A/N: So this chapter is pretty intense. I decided they should start acting like actual heroes now. Also, I'm not really sure if this AU includes the whole Batman thing. For now, I'll just be vague.

Dick watched the stars, sitting outside the cave. The beasts had tried to make him a nest, but the ground had still been too hard to be comfortable. It had been a crazy couple of days, and he was too excited by everything he'd seen.

Things had finally slowed down enough for him to think things through. He needed to see Mallah and Morrow again, to understand, to convince them that he wasn't a threat. He had already concocted a plan; a plan to feign amnesia the day before the boat came. Once he was home, Bruce would know what to do.

Bruce… What was his guardian doing right now? Searching for him? Maybe even leading the search party himself.

Dick closed his eyes. He wished he hadn't yelled at him. He'd been acting like such a brat; complaining about Hawaii, about how he wanted to go back to Gotham, about how boring life had been. Bruce had been so patient, deciding to send him on a brief excursion to a little volcanic island, letting him go alone with a well paid crew. Dick clenched his fist. He'd played cards with those men, and then they were gone. It was his fault.

The screaming woke him from his reverie. It was distant, back towards the house. He wondered what kind of animal was making the noise; the lab had been dark but he'd made out the stripes. A zebra maybe?

"Do you hear it, too?" Dick jolted as the leopard, Wally, slid up beside him. He sat crouched, his tail twitching. "It starts before dawn every morning… The Brain is creating someone."

Dick turned his gaze back to the jungle. "The House of Pain, you call it?"

"Yes. The Brain says that there can be no creation without suffering."

Dick hesitated, and then murmured, "I saw it… her. The new one. It has stripes, like a zebra or a tiger."

Wally's eyes widened. "A zebra… that's a horse? And a tiger…" He whipped his head around. "A cat, like me!"

There was suddenly a very loud scream, and then silence. Dick shuddered as Wally stood up. "No… No, a cat, like me… No…"

The scream resumed after a moment, softer now. Dick stood beside the leopard. "Enough of this."

Wally glanced sideways at him. "Dick?"

"We're going in there. We're getting her out."

Wally's eyes widened. "That's… that's against the law."

"I didn't hear Kaldur say that."

"It's the House of Pain, though, we… we can't."

Dick turned and glared into the leopard's green eyes. "What is the first thing you remember, Wally? Darkness? Screaming?"

Wally slowly looked down. "Pain."

"What do you want to do?"

"The Want is bad-"

"What do you want, Wally?"

He suddenly straightened up, making eye contact with Dick. "I want the pain to go away."

Dick nodded. "Come on; I have a plan."

BREAK

Morrow removed his goggles. "That's enough for today; the wounds will heal soon and we can put her with the others." He leaned down over the tigress, smiling to himself. "Is she not beautiful, Mallah? So nearly human… I always start with the face; it's more comforting."

Mallah nodded. "She is the most successful by far, Monsieur."

The tigress breathed heavily, a slight snarl underlying each exhale.

Morrow smirked as he hung up the lab coat. He glanced back, sensing that something was amiss.

Dick stood behind them, outside the shed. His blue eyes stared back at them and he looked frail. "Doctor… I saw your… creations." He bowed his head. "I understand now; they explained it to me. They took me into their cave and taught me the law…" He paused. "I was coming back and I saw… something. There was a rustling in the bushes and then… I found a rabbit. A dead rabbit…"

Morrow nodded compassionately. "They know the law. Come, Mallah, zere is justice to be served."

Mallah glanced behind as Dick led Morrow towards the forest. He sniffed, and then slowly followed.

Wally waited behind the shed until they had disappeared. He crept out, peeking inside the door.

The smell of blood assaulted his nose. He winced, squeezing his eyes shut, as bad memories flooded his mind. Wally shook his head, exhaling as he stepped inside. He ignored the stench as he approached the table and the creature laying there.

The female was definitely catlike; tiger stripes covered her lithe form, weakened by lack of food. There were no open wounds; everything had been sewn together. Her breathing was steady, and as he looked on her face, her eyes opened.

Wally froze, afraid. Her stormy grey eyes were almost human, and that terrified him. She opened her mouth to speak, but only a croak came out. He leaned down, murmuring, "Don't talk, don't…" He didn't know what to do. All he could think about was the stench of blood burning in his nostrils. Wally wrapped his arms around her, lifting her off the table.

She hissed and snarled, weakly swiping her claws across his arms and shoulders. She left light scratches though, and he picked her up with ease.

She had long blonde hair, matching her thin fur. It was pulled back in a ponytail. Wally stared at it, incredulous. The rest of them had hair, of course, but none as long as this. Not even Megan…

She moaned softly; he muttered, "Shh… We're leaving." He stepped outside. taking a deep breath of the fresh air. She wheezed against him. Wally looked down at her, and then back up.

Mallah stood at the edge of the forest, leering. "Where do you think you are going, little cat?"

Wally panicked; he darted forward, charging Mallah. The ape spread his legs and braced himself, ready to grab the leopard. At the last second, Wally twisted to the side, skidding past Mallah. He set down the tigress, who growled in response as she landed in the brush. Wally turned as Mallah whipped around. The leopard darted out of the way as Mallah tried to grab him.

Mallah snarled and snatched the leopard's leg. Wally yelped as the ape held him upside down. "I could smell you from the trees; you know what the penalty is for breaking the law, little cat."

The tigress growled from the brush. Mallah glanced over long enough for Wally to swipe his claws across Mallah's face. They didn't pierce the skin too deep, but the gorilla was taken off guard. He dropped Wally, who landed on all fours and hissed, "My name is Wally." He darted to the brush, picking up the tigress and carrying her away into the forest.

Mallah roared, taking off after them. He tripped over roots; luxury had made him forget how to travel in the jungle. Wally dove into the crevice; he carried her to the back of the cave, past the other confused creatures.

He slowed as he approached the nest they had created for Dick. Gently, he laid down the tigress, who snarled softly. Megan crept forward, watching the scene. "Wally… What?"

The leopard turned to look at her. "She's new. She needs to heal. She's a cat, like me."

Megan knelt beside the tigress. "She needs water."

Wally darted away to get some from the pool; Gar, the monkey boy, followed Megan in. "She's our new sister?"

"Yes, Gar." Megan looked back at where Wally had been. "But something's wrong."

BREAK

Morrow whipped his head around. "Mallah?"

Dick watched as Morrow turned and started running. For someone who rarely left his lab, he was nimble and lithe as he moved through the forest. Dick followed warily, feigning concern.

Mallah continued to roar until they finally broke into the area around the crevice. Morrow ran up to him, yelling, "Mallah, stop this racket! What is going on?"

The gorilla whirled around, eyes wide and angry. Morrow backed away nervously, murmuring, "Mallah… you are better…"

The ape slowly came down, ceasing his roaring. He grunted, "The leopard took her; he came into the lab and stole her."

Morrow took a deep breath. "Eager, was he?." Morrow shook his head sadly. "Well, I suppose that the law is ze law. He must pay the price."

Dick felt goosebumps on his skin. "So you're going to experiment on him again?"

"I have a new cat; I have no use for ze old one. I must make an example of him."