A/N: IMPORTANT: There is a flashback-esque thing happening in this chapter (it's the giant italicized section,) just thought I'd let you all know.

I own abso-positive-alutely nothing. There is some violence and language (as per usual) so be warned.

Note: I'm not going to go into detail over a lot of things in order to set up for the sequel. My original idea for this story came in the form of the sequel I'm now typing. So, this is technically a prequel. SURPRISE! ^^

I'm not sure if this chapter is actually done (as in the editing process), but I just saw it today and was like "Meh, why not?"...So here it is! YAY!

Review Responses:

Kibates: Thanks for the super positive review! I hope that this chapter meets your epectations. I did go a different route with the battle with Deathstroke and Renegade, it was a risk so I'm curious if it was a hit or a conclusion, I'm so glad that this is one of your favorite stories! Your review really brightened my day when I saw it! :D

MARKAC: Thanks for reviewing! Your constructive criticism was greatly appreciated. I hope you continue reading :D

sweetfoxgirl13: O_o You evil laughed...Anyway, when I saw your review I read it super fast in my head, so it felt like you were on a sugar high or somthing. Thanks sooooo much for the review! Your feedback was great to hear...er...read! :D

angelxofxmine: Ahhh! Thank you for complimenting my capturing of emotion! It was one of the things I really struggled (and still struggle) on. It really means a lot! I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 9- Destinations

If the destination is heaven, why do we scramble to be first in line for hell?
―Douglas Horton

"Do you think he killed him?" Kid Flash, in his civvies, asked some three weeks or so after the "Blüdhaven Incident" as the Team has begun to call their excursion to said city.

Presently, they were all lounging in front of the television. Even their unofficial member, the now thirteen year old Robin, was there tinkering with a laptop. He was an awful lot like his predecessor in that respect. Batgirl had opted out of joining Young Justice, saying that she wasn't ready for the whole "team thing" yet.

"Who killed who now?" Robin asked from his perch atop the backrest of the couch, feet resting on the cushion beside the speedster, attention still focused on the laptop.

"Do you think Red Hood killed Renegade?"

"No," Robin stated.

"How are you so sure?" Wally asked defensively, "We haven't heard of any new Renegade activity since that night."

"Was that supposed to convince me that he's dead?"

"No, it just seems a bit weird that he disappeared after Red Hood challenged him. That's all I'm saying."

"Well, all I'm saying is that Red Hood didn't kill Renegade."

"What makes you say that?"

"That's classified Bat information."

While the bird and the speedster argued, the rest of the team occupied themselves by pretending not to be listening. The new Robin was becoming an increasingly common sight in the Mountain. Every time he arrived, he told the Team of some new trick Batman had taught him. Of course, his predecessor showed them all of the tricks already, but this Robin's eagerness to learn was amusing and the others couldn't help but to celebrate with him. It was probably in part due to his young age. His free spirited youth was refreshing to the well seasoned group of teens. Of course, he wouldn't be like that forever. That's what worried the Team. Once Robin outgrew his training wheels and was allowed out into the world with less of a leash, who would be the vibrant newbie? Who would be the one to lighten the mood? Wally couldn't do it forever; he was already showing signs of becoming a more serious hero.

Upon coming to that realization, Megan interrupted the arguing of Kid Flash and Robin by asking, "Do you think we need more people?"

"What?" Wally asked, directing his attention away from the bird and towards the Martian. He'd stopped flirting with Megan after he found out she and Connor were dating.

"Well, we're getting older," the Martian began, "We can't all be in Young Justice forever. Someday we're going to join the League and a new Team of young heroes will be needed. If we start expanding now, we'll be better prepared for when that time comes."

"That makes sense," Connor agreed.

"How do you suggest we go about finding more heroes?" Kaldur asked, neither confirming nor denying his support in the idea.

"We watch the news?" Artemis half heartedly suggested.

"Or we could call up people we already know," Zatanna said, "Like your friends in Atlantis, Kaldur, aren't they well trained?"

The Atlantian nodded, "Yes, Garth and Tula have been trained in the mystical arts as I have been."

"And Batgirl!" Robin added, "She may not be team ready now, but she will be in a year or so. Especially with me around to bug her."

"Dude, you're not even team ready yet," Kid Flash deadpanned.

"…Not the point," the younger teen grumbled.

"Ok, if we do get all these new people to join up, how will we manage all of them?" Raquel questioned.

"I have a plan," Kaldur said.

"Care to share?" Artemis asked.

Kaldur seemed to hesitate for a bit before saying, "I don't wish to tell you the plan inaccurately. If you will allow me, it's in my room."

"We're not going anywhere, by all means, go get it," Raquel told the Atlantian with a smile. The others all nodded in agreement, so Kaldur left to go find this "plan" of his. A few moments later, the leader reemerged with a thick manila folder in his hands.

"I guess you really do have a plan…" Kid Flash said impressed. He hadn't been expecting a literal, professional, long to read, and most likely boring plan.

"Yes, the plan was a…gift, given to me some time ago," Kaldur explained as he returned to his seat and set the folder on the small table in front of him.

"Really?" Zatanna asked, "Who would hand out plans for organizing a team as a gift?"

Robin's head perked up and he made eye contact with Kaldur, he knew exactly who would do such a thing. After all, Bats are always prepared.

"It was Robin," the second Robin stated. The others all gave him weird looks.

"Uh dude," Wally said, "Why are you talking in third person?" His voice was uneasy, maybe a little panicked. The topic of the first Robin was still touchy in the hero community and Wally, as well as the others, wanted to avoid it as much as possible, even if it meant grasping at straws.

The current Robin just looked at the Team, calculating, studying. Finally he sighed, "You guys know who I mean."

"And he is correct," Kaldur admitted, "Shortly before he…left us… Robin gave me this folder and told me that it's what he'd do if he were leader. He told me that, in case I needed assistance in making decisions and he wasn't around I would have a reference. I just assumed that he meant if he were on a mission with Batman while we too have a mission scheduled. Now, I think he may have been planning ahead for other instances as well."

"So, that folder is our last link to the first Robin's mind," the current Robin marveled, "But, it seems sort of small…"

"Small? That folder is completely full!" Raquel exclaimed.

"What I mean is that, in order to have his opinions on the numerous amounts of issues that can arise for a leader written down on paper, that one folder is way too small. Were there more?"

In response to Robin's question, Kaldur just shook his head no.

"Well," the Boy Wonder thought aloud, "Did you check his room? I mean, he had one here although he never used it. So, maybe he stashed the rest of them in there."

"But, we never go in Robin's room. It would be an invasion of his privacy!" Megan was horrified at the younger boy's implications.

"Megan," Zatanna said sadly, "I know you don't like it, but the first Robin is dead. He's been dead for over a year now. I agree with the present Robin. If there's useful information in that room, we should go in."

"I think that's what he wanted anyway," Connor guessed.

"What makes you say that?" the Martian asked.

"Well, one day after sparring he asked me if it was okay that he had a stash of kryptonite stored in his room. I told him I didn't mind, but he gave me this anyway," the Boy of Steel pulled a small key out of his pocket, "He told me that if I wanted to get rid of it I could. He said it was in a lead box under his bed…"

"So, are we going to see if there's more info in his room, or not?" Artemis asked impatiently, "We have a way in thanks to Connor's key. The only thing holding us back is ourselves."

The Team looked around the room dejectedly. While he'd been around, the one rule was to never enter Robin's room. But, now he wasn't around. There was a new Robin. It was about time they came to terms with their friend's death, it'd been over a year ago after all. Maybe going into the abandoned room was their final step to officially coming to terms with his death. The room that'd once been labeled his was not going to haunt the teens any longer.

"So," Robin, the first of the new era of Young Justice, said somewhat eagerly, "what are we waiting for?"

"You failed me Renegade, failure is not taken lightly," Deathstroke's sinister voice reproached the young man who'd entered his hideout.

Renegade gave no response. That was unusual for the boy, he usually responded with an apology after getting reprimanded. Behind his mask, Deathstroke raised an eyebrow and slowly turned to face the apprentice whom he'd had his back to. What he saw was entirely unexpected.

An extremely furious Renegade was mid strike with an eskrima stick. Deathstroke barely ducked under the attack. He was given no time to recover however, as Renegade's other eskrima stick was sailing right towards his side.

Catching the ungrateful boy's second attack, Deathstroke aimed a punch at Renegade's head. The younger male flipped out of the way, leaving his left hand's eskrima stick in Deathstroke's hold. Said man just tossed it aside like it was garbage.

"What has gotten into you?" Deathstroke hissed at Renegade.

"Sense," was the younger man's simple response as he charged his master of almost a year again.

"Tell me," Deathstroke droned as he blocked Renegade's attacks and threw some of his own, "how much sense does it make to attack your superior?" To prove his point, Deathstroke swiped Renegade's feet out from under him.

As he rolled away from Deathstroke's attempted stomping of his head, Renegade stated, "It makes a lot of sense."

"Please, explain," Deathstroke unsheathed the sword strapped to his back.

Renegade unsheathed his own short swords, tossing aside his one remaining eskrima stick, "Gladly."

Then the two of them attacked. Like seasoned fighters, the two men ducked under swipes, jumped over attempted trips, and at times did all around dirty moves. All of which was done in the hopes of disarming their opponent.

Suddenly, Deathstroke's blade made contact with flesh. It slashed across Renegade's chest, causing the younger to give a cry of pain and quickly back up. Deathstroke just chuckled darkly when he saw the blood come oozing out of the boy's wound.

"Did you honestly think that you could win?" The mercenary began circling his injured quarry. "Against me, the man who taught you everything you know? I overestimated you Renegade, and to think-"

"Richard," a quiet, yet firm, voice hissed from the teen bleeding in the middle of the room.

"What did you say?" Deathstroke growled threateningly.

"I'm not Renegade," the younger's voice was louder now; "My name is Richard Grayson."

"Was. Your name was Richard Grayson."

"And still is," the teen snarled as he gripped his swords tighter, "Just because the world may think he's gone doesn't mean he is."

Deathstroke's eyes narrowed, his tone deadly, "So that's what this is about. Hope. That blasted Red Hood put false ideas in your head. How precious."

Suddenly Deathstroke pounced, knocking the ex-Renegade to the ground causing him to drop his weapons. The more seasoned fighter then held his own sword to the younger man's neck.

"You listen to me, because I'm only going to tell you this once," Deathstroke seethed, slamming Richard's head into the cement ground with the hand he wasn't using to hold the sword, "Nobody besides me can truly see your potential. Everyone outside of these walls, when they look upon you, sees a monster. A traitor. You're worthless to them and now that you've gotten rebellious, you're worthless to me. How sad, a boy with such promise, dying alone at the hands of his mentor."

Fire rekindled in Dick's eyes, hidden by the mask. A fire he'd lost since foolishly following the man who'd manipulated him by feeding him tales that appealed to his buried rage and pride. "You are not my mentor!" the fifteen-year-old shouted, energy seemingly coming from nowhere seeping into his limbs.

With the sudden boost, Dick managed to roll himself over, spinning Deathstroke's wrist in the process. Both men were stunned to find that, after the small tussle was over, Dick was the one holding the sword to Deathstroke's neck.

Shaking still with rage, Dick poked the sword deeper into the older man's neck. He then reached out with his other hand and managed to grab one of his discarded short swords from nearby. He held his newly obtained weapon slightly above the one he'd taken from the mercenary.

"You are not my mentor," Dick stated again, this time through heavy breaths, "Batman is my mentor. Red Hood is my mentor. You are just a monster, a murderer."

For his part, Deathstroke was in shock. He'd lost to his own pupil, overconfidence, arrogance, and underestimating his opponent were the factors behind this defeat. Such rookie mistakes were beneath him…yet, despite his loss, Deathstroke felt a surge of satisfaction and pride. He was the cause of this young man's power. He was the reason that a once hero was prepared to stab him. He was the reason that Richard John Grayson was now a ruthless fighter. But, the boy wasn't ready yet. He still had much potential still stored within him.

With a smile at the ex-Robin behind his mask, Deathstroke sneered, "And after killing me, you will become one. Imagine what Batman would say if he were to see his precious boy pointing swords at a disarmed man. He'd be so proud."

"Shut up." Dick hissed, teeth gritted, sword s unwavering.

"Vowing not to kill, yet you're prepared to do so without a second thought. And you truly saw yourself as a hero? Heroes aren't like you, you're not like them. You're meant to be the villain. I can feel the hatred flowing off of you, nobody from the League or your little team of sidekicks will ever want someone capable of such intense detestation working with them."

"I said, shut up!"

"And your parents. How do you think they feel about what you've become? What I've turned you into? You're not their good little Robin anymore, are you? You are a weapon now. A weapon forged by Batman, the League, Young Justice, Red Hood, and me. You're parents must be even more proud of you than that pathetic Bat."

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Dick's rage, built up through Deathstroke's speech, reached a boiling point. Instinct took over for the teen, and in an instant he found himself raising the swords above his head, and driving them down on his tormentor.

Then, at the last possible second, something plowed into him, knocking him away from Deathstroke. Dick and the force that'd ruined his revenge were sent tumbling across the cement flooring, and when he'd finally stopped moving, the teen quickly hopped up to figure out what'd happened. That's when he noticed two things.

One, it wasn't a thing that had prevented him from killing Deathstroke, it was a who. To be more precise, it was Red Arrow. Somehow the archer had found the warehouse and had taken it upon himself to prevent Dick from committing his first murder.

The second thing that the last Flying Grayson noticed was that Deathstroke the Terminator was gone. Red Arrow's untimely interruption had given the murdering bastard enough time to escape. Dick was now officially pissed off.

And not at Deathstroke.

Or at himself.

He was utterly and completely pissed off at Red freakin' Arrow for ruining his moment. Ruining HIS revenge! The red-head had no right!

Whirling on the archer in absolute fury, Dick shouted, "What was that!? What the hell were you thinking!?"

Red Arrow, who was still in the process of standing up, just looked at his young friend in shock. The archer honestly had not believed Red Hood's tale about Dick becoming somewhat of a (potentially crazy) villain, but after having to prevent the boy from committing murder, and seeing his rage afterwards, the red-head was starting to believe the gun toting antihero.

"Well?" Dick asked impatiently, irritation obvious in his voice.

Finally standing to his full height again, Red Arrow ignored the younger's question and decided to ask one of his own. "Were you seriously planning on killing him?"

"Yes." That was the response. Simple, straight to the point, and not at all what Roy Harper wanted to hear.

"…And you're okay with this? What about justice?"

"Of course I'm okay with this! And justice? What about it? Only people who have a chance at redemption deserve justice. Monsters, like the one you just let get away, deserve death, or worse!"

Roy's mouth dropped. That was something he never EVER expected to hear come from Dick's mouth. The boy had always been the upstanding prodigy, a paragon for other sidekicks. His sense of justice was one that even members of the Justice League wished they had. Now, it was tainted, and Roy highly doubted it'd ever go back.

What'd happened to the original Robin?

Continuing as if he wasn't acting completely out of character, Dick walked toward his figurative big brother and asked again, "Now, why did you stop me from ending that man's life?" He sounded calm. As if this was normal. There wasn't a trace of the previous venom that'd been in his voice; the only reason Red Arrow knew Dick was still pissed off was because of his tightly fisted left hand.

"Why'd I stop you? I stopped you because you were being an idiot!"

Renegade's mouth quirked downwards, "How would eliminating him be an idiotic move? Think RA! Now, because of you, he's still alive. He's free to kill, to kidnap, to torture! Do you have any idea what he's capable of!?"

Looking his young friend up and down, noting the changes in him, Red Arrow stated solemnly, "I believe I do."

The younger male's face scrunched up in confusion, which soon turned to fury. "NO YOU DON'T!" Dick shouted, before suddenly finding it incredibly difficult to breath. It was in that instant that the fifteen year old remembered the wound on his chest…and something Deathstroke told him in his first month of servitude. Something about how the mercenary always coated his weapons in poison, in case his pray somehow manages to escape.

And he'd been sliced across his chest with Deathstroke's very own sword.

"Dick?" Roy questioned, having seen the younger boy's rapid shift from enraged and angry to silent and frozen. That's when he heard the boy's wheezing. "You okay?"

The red-head's masked eyes met those of his figurative little brother.

"Roy," the teen gasped out, barely capable taking in air, "We've got a problem."

And then he passed out, leaving a panicked and highly concerned Red Arrow in his wake.

Jason watched as his little brother tossed and turned in his bed. Another nightmare apparently. Why was Jason even in Dick's room? Well, he didn't care, that's for sure. He'd just heard Dick yelling and wanted to make sure there wasn't a burglar in his apartment taking his things…Obviously.

…Oh, who was he kidding? He, the incredibly badass Red Hood, cared for the little parasite who'd stolen his place as Batman's sidekick. Despite what the kid may say in protest on that matter.

Exiting the boy's room, Jason couldn't help but reminisce on the night Roy had brought the unconscious and heavily bleeding boy to the apartment. The young men instantly made sure everyone was in their civvies and headed for the nearest hospital. Surprisingly for Jason, Jade met them there. Apparently Roy had told her about Dick and the assassin had quickly made her way over. She'd already created some wild story about a revenge seeking abusive mother, and invented a fake medical history explaining away all of Dick's scars for the hospital. So, without anything to occupy them, the three young adults just waited. And waited. And waited.

Five hours later, a doctor came out and informed the concerned trio that Dick had a seizure during surgery. The seizure was a result of a poison put on the "butcher knife" Dick and Jason's "mother" had used to hurt him with. In the end, the doctor informed, Dick had to be placed in a medically induced coma. His wake up time was uncertain.

It was about five days after getting admitted to the hospital that Dick finally woke up. He woke up screaming, but he still woke up.

The doctors gladly informed Roy, Jason, and a surprisingly resilient and motherly Jade that whatever poison Dick's "mother" had used on him had successfully left his system, finally. His head was healing nicely. His chest wound was not infected. He could go home in two days.

Two days after returning to the apartment, Dick told his three older friends (he and Jade got along surprisingly well when he was coherent) what Slade had done to him. And what he'd wanted to do to Slade.

Now, a little over a week after Jason had had his run in with Renegade, Dick was home. He was healing. He was safe. Things weren't back to normal yet, and they never would be, but Jason could handle it.

After all, he was the Goddamn Red Hood, and if anyone could help Dick out, it was him.

He knew from personal experience what it was like to come back from Hell.

"You know, I've changed my mind. I don't want to go in there anymore," Robin admitted as the group of young heroes known as Young Justice crowded around a closed metal door.

"Don't tell me you're chickening out; it was your idea," Wally taunted.

"Well, what if he wouldn't want us in there? I may be making us overstep our boundaries…"

"He gave Connor a key; if it makes your conscience feel better we'll get the kryptonite he told him about. Personally, I think this is what Rob would've wanted. I don't think he'd want his stuff preserved here for all eternity."

Connor, ready to get this over with, butted in, "Can I open the door now?"

"Go ahead," Artemis answered for the group, sending a pointed look at Robin not to voice his doubts. This was something that had to get done sooner or later.

With a nod, Connor turned his attention to the door, only to find that there wasn't a keyhole.

Noticing Superboy's dilemma, Robin advised, "Put your hand on the pad next to the door. If he gave you a key, you're probably recorded there."

"What pad? There isn't…." Connor's impending frustration was cut off once he looked to the right of the door and noticed a hand scanner. Shrugging, the Boy of Steel placed his right hand on the designated area.

"Recognized: Connor"

The Team looked at each other in confusion. The computer never recognized people by their first names, unless their first name was also there hero ID. Like Zatanna. And Artemis. And Zatara when he wasn't Doctor Fate. The security for Robin I's room, the teens' guessed, must've been customized, which wasn't a very far fetched notion.

"Connor Access Status:"

Yep, definitely a customized computer.

"Granted."

After the computerized voice gave its approval of entry, the pad where Connor had scanned his hand slid up, revealing a small slot. Without further delay, Connor put the key Robin I had given him into the newly revealed slot. As soon as the key was in, the whole box that had supported both the hand scanner and key hole emitted a radiant yellow light. The light was so bright that several of the gathered teens had to shield their eyes.

As soon as the light was gone, the Team found to their horror that the box that'd been glowing previously was now completely closed off by steel plating. It took the key with it.

"Great, now what?" Raquel asked in frustration.

Then the door slid open and the mysterious room of the original Boy Wonder was exposed.

The Team had placed bets since their founding about what the room looked like. Some said it'd be plain, with no personal details. Others said it'd look like a mini Batcave, filled with computers, case files, and an armory of birdarangs. None of them were expecting his room to look…normal.

The bed was rested against the middle of the left wall, the closet to the right, and a nightstand with a lamp and an alarm clock to the left. The black and green covers on the bed were kicked to the side still from the last time the room had been used, which was over a year ago. On the nightstand a book was laying open, spine up. The first Boy Wonder had saved his page with the hopes of finishing the story, a chance he never got. Directly across from the door was a desk with Robin the First's precious laptop sitting on top. Along with the laptop, there was an iPod dock and an assortment of video games piled up. Next to the desk on the ground was another pile, this time though, the pile was an assortment of books. Under the desk was a small trash can. The wheelie chair that was meant to be in front of the desk was right next to the door. Apparently, the Robin I had thought it'd be fun to roll the chair around the room, he had been a kid still…

Nothing in the room would suggest that its owner was anything special. Nothing, that is, except for what was against the right wall. Against that wall there stood a large filing cabinet, probably stocked full of information that'd never seen the light of day since being stashed in there. The main thing of interest, however, was the supercomputer with a rather large screen that stood next to the cabinet. On the rather large screen was an image of Robin. Not the new one, the first one. Right on top of his face was a slightly translucent pause sign.

It was a video.

"Should we watch it?" Megan asked after everyone finished their perusing of the room and gathered in front of the mysterious video.

"That's why it's up," the new Robin said, "That's why there was the light with the key; the slot was connected to this computer so that once it recognized the key this video would come up. He, er…Robin set everything up."

Not waiting for further discussion, Wally nervously pushed play. He hadn't seen or heard his friend since his death; he knew that watching the video would bring back memories especially since it appeared that the Robin being shown was still thirteen.

"Hey guys," the Robin on the screen greeted, a smirk that everyone missed dearly gracing his features, "So I'm sure you're all wondering how I know you're all there, rather than just Connor, since he's the one I gave the key to."

They actually were curious about that. If the video was linked through the insertion of the key, what made him think Connor wouldn't try to get the rumored kryptonite that was under the bed?

"The answer is simple, Connor trusts me….Ugh…I guess it would be trusted, wouldn't it? The only thing that'd prompt a trip to my room would be that, for some reason, I'm not there. Knowing you guys, after the key got brought up, you all decided to come too. That's why I made this video! For whatever reason I'm gone, I don't want all of this stuff," he made a gesture towards the layout of his room behind him, "to go to waste. It'd be totally not asterous for all of my video games to sit here collecting dust. So, they're all yours Wally! No way are you going to beat my high scores, trust me."

"He totally hacked them," Wally muttered fondly, he missed being able to argue with his younger friend about whether or not he hacked into the games they played.

The Robin on the screen grinned mischievously, "I totally hacked them, and I admit it. I don't think the authors of my books would appreciate them rotting here either so… Zee, enjoy! I know you told me once how much you missed just reading a good book since joining this line of work, hope this helps. What else? Umm…Artemis! If you lift the mattress off of my bed, you'll find a small metal handle. Lift it up and you'll find my spare weapons. That sounds a bit harsh…gadgets. You'll find my spare gadgets, they're the ones I don't normally use, but have anyway. Feel free to pick and choose."

Zatanna and Artemis looked at each other somberly, having reached the same conclusion. This video was Robin's will. He was dividing his things amongst his teammates, his friends.

"Connor, the kryptonite is still yours to take. It's exactly where I said it'd be. Megan, I know how much you like watching Earth television, so my movie collection is all yours. They should be piled just inside of my closet. Raquel, I distinctly remember you coming to the Mountain one day bragging about your new iPod, so I figured that I better give you my iPod dock, seeing as you're going to need one. Even if you do have one, mine's better. It's state of the art and isn't even supposed to be released to the public for another few months. Well, from now. I don't know when exactly you'll be watching this…Anyway, lastly but certainly not least, Kaldur. That folder I gave you, as you may have guessed, doesn't hold a lot of info. It just has a general outline for expansion of the Team."

The teens held their breath anxiously; this was just what they came here for. The information Robin the First had could prove vital to the Team in years to come. He never did reveal to them all just how strategic he could be. His plans could potentially prevent major disasters or save numerous lives. It all depended on what he had.

"When you first told me that I'd lead one day, I began creating contingency plans, ways to use combinations of certain skill sets, what to do in case certain baddies appear. Then we had that simulation and I realized that I didn't want to lead anymore."

That struck everyone by surprise. None of them knew he'd felt that way, especially after he successfully led factions of the team on missions Aqualad could not be on. They all forgot that he was just a kid. He had doubts and fears just like them. After his death, his personal faults seemed to have disappeared in their eyes. They'd been raising him up to seem almost faultless. This video made the team remember just who Robin had been.

He'd been their little brother.

Now they had another one, and they were not going to lose him.

"Even though the leader bug left me, I still worked on plans. After all, good leaders such as you need a go to strategist, and you are a good, natural leader Kal. Don't sell yourself short. Anyway, strategist, that's my goal... or it was. Hence the huge filing cabinet. It has basically everything I came up with. It's all categorized too. Just type up something on this computer and it'll tell you what you need and where to find it. There're also several folders stored on this computer. Got to love technology!"

Kaldur stared at the large cabinet in shock. How Robin thought of so many scenarios, and ways to get out of them, was beyond him. He was just thankful that he'd have the wisdom of his fallen friend to assist him in the trying years to come. Robin told him not to sell himself short, maybe it was Robin who'd been the one selling his own self short.

"None of you guys know I'm making this right now, did you know that? Well, obviously you don't. None of you guys are here, again. This is the second time this month that you've pulled me off of a mission. What is it with this Deathstroke guy that makes you guys so protective?"

Wally remembered Deathstroke. He was a mercenary that completely beat the crap out of them. The first time against the man, Robin had been ordered not to go because they didn't want him to get hurt again. The image of him lying there with a knife imbedded in his side was still fresh in everyone's mind. It was during that utterly disastrous (heavy on the dis) mission that the Team found out that Deathstroke was a bit too curious about the Boy Wonder. He kept asking why Robin wasn't there, what he thought of being left behind, if they thought he felt betrayed. It was not a good experience. On the ride back to the Mountain to report their failure, the Team opted not to mention Deathstroke's interest in Robin to Robin (they didn't think he'd let it rest, and agreed he'd probably obsessively try to find him) and they also decided not to bring him on any missions if that man was involved. It was for his safety. Wally was the only one against it, knowing it'd hurt his friend if he was held back without knowing why. Turns out he was right.

"It doesn't matter anyway; although if you think I'm a liability I'd rather you just say it. If this keeps up though, I won't be in your hair for much longer. As you can see, I'm a planner; I'm prepared for if it comes to that. In case I have to leave, I don't want this room to become an empty bedroom. The furniture can get removed and replaced with more tech. Something I noticed that the Mountain is missing, is a place to just research and examine evidence. That's a focal point of the Batcave so that's what this room is going to be. My laptop has all of my ideas, my theories; that's why I leave it here now. Just in case. Besides, I got a new one. Oh, the password is 1491625."

Robin, who had been studiously scrutinizing his predecessor, was stunned. He'd heard a lot about Dick's version of Robin. How he was playful, talkative, easy to underestimate, and hard working. He'd heard he was great at combat, was a fast learner, and had almost flawless aim. Not once did someone call him proactive, calculating, or systematic. Robin doubted that he'd hear those descriptions anytime soon too. Because, unlike most people, he noticed things, he had the time to do it. What he noticed was that underneath the easygoing, childish, and happy exterior, on the inside Dick was different. He was hiding something. He was pretending.

He was pretending that he wasn't like Batman.

"And that's about it. Robin out."

But, he was an awful lot like Batman.

Or, at least, he had been.

A/N: And there you have it. Chapter 9. Done. Finished. Over with. ONE CHAPTER LEFT!

Then the sequel :D ...Which isn't going to be posted until I come up with a definitive plotline.

Chapter ten is going to wrap things up; it won't be very long.

Keep in mind, everything not clarified in this story will be brought up again in the sequel.

Hope you liked it!