I'm back with this not really update, its more of an edit, really. But I do hope you guys enjoy it. Sorry I haven't been good with updates or answering reviews, but I do appreciate each and every review and I hope I deliver something that's worth reading. Life hasn't been really nice with me, recently got out of a funk, only to loose my USB then my laptop dies on me, and my phone acting like it's possessed. I finally decided to just yolo it, and get a Kindle fire after writing this in a journal, and yeah...So, I don't own YJ and all rights go to their respective owners. Hope you enjoy.


Blüdhaven August 21, 2016 05:14 (NW 3rd person POV)

Nightwing wasn't easily surprised, it tended to come with being raised by the bat; but even he couldn't have predicted Wally's death, though in hindsight it was obvious. All Wally ever wanted to be was a hero, he wouldn't hesitate going into the field if it meant helping people-helping his family. So while, yeah, it hurt him as hard as a venom hopped Bane, it wasn't completely out of the left field. But, he thought wryly, how could have he expected a random Asian man to have broken into his apartment while he was on patrol; yet that's exactly what happened.

In his best Batman impersonation he growled, " Who are you and what are you doing here?"

The man stared at him unimpressed, as if to say 'Really? You're going with that?' He tried to pretend it didn't grate on his exhausted nerves.

"Well? I haven't slept in 30 hours so I'm a little less than forgiving."

The man looked slightly annoyed before he took out a letter from his coat pocket. He read the letter whilst grumbling something that was definitely not English. He huffed an impatient sigh before turning his attention back to Nightwing.

"Look," he started in a bored, if not irritated voice (not too dissimilar to Roys') with a little accent. "A friend of yours went to my friend's shop a couple times and he may have gotten less than what he asked for, for the first w-item, and too much for the second. So now the only thing that could fix this is a partial return of the first payment and it being viewed by those closest to him."

Nightwing was slightly intrigued, and appalled that someone he knew, as a hero, managed to screw themselves over like this. Besides that, how would they view the payment? Did he mean they'd split it? Why wouldn't he just give the refund to whomever it was that bought from that store? Was that person dead? Who could have died within the last year and gone to Asia to get something?...Did the person necessarily have to be dead, could he/she be in deep cover or on a mission in space? All these thoughts flitted through his head before he asked the obvious one.

"Where do I fit into this?"

"He was your best friend."

"What do you-" he faltered. No he had to be joking, when would W- K- he even get a chance to do that? But, a small voice that sounded suspiciously like Bruce stated, who could ever predict him?(*) "What do you need?"

"Just the people closest to him gathered in a group."

"And how do I know this isn't a trap?"

"This, should clarify some things and if you still don't believe me ask Fate about the Dimensional Witch, he should know her." He handed Nightwing a blank envelope with a bird like seal.

Cautiously, he opened it and saw an achingly familiar scrawl- one that reminded him of lazy afternoons pranking, of over the top I'm seriously annoyed science rants, of sonic booms, videogame challenges, and more recently of frozen winds, arctic tundras, of guilt and the overwhelming sense of failure.

The letter wasn't actually addressed to him, it was for a man named Shizuka Doumeki, asking him to make sure that he, Nightwing, never find a woman named Yūko, or a man(?) named Kimihiro Watanuki because he, Nightwing, ' cared far too much for his own good, even if we're technically fighting right now.'

"I'll take this to the Watch Tower to verify this and to call the meeting."

"Fair enough." The man, who he suspected was Doumeki, conceded.


Watch Tower August 21, 2016 08:17

All of that resulted in a very sleep deprived Nightwing trying to call for a meeting and accidentally sending an emergency alert to the majority of the Team and a third of the Justice League.

He could roll with that. It took about three hours for everyone to get settled and somewhat awake, which was more than he could say for himself. He was sure that at least 70℅ of his blood was coffee. And he was still waiting for the results.

Of course it was the Big Blue Boy Scout who asked about the elephant in the room, and okay so maybe his explanation for the alert and civilian in the Watch Tower wasn't the best, but that was all his sleep deprived self could manage. Once they found out Wa- He was the one who kinda, sorta screwed up; the room with about thirty heroes went quiet, fast.

Doumeki looked uncomfortable with the sudden quiet and harsh glares. He would try to leave, Nightwing thought. Both Batman and Robin seemed to agree as they both slightly tensed.

"Look," Doumeki started. "I've done my part the rest is up to all of you, so I should get going."

Before either bat could react Bart did rushing toward the poor man and glomped his leg, shouting, "Hold up! You can't just drop this bomb and leave as if-as if all is well. Too bad mister, but all is not well in Waffle ville and we deserve more of an explanation!"

All Dick could think of was; really? Waffle ville? Nightwing shook his head feeling exhausted. Ever since Bart discovered the Food Channel there had been no end to the food related puns and quips, and that was before Jaime introduced him to Instagram. There needed to be an intervention soon, and judging by the varying grimaces from the other heroes (sans Barry and Hal, they both looked slightly proud), he wasn't the only one thinking that.

"Look kid," Bart flinched at W-his old nickname. "I can only stay up to when you guys decide to start watching his memories, which I recommend doing soon. If you wait too long the balance will be further thrown off and my friend will have to deal with the fallout. I can't answer any questions, I don't know much about Wally's circumstances other than the fact that he wanted to make sure you and Nightwing never find the store where he made his...purchase."

Batman spoke next. "Why is that?"

"Sometimes, the price is too high. If you're desperate enough, like he thought they would be, bad things happen." Doumeki answered calmly. "I should go now, if you could..." He glanced down at Bart, who sheepishly let go, and for good measure, his behind the nearest hero-which just so happened to be Batman. Dick couldn't decide whether to sigh in resignation or laugh at how similar Bart was to Wally when he was that age. Nightwing just pinched the bridge of his nose in exhaustion, the coffee wasn't helping.

Dr. Fate decided it was his cue and magicked Doumeki back to wherever he had come from.

In his place was a small golden wristwatch and a written set of instructions.

"I guess, " Barry started "we should decide who'll watch."


Watch Tower August 21, 2016 10:03

In the end it was decided that the original (remaining ) members of the team, the founding members, Green Arrow, Roy (clone), the entire Flash family ( Max Mercury, Johnny Quick, Liberty Belle, Jesse Quick, the original Flash, his wife, Iris, Bart, and a civilian named Linda Park who Bart was insistent on bringing), and the new antihero Red Hood (who Batman was weirdly obsessed with, and had been having trouble finding prior) who simply showed up saying: "I owe Red." and proceeded to ignore everyone else.

Barry, who probably decided to skip the per usual Bat family awkwardness that came with unusually hard to find 'trespassers', picked up the wristwatch-only to nearly drop it in alarm after turning it over.

"Barr, what's wrong man?" Ollie asked more than a little overwhelmed by it all, and having Barry freak was definitely not helping.

"It's," he swallowed "It's nothing. Just this is the watch I gave Wally for his graduation. I didn't think he'd still have it."

" He'd never get rid of it." Was said at the same time as "The idiot wouldn't even dream of getting rid of it." Both Hood and Bart answered. Though it wasn't something that Hood was proud of if his disturbed silence was anything to go by.

That was...odd. In fact..

"How would you know that?" He didn't even know about the watch.

Red Hood smirked, as if he knew he was upset (sulking) over that slight of information. "I'm here for a reason bird brain."

Before he could snarl back a taunt, Barry cut in. "Um guys, I'd hate to break this...spat but the memories are going to unravel if we don't hurry."

Begrudgingly, Nightwing took the out gracefully. Dick still wanted to punch him. Hard. "So how do we do this?"

"Well according to the note, we're supposed to wind the watch to twelve o'clock and the memories will play by themselves. The only condition is that it'll play directly into our heads, sort of like a dream, so to the outside world we'll be catatonic. So if anyone isn't completely on board with this-"

"We're ready, so don't baby us." Linda stated sharply with enough authority that it was startlingly similar to Artemis, but that didn't make sense. Memories of him denying feelings for Artemis and him never admitting to having a crush on her suddenly came to mind- and oh. Oh.

"Well then, here goes nothing." Barry' chirped interrupting his new found realization, and he wound the clock until both hands were at twelve.

Everything faded to black.


He counted his breaths as he stared at the water stained ceiling, one...two...three...four...five... He needed to get up soon. If he didn't he wouldn't be able to go out and he'd be stuck with them.

He'd dragged himself closer to a wall to get leverage, and slowly, painfully lifted himself up. His face pale and clammy, heavy pants from exertion, eyes screwed shut, limbs shaking, but he managed. He stood there swaying on his feet, unsteady, surveying the room. The floor was littered in beer cans and bottles, spots of blood, cigars, and (judging from the smell) vomit. Joy. He limped (his left leg had fallen asleep) as he picked up the trash dumping them into the bag that had been tossed his way before his parents scurried to their room to pass out. Once that was done he set about sweeping and mopping, hopefully the blood and vomit wouldn't warp or stain the floor, otherwise he was toast.

After forty minutes (a good portion of that had been spent dealing with sudden bouts of vertigo,) he was finally done! Now all the room needed was a sprits or two (or twelve) of febreeze and he could go get ready for his day out with Auntie Iris. Then his day would turn around for sure. After all, whose day wouldn't get better when they see their best friend? Maybe if this day went well enough she'd consider letting him move in with her at the two room studio grandpa Ira had found for her and he'd never have to go through another "lesson" on how to "be a man" and not a loon like his grandpa Ira. (Though, he thought wryly, that loon won several Nobel prizes for his advancements in physics and he'd made the Flash's uniform. All things considered he'd rather be a loon with his head in the clouds than a "man" like his father; unhappy, in a dead end job with a kid he can't connect with or like, and a failing marriage that could only be described as the world's longest divorce.(**) )

Wally quickly shook his head. If he kept "living in his head" as auntie I called it, then he'd have to face her looking like he'd gotten mugged. While the whole "I fell" shtick was believable ( he wasn't very graceful and very prone to tripping, falling, and bumping into things and people) he'd rather not lie to her. The truth; however, was a definite no go. Dad had threatened to kill auntie Iris if he ever told anyone how he got hurt, including her. Logically, he knew that if he told the police they could help him and keep auntie I safe, he couldn't risk it. He didn't want to risk it. He wouldn't survive without her. She was his confidante, his hero, his role model, his number one fan, his support, his best friend, his...everything. He depended on her to keep him grounded. He showed her his nerdy side; the one that could talk physics with grandpa Ira and understand nearly everything when most adults would get lost, the side where he'd read college level physics and chemistry textbooks in his down time for fun, the side that would conduct his own experiments (including the time he'd found the radio frequency of a planet whose inhabitants were actually made of frequencies and they'd constantly talked to one another until the connection was abruptly lost(***). (She may have been humoring him , but at least she even bothered to hear him out instead of stonewalling him like his parents had; they hadn't even let him get a word in edgewise in their daily shout match.)

He'd shown her his geeky side; the one where he'd geek out during Star Wars, Star Trek, Nova episodes, How the galaxy works episodes, and various science documentaries...and maybe while he had been reading some Sherlock Holmes books, the ones by Doyle just cause Wally was a prick, but come on! The guy practically invented forensics!

The side of him that'd laugh out loud to science (and math) jokes and puns ("Auntie I use the mass times acceleration like Darth Vader and show that jerk whose boss!" "...Wally, what?" "You know, cause mass times acceleration is force, duh auntie I." "Oh my gosh Wally-" she'd cut herself off giggling like crazy as she destroyed Luigi in Mario Karts.) The side of him that was proud to be president of the Flash fan club of Blue Valley, Nebraska-despite being its only member.

The side of him that would avoid his problems like the plague and would joke, flirt, annoy, irritate, avoid, deny, or exasperate until the other person would either not notice it or let it go and forget about it completely.

The side of him that believed he didn't have a place in this world, and his existence was meaningless; serving only to aggravate and tear his parents further apart (because they had to have loved each other at some point, right? Otherwise they wouldn't have gotten married ...right?) The side of him that craved companionship, friendship, love, approval like a thirsty man in the desert and she loved him for it. (Sometimes at night, when he heard his parents screaming and shouting at one another, blaming each other for how he was turning out; he couldn't help but think that she was the first (and probably only) person to love (****) and know him for all that he was.)

He shook his head again to clear it from the jumble of thoughts that wouldn't stop. Focus, he thought harshly, or else I'll have to explain why I look like this and be forced to stay with them. He didn't want to lie to her, so the next best thing was to avoid a confrontation. Aunt Iris came first, always, there was no question about it.

With a deep breath he got changed as quickly as he could and chucked his ruined clothes in a trash bag, tying it shut and stuffing it under his bed. He'd throw it out later.

Glancing at the digital clock he hurried to the bathroom, and forced himself to look in the mirror. His face was a modge podge of different colors, his neck showed faint bruises, and he knew for a fact that his ribs were bruised (it hurt a bit to breathe, not unbearable but definitely noticed), his arms may have had small scars from cigarettes and cigars (they were covered, so that was fine and he'd treated them before they could get too bad, hopefully), his shoulders definitely had scars from cigarettes (but they were always covered he was grateful for having the supernatural ability to burn at anything above 50 degree weather), his legs were generally unscathed, maybe a bruise or two, he'd made sure they weren't worse than that or being asleep. If they were ever hurt he'd never be able to escape, to run away so he always tried to protect them, and his head.

He quickly opened his mother's foundation and began to dab it on to the bruises ( he was lucky his mother was as pale as him) that were on his face and neck avoiding as many of his freckles so it wouldn't be obvious, which was more than a pain.

He was somewhat amused at how good he was at it, after all, most boys and girls his age didn't know what liquid foundation was much less how to use it correctly. But he'd noticed that both Aunt I and his mother had it and when he'd asked Iris, she showed him how to use it and what it was for. A week later he put his knowledge to good use.

Once he was done he looked like any normal(-ish) kid. He put the foundation away and positioned it exactly the way he'd found it, if he didn't he shuddered to think of what would happen.

"Hello~! Anyone home?" He had to smile at his aunt's lilting voice. It was like coming home. Without thinking, he bolted out of the bathroom and nearly toppled her over.

"Hey there Hot Rod, you ready to go?" She asked slyly.

"Yeah! Now c'mon, before the exhibits close!"

" I don't know kiddo, I'm pretty comfortable just taking a nap." She faked a large yawn. "I've been up since five this morning, don't you think I deserve a break?"

"Auntie I! You can take a nap after we see the new wing in the Flash museum in Central, okay? If we don't leave now we'll never make it in time!"

"Chill out Wall-man. After all," she shot him a sideways glance, "we've got the entire weekend." A smile broke out on her face as Wally tried to piece that new tidbit of information with what he already knew and connect the dots. As soon as he did; he looked up at her with stars in his eyes, face beaming, and mouthing the word "really?" over and over again until her small smile turned into a fully fledged grin and quickly gave an excited nod. He nearly tackled her in the resulting bear hug; which considering he was at least two feet shorter, several pounds lighter, and had the muscle of a twig it was pretty darn impressive.

"You're the best auntie I. Best birthday ever."

(A distant part of Dick's mind found that statement odd, shouldn't he only be watching W- his worst memories? )


They were on the train to Central before he realized that he'd have to wash his face before going to bed and she'd definitely notice the bruises. Sh- cra- ud muffin! (Aunt I always knew when he cussed regardless of whether or not he'd said it out loud or not. It was things like that let him pretend that she was actually his mom, even if she was only thirteen years older than him. The fact that they looked so alike was an added bonus.) He needed to get beaten up (and wasn't that a depressing thought to have on his birthday, especially since he'd already been there and done that earlier that day.) He'd just have to act like an arrogant bastard (*cue auntie I's disapproving glare*).

He could do this.


He couldn't do this.

The people of Central City were nice, active people that preferred walking (for the most part) to driving. They were happy, bubbly, and pleasant. How was he supposed to be a jerk to people like this? He was beyond screwed, he thought despondently. (Auntie I raised an eyebrow that suggested he'd better change his words, regardless of whether he'd spoken them out loud or not, lest she'd be forced to wash his mouth with soap).

They walked in comfortable silence for a few minutes, they'd just gone to see the new Rogues' wing in the Flash II exhibit in the relatively new Flash museum, and were heading for one of the science museums that were close by (he'd been dying to see the archeology interactive exhibit, and the space one- there were recent discussions on whether Pluto is a planet or not), before aunt Iris broke it.

"Hey Wally,"

"Yeah?"

"What do you think of this place?"

"It's nice. Like the people are nice and they seem kind and well, this is one of the Flashes' hometowns, right?" She nodded. "So that's definitely a plus..." He trailed off uncertainly before giving her a suspicious stare. "Why?"

"Well... Remember that paper I showed you?" He nodded, she'd been stressing over a paper on her view of the recent rise of vigilantes and whether they were really helping people. "I used that for some internship applications. A bunch of companies replied and one of them was GBS from Central..." She trailed off hesitantly, hoping he'd get the picture by himself. And he did. She was leaving him behind with a ten plus hour drive from Blue Valley to Central. He forced himself not to show his disappointment and sadness (utter anguish) at her move.

He forced a grin he hoped look natural and managed to utter the words: " That's great!" In his happiest voice.

She looked relieved, if not a bit unconvinced, which helped soften his smile into something more genuine.

"No, really auntie. This city is nice and way safer than Gotham, or Metropolis, or even Fawcett City. And I bet your new boss'll be better than the jerkwad that is Mr. What's-his-name. Seriously auntie, you deserve this." And she did, he truly believed that. He just wished he could go with her.

They lapsed into silence once again. Wally's mind racing as he tried to predict how much his life would change after she left. His best guess was that she'd be leaving soon, otherwise she wouldn't have said anything to him so he wouldn't worry or stress over nothing. If he was lucky, she'd be leaving in about a month or so, if he wasn't then it'd be one to two weeks from then. He was more inclined to believe the former rather than the latter since she'd have to finish the semester and then transfer her credits to whatever college was there. He didn't think she'd happily leave her current college for another without finishing the semester there, if anything it'd irk the heck out of her. He could survive with seeing her every once in a while. He could survive without her. He could survive his parents by himself (a greater lie has not been said). He'd have to, because he couldn't be the reason she didn't follow her passion.

He was still stuck in his head when they reached the museum.


It was nearly five thirty, the sun was low in the sky and he knew he'd have to do something soon. He was on a park bench waiting for his aunt to use the bathroom before continuing on their stroll that would ultimately take them to "the best diner in the Midwest" and try whatever sounded the most suspicious before calling it a day and heading to whatever hotel his aunt had booked for them where they'd have a movie marathon and get ready for bed. That was when everything would spiral out of control and he'd have to lie to her and ruin her day.

He sat there glaring at the nearby trees. He was sorely tempted to climb one just to fall out of it, if only to justify his bruises. Just as he'd made up his mind, he heard it. Loud jeering taunts from slightly deep voices, his curiosity got the better of him and with a last glance at the trees, he followed the sound...and stopped dead in his tracks at what he saw.

There were three of them. All older than he was, nearly three times his age and nearly twice his height with more muscle on them than he'd ever hope to have. But that really didn't matter. What did matter was that they were harassing a turtle, kicking it, taunting it, hitting it with sticks, and they were laughing as it desperately tried to protect a small mound (its nest he thought absently, that's where the newly laid eggs should be) as blood sluggishly fell from beneath its shell. He had the sneaking suspicion that she wouldn't live longer than a few more minutes at best. So he grabbed the thickest stick he could find and charged.

In hindsight, he probably should have looked for the closest adult and report them, but the scene had struck too close to home and he couldn't just stand by and watch. So he did the stupid thing and rushed the one that was closest to him, making him fall within the turtle's range of attack. And attack it did.

With a harsh snap of its jaws, it bit down. Hard. There was a snap, and jerk number one was howling, trying to get it off him. His buddies thought it'd be a good idea to wack it off. With a crack of the stick, the turtle went flying a few feet before landing harshly next to the nest. It wasn't moving.

"The hell was that for you little turd?" Jerk number one hissed at him. Wally had positioned himself in front of the turtle and its nest. His voice was stuck in his throat, and he'd barely managed to say:

"You shouldn't bother wild animals, otherwise you'll regret it."

"Oh really?" He drawled. "Well I guess since you asked soo nicely, I have no choice but to listen to you...is that seriously what you think was gonna happen after that little stunt you pulled, s***head? What kinda fantasy are you living in? Did you think you were some kinda hero? This is what happens to heroes." He cracked the stick at Wally's wrists, sending his only defense flying off several feet away.

With that his buddies joined in, and suddenly he was in the same position the turtle had been. Except he was leaving his back vulnerable as he tried to shield the turtle and her eggs. Even then, he'd managed to get a black eye, and a few bruises on his face, neck, back, and ribs.

Everything was becoming increasingly vague, but soon there was a rush of wind, a soothing voice and gentle hands pulling him away from the turtle. He tried shaking it off, until two familiar arms wrapped around him, easing him out of his defensive crouch. In a cooing voice, she told him how proud she was for him being so brave, that he did a good job, that it was okay to cry. Her voice shaking slightly as trembling hands wiped tears and blood off his face. But all that he could focus on was the dead turtle. He felt like he was seeing his future, that was what would happen to him if aunt Iris left. He clutched her arms like a lifeline.

"You did a good job son. Not many people would risk their necks for an animal, but next time try getting an adult. Remember, you don't have to do everything by yourself, so don't run in blind like that, okay?"

He jerked his head in a matter reminiscent of a nod, still staring at the corpse. The sinking feeling of dread, stayed with him.

"So much for the best birthday ever, huh Wally?" Iris whispered while holding him in her arms to ground him.


* Shout out to JLTAS

** This is cannon to pre52 Wally West,he actually referred to his parents' marriage as such.

***This is an allusion (hohoho I know English terms, my lit teacher would be so proud) to the Great Human Race, where Wally was forced to race for two giant betting entities (?) Or doom the world to destruction.

****Wally actually states that Iris was the first person to love him in the 2007 comic Payback

So...this isn't an update, its an edit to help make the story flow better, hopefully, because I honesty couldn't continue with how I had written the last two chapters and managed to corner myself. Anyway, further disclaimer s include me not owning:

-Febreeze

-Mario Kart

-Instagram

-The Food Channel

-Waffle ville

-Turtles

-And all DC characters and facts/ trivia that I may have forgotten to address.

I'm so sorry for this not really update, but I really hope this was better than it was previously and I hope you guys enjoyed it. The next chapter should be out sooner, I already know what I want to do and hopefully I can turn it out well written and quick. Thank you so much for your support and reviews, please tell me what you thought of this in comparison to how it was previously, but no flames please. Thank you for your patience with me.