Stand Together

This fic is dedicated to my dear fellow writer Silver Spider, whose amazing fics deserves a read. I wanted to give her a gift fic of a single scene and it turned into a longer story. Everything is AU from Failsafe and will explore the dynamics of the team to a dangerous new enemy, and the idea of families sending their kids off to fight. What if they change their mind? And the Light's mole is going to be exposed in a dangerous new way.

The right thing to guide us

Is right here, inside us

No one can divide us

When the light is leading on

But just like a heart beat

The drumbeat carries on

-Nickelback

Barry had always planned to stay a bachelor. He had always planned to live an easy, boring comfortable life helping people as a criminologist. He had never planned for children, knowing that the worry and responsibility would be far more than he could ever handle.

And yet, he found himself a newly wed Superhero who regarded his nephew and protégé as the son he never thought he wanted. He knew that Wally belonged to Mary and Rudy, and he respected that. He just knew that Wally was a bright kid who needed as much adult supervision as possible and he was grateful to be given that honor.

He hadn't even wanted Wally as his apprentice. He had known it would be too dangerous and had pleaded with the kid to just stay in school and save the world through that magnificent mind for science. Well, the magnificent mind for science managed to wind up in the hospital in intensive care recreating the Flash experiment.

Barry had been sick with worry at the bedside, hoping that the burns would heal and the bones would mend and the smile would return to Wally's pale face. He had been apoplectic when his nephew opened his eyes, and whispered "I did it," in a morphine soaked tone of triumph.

He had done it, all right. Barry had been torn between locking the kid up in some secure facility and hugging him tightly. He settled on the latter and took the kid as his apprentice, for fear of what super powered and genius in the hands of a hyperactive child could wreck.

Wally had risen to the occasion with enormous distinction, becoming a great hero in his own right. Barry had been furious when Wally had gone against orders, but proud of him and Robin for helping to form the Black Ops team. He was confident Wally would someday become one of the greatest forces for good. This was for the benefit of everyone.

Yet, at this moment, he was terrified of what he had done. It had been a silly training exercise. No one was supposed to get hurt. Batman had assured him that Wally could handle it.

He clenched his fist. The boy had been tortured, forced to watch everyone he love be vaporized. Barry couldn't imagine the terror of seeing his friends, his family and his mentor be destroyed, and know he could do nothing to save them. Worse, Wally and his best friend then had to walk into a suicide mission, knowing they would die without saying goodbye, knowing that they would die as children.

Wally hadn't spoken much since he had woken up. Barry had been terrified himself to see his nephew's eyes filled with a barely concealed rage, a darkness that shouldn't have been there. He stared off into the darkness, lost in his own thoughts.

It had been horrible to watch the agony on Wally's face as people died before his eyes. What was worse was that even when the nightmare was over, it was more of a premonition that a cautionary tale. They were risking their lives, fighting solid sociopaths and super powered psychopaths. The chances of losing life and limb were very high.

The room cleared as everyone else left for their homes. "You look exhausted. Want to spend the night here?" Barry asked, not sure if taking him to the West home would be safe. Wally seemed extremely volatile and even Mary couldn't handle her son like this.

"I don't care," Wally hissed in a dark tone. "Just leave me alone." It was a chilling voice that should have belonged to a villain.

"I'm your uncle. I'm supposed to be annoying and make you come to dinner and go to bed on time," Barry teased, watching his nephew's stiff posture. He had a feeling he knew what would happen next.

"Leave me alone!" Wally snapped, leaping to his feet and throwing a bad haymaker at his mentor. "Just go!"

Barry easily ducked and pinned his nephew's arms to his side. "What's going on?" he asked. The blow would have hurt less. "Everything is fine. Artemis is safe. I am safe. You are alive."

Wally glared at him, struggling valiantly but completely helpless. "You wouldn't understand!" he shouted. "Just go away, I don't need you!"

Barry nodded. He deserved the resentment. He deserved far worse. "You're scared. I know, you feel completely under siege and you don't know what to do with the anger. We'll work through it, together."

Wally twisted away and Barry was suddenly grateful the kid was still growing into his powers. A blow from him could be devastating to someone without super powers, but right now, he was easy to handle for a Superhero. "I don't need you! Just go, please!"

"I'm sorry you thought I abandoned you. Losing you is my worst nightmare. Putting you through it was terrible and I will never forgive myself for it," he soothed, pulling his angry little protégé to his chest and squeezing him. "I'm so sorry."

Wally struggled only a moment more before he collapsed, choking on sobs. "I'm scared," he said in a voice far younger than his years. "I can't do it."

"What scares you?" Barry urged, grateful that the anger stopped and the bitterness was oozing out of the mental wound. "You can tell me."

"I may have to lose my teammates, my mentors, my friends. I can't save Aunt Iris or Mom and Dad because I have to be responsible for the world. I'm what stands between Armageddon," Wally choked, trying to hold out his arms unconsciously as he tried to shoulder the world. "I can't do it. I'm scared to die."

Barry hugged him close; miserable at how slight Wally seemed even in uniform. He was a boy, barely a teenager and full of hopes and dreams for a future that he slowly realized had been sacrificed for the greater good. "I won't let you stand alone, Wally. I swear to you…you and I will walk this path together." He could feel his nephew's exhaustion and for once, dignity could be forgotten.

"All that anger…I never wanted to kill before," Wally whispered, still in tears. "I wanted to rip their heads off. I'm not a bad person…but I wanted to be." That anger had unleashed a lot in his nephew, more than could be dealt with.

"Everyone would feel that way," Barry soothed. "You did me proud. We'll discuss it in the morning." He gently eased his nephew to lean him on him, as he half walked, half carried him into the Zeta beam where he could just be a child again for a little while. He kept his arm around his nephew, trying to comfort him as best he could.

Deep in his heart, Barry knew he wished he could leave the boy home until he turned twenty-one. "You need to rest. I'm taking you home." Wally needed to be home.


That night, Barry and Iris had slept over. There was no happy family dinner, no cheery conversation and jokes. Tonight, they were all there to make sure one young boy would be all right.

Wally's parents sat at his bedside; standing guard against evil they had no chance of fighting. Iris hovered at the door, trying to hide her tears. Tonight, their little hero would be protected. The four of them were quietly determined to take on the world to give Wally some rest.

Barry had taken every step to make sure the trauma was kept under control. The sedative would make sure Wally wouldn't hurt anyone in his sleep. It didn't stop the nightmares that made him sob in his sleep, pleading for mercy, terrified of losing everyone, resigned to dying. It was agony to endure. Barry forced himself to watch every second, self-flagellating himself with it as he held his nephew's trembling hand. "Mommy," Wally whimpered, as he gently thrashed around.

Mary looked up at Barry with wet eyes, looking so gray and tired. "We trust you, Barry. We trust you with Iris's happiness. We trust you with our son's life. We trust you with everything that gives life meaning, with the happiness of the entire family," she said in a firm tone as she wiped her son's sweaty head. "We can't lose him." She had nearly died having him and as strict as she was, she loved Wally fiercely.

Barry had taken blows from super villains that hurt less. "I'm sorry," he said, cursing the day he had taken Wally as his apprentice. He didn't have a right to steal his nephew's childhood. "I don't expect your forgiveness, and I don't deserve it. I'm so sorry." He hated himself right now. Iris twinned her hand into his and squeezed it, trying to comfort him. It didn't work.

"It's not your fault," Rudy said with a deep sigh. His voice was thick with unshed tears. "Wally made his choice against your wishes. Blaming yourself won't turn back the past. I know he's been called for a higher purpose. I just need to know…do you think he can handle this? Because I'm starting to have my doubts."

Barry nodded, and hoped he was sure. "Wally faced his worst demons today. But he was strong and brave and noble and everything we are proud of. He can handle this, because he has us. We're going to see him through." He had a bad feeling about this conversation.

"He's fifteen," Mary said, as she shared a long look with her husband. "He should be enjoying his childhood, not worrying about taking on the world."

Wally gripped his hand tighter and opened his eyes. "I," he whispered, his voice hoarse as he tried to talk through his sobs before falling back into sleep. "Hero."

Barry was never more proud…or more frightened. He could only nod and hope he could be the hero the world and his nephew needed. "Sleep, kid. We'll talk in the morning."

"Yes…we will," Mary said, a sad look on her face. "We have a lot to talk about." This really did not sound good.

AN-Wally's parents are having second thoughts about this hero business. Next chapter, a big choice is made and Dick reveals an enormous secret to Batman, something he has kept to himself for far too long and really needs to get off his chest.