Disclaimer: I do not own any of the superhero legacies or code names that are mentioned at any time in this story, DC Comics does. Any character that is not in DC I have made up so please do not steal them without permission from me. All characters and situations are fictitious. Scenarios in this story (to my knowledge) have not been used in any run of DC Comics. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 10: Those At My Side

After the fiasco of reporters calmed down from my initial appearance and when I took down the ropes between the heroes and the public, I managed to find the Titans. Of course, Robin had a smug look on his face before Impulse came out of nowhere and attached herself to me as Blitz wheeled himself over. The rest of the day was filled with heroes, heroines, and the public giving their condolences to the three of us. When the Flash Museum closed after dark, I managed to convince Impulse to stay at Mount Justice with her team for the night. Blitz was carried away by one of his team members and I said a few last goodbyes to other heroes and heroines until it was just Robin, Wonder Girl, Superboy, Green Lantern, and me. I wandered up the steps of the Flash Museum as the four talked nearby.

Picking up a few stray flowers that people left, I put them with the huge pile of other flowers. I felt drained from the whole day's events. Just as I picked up another flower, I could feel a lump form in my throat as I thought of Blitz and the speedsters that the world lost. My knees suddenly buckled from under me, and I sat near the top of the steps with the red rose that I'd just picked up. All of the teachers that could have taught me how to use my speed to become a better hero were gone. I hadn't truly mourned for the loss of my father yet. It finally hit me.

I was an orphan.

Wiping furiously at the tears that started leaking from my eyes, I turned away from my friends and saw a small shadow heading towards a window of the museum. Glancing at the four still conversing at the bottom of the steps, I sucked up my emotions and quickly sped towards the shadow. Just as the shadow got to one of the windows, I recognized it as the little brown-haired boy, Jack.

I could hear him sniffling and he had a few dandelions in his little fist. He started to try and push the window up before a sob escaped his little frame. That little sob re-started my own waterworks and the boy jumped in surprise, whirling around to look at my teary face. Without a word, he ran the few feet to me and wrapped his arms around my waist, sobbing into me before I knelt down, wrapping my arms around him and letting him cry into my neck. I knew when my friends came over to where Jack and I were, him sobbing and me crying silently. It took a few minutes, but the boy finally managed to speak against my neck.

"I...I thought you...you were one of the...the ones that died!" I hugged him a little closer.

"No. Both Impulse and I are still alive, kiddo." He pulled back a little to look at me.

"I'm sorry...that I missed the thing today." I smiled a little through my tears, about to say that it was alright when I heard the scratch of a match. Robin had five candles in his hands and Superboy started lighting them, handing the first one to Wonder Girl.

"Since you missed it, you're welcome to join our memorial, kid." Robin knelt next to us, holding two lit candles to Jack and I. "Just don't burn yourself."

Superboy held out the last candle to Green Lantern but a small, green lit candle appeared in Lantern's hand and he smiled at Superboy. As I carried Jack in my arms, the five of us walked to the front of the Flash Museum and stood silently for a few moments. Tears cascaded down Jack's eyes as I put him down and he added his little fistful of dandelions to the pile of flowers. I felt Green Lantern's hand squeeze my shoulder in comfort and Wonder Girl hugged my other arm as I cried silently. Jack came back to my side, hugging my waist as he buried his teary face into my side.

"I'm glad you're not dead, Kid Flash." I looked down at Jack as he sniffled and I felt Superboy give me a one-armed hug.

"So are we, KF."

I looked up at the lightning symbol above the entrance of the Flash Museum as I put my right hand over the symbol on my own chest, silently giving the past Flashes an oath that I would uphold the legacy and become the seventh Flash.

A week ago, I tried to convince my crazy Aunt Gloria that I could survive on my own; I was going to turn seventeen in a few months anyways. To my astonishment, she completely agreed with me and wanted me to take Emily with me too. That is, until all the other adult figures in my life stepped in and suddenly, Emily and I were shifted from Aunt Gloria in Central City to Uncle Bart in Keystone City with a little surprise mixed in. Without anyone the wiser, Uncle Bart also adopted the speedster-loving boy, Jack. He told me that he'd been looking for his lost West nephew for years. Who knew that I was distantly related to Jack?

Now, I stood quietly in the front row, not really listening to the preacher's words. It was pretty warm out and there was a slight breeze that blew through the graveyard; rustling the fake flowers that were all around. My father was the last funeral in a very long line of funerals to go to. And I thought yesterday was tough with laying Emily's father to rest. This was infinitely harder to see my father waiting to be lowered into the spot next to where my mother was buried. All my relatives that went to the other thirty funerals were there along with my friends.

But to me, it was just the casket and I in that graveyard.

I didn't hear it when the preacher asked me to put the rose I had onto the casket so they could lower it into the ground; I just stared at the beautiful wooden box. Someone just barely nudged the back of my knee and, as if I were a stringed puppet, I numbly walked forward and put the rose on the casket before walking backwards to where I'd been standing before. The casket was lowered as people started leaving for their cars.

Staring at the two headstones, tears flowed silently down my face. People squeezed me on the shoulder and hugged me, saying reassuring things but I stood frozen to the spot. For how long I stood there just staring at my father and mother's headstones, I never knew. It wasn't until someone grabbed my shoulders and started steering me to a black car that I moved, silently obeying whoever it was that was leading me. As I sat in the car, I heard my Grandpa Wayne tell the driver to go back to Keystone City, where my distant Uncle Bart (Blitz) lived. As soon as the car started moving, my Grandpa Wayne pulled me into him, telling me everything would be okay. Within a matter of seconds, I was sobbing. No matter how much my dad annoyed me about the family legacy, I never wanted him dead because of it. Now, I was determined to follow through with my father's wishes.

It took me most of the ride to Keystone to calm down, but neither Grandpa Wayne or Ethan (I didn't notice him getting into the car too) minded. On the contrary, Ethan told the driver to park a few houses down until I was calm enough to face the relatives staying at Uncle Bart's. As soon as we went into the door, I was pulled into hugs from a few distant Aunts and Uncles until I got to my spacious upstairs room and closed the door, not surprised to already find Andrew, Wanda, and Ethan making themselves at home. It was a surprise to see Teague among them though. Taking a shaky breath, I let Wanda give me a reassuring hug before I sat between Andrew and Teague on my new bed. Andrew draped an arm over my shoulders.

"How you doing bro?" I groaned, rubbing my face with my hands before I saw Ethan put our customary stolen platter of sandwiches for us on my desk.

"Glad all the funerals are over." Teague nodded, stretching out a little beside me.

"You mean glad that this one was the last? You look like hell warmed over." I shot Teague a dirty look before Ethan leaned back on my desk chair.

"You know my offer still stands on the week off duty, Nick. A lot has happened since you accepted the Kid Flash name. I need you to be in the right mindset in order to use you to your fullest." Frowning a little, I couldn't help but wonder how much losing speedster relatives may have effected Ethan too.

"I'll take four days. My Uncle Bart wants to teach Emily and I a few things about being successful speedsters." Wanda chuckled.

"You know, I swear Blitz has gotten even faster and more annoying on that new wheelchair of his." I snorted in amusement.

"Blame Star Labs. That wheelchair was made specially for him. I swear he can still go the speed of sound in that thing and not break a sweat." Teague chuckled as his ring lit up, grabbing a sandwich across the room for him.

"Speaking of labs, Nick...the velocity machine's door has finally been fixed in the Tower. Guess what you're gonna be doing five days from now." I ran my hand through my hair, grumbling a bit.

"What am I a guinea pig? And why are you always hanging out with us all of a sudden Teague? You're a Leaguer not a Titan!" A grin climbed up on his face.

"Aaaahh, but I know for a fact that Leaguers can be on more than one team. It's a nice little bonus about being one of the top dogs; I can choose to be on another team at the same time." Ethan's blue eyes narrowed.

"What makes you think I'll allow someone like you into my team? You may be a Leaguer but I'm still the leader of the Teen Titans and I still have a say in who is on my team." Teague cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Sooooo you're saying I don't belong with you guys? C'mon I'm only a little older than you and most of the League is in their forties and even fifties. I'd rather be on the Titans with you guys than on the League without you." A cocky smirk appeared on Ethan's face.

"I'm not saying you can't be a Titan, I'm just saying I'm still the leader of the Titans and therefore if you really want to be one of us, you will have to follow my orders like a good little minion." Teague smiled.

"It's a...wait a minute. Who are you calling a minion? I'm a Green Lantern not a Bat-minion." The rest of us started chuckling as Teague fumed a little.

As I watched my four friends banter back and forth, I started to wonder if I could really live up to the Flash Legacy and actually become the seventh Flash.

Something inside me knew that I couldn't do it alone.

But I knew I could do it with my friends at my side.

Chapter 10 End

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