Dish Best Served Cold

Dick was pissed. Actually pissed was too mild. He was so angry, all he could see was red. He was going to punch Wally in his stupid face. No. That was too nice. He was going to tell Bruce, so Bruce could punch Wally in his stupid face. Bruce could put enough force in a punch to rival Superman, so Wally's stupid face would no longer look like a face.

Storming up the stairs, Dick exited the gym and made his way to Bruce's office. He didn't even stop to talk with Alfred, who was heading in the opposite direction. Bursting into Bruce's office, Dick stomped up to his desk until he was directly in front of his mentor. When Bruce failed to look up at him, Dick slammed his hand down on the file that Bruce was in the process of reading.

Bruce looked up with a scowl on his face and clearly ready to reprimand Dick for his behavior. However, the second he caught a glimpse of Dick's face, his expression softened and he got up and walked over to his son, wrapping him in his strong arms. "Do you want to talk about it Chum?"

Bruce felt Dick nod against his chest before hearing the muffled tones of his voice. "Kill Wally's stupid face."

Bruce had no idea what that was supposed to mean. "I know you have this theory about me being a mind reader, but I'm telling you, I'm not. I need more to go on than just Wally's face."

Dick shuffled back and readjusted himself so that he was still firmly tucked into Bruce's side, but could see his face. "I was mad. It was Wally's turn to check the repelling cords and parachute cords for any wear and tear. He hasn't been doing it long, so I offered to double check his work. I kept finding small microtears and pointing them out to him. He got so fed up that he yelled that it wasn't like our lives depended on the ropes working. I told him that lives did depend on ropes, and he yelled that if I had been even half as obsessive when I was a kid, my parents would still be alive."

Bruce felt his mind go blank and his heart start pounding in his ears. If there was one thing that you never said to an orphan who had witnessed the murder of their parents, it was that they could have done something to prevent it. He was going to kill Wallace. Slowly. And painfully. Or perhaps he would make Wallace wish that he had simply killed him.

###

Wally was feeling annoyed. Why was Dick so angry at him? He had been so anal about the stupid ropes. It's not like they would die if they snapped. They had superpowered friends to catch them! There was only one person who he could ask for advice. Taking out his cell phone, he dialed Roy's phone number.

Roy answered right before the answering machine picked up. "What do you want Kid? Kinda in the middle of something."

Wally could hear giggling in the background. Roy was definitely busy. "Well you see, Rob and I are fighting. The dude wouldn't give me a break! So I snapped at him. I mean what's his problem?"

Roy sighed. "Give me the cliff notes Wally. Fast."

Wally grunted. Seriously, Roy couldn't tell that it was totally Dick's fault from that sentence alone? "It was my turn to check the lines, and apparently, I did not live up to the Prince's expectations. I told him that it wasn't like we'd die if I made a mistake."

Wally could hear shuffling in the background and the sounds of an angry girl leaving the apartment. "You owe me so big. She's never gonna come back."

Wally rolled his eyes. Why was it always about sex with Roy? "You didn't have to get rid of her."

"Oh I did. I could not explain how big of an idiot you are with her here. Dude. You seriously forgot how his parents died? Of course he's anal about the ropes being in tip top condition!"

Wally's heart sank. "Oh man! I completely forgot! How am I gonna make that up to him?"

Roy's tone turned positively gleeful. "I wouldn't worry about making it up to Rob. I would worry more about what Daddy Dearest is gonna do to you. By now, Rob's spilled his guts about your fight and Daddy's on a warpath for your head. Watch your back."

Wally paled. "Any chance you'll help watch it?"

Roy burst out laughing. "Man that was a good one. No way am I risking irritating the man. He's out for your blood. Hey. Can I have your laptop when you die? I spilled coffee on mine and Ollie said that he's not getting me a new one till next month."

Wally made a small squeaking noise and hung up the phone. Roy's rambunctious laughter was not helping him, despite what the other redhead would claim. Wally was not sure what he was supposed to do. Nobody in their right minds would help protect him. And waiting around for his demise did not seem pleasant either. He could try and beg for Dick's forgiveness, but Daddybats most likely wouldn't care. Swallowing, he decided to remain at Mt. Justice. He would be most protected there. That, and Batman would be noticed by someone. Hopefully.

###

Wally walked up to the fridge. It had been three hours since Dick had stormed out, and he had yet to see signs of the Bat Clan. That made him more nervous than anything else. And when he was nervous, he ate.

Opening the fridge, Wally discovered a batarang holding a note. Hesitantly, he pulled down the note and read it.

I'm watching you Wallace.

The note was signed with a small and simple sketch of a bat. Wally dropped the note in panic. Bats had been here! And nobody had noticed! More importantly, the security system had not announced him, which meant that they were only aware of Batman's presence when he wanted them to be. And that was a scary thought.

###

Wally was a mess. Everywhere he went he found signs of Batman's presence. Batarangs, notes, and the feeling of being watched followed him around. Having enough, Wally headed to his room. His room that only entered when he entered a drop of his blood. There was no way that Batman managed to get inside his room.

Sighing, Wally closed the door behind him and turned on the lights. He was finally safe. Opening his eyes, he screamed. In front of him stood a doll that looked realistically like him. The doll was stabbed in the heart with a batarang. Blood was everywhere. On the doll, the floor, and the door. On the wall written in blood was "Your next Wallace."

Wally stumbled out into the hallway not bothering to close the door. Hyperventilating, he slid down into a seated position on the floor and clutched his head in his hands. Moments later, the rest of the team burst into the hallway with their weapons drawn. Wally simply pointed to his room, and they entered his room. When they exited, their faces were pale and serious.

Artemis slid down the wall so that she was seated next to him. "Wally, do you have any idea who could've done this? Even I don't dislike you enough to do this. And the breach of security is a serious problem. We need to alert Batman and the League."

Wally barely heard her. "I didn't mean to. I was angry and I didn't think. And now he's getting his revenge. Roy said that I was gonna die. I thought he was overreacting, but now I know it's true. I'm going to die because of a stupid mistake. Oh God."

The team exchanged glances. What the hell was going on? And more importantly, who did Wally piss off? And what could he have done to warrant this kind of reaction? Kaldur was the one to voice these thoughts.

Wally looked at them with wide, frightened eyes. "I made Robin upset. Very very upset. I crossed the line big time. Picked at the one fear I know he has without even thinking about it. Made him relive something that nobody should live through once, let alone the amount of times he has relived it in his head."

M'gann cocked her head slightly. "So Robin did this? We should tell Batman. I'm sure he can talk to him."

Wally shook his head. "No, Robin didn't do this. It's so much worse than that. If there's one consistency in Rob's life, it's that he always tells one person what's upsetting him."

Artemis was the only one who connected the dots. Her face paled dramatically and she gasped. "You're not saying?"

Wally nodded morosely. "Batman's going to kill me."

###

Wally walked into the Batcave feeling like an antelope walking up to a lion and saying, "Please eat me."

Walking deeper into the cave, Wally searched for Batman. The man had to be here somewhere. Maybe if he was lucky, Batman had busted Joker's head in and therefore gotten rid of some of his aggression.

"Wallace." Wally jumped and turned around to find Bruce Wayne leaning against the cave wall in a pair of sweatpants.

Wally gulped nervously. This is where the dismembering happened in horror movies. "Hi Mr. Wayne, uh Sir. I'm here to, uh, apologize to, um, Dick, uh Sir."

Bruce's eyes flashed dangerously. "Are you nervous Wallace? Do I scare you?"

Wally gulped and took a step back. "Yes Sir. On both accounts."

Bruce grinned maliciously. "Good. Now Wallace. I assume that you wish to be considered on my good side again?"

"Yes Sir." Wally nodded enthusiastically. Maybe he wouldn't end up like whoever's blood was used on his wall.

"You will be taking over Robin's chores for the month. That means cleaning the Batcave, the Batmobiles, the Batwings, everything. Not to mention all my civilian cars. You will do anything that Alfred asks of you. And you will be Dick's faithful servant."

Wally shifted nervously. "That sounds like a lot Sir. How will I have the time to do that and heroing?"

"It's a good thing your fast than isn't it. As I understand from your uncle, school just got out for you, so I'm calling in that favor you owe me."

Wally decided internally that his favorite uncle was now dead to him. How could he give Batman of all people that information! Then again, Batman had a way of making people talk. What if Batman had hurt his Uncle! Maybe he should forgive his uncle, who knows what kind of psychological trauma he had suffered at Batman's hand.

His thoughts still racing, Wally stuttered out, "How can I be of service to you Sir?"

Bruce smiled slightly, which made Wally shiver in fear. "Funny you should say that Wallace. You see, I recently fired my errand boy at Wayne Corp, and I need a new one. As you're on Summer Break, I figured that you would need something to fill your time. I'll even pay you."

Wally felt his heart stutter to a stop. Working for Bruce, all summer? He was going to die. "Do I have a choice Sir?"

Bruce's smile fell off his face. "No."

Wally gave a weak smile. "May I ask why you fired the other errand boy?"

"He disappointed me Wallace. But you won't disappoint me will you?"

Bruce's scowl drove deep into Wally's soul. "No Sir. May I go and apologize to Dick now?"

"Are you calling my son names now, Wallace?"

"I meant Richard. Please Don't kill me!"

"Go. Before I change my mind."

Bruce watched as Wally ran to the stairs and disappeared within a second. He allowed the laughter that he had been suppressing to burst free from his lips. Really. That kid made it far too easy to mess with him. Jake, his errand boy, had been promoted, not fired. And Barry had not told him about Summer Break, Dick had. Yet those two small lies had tortured the poor boy. The kid thought that he was going to kill him. Seriously. He had a no kill rule. The worse he would do was maim him.

###

Wally's heart slowed as he realized that Batman was not pursuing him. Knocking softly on Dick's door, he let himself in expecting to find the boy a crying mess. Instead, he found Dick eating a bowl of ice cream while watching one of the Taken movies.

Dick spotted him and gestured to sit next to him. "You'd think by number four, he would have locked her away. Or at least be a better detective. Half of his 'clues' make no sense!"

"So you're not mad?" Wally's brain could not handle the fact that Dick was not yelling and throwing things at him. Or the fact that he was still alive.

Dick shrugged casually before pausing the movie. "Oh I was. Bruce told me that he'd take care of it though. I was still really angry, but then Roy called. Told me that you were an idiot who needs to learn when to shut up. And that it took awhile, but you had realized your mistake. Then we laughed about the fact that you were probably trying to hide from Bruce. What did he do to you anyways?"

"Wait. Roy called? He told me I was on my own. Yelled at me for ruining his chances with this chick."

"Bros before hoes, dude. You know the rule. Besides. Roy wasn't getting in the way of Daddybats, but he would help smooth things over between the two of us. Who else is he going to complain about Ollie to? He can't have his two best buds fighting. Now seriously, what did Bruce do to you? You looked seriously freaked when you walked in."

Wally mentally thanked Roy. He was going to have to buy him a fruit basket. Or maybe one of those edible arrangements. They were like flowers, only with food instead! So much cooler. "Bruce. Uh, he left batarangs and notes that freaked me out. And I could feel his glare following me around. And then, in my room, was a very realistic looking doll of me with a batarang in my heart. And there was blood everywhere, and on the wall, written in blood was 'You're next Wallace.' Scared the crap out of me. All of that blood everywhere. What did he do to his previous victim to get that much blood?"

Dick cocked his head slightly. "What do you mean, previous victim?"

Wally shuddered. "It looked like real blood dude. Not dye."

Dick burst out laughing. "So that's what he wanted it for! Dude, that's my extracurricular project. Bruce wanted me to make the most realistic blood possible. Spent weeks messing with the formula until I came up with the perfect batch. Bruce asked me to make a lot but wouldn't tell em what for. Said it would be a surprise."

"So it's not real blood?"

"No! It's eight ounces of water, sixteen ounces of powdered sugar, one ounce red food coloring, and one tablespoon cocoa powder, all blended together. Of course, I made about ten times that amount, but that's a technicality."

Pure relief allowed Wally's shoulders to relax for the first time since he had talked to Roy. "Okay. So I'm not going to die. Or at least I won't die until I'm Bruce's errand boy."

Dick shrugged. "Dude. Totally not my problem. You're the one who agreed to owe him one. Besides, errand boy isn't that bad. You just buy him coffee and run files from one floor to another for him. And he pays really well. If I were you, I'd be more worried about cleaning the all the stuff in the Batcave. Oh, and his personal cars. Those cars are worth more than you are, so I really hope you don't scratch one by mistake. Then you'll see what Bruce is like when he's actually angry."

Wally shuddered. "Wait. I thought that today was him being angry?"

Dick smirked. His face adopted the same look that Bruce's did when they were talking in the cave and the deja vu made Wally's heart rate speed up. "Dude. He was just messing with you today. Wanted to freak you out. Believe me, this is not Bruce even close to angry. He was a six out of ten today, so stop being such a baby."

Wally decided that if it wasn't already official than it was today. Dick was a Bat. And Bats were insane. Everyone knew that. And if they didn't, they didn't really know them. Bats were crazy, and Wally might be a little too, because he actually enjoyed their presence. That is, when he wasn't scared completely out of his mind.

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A/N: So I looked up how to make fake blood online...hopefully it looks realistic. What do you think? Was Bruce sadistic enough for you? I really couldn't see Bruce using that favor without Wally being scared out of his wits first so I made a situation where Bruce went Daddybats on Wall's a**. Thank you to Mikekit for the whole notes and signing in blood thing. Its actually how I got the inspiration for this chapter.

A note to all the people hoping me to update soon: Guys, I'm super, super, super busy right now. I have graduation, and a lot of 'senior activities' to do before that, so I don't have much time to write right now. For example, this chapter was mostly written four days ago, but I didn't have time to post it. Same goes for my other stories, so please be patient. It would really help me, if you guys sent in prompt ideas for the next chapter and continued to review this story. All the reviews not only give me inspiration, they also give me motivation to write when I'm exhausted. Just so you know, this is what I have as my 'official' prompt list. Keep in mind that I may write something that's not on the list. And if you suggested something that's not there, I probably wrote it down somewhere and forgot to add it to the list, so please remind me. I tend to be pretty forgetful, which drives my family crazy (not that they'd ever say anything), so please don't think that it was personal, or that I didn't like the idea. Some of the ideas are older than others, and that's because I write whatever comes to mind easiest. I don't want to force a story because those don't tend to turn out well.

Point being, here's what I have:

Oneshots revolving around Robin (Dick Grayson)

Story about how robin met the league (find video evidence)

April Fools Day (death day anniversary)

Contingency plans

Good with kids

Wally Dick bromance Princess0Bunny

Adoption process (sequel to ch. 15) Mikekit

Guarding Dick/Bruce Sophia the Scribe

Alternate Dimension (JL) BaeKat101

Joker/Fear gas Doggylove613

Club (Robin gets them in)

Thank you people who actually read my rambling author's note and to those of you who are about to push the review button. It means a lot to me. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!