A/N: Happy b-day Shimu-mu (September 25)

I got an interesting prompt from the birthday girl but also the permission to do whatever I wanted so I ended up changing it just a tiiiiiiny bit… ;) Yeah. You should never give me any leeway… ;)

WARNINGS: This story starts out rather normal but then turns dark. There are some non-con elements, and OC-death, as well as violence… you have been warned. Slade is NOT snuggly in this one, okay?

I would like to thank Virginia Riddle-Malfoy and Jayto for the help with this story…(and an extra thank you to Jayto for BETA-ing it as well). The story had a strange coming-together because once I finished it I didn't like it. Something was horribly wrong but I couldn't see it… so I let the girls above read it… Virgina seemed to like it but Jayto told me it was utter crap and wondered what the hell I was doing (I'm paraphrasing a bit, I admit, bt only a LITTLE… ;) and that helped me figure out where it all went to hell… so I kept the first part of the story and re-wrote the rest, getting Jayto's blessing for it.. .;) The first version was longer, but let me tell you, it was schizo all over the place… it was like I have several different Robins and Slades in it at once, but I was too close to it to see it at first… but thanks to some honest feedback I ended up with a story I personally like a lot. Hope you will too!

OH, and there will be an update tomorrow as well, but on Deviant Art, so check out my account, then! (on the 26'th of September 2012, that is ; )

To do Anything

"This has gone on for long enough, we have to stop them," Robin growled, slamming his fist into the kitchen counter.

"Yeah, but as soon as we get close they just scatter on their bikes," Cyborg said, looking equally pissed off. "Between the five of us we can't catch them all."

"Dude! They are Pokémon! 'Cause we gotta!" Beast Boy grinned.

"I think they will be very impressed if we threw a ball at them," Raven muttered.

"Maybe a wrecking ball…?" Cyborg mused.

"I think they are most vile…" Starfire let them know, and the alien was right. The new gang which had tormented Jump City for the last couple of weeks was the kind Hells Angels members would tell to use a comb and take a shower.

"Then we'll go after their leader and his closest men first. We'll take them out little by little," Robin decided. "And we won't wait for them to rob another store either; we'll go out there and look for them. We'll spread out and we'll patrol until we find them, okay?"

"Um, yeah, but… um… once we find them…?" Beast Boy asked, not keen on going up against the whole gang, roughly twenty-five bikers, on his own.

"If you spot anything, alert the rest of us and wait for back-up. I'd rather they don't see us until it's too late, okay?"

"So no T-rex?"

"No."

"Damn. I always wanna T-rex up when they are around…" the changeling mumbled.

"When are we doing this?" Raven asked.

"No time like the present," Robin shrugged.

Raven, Starfire and Beast Boy took to the air, Cyborg took the T-car and Robin, of course, went on his bike, to see if they could find the gang's hideout. For having so many people they sure knew how to keep a low profile and Robin knew nothing about them apart from one thing: the leader, at least, came from Gotham. He had heard the guy call out orders to his gang and there was no mistaking the accent. The teen didn't recognize him or any of the others and hadn't been able to dig up much on them, apart from the fact that they migrated from city to city. Well, they would be caged birds from now on.

Robin cruised up and down the streets for over an hour. He had a gut feeling about the warehouse district, as it provided lots of places to hide and no neighbors to call the police and complain about the noise.

"BB to Rob, we're taking a break," the hero suddenly heard through the com in his helmet. "Pizza at Slice of Heaven in fifteen?"

"I'll be there," Robin confirmed and sped up. He decided to take a short cut between two buildings and that's when he spotted them, about to set off on their bikes at the far end of the street. There was no time to stop and hide, they had already seen him and were scattering. Robin saw the main jack ass and set off after him.

"Robin to the Titans! Dinner's cancelled. My coordinates, now! I'm on the leader's tail, you each pick one. Remember, go after the one's with the skull and bones on their backs!"

"Aw, man…" he heard Beast Boy groan before he broke contact.

Robin swore under his breath as he followed his target through the deserted streets and alleys of this part of the city. He had to give the guy credit for knowing his way around, though; every twist and turn was taken with exact precision and so often that Robin couldn't deploy any of his bike's little handy toys. The man seemed to always duck just out of sight and not even the speed of the hero's bike helped any here; it was all about maneuverability.

Deep down the teen appreciated the challenge. Arresting a beer-burping slow-witted Neanderthal who could barely walk upright didn't quite give him a kick. This did. The hunt. He kind of liked it.

The focus of keeping the man in his sights overpowered all else, and when the biker took a sudden left turn Robin's inner GPS didn't immediately register the fact that it was a dead end. When the teen followed, however, only to be blinded by headlights coming towards him, he realized that the man had turned his bike around.

"Crap!" the hero hissed, slammed on the breaks and slid the bike sideways. He thought that he was gaining control of it once more and looked up, only to see the man pulling out a gun.

Robin didn't hear the shot, but he felt the bullet rip into the side of his arm, making him lose his hold of the handlebars and the bike finally slid away from him as he skidded across the ground on his back. The helmet, which he was very glad he was wearing, bounced against the pavement. Suddenly there was a loud screech from the intercom system, which must have been damaged and was now trying to drill a hole into his head using sound. As soon as he came to a stop he ripped the helmet off and was about to get up when something slammed into him. The next thing he knew a dirty boot was on his chest and the nozzle of the gun was inches from his face. The man smirked down at him, still straddling his bike, which was humming softly, ready to take off.

"Hey, Boy Wonder, we miss you back in Gotham," the guy let him know. "And sorry, this is gonna be rude, but I just gotta know…"

Robin was barely able to breathe from the pressure on his chest and before he knew it his mask had been ripped off.

"Damn! I know you, kid! You're that millionaire's brat!"

"Robin! Oh, you are hurt!" Starfire yelled as she flew up to him when he stumbled out of the alley a little bit later, leading his bike.

"I… got shot… my arm…" the hero mumbled and clutched at it.

"You lost a lot of blood," Raven, landing next to them, said.

Robin looked down on his stained clothes and nodded tiredly. "Yeah… it's not bleeding that badly now, though… But I need to patch it up."

"Star will fly you, BB, can you take the bike?" Cyborg asked.

"Sure! But where's the guy?" the shape shifter wanted to know.

"He got away," Robin admitted.

"I'll look for him!" Starfire growled, her green eyes blazing.

"He's in hiding by now, let's just go home, okay?" her leader said tiredly.

"Damn, how did you get away from him?" Cyborg asked an hour later when Robin had showered, changed and gotten some medical attention. The wound had been a rather deep gash, but Raven's powers had now reduced it to nothing more than a scratch and he could move his arm again without any pain. He was filling his friends in on what had happened, although he didn't mention that the man had recognized him.

"I still had my belt, after all, I threw a smoke pellet in his face," Robin shrugged.

"Ouch, that must have stung. I'm surprised he could drive after that," his half-mechanical friend guffawed.

"Yeah well… I was a bit too messed up to stop him…" Robin muttered, looking ashamed of himself. "So, did you get yours?"

"I got mine," the empath nodded, and was joined by Beast Boy and Starfire. Cyborg, however, growled.

"The guy took off into an ally which was too narrow for the car and I didn't have time to blast him."

"Still, three out of five isn't that bad!" Robin smiled. "We'll pick them off, one by one. Oh… damn…"

"What?"

"I forgot my helmet back there… it was my favorite one and now it's probably someone's souvenir…" the teen muttered.

"Well, by the sound of it, it got pretty smashed up, but we better see if we can short circuit the electronics from here," Cy said. "Don't want any kids, or worse, listening in on the intercom."

"You're right… Hey, I'm gonna go see if I can find it first," Robin said and stood up.

"You want us to come?" Beast Boy asked.

"Nah, I just need to clear my head and get some fresh air." His leader shrugged. "Keep your communicators on, though… I'll call if I see anything."

Donning a back-up helmet, Robin zoomed away from the Tower and soon he stood in the opening of the alley. Night had fallen and the streetlights in this neighborhood were mostly broken. The beam from his flashlight picked up his scratched helmet almost at once, but the teen didn't head for it. He walked deeper into the darkness and stopped at a dumpster. Taking a deep breath he opened the lid.

Empty.

First he didn't understand what he was seeing. His breath had caught in his throat and he just couldn't get enough oxygen. He was as close to a nervous breakdown as he had ever been. Then he heard a soft chuckle behind him and spun around.

"Hello, Robin. Didn't anyone teach you to deal with the body at once? Then again… no, I guess no one did, did they?"

"S-Slade?"

"The same. Or, as the records will say… 'the witness'."

"What… what are you talking about? I'm just here for my helmet!"

"And after spotting that you decided to go dumpster-diving? Interesting."

"I don't know what-"

"But I do. The biker had you on the ground, your mask in his hand, saying hello, when you-"

"It was an accident!"

"It was no accident, Robin. You pushed his gun out of the way, you grabbed one of those neat little throwing knives of yours and you sliced the man's throat open. Twice."

"I…" Robin couldn't form another word. He had begun backing up, but Slade matched his every step until the hero felt the cold tiles of the alley wall against his shoulder blades.

"I was fairly impressed. You made sure he was dead before you threw him in the dumpster… you can thank the extra adrenaline for that feat, I think; he was heavy… then you hid his bike, covering it up with trash and limped out of here like the wounded hero… and your friends bought it, of course. Wonderful acting. And all for these?" Robin cried out as, for the second time that day, his mask was ripped from his face. "Deadly blues."

"It's… It's too dark to-"

"Ah, yes, but I already know, Richard."

Robin had never had a déjà vu as strong as this one. He could instantly see the faces of Bruce, of Alfred, of all of the bat-family's friends, dead. Wayne industries in smoking ruins, the manor turned to rubble, his world ripped apart, and, again, there was only one way out. Only one person in the way. One man who could ruin it all. Mustn't ruin it all. He had to protect his family. But, this time, he couldn't even move.

"I… he would tell. I… I could never have bribed him… he would…" Robin felt his knees buckle and he slid down the wall in front of his arch nemesis, shaking and hugging his knees. He felt the cold armor he had forced upon himself since it had happened shatter, leaving him helpless and vulnerable. "I… I killed him… I killed him and I was going to … to get rid of his bod-" his stomach couldn't handle more and he toppled over on his hands and knees, throwing up what little he had been able to force himself to eat for dinner. He continued to heave until only acid and saliva dribbled out of his mouth.

"Nice." Robin startled and looked up, only now realizing that some of the vomit had splashed onto Slade's boots. He tried to crawl back, from the stinking puddle, and from Slade, but the man looming over him had him cornered. "Don't worry, Robin, I'm not angry. After all, now-" Slade grabbed Robin's hair lifting him up, forcing him onto his feet. "-you're mine."

"N-" the hero's objection was cut short as the man slammed his head into the side of the dumpster, and then it all went black.

He woke up in a pitch black room, not much bigger than a closet, he discovered, as he felt his way around. It was completely bare, the walls smooth, the door without a handle on the inside. He was only wearing his tights, everything else was gone; there was nothing that could help him get out. And it was hot. There was no air. Robin felt his lungs burning and he began to panic, wondering if he had been left here to suffocate. Wondering if he didn't deserve it. He crawled into a corner, facing the door and waited. He would die or someone would come, there really wasn't anything more he could do. The lack of air made him tired and eventually, after what felt like hours, he started to doze off.

Big eyes. Glazed eyes. Staring at him. Blood soaking his skin. The smell of it. The heat. Those eyes. Becoming empty. The gurgling sound. The gurgling sound stopping. Realizing what that meant, what the empty eyes meant, what he had done.

He sat up with a gasp, drenched in sweat, shivering despite the heat. But it hadn't been the dream that had woke him up; it was the light from the open door, so bright it seemed to stab his very skin. He raised his arms to shield his eyes but they were grabbed and he was pulled around as his hands were bent behind his back and locked there by a pair of steel handcuffs, which felt like ice on the teen's heated skin. He fought back, or tried to, growling, snarling, unable to really form any words, but it was useless. He was too exhausted to stop anything that was happening to him, too exhausted to even understand what was going on. Suddenly his world got dark again, but this time from a blindfold. Then he was yanked to his feet by his hair and the chain connecting his arms. He grunted in pain as he was pushed out of the room and down what seemed to be a hallway, at least he noticed that they were walking straight ahead for a while.

Robin knew that the man handling him was Slade; he recognized the grip, the roughness and the strength. He even recognized the man's mood from the way he was treated and knew that he wouldn't accept any provocations right now. Normally that wouldn't stop the teen from trying to kick the villain's teeth in through his mask, but right now all he could muster was trying to twist away weakly and digging his heels in. It didn't even slow the man down.

"What… what are you doing, where are you taking me?" the hero finally managed to ask, wishing he hadn't sounded so helpless.

"You'll see," Slade simply told him, and soon after they came to a stop. "Kneel," came the order.

"Fuck you!" Robin hissed. A kick to the back of his knees had him on the floor and in severe pain, but he clenched his teeth together, holding the cry in.

"Stay," he was told, as if he was a disobedient dog, but Robin knew that there was a time and a place, and that he could never hope to gain the upper hand or even escape, while back-bound and blindfolded. It would be idiotic to even try, so he stayed where he was. "Good boy." The man's voice was now coming from in front of him, and with calm, measured steps Slade began to circle him. "Robin, Robin, Robin… from hero to murderer in a single day…" the man said.

The Titan didn't respond, wondering what the man was after. Trying to break him even more, he supposed. Robin wanted wish him luck with that; his very soul already felt shattered.

"Let me begin by telling you that I have the body."

"You-you do?" Robin asked, shrinking in on himself, wondering if it was close by. If those dead eyes were staring at him right now…

"I do. Covered in your DNA, of course, as your were bleeding from that gunshot wound. But, even better; I have photographic evidence… a movie sequence showing every gruesome detail."

"What? How? How did you even know-?"

"Coincidence. The gods were smiling at me, I'm sure. I was in the area, about to set up a camera for a stake-out mission when I saw you chasing that biker into the dead end alley… I arrived just after he shot you and the camera was rolling a second later."

"You wanted fond memories of my death?" Robin growled.

"If anyone is going to kill you it will be me," the man answered, his voice filled with smug confidence.

"The biker got damn close."

"Oh, I wouldn't have let you die. I had the man's head in my cross hairs when you surprised me. Well. It saved me a bullet."

Robin stilled, not knowing whether to snort at the idea of Slade saving him, or fear the reason why.

"I didn't know that… I just… it was self defense!"

"First you claim it was an accident, and now self defense. Fine. It was. With a slice, excuse me, make that two, you protected not only yourself but Batman's identity as well. And if you and Batman had fallen, who knows, the Titans might eventually follow."

"Yes, I… I had no choice, I-"

"Of course you did. Even in that situation you could have just knocked him out."

"Then he would have told!" Robin turned his head to follow the sound of the man's footsteps, and the unchanging pace was starting to grate on his nerves.

"Yes. But you also had another choice. To confess."

"Yes, but-"

"But?"

"Then I would have gone to jail, and my identity would have been out anyway!"

"So what did you do?"

"What is this? A trial? Why the hell do you care?"

"Just tell me. I'm curious. Frankly, I didn't think you had it in you."

"I… I hid the body in the dumpster and… I didn't say anything."

"Tell me, Robin… when you returned to the scene of your crime," the man began vindictively, circling him like a shark, "what did you bring with you?"

"What… what do you mean?"

"In the sidecar you so wisely had connected to your bike just to go 'pick up a helmet'… there was something inside it. What?"

"Why… why do you need to ask, you already know!"

"Humor me, my boy."

Robin swallowed the new bile which had risen in his throat. "P-plastic bags and an… an electric saw."

"Plastic bags and an electric saw… hmm… I wonder what that adds up to when a dead body is involved? Don't tell me you were going to get rid of the evidence?" the man's voice was teasing, sarcastic, echoing off the walls just like his footsteps.

"Who the hell are you to judge?" Robin snarled.

"Oh, but I'm not. This is the United States of America, after all," the man said and, finally stopped. Right in front of Robin. "And in this country we use a jury." The blindfold was suddenly ripped off and Robin blinked in the light. "Say hello to yours." His head was yanked to the side and Robin found himself staring at a large screen, and into the shocked eyes of his friends.

"Now, I have muted the sound coming from them, but don't worry, they have been able to hear every word from us… so dear members of the jury… what say thee?" Slade touched his arm guard and must have activated something, because suddenly the room echoed with his team's voices, and, in Starfire's case, sobs.

"No…" Robin mumbled. "No… no…"

"But you felt so bad hiding what you've done, Robin…. Didn't you?" The villain chuckled darkly, obviously enjoying every second.

"Robin… how…?" Cyborg began but he couldn't seem to finish the sentence.

"This is… this is like a set-up, right? You didn't do that! That video was fake!" Beast Boy cried out angrily.

"You... showed them…?" Robin asked Slade quietly.

"I doubt they would have believed me if I hadn't," the man shrugged.

"It is… true?" Raven asked.

"It's… yes," Robin answered. "Rae, I… something snapped, I… please understand!"

"I'm… trying…" the young woman answered quietly.

"If the court could come to order?" Slade said airily. "The jury and the accused shouldn't talk, after all. So… Titans… do you want your leader back?"

"Yes we do!" Starfire snarled, her eyes blazing.

"I see… And then what?"

"What do you mean, Slade?" Cyborg growled.

"Well, as you aren't criminals, I assume that, if I return him to you, you would turn him over to the police? You can't harbor a murderer after all… Justice needs to be served." Robin could see the uncertain looks on his friend's faces and knew exactly how they felt.

"Slade, don't-" he began, but then the man's boot slammed into his side so hard he curled up on the floor unable to breathe. He heard the Titan's indignant yells, but Slade was not finished manipulating his team's minds quite yet.

"So, you turn him over to the police, and his life is ruined… but, you might argue, he got what he deserved. He committed a crime; he has to pay the price. But it's not just him. He won't be convicted as Robin the Boy Wonder, after all. It will take Batman down as well. The Batcave will be raided, and all the bat-family's little secrets will be out. Everyone they are protecting, every witness in every case… and there won't be any Batman there to protect those people… or Robin. Prison can be such an unfriendly environment, after all… Especially if people on the inside happen to be there thanks to you…"

"We wouldn't…" Beast Boy began. "We couldn't…"

"But he is a criminal, there's no denying that. He's not even denying it, are you, Robin?"

"No, you son of a-UGH!"

"Don't insult the court," the man chuckled, stepping away after kicking the teen's side again. "Besides, Titans, he's not only a murderer, but a cold blooded one. He didn't slice that man's throat open in a panic. He didn't try to stop the bleeding, he didn't call for help, and he pretended everything was fine. He lied to you. He stood in front of you, covered in his victim's blood and told you that he had gotten away. He returned to cut the body up and dispose of it… is that someone you want to protect? Because, if you do, I might, as a concerned citizen, have to release the body to the police and let them handle it… and that will incriminate all of you, because, of course, this conversation is being recorded."

"We're not… we're not just going to leave him as your prisoner!" Cyborg said.

"You will leave our friend alone!" Starfire agreed.

Robin, however, was quiet. He knew he couldn't go back to his friends, even if they would, for some reason, forgive him. Slade was right, that would mean dragging them down with him. He should go to jail, that was what he deserved, but that would also mean innocent people would suffer. He had committed the crime; he should be the one to pay for it.

"Out with it, Slade," Raven said. "What do you want?"

"Kidnap Robin, of course!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "Make him his apprentice again!"

"It's something more than that," the empath explained. "He already has Robin. He could have disappeared with him. Slade wants something more… and I'm guessing he wants to make a deal with us."

"Clever girl. Yes. I have a suggestion. Give Robin to me."

"NO!" Starfire yelled. "No you cannot have him!"

"Star, like I said, he already does… so what do you mean?" Raven asked.

"You can't protect him without committing a crime yourself. The justice system will mean the destruction of his family, and, most likely, his death. None of those are viable options for you. I'm offering to carry out his sentence, to be, as it were, his prison. I want him for five years, without probation."

Robin stared up at the man, with the same expression his friends wore of disbelief, fear and anger.

"Five… five years?" Raven asked.

"Not much for a murder, I know, but I'm being lenient since I believe the claim of self defense," the man chuckled. "In that time, however, you are not to harbor him or help him in any way. All contact will be forbidden, although you are of course permitted to try to defend yourself should you have to face him."

"You can't make him commit crimes!" Cyborg barked.

"Of course I can. He'll be my apprentice again. I will make sure, however, that none of the crimes can be connected to him. No one will know who he is, besides you."

"And… when the five years are up?" Raven asked.

"He'll be free to return to you… if he so chooses."

"Slade will surely wash his brain!" Starfire objected.

"Rob's strong…" Cyborg said.

"That strong?" Raven asked darkly. "You remember last time, don't you?"

"We can trust him… can't we?" Beast Boy sounded as miserable as his leader felt.

Robin sat staring at the floor in front of him, realizing that his team had an impossible choice to make.

"Robin?" It was Starfire's voice and he looked up to meet her large, worried eyes. "Please, Robin… you are sorry?"

The Boy Wonder didn't know whether to laugh or cry. 'Sorry'… yeah, saying you were sorry used to solve everything, didn't it? That and admitting that you were responsible. 'I broke the vase, Alfred, I'm sorry.' 'That's quite alright Master Richard, now go wash up before dinner.'… yeah… simple… if you were sorry you were always forgiven… But, even though he didn't want his team to hate him, he couldn't let them do anything stupid.

"No, Star. I'm not sorry," Robin said, just loud enough for his team to hear.

"…But…?" the alien gasped.

"You don't mean that," Raven added.

"I do. He would have destroyed my family, and who was he? A dreg. As Slade pointed out, I can't go to jail either, so… leave me here. Leave me with him. And… if you see me before the five years are up… run. Run or fight for your life, because Slade won't let me go easy on you." Robin swallowed. Slade wouldn't go easy on him either. He had never told his team the true depth of the horror he had gone through as the man's apprentice… especially not what… Robin forced that thought out of his mind and returned his eyes to the floor.

"We… don't have any choice…" Cyborg said, and Robin drew a sigh of relief even as his heart froze to ice. "Robin… we… we love you."

"Love you too," the teen mumbled, but he wasn't sure they heard him this time.

"The jury has spoken. You're mine," Slade said smugly. "Goodbye Titans," he added and the screen went black as it was turned off, the room darkening even more. "Finally alone, then, Robin?" the man was standing in front of him once more, and the teen, still on his knees, was forced to crane his neck back to be able to glare at him. "Seems your team gave you up."

"As they should!" Robin snapped. "I wouldn't have let them commit a crime to protect me!"

"Of course not. And it's that heroism that makes you so very easy to control. So, Apprentice… Shall we start with a little reminder of your place?"

Robin's eyes widened as the man began to unzip himself. This was what he had tried to repress, had never told anyone about… That Slade didn't only cause him pain, that he had also-

"Don't tell me you've forgotten, my boy? Open up now…" the man teased him.

All the memories came flooding back as the teen slowly parted his lips: the taste, the smell, the texture, the helplessness. With his hands cuffed he didn't have any control and the villain just buried himself down his throat, enjoying the gag-reflex and the throat spasms as the teen struggled to breathe.

"Hmmm…. I see you do remember. Good. I hope you remember to swallow as well?" The man pulled almost all the way out as he came, making sure his cum flooded Robin's mouth and not flow straight down into his throat, so the hero got to 'enjoy' the taste. "There… what do we say?"

"Fuck you," Robin growled.

"Aw, so close. You had earned yourself a mattress, but not anymore I think. Are we going to be polite or am I going to have to take away the floor as well?"

Robin snorted. He ended up regretting that.

He hung suspended from his wrists and ankles in the middle of the room, facing the floor. With not even a wall to support him, his arms had begun to hurt very quickly and now it felt like they were coming out of their sockets any moment. Robin closed his eyes. How long had it been? An hour? Two? Fifteen minutes? The room was completely dark and lacked windows so he had no way of knowing. He hung his head, the slight movement making him grind his teeth against the pain. Five years. Five years of this. He wouldn't last a week. Slade had had his friends as collateral last time, meaning he hadn't had to go very far; Robin would eventually cave because of them. The punishments for failure or talking back had still been grim, however, and Slade's way of 'teaching him his place'… Robin whimpered quietly from the memories as well as the current pain. How would he survive? Impossible. He couldn't survive without giving in. Giving in completely. For the next five years Robin had to die and someone else take his place and then… then he could only hope that he would be able to resurrect himself again… that he could even remember who he used to be.

The End

A/N: the prompt for this was "What if Robins identity becomes public knowledge? (and it's not Slade's fault this time... or is it?) How far would Robin go to undo the damage and protect his family (Bruce and Alfred)." but I changed it from having already become public knowledge to threatening to, because once it's out there, in the press and whatever, I actually couldn't figure out what Robin would have done…? Maybe someone else can, but I was stumped. Sorry about that change, but I hope you still enjoyed it!