Sorry that this chapter is a week late guys; I know that all you who are reading my other stories know what a terribly slow updater I am, and apologize for that. Once I work out a plan on how to work around my school and homework and my Tae Kwon Do, I should be able to write more. I'm mostly late because I just had an awful bout with the flu (yes, sick again) and it took me awhile to recuperate. Anyway: I'm back for another chapter, and I hope you guys enjoy this new update; I also hope all of you had a good holiday! And now, on with it...
Chapter:
"...Oh…my head…"
Naomi's eyes fluttered open, vision bleary as she gazed about in confusion. Boris lay a ways off, unconscious it looked like, from the lump on his head; the Goth girl from the Titans was curled nearby, in the same state as her boss...Now that was odd: They hadn't lost the captive, and her partner seemed to still be breathing…so why did she feel like something had gone terribly wrong?
Apart from the fact that you wake up, with no clue how you got conked out in the first place, she thought wryly, as she got to her feet and attempted to steady herself. Boris might have been drinking a little too much again before the mission—although he'd seemed sober, she never really could tell with him. As for her…maybe she accidentally banged herself out when she had smacked that puny Boy Wonder over the—
"Crap."
That's what was out of place.
Naomi winced, picturing how the whole situation was going to look to DeFarge, much less how they were going to explain it when they themselves didn't even know what had happened. Maybe she'd even get her eye stabbed, like Boris.
Despite her love of pain and suffering, she didn't exactly relish the idea of going through the rest of her life handicapped; it would drastically impair her job.
The woman shook her head as she imagined the prospect, while gently rubbing at the lump on the back of her head; it was massive, she had to admit, as if someone had struck her on the head with some kind of pole…rather similar to the one that Robin was apparently so fond of using. Perhaps he'd been the one to cause her to black out, and then he had run away—after all who knew how long she'd been out? That was a rational suggestion…Even though she'd seen him faint and had just been about to tie him and his friend up when something silver had come streaking out of nowhere, and slammed into her skull.
She strained her memory, trying to recall what had occurred, and yet everything came back as blank and thick as fog…Naomi had never been known for an exceptional memory. The only conclusion she could reach was that Boris had been the second one to go down, and might remember something out of all the chaos. Unfortunately, that meant waiting until the man was up and ready to move, before she was able to question him; that also meant they'd be late in their delivery of Raven to DeFarge, which would put him in an even worse temper.
All things considered, she'd be lucky if she could still walk when he was through with them.
Naomi heaved a sigh and sat down beside her captive and boss, while taking the opportunity to plan out exactly what kind of story she was going to feed the Ravager.
-partners-
Surprisingly, Robin hadn't been any trouble at all.
The instant he had seen the boy fall, and swooped in to rescue him, Slade had been preparing himself for the moment when the brat would wake up and begin screaming at the him—completely and ungratefully ignoring the fact that the man had saved him from the clutches of the Ravager—that he had left Raven behind, as well as prevented the child from rescuing the rest of his infernal friends.
This, however, was not the case.
Slade had prided himself on being able to read Robin like an open book, and had used it on many an occasion to taunt the Boy Wonder into losing his temper, and the fight on top of it. He had thought—and was usually correct—that he could predict the young man's reaction to any situation.
Yet now…
Robin had been asleep for at least an hour, and showed no sign of waking anytime soon; perhaps that woman had struck him harder than Slade assumed…or maybe the boy was just exhausted from spending so much of his time crime fighting, and staying up during those long nights studying criminals—Slade in particular—and this was the first time he'd truly been able to rest?
Whatever the case, the man certainly wasn't going to complain delaying the annoying conversation the two of them were most certainly going to have, regarding the other Titans.
Slade turned away from the single, operating table in the warehouse where Robin was sleeping, and returned to sifting through a supplies crate. After all—there was still a slight chance that his plan might work, and he wanted to be prepared when the boy consented…
Much to his aggravation, however, a small kernel of guilt had begun worming its way into his stomach.
Ever since he'd heard Wade had been making his way towards the city, Slade had spent all his time investigating, trying to discover what kind of team his enemy had employed, his mode for traveling; and his motive. It was this last one that had particularly interested him: Yes, he knew only too well that Wade hated his guts, but after so many years without them seeing each other…what would suddenly spark DeFarge's interest in "reuniting"?
After wasting a good amount of time beating information out of the punks and teenagers of the Underground, Slade had gotten the exact kind of information he'd needed, although he hadn't exactly been expecting the shocking answer he had uncovered…he hadn't also been thrilled at his reaction to the news. He would have expected to be indifferent, if not slightly amused by Wade's ridiculous assumptions. Instead…
Slade sighed, and set aside the crate's contents, pausing to think hard.
He should have stayed out of this whole mess, rather than allow himself to get tangled up in the problem, just like Wade had been expecting him to. Why did he care what happened to Robin? Better for him if the rotten teen was killed, right? It would affect his life in the slightest!
You know why you saved him, a smug voice informed him from the back of his head.
"Good God," Slade murmured fretfully, and glanced back at over at the unconscious boy to guarantee that the young hero couldn't hear him.
"I'm getting soft…"
-partners-
(A/N: For the readers' benefits—this is a flashback. Heh, sorry…)
He'd never imagined himself the kind of man who would settle down and raise a family to begin with, and yet here he was: A home, a wife, two children, a civilized job…
…Well, at least during the day.
He had been lying to Addie for quite some time now, about his whereabouts during the evening hours; yes, he felt guilty—but he knew she wouldn't understand if he told her the truth. She'd given up the dangerous life style they'd both once lived, to make way for, as she put it, "a much more important phase in their lives": Parenthood.
There was nothing wrong with that; he loved his children very much!
But you know what they say: Old habits die hard. And besides, what Addie and his kids didn't know wouldn't hurt them—
There was so much blood, spilling everywhere, staining his hands and clothing; a woman screamed in the background; so much blood—
—There was no reason for him to worry about them. As long as he kept his business a secret, everything would be...
Perfect.
-partners-
The first thing he noticed when he woke up was the absence of light, despite the fact that, the last time he had been awake, it had been at night; still, though the city had had a considerable chunk of it destroyed, he would have thought that there would still have been at least a few lights on.
Robin groaned, and rolled over onto one side to curl up into a ball—he felt miserable, like he was going to be sick to his stomach, and his head was throbbing terribly. That stupid bounty hunter was stronger than she seemed.
He had actually planned on remaining laying down for awhile longer, but the words that greeted his ears next made him instantly alert.
"I see you're awake."
Slade's deep voice was quiet, and unusually peaceful, as if he wasn't interested in arguing, or coming to blows; indeed, from the way he was sitting, one would have thought they were old acquaintances, with one waiting for the other to wake up—he was reclining against a stack of crates, examining a somewhat familiar weapon with vague interest. Robin, however, refused to let his guard down, and climbed down off the table he'd been resting on, before beginning to reach for his belt…
He felt only the cloth of his uniform.
"It's over there in the corner if you were looking for it," the man commented lightly, and nodded his head to indicate the direction. Robin glared, but followed his enemy's line of vision, to find his utility belt folded atop another pile of boxes. He retrieved it swiftly—then turned on the older male.
"What—"
"Happened?" Slade said mildly, cutting him off. The Boy Wonder narrowed his eyes and closed his mouth to listen, as Slade had already taken the words right out of his mouth.
Slade paused a second, as if collecting himself, then put down the weapon he'd been evaluating to stare directly at the boy.
"I'm sure you remember the fight you had with those two bounty hunters?"
Robin automatically reached for the lump on the back of his head, and the criminal nodded.
"Yes, you took a blow to the head. The woman knocked you out, and I attacked her and her partner from behind. I brought you here—we're in a warehouse near the docks, if you were curious," he added, as the teenager prepared to ask another question. Robin stopped short, frowning.
"If you saved me…then that means you were following me."
Slade nodded again, agreeing.
"Even though I told you to leave me alone," the younger man noted tersely.
There was no response to that, and the room became silent. Then:
"What about Raven?"
"What about her?"
"Where—" Robin tried to swallow the panic and concern that was rearing up inside him. "Where is she?"
Slade didn't answer for a very long time, and Robin knew what he was going to say, long before the words were ever spoken.
"You left her behind…"
Neither said anything for many minutes; the quiet stretched on like an eternity, and with each passing moment, the Boy Wonder grew angrier and angrier as he stared at the man. A bitter taste rose in his throat, similar to bile, and he felt himself trembling as he saw his friends awful fates play out in his mind as they had in his dream—
—Starfire screaming for help, calls dying as the knife sliced her throat; the sword swinging down on Raven; Cyborg and Beast Boy being attacked and killed—
"You left her…with those monsters," Robin whispered; his voice was quivering unsteadily, as if it might crack at any second.
"You rescued me, but…you left my friends helpless, left them to die, for all we know…"
Slade still wouldn't talk, but the hero was beyond caring. He advanced slowly, till he was standing only a few feet from the villain; his breathing was shaky, and he was trying to stay in control…
…And then he snapped.
"You son of a bitch!"
Robin lost utter control, and flung himself at his adversary, without even a clue of what he was planning to do. He knew his fists were flying every which way, trying to hit as much of Slade as possible, and that the two of them were wrestling for control...he felt his lip split as they slammed into one of the many crates that were scattered about, and a copper taste rush into his mouth…and yet he was like an animal—vicious, unwilling to relent, desperate to hurt, or cause pain…
One of Slade's hands closed around his wrists, restraining them, while the man drew his other up, and backhanded the Boy Wonder across the face.
He supposed that it wasn't meant to cause pain, but rather a sign for him to get a hold of himself, but Robin let out a sharp yell (partly out of rage, partly out of pain), and then went still, waiting for Slade to throw him aside, or something of the sort.
Just to spite the man, Robin glanced up at him defiantly; he was hoping that Slade would get especially riled up, just because of that expression. It had certainly bothered the criminal when the boy had been his apprentice.
But...the look in Slade's eye made him freeze, stunned beyond actions or words. There was a faint glimmer of emotion in that usually cold, and apathetic gray iris, an emotion that Robin knew all too well.
The next thing he knew, he'd been released; he sat, panting, on the ground as he attempted to understand what just happened. Slade stood and strode purposefully over to a battered table in another corner of the warehouse.
"If you want to save your friends, I'm going to have to explain a few things to you…"
To be Continued…
It's definitely not the best chapter I've ever written, but I'm afraid it might just have to do. I'm so sorry for taking so long to update, and it will never happen again—I promise. Dlsky: I'm SO sorry that I had to ask for more time. I hated doing that, mostly because it's not fair to the other people in the challenge. Even if I come down with pneumonia, I swear I'll never miss another due date.
See you around—
Rebel