A/N: I know I usually update on Sundays, but today is a special day so I'm updating today. Enjoy!

"How's Roy doing?" Everyone looked at Flash. "Is he….adjusting ok?"

Superman didn't miss the way Batman's jaw tightened. Oh, this wouldn't be good. "Is he doing ok?" Superman asked cautiously when Batman didn't answer after a minute.

"He's 14 and should be starting high school in the fall. He's 14 and he reads at a 6th-grade level." Everyone stared at him for a minute.

"Wait, what?" Flash asked.

"Yes. Agent A and I have been assessing what his academic abilities are after Queen "homeschooled" him for two years."

"Are the results bad?" Wonder Woman asked.

"It's not good," Green Lantern replied.

Batman nodded. "He's still barely capable of 7th-grade level work," he said.

"Well Oliver Queen isn't a great teacher, we'll give him that," Flash said.

"It's not just that. Roy told me that Queen barely helped him. He gave Roy work and didn't teach him anything. The only subjects covered were math and reading."

"Like I said: definitely not a teacher."

"Queen told Roy he was stupid." There was a minute of silence as everyone processed what he'd said. "He told Roy that he was stupid." Just repeating the words had him clenching his fists so tight his knuckles were white.

"Roy didn't believe him right?" Superman asked.

"Gee, I don't know Clark. The man who was taking care of him didn't help him learn anything and spent two years telling him he was stupid. What do you think?"

"It is detestable," Martian Manhunter said. "Why would he say these things?"

"God help the man who tries to understand Oliver Queen's mindset," Flash said. "I'm going out on a limb and guessing that Roy doesn't have great self-esteem."

"Queen told him he was worthless, so yes." Silence descended on the group once again. "He….told Roy that he was worthless and the only thing on this Earth that he was good for was archery."

"Murder is illegal," Superman said under his breath.

"I'd probably be doing the world a service by getting rid of him."

"Well, we'll never know."

"I'm not sure Queen could sink any lower," Aquaman said.

"Please don't say that!" Flash begged. "It's almost as bad as 'how can this possibly get any worse?' "

"How can it-?" Wonder Woman asked.

"Shhhh!"

Batman's com beeped. "Robin," he said answering it.

"Bat signal's up," Robin told him.

"I'll be right there." He stood up.

"What happened?" Green Lantern asked.

"The Bat signal is up." Batman left the meeting room and zetaed back down to Gotham. He met Robin at the rendezvous point, just outside the bat cave, and the two of them headed for the Gotham Police Station. Once they were a few blocks away he hid the Batmobile and they took to the rooftops. He landed in the shadows behind the signal and Robin landed next to him a second later. "Commissioner."

Commissioner Gordon turned around. "What do you know about this?"

Batman stepped out of the shadows to examine the object in the man's hand. "Where did you get this?" he growled as his hands tightened around the green arrow.

"It was found sticking out of a dead body."

"Where?"

"Shopping district."

"When?"

"A couple of hours ago."

"The Green Arrow has been in Gotham?" Robin asked.

"It looks that way."

"How many people did he kill?"

"Just the one. I've got extra cops out there now canvasing for more potential victims."

The door that led to the roof banged open. "Commissioner!" the officer said, running over. He was out of breath when he reached them. "Here." He headed something to Gordon that made Batman's eyes narrow. A red arrow.

"Where was this found?" Gordon asked.

"I dunno. Somewhere in the Narrows."

"Narrows?" Robin frowned. He looked up at Batman. "That's on the opposite side of the city from the first victim."

"Was there just one body?" Gordon asked the cop.

"Yes sir," he answered.

"Ok. Call into the other precincts. I want that beat doubled, understand?"

"Yes, sir." The officer left and Gordon handed the arrow to Batman. "Do you know why the Green Arrow is in Gotham?"

"No," Batman lied. "However Commissioner, I intend to find out."

"Good. I'm friends with Commissioner Lance in Star City. He's told me about the Green Arrow and what he does. I don't want his problems here."

"If there are more sightings of Green Arrow tell your officers to stand down. Get any civilians inside and do not engage him. Green Arrow is dangerous and unstable."

"We're all used dangerous and unstable around here."

"Still. Put up the Bat signal if he's seen again."

Gordon nodded. "Alright. I'm going to call Commissioner Lance. See if he has any idea why this psycho decided to show up in Gotham." Batman turned to leave, Robin right behind him. Once they got to the Bat mobile he looked at his mentor worriedly.

"Green Arrow has no idea where Speedy is, right?" he asked.

"Yes," Batman confirmed. "He also has no way of finding out."

"Why would he shoot someone with one of Speedy's arrows then?"

"He's playing with me and making sure I know why he's doing this."

"He's really brave coming into Gotham." If Batman didn't scare off other heroes and villains, the Gotham villains certainly did.

"It's not bravery, it's stupidity."

"Why are going back to the Bat Cave? Shouldn't we be going to the crime scenes?"

"You're going back to the Bat Cave. I'm going to the crimes scenes."

"What? No! Let me come with you!"

"No."

"Batman-"

"No, Robin! Kid Flash and Aqualad were lucky Green Arrow didn't kill them! You're going back and you're going to stay there! Is that understood?"

Robin sighed. "Yes, understood." They pulled into the Batcave and he jumped out; quite literally.

"Robin." Robin looked at him. "Don't tell Roy."

"Ok." The Bat mobile left and Robin sulked over to the computer.

"I take it the meeting with the Commissioner went well Master Robin?" Alfred asked as the young boy sat down.

"Green Arrow has been in Gotham," Robin responded, already logging the two murders into the computer.

"Has he?"

"He killed two people."

"I take it he is here looking for Master Roy."

"Kind of. Batman says he doesn't know where Roy is for sure. He's just trying to get under the Justice League's skin."

"I dare say it might be working."

"He's got them mad."

"I shall go check on Master Roy. See if he is finally sleeping through the night."

"Mhm." Robin didn't even look at him as he left. If Green Arrow was still in Gotham Batman would find him.

— —

As it would turn out, Green Arrow apparently didn't stick around. Batman had found no further victims or any trace of where Green Arrow had gone. Oliver Queen wasn't officially in Gotham either, so that lead turned into a dead end. Batman did inform Superman of the latest development. (Only to receive an immediate "Please tell me he's not dead".) The next couple of days he kept a close eye on Gotham and the police scanners, listening for any sign that Green Arrow had killed more civilians. He did do his best not to let his tension show in the Manor. Roy remained oblivious to how close Oliver had come to finding him, which was the way Bruce intended to keep it. Luckily Roy was busy trying to catch up on his school work with Alfred. The two of them worked most of the morning and after lunch, Roy worked more on his own, with Alfred checking on him and offering help when he needed it.

Alfred quickly discovered two things. One: it was easy to tell when Roy needed something explained because he started trying to eat his eraser and got really anxious. Two: Roy was definitely not stupid. He wasn't as good at math as Dick was, but he was still very bright. He caught on quickly and usually only needed it explained once. After the first week, he improved almost exponentially and Alfred put the papers on Bruce's desk; right on top of the papers, he was going over for Wayne Enterprises.

"He is not stupid," Alfred said. "Master Roy is very smart and a fast learner."

"That's good," Bruce nodded.

"Have there been any more sightings of Oliver Queen?"

"No. It's been over a week and there's been no more murders with his M.O."

"I must say, sir, I am still surprised he dared show his face here."

"So is the League. My city is the only one he killed people in you know."

Alfred blinked. "It is?"

Bruce nodded. "Everywhere else he just injured the civilians. My investigation found the two people killed were just random passerbys. Neither of them had criminal records. They were just….disposable to him."

"He has no value for human life."

"If he valued his own life he wouldn't have committed murder in my city."

"He still has no idea where Roy is here?"

"None. The less Queen knows the better."

"And Master Roy?"

"I don't want him to get worked up over nothing."

"Sir, it's hardly nothing if the man who abused him is sneaking into Gotham looking for him."

"The only thing Roy needs to focus on is getting better."

"Hmmm. You're probably right. It wouldn't help to worry him anymore."

"Queen isn't getting near him ever again. I'll make sure of it." Bruce didn't even want to think about what Oliver might do to Roy if he ever got him back. It made him sick to his stomach. "He's not hurting Roy again."

"When you're determined sir, nothing can stop you."

"If Oliver gets him back…..I can't let it happen, Alfred. He's too smart. Too skilled. Too good a kid to be treated that way."

Alfred smiled. It was nice to see that Roy had worked his way into Bruce's heart in the 2 months he'd been with them. Not that Bruce would admit to caring about Roy. "If anyone can keep him safe, it is you, sir."

"Thank you, Alfred."

Unbeknownst to them, Roy was standing outside the office door. He silently slipped away undetected and went upstairs to his room. He shut the door behind himself and slid down until he was sitting on the ground. It was wrong to eavesdrop, but he hadn't meant to do it. He'd heard Alfred ask if there were sightings of Ollie- of Oliver and he'd listened in. He pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them tightly.

'He was here….' Roy thought slowly. 'He was in Gotham…. He killed people.' Not just people. Innocent civilians. Part of Roy's brain, a small part, immediately wanted to deny it. 'He wouldn't….' Except Roy could honestly believe he would. Oliver had never seemed to care how severe a crime was. Criminals were all the same to him. A memory Roy thought he'd successfully repressed started to surface and he shook his head. 'What happened "everywhere else"? Has Oliver been hurting more people?' Someone knocked on his door. He jumped up and stumbled away from it. "C-come in."

Bruce opened the door. "Alfred told me you've been doing a good job with-"

"How many people has Oliver hurt?" Roy asked suddenly.

Bruce blinked. "What?"

Roy swallowed. If Bruce hit him, he hit him. It didn't matter at this point. He had to know. "I-I overheard you and Alfred talking earlier."

"You….where?"

"In your study. I was behind the door in the hall."

That actually impressed Bruce. Roy had snuck up on them, overheard the conversation, and snuck off without being detected by either man. 'Focus Wayne,' he reminded himself. If Roy overheard hone that meant…..oh shit. "Roy-"

"You said everywhere else he only injured civilians. Where is everywhere else and who may people did he hurt?"

Bruce sighed. "53 people in Central City from his arrows and him causing an explosion at the Flash museum. 25 in Metropolis. 34 in Coast City."

"And the two dead here in Gotham."

"Yes."

Roy stumbled backward onto his bed. "He-he hurt all those people. They weren't criminals."

"No. Oliver has been threatening to continue until we give you back."

"Then-"

"Roy don't say you should go back because it won't happen."

"I'm causing so much trouble…."

Bruce thought carefully about what he said next. "Roy….did you want the people in Central City to get hurt?"

"What?"

"It's a very simple question. Did you want the people in Central City to get hurt?"

"N-no! Of course not!"

"What about Metropolis?"

"No."

"Coast City?"

"No…."

"Did you want him to kill those two people here in Gotham?"

"….No."

"Then, logically, are you the one causing the trouble?"

"….No?" He pulled his knees up to his chest again. "I-I guess not…."

"Roy, Oliver is an adult. He's capable of making his own informed decisions, and these are the decisions he made. None of it is on you." He could tell it was taking Roy a few minutes to process this.

"So….he's a murderer?"

"Yes, Roy he is."

"Then….am I a murderer?"

"No! Of course not!" Bruce knelt down in front of him. "Roy look at me." Roy did. "Oliver lied to you. He abused you and manipulated you. You weren't as willing in that partnership as you think."

"I….really?"

"Roy, believe me. You're not a killer."

Roy knew Bruce was only saying this because he didn't know about that guy he'd killed on his last night in Star. "Is there any good in Oliver?" That took Bruce by surprise.

"If you want my honest opinion….no. I don't. I don't think there's a good fiber in his entire body."

Roy was quiet for a minute, then in a whisper, Bruce heard, "He doesn't care about me, does he?"

"No, Roy. He doesn't."

"…..ok…" Bruce gained no satisfaction in this revelation. Roy seems to fold in on himself more and Bruce took this as a sign to leave. He stood up. "Oliver doesn't care about you Roy, but that doesn't mean no one does."

"I guess…" was the muffled reply. "Like Alfred and Dick."

"Exactly." Bruce nodded, feeling like he might've somehow managed to accomplish something positive with Roy for once.

"Can-can I be alone?"

"Of course." Bruce took one last worried look at Roy; who was still curled up in a ball on his bed. Once he was gone Roy buried his face in his legs.

'I'm so stupid….' he thought miserably. 'How could I believe Oliver cared about me?' Why should Oliver have cared about him? What was he except a lonely orphan who kept getting passed from one guardian to the next? He took a deep breath. "Oliver doesn't care about me," he said in a shaky voice. "He doesn't care." Maybe Bruce didn't either but then again why should he? All Roy had really done for him so far was get two people in his city killed and put Dick in more danger. "I can behave. I'll be good. If I'm good then Bruce won't hate me like Oliver does." He nodded to himself. He could do this. Living here he had Dick to keep him company, and Alfred teaching him. He was fed and allowed to go outside. Even if Bruce hit him, Roy figured he could handle it. "It's ok. It's ok. Everything is ok."

— —

"Batman, did something happen to Roy?" Robin as he put his mask on.

"Why?"

"He seems….distant."

"He found out what Queen has been up to."

Robin frowned at Batman as he pulled his cape on. "I thought we weren't going to tell him?"

"It couldn't be avoided. He overheard Alfred and I talking earlier."

"He was eavesdropping?"

"He was outside the study. I didn't know he had there until he confessed earlier."

Robin smirked. "Someone snuck up on you?"

"Quiet. Get your belt. Poison Ivy escaped from Arkham."

"With that kind of stealth he'd be great on the streets of Gotham," Robin said as he pulled his utility belt on. "To the Bat mobile!" He did a backflip and took off.

Batman watched him for a second. 'With that kind of stealth….'

— —

It wasn't a great sign for the night when Roy saw the car thief. He nocked an arrow to his bow and shot the crowbar out of the thief's hand. Said offender jumped back in shocked as the metal clanged down on the empty street. Speedy jumped down from his vantage point, keeping an arrow pointed at the criminal. Green Arrow had told him not to leave his position, but the younger vigilante was eager to please his mentor, which had led to his intervening with this situation. "You shouldn't the done that," he said, trying to sound a lot more intimating than his 12-year-old self.

The thief backed up against the car he'd been trying to break into. "You-you're Green Arrow's kid!" he stuttered.

"The name's Speedy." The thief tried to run, but Speedy reacted faster and shot an arrow that snagged the hood of the guy's sweater and pinned him to the car. He reached for another arrow, only to freeze.

"Please dude," the 14-year-old would be thief pleaded. "Just let me go. Don't let Green Arrow catch me. I'll go straight home. Promise."

Speedy tried to keep the hesitation off his face as he aimed another arrow at the teen's chest. "You broke the law."

"Come on man! Please!"

Speedy swallowed. He exhaled and eased back his bowstring. He put the arrow back in his quiver, then walked over and jerked the arrow trapping the teen free. "Get out of here."

"Thanks, man." The teenager took off running down the street, not bothering to look back. Speedy watched him go, still holding the arrow. Out of nowhere, a green arrow hit the escaping teen right between his shoulder blades. Speedy gasped. The teen let out a strangled cry as blood quickly soaked the back of his shirt. He dropped to the ground and didn't move. The red arrow slipped from Speedy's fingertips. He turned around to look for Green Arrow, only for something to hit him in the head and his world to go dark.

When he came to Roy realized he was still in his suit. His head swam as he sat up and took in his surroundings. Gone was the city, replaced instead by the arsenal. His mask was gone, as were his bow and quiver. He didn't have time to really recover though before someone grabbed his hair and jerked him to his feet.

"Ah!" he cried out in pain.

"Shut it!" Oliver growled at him. His fingers dug into the boy's scalp, sending pain radiating through his head and down his spine. Through the pain, Roy could just barely see they were heading for the shooting range. Confusion joined his pain. Why was Oliver taking him there? The pain was suddenly gone as Oliver forced him against the wall. "Stay!"

Roy blinked. His heart stopped when he realized he was standing in the shooting alley. "O-Ollie….what-"

"Shut up!" Oliver snapped. He stood at the other end of the alley and nocked an arrow to his bow. Fear climbed up Roy's insides. An arrow shot at him and snagged the shoulder of his shirt. He flinched as another one pinned his other shoulder to the wall as well. "Why." An arrow hit right next to his neck. "Did." The other side of his neck. "You." One skimmed his ear. "Let." One snagged his pants. "Him." Another snagged his other leg. "Go!" Roy whimpered. He was pinned to the wall, unable to move at all. He couldn't even move his head. Another arrow hit just inside his thigh. "Well?!"

"I-I'm sorry Ollie! He was only a kid! I-I thought-"

"You just thought you'd let a criminal get away!"

"Ollie please-"

"Shut up!" He shot another arrow, which landed just between Roy's fingers. Roy was still whimpering. "You little shit!" Oliver lowered his bow, much to Roy's relief. He approached the boy and slapped him when he was close enough. He grabbed Roy's chin. "Do not ever…" He kneed Roy in the stomach. "Ever." His hand moved down to Roy's throat. "Ever!" He started squeezing. "Do that again!"

"Yes, Ollie."

Oliver pulled the arrows out and grabbed Roy by his hair again. He dragged the boy upstairs, completely unfazed by the pleas and cries of pain. He dragged Roy into his bedroom and threw him on the ground. "Stay." Roy curled up into a ball. He was in Oliver's bedroom, which only meant bad things. Oliver grabbed his arm and shoved Roy towards the trunk. "In."

"Ollie please-" Oliver kicked him in the knees and Roy fell forward. His guardian took the opportunity shove him into the trunk. Knowing it was useless to fight, Roy just let it happen. He got one last look at the furious look on Oliver's face before the lid was slammed shut, casting him into darkness-

Roy gasped and scrambled against his blankets. He couldn't breathe! Oh god, he couldn't breathe! Distantly he could hear someone saying his name.

"-oy! Breathe! In….! Out…! In….! Out…!"

He followed the instructions of the voice, trying to slow down his breathing.

"You're in Gotham. You're in the Manor. Oliver isn't here." Roy finally managed to get his breathing under control. He realized Bruce was sitting on his bed. He curled up into a ball and put his face in his legs. "Can you tell me what happened?"

Roy sniffed. "I-I tried so hard to forget…."

"Forget what?"

He lifted his head up. "W-when I was 12….I stopped a car their who was 14. He was only 14! He was almost my age!"

"It's ok. It's ok."

"I-I let him go but then Oliver shot him and he-" Bruce didn't say anything as Roy took a minute. "Oliver shot arrows at me and pinned me to a wall….and then he took me to his bedroom….." Roy didn't go on and for a moment Bruce felt horror and anger sliding through him.

"What happened next?" he asked in a measured voice.

"He l-locked me in the footlocker." Bruce had never been so relieved in all his life.

"It's ok Roy. You're safe now."

Roy buried his face again. "He was so mad at me."

"You didn't deserve it."

"But I let the criminal get away."

"No, Roy. You tried to save the life of a kid who still could've seen the error of his ways and turned his life around. What you did took courage."

"It didn't feel like it when Oliver was hitting me. It felt like it was pointless." Bruce wanted to tell Roy it wasn't pointless. That valuing human life, even that of a lowly criminal, is a noble cause. It didn't seem like it would help though. His words were hit or miss when it came to Roy. He just didn't trust Bruce enough to listen. Roy wiped his tears away. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok."

"I disturbed you."

"No, you didn't. We just got back from patrol."

Roy frowned. "Where's Dick?" Normally when he had a nightmare Dick was there to calm him down.

"In the Bat Cave. He played gardener with some of Poison Ivy's plants and she didn't take it well."

"Is-is he ok?"

"He'll be fine. Some scratches from thorns and some bruises." Roy didn't look convinced. "He's really ok Roy. After dealing with an Arkham inmate, injuries like that are a good night for us. Why don't you go back to sleep?"

"Ok." Roy laid down and Bruce pulled the blanket over him.

"Sleep well, Roy." Bruce left the room, shutting the door silently behind him. He had to do more to help Roy. That much was obvious. His nightmares weren't going away and flashbacks were becoming more frequent. 'There has to be a way to help him.' He thought back to what Dick had said right before patrol. An idea started forming in his head. Maybe it was stupid and maybe it was crazy, but then again the Justice League had said the same thing about Robin. "I know how to help Roy."