I wrote this fic while listening to Your Body is a Wonderland by John Mayer about ten kaflobbidymillionjillion times. Just...letting you all know that.
Sooooo, is anyone else not entirely on board with Invasion? Cause uh, there's a definite lack of bromance between my boys and I'm really not digging it. If things are gonna continue like this, then Tim and Conner better start bromancing things up, and Bart best be hopping on his treadmill and blasting to the past to help with aforementioned bromance, or I'm going to be one angry lady. =/ (also, I thought Artemis was hotter when she was younger...just throwing that out there...) Aaaaanywaaaay...

Big thanks to rachello344, my super awesome beta who is super and awesome and just loverly in every way!

Disclaimer: If Young Justice was mine, Dick would still be 13 years old and adorable...or at the very least, I would have asked Jesse to lower his voice a few pegs when doing Nightwing cause really? I'm pretty sure puberty has happened by now...So yeah. Not mine.

"Dick? Helloooo, earth to Grayson! You in there?"

Dick blinked and took a step back, distancing himself from Babs, who had leaned in close to his face.

"What?"

She leaned back and raised an eyebrow as she continued walking, Dick falling back into stride beside her. "What were you thinking about so intently?"

Dick grimaced as a blush rose unbidden to his face. He'd been thinking about Wally, and how Artemis had walked in on them making-out. She had gotten angry, shouting something about M'gann and Conner, and how no one trusted her, before she stormed out. She went straight home, and neither he nor Wally had seen her since.

"Dick?"

He and Wally had been dating for nearly a full year, but no one knew. After a long discussion, they decided it would be best to keep things under wraps for now, to prevent any awkwardness amongst their teammates.

"Are you kidding me? Dick!"

So much for that idea. Now Artemis was pissed, and who knew what she would do? She could have told the whole team by now. And even if she didn't, there was still the fact that she had seen him, lying underneath Wally, who was using his neck like a chew toy, one leg wrapped around his boyfriend's waist while he was clawed at his back, moaning like, like a...

He grimaced again as his face erupted into flame. How was he supposed to meet her eye now? That was mortifying...

"Dick!"

Dick started and looked up to see Babs frowning heavily down at him again.

"Sorry, Babs. It's nothing, really. I was just...thinking. Don't worry about it."

Her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized his face. "Dick...you're blushing!" A large smirk blossomed on her face and Dick felt his face heat up even more.

"No I'm not! I'm probably just burned. You know how easily I burn." It was true. With skin as pale as porcelain, Dick Grayson burned up like a...like an overcooked waffle. Or a bunch of ants, lying helpless under a magnifying glass. Or the leaf that was under the ants, who were under the magnifying glass...

"Soooo, who is she?"

"Huh?" Dick asked, hoping he didn't get reamed out again for not listening.

Barbara's smirk widened. "I saaiiid, who is she?"

Dick wrinkled his nose. "Who's who?"

A roll of the eyes. "The girl you're thinking about! Do I know her?"

Without thinking about it, Dick's face naturally screwed up into an expression of distaste. "I'm not thinking about a girl. Just forget about it, okay?"

"Thinking about a boy then?" she joked, readjusting her bag so she could elbow him gently.

Dick stepped out of reach of her jabs, his face coloring. Romantic feelings weren't really something he talked about with, well, anyone. Anyone besides Wally, of course.

"Oh my god..." she whispered, and he forced himself to keep his gaze down, "Dick...are you-"

"Shut up, Babs," he quipped, finally glancing up and nodding his head toward the crowd around them. If word got out he was gay, the press would have a field day, and Bruce wouldn't hear the end of it.

Plus there was the small fact of Bruce not knowing yet, but that was an entirely different matter...

"Sorry. But, well...are you?"

He averted his gaze again, quickly weighing his options. He could deny it, laugh at her and call it a joke. As a superhero, lying was unfortunately something he'd grown good at. Then again, if Dick Grayson had a best friend, it would, without a doubt, be Barbara Gordon. But he wasn't just Dick Grayson. He was Dick and Robin. And Robin's best friend was Kid Flash...who was Wally West. But Dick hardly ever got to see Wally, and Robin never got to see Babs, so...where did that put everyone? Was Wally, who he barely saw, Dick's best friend, or was Babs, who he saw almost daily, Dick's best friend? Could Dick and Robin have different best friends?

He frowned. Did Wally have a best friend that wasn't him...?

"Dick?" She called softly, nudging his shoulder gently. "Hey, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I won't pry."

He sighed. Out of anyone (still alive) in the world, Babs was the person who knew him the best without knowing about Robin. To be fair, he didn't associate much with people who didn't also know him as Robin, but still. It counted for something. She'd earned his trust, at least with Dick Grayson secrets. Letting her in on his love life wouldn't be horrible. It might be...nice, having someone to talk to about everything. Maybe.

"Come with me," he said, grabbing her free hand and pulling her against the crowd, back toward the school. They arrived at a deserted area and he stopped, releasing her.

He turned to face her, his expression determined. "His name's Wally."

She blinked owlishly. "What?"

He pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his pictures, looking for a good one. He didn't have too many photos of Wally and him, sunglass and mask free. The few he had, though, he thought were good. They were precious to him, in any case.

He came across one of Wally kissing his cheek. He was holding the camera and, just before he snapped the photo, Wally had snuck in the kiss. He smiled at the memory.

"Oh my god, Dick, that's sooooo cute!"

He scowled at Barbara, who had (tried) to sneak up behind him, and kept flipping through the pictures. "That's not a good one. His face is too smooshed against mine to see. Here," he said, stopping at one and handing her the phone. She took it, smiling widely.

"Diiiick, you two are so cute! I can't believe you never told me, you ass! I always knew you had a soft spot for gingers. I just didn't realize it was guy gingers."

Dick snorted. "Please. I love him despite his gingerness." That was a lie. He'd never admit it, but he loved Wally's hair. There was nothing quite like a sexy ginger guy to make you go weak at the knees...

Babs seemed to melt before his eyes. "Awww, Dicky! You love him! That's soooo sweet! I can't BELIEVE you never told me! You've been falling in love behind my back all this time! So, how'd you guys meet?" she asked, handing him his phone back.

Dick put it away and looked down, trying to hide his blush. "Well, he lives in Central, but Bruce is friends with his uncle, who he pretty much lives with. Wally came with on some conference thingy, and we really hit it off, so when Bruce went to see his uncle a few weeks later, I came with, and well, we just kind of, fell in love. It was really gradual."

It was. When he and Wally had first met, they didn't have much time to see each other. But he could clearly remember the fierce joy that would rush through his body whenever Batman told him they would be patrolling with the Flashes. When they came within seeing distance of each other, Wally would rush forward and envelope him in a hug. At first it had been nostalgic. He loved Bruce and Alfred, but they weren't really into hugs. His parents, on the other hand, hugged him every chance they got. And not just them, Mr. Haley, the clowns, the fire breather, the animal tamer...Haley's Circus was chock full of a bunch of affectionate people, and they all deemed him a cousin or nephew or son by association. He got hugged all the time.

But eventually, the nostalgia wore off and he was able to focus on just being hugged by Wally. The smell of him, the feel of him, the race of his heart. Everything about Wally became intoxicating.

Before he knew it, they were best friends, whispering secrets to one another while patrolling under the light of the moon. Before the team was formed, Dick would tell small white lies about after school projects and research, so he didn't have to go home right away. Wally would do the same, running to Gotham as soon as the bell rang and hurling into his best friend the moment he caught sight of him. At first they stayed in Gotham, as Dick was uneasy about lying to Bruce. But as time went on, they expanded. Wally would throw him on his back and run him to anywhere they could dream. They'd grab a late lunch in Mexico, go see a parade in China, explore ruined castles in Ireland. Wally learned that Dick could speak six languages with his voice, and Dick learned that Wally could speak 25 languages with his smile.

It was kind of ironic. During this time, they probably visited every over-the-top romantic spot the world had to offer. Yet, when they finally realized their feelings, they were in a laser tag arcade in downtown Park City. Together, they beat every opponent team thrown at them. When they thought the arcade had cleared out, they paused to high-five, and over Dick's shoulder Wally saw a seven-year-old boy running towards them, gun raised. Before Dick knew what had happened, Wally had grabbed his arms and spun him around, making himself into a human shield. The shot connected and his vest instantly started blinking red, a faint buzzing sound issuing from it.

As they were walking out, Wally had blushed, apologizing as he claimed that he acted without thinking. He said he was too used to real battles, and suggested they stopped playing, lest they hurt someone in the heat of "battle."

Dick had pretended to be mad, blaming Wally for ruining the fun. Then, laughing, he stated that, on the bright side, at least he knew now that Wally would take a bullet for him.

And Wally had smiled and said, "Duh, dude. I'd take a kajillion bullets for you."

Skeptical, Dick had stopped and, raising an eyebrow while he smirked, amused, asked why.

He had expected Wally to say because he was a hero. He expected him to strike a pose, and flaunt his selflessness and gallantry.

He didn't expect Wally to turn toward him and casually remark, "I love being a...uh, 'volunteer,'" he said, making air quotations with his fingers, "but if you died, I'd have to quit. And I don't want to do that. So I have to watch your back, always."

Dick frowned. "Why would you have to quit?" he had asked.

Wally's ears turned red and he self-consciously rubbed the back of his neck. "'Cause. There isn't much point in saving the world when the world as you know it is already gone. And you...well, you're kinda...I don't know. My world, I guess. There wouldn't be a point in saving a world you weren't a part of anymore, you know? Cause you're my best friend. My bro."

At that moment, standing in front of the rigged claw-machine at the arcade entrance, Dick understood fully what Wally meant, and realized he felt the same. So he stepped forward to hug him, but instead of wrapping his arms around Wally's back and shoulders, he somehow found himself linking them around his neck. And instead of pulling their chests together in a hug, he somehow found himself pressing his lips to the other's. And that was that.

"Speaking of your dad," Babs said, startling Dick out of his reverie. He blushed deeply, but she didn't seem to notice. "How does he feel about all this?" she asked as they slowly started walking down the deserted pathway once again, "I know he can get like, protective and junk." She grinned widely and grabbed Dick's cheek, pinching it tightly. "Not that I can bwame him wiff a key-oot wittle face wike dis! The media would just eat you up!"

"Knock it off!" Dick slapped at her hand and pulled away, bringing his hand to his face to nurse his sore cheek.

She laughed heartily and ruffled his hair, skipping out of the way when he half-heartedly swung at her. Dick huffed and she nimbly returned to his side, continuing on in silence for a moment before Dick spoke up.

"He doesn't know."

Barbara glanced down at him. "Hmm?"

"Bruce. He doesn't know. Wally's uncle doesn't either...No one does, except you."

She was quiet for a few seconds, then asked, "About you and him? Or being..." she glanced around at the few students they were approaching, "you know...in general?"

"Both."

"Oh."

They walked in silence for a while until the Wayne limousine and Alfred's figure next to it came into view. Still out of hearing range of the elderly butler, Babs nudged him gently.

"Thanks for telling me, Dick. It...means a lot."

Dick smiled and bumped her back with his shoulder. "I know it does. Gaining my trust is quite an accomplishment. You should be proud."

She groaned and pushed back with a little more force. "Ugh, you little brat, you totally ruined the moment. We were having a thing!"

"A thing?"

"A best friend thing!"

Dick's smile was content as he mulled over her words. "Yeah...I guess we did just have a thing, didn't we?"

When Babs didn't respond, he turned to look at her to find her staring at the sky above thoughtfully.

"Soooo, if you're gay (she ignored Dick's frantic 'shhh"ing sounds), does that mean...you're going to start coming clothes shopping with me and stuff! Oh, oh! We could have a slumber party!" She took a deep, gasping intake of breathe. "I could play with your hair..."

"Now who's ruining the thing, huh? I'd sooner die than have a slumber party at your house," he frowned, "And my hair's full of gel. You wouldn't like touching it."

Babs hummed thoughtfully, ignoring the jab. "I mess up your hair all the time. I don't mind. And actually, I was thinking your place would be better. Maybe I'd get lucky and catch a glimpse of that hunky dad of yours in his pajamas...I hope he sleeps in his boxers..."

Dick's face contorted into disgust. "Eww! Babs, shut up!"

"Oh, but just think, Dick! Mrs. Barbara Wayne. Doesn't it sound distinguished? I could be your mom!"

"Shut up, shup up, shut up!" Dick yelled, covering his ears and sprinting away. Babs laughed as she chased after him, calling him motherly pet names all the way to the limousine.

When Robin woke up, he kept his eyes closed and didn't move a muscle, keeping his breathing slow and steady.

First, a check of himself.

He felt around his mouth with his tongue and, once he was certain there was no blood and all his teeth were accounted for, he swallowed. He was pleased to find the action didn't hurt, which meant his back and spine were likely in working order. He breathed in deeply through his nose, then exhaled. Naval cavity was fine. Almost without moving, he pressed each finger tip against the surface beneath him. A sharp pain shot through his shoulder, but his arms seemed to be working fine despite that, and all his fingers were there. Which was always good.

Feeling something like cold steel beneath his fingers, he made a note of the fact that he wasn't wearing his gloves and his arms were covered...meaning he was probably wearing civvies. He flexed his toes, then tensed his kneecaps. Legs and feet were fine. The material clothing them felt like denim, which strengthened the civvies notions.

Keeping perfectly still, he listened carefully. Hearing seemed fine. There was a noise in the distance...something like sparking wires. He listened closely for approximately two minutes, still as a statue, before he deemed himself alone. He opened his eyes.

No mask then. He could tell that immediately. He turned his head to the side to double-check for any occupants in the room and sat up with a start, knocking his head on the light hanging above him.

Cradling his forehead, he jumped off the metal examination table he was lying on and observed the room around him with mounting horror.

"Who did this...?" He questioned, silently crossing to the Batcomputer and fingering the edges of the shattered screen. He hissed slightly as the sharp glass cut his unprotected finger.

Looking around at the ruins of the Batcave, Robin felt his heart hammer hard in his chest. Someone was in the Batcave...and he was out of uniform. So why was he even alive...?

"And where's Batman...?" he questioned aloud, "And how did I even get here?" He went to the elevator first, but it wasn't operational and, try as he might, he wasn't quite strong enough to pry open the door. That was Wayne tech for you. Impenetrable.

He reached for his utility belt to find something to blast the doors open and was horrified when his hand connected with his bare waist. He groped at his chest and skimmed a hand over his thighs, glancing down at his body in wondrous disbelief. His belt was not on his person. Taking a few calming breaths, he tried to judge the situation.

First, his belt was gone. Which was soooo not asterous...but he was in the Batcave. Which was destroyed. But still, it was the Batcave. Surely there was something useful left in the equipment room.

Second, he didn't know where Batman was. As of now, that was his top priority. Get out of the cave, and find Bruce.

And third, there was a gap in his memory. How did he get to the cave? Wasn't he with Babs, at school? He frowned. No, no that wasn't right. He left school. He was with the team...they had a mission...But what was the mission? And where was his team? And where was Wally...?

Doubling back through the trophy room, Robin made his way to the stairs and climbed to the first floor. He made a beeline for the equipment room, noticing fleetingly that the Batmobile was gone. The door was barricaded, but only loosely, and Robin managed to shift the rubble around enough that he could climb over it and enter the room.

His blood ran cold.

"No," he murmured, eyes scanning the empty room. Everything was gone. He stumbled forward, eyes and hands casting around for anything. A batarang...a grapnel...a single bat-capsule...hell, a smoke pellet would be better than nothing!

But nothing it was. The Batcave was ruined, the equipment room robbed. And at the center of it all was him, with no lines of communication and only his body as a weapon for defense.

Trying to keep a clear head, he stumbled back over the pile blocking the door and into the main room. Glancing around, he saw that Batman's suit was missing...but so was his. He narrowed his eyes in thought.

If Bruce was conscious, surely he was on the case. Maybe they had been working together...and he'd been hurt? He rolled his shoulder carefully, wincing at the hot flash of pain. It hurt, but surely it wasn't enough to knock him out...? Was he stunned? Had Bruce taken him back to the cave to recover?

He passed the zeta beam platform and wasn't entirely surprised to find it completely smashed in, leaving the portal barely recognizable for what it was.

Robin frowned, carefully picking his way past the destruction to the upper level garage. No spare Batmobiles...no R-cycle...Jogging to the main entrance, he started climbing up the broken pieces of cave wall covering the stairs to the mansion.

If he had been hurt in battle...why would Bruce take him out of his costume? Obviously he would be busy tracking down the culprit...so his outfit change would be credited to Alfred. But with so much in disarray, why would Alfred bother changing him into a shirt and a jacket? Why jeans and not sweats or shorts, which were considerably easier to put on an unconscious figure? He supposed the sneakers made sense, in case he had to run in an emergency, but overall, it just didn't make sense. Why waste the time? And where was Alfred now?

He nearly made it all the way up the stairs when he came to a road block, where the entrance had caved in. With a grunt of effort, he started pulling rubble free, trying to make an opening big enough for him to crawl through.

Pulling a rather large rock free, a small rock slide ensued, making a small opening near the ceiling. He pressed himself against the cave wall, avoiding the falling boulders and coughed as the dust cleared. Once everything was settled, he gave an experimental tug on the rocks before him and, finding them decently sturdy, started his climb up.

Due to his petite size, he was able to squeeze through the opening, though, with his shoulder, it was a difficult task.

He tumbled rather ungracefully out the other side and onto the stairs. Standing, he looked up and could just make out the outline of the door in the dark. Freedom, and hopefully answers, before him, he smiled and took a step forward.

He couldn't suppress the surprised yell that issued from his lips as he stepped into nothing and his whole body plunged downward into the darkness.

"She's Alice."

"She's a freak is what she is..."

"Wally! That's mean!"

"Sorry Megs, but look at her...maybe if she wasn't wearing her mask..."

"Appearances aside, Artemis is still in danger. We need to focus. Robin, who is this 'Alice' you mentioned?"

"Alice in Wonderland. It's a children's story. Alice is a young, blonde girl from the English Victorian era, who chases a rabbit down its hole and ends up in a fantasy land. The Mad Hatter is another character in the story, one that Jervis Tetch decided to adopt."

"Looks like he's reenacting the tea party thing," Wally piped in, the only other person aware of the story.

"Why would there be a tea party down a rabbit hole?" Connor asked. Robin shook his head.

"I'll explain later. Right now, we have to get a hold of Artemis, and quick. Mad Hatter is a lot more dangerous than he appears. Not to mention his special...interests," Robin chimed in through the mind link, "In the past, he's always planted his mind control devices in things like hats or walkmans...he put one in Scarecrow's mask once."

"So it's in her mask?" M'gann asked, cloaking herself then taking a hesitant step into the open, wanting to get closer to Artemis but hesitant to leave her team without a plan.

"It's possible, but I'm guessing the device is in the ribbon. That would have been easier to plant."

Wally made a mental noise of distaste. "Never thought I'd live to see Arty wearing a big bow on her head...or a dress, for that matter."

"She's getting up!"

They all turned their attention back to the long table in the middle of the courtyard. They were in a hedge maze in the middle of a recently shut down amusement park, which would have been great, because Mad Hatter would have had limited escape options, except the crazed, hat loving maniac was nowhere to be found. After he kidnapped Artemis, the team tracked him to the park. But now all they could see was Artemis, a blue dress and white apron thrown overtop her uniform, her hair unbound with a black ribbon tied at the top, and a startlingly empty look in her eyes.

"We have to get that bow off her head. We have to be careful though. We all know how deadly Artemis is and right now," Robin paused as she stepped away from the table, carefully pushing the huge, ornamental chair she'd been sitting in back, "We're her prey."

"No worries. I'll just run up and snatch the stupid thing off her head before Hatter even knows what hit him."

"I am not so sure about that Kid Flash...It seems too...simple."

"We do have to be quick though. Artemis may fight back, but Mad Hatter could just as easily tell her to stop breathing...cut her own throat...anything he can think of."

There was silence as they all let Robin's words sink in.

"Well," M'gann's voice sounded through their heads, her body nowhere in sight, "maybe I could fly over and take it off? That way, I won't set off any booby-traps that may be on the ground, and Artemis won't see me...Mad Hatter either, if he's even still around."

Robin was about to respond when he was cut off by the sound of Artemis' voice, softer than he had ever heard it and completely void of her normal brash passion. She was singing.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little bird,

"Without Batman, quite absurd,

"So enchanting, when you fly,

"Rip your wings off, watch you die..."

They all stood frozen, listening to Artemis slowly sing as she grabbed a knife and started cutting the huge cake that sat on the place mat in front of her.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little bat." She placed a harsh consonance on the end 't,' reaching forward and plucking a large triangular piece out of the cake.

"How I wonder..." She placed the piece down and reached again for the body of the cake, dipping her hand into the new opening, "...where..." She pulled a handgun, frosting smeared on the sides, out of the cake, holding it loose and carelessly. "...you're..." She tightened her grip on the weapon and slowly cast her eyes around the courtyard, eyeing the many entrances into the maze. "...at." Her eyes landed on the entrance the team was hiding behind and she smiled, lifting the gun to aim.

"Move!"

No one was entirely certain who had issued the command as they all bolted into the courtyard. Kid Flash sprinted forward and knocked Artemis' arm up before she had even finished pulling the trigger, sending the bullet careening upwards. Far in the distance, it embedded itself in an old Ferris Wheel with a sharp 'ping.'

He made to grab for the ribbon on her head when suddenly he found himself on his back. Lifting his head to see over his body, he saw a rather emaciated looking young girl lying underneath the large table, her hands wrapped around his ankles. On her head was a plastic band, two mouse ears attached. Wally thought of Disneyworld.

"I'm the Dormouse," she giggled feverishly, a broken smile plastered on her face, "Do you have any tea? I'm all out and...I'd really like some. Some tea. Do you have some?"

Before he could decide on whether or not to answer, Wally found himself being dragged backwards rapidly. His eyes widened as a large knife dropped from Artemis' grasp and imbedded itself into the ground, right where he'd been lying. Keeping his grip on the back of Wally's uniform, Superboy hauled the other to his feet. Wally let out a breath.

"Thanks, dude."

Conner grunted in acknowledgment as he watched Artemis pick up another knife off the table.

"Superboy, Kid Flash, stay where you are. Robin, get the knife and gun while her attention's diverted. M'gann, as soon as Robin has the weapons, grab the ribbon. I'll restrain her."

"Aye, aye, Captain Kaldur," Robin answered, throwing a birdarang from his place in the shadows, behind Artemis. The knife fell from her hand, landing a few feet in front of Superboy and Kid Flash. Artemis turned around to find Robin already perched on the table behind her. Without missing a beat, he grabbed her wrist and wrestled the gun from her hand. It clattered to the ground and Robin flipped off the table, kicking it away just as a hand emerged from under the table, groping for the weapon. Robin stepped on it, earning a girlish shriek from the owner.

"M'gann!"

"On it!"

Artemis issued a piercing scream as Aqualad grabbed hold of her. M'gann ripped the ribbon off her head and she immediately went limp, collapsing in Kaldur's arms.

Robin crouched down to view under the table. He was met with the tearful, smiling faces of two girls, barely as old as he was.

The one on the left had a band on her head, giving her a pair of floppy rabbit ears. She was nursing her hand. "I'm the March Hare. Are you joining our tea party? Please do."

"It'll be fun," the mouse girl stated, reaching forward toward him, "Do you have any tea? We would really like some tea. It's a tea party. You need tea."

"Oh yes, tea would be lovely. Do you like tea? I like tea. We like tea. Please join us. You're lovely. Perfect for a lovely party. Please..."

Robin did his best to smile. "I do have tea, and I'd love to join, but under the table isn't really the place for a party. Would you come out?" He offered them each a hand, not bothering to ask anyone to watch his back. KF was playing his lookout, he was sure.

The girls hesitantly took his hands and allowed him to help them up. Their gaze traveled over to Artemis, held bridal style in Aqualad's arms.

"Alice is dead."

"She looks dead."

"Hatter will find a new one."

"He always does."

Robin was still holding their hands and he raised them, pushing them together and clasping his own around them. They were freezing.

"March Hare and...Dormouse, is it?"

They both nodded.

"The Hatter, do you know where he went? I'd like to see him...to talk about the tea."

The March Hare hung her head. "He left."

"He always leaves, when there isn't an Alice," Dormouse said, turning to look at Artemis, "This Alice wasn't very good."

"So you don't have any idea where he is?"

They both shook their heads.

"KF."

"On it, man."

Robin smiled and, hardly thinking about it, brought their hands to his mouth and blew on them, desperately trying to warm them. How long had these girls been outside? It looked like they hadn't eaten in days...

He started rambling to them about the types of tea he had, keeping their attention while Kid Flash dashed behind them. Before they could even register his presence, he quickly snatched the ear bands off their heads and they collapsed, the March Hare falling into Robin's arms while Kid Flash caught the Dormouse.

"They said Mad Hatter is gone, but we'll need to search the ground anyway. Miss M, do you think you could carry both of them to the entrance? They're going to need medical attention."

M'gann, now fully visible, nodded and levitated the two girls. "I don't think I can carry Artemis as well though..."

"I will carry Artemis," Aqualad said, shifting the prone archer in his arms, "Miss Martian, could you serve as my guide out of the maze?"

"Of course!" Flying higher, M'gann headed toward the exit, eyeing the maze from above.

"The rest of you search for Mad Hatter. Miss Martian, could you keep the mental link intact, in case they should need us?"

"Uh, sure, no problem," she hesitantly replied. She giggled nervously as the girls' bodies dipped lower. "No problem, Megan, just keep concentrating," she muttered to herself, before smiling and flying over the maze, Aqualad close behind.

"New souvenirs!" Wally exclaimed, tucking the headbands under his arms. Robin rolled his eyes.

"Don't relax yet, KF. Mad Hatter could still be in the area. Let's split up."

"Yeah, yeah, I hear you. I call thaddaway!" he yelled, disappearing through an entrance.

Robin sighed. "So much for being discreet. All right then, Superboy, you wanna check out the entrance on the right, and I'll take left?"

"Fine," the other grunted, trudging off across the courtyard.

Quietly, Robin crept through his own entryway, instantly melding into the shadows.

Suddenly, everything went black and an explosive 'crack' sound was echoing in his ears.

And then, with a start, he woke up.

Robin was face-down when he woke up, and the surface beneath him smelled of dirt. He groaned softly as he came to and a hot fire seared through his shoulder.

Teeth, arms, legs, torso, check, check, check, check. He didn't have time now. He needed to know where he was.

He carefully pulled himself onto all fours, pausing for a moment as his vision swam with the pain. He had fallen through the stairs...which were made of stone...and reinforced with steel. But still, he had fallen through the stairs...so he should have been on the bottom level of the cave...which didn't have a dirt floor...

He lifted his head and stared forward, watching as two trees wavered back and forth. He blinked a few times and they melded into one, solid image.

He raised an eyebrow. There weren't any trees in the Batcave either...(okay there was one, in the trophy room, but that was a little tree and that was a totally different and unrelated story).

Just as he was feeling he could hazard standing, something crashed into his side, sending him sprawling once again to the ground.

Ignoring the scream of his shoulder, he immediately started struggling under the body lying on top of him.

With a sound of disgruntlement, the person climbed off him and Robin sprang to his feet. His head swam at the sudden change in alignment, but he managed to stay steady, falling automatically into a fighter's stance.

"Geez kid, what gives! You shouldn't just lie around in the road, you know! You'll trip people...people who are late!"

His fists dropped. "Uncle...Barry...?"

The person standing in front of him looked liked Barry Allen, for sure, but...well, he also kind of...didn't.

He was dressed in red and yellow checkered pants with a matching lapel jacket, underneath of which he had a white dress shirt (the collar was popped, but only on one side), tied at the neck with a red ribbon. And sitting on top of his blond locks were two equally blond rabbit ears, which were twitching erratically.

"Uncle Barry? Sorry kiddo, but I'm not your uncle. I mean, you're not even a rabbit! You're a...a..." The speedster hopped forward and ran a quick circle around him, stopping once he was back in front of him. He placed their faces close together, so their noses were almost touching.

And then he sniffed him.

"Well, I don't know what you are!" he said, leaning back. "But I don't have time to find out, you see," he pulled a pocket-watch out of his jacket pocket and gave a small jump, then proceeded to jog in place, "I'm very late! Very, very late! Super late! So I gotta go, kiddo!

"Uh, wait, Uncle B! Where-

Barry interrupted him, looking offended. "I'm a rabbit, not a bee! And I have no time to wait! I'm late! I hope you find your uncle kid, but he's not me! Ciao!"

And with that, he dashed off toward the tree...and Robin noticed for the first time that there wasn't just one tree. There was a whole forest! Under the Batcave? That didn't make sense!

Gritting his teeth, Robin ran into the forest after the floppy-eared speedster.

"Wait, Uncle Barry! It's me, Dick! Barry! Don't you..." he stopped running, reaching a fork in the dirt path, no Flash in sight, "...recognize me?" he mumbled, kicking at the ground.

"Do you want to know which way he went?"

Robin started, falling back into his defensive fighter's stance and looking rapidly around the forest. His eyes landed on a white, grinning face in the trees.

"Cheshire," he growled, tensing. He'd recognize that mask anywhere. Was she the one who infiltrated the cave? That wasn't possible...

The person swung down a few branches so they were on a closer level. "No, not Cheshire. You could call me that if you'd like though, I guess. If you found it convenient." The person sprawled out on a branch, letting a leg dangle toward the ground. "And what about you? Have a name you care to share? Sharing is caring, after all. And I'm sure we have plenty to care about...or share about, you and I. Don't you agree?"

Robin kept his defenses up, watching the figure cautiously as it twisted sensually around the branch. It wasn't Cheshire, that was for sure, at least not the Cheshire he knew. The voice was off, for one thing. And this person was shorter and flat-chested, and while the mask was the same, the hair was much shorter and had less volume to it. He honestly couldn't even be sure of the gender.

Knowing he was without a mask, he weighed his options, then finally confessed, "My name is Dick. I was chasing after my friend's uncle...did you see which way he went? He's blond and was wearing red and yellow."

Cheshire tilted its head. "The Blond Rabbit, you mean? I saw him. I saw his nephew too, once upon a time. He went that way," the feline-like person said, pointing left.

Dick lowered his hands, hesitantly. "Thank you," he nodded, starting toward the left. He paused as a voice called out, "Of course, that was several years ago...and you're not looking for the nephew anyway. You want the uncle."

Dick turned on his heels, stalking back to the midpoint. "Of course I meant the uncle! Why would I care which way his nephew went years ago!" he yelled, aggravated.

Cheshire dropped from the branch, letting its body dangle in the air. Quickly, Dick scanned the contours of its muscles and decided the other was a male. An aggravating male.

"Oh? So, you don't care for the nephew then? That's a shame. Or maybe not." He swung his legs up and wrapped them around a branch to his right, carefully climbing onto it and once more lying down, this time on his back.

Dick blushed. "That's not...I didn't mean...It's not important! Just...tell me which way Bar-I mean, the Blond Rabbit went."

"Well, he went right, of course."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Dick started toward the right. "Thank you," he said, trying hard not to grit his teeth. He only made it a few steps when the voice called out again,

"Of course, it's difficult to say which right. I mean, there's my right...and there's your right. Which are two totally different rights. My right is your left, your left is my right. Both are right...but both are left. So did he go right? Or left?"

Dick whirled around, eyes aflame. "Just tell me which way!"

"Why, I already told you. Right."

Dick took a long, deep breathe. "My right? Or your right?"

"That's a bit of a hard distinction to make, isn't it? I think my right is right, and you think your right is right, so which is right? Surely we can't judge. A judge? Yes, a judge surely could. Judges know right from wrong and wrong from left. Right?" The boy stretched languidly and, hooking his knees around the branch, let his body fall so that he was hanging upside down, turning the eerie grin of his mask into a deep frown. "Perhaps he went both ways, hmm?"

"That's impossible," Dick growled, fists clenched.

"Not if both paths lead to the same destination."

Dick took another deep breathe, trying to ease the tension out of his throbbing shoulder. "Do they?"

He received an upside down shrug. "Who knows? Who cares?"

"I care," he ground out, concentrating on his breathing.

Cheshire dropped, doing a somersault in the air before landing on his feet. He turned to face Dick. "And why's that? What will you do with Uncle Blond Rabbit?"

"I..." he frowned, thinking about it. What would he do? He cast a hasty glance at the unfamiliar terrain around him. "I'd ask him where I was...and how to get home. There are people I need to go to. I can't waste time here."

He tensed as Cheshire strode toward him, his movements slow and graceful, like a feline. He scowled, thinking of Catwoman.

"Well those are silly questions. For where you are...you're here, of course. You came from there...and you're heading for there, though it's a different there. There, do you understand? Rabbits won't help you there. Or here. Why not see the King and Queen? They help a bit here, they help a bit there. Surely they'd help a here-there like yourself. Maybe. They have information, in any case. They're your best bet."

Dick sighed, not quite sure why he was bothering to ask, but asking anyway, "And where exactly can I find this 'King and Queen'?"

Cheshire stopped just out of arm's reach of Dick. "Why, they're there, of course. Were you not listening?"

Biting down his rage, Dick turned around and continued walking down the right path. "Whatever. I'm leaving."

"Dick, one thing, before you leave?"

Dick looked over his shoulder with a scowl. "What?"

Cheshire stared for a few seconds before lacing his hands behind him and rocking on his heels. "Just wanted to say, 'Welcome to Wonderland'."

And there's chapter 1! Yay! I'm hoping to upload this story at a quick pace, as I'll be going to live in England for a month at the end of June and, while I'll have internet access, I'd still rather wrap things up before I left. But we shall see! =)
Is anyone going to Comic-Con in Philly this weekend? I'll be there Saturday, sadly out of costume. But if anyone will be there, let me know and I'll uh, idk...describe my normal clothes for you in the hopes that you'll spot me and come say hello, haha.