappling hook. 'One of Bruce's important rules: "Never leave home without your utility belt".' He then shook his head, as he got out his black-sweater and placed his grappling hook in one of it's pockets. 'Sorry, Bruce, but I'm afraid I won't be needing the belt anymore... Not where I'm going.' He then went towards the window again, unlocking it, and pushing it open to let the wind blow against his him. Even with a sweater, he could still feel the cool air that is now numbing his arms and pretty soon his legs once he's out. Before he hopped out, he took one last glance at the four pictures, admiring their colors and figures they had trapped within itself for life. He then smiled sadly at the images. "La revedere...(Goodbye...)" He whispered, and then vanished the moment another lightning had strike and the rain began to fall heavily.
Three Hours Later...
"Master Bruce!" The cry of Alfred's voice and the sound of the door being slammed open got the billionaire to wake up from his nap. The moment he had placed Dick to bed, was when he had also suggested on getting some sleep himself for in case another crime would come to Gotham again. Though he wished to get some more sleep, he was very grateful for the butler to let him sleep in a bit and to wake him up. However, the cry of Alfred's voice got the billionaire worried.
"Alfred, is something wrong?" He asked, sitting up from the bed and noticing the horrified look on the elder's face.
"Master Bruce, I can't find Master Richard anywhere!" He replied, running over to the man he had raised as his own son. When he heard the boy's name and saw Alfred running towards him instead of walking respectfully in the house, that got Bruce to fully wake up from his drowsiness.
"What? But I put him to bed hours ago! He should still be sleeping, from how exhausted he still looks!"
"I know, sir. But when I went to his room to check up on him, he was gone and his window was left wide open!" He then held something towards Bruce. "I also found this on his bed, and noticed that his grappling hook is not in its pocket." Bruce looked completely shocked when he saw the belt held in Alfred's hand, but was more startled when he saw the pocket that had Dick's grappling hook open and held nothing inside. "He's gone, Master Bruce." The flash of lightning came down after the butler finished his horrified news.
At Gotham, up on a Building...
As the rain kept pouring down, the thirteen year-old sat on the edge of the tallest building of Wayne Enterprises, which was Wayne Tower, watching over the people of Gotham like he used to when he would patrol with Batman as Robin. The rain has now made the boy soaked from head to toe, his skin now numb to its touch, even with his sweater on. His Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes gazed tiredly over the city, the flash of lightning making everything in his sight go white for five-seconds flat.
'Gotham's Amusement Park, Jack's Diner, Gotham Zoo...' He then winced when he saw a building three blocks away from the building he sat upon. 'Gotham Academy...' The giant high school stood tall and proud, the American Flag rapidly waving in the air, and the entrance shutting off anybody from entering the school at the dead of night. No matter how many times he pass through those gates, though, the walls that protects the students from the outside made him feel insecure, like a wild animal being caged against its Will. 'And that's something I no longer have, not for a very long time.' He then turned his attention towards the Gotham City Police Department, knowing that Commissioner Gordon is in his office right now and is waiting for any calls of crime going to be committed. 'And once there is, he'll go up the rooftop and activate the Batman Signal. And once Alfred or Bruce sees it, Batman will shortly arrive and stop the bad guys.' He then slightly shook his head. 'Too bad for Barbara, for she has to stay home alone when she isn't Batgirl, and has to wait for her father to come home or until she hears trouble... Just like I had to, back when I was younger.' His nails slowly glided over the hard brick underneath him, drawing out blood from his fingertips and causing them to leave bloodstains. 'Why am I wasting time, when I could get it over with and just die? Gotham will be fine without me! They don't need Robin, they don't need Richard John Grayson... And they most certainly do not need Dick Grayson at all.' Another powerful flash of lightning came down, as the boy stood from his spot and placed both of his hands into his pocket of his sweater. In the left pocket, are the pills. In the right, is the dark-red pocketknife, which has a carving of a robin on both sides of the pocketknife. He pulled out the small-knife and flipped open the blade from the inside, staring at his tired and sickly reflection from the little-sharp blade. 'Should I?' He wondered, pulling the left-sleeve of his sweater down and staring at the nearly healed cut on his wrist from his suicide attempt three weeks ago. He then placed the blade towards his left-wrist, just above the cut, which was evidence that he nearly took his own life away. His heart soon jolted from the feeling of the blade on his skin, causing him to jerk the pocketknife away from his wrist and grab his chest with his right-hand. 'No,' he thought. 'I shall not stain my cousin's gift with my own blood, nor will I use it take a life away, no matter how much I want to use the blade to draw my own blood.' He then closed the blade, putting it back into the right-pocket, and reaching for the pills from the left-pocket. 'Taking two pills at once won't hurt, but will only make me fall asleep quicker and lose more weight. Anymore than two on the same day, I'll start vomiting, higher chances of it being blood, and breathing problems... Take all the pills on the exact same day and time, then I will die and pass on in my sleep with no pain.' He estimated at least twenty small-pills inside the small bottle. His first one had 10 left, so he would've most likely get seriously ill if he still had the first batch of his pills. And for that, he was actually glad that Barbara and Artemis took those pills from him last Friday. The turned the cap to open the bottle, popped one pill from inside, and stared at it.
Go on... Do it, and you shall finally be free...
'The voice... Its back,' the boy thought. 'I haven't heard from it lately, or maybe it was with me all the time and I've been too tired to hear its voice...' Dick had to clench his hand around the pill in his hand, feeling and seeing the rain coming down a bit harder and trying to knock the pill out of his hand. While in his left, which still held the bottle, he placed them back into his pocket to prevent them from getting any smaller from the falling droplets of water.
Hurry! You must do it, before Bruce or somebody else stops you!... Do not fail this time, like you have been for the past week...
Small droplets of blood fell off from Dick's closed hands, his fingertips still bleeding from him clawing at the bricks earlier. He then re-opened his hand, seeing parts of his blood had coated itself onto the pill making it white with red-smug like spots. The red-coloring made the boy's stomach flip in disgust.
'I should be use to the sight of blood,' he thought. 'I've seen bloodshed all the time... Heck, I've seen my own blood when I cut myself and I didn't feel any discomfort at all!' He then stared down at the street below Wayne Tower, watching the cars driving by and very few people of Gotham struggling on walking through the rain. His eyes widen when he realized why he felt uncomfortable from seeing the blood on the pills. 'That's right, how could I forget?... When they fell, they bled...' He then turned back to the pill, let out a deep sigh, and placed it into the right-pocket with his pocketknife. 'If I am still awake after eating the pills from inside the bottle, I shall eat this pill last.' He then brought the bottle back out, and took a new clean pill out. Without hesitation, he popped the pill into his mouth and swallowed it down after keeping his mouth open to allow some rain into his mouth as well to drink. 'One down, and only nineteen more to go...' He then pulled out the second clean pill from the bottle.
Back at Wayne Manor, in the Batcave...
"You can't be serious, Bruce!" Superman cried out from the monitor, talking from the Watchtower to the Batcave.
"I am, Clark!" Bruce yelled, as he went and grabbed his Batman costume to suit up. "He's somewhere in Gotham, and I need to go out there and find him!"
"You won't be able to find him on your own, Bruce!" Superman argued, glaring at the billionaire that soon became the Dark Knight. "Gotham is a very big city, and in the rain, Dick could probably be long go-"
"Don't you dare say it, Clark!" Now the Man of Steel was getting the Bat-glare from the Dark Knight himself, feeling and getting the cold-shoulder from the glare he's getting. "Dick is still out there, I know he is!"
"But on your own, you may not be able to find him in time." Superman tried to be reasonable with Batman, knowing he has to get the Dark Knight to admit he needs help. "That's why you should let us help you find him, since this is also our fault for his behavior." Again, Bruce became too stubborn to back down.
"He is my son, Clark."
"And he is our nephew, Bruce. He is also the Young Justice Team's baby-brother, which makes him our family also." The Kryptonian then crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Whether you let us or not, with or without your permission, we'll still come and find Dick." Bruce know that he can't win this argument, even if he were to threaten the League and Young Justice by using their weaknesses. Besides, he had to learn by now that they are all family and they would never turn their backs to a family member in their time of need, whether he needed it or not. So, he let out a sigh of defeat.
"Fine," he said. "But the moment you find him, contact me and make sure he doesn't pull another suicide plot." Superman smirked at Batman's words.
"We will, as long as you do the same for us if you happen to find him. We'll be on our way immediately, Superman out." He said, and then the screen on the Batcomputer went blank. The moment the conversation ended, Batman immediately made his way towards the Batmobile and quickly hopped in.
'Hang on, Dickie.' He thought, starting up the engine and hitting the gas the moment the car started running. Back inside the Batcave, Alfred stood next to the Batcomputer, placing both hands in front of his chest and bowing his head as if to pray.
'You can do it, Master Bruce.' He said in his mind. 'Please, bring him back home... Bring him back to us...' And as if to agree or answer his call, even from down below, the butler could clearly hear the roaring of the thunder and the lightning.
Back at Wayne Tower...
He could barely hold his head up, but he didn't seem to care. His body swayed from side-to-side, even when he's no longer standing over the edge of the roof of Wayne Tower, but he payed no mind into sitting down or using the ledge to keep himself balanced... He could feel whatever inside of his stomach wanting to come out, but he made no move to fight the urge to hold it down and allowed whatever it was inside of his stomach to come out. He has been expecting the effects of the pills to kick in sooner or later, and sooner seemed a bit better than later. Not only was it bile, which was mostly water with some stomach acid, but it was also blood. The small puddle of his vomit has quickly turned into a giant puddle, after three or four bloody-bile came out of his stomach. Dick wasn't worried that somebody would find the puddle in this weather.
'The rain will most likely wash it away,' he thought to himself. 'And once I fall, nobody will know where I am until the sun shall come and I will already be long gone by then.' He then looked up to the falling sky when his stomach decided to settle down for a while, watching the thunder rolling and the lightning releasing its wrath. "Mamă, Tată, Unchiul Richard, Mătuşa Karla, şi vărul lui John... Bunicul Thomas, Bunica Martha...(Mom, dad, Uncle Richard, Aunt Karla, and Cousin John... Grandpa Thomas, Grandma Martha...) Please, everyone in Heaven, forgive me for my past sins and what I am going to do... Please, accept my apology..."
His eyes widen when he immediately realized that he was spoke in English again, though he wasn't so sure why he didn't speak in it when he woke up at the hospital weeks ago. Maybe he didn't wanted others to understand him? Maybe he felt unworthy on speaking its language to those who are worthy on saying it?... Or maybe, he only wanted Bruce to understand him and those who can speak in his Romany.
Hurry up, and die already! The sooner you're gone, the quicker the pain will go away and everyone can go on with life without you!
Dick stared down at the remaining pills inside the bottle: Only two are left inside, and counting the blood-covered pill in his pocket makes it three. Which means, he has already swallowed seventeen pills in all. With shaky hands, he poured the rest of the two pills out of the bottle with his right and held the pills towards his mouth with his left. The rain had yet to cease falling, and the lightning came out a bit sooner than their usual time for the clouds to release their wrath. Because of the harsh vomiting and the effects of the pills, his vision has already begun to go blurry and is already seeing dots: Dark-red, dark-blue, dark-purple, and black dots blinking and surrounding his vision with the darkness. He clamp his hand around the pills, knowing that the rain has washed away most of the blood from his fingertips, and then brought the closed hand to his mouth. He allowed one pill for enter, pulled his hand back, allowed the sprinkling water to also enter his mouth, and quickly swallowed them down.
'Eighteen...' He thought to himself, gasping for air through the harsh cold and rain. He's been in the cold rain for so long, he thought for sure that ice would form around his him and get him to fall into a cold-sleep. He grew even more numb on the outside, while his insides kept on jamming around and his stomach kept doing flips. His exhaled breath, that no became small-mist, were giving very little warmth to his left-hand but that little offer was enough to get his hand to release the next pill into his mouth. 'Nineteen...'
He then felt the urge to cough, which made his throat even more sore from having to vomit all the bile and blood that was just held within his stomach. He covered his mouth with both hands, hoping that the coughing will warm his hands much more than just blowing on them. As he continued on coughing, he felt something wet coming out of his mouth and onto his hands, which was sort of making him warm.
'Saliva?... No, this substance feels different... And its scent and taste, it smells and taste like...' The moment he was able to settle down the coughing, he pulled back both of his hands and saw them coated with red-liquid... His blood. The clouds released its lightning and the rain kept pouring, trying to wash away the red-substance coating the boy's skin. 'I feel... So tired.'
His vision grew even more blurry, and his hearing was already starting to make the rain around him go silence and the lightning as rumbling sounds. He then placed his right-hand tiredly into the pocket that held his pocketknife and the last pill. The white-pill is still coated with his blood, but the rain has already started to clean it.
'Number Twenty, end my life and let it either be painful or painless when I pass on.' He then raised the pill tiredly towards his mouth and closed his eyes, not noticing the sight or sound of an aircraft coming in from above.
Bleed!... I bleed... And I breathe... I breathe... I breathe... I breathe, no more...
In Batmobile...
"Superman to Batman, do you read me?" Batman reached for his communicator.
"Read you loud and clear, Clark. You found anything yet?" He replied, keeping his eyes on the road while keeping the police radio on in case the cops have seen any child in this weather.
"Negative. Rest of the Justice League are still searching." The Dark Knight tightened his grip onto the steering wheel, his eyes narrowing and his teeth grinding each other.
"And the Young Justice?"
"No words from them, ye-"
"Kid Flash to Justice League! I repeat, Kid Flash to Justice League! Do you read?" Flash's partner sounded frantic and urgent, which caught the Dark Knight and the Man of Steel's attention.
"We read you, Kid Flash. You found anything?" No words came to answer for a minute, until the Speedster finally replied with shocking news.
"We need help... We had found him on top of Wayne Tower and now have him within the Bio-Ship, but he's in very critical condition... He's dying..." Now it was the adults turn to stay silent from the news and Batman slammed onto the breaks of the Batmobile, his eyes from underneath the cowl widening in shock and horror.
'He's dying... He's dying... He's dying...' Kid Flash's words echoed through his mind, repeating itself over and over like a broken record-player.
"Bruce, Clark, what should we do? Take him to Mount Justice?" The Speedster was now in a complete panic, and that suddenly brought the Dark Knight back from his thoughts.
"Yes," he answered. "Head back there, but head towards the Zeta-Beam immediately the moment you're back inside of the mountain; the Watchtower's having a small malfunction and we're fixing repairs for its immediate zeta-beaming, so we have to take the Zeta-Tubes to get to base. We'll have J'onn beam you to the Watchtower for emergency treatment, so try and keep him breathing... And Wally, keep him alive."
"Roger, Kid Flash, out!" Soon, the line from Kid Flash went silent, and Batman then turned the Batmobile back to Wayne Manor while calling towards the Watchtower.
"Batman to Watchtower, come in!"
"Watchtower, over." It was J'onn who replied, just as the Dark Knight has predicted.
"Young Justice has found and got Dick, and are heading back to Mount Justice. Have the Zeta-Beam ready to teleport them to the Watchtower, and have doctors ready for emergency treatment."
"On it, and I believe you shall inform the rest of the League of the news?" Instead of answering the green martian, Batman turned the communicator off.
'Once I reach the Batcave, then I shall tell the rest of the League.' He thought to himself, avoiding every car that was slowing him down while speeding but making sure to slow down in the pouring rain. 'It would be best to tell Alfred first, though.'
With the Young Justice Team...
The team has been quiet for the past ten minutes, and the only sound that greeted their ears are their breathing and Wolf's whimpering. None of them would've thought they would witness their youngest teammate, their baby-brother, their Little Bird, to let himself fall without his grappling hook and welcoming death with open arms. Red Arrow, who has been with the team ever since they were told of Dick gone from the Manor and in Gotham City, tightened his grip onto the bundle that has been in his hold the moment Miss Martian levitated him from his fall and placed him into his arms. Kid Flash sat next to the older redhead, gripping onto Dick's hands with his own hands in hoping to get some warmth back into them by vibrating fast but slow to make sure he doesn't burn the boy too much. Wolf sat at the left-side of Red Arrow, placing his head onto Dick's chest in hope of helping the Speedster to warm him.
"He's going to be alright... Isn't he, Roy?" Kid Flash asked Red Arrow, his hands slowing down on vibrating the hands in their grasp and his eyes beginning to form tears in his eyes. The rest of the team, except for Wolf, turned their attention to the eighteen year-old, wanting to hear from the eldest of the team his answer for their youngest. Red Arrow was at a loss, not sure how to answer his older little-brother about their youngest-brother. So, he spoke truthfully.
"I don't know, Wally." He answered, his eyes lowered to stare at the unconscious boy in his arms and watching Wolf gently licking Dick's arms and face to get rid of the rain that clung to his skin.
"But!... There's got to be something we can do, Roy!" Tears streamed down Kid Flash's face, his hands stopped vibrating and simply tightened their hold. "There's just got to be something, anything to help him!"
"You heard what Batman said, KF. All we can do right now is get him to Mount Justice, and hope that the Justice League at the Watchtower can save him in time." Soon, the room grew quiet once more, most of them lost in thoughts about their baby-brother dying in front of them and the only thing they can do is get him to the mountain in time.
"We've reached Happy Harbor!" Miss Martian cried, smiling when she saw the mountain coming into view and quickly got the Bio-Ship inside the Garage of the mountain. Even though he didn't want to let the boy go, Roy reluctantly handed Dick off to Kid Flash and the team watched the two zoom out of the aircraft the moment the door opened. Roy then pushed onto the communicator. "This is Red Arrow to Watchtower. We're back at Mount Justice, and Kid Flash is already heading towards the Zeta-Beam. Have doctors be prepared for arrival, and hurry!" He didn't wait for a reply back, and he and the rest of the team didn't care as well. What they all do care right now is getting to the Watchtower and to be there for the boy once he pulls through... Or, if he pulls through.
Two Hours Later, in Watchtower...
"Side-effects of the pills have damaged his stomach!"
"Body temperature dangerously low, bad case of Hypothermia!"
"He's losing a large amount of blood, going to need a blood transfusion!"
They can all hear what the doctors were saying through the locked doors the moment the thirteen year-old was brought in, and their words seems to worry the Young Justice and Justice League even more about their Little Bird.
Even though J'onn and Zatara are helping the doctors treating the boy, they knew that time isn't on their side at the moment and Dick is very much close on dying. The one closest to the door was Batman, who's now Bruce Wayne in a Batman Costume and cowl down, with his head buried in his hands and allowing silent tears to roll down his face.
Nobody knows what to say to the Dark Knight. Not Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Aquaman, or even the most talkative Flash. Aqualad, Kid Flash, Red Arrow, and Artemis sat beside their mentors. While M'gann went to sit with Wonder Woman, since her uncle is helping the doctors with Dick's surgery, and, to everyone's surprise, Superman allowed Superboy and Wolf to sit with him. If that wasn't shocking enough, the Man of Steel pulled the Boy of Steel into a hug, with the teen-Kryptonian returning the embrace.
Suddenly, the doors of the ER opened and everyone turned to face J'onn and Zatara. Both had worried and sad expressions on their faces, making those who're waiting fearing the worse. M'gann got up from her spot and went towards her uncle.
"Uncle J'onn?" She asked, placing both hands in front of her chest.
"We have a problem," the older martian said. "We need to do an emergency blood transfusion..."
"What's the problem?" Superman asked. "Do you need to know what blood-type he is?"
"No, we already know what it is." Zatara replied, looking rather scared. "It's just that, we don't have the blood-type he needs."
"And his blood would be?..." J'onn stared at Flash from his words.
"O Negative," he answered. "One of the rarest blood-type in the world, and about 6.5% of the Earth's population has that kind of blood." The team and Roy slowly turned and faced each other from the news.
They've all taken health class and had learned about the blood, along with playing a game that involves to finding out which blood goes to the right patient for a blood transfusion. Apparently, people with O Negative can donate their blood to all of the other blood types, for O Negative is the universal donor type of blood. However, people with O Negative blood can only receive blood from another person with O Negative and the chance on finding a compatible donor is at a seven percent.
Wolf cocked his head to the side in confusion, not understanding what the humans know about their systems within their body and life or seeing the problem was, since the League can do almost any problem that comes their way... Almost any problem, but not all of them and from the looks on the older martian and magician's faces, they weren't prepared for this problem.
"Well, then, get somebody who has the same blood type and do the blood transfusion." Roy suggested, not noticing the problem the two have at the moment to the redhead's words. Giovanni let out a deep sigh, which was also his sigh of regret.
"That's... The problem, I'm afraid." He replied, now being gazed by confused looks by everybody. "Unfortunately, we've run low on blood in our storage from our previous battles and because there are many of us with Positive RH (Rhesus factor), we don't have any Negative RH blood at the moment." It was dreadful news to hear and everyone in the group were suddenly in a panic.
"Then, can't you have the other Justice League Members who has O Negative blood to come and donate their blood to save Robin?" Aqualad asked.
"We can't; many of the League Members are on missions, both on and off-world missions." Aquaman answered, regretting that the many of their teammates aren't here to help save their Little Bird, let alone know on what's happening to the youngest of the Young Justice Team.
"Can't you morph your blood to match his blood-type, Uncle J'onn?" M'gann asked, her Amber-brown eyes pleading for her uncle to do so and having tears that are ready to be shed if her suggestion was to be turned down. The older martian shook his head from his niece's plea, regretting it now more than ever.
"My blood will simply put too much strain into his body, and he's already in a lot of stress from the effects of the pills. The results would end up being the same if you were to do so, M'gann."
"What about one of us?" Conner asked, his hands clenching into fists and was ready to break away from Superman's grip and punch something to release his anger. "We can give our blood to him, we can save him!" Superman could tell how desperate Conner was getting, along with offering his own life-giving blood to save a preteen who's not only his first friend, but also his youngest brother who had always looked up to the clone as family before the team had even officially became his family. J'onn shook his head.
"We've checked on all of your profiles and blood-tests... I'm afraid none of you, including Zatanna and Raquel, are the right blood-type." As soon as he heard his word, Artemis looked completely startled.
"Wait a sec," she said. "Are you saying that none of us, not one of us, has a blood-type of O Negative?" To their shocking discovery, both martian and magician nodded their heads.
"That is correct, Artemis." J'onn said. "As you know, your blood-type is AB Negative. Roy and Wally's blood-types are B Negative, and both Zatanna and Raquel's blood-type are O Positive."
"And what of Conner, Kaldur and I, Uncle J'onn?" M'gann asked in confusion.
"In Earth term, your blood-type is A Negative, M'gann. Lastly, both Conner and Kaldur's blood-types are AB Positive... I'm afraid that even if one of you three were to have O Negative blood, your other parts of your blood will only worsen his condition because of different origin." At the moment, the teens were getting more anxious, but mostly angry on what they can't do to help their little brother. Even Kaldur was loosing his patients and control over his emotions, and that's something very rare to have the Atlantean to go in a rage when it didn't involve with a mission.
"Zatara, can't you just summon up the same blood Dick has?" Kid Flash asked, getting frustrated on how they're just giving up so easily.
"I may be a magician, Wally, but I cannot summon something that very few people or Earth has." Giovanni replied. "The only thing we can do is find a donor, who has the blood of O Negative and, hopefully, save Dick in time, but I'm afraid we're running out of time and we'll possibly be too late if we don't find one immediately." The group stared at each other, all thinking and wondering who they all know who has a blood-type of O Negative.
"I know who," a voice said. Everyone turned their attention to the one who spoke, and to their startling surprise, it was Bruce, with his cowl down behind his neck and still in his Batman suit. He then got to his feet, his face looking completely blank, but his eyes held determination and devotion. J'onn could tell what he meant, and Zatara looked completely surprised when he saw the look and connect it to his words.
"Yours..." The magician said, earning a short nod from the Dark Knight.
"Yes, mine... By some miracle, I am also an O Negative... You can use my blood to transfer it to Dick." Both Martian and Magician turned to stare at each other, as if having a silent conversation, and then nodded their heads after staring for six seconds.
"Come with us; we must act fast and transfer the blood to the boy, before his heart gives away once more." J'onn told the billionaire, as he and Giovanni escorted him into the room and get everything set up to transfer his blood to the thirteen year-old child. Now with the doors of the ER closed and once again locked to keep outsiders from coming in, all the group can do now is home and pray for a miracle.
TBC
I was thinking on how this song almost matches to Dick, only the song seems to be about a girl than a boy. Other than that, that's what I think this song is a lot like for Dick.
His training clothes are the clothes he wore on Episode 8: 'Downtime'. And for those who know the song 'Country Boy' by Aaron Lewis, I did get that line from the song. And for those who don't, it's "And I've said it before but I'll say it again".
If you're wondering which four were talking in the hospital, they were (in exact order): Clark, Ollie, Orin and Barry.
R&R