Okay, in this chapter, I decided to be cute and put in two references to sixties TV. I'm sorry, I must have been really tired. One of them is slightly more obvious than the other... I'll tell you what they are next chapter. Any and all guesses are welcome. Once again, I apologize for my stupidity... but it was too easy... :)
Broken Glass
Chapter Ten: More Problems
That had to be it, Aqualad decided. There, right on the beach, were a bunch of strong, burly men setting up big colorful tents. A small fleet of trailers was nearby, one of them with the bright, intricate orange words 'Haly's Circus' printed boldly on the side.
Yup, this was definitely the place. And it wasn't hard to believe that Dick had been born here; his colorful Robin costume and his acrobatic abilities were obviously reminders of his circus days. Besides, the circus was so lively and colorful.
Just like Robin used to be.
Aqualad sighed a little. Why was he doing this? He didn't even believe Robin had a stupid eating disorder. So what the heck was he doing here?
Because Kid Flash is your friend and he asked for a favor. And you were too much of a sucker to refuse him!
The black-haired teen slowly pulled himself out of the water and headed over to the trailer with 'Haly's Circus' written on it. He got several odd looks as he passed by the various circus performers. But then again, Aqualad felt like giving them some pretty weird looks himself.
He gently knocked on the door of the trailer. A man's voice called "Come in!" and Aqualad did so.
The trailer was even smaller on the inside than it had appeared from the outside. It was quite cluttered, and the only lighting came from an unornamented light bulb hanging from the ceiling and from the sunshine that flooded through the window. A fold-away bed was to the left, bookshelves were nearly everywhere, and there was a small desk set up in the middle of the room. Behind the desk sat a portly man of about fifty years of age, who looked understandably surprised to see a superhero standing in his trailer.
"Aqualad," was all he said.
"Yes. We must talk."
As Aqualad approached him, Haly inquired, "We haven't been disturbing the underwater life, have we?"
"No, I am not here to talk about that."
Why does everyone automatically assume I'm going to lecture them about fish?
"I am working on a case in Gotham City with the Titans—you have heard of the Teen Titans, right?"
Haly nodded, still staring at him.
"And, to the best of my knowledge, you had a trapeze act called the Flying Graysons a few years ago, did you not?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Aqualad realized that that was the wrong thing to say. The Graysons had probably been good friends with this Pop Haly; bringing up their murders like that was tactlessness bordering on Speedy proportions.
Haly closed his eyes and said nothing for a moment, unhappy about being reminded of that black day. This just made Aqualad feel worse.
Finally, the man opened his eyes and said, "Yes, we did. They were murdered during a charity performance in Gotham City. What about it?"
"You wouldn't happen to recall the name of their physician, would you? I have an urgent need to see the Graysons' medical records."
"…Of course, Aqualad. Haly's Circus has its own doctor who travels with us and is specially trained to handle any emergencies that come up in our… unique environment. I'll just get him for you…"
"Thank you."
As Aqualad waited for Haly to return with the doctor, he took another look around the cramped trailer. It was a far cry from the lavish Wayne Manor but certainly seemed more 'homey' than Dick's current residence. Why anyone would want to leave the circus was beyond him; it seemed like a nice place.
Then again, Dick hadn't had a choice in the matter.
Before Aqualad could ponder the matter further, the door to the trailer opened again. Pop Haly had returned, and with him was a tall man with reddish-brown hair.
"Aqualad, this is Dr. Clayton Harris. Clayton, I'm sure you've heard of Aqualad—Aquaman's sidekick? He says he's working on a case for the Teen Titans."
Man and boy cordially shook hands before the former handed over a manila folder. Aqualad made note of how thick it was, indicating that the Graysons had a long history with this Haly's Circus. Hopefully, this folder would provide the answers that Kid Flash wanted.
Sitting down at Haly's desk, Aqualad promptly started flipping through the pages. Well, there was Dick's, right on top. The last Grayson. Then John and Mary's—those must have been his parents, as they both came right before Dick's and were listed as 'Status: deceased. Cause: Fell from trapeze'. And in the little doctor's notes at the bottom, it mentioned that they had fallen because some man named Zucco had loosened the ropes.
Right after those three files came one for an Amanda Grayson. She, too, had been a trapeze artist.
It must be the family profession, Aqualad thought. Then, something at the bottom of the document caught his eye:
Status: Deceased
Cause: Cardiac Arrest
Doctor's Notes: Cardiac arrest was probably brought on by anorexia nervosa. Judging by the testaments of friends and family, we now believe that Amanda struggled with the disease for over forty years.
Aqualad's eyes widened in horror.
No… just because Dick's grandmother had had an eating disorder hardly meant that Dick would…
Or would he?
Spotting an instamatic camera on the edge of the desk, Aqualad asked Haly if he could borrow it for a moment. Upon receiving an okay, he quickly took a couple of photos of Amanda's medical record, making sure he got an especially clear picture of the doctor's notes.
Then he left, wondering…
Is he, or isn't he?
---
"So did you find anything?"
Aqualad sighed inwardly. Not a 'hello', not a greeting of any sort from his fellow Titan. Just a demand.
"Yes," he answered nonetheless.
"Well?!"
Silently, Aqualad handed over the photos he had taken of the health records. Kid Flash grabbed them eagerly and examined them with interest.
"His grandmother!" Kid Flash cried out triumphantly. "His grandmother was anorexic! There, you see? Now we know that somebody else in his family had an ED, which substantially increases Dick's chances of developing it himself!"
"You have not finished reading it, have you?"
Kid Flash blinked at Aqualad, and then turned back to the photos in his hand.
"She died of cardiac arrest. So?"
"It means her disorder was severe enough to fatally weaken her heart," Aqualad concluded in a low tone. "If you are correct about Robin, then he could be in the same danger."
Quickly sobering up, Kid Flash said quietly, "Yeah. Yeah, I know."
Slowly, almost uncertainly, Aqualad stepped forward to place a hand on the other boy's slumped shoulder.
"If you need anything else… I will be happy to help you."
Kid Flash nodded. He didn't bother to look up as Aqualad left the Tower.
Of course he had known about the potentially-fatal complications of anorexia and the other eating disorders. But hearing it voiced aloud was enough to put that extra sense of urgency back into the case.
---
After his meeting with Aqualad in the Tower, Wally went straight back to his aunt and uncle's home in Central City. Meeting nobody on the way in, the boy headed up to his room unnoticed.
As soon as he closed his bedroom door, Wally pulled the pictures of the Graysons' medical history out of his shirt. Then he fell to his knees and pulled the shoe box out from under his bed.
He opened the box and placed the photos gently on top of the report and the notes he'd been making about his friend.
Now that he thought about it, this was probably not the best way to be handling the possibility of Dick having an eating disorder. He should have confronted Dick himself with his suspicions. Or, at the very least, he should have told Uncle Barry or Aunt Iris or somebody else and had them talk with the guy. He probably should not be snooping around behind his back; that could only cause an angrier reaction from Dick later on when—and if—he got around to speaking to him.
But Wally was a Teen Titan. When he saw something suspicious, he investigated. It was in his nature.
But it was still no excuse.
Well, too late now. Besides, if Dick wouldn't listen to anything else, he'd listen to hard cold evidence.
Maybe.
---
Dick stood silently by the window, watching the rain. Bruce was right behind him, going over something or other, but Dick would bet that the man had no idea he wasn't alone in the room. Bruce could get so absorbed in his work that it was just insane.
Then again, Dick was pretty absorbed himself at the moment. He was busy trying to think of a new excuse for not eating the meat in his dinner. He couldn't eat that stuff—it just wasn't safe. But Bruce and Alfred didn't see it that way, so Dick would have to keep thinking of new excuses to avoid the fatty foods.
Of course, lying to those two and getting away with it was no easy task.
That's just because you're a weakling, Dick had been told. And he believed it. It was true, wasn't it? How else could he explain the incident with the Joker and every other time he'd allowed himself to be kidnapped or injured? He was nothing but a liability to the Titans and to Batman, why he had even been allowed to become such an important man's partner was beyond him…
Alright, already, will you just stop it?
Dick had meant for the sentence to be an order, but it came off as begging instead—and boy did they know it. Dick may have been an ace crime-fighter, but even he was no match for them.
Listen to you, begging for mercy… can't take a few insults, huh? How pathetic…
I know! You've told me that!
Just reminding you… making sure you don't forget what a worthless waste of space you are… Because you are forgetful, you know… no, you're just too lazy to try to remember things…
Dick put his hands over his ears, trying to block out the unbearable Voices, but the insults just kept coming.
…Forgetful, lazy, stupid, ugly…
Stop it, STOP it!
…Useless, and let's not forget fat, MOST of all…
"Stop it! Stop it!"
---
"Stop it! Stop it!"
Bruce's head jerked up at the sound of Dick's screams. He hadn't even known that the boy was in the room, let alone that he was in pain.
But… he didn't look like anything was wrong with him…
"Dick…?"
But Dick continued to yell at his unseen tormentor. Bruce leapt up from his chair and went over to the boy, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him a little.
"Dick, what is it?"
"Stop it! Just stop it!"
"Richard!"
"Just… stop… I…"
Dick stood there panting as if he had just woken up from a nightmare. Bruce watched as the boy glanced around with a disconcerted look in his eyes.
"Bruce?" he whispered questioningly.
"You alright, kid?"
"Yeah… yeah, I'm fine."
"You sounded like you were in pain."
"I'm fine, Bruce."
The man inwardly raised an eyebrow at the sudden, definite edge in Dick's voice. Clearly, he didn't want to discuss the incident.
"Alright then," Bruce said. "Why don't you go upstairs and finish your homework?"
Dick nodded, still looking vaguely confused.
He could feel Bruce's eyes burning a hole in his back as he turned to leave. He knew Bruce was wondering what had happened to him back there and, in truth, Dick was wondering the same thing.
---
Dick refused to go out on patrol with his mentor that night, instead choosing to focus on his homework.
Had Bruce known that his ward would be spending nearly five solid hours on his schoolwork, he probably would have forced the boy to come with him.
But as it was, Bruce went out alone and left Dick in his room to complete his assignments. When Bruce came back at about five the next morning, he found Dick asleep at his desk, his head buried in his arms. He almost let the boy sit there for the rest of the night, but eventually decided to pick him up and carry him the few feet to his bed.
It proved to be a mistake.
As Bruce gently held the boy in his arms, Dick stirred and lazily opened his eyes. He blinked a bit to focus before asking softly, "What's going on?"
"You fell asleep doing your homework. I didn't mean to wake you," Bruce explained.
"…Homework?" Dick mumbled drowsily, uncomprehendingly.
"Don't worry about it."
Bruce carefully placed Dick in his bed and moved to pull the covers up over the sleepy teenager.
Dick's eyes started to close again, seemingly of their own accord. Just before drifting off, he managed to mumble, "What time is it?"
"Five in the morning. Now go back to sleep."
"'Kay… Five in the morning?!"
Suddenly wide awake, Dick sat bolt-upright and tried to leap out of bed.
"Hey, slow down there, Boy Wonder! Just where do you think you're going?"
"Well downstairs, duh! I always wake up at five to start my morning work-out…"
"Not today, you don't," Bruce countered. As Dick opened his mouth to protest, Bruce held up a hand and went on, "You were obviously up pretty late doing homework, and you should get at least a couple hours of rest before getting up to go to school."
"But—!"
"Don't even try it, Dick. And no more late nights, understand?"
Seeing that there was no point in going against one of Bruce's orders, Dick grudgingly nodded.
Thirty minutes later, Bruce was awakened from a sound slumber by Alfred's gentle shaking and whispered calls.
"What…? Alfred, what is it?" Bruce asked, instantly becoming alert.
"I'm sorry to wake you, sir, but…"
"Well? What is it?"
"It's Master Dick," the butler admitted. "He's in the gym working out on the pommel horse, and he simply refuses to go back to sleep."
Bruce muttered a curse under his breath and threw on his robe. Alfred watched his oldest charge storm from the room, undoubtedly about to give Dick the lecture of a lifetime.
I suppose I had better keep an eye on those two to make sure things don't get out of hand… he mused.
So he followed Bruce downstairs. By the time he reached the first floor, he could already hear Bruce and Dick beginning yet another fight.
"…Did I or did I not tell you to go straight to bed and that you wouldn't be working out this morning?" Bruce's angry voice drifted down the hall.
"You did, but—"
"Then why are you down here?"
"Because I'm always down here at this time, and you know that I've always had trouble on pommel horse—"
"That doesn't excuse you from disobeying a direct order!"
"Well maybe if you'd let me finish a sentence every once in a while I could explain!"
"So explain!"
"Forget it!"
Alfred had just arrived at the gym door when Dick strode briskly past him, not noticing his presence.
Meanwhile, Bruce was exiting the gym through another door, muttering to himself, "I don't know what's gotten into that boy lately…!"
"So much for keeping an eye on things," Alfred sighed to himself.
Okay, people, there's your weekly dose. Enjoy! Me, I gotta get the replies in order...
Reviewer Replies
caltha-We'll find out part of the reasons why much, much later (it's a long story, refused to end...). And other people will begin to notice in future chapters as well, so don't worry!
JLAfan-Ooh, spooky coincidence! LOL :)
ShockMePeter-(cough) Well... it's a good thing I'm not dealing with that problem in this story, then, isn't it?
CrazyInsomaniac-Yeah, denial. That's Bruce all over. And awww, Wally isn't a dumbo! He's just a little... slow... sometimes... although this time positions seem to be reversed...
Boleyn-I honestly don't know Dick's fate at this point. Death is one of the options (I wrote two endings), but I may or may not use it. We'll just have to wait and see!
kokomocalifornia-Really? Good, I'm on the right track! And personally, I think Dick is already in trouble... but they'll be more later, rest assured.
BatThing-Yes! You take Alfred, I'll take Dick. Hee hee... yeah, Wally is kinda cute. I think he's my favorite sidekick--next to our Boy Wonder, of course!
SparklesPlenty-On imdb, it says Karen Carpenter died of 'heart failure caused by chronic anorexia', so maybe you say both? If you want to hit anybody for their blindness, feel free. That goes for everybody else, too. ;-)
kuramagal-Some people can be so touchy. Luckily I'm not one of them (unless you flame me, then I'll get mad). Thanks again for the help!
State of Matter-Green Arrow's a moron. Besides, he doesn't quite realize how wrong things are; he just knows Robin was throwing up, but he doesn't know that he forced himself to.
Kanny-Wow. Really? Thanks! I thought it was a bit on the dull side, but I guess not... maybe that's just because I've reread it half a dozen times to get it right :-P
batfan7-That was the highest compliment anyone could possibly pay me. Thank you very much! And don't worry, Clark will get into the action more soon...
Minx2-Dick's school life will be mentioned once more in either the next chapter or the one after it, but we don't really focus on that here. And yes, it's hard to imagine poor Robby being unpopular :(