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Please note: this chapter contains bad language and violence.

Welcome Home

The first thing that Jason became aware of as consciousness returned to him was the immense pain. His body ached, his wrist throbbed, and his head pounded in unison with his heartbeat. The younger Robin could tell he was laying on something firm like a terrible mattress or cot.

It reminded the young man of the week he lived in a youth shelter when he was ten before his dad found him and dragged him back home. Jason spent that night in the hospital with a broken leg from his 'fall' down the stairs. He didn't try to run away from home again.

Jason shifted and a cry tore from his lips as he felt a stabbing pain in his side. The young vigilante's whole left side felt like it was on fire as spikes of pain assaulted him with every breath he took.

With more difficulty than he would've liked, Jason peeled his green eyes open. His sight blurred, and a wave of nausea slammed into him, causing the young man to have to squeeze his eyes closed again. Once the feeling passed, Jason tried a second time to take in his surroundings.

As he initially thought, Jason found himself sprawled across the uncomfortable mattress of an iron framed bed. He looked to be in a basement of some kind from the lack of windows and staircase leading up on the opposite side of the room. The walls were a light grey matching the varying shades of grey to black herringbone patterned floor. Wherever Jason was it was more residential than commercial. The thing that stood out the most, however, was the cell-like bars that encased the bed Jason was placed on.

Carefully, to not hurt himself further, Jason tried to sit up. The young vigilante's limbs felt heavy and his movements sluggish from the aftereffects of whatever drug Deathstroke had used on him. The task to sit up was made even more difficult by the thick metal cuffs that bound his wrists together tightly.

After struggling upright through the pain in his side, Jason swung his legs over the side of the bed and gasped as the cold wooden floor hit his bare feet. It was then that Jason realized that not only were his shoes missing, but his jacket was as well, leaving him in nothing but his jeans and maroon t-shirt. There was a hole in Jason's shirt where most of his pain was radiating with a stark white piece of gauze that could be seen. "Fuuuck." Jason groaned in frustration, as fumbling fingers reached for the wound at his side to inspect the patch job.

"You're going to pull a stitch." A gruff and unexpected voice sounded from the base of the stairs.

Startled, Jason snapped his head up to find the source of the voice and found Slade staring at him with his one good eye. The second Robin didn't know if he should be concerned or not that Deathstroke wasn't wearing his armor. There was something a little too personal about seeing the man underneath the armor, and him, without his Robin suit on. Slade looked like your typical retired military man, standing at attention, wearing street clothes. But there was an air of danger about the man that could only be compared to an apex predator that was staring down his prey.

Not allowing himself to be intimidated by the unnerving man, Jason stood on unsteady feet and moved to the bars separating them. "Ya know, I get why you're obsessed with me. I'm pretty awesome but get ready for your shriveled heart to break." The metal from Jason's cuffs clanked against the bars as he gripped them. "You're not my type."

The intimidating man observed Jason with a dark gaze, cocking his head to the side. Slade's predatory look caused a shudder to ripple down the young man's spine and his heartbeat to quicken with anxiety.

"No, but it seems my daughter is." Deathstroke finally continued. The mercenary started walking towards Jason's cell with measured steps, arms crossed and muscles bulging.

Jason swallowed down his rising anxiety and was pleased when his voice didn't waver. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, you do." Slade countered with no doubt in his statement.

Jason clenched his teeth, wisely biting back a rude comment. It was disconcerting that Deathstroke knew about him and his daughter, so the young vigilante decided to switch tactics to what he did best. Being combative. "So, what…you're going to use me to get to Rose? Get her to come to you huh? That's a fucking stupid plan. I thought you were supposed to be some big scary mercenary. Aren't you supposed to—"

Instead of getting angry like Jason had planned Slade just chuckled interrupting Jason's rant.

"What's so fucking funny?!" Jason snapped in irritation.

"Now why would I need to use you to bring Rose to me…when she's been working with me this entire time?"

Jason felt like he had been punched in the stomach and doused with ice water. He couldn't breathe…Slade was lying, he had to be. Troubled green eyes swept over the mercenary's face, searching for any sign of a lie. He couldn't find one…but that didn't mean anything. Right? Deathstroke was a hired killer. Lying was his entire life. "Bullshit." Jason spat.

Slade's face twisted into something that could almost be described as pity. "How else do you think I got those photographs from inside the tower? Who do you think helped me rattle your little teammates up so thoroughly? Though I must say, I never expected them to turn so readily against you. That wasn't even my intention, but it was very entertaining to watch."

The young man's breath hitched, and voice annoyingly cracked over his next words. "I don't believe you."

Jason started to pull away from the bars, but faster than any normal human, Slade lunged forward and latched onto the young man's hands holding him in place. Panicked, Jason tried in vain to wrench his hands free, but quickly realized that wasn't going to work so instead glared up at the man trapping him.

Completely unaffected by his prisoner's struggle Slade continued trying to convince Jason of Rose's betrayal. "How did I know where and when you were meeting with your contact? That you would be alone and vulnerable?"

Jason couldn't stop the doubt from crawling into his mind. He didn't want to believe that Rose lied, that she used him, just like so many others in his life. Deathstroke had to be lying he just had to.

The experienced military man could see the moment doubt seeped into his captive's thoughts, and having accomplished what he intended to, let go of Jason's hands. Deathstroke turned away to hide a smirk when the young man jerked his bound hands to his chest protectively the moment he was released. Without looking back, Slade strode across the basement and up the stairs. He had a daughter to welcome home.

An old blue Ford Escape with rust spots and a large scratch across the back driver's side door screeched to a stop outside a modern looking home. The house stood alone atop a high hill with nothing but trees surrounding the property. The driver of the vehicle squeezed the steering wheel until the leather creaked under the pressure. Rose Wilson took a few calming breaths trying to rein in her emotions before facing her father. After sitting in the car for about five minutes the one-eyed girl finally worked up the courage to get moving.

Rose didn't expect to ever be back to this house again after choosing the Titans over her dad, and she certainly didn't expect to be back to fight for someone she cared about. Hell, she never expected to care about anyone more than herself. The young woman's chest tightened with each step she took up the driveway that brought her closer and closer to the front door. A startling realization hit the young woman as she realized her fear stemmed more from her worry for Jason than facing her father's wrath.

Unlocked, the front door opened without difficulty, so Rose stepped into her dad's home with only slight hesitation. Cautiously, she moved from room to room until Rose reached her father's office where she knew he would be.

The grey-haired girl found Slade sitting behind his dark walnut desk, sipping scotch, seemingly, completely at ease. It pissed Rose off. "Where is Jason?!" She demanded.

The greying dark-haired man took his time with the next sip of scotch, and slowly lowered the glass in his calloused hand. "Ah yes. Young Jason Todd-Wayne, the second Robin, you've certainly become attached to him." His calculating brown eye connected with his daughter's. "I thought I taught you better than that. Never get attached or they will inevitably be used against you. You broke the number one rule Rose, and sadly it seems Jason will be the one to suffer the consequences."

"Cut the disapproving parent shit and let me see him!" She yelled, hands clenching and unclenching by her sides.

Slade smiled, "Of course darling." He said with his gruff voice and promptly leaned forward pressing a sequence of buttons on a keypad that was integrated into the desk's surface. On the wall behind the mercenary a sliding door opened to reveal several monitors. The largest one in the middle displayed a live video feed of Jason resting on a bed, back leaning against the wall behind him, surrounded by bars. "As you'll see I've made a few changes to the house since you were last here."

Rose inspected the video feed with a worried gaze, but thankfully Jason didn't seem overly hurt from what she could tell. The young woman knew he was injured in the fight with her dad from the blood at the warehouse, and not knowing how badly he was hurt had plagued her thoughts the entire drive here. It was easy to figure out that the room Jason was being held in was the basement, which made her job slightly easier. At least now she didn't have to search the entire house.

Rose's intense gaze shifted from the monitor to glare at her father. "You made a mistake." She stated just before she threw a hidden knife from her sleeve at her unsuspecting dad.

The blade sunk deep into his shoulder, but if anything, Slade looked unimpressed as he pulled the knife free. "You're getting soft." Without warning Deathstroke kicked the desk in front of him with enough force that the object slid into Rose and knocked her back against the wall. Pictures fell from the wall and over the young woman as they crashed to the ground with the impact, showering the floor with shattered glass.

Slade's heavy footfall rounded the desk and stopped just before reaching his daughter's crumpled form. The mercenary looked down at his daughter as she looked up; a cut on her cheek already healing itself. "You should have gone for my head."

"I'll keep that in mind." Rose gritted through her teeth as she swept her father's legs out from under him with a low sweeping kick. As his back hit the ground Rose leapt to her feet and ran from the office to the main room.

She vaulted over the couch and lunged for an antique sword that was displayed above the fireplace mantle. The grey-haired vigilante pulled the blade from its sheath forcefully and turned to face her father as he entered the room completely relaxed.

Slade's relaxed posture and leisurely pace angered Rose further. She swung the sword aiming for his head, but due to her raging emotions her fighting was careless, and Slade dodged the attack with ease.

As Rose lunged forward again Deathstroke sidestepped her attack and gripped her forearm tightly. The mercenary brought his knee up to connect and snapped his daughter's arm ruthlessly, causing Rose to drop the sword and a scream to rip from her throat. He wasn't done and smashed his head into the side of Rose' before he pushed her to the ground.

Rose skidded across the light wooden floor, but thankfully her body stopped before she hit the wall again. The young woman panted heavily from her position on the floor as her arm painfully righted itself, while she glared at her father who was watching with his hands clasped behind his back.

As soon as her arm was no longer broken, Rose jumped to her feet and barreled at Slade attacking him with vicious and finally precise hits. She got a few good hits before her father clearly had enough and grasped ahold of her throat.

"That's quite enough, don't you think?" Slade Wilson asked in a chiding voice.

The lack of oxygen and distressing realization that she wasn't going to be able to beat her dad caused a memory to invade Rose's jumbled and panicked thoughts.

Rose slowly sauntered behind Jason who was standing in front of a table in the training room at the tower. In front of the young vigilante was an impressive array of gadgets and small weapons. However, before she could reach him Rose caught sight of Jason's shoulders going rigid, sensing someone behind him. In a flash, the young man scooped up one of the small knives from the table and turned to face the intruder weapon raised. Jason blinked in surprise at coming face to face with Rose.

The young woman held up her hands lazily in mock surrender. "Same side, bird boy."

Jason huffed out a short, unexpected laugh, clearly caught off guard by the nickname. "Right because it's completely normal to sneak up on someone at three in the morning."

"Fair point." Rose responded with a grin. A grin that dropped the moment she took in Jason's haggard appearance. The second Robin had circles so dark under his green eyes that they almost looked bruised. The whites of his eyes were tainted with the telling red of someone that wasn't sleeping and there was a slight tremor of exhaustion in his calloused hands.

Though she didn't know Jason long, Rose knew without a doubt that he wouldn't want to talk about the nightmares clearly keeping him from decent rest. So, she decided to try a different tactic…distraction.

The long-haired girl moved around to the opposite side of the table, placed her hands on the surface and leaned forward. Her gaze danced along the various weapons and other devices and couldn't help but be a little impressed by the collection…not that she would let him know that. "What is all this junk?"

Ignoring her question Jason continued sharpening one of his R-shaped birdarangs. "Don't you have something else to do other than harass me?"

"Nope." She responded and reached out to pick up a small grey ball only the size of a marble. "What's this thing do?"

Jason flicked his focused gaze from his work to what Rose was talking about and his eyes widened. He quickly placed his weapon down and tried to grab what Rose was holding only to have her pull it away from his reaching hands. "Hey! Be careful with that!"

Rose started walking backwards away from the table and Jason while she inspected the small object curiously. "Why? It doesn't look all that dangerous."

Jason followed her, but every step he took Rose countered. To an outside observer the two moved with such fluidity that it resembled a choreographed dance.

Instead of getting annoyed like Jason normally would, he found himself amused by the beautiful young woman's antics. Unexpectedly, Jason stopped trying to get the object back and crossed his arms. "Looks can be deceiving. It's a stunning device filled with a type of pepper gas."

"Huh. Didn't expect that." Rose said impressed as she nodded her head in approval.

Jason bit his lower lip in thought before he moved in close to Rose, who didn't back away this time. "Why don't you keep it? In case of an emergency."

Rose smiled, oddly touched by the gesture, and asked. "How does it work?"

"Well, you can throw it onto a hard surface." Jason's slender hand took ahold of Rose's hand gently and twisted it so she could see a small button on the device. "Or if you're really in trouble, you can hit this button. You might get hit with some of the gas too, but depending on the situation it might be worth it."

The sensation of Rose's head pounding with a desperate need for oxygen jolted the young woman back to the present. Silently, Rose thanked whatever power in the universe that she still had Jason's gift in her jacket pocket and with a shaky hand pulled it out just as her vision began to darken from lack of oxygen. The young vigilante held the button on the small device and placed it in front of her father's maskless face just as a cloud of pepper gas shot from the ball.

The reaction was instantaneous, Deathstroke released his strong hold on Rose and stumbled backwards. The mercenary wiped at his face to try to get rid of the burning that assaulted his senses and blinked rapidly. Rose landed on her feet and immediately twisted into a hard kick that sent Slade through glass French doors that led to the back porch.

Rose coughed against the pepper gas that managed to reach her, but otherwise paid it no mind as she stumbled for the basement door. The young woman knew she wouldn't have long before her father was back up and running, and she had to get to Jason.

Rose rounded the corner, skidded to a halt, and in one fluid motion ripped open a door that led to a long hallway. She sprinted towards a single door at the end of the hall with a fingerprint scanner lock. Without hesitation, Rose pressed her thumb against the screen of the lock as she had done thousands of times before.

But unlike before, the screen turned red with her thumbprint as the words 'access denied' flashed across the screen. Rose's heart plummeted. "No, no, no! Come on, come on!" The young woman frantically uttered as her vision blurred with tears. Whether the tears were from the pepper gas or desperation she couldn't tell. After trying the lock repeatedly in vain, the young woman slammed her hand against the door in frustration. The harsh impact made her hand tingle with pain.

"I've also changed the locks." Her father's unwavering cold voice sounded behind her.

The young woman's anger spiked at the situation as a hopeless feeling clutched her heart tight. "Ahh! What do you want?!" She cried. Not even trying to hide the loathing in her voice or face.

Slade hummed in disapproval. He really didn't expect to have this much trouble from his daughter. That boy and the other Titans seemed to have really gotten under her skin. He'd fix that. "Let's have a chat then you can see your boyfriend."

End Chapter