Here's the Failsafe one! It was fun to write this. Hopefully it didn't mimic what happened in the episode so closely it was annoying. I wanted to do Wally's perspective without making the information seem repetitive.

At first the simulation was cool. I was amazed at how realistic everything was. I could see, hear, feel, even smell. I hadn't tried to taste anything yet, but still, it was incredible. My arm was fixed in this simulation, and my legs didn't hurt. It was nice being able to move everything around without hurting anything.

I watched the goings on around me. It was like a big video game, the ultimate virtual reality. I did wince though as the League started dying. I saw Robin go tense as virtual Batman was destroyed. The images were a little too real at times.

I was more than a little ticked off when they killed my Aunt off. It's just a simulation, why did they have to drag her into it? Batman and J'onn know she's my aunt. Why were they doing this? I wanted to make some sort of comment about things being too overdramatic for a simulation, just to lighten the mood, but I remembered our instructions.

Stay in character, they had told us. These simulations weren't easy, we all had to stay focused on what was going on, not how fake it all was.

I sighed as we suited up for the cold bitter land near The Fortress of Solitude. Superboy was still brooding about Superman, not that I could really blame him. He said that he guessed there was a lot about Superman he'd never know he checked himself saying "uh, you know, now" in order to stay in character with the simulation. It irritated me further that the simulation had led us to yet another thing that shoved the fact that Superman was a horrible 'Dad' into Conner's face. When I got out of here I would be having words with Batman and Manhunter.

The ship came up behind Artemis and aimed at her, firing.

Ah shoot, we were doing so well, I thought just before the beam hit her.

Everything changed. Every single thought left my mind and I felt terror forced into me as if by someone else. The foreign terror became my own and I was screaming her name.

Several horrible moments later my heart felt cold as I pounded the keyboard in front of me, yelling in pain and rage. M'gann was crying and Robin was gone.

He was inside his own head right now, lost, distanced from the world.

Conner was quiet, but not in the usual way. It was a painful silence.

Kaldur was a soldier, he was hurt but he pulled us together, or at least as together as we could be without Artemis.

I wiped away tears as memories of her disintegration flooded through my mind.

Why didn't I save her? Why? I can run across the country in a couple of hours and yet I couldn't push her out of the way? Why didn't I run back for her and carry her in the first place. I'm the fastest. I should have made sure everyone could make it. All she needed was a couple of seconds, just a couple of seconds. Why? Why did I let this happen? How could I do this? She was only fifteen. She was strong and beautiful. It's my fault. I let this happen. It's my entire fault.

We rode in like Calvary on M'gann's Bio-ship. We took out enemies and helped the U.S. military. I almost cried when Kaldur referred to us as Justice League. There was no Barry to back us up, no Batman. No Aunt Iris either come to think of it. So many precious people, gone, were my parents okay? Had they made it?

What about Dad? He can't go out and get his fix with a war going on outside. Would he survive without it? Would he try and get it anyway? What about Artemis's family? Were they okay? Even if they were alive I knew that they wouldn't be okay.

I knew Artemis at least had a mother, she had mentioned her once. How were we supposed find Mrs. Whatever-Artemis's-last-name-was and explain to her that we'd let her baby girl die right in front of us?

We had to move quickly, but we couldn't help but slow our steps as we entered the Justice League headquarters in D.C.

Our footfalls echoed throughout the building as we looked at the ruined statues in front of us.

"They're really gone," Robin sounded stunned, like he was realizing it for the first time. I felt the same way. It was only now truly hitting me. The JLA were gone. Why had this not affected me before? How come this hadn't really upset me until now? I remember seeing them die…yet I had felt nothing. How was that possible? Am I that heartless?

Then M'gann found Martian Manhunter. I looked around, I was excited for a moment, hoping my Uncle would crawl out of the stonework too. Kaldur was skeptical about him but M'gann had some explanation about density shifting. Robin leapt on it, excitedly saying that the ray must've scrambled his brains. I wondered what he was doing under that rock but then it came to me. Maybe that ray had a disorienting effect. Martian Manhunter was confused and me and the team didn't get upset when we saw our mentors die. I felt fine when the cannon aimed at Artemis, I didn't freak out until she was hit. We must have known something; the ray radiation must have confused it out of us. What did we know? I thought for a moment then I remembered the sound and light from the beams and I realized, he was teleported.

I told everyone. I was so excited. Something about Robin's hesitation and the little voice of logic in the back of my head sent of little warning bells, but I ignored every last gong and forced myself to think of seeing my aunt, and uncle, and calling Artemis beautiful like I did in Bialya instead of annoying like I usually do because I'll be so happy to see her.

I was out fighting when the next assault came. I saw the Bio-ship get disintegrated and felt M'gann's pain as it was destroyed.

Huh, maybe the teleportation severed the link? I wondered as I ran towards the building with the others. The fight started up in there as we pulled back.

The fight blew out a wall, a man was screaming. I flinched and moved. He might be crushed…Kaldur threw me into the Zeta tube.

That was the last I saw of him.

It's okay, I thought, he was teleported.

Robin took over after that. He still sounded skeptical of my theory, but he was raised by Batman, of course he was skeptical. The poor kid was probably trying not to get his hopes up too.

I hated the way M'gann yelled at Robin though. She was mad that Robin told Superboy to be the distraction; she accused him of treating him like a sacrifice.

The kid was just doing his best. Robin doesn't think of people as sacrifices, how dare she say that?

Despite the confidence in his voice when he explained his choice, I could tell he was hurt after her comment.

I felt uneasy as I assured Superboy that he would only be teleported. For some reason the words sounded too good to be true. Maybe…No, no, they were teleported. Everything will be okay.

We sent out a message to the people of Earth. I found myself talking about how new heroes would come even if old ones were gone. Why was I saying this? I was talking about the heroes like they were dead, but that couldn't be true.

I shook off my doubts and suited up to take on the mothership. I knew what to do. I heard the mental link go blank for a minute as we waited to strike, though Conner smiled. M'gann had probably told him she loved him.

We waited for Superboy to cause a distraction, he kicked a lot of butt only a few short seconds, I'll give him that. I had pulled Robin as tight to my back as I could and I felt him brace for the inevitable wind sheer that my running cam with. I managed to leap over the gap and onto the ship.

I couldn't hang onto Robin, but he just rolled to his feet and I ran behind him as we moved further in, making sure not to get ahead of him. The aliens outside may only teleport, but who knows what the ones in here do?

We almost got hit, but M'gann and J'onn helped us. We were covering good ground when M'gann collapsed.

I went a little numb, but I knelt down next to her to assure her that though our connection with Conner had vanished, he'd be fine, he was only teleported.

J'onn contradicted me, saying he realized now that the others were dead, not teleported but I grabbed his shirt and yelled at him. Artemis couldn't be dead, and Kaldur, Conner…I hadn't even let myself entertain the idea of their deaths.

Robin grabbed me. "Stop it, KF!" he shouted. I felt the pain in his words as he told me about the lack of results in his scans. I heard the words full of agony. "They're not here." That exact sentence, he didn't want to say the word gone, I knew it. None of us did, but he forced himself to say it anyway, to drive the point home because M'gann, J'onn, and I were all he had and he couldn't have me going AWOL into a land of delusions. And if what he was saying was true…no it is true, then we needed each other.

It hurt to immeasurably lose everyone else on the team, but Robin and I have known each other longer than we have Conner, Kaldur, and Artemis put together. We were close, and with Bruce and Barry gone…neither of us could stand to lose a brother too.

"But our mission still holds purpose, to destroy this mothership," he said an edge in his voice. It was pain turned to raw determination. M'gann forced herself to get up and then moved on following Robin's lead. I turned my sadness into anger and growled as I followed them, ready to break things, hurt aliens, take vengeance for what they had done to us.

When we got to the power-core the emotions were shoved roughly aside adrenaline filled me and I took in every detail of what was going on.

Robin ran towards the core but suddenly braced himself. His cape picked up and he fell, sliding towards the core.

No! I thought and ran towards him, momentarily forgetting that the combined weight of us made for a greater gravitational pull, assuming it was gravity that was pulling us towards the core. We were both gliding through the air when Robin took out his grapple. He grunted with the strain of holding us both in place with one arm and I felt irritated with myself for being a dead weight.

Aliens appeared, but M'gann and J'onn took them out. M'gann lowered us to the core.

We landed and Robin took off what I thought had just been spare weapons but now I realized they were bombs.

"You knew," I told Robin. It hurt that he knew, but I understood that he'd been humoring my theory because he knew I'd break without it. In that moment I was stunned by the boy's strength. I felt like I did when I first met Robin, the boy wonder, the kid that could do amazing things without any powers, someone to be looked up to even though he was younger.

Robin didn't acknowledge my comment, he had to focus, I knew that. If he didn't throw himself into the mission he would break down like I did, only he had too much sense and training to go into denial as I did. Whenever all this caught up to him, it wouldn't be pretty.

He had given us four minutes. In theory that was plenty of time, but theory can bite me because 224 seconds later we were still inside the mothership.

The doors had closed and I said perfect in my sarcastic way because really, with less then twenty seconds inside ticking time bomb, what else could you say?

Robin ordered the Martians to go, claiming we'd blow the doors, but even then I knew he was signing our death warrant. I knew the minute the doors closed. I was just glad he'd thought up a way to save M'gann and J'onn, though I wish he could have saved himself too.

The two left and we watched a few precious seconds tick away. Robin looked at me, his face a little vulnerable.

KF, his face seemed to say.

I know, I communicated silently with a nod.

We pulled out our weapons and did the only thing we could; we went down fighting.

When we woke up I was disoriented, but I saw Artemis, Robin, I saw everyone. We were in the cave with J'onn, Batman, Captain Marvel, and Red Tornado, waking up as if from a nightmare, which made no sense.

The others looked as confused as I was, but they didn't have the ability to think in super speed. I knew before they explained it that the training exercise had gone wrong.

Sweat and possibly tears were pouring down Robin's face. Artemis looked sick. Superboy was clinging to Wolf, taking as much comfort from the dog as the dog did from him. Kaldur looked wary and a little paranoid, not trusting his eyes. M'gann started crying when Batman explained what was going on. All of us were kind of zoned out, trying to keep it together.

It took several minutes before anyone said anything after that. Robin excused himself to use the bathroom and Batman moved to go after him, but just then, a call came in. I couldn't help but feel irritated on Robin's behalf that Batman didn't just have someone else take care of it as he caught up to the kid, but apparently assistance was needed on a crisis in Colorado and Batman couldn't possibly put his son's feelings before the mission for a change. At least he didn't have to leave. Captain Marvel went so that the mentors could be with their protégés. Superboy and J'onn took charge of M'gann, leading her away to the living area to sit her down and get her a glass of water. Wolf followed, his tail was between his legs.

Batman stayed on the line talking to Superman about some villain or another while Kaldur waited patiently off to the side so he could see if Batman was going to give us any instructions.

Artemis was still sitting there, looking worn out and dismayed.

I walked over to her.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yea, I'm fine, just sorry I got myself 'killed' and caused all this."

"It was train for fail," I reassured her. "One of us would have 'died' eventually, in fact, we all did in the end. I'm just glad you're alive and…I'm glad that you didn't have to go through all that," I said softly. She looked at me in surprise at my gentle tone and I patted her shoulder.

She gave me an awkward smile and stood up just as Batman ended the video call. He turned to me, Artemis, and Kaldur

"I'll be calling your mentors to pick you up," said Batman shortly.

"It's okay, I'll just head home," said Artemis, clearly desperate to get out of the cave and back into the world where there were buildings and trees and people, and none of the terrors we'd seen in the simulation.

"It's not open for debate," said Batman.

Translation; the majority of you have just been traumatized. I'm not just going to let you wander off alone.

I was with Artemis, I had no desire to stick around and wait for my Uncle to come and fuss over me, and if he's so worried about our mental health why not go after the kid that vanished over ten minutes ago?

He should just go find Robin and leave us to think before we have to deal with our mentors. I haven't even sorted things out for myself yet.

One minute it was all an exercise the next Artemis was dead, then I thought she was teleported, then I realized I was wrong, then I was fighting for my life, then I was completely sure I would die there with Robin, and now I'm here. Seriously? Disorienting. Completely chaotic.

I must've looked as dazed as I felt because Batman called my mentor first. Flash wasn't able to answer his com though, since he was away working on whatever crisis Captain Marvel had been sent to aid with. Kaldur came and spoke with Artemis while Batman called Green Arrow.

My mind wandered again to my honorary little brother. The idea of Robin, alone, in some unknown part of the cave after experiencing psychological trauma, didn't sit well with me, so I headed over to the doorway that Robin had disappeared through. Batman caught my eye as I was leaving and I nodded at him.

"I've got him," I conveyed silently, trying not to glare at the man who was partly responsible for our pain.

Batman nodded his approval and a miniscule amount of tension left his shoulders as he turned back to the call he was making.

I shook my head and made my way through the hall until I made my way to Robin's room.

I listened at the door, but I didn't hear a sound, which meant nothing. This was Robin after all. I opened the door quickly without knocking. As I said, this was Robin. If he was in there and didn't want to be found, he could easily find some hidden escape route in the room or find a way to hide himself if given enough notice.

I saw Robin sitting on his bed. His hand was on his face covering his eyes; he had clearly heard the door start to open. His other hand was groping for his sunglasses, which were lying way outside of his grabbing distance.

He must be feeling bad if he didn't think to make sure his sunglasses were within immediate reach. I thought.

"Chill, Rob, it's just me," I said softly as I closed the door behind me.

Robin didn't remove his hand from his eyes; instead he drew his knees up to his chest, folded his arms over top of them, and buried his face in the nook he'd created.

I froze up for a second when I realized he had been, scratch that, still was crying. His shoulders were shaking slightly. I've only seen Robin cry twice, ever, one was when he'd inhaled fear gas and the other was when he'd been injured so bad he was half delirious anyway.

I took a quiet breath, trying to think of how to approach the situation and walked over and sat on the bed with my legs folded up like a pretzel, facing him. He didn't look up until I nudged him.

He shifted his posture enough to peek at me with one, slightly red and watery eye.

I held out my arms straight in front of me, my fingers splayed. Robin turned away, wiping his nose on the elbow of his hoodie and sniffling a little. He located his glasses and slipped them on before turning to me and accepting the silent invitation. He wrapped his palms around the inside of my wrists and I wrapped my palms around the inside of his, forming the sort of arm-lock that trapeze artists use.

Robin had done this with me the first and only time he'd seen me truly and completely upset, which was a little over a year ago when my grandma died. When I asked him about it later he confided that it was something his dad used to do with him when he was upset and needed to talk. It was the trapeze artist's version of a bro-hug.

We let our arms rest on the bed between us and looked at each other.

"Whatever is said here stays here," I assured him.

Robin gave me a shaky nod and took a shuddery breath.

"I don't want to talk about it," he mumbled. His cheeks were flushed with the embarrassment of being caught crying.

"You're going to have to at some point," I told him, feeling like a bit of a hypocrite given the fact that I still hadn't told anyone about Dad, but still…

"I'm going to end up talking about this with Batman, you know how he is, he'll want a full 'de-briefing,'" he said bitterly.

"You know he only puts it like that because he's too awkward to just say that he wants you to talk to him about it," I assured him.

"I know, but he just doesn't understand sometimes. Things don't get to him the way they get to me. I wish I could be more like him and just not feel," he said, his voice cracking and full of self-loathing at his own weakness.

I let my eyes meet his and said; "Batman has feelings too, Rob," I told him. Robin already knew this of course but it could be easy to forget that the man was only human. "The thing with him is that he learned how to push them aside very well, but there's a downside to that. You know that; you know it's hard for him to truly let himself feel anything sometimes. It's hard on him the way he does things, and I think that mimicking his coping mechanism of sweeping things under the rug is a really crappy idea."

Wow Wally, you get the award for hypocrite of the day.

Robin sighed and hung his head.

"I'm tried to be like Batman," he whispered. "I sacrificed everything for the sake of the mission. Even Superboy," he sniffled a little.

"You made a sound decision. You took charge when we had no leader and did everything you could to keep us going, and don't dehumanize yourself. You and I both know that you didn't think of Supes as some pawn to be sacrificed.

"But M'gann was right! I did offer him up as a sacrifice!"

"Screw what M'gann thinks she's a rookie," I said angrily. "It was our best and pretty much only option. You did what needed to be done as leader," I said firmly.

"I don't want to be leader then," said Robin, his voice breaking as he choked on tears. I was leader for all of five seconds and I got us all killed!"

"It was train for fail Robin. You could have been freaking Chuck Norris to the seventh power and had a flipping fairy godmother and we still would have had the same outcome. Don't beat yourself up," I told him. "You were stronger then anyone. Who else could have led us through that? Superboy's more of a soldier than a thinker, M'gann was a mess, and I was in Lala land because I couldn't accept what was happening. None of what happened is your fault."

Robin chocked again and withdrew his arms from mine and pulled his knees back up so he could hide again.

Oh, crap, what now? I wondered. I wasn't bad with crying people per-say, but I think anyone would hesitate when dealing with a bat.

I cautiously scooted up next to him and pulled him into a bro-approved side hug.

Robin tensed up and I gave him a small squeeze. He hesitated slightly, then relaxed. I just patted his arm as he tried to make his shoulders stopped shaking. We didn't speak, just sat there. After a bit Robin pulled himself together and sat up properly, wiping tears off his glasses before putting them on again.

"Uh, thanks, KF, but I think I need some time to myself now."

He didn't look at me, but I could read the silent message.

I'm fine now, go away so I can crawl into a hole and stitch together my shattered pride.

"Sure, dude," I said with a smile standing up.

No need to be embarrassed, and I promise we'll never speak of this again to anyone. Was my silent reply.

I left the room and walked down the hall I almost ran into Batman and Flash as they turned a corner, probably looking for me and Rob.

"Is he alright?" Batman asked at the same moment my uncle asked, "Are you okay?"

"He's fine—ish," I said, shooting my Uncle nod and then looking at Batman.

My Uncle put a hand on my shoulder and Batman sighed.

"I never meant it to go this far,"

"Yeah, because what happened before Artemis died didn't screw with our minds at all," I hissed. I felt the irritation I'd felt at the beginning of the simulation spark up again, turning into an angry blaze.

My Uncle looked startled and Batman's eyes narrowed.

"Seriously, what were you thinking? Why did we have to watch you all die, oh scratch that, Aqualad didn't have to watch his mentor die on those stupid display screens. Why did you have to single yourself out? Did you seriously have to dramatize your death in front of Robin?"

"Kid, calm down," my Uncle said trying to soothe me.

"And why did you drag my Aunt Iris into it?" I yelled ignoring him. I felt my uncle go still and I plowed on wanting to cause Batman as much grief as possible for the moment. Really, I wanna know. What was with that stupid little skit you put on with Flash and Zatara. Why did you have my Aunt watch him die dramatically. Why?"

I was shouting now.

"Why did you bring up Superman's fortress of Solitude, why did you make people mistake Superboy for Superman? Do you know how much that bothered him? Why did you show us all that crap, make us watch. You think we haven't seen worse? You think we need those images burned into our nightmares on top of people screaming, and kids dying, and all the other crap we've seen?" I bellowed.

No one moved. I don't think Batman's seen me this angry before, I don't think anyone has.

It was quiet. "I wanted you all to be prepared for what might happen in a worst case scenar—"

"You think I don't know what might happen? That all of us don't know that one day you and the other JLA members might go on a mission and not come back, that I don't know that my aunt has to rush into danger instead of out of it just to make some stupid headline for an idiotic paper? You don't know anything!" I ranted.

There was a long pause as I glared at Batman.

"I'm sorry," said the man quietly.

Batman never apologized, but no, this was Bruce. He'd put Batman away finally. I was glad, because what Robin really needed right now was Bruce.

"Robin's in his room," was all I said, and I turned and walked away.

I heard my Uncle zip after me and felt a hand on my arm.

"Kid are you?—"

"I want my Mom," I said stiffly pulling out of his grip. I was thoroughly worn out and I wasn't in the mood to talk to someone I've been lying to the past few days. I wanted my parents. People who had no idea what I was going through and therefore left me alone when I asked to be left alone. I wanted to go home, because only hours ago I was sure my dad was going to die because he hadn't gotten his drug fix due to the war.

"Oh," said my Uncle. He sounded surprised and slightly hurt. It was never "I want my Mom" before when I was hurting over the years, it was always "I want my Uncle," or "I want Flash." I could tell he was confused.

"Did I…do something to upset you kid?" asked my Uncle worriedly.

"No," I said with a sigh.

"I just…need to see them. I was wondering if they'd died all through the simulation and now I…I just need to see them."

"Okay, kid, but if you need to talk tonight, call me. It doesn't matter what time it is, okay?"

I nodded and we both made our way to the exit.

When I got home Flash briefly explained what had happened to my Mom. She gave me a hug and made me dinner. Things were okay.

Dad had woken up and he had cleaned up and he was extra nice to me. After what I'd just seen I wasn't too picky about my Dad's habit at the moment I was just glad to se him and Mom alive. Things were okay.

We watched a movie together, it was funny, we laughed a lot. We were having a good time and when Uncle Barry called to check on me she told him cheerfully that things were okay.

We had some ice-cream from the freezer and I was feeling calm by then. I didn't notice the time. Or the fact that the sun was setting. I didn't notice how many hours had gone by because for that moment Things were okay.

Then the time came for Dad to leave. Mom insisted that she go with him and that I stay behind. That was not okay.

So I followed them in stealth mode of my Kid Flash costume because my legs were feeling better. I watched the drug deal go down, watch my dad get in the gun wielding drug dealer's face because he didn't agree with the price. The drug dealer's eyes fell on my mom who was waiting in the car and he leered that was not okay.

I saw him whisper something to my dad after than and saw my Dad go pale and hand him the money. The dealer laughed and gave him the drugs, which was not okay.

I followed them out of the neighborhood and then sped up so I could beat them home. When I heard them pull up Dad was shouting and stumbling around half crazed. He pushed Mom down onto the lawn which was really not okay.

So I ran out there and he tried to punch me, so I twisted his arm behind his back and marched him inside. He tried to punch me when I let him go. I dodged and he got so mad he spun around and hit mom. Not. Okay.

I punched him in the jaw and he went down hard, knocked out cold. My mom screamed and checked him. He was fine but you'd think I'd shattered his jaw the way she screamed at me.

He woke up five minutes later. I think he forgot what had happened because he turned on the television, demanded a beer, and drank himself to sleep.

"What were you thinking?"

"He hit you!"

"He can't help himself!"

"He still hit you!"

"You didn't have to punch him!"

"It worked didn't it?"

"Go to your room, you are grounded!"

"But, Mom—"

"No!"

I went to my room and laid down.

Another night. He hit her again to night, and who knows what that drug dealer threatened to do if Dad didn't pay up. Those are the kind of scum that killed Dick's parents. I am not about to let mine die the same way. My parents may not swing on a trapeze but there are plenty of other accidents that they could have on the way home some dark night.

But what do I do, how do I fix it, there has to be a way I can do better, how can I do better?

Batman's voice flashed "it was a train for fail exercise. No matter what the team accomplished the scenario was designed to grow worse."

"It was train for fail Robin. You could have been freaking Chuck Norris to the seventh power and had a flipping fairy godmother and we still would have had the same outcome. Don't beat yourself up," I had told him.

"No," I whispered at the ceiling.

"Kid, whoever this is, he needs help. You can't just let people who are on this stuff run around, they're a danger to everyone, including themselves," Robin had told me.

I put my face in my hands. I had to tell. There were no other options. It was like the simulation. No matter what I did I would lose. I needed help. I needed someone who wasn't too involved. I couldn't get Uncle Barry, I needed someone unconnected to the situation. I needed someone who could give me advice good, unbiased advice. Dad wouldn't go willingly into rehab; he'd need to be sent there by the court. I'd have to turn him in and if that happened he'd need a lawyer, a good one. Lawyers cost money though, which we didn't have…

I needed a hero. One who stayed stoic and unflinching, ne that wouldn't fuss over me, that would just tell me what I needed to do to deal with things. Helpful, but detached, subtle, able to keep a secret.

Stoic…Detached…Secretive

I stood up and turned towards the door. The next thing I knew I was in my costume and running. Out of the city, across states. It took time and cost me fuel, but I moved as fast as I could. I felt a sense of panic.

What if he's not there?" I asked myself.

Rob a bank and if that doesn't get his attention egg his secret lair, then he'll come kill you. Said an unhelpful voice in the back of my mind.

I shook my head and zipped into Gotham and ran up the side of a building. I tried to cover ground but there seemed to be a crime on every block tonight.

After tying up a third band of thugs I climbed onto a roof and felt a chill run up my spine. I turned around and Batman was there.

I opened my mouth to speak but checked myself, looking around to see that he was alone.

"Where's Robin?" I asked.

"I kept him home tonight, he is not up for visitors," he said coldly.

I sighed in relief.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you," I said nervously.

"If this is about the training exercise…"

"What?" I asked genuinely confused. "What training ex—Oh! That one."

"You forgot, after all the fuss you made earlier?" challenged Batman.

"I've got bigger problems, that's why I came here, I needed advice."

"Why not go to your Uncle?"

Man this is like pulling teeth.

"I promised I wouldn't, actually I promised I wouldn't tell anyone at all but something has to be done and I figure the least I can do is keep my dad's sister from finding out...you, you can't tell my uncle, okay?"

Batman looked at me. "I won't say anything unless he needs to know," said Batman bluntly.

I stared at him, and then panicked.

I can't do it, he'll tell.

"You know what? It's fine, I mean, I can't go running to the adults for every little problem, I'll work it out. Sorry for wasting your time."

I backed away and turned around, but a hand caught my shoulder.

"Wally" I heard a voice say gruffly.

I didn't turn around.

There was a sigh.

"Look at me, Wally" the voice that said this was different.

I turned around. Batman still had his cowl on, but something made me realize that I wasn't talking to Batman at the moment. He was frowning, in what looked like concern. The person that was standing there with a hand on my shoulder was not our harsh mission advisor that I had been mad at earlier, but the adoptive father of my best friend. The man who would actually smile every once in a while, the man who would come over to my Uncle's house for dinner with Richard when he had a business meeting in Central City, the man who would chuckle at me and Richard's antics.

"What's wrong?" he asked. It was a father's voice, and though I wasn't able to admit it to myself just then. I really needed a father right then, even if he wasn't mine…scratch that, especially if he wasn't mine. It hurt me to have to keep things a secret from my dad and Uncle Barry, but Mr. Wayne wasn't directly involved, Mr. Wayne wouldn't be as biased…

I took a breath and told him everything.