Wrong Parent (Dick Grayson)

10--Nightmare

Warning: Torture and junk in this chapter!

I ran as fast as I could, but I still felt his presence behind me. I seemed to slow down with every step I took.

Someone grabbed me by the hood of my sweatshirt. "You ran away," Slade's voice said. "Now you must be punished."

"No! Please!!" I begged. "Don't hurt me! I'll do whatever you want-"

"Quiet, Renegade," the mercenary snarled at me. "You know to bite your tongue."

I whimpered by tried to stifle my cries of fear. "I want the names of those sidekicks," Slade continued. "If you tell me, we'll forget all about your little punishment."

I shook my head. I was not going to betray my friends like that!

"Oh?" Slade said. "Maybe I'll just have to force them out of you."

He dropped me to the ground and began to beat me, kicking punching, slapping, ripping out hair, throwing acid on me, whipping me. I shouted and cried and pleaded for him to stop, but he didn't. "The names, Renegade."

"No!" I yelled through my tears.

Electricity ran through me, causing me to scream in pure agony.

"The names!"

"Never!"

A knife was lodged into my shoulder and roughly pulled out. Slade's fingers groped around in the wound. "Just one name, Renegade," Slade said, venom in his voice. "Tell me who Kid Flash is and it will all be over."

"K-K-Kid Fl-Flash..." I panted. "I-Is W-Wally W-W-West!" Tears sprung to my eyes.

Slade smiled and took his fingers out of the wound. I lay there, breathing heavily, in a pool of my own blood.

"Very good, Renegade," Slade said. "Now, I will give you relief..." He took his sword and rose it over my heart. "...no..." I gasped out. "P-please...d-don't..."

"Goodbye, Renegade," and with that, the sword pierced my heart.

~

I shot up with a scream. My throat was already on fire so I assumed that it wasn't the first scream I had done. I heard the sound of someone running and suddenly Wally was standing outside my cell. "Dick? Are you alright?"

I nodded, though I realized he might not have seen it in the dark. "It was just a nightmare...I'm fine..." my voice betrayed me by cracking at the end. A tear fell down my cheek. My cell door opened and Wally walked over to me, leaning down so that he could see me clearly. "What was it about? Was it Slade?"

I nodded, scrubbing the tears away. "I-I'm sorry I woke you."

"It's fine, Dickie," he said. "Do you need anything?"

I shrugged. "I'm kinda hungry."

Wally smiled. "Let's go to the kitchen and we can talk about it there."

I nodded and allowed him to help me up. We walked to the kitchen and he immediately started to pull things out of the fridge. He gave me a glass of milk and took a few cookies that Megan had made out if the cookie jar. They were slightly burnt, but still good.

"So...what happened in the dream?"

I shrugged. "Slade found me and punished me for running away," I said, trying to sound indifferent although I could feel the tears building up behind my eyes.

"That's awful," Wally said. "Dickie-"

"Don't call me that."

"Dickie, you shouldn't have to have nightmares like that," Wally said. "Geez, now my nightmares about clowns seem hysterical."

I wiped my eyes. "Y-you're scared of clowns?"

"Terrified of em," Wally said. "Maybe it was the Joker's fault, but I've had the fear ever since I can remember. They jump out and start making awful jokes and it scares the crap out of me."

I smiled a little. "At least you've never fought the Joker, right?"

"If I ever had to, I'd probably pass out from fear," Wally said.

I laughed a little, but became quiet again. "I grew up around clowns, so they never scared me."

"You did?" Wally asked.

I nodded. "Y-you have to promise to never repeat this to a single living being, got it?"

Wally nodded. "Oath of your honorary older brother!"

I took a deep breath. "When I was younger, me and my entire family was in the circus. We were called the Flying Graysons. That's my last name."

Wally's jaw dropped. "Wait...you're Richard Grayson? Your story was on every news channel for, like, a week!"

I nodded. "They all said it was an accident, but it wasn't. They were...murdered by a man named Tony Zucco..."

"Aw, Dick, I'm really sorry-"

"Don't be," I said, looking down at my hands. "I-I killed them too. I saw what Tony was doing. I-I should have told someone but...but I didn't."

"Dickie, it's not your fault," Wally said. "You're alive and here for a reason. You're my best friend, got that? I'll never look at you as a kid who made a mistake. I-I want to tell you a secret too. You can't tell anyone."

I nodded. "Word of an honorary younger brother," I said.

He gave me a quick smile before taking a deep breath. "My dad abuses me."

I was shocked. "He does?"

Wally nodded. "Ever since I was little. I-I've almost killed myself a number of times, but couldn't bring myself to do it."

"But you're one of the happiest people I know," I said. "You sure don't seem depressed."

"You don't seem like someone who hates himself."

I swallowed. "I guess so..."

"Neither of us are dead, are we?" Wally asked. I shook my head. He gave me a strangled smile. "Will you keep me anchored to the world of the living, Dick?"

"...only if you promise to do the same for me."

Wally smiled. He leaned over and ruffled my hair. "Man, kid," he said, changing the subject. "You really need a haircut."

I glared at him, but then it softened. "Goodnight, Wally." I stood up and began to walk back to my cell.

"Night, Dickie." Wally called. I scowled, but, I had to admit. The stupid nickname was growing on me.