Teen Titans; ReBeL Yell – If I Had Stayed a Renegade-

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RENEGADE LOSES CONTROL ON A KILL DURING ONE OF HIS CONTRACTS AND SHUTS DOWN, completely gets into his role and all communication stops. Is there someone other than his mentor who can shake up the guarded assassin's world and break him out of his unmoving shell – casket?

Humor in this, but more a fan of the tt3 season two ep Fractured. Imps in this. Read on!

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TOO MUCH

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"Slade..."

A weak croak for a strong soldier.

Slade had wished to wait; he'd of course wanted to witness a murder into the kid's first year….

But, never like this…

He'd ravaged the target.

Completely given in to his angst and lack of trust in the world, ever since Slade had won.

Had won him, so he'd be forever stained in red.

It had been at a chemical plant, a special client that wanted his stash of mutagen kept cold. As in, no one was supposed to open the vat.

It turned out to be as potentially dangerous as too much exposure to testosterone. Dick had acted…oh, odd wasn't there. Not that word, but…. Feral.

Similar to that green beast child fighting Adonis, if it had to be a chemical plant to scramble his DNA …

But Dick, was human. As Slade mused, he centered his attention on his red-handed apprentice's now sickly pallor…it was only in to that year that his mind, heart, all of it had shut away the day. Slade had ACTUALLY welcomed this new grittier version of his soon to be full fledged protégé. He' d needed to get the boy home, like yesterday. Slade directed the kid to come, but his feet wouldn't do as the host was told.

"Dick." Slade said between gritted fists, not encouraging this sort of behavior another second.

"We can talk about –

"I did it, but…I still…. this is what I am to you. Happy, now?"

"Renegade!"

Slade reached, but Dick sliced, his eyes without pity or shame.

Slade stood back, stunned. The knife cut his wrist…that little…

"You'll be severely punished for –

"I know, and…don't care. Not ready to face…"

He broke into a bolt, locking the door by the key lock and fleeing with his eyes as red as they had been the first time.

But no tears, he didn't know how.

He fled; even as Slade screamed and pounded the door, even as he threatened and made a scene while the chemicals burned out and left the scene for good. Slade was angry, and Dick didn't want to care just how angry.

But, a part of him did, so he left. Up to the rooftops of his Jump City's highest sky scraper he fled.

Up and far out of earshot.

He, was sure this was going to change him, but hugging his knees to his chest, his mouth moved, words silently praying for a shooting star.

"I don't want to feel…I want to –

The ground was trembling; it violently shook, so Dick got into a defensive stance. His masked and tired eyes so very tired of fighting, something was emerging not from the sky…

~ Maybe it's the toxin? Am I still infected??~

A hallucination was possible, but no.

It finally stilled and a fanfare of trumpets blared; a procession of something…

Else…

" WWHAA – HEE! HERE TODAY TO SAVE PLANET EARTH…. THE HOME OF THE VERY FIRST, IS……NOSYARG – CKID!!!!"

It crashed through the stylized emblem of the boy wonder's logo.

And only stood centimeters to one head…. tall???

"ROBIN! HIII!!" The nasally child spat all over Dick's face, dressed in a diminutive Robin costume.

"Did….my wish?" Renegade gawked.

Slade…he'd never buy it. Dick sat down or slumped onto his knees on the rooftop.

"Holy crap…."

/

"I made it!! Yay!!!!"

Dick had to get home, take an antidote. Was Slade going to beat a crazy man? Was he going crazy??

" Yello?? Robin?? It's me!!" The creature tapped his shoulder, gleefully as it had no stopper for that grin…buck toothed???

"WHO…." Dick took in a big gulp of hair, then gripped his skull, pulling his hair and just…

Angry!

"Whoa! I'll get my first aid kit!! Stay put!"

This strange mini self of Robin; down to his hair and mask, but…dimmer looking, goofy, went to riffle through an old fashioned doctor's bag. He finally yelped as a leech held his big thumb…

Wait…. oh no… -

" AHA- FOUND IT!"

Dick backed away from the strange glowing vial. He put his hands up, his whole body stuck as the Nosy…whatever, tried to put him out of his stance too quickly. Dick defensively and instinctively, bopped the brat in the skull and swiped up the capped substance.

"No more games. Who are you?? What was that tremor?? What is… this?"

"Don't!" The little imp cried out, big bulbous eyes praying on Dick's pity.

There was none.

"Tell me, or the vial is gone." Dick demanded, sternly.

"Ahn, ok…" The guilty looking imp tried to find a better way to explain the theory of moving through interdimensional rifts.

"I was really a big, big fan though of your work, I have all of your comics and movies!" The gleeful blot in Dick's world began. His eyes sparkled at the telling of "Robin's" reputation.

"The universe got, messy somehow, so I popped on over when I found out you were here- not, being you…"

Dick's eyes returned coldly to the vial. "And this?"

"Antidote, for the bad stuff you inhaled –

"How do you know about the hit?"

Dick stepped back, shocked.

"Were…you spying –

"No! I'm… you !" The kid pointed to his emblem. His red breasted one that made Dick, dizzy with more shock...

/

Dick blinked, grinning and shaking his head, laughing. Denial eating at his thoughts.

"Am I seeing you because of the toxin? If I take it, will my master be there when I wake up? That's impos-

"It is not!" The impish being protested and levitate up to his ally.

"You are hurt, so I came to help! You don't even know how to cry any –

"Stop." Renegade put up a palm.

"Side effects; long term, short." He eyed the vial curiously with suspicion as he'd been taught.

"You said this nullifies the toxin's effects?"

"Yup! So, you can be less angry and cry again! Like we used to."

"Is that code for, die?" Dick raised a brow as Nosy – whatever shook his big ole' oversized noggin.

"Nope. You'll be better. No pain, I know so."

"Because, you are me?..." Dick regretted speaking as the little shrimp Beamed back and nodded happily.

"You betcha!" Nosy answered the kid assassin with a thumbs - up sign.

Dick grimaced and uncapped the glowing vial quickly. "If…. You think –

This odd fella eyes Dick as a fan, very enticed by the teen's every word and action. It was…

Nothing Dick Grayson couldn't handle.

As he took a sip, gulping the rest down with one chug. One full bodied…

God, he'd eaten his own vomit in an accident, but that???

"Did it…" He wiped his bottom lip, handing the vial back to his new nighttime ally. A gurgle, but it passed quickly.

"It should, but first?!"

This kid didn't quit as he reached out to shake Dick's blood- coated and dried hands.

" Let's try over again! You can call me….aha!" The kid smiled with a giggle. " I like the name, Larry! So, call me that!"

"Why…are you yelling?..." Dick groaned, expecting spit to fly right into his eyes like before.

" Oh, just cuz." The cute thing rubbed the back of its neck, a bit embarrassed.

"Ah, I'm….-

" Oh no!!" The thing screamed again, and Dick threw a palm over its mouth.

Larry pulled the hand over to examine it. "I'm not too late, we got to try! You have to! Hurry –

" Wait! LARRY!" Dick was dragged along as Larry levitate him to another rooftop. Richard fumed, demanding to know what it wanted. " Get off! I'm still –

"You need to do it!" Larry squeezed the hero's hand in his as they landed again, the little guy looked rather tearful. " You have to cry! If you don't, really bad stuff will tear apart the universe! Come on!..." He begged and puffed out his lower lip. "Do what I do! It works."

" Crying will get me shot, Larry." Dick retaliated. "I have to always be on high alert, even Robin…couldn't cry. He was supposed to remain in control."

"BUT you didn't fall into a vat of tomato juice? Right?"

Dick's eyes flashed; dangerous and defensively at the munchkin.

"You hurt other people, because you can't cry, but Larry can fix that!"

"No." Dick shook his head, not buying this faulty therapy session for a moment. "If I go back to him, I'm going to get hurt, so I can't show my master any signs of weakness. I'm not-

"I know, cause this stupid villain in my world has the same exact mask." Rambled the imp. "He's super cranky all the time and he usually likes to bully my poor team! I almost joined him once, but we saved the day! –

"Not, in this place." Dick pursed his lips, a bit envious of this kid, that he could be so…happy.

"Maybe, but I can get you to stop beating yourself up before he does." Larry hinted, letting it sound like a way out of his companion's forced apprenticeship.

"HOW?" Rebutted the ex – hero.

"Look at me, Larry! I killed all of those people…." Dick grunted under his breath, trying to gather his emotions like he always did, stuffing them deep down inside.

"I'm worse than him…I made it look…" Dick threw a hand to his temples, smelling the stink of blood and defeat on his glove's one palm.

"But…did you want to, or did you want to so you could help out somebody else..."

"It matters, Larry." Dick bit his lip.

"That was manslaughter. Slade can't use an Apprentice that can't get himself under control."

"But you wanted to be Robin again! You can't do that if your world's big bossy Slade – guy is always trying to ruin everything. And you can always make things right, like Robin does. You are my hero! I don't just worship the ground you walk on; I know!"

"You…aren't a killer." Dick seethed. "You are just a –

"I want you to let out everything cause then you'll feel a whole lot better!" Boasted the bratty mite. "Go on! I've got tough skin!" He pounded his chest.

"Ok. You know what I think of you AND my dumb life?" Dick sneered at the riot of a dopple in his face.

"I think…that as soon as someone hits me with enough morphine to trigger a reaction, I'm out of this crazy nightmare. Yep! You, Slade. I was probably hit by Joker's gas and Bruce had…. had to…"

He shook his head. What was that?...

"Keep going…this is getting exciting!" Larry dug through a gap in the universe with a point from his finger, then pulled out a barrel of buttered popcorn, like….

The circus.

Dick felt his body boil and face redden as Larry just used his abilities to start something unacceptable.

"If I am NOT sleeping in my bed at Titans tower, you know what that…that…. marauder would do to me if he caught my scent?? He'd hang me by my ankles ON THE OUTSIDE OF MY OWN TOWER!! Like some crazed criminal! I'm never going back! You can't screw with my mind, and Batman! –

He gasped. "Batman…. what if he finds out…no no no..." Moaned the boy wonder. "That…was my first kill…my real first!!" Dick shouted out as his masked eyes beneath, grew redder, more distress eating away as Larry only ate his popcorn and looked ready to bust a gut.

"I…. have to go…this…if I can –

"Will he listen if you can't tell him how much you cared, with all of your heart?"

Dick didn't answer, but he did tear off his domino mask as the answers lay beyond simple words.

His chin was wet with tears as his nose ran pathetically. Like a kid with no self control, it all bubbled out from a brook that had been dry due to a year long drought.

The teen's rivers ran, and Renegade, finally wept to a complete stranger.

"You…. oh, it's ok. We can fix this! I'm going to talk to the Titans! I can do that! SURE!" Larry boasted, but there was an issue as Dick didn't have the energy to stop the next event from starting. It was a transporter spell. A high—level one he'd recognized from another….

Another, as she was there. Her eyes shaded by a dark hood of violet as Larry smiled back.

"Renegade…."

/

"NOPE!" Larry grinned and eagerly re – Introduced the two. "Nosyarg Ckid! And….oh, or. …Larry. Hi?"

"Richard?" She knew from the first day he'd wept at his parent's memory. He'd missed their memorial and had blamed himself for it.

She and he as a team, had bonded, to be safe for…times like when Slade had made Dick's break up from the Titans into a reality.

"The probes…." Dick gulped, his body tremoring, as if Slade would use the trigger at any second.

"It's ok." She reassured him and levitated closer. "We were investigating a crime at the power plant…" His aura told her too much as he rubbed his arm. Backing away.

"Robin." She sounded like his mother, right for a scolding.

"I'm…."

"He's letting out some emotional baggage, that's all –

"Nosy…. you aren't from this dimension, I can tell." Raven noted. "But Dick is a criminal on our plane. He is working for one, but…there isn't much anyone can do. Not until the –

"I did it, ok??" Dick finally felt his head ready to burst as Larry gawked, and Raven didn't say a word.

"Your energy." She started after a slight pause. "You can't stay with Slade. He's going to change you, and…I can't make the pain go away."

"No one can." Dick retrieved his mask and turned, knowing she was the one who'd do it. Not attack, but let him figure out the rest eventually.

"Cyborg has the sweeper; a prototype and it's almost ready…you could –

"Not…. after what he made me do, Raven…" Dick saw a sad eyed Larry on the side lines still a cheerleader, but his own bloodshot were just as lonesome. Upset by what he'd only just committed with his record now a height over. Without pay.

"We'll find a way…" Dick couldn't believe his own words; Larry, a strange imp from another universe, and Raven. The big sister of the Teen Titans. Both were hopeful as he shouldn't be right now.

"I think so too…" She smiled back weakly.

"ME THREE!! TITAANS! DAN DA DAA!!~" Larry built up the fan fare and by golly –

RICHARD chuckled, he laughed and Larry knew. He knew plain as the stubby nose on his tiny face, that his job was done here.

" Whaaahoo! See you in the next time line! I know Nite – mite would LOVE to meet you!"

The vortex turned as Larry's finger made the sky beam him up. Robin was left gawking as Raven slapped her own face.

"AN IMP." She grumbled to her ex leader, while Dick had to breathe out a heavy sigh. "Yeah…. Batman has one, now….so does…-

"You do." She nodded back, the Slade bot's steps growing closer as Dick heard it too.

"We will stop him, Robin."

He nodded and waved to her. Just as a bot squad pummeled him into the rooftop.

And he'd never gotten to wish upon that star….