The fog had entered his mind again. The insanity was coming back, stronger than ever now. The first thought he had was wondering where his father was. Alfred stood at his bedside when he saw the young boy awaken.

"Hello, Master Dick." He greeted.

Dick attempted a smile. "Hi, Alfie."

Alfred made a half-hearted attempt to smile and not roll his eyes at the atrocious nickname. He looked at the boy, who was restrained just in case he tried to hurt himself.

"Shall I call your father?" he asked quietly.

Dick nodded. "Please."

The voice was quiet for now. But he knew it would be back- It always came back. With a nod, Alfred left to call his master.

Said Master was analyzing the tape that was lodged in the tape recorder. It was a sleep hypnosis tape. A few nights with it in, and said user would begin to hear voices in their head telling them to do whatever it was programmed when exposed to a certain noise.

"Like a high-pitched whine..." Bruce Mused. It was then that he got Alfred's call that Dick had been asking for him. With one last move, he ordered the reversal tape online and went to see his boy.

They had let Dick out of the restraints when they were sure the voice had abated. He sat on the bed, swinging his legs. It was then that a pretty nurse came in with another boy. She introduced him as Anthony, and that he was schizophrenic as well. Dick examined the new boy. He was about five foot seven in height, with chestnut colored hair that was styled in a bieber cut. He had bright sparkling light blue eyes that held the same glaze that Dick's did.

"Hey." Said the boy, extending his hand.

"Hi." Said Dick, attempting a smile. He took the boys hand and felt a spark of electricity pass between them. He knew the other boy felt it as well.

"You hear voices too?" The boy asked.

Dick nodded. "Just one though... at least I think it's just one..."

"I have two. They're named Robert and Jason. Robert tells me nasty things about myself. Jason tells me to hit people. Does your voice have a name?"

Dick shook his head. "I never thought about naming it."

"It makes it easier," Anthony explained, "For the people who don't hear them."

"I'll call it Alec." He said. He didn't know why he chose that particular name, but it seemed to fit well.

"What if there's two?"

"I'll call the angry one Alec and the other one Bryce." He said. In a flash, he recalled last night and how there was more than one voice yelling at him.

"What does Alec tell you?"

"He tells me that I need to hit people. He tells me to kill my Dad and to work for a man who was mean to me and that I need to die." Anthony looked at him with understanding eyes.

"Do they scare you?" He asked, quietly.

Dick nodded seriously. "More than anything ever has."

As if on cue, Dick heard Alec talking. He instantly flinched and turned his head to where he thought he heard him speaking.

"Alec is back." Anthony said. It was a statement filled with foreboding. Dick nodded.

"Yes, that's right." he whispered. "Did Jason tell you?"

"Yes." He nodded. "Jason says they're out to get me. That I can't trust people."

"Alec said He's gonna hit me." Dick said, quietly. Anthony nodded.

"Jason hits me all the time. He likes going for my face the most."

In his head, he could hear Alec screaming.

"You should go kill yourself. That kid you're talking to doesn't care about you, and neither does Daddy dearest. He only wants you for your trapeze skills. You should kill him. That would show him what for. He doesn't deserve you- he doesn't even love you, and neither does the butler. Kill them- but beat them first. Hit them across the face. You know you want to. You've got the rage- and so do I. If you don't hit them, I'll hit you. And I'll make it hurt. I hate you, you worthless piece of shit. You deserve to rot in hell."

About twenty minutes later, Bruce arrived. He was surprised to see Dick talking to another boy.

"Hello there." He said, smiling at his son. Dick ran up and hugged his father.

"Hi Daddy."

"How are you today, Son?"

"I'm okay. This is my new friend Anthony. He hears voices too."

Bruce smiled at the boy, while inside he was picking apart the boy for anything that troubled him right off the bat. Aside from the reason for his being there, nothing about this boy set off his bat senses.

"It's nice to meet you, Anthony." The boy simply nodded, and Dick knew Jason must have been telling him all sorts of things. He was disturbed when Alec started yelling again, and Bruce knew from experience that nothing was good. He sat with Dick on the bed while Anthony watched with glazed eyes. All of a sudden, Dick yelped and cupped his cheek. Bruce immediately went to ask what happened, when Anthony spoke up.

"Alec hit you, didn't he?" He asked solemnly. Dick nodded as tears pooled in his eyes. The pain he could handle, but the final remark Alec made after hitting him was something he couldn't bear to hear.

"You're the reason your parents died."

Bruce gently coaxed Dick into removing his hand, cooing to him quietly as if he were still eight rather than sixteen. Dick stuck his thumb in his mouth and began to suck, hoping for some relief as he let his hand down.

Bruce looked in horrified fascination as the outline of a red human hand marred his child's face.