Merry Christmas kitsunechibiko! This one is for you! You wanted something fluffy, Terms-like… and/or alternative dimensions with a lot of strange stuff… weeeeeeell…. I hope you don't mind a bit of crack too, because this is going to be a bit weird… ;o) I know I have done something a bit similar before, but I thought it was a fun idea… Oh, I want to add that this story should NOT be considered to have ever actually taken PLACE in the Terms-universe… it is only a "what if?"

We start out in the "Terms" future-fic universe in:


Zapping

Slade never thought he would be outmaneuvered by a book. Especially not in bed. Sure, there were some books that… but that was not the case here. The one Robin was currently reading was the creation of the British writer Terry Pratchett, and it was one in his line of 'Discworld' novels. Slade had understood that the genre was comic fantasy… or perhaps comic science fiction, Robin didn't seem sure. It didn't matter to Slade, as he would rather have the boy gasping than laughing.

Robin was very stubborn, though. He would not be disturbed when reading, and that was that.

"Listen to this, this is so funny…" Robin suddenly said and Slade groaned. Sure the books were funny, but he wanted to be entertained right now too… in a way with a rather higher rating… But he could be patient. Sure he could. For about three more minutes. "You know the saying ''Knowledge is Power', right?" Robin asked.

"Yes?" Slade paid slightly more attention now, since that was a saying he wholeheartedly agreed with.

"Yeah, well, Pratchett writes about this alternative universe called 'L-space'… he says that books equals knowledge which equals power and that together with mass, distance and time, don't ask me to try to explain, creates a portal into 'Library-space' or L-space…"

"Well, people always say that books are a gateway to another world…" Slade muttered.

"Yeah, but L-space connects all the libraries and stuff all over the universe and over time, because a great collection of books means a lot of power, right? So through L-space you can have access to every book that has ever been, or ever will be, written in the whole universe! Isn't that a cool thought?"

"Yes, very." Slade agreed, but was only slightly interested. Of course it would be very fascinating if it was true, but… "So it gives the person in L-space access to every other dimension? Every possibility?" he added, thinking hard.

"Yup."

"You are right… that would be interesting…" Slade mumbled. "I'll be back in a minute." he added and left the bedroom.

"Sure" Robin said absentmindedly, turning a page, unaware of what he had just let loose in Slade's mind.

After twenty minutes Robin put the book down and looked around. Slade had still not returned. The boy was used to being practically jumped as soon as he folded the corner of a page, and here he was all ready to be jumped… and no Slade… Strange…

Robin threw a robe on and went looking through the large apartment. Still no sign of Slade. He dialed the man's number on the communicator. No answer. Where the heck was he?! Robin grudgingly got dressed. He couldn't very well search the whole bloody skyscraper in his underwear…

After three floors he called security. It was their damn job to know everything that went on in the tower, anyway… well... not everything obviously. Nearly anything. The guard in charge was very, very lucky to be able to give Robin a clue. Slade was in the computer lab.

As Robin entered, there was a small group of people looking through the glass walls into a small room used for assemblies and conferences. It had a huge whiteboard which Slade was now busily filling up with equations.

"What is going on here?" Robin asked, perhaps a bit sharper than there was need for, but hell… it was the middle of the night and he was expecting to be laid right now, not running around looking for his mate.

"Errr… sorry, sir, we don't know… Mr. Slade just walked in and shut himself in the room… says he doesn't need any help…"

"Then he doesn't… what are you all still doing here?" The people gave him shrugs and Robin sighed… science geeks… when they worked on something they completely forgot everything else. "All right, just… leave for the night, okay? I have to speak to Slade."

"Ehhh… okay… it's just that he… locked himself in…?"

"Yes?" Robin wondered what the man's point was.

"So how are you going to talk to him?"

Robin sighed. Okay, so they were all smart. Geniuses even. Pity they were a bunch of idiots.

"You can see Slade in there, right? You know why? Because the walls and doors are glass." Robin's steel tipped boot shot out, creating a way in.

"Oh… that's… that's good… I'll… I'll get a broom…" the geek squealed and he and his little squad ran off.

Robin walked up to Slade who barely nodded.

"Sooo… what are you doing?" the boy asked sweetly, something that should have alerted Slade that he was in trouble.

"Working. You gave me an idea."

"If I give you another idea, will you come back to the bedroom with me?" Robin grinned and wrapped his arms around the man's waist from behind.

"Soon… busy now…"

Robin sighed. Damn. Slade had gone into 'work mode' and there was barely anything that could get him out. Barely. And Robin didn't want to try it… the people could come back at any moment, after all.

Robin cursed softly under his breath and sat down on the table. His eyes followed the calculations on the board and he frowned.

"This is about L-space, isn't it?"

"In a sense, yes."

"You know that was just science fiction, right?"

"Of course."

"And so you are…?

"Taking a look at the science-part."

"Oh. Will it take long?"

"A day or so."

"I think I will go back to bed."

It took three days. One day at the board and two days in the tech-lab. Robin got reports from worried technicians. They were acting like all employees do when the boss starts to interfere in the company… they knew that the person in charge probably, hopefully, had some idea about what the company actually did, but they also suspected that if that person in reality tried to do some work, he would mess everything up… Robin tried to calm them down. Nothing had actually exploded yet, even if the lights had dimmed a couple of times. Other than that he left the man alone. There was no other way.
On the afternoon on the third day Slade came back to their apartment, carrying a box and grinning widely. He put down the box on the coffee table and walked straight into the shower. When he got out he was still wearing that grin and Robin started to feel slightly nervous.

"Want to tell me why you look so pleased with yourself?"

"Nope. But I can show you." the man opened the box and produced something that looked like a slim DVD-player and a remote control. "You remember L-space? Different dimensions?"

"Yeeeeees?" Robin was really afraid to ask…

"Well, reading about them… not so much fun as watching, right?"

"You are not telling me that we can look into different universes with that thing?!"

"I am."

Robin stood still and quiet for a moment.

"Okay. I'll get some popcorn." he then said and headed for the kitchen. After all, he had seen stranger things… that guy Warp had that time-vortex-thing after all… maybe he could take a look at this 'Nightwing' Starfire had been gushing about…

As they settled down in the couch with a big bowl of hot popcorn between them, Robin got slightly worried.

"Are you sure it won't mess with the space-time continuum-thingy?" he asked.

"Nah, we are only watching, not interfering…" Slade said carelessly. Maybe it was the sleep depravation, but he seemed rather… relaxed… He had hooked the box up to the huge flat screen and was holding a remote control.

"Ready?" Slade asked.

"Always." Robin grinned.

"Don't I know it..." Slade smirked back and pushed one of the buttons.

The screen flickered for a moment and then something started to appear.

"It's the city! Weird… isn't there a timer or something so we will know what we are looking at?" Robin asked, leaning forward in the couch.

"I don't think to… looks like-"

"There! It's us! Wait…" Robin looked closer at the skulking figures on a rooftop. "This is from last week, right? The diamond-job?"

"I think you are right. That was boring. Let's see what else is on." Slade quickly started to flip through the 'channels'. "Oh, here's something…"

Robin choked on a mouthful of popcorn. "We're… we're in the mayor's office! On his desk! We never…!"

"No, but now we will…" Slade chuckled.

"Nuh-uh… Forget it! This must be an alternative dimension kind of thing…"

"Suuuuure it is… sure it is…" Slade smirked evilly and glanced at Robin.

"Please change the channel." Robin said tiredly with a hand over his eyes.

"Oh, but look, we are trying a new position now, and- "

"CHANGE THE CHANNEL!"

Slade did. The picture shoved Robin, from the chest up, in his favorite T-shirt… but the shirt seemed to… bulge… in the wrong places.

"Oh, great, you made me cross-dress again?!" Robin sighed. The picture zoomed out and Robin started to wonder who the hell was manning the 'cameras'. He was about to ask Slade when he saw something that made his eyes bulge.

Slade had tensed too, and then started laughing.

"Boy, I don't think I made you dress up…"

"I don't think I am a boy…" Robin gasped. As more of Robin was shown it became apparent to the pair that the Robin on screen was… pregnant.

"You knocked me up!? I can't believe you! And what the hell am I doing out on patrol pregnant?! Isn't there any sound on this?" Robin yanked the control from Slade and fiddled around. After a second or two the volume rose. On the sceen Slade had now joined the mother-to-be. The couple on the couch recognized their own city in the background and it was also clear to them both that the Slade in the alternative dimension was not very happy. The couple of the screen just looked at each other for a while before Slade spoke.

"What the hell are you doing out on patrol? You are pregnant!"

The Slade in the sofa snorted, and Robin gave him a look.

"It's not my fault there was an explosion in the chemistry lab, or that they were doing that hormone-study at the time…" the Robin on screen answered sullenly. "If I have to sit at home with my feet up for three more months…"

"You will. If I so have to tie you down."

The 'real world' Robin gasped.

"That didn't sound like… I mean, it sounded like…"

"It sounded like you… Hmmm… I don't think you are a woman after all…"

"I think we will forbid any hormone-studies from now on, and I will never go near a lab again!" Robin promised.

"What? Don't want to have a baby?" Slade grinned.

"If you want one you will have to adopt." Robin told him firmly. "AND change the diapers. I'm changing the channel…"

The images that replaced each other on the screen were very different. Funny, sad, horrifying or just plain weird.

"In this dimension you have three legs…" Robin grinned.

"I'm not sure the middle one is a leg…"

"Oh? OH! Ooooh…"

-ZAP-

"I must say, Slade, you can be cute as a girl!"

-ZAP-

"I don't care what you say, boy, I'm getting you a collar…"

-ZAP-

"Damn, that looks like it hurts…"

"Agreed… change the channel…"

-ZAP-

"I don't care what you say, boy, I'm getting you one of those toys…"

"Yes please…"

-ZAP-

"Oh, no, that's just wrong!"

-ZAP-

"I don't care what yo-"

"No. No whips."

"Paddles?

"Possibly…"

-ZAP-

"Why am I playing with Lego?"

"You think that is weird? Why am I jumping around on one leg, holding my foot?"

-ZAP-

"Look at that! We have gone through three hundred dimensions and finally I get to top!" Robin grinned as he paused a bit longer than Slade thought was really necessary on one channel.

"Well, in an infinite universe it was bound to happen once…" the man growled.

"Oh, come on! You don't look like you are having a bad time!" Robin giggled, and Slade could only agree.

"On the other hand, you look older by at least ten years… wait your turn…" the man smirked.

"Oh, I will…." Robin purred. "In the mean time, I'm very happy with you doing all the work…"

"Glad to hear it…" Slade chuckled.

Robin changed the channel again.

"Looks like I'm in school…. Waaaaait… we are all in school… and who is that hot guy?" Robin grinned. Then his eyes popped. "It's you! You are young! And you have black hair!"

"Hmmm…. been a naughty boy? Want to take a trip to the principal's office?" Slade leered, edging closer on the couch.

"Have some popcorn." Robin showed the bowl at the man as he continued to channel surf.

"There must be a better way to do this… isn't there a menu or something?" Robin said after another half hour.

"I have no idea." Slade confessed.

"But you built it!" Robin exclaimed, but the man only shrugged.

"You try to remember every little detail after working three days in a row without a break…"

Robin sighed and studied the remote closely.

"Wait! Here it is!" he pressed a blue button and some text appeared on the screen. The words seemed to flutter for a moment before turning into English.

"Who designed the menu-system? This is just too weird!" Robin shook his head and started to explore the menu. "Look, you can search by genre…"

"Good. Look up 'adult'…" Slade grinned, grabbing the boy and drawing him close.

"You would like that, wouldn't you…? I wonder what 'Sladin X' is?"

A few seconds later Robin found his jaw by his knees.

"Oh my god…" he muttered.

"It that the thief from Jump?" Slade asked, sounding a bit astonished himself.

"Yeah… Red X… Oh my god…" Robin repeated mindlessly, watching the three very busy, very naked bodies on the screen.

"I'm not sure I would like you to watch this…" Slade grumbled annoyed.

"What? You seem to enjoy that just as much as me… or more… oh… my… god…."

Slade snorted, but didn't ask Robin to change the channel.

"I wonder if Red is still in Jump…" Robin said almost to himself.

"Is he even gay? I mean in this reality?" Slade added as it was very clear the teen was gay in the one they were watching.

"I… don't… really…. care…." Robin said slowly and Slade laughed.

"Want me to abduct the kid?"

Robin smiled widely.

"Well, it is Christmas soon you know!"

Slade laughed louder. "Guess shopping this year will be easy…"

Robin's eyes had turned back to the screen.

"Oh my god…" the boy muttered again.

Slade gently pried the control from Robin's fingers.

"Well, we better practice then…" he grinned and pinned Robin to the sofa. He turned the TV off and soon Robin moaned 'oh, my god' yet again…

Slade grinned. He looked forward to Christmas.

The End

A/N: This was the last X-mas fic! I hope you all found something to enjoy! Merry Christmas!