Forgotten Bonds – Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen
The Inhuman Human

October 14th, 2008. Tuesday, 7:00 am.

“Good morning,” said Wintergreen as Dick walked into the kitchen the next morning. Dick nodded in reply and sat down at the table, feeling drained. He’d gotten a decent amount of sleep last night, even with the nightmare. But for some reason, he felt completely drained. He wasn’t sure how he was going to get anything done today. He was just so physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.

These past two days had been too strange for words; from the new way Slade was dealing with him, to the panic attack, to the nightmare – it seemed as if the entire atmosphere of the entire haunt had changed entirely. Plus the fact, Slade completely stopped wearing his mask. It was so odd to see his face; however, it did bring familiarity.

But that was something Dick was afraid to have with the man.

“How are you feeling?” asked Wintergreen, glancing over at him.

“Fine,” said Dick tonelessly.

“Don’t sound like it.”

“Tired. Just… really tired,” murmured Dick. Wintergreen studied him for a moment. He dried his hands on a washcloth before coming to stand near Dick; placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. Dick tried not to soak up the warmth like a sponge.

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I said I’m fine,” repeated Dick, wishing the old man wouldn’t worry over him so much.

“But?”

Dick sighed loudly, knowing there was no way around this now. The old man wanted him to talk and would coerce it out of him one way or another.

“I think I just need a break is all. It’s been kind of grueling, you know,” whispered Dick. He began to get momentum in his words. His tiredness loosened his tongue – not to mention that warm hand on his shoulder – and he found himself expressing his feelings a little too easily to the old man.

“It’s been rough this past month. And this new… change is really throwing me for a loop. Yesterday and last night… I don’t know what to expect from Slade any more. I guess I’m confused over everything. I just wish I could relax for a day or so, you know? A vacation or something.” Dick sighed, shaking his head. “Never mind, sorry for rambling, sir.”

Wintergreen patted Dick lightly on the back with a smile.

“It’s only going to get better from here on out.”

“So, I’m going back home today?” said Dick with a fake, cheerful smile. It slid away immediately as he shot Wintergreen a skeptical look. “Yeah, right.”

“No, I just meant here.”

“Yay…” drawled Dick weakly.

“Trust me,” said Wintergreen with another smile. He gave Dick one last pat on the shoulder before turning away. He walked to the entrance of the hallway and took a deep breath.

“Slade, get your butt in here; there’s an emergency!” shouted Wintergreen down the hallway. Dick’s eyes snapped wide at the pronouncement; startled by the old man’s sudden yelling. There was a loud noise, coupled with a door slamming open. Quick footsteps followed and Slade appeared at the entrance of the hallway, looking slightly disheveled with his white button down shirt untucked and his pure white hair askew.

“Will, what is it?” breathed Slade; his chest heaving once in a deep breath. He glanced at Dick, whose eyes were wide with surprise. He was shocked by Wintergreen, but he was also shocked by the way Slade appeared. Dick hadn’t ever seen the man look anything but immaculate in his attire, whether it be his Kevlar suit or his daily slacks. Even last night, Slade had appeared neat and orderly in his bathrobe.

Slade ran a hand through his hair, managing to fix it somewhat.

“Excellent, you’re here. Please sit down,” said Wintergreen cheerfully, acting as if he hadn’t just screamed bloody murder down the hallway. Slade narrowed his eye.

“Will… Did you just shout about an emergency when there really wasn’t one?” breathed Slade in a terrifyingly frightening tone.

“Nonsense, this is an emergency,” said Wintergreen, completely unaffected by Slade’s tone; patting a chair and looking expectantly at Slade. Dick was affected, though; swallowing nervously as he watched the man glare at the older man. It was extremely weird getting used to seeing Slade without his mask on, but it gave Dick a whole new glimpse into his facial reactions.

The man was positively livid.

Slade ran a hand over his chin, sliding it over the white fur as if he were about to pull it all out. Dick could tell he was trying extremely hard to hold his temper. Dick had to give the man credit; he was doing a pretty good job at it currently. Although he looked like he was about to blow a fuse at any moment. Dick wished Wintergreen hadn’t started this with him in the room. He really didn’t want to be on the receiving end of the blast when Slade blew.

“Mind informing me about it?” asked Slade, his eye glinting fiercely as he spoke in his dark, sinister tone.

“Once you sit down,” said Wintergreen, patting the empty chair next to Dick again. Slade let out a harsh sigh before turning to the side slightly; commencing to tuck in his shirt into his black slacks. Once he was done, he took his seat and sent a furious glare at Wintergreen.

“All right, I’m sitting,” said Slade, still obviously trying to contain his temper. “What is this emergency that required you to screech like a banshee down the hallway?”

“I never screech, Slade. You know that,” said Wintergreen, sounding affronted.

“Old man, I’m losing my patience,” snapped Slade through gritted teeth.

“Oh, my. I think there might be a problem with the laundry,” said Wintergreen wryly. “Not enough starch.”

Slade growled visibly.

“Will! Enough of your games! Out with it, already.”

“All right, all right. Calm down. I’ll tell you,” said Wintergreen, holding up his hands. He took a deep breath before continuing. “I am calling an emergency family meeting.”

Silence permeated the room.

Finally, Dick’s face crinkled up in a mixture of incredulity and disgust. A family meeting? Since when were they a family?! Had the old man finally cracked? Of all the things Dick had heard over the past month, that had to be the most ridiculous thing ever – even more than Slade getting it into his head that he could now wallop him. This took the cake; the gold medal of utter stupidity.

Seemed like Slade had the same thought process as Dick as he stared at Wintergreen as if he had gone completely insane.

“A what?” breathed Slade slowly, looking thoroughly taken aback.

“A family meeting,” repeated Wintergreen with a nod as if this were completely obvious and normal. Slade raised his eyebrow, his eye completely wide in astonishment.

“I don’t think restating that makes it any clearer to me,” commented Slade with a shake of his head. He continued to stare at Wintergreen as if the old man had just grown a second head.

“I am calling a family meeting right now because I want you to cancel all of whatever you have on the schedule today.”

“Is that right?” said Slade exceptionally slowly and carefully; his eye narrowing slightly. Dick just remained silent. It was far safer to keep quiet through all this. The less he said, the less chance someone would blame this new development on him.

“Yes, and we are going to do something fun and relaxing today,” said Wintergreen with a firm nod. Slade’s eyebrow couldn’t go any higher. He shot Dick a fierce glare and jabbed a finger towards the old man.

“Did you put him up to this?” demanded Slade. Dick’s eyes widened more. Panic rippled through him. Wintergreen probably was doing this because of him. He shouldn’t have said anything to the old man. He had opened his big mouth and now he was getting into trouble for it.

But Slade didn’t need to know that.

“N–no!” cried Dick quickly. “I swear; this is all his idea!”

“Mmm…” mouthed Slade.

“Oh, don’t give the child grief, Slade,” chided Wintergreen with a shake of his head. “This is all my idea. Give me some credit.”

“You’re serious about this?” demanded Slade.

“I am.”

“I see…”

Slade withdrew a cell phone from his pant pocket and began working on it. Dick’s eyes widened again, surprised to see the man with a cell phone. He hadn’t imagined that Slade would have something like that on his person. Then again, there was probably just as much of a chance as a mouse playing poker with a cat as Dick had at getting that cell phone; let alone having a quiet moment to dial for help.

“What are you doing?” asked Wintergreen.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m calling a psychiatrist for you!” snapped Slade. “It’s like you’re suggesting a play day!”

“I am!” insisted Wintergreen. The bottom of Slade’s mouth dropped. He wordlessly lifted the phone to his ear.

“Yes, hello. Dr—”

Wintergreen grabbed the phone suddenly out of Slade’s unsuspecting hand and turned off the call. He pocketed the phone and folded his arms. Dick blinked, shocked that the old man had out maneuvered Slade.

“You are going to do this whether you like it or not.”

“Or what?” growled Slade, folding his own arms.

“Or your clothes will be so stiff you won’t even be able to move an inch in them,” threatened Wintergreen with a lifted chin, his aged eyes glinting suggestively. “You’ll also find that I might be a little clumsy with the salt during mealtimes and you know how I feel about wasting food.”

Dick glanced between the two men as they stared each other down. Dick could totally feel the dominating tension between them, radiating from their entire beings. He was fascinated that Wintergreen could stand up to Slade and that the white haired man could actually be threatened. Dick almost laughed at the threats, but he didn’t dare. It seemed that Slade was taking them quite seriously.

To be honest, Dick wasn’t sure what it meant to have stiff clothing.

Finally, Slade let out a low, growling sigh. He leaned back in his chair and glared up at Wintergreen, his eye narrowing slightly.

“All right. What exactly do you want us to do?”

“I want you and the child to spend time together,” said Wintergreen.

“We spend all day, every day together,” snapped Dick before he could stop himself. He widened his eyes once before ducking his head to stare at the pattern on the tablecloth.

“Yes, well,” began Wintergreen with a soft smile, “I mean something that doesn’t have to do with Slade’s educational plans for you.”

That meant…

Oh, gosh, the old man wanted Slade and Dick to spend ‘quality time’ together as if they were estranged father and son – there was no doubt about that. That’s what the old man had to be thinking. Dick stared at the old man as if he had lost his mind. Did he honestly think that Dick was going to agree to this? Did he honestly think that Slade would?

Slade’s chest heaved once in a deep breath.

“And just what, exactly, do you suggest? As I am sure you have an idea to share, don’t you?” said Slade, saying each word with slow carefulness; his grey blue eye glinting dangerously.

“Oh, can’t you think of anything yourself, Slade?”

“This is your brilliant idea,” snapped Slade. “Why not help us out?”

“Hmm… I’ll be right back, then. You and the child sit tight,” said Wintergreen, turning away and walking down the hallway. Slade and Dick were left in an uncomfortable silence. Dick was still trying to understand what was going on. First Slade removes his mask and wallops him, and now this bonding Wintergreen wanted them to do. What next? Swapping stories over a campfire? Where’s the marshmallows?

“Is… Win—Mr. Wintergreen ever gonna call me by my normal name?” asked Dick, quickly amending himself midway. Slade turned his head to look at him, giving Dick a considering look.

“Probably not,” said Slade dryly, a wry smirk lifting the edge of his mouth. “At least, not to your face.”

Dick just gave an acknowledging nod, not really wanting to say much more. His hands began to wring themselves in his lap as he waited nervously for Wintergreen to return.

He really didn’t want to spend time with Slade. It was one thing to spar and be trained by him, but it was a whole other duck to spend normal downtime with him. It brought a sense of familiarity that Dick just didn’t want. The past day had held plenty of that from the panic attack to the nightmare. The man wasn’t safe – Dick didn’t, couldn’t trust him. Sure, the man was restraining himself more, but there was no comfort in his words. He might say he wasn’t going to beat Dick any more, but that very well could just be a whole lot of hot air.

Dick just didn’t trust Slade.

However, bitten by curiosity, Dick spoke up.

“Um… What does it mean to have stiff clothing?” asked Dick in a low undertone, feeling nervous. Slade looked at him for a moment, before his mouth curled with a smirk.

“You don’t know?” asked Slade with softness, but there was a mischievous light in his eye that said otherwise. Dick merely shook his head. The smirk expanded, his eye widening with a glint. “It’s pure agony. That’s all I’ll say on that. Beware of it. But honestly, I don’t think you’ll ever have to worry about it since Will has his own way in dealing with you, don’t you think?”

Dick flushed and ducked his head. Why did he have to constantly be reminded of his position with these men? He hated being treated like a little child and it seemed like Slade was relishing in that fact.

This was getting ridiculous. Dick knew he couldn’t really consider himself an adult, especially legally; but that still didn’t mean that he was a little kid. He had more than proven time and time again that he could take care of himself.

He didn’t need adults any more.

It was then that Wintergreen came walking into the kitchen with a broad smile on his face, his arms full of a collection of board games and card games. Dick couldn’t hold himself back: his eyebrows rose into his ungelled bangs in pure shock at the sight.

Yup, this was the ultimate of pure torture.

Slade caught sight of the items and began to shake his head – vigorously.

“Oh, no, no, no, Will. Over my dead body,” said Slade, glaring at the offending items.

“When should I send out the funeral invites?” asked Wintergreen in a completely serious tone; placing the collection onto the table. Slade shot him a fierce glare before shaking his head once again, still ever vigorously.

“Will, I’m serious.”

“As am I, Slade. Please, just try it out for a bit,” said Wintergreen, changing his serious look to one of imploring. He picked up a small red box that Dick recognized as a deck of Uno cards. Wintergreen handed it to Slade, who accepted it grudgingly and with great revulsion.

“Just try it out, please? Come on, it’ll be fun.”

Slade sighed bitterly and grumbled incoherent acceptances with a mixture of death threats; Dick assumed.

“Excellent!” cried Wintergreen. He stopped suddenly, a deep look of concern filling his face. “Dear me, I totally forgot I had something else to do. You two have fun without me!”

Dick swore Wintergreen left the room faster than Kid Flash could’ve. Slade was holding the box with disdain as he held out his other hand to the fleeing Wintergreen. He growled visibly once the old man had left, dropping his hand.

“Blasted, doddering, interfering old geezer!” snarled Slade, glaring at the box as if it was the culprit of the current events. He let out another loud, growling sigh.

“Um… with all due respect, sir,” started Dick, staring at the deck of cards with distaste, “I’d rather not play Uno with you.”

“The feeling is mutual, then,” commented Slade in a deadpan tone, holding the deck as if he were holding something extremely dirty. He dropped the deck onto the table and stared at it with a dark look on his face. The two of them stayed in silence, each refusing to look at the other.

Dick was ready for the torture to be over. Why did the old man have to be so meddling? While he appreciated the fact that the old man had been worried over his health, he did not fully appreciate the new development. Now the old man wanted them to spend ‘quality time’ with each other? The man had to be going senile.

There was a sudden loud sound of static that erupted into the room. Slade growled out loudly in shock, his head bolting to the side with a hand over his ear.

“Blast it, Will!” shouted Slade. “You’re going to make me deaf!”

“I’m not hearing any chatting,” rang Wintergreen’s voice loudly as Slade reacted from the loud noise, his head bolting to the side again. Dick stared at Slade in shock. Wintergreen’s voice had come from his direction. Slade looked furious as his hand hovered over his ear.

“Wha—what was that?” asked Dick.

“An earpiece,” said Slade through gritted teeth, looking livid. “Blasted old man.”

“Um…”

Slade glared at Dick, his eye narrowing. “Are you sure you had nothing to do with this?”

“I swear!” cried Dick.

Slade let out a grudging sigh before turning his gaze to the deck of cards. He shook his head with another frustrated sigh, picking up the deck and opening the box to pull out the cards.

“All right, remind me how to play this blasted game,” said Slade, slamming the deck of cards down and pushing them forward to Dick. “You shuffle and deal. You can go first.”

Dick grabbed the deck, gathering the scattered cards together and shuffling them; feeling it best to obey quickly. “You’ve played this before?” he asked over his shuffling.

“A few times, yes,” said Slade vaguely. “You?”

“The Titans,” answered Dick in a quiet voice, beginning to deal seven cards for the two of them. “Who did you play with?”

Slade didn’t answer as he accepted his cards, a heavy light glazing over his grey blue eye. He studied his cards, still silent. Dick didn’t pressure him as he laid down his first card. As he watched the man, Dick was taken aback as he saw the familiar deep, pained look that he often saw in the reflection of his own eyes. It was the look of one who buried their pain deep within their heart – it was something Dick knew and understood all too well.

It was the pain of loss.

Dick swallowed, unnerved by what he was seeing. He couldn’t have imagined such a look on Slade. It was so strange to see such a human appearance in a man that he was supposed to hate and fight against. A slight shiver ran down Dick’s bare arms and he rubbed a hand over one of them. He didn’t want to see this. He didn’t want to know. He didn’t want to imagine Slade being human. He was the enemy – a criminal. Nothing more and nothing less.

But apparently that was far from the truth.

The two of them continued to play in silence. Slade was laying his third card down when he froze suddenly. Dick watched the man stop as he was considering something. Then, his expression turned to fierce anger and he slammed the card down; making Dick startle slightly. Slade grabbed at the earpiece in his ear and pulled it out, almost crushing it as he slammed it onto the table.

“Blast that old fool!” yelled Slade venomously, sending such a burning glare towards the earpiece that it could’ve melted beneath it. Dick could only stare at Slade nervously, feeling extremely worried that the man’s ire would soon be directed at him. It was, briefly. Slade turned his glare onto Dick, who stilled instantly.

“The old geezer wants us to chat,” growled Slade as if that was the most offensive thing he had ever heard. “Says we need to interact. Pleasantly, of course.”

“I–I see…” said Dick. “Um… What about?”

“I don’t know,” snarled Slade. “Butterflies, perhaps?”

“Uh…”

“Don’t you dare,” cut in Slade, pointing a finger at Dick. He sighed and dropped his hand. He looked away, leaning his elbow onto the table to rest his chin in his hand. Dick got the distinct impression that the man appeared extremely tired.

It was going to be a long day.

“Um…” started Dick, sensing the need to at least start talking about something before Slade blew a fuse. He racked his brain for some kind of topic for them to discuss. Then, he remembered something that Wintergreen had said his first day here.

“S–so, you and Mr. Wintergreen were in the army together?”

Slade looked back at Dick, surprise flashing through his grey blue eye. He set his arm down and nodded lightly.

“We were indeed,” answered Slade. Dick waited politely, wondering if Slade would elaborate on that. He played his next turn, not really caring about the game. He just needed something to occupy himself.

“I joined the army when I was just a little older than you,” said Slade. His tone built in volume as he gained his momentum. Dick blinked in surprise.

“Really? That young? But I thought…”

Slade smirked. “I was sixteen. I lied about my age.” His grey blue eye darkened slightly as he continued, “Home life wasn’t great, so I wanted out. Army was the best way to go about doing that.”

“Oh…”

So, Slade had a bad family life when he was a kid? It was weird thinking of Slade being young. The man seemed all powerful and all knowing. It was hard thinking that he could’ve ever been a normal kid. When Dick had been Robin, fighting against the criminal mastermind Slade, he always found himself forgetting that Slade was actually human as well.

Things were getting stranger by the minute.

“Wha–what happened, then?” asked Dick. Slade seemed a little surprised that he was asked for more information. It wasn’t that Dick was all that interested in the man’s life, per se; but for lack of anything else to talk about… If the man was willing to talk about his past, Dick was willing to listen.

Besides, there wasn’t any way to convince Dick to talk about ‘butterflies’ with the man.

“It was nineteen seventy, near the end of the Vietnam War,” said Slade.  Dick frowned for a moment.

So, he was sixteen years old in nineteen seventy… That would make him…

“You’re fifty-four years old?” cut in Dick before the man could continue; thoroughly shocked. “I thought…”

Slade smirked lightly. “What, you thought I was older?”

“N–no… I thought you were younger,” said Dick, glancing his eyes downward; feeling unnerved. A lot younger…

Slade’s single eye blinked a few times.

“No, I just look young,” said Slade, a wry smirk lifting his mouth again. “Anyway, I say near the end, but really it ended a few years later. It lasted for over nineteen years as I’m sure you know. When I was a bit younger, your age, there was a huge craze over the war that continued until its end. Just about everyone I knew was anti-war. Lots of teens my age spoke heavily against it.”

Dick found himself leaning forward slightly, his cards forgotten. He had always found history fascinating. To hear it from someone who was directly involved was rare sometimes. He never really got to meet people that often to just sit and talk with them. People were usually only interested in him simply because he was Richard Grayson, ward of billionaire Bruce Wayne.

“One of the more violent rallies happened right before I joined the army. Four people were shot down at Kent State University,” said Slade. A dark light slid over his eye temporarily.

It was odd. It sounded almost as if the man didn’t like the fact that people had been killed at the rally. But wasn’t Slade a mercenary? An assassin? Wasn’t he supposed to not be affected by the deaths of others?

“Personally, I didn’t really care whether or not we were at war,” said Slade with a shrug. “I merely had a desire to serve my country. Besides, the army was exciting. I was eager to experience new things. I was shipped off to Vietnam a few months after joining. I was able to distinguish myself very early and I became the military’s youngest decorated soldier.”

“Really?” asked Dick, his eyes wide. Well, that didn’t really surprise him, considering the way the man fought now.

“Yes, really,” said Slade, sounding amused. “During the war I was sent on a mission; however, it was a suicide one. Will figured it out and it was a miracle that I lived through it. Will saved my life that day and he broke his commanding officer’s orders to do so. Because of Will’s disobedience, his imbecilic superior sent him on a suicide mission as well later on. I was the one who figured that out and in return, I saved his life. After that, we became excellent friends and he’s stuck by my side through everything since then.”

It was surreal; completely surreal. Slade was sounding normal – beyond normal. The man seriously sounded as if he were a veteran in the army – and he was. Dick was impressed. It was different; hearing these things from the man. It felt normal and real – Slade had lived a life, not just that of a criminal. But if the man had been in the army and had wished to serve his country, why had he changed?

“After the war,” continued Slade. “I stayed in the service and was promoted to the rank of Major. I trained even more and within less than a year, I mastered every fighting form they could throw at me. It was soon after that I was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel at the age of twenty-seven.”

Dick dropped his cards.

“You became a Lieutenant Colonel at age twenty-seven?!” cried Dick in shock. “But that’s so young! Doesn’t it take like twenty years to become one?”

“Yes, well; I proved myself,” said Slade with a modest shrug. A soft light entered his grey blue eye. It seemed to cast a sadness through the man’s countenance. Dick bit his lip slightly, deathly curious now. He really shouldn’t allow himself to learn so much about Slade, but truly the man was pretty amazing – Dick had to admit.

But what had changed?

“Sir…” began Dick hesitantly. “If you don’t mind me asking, why did you leave the army? I mean, you’re not in it now, are you?”

There was a deep, low sigh that flowed from Slade.

“I didn’t leave the army. They wouldn’t let me back in,” said Slade. “I volunteered for a military medical experiment. They were hoping to increase resistance to truth serums. It failed, though. All other subjects died from the experiment. I myself fell into a coma for over ten months.”

Dick’s eyes widened.

He volunteered to be experimented on? But why would he do that? And why wouldn’t they let him back in afterward? He’s obviously in perfect shape.

Then, Slade’s face lifted into a smirk. “I suppose there’s no harm in letting you know this, but while the experiment failed to increase resistance to truth serums, it did something else.”

“What did it do?” breathed Dick in question before he could stop himself.

With that wry smile ever so present on Slade’s face, the man continued, “When I woke from the coma, I found that it had enhanced my abilities in my mind and body; my speed and reflexes are like none other. Interestingly enough, it also changed my blond hair to white. Plus, I have enhanced healing abilities. A deep knife wound takes mere minutes to heal.”

A shocked chill slid down Dick’s back. Well, no wonder the man was so impossible to defeat. He was freaking enhanced!

“I was not, however, allowed back to active duty because they thought my condition was unstable,” said Slade, resentment dripping through his tone. He said the last word as if it were bitter on his lips.

Dick found himself feeling a little sorry for the man. He had offered his services and even volunteered for a dangerous experiment only to be kicked out on his rear. Some thanks that had to have been for him.

“So, what happened afterwards?”

“I think that’s enough tales of old for today,” said Slade, a wry smile lifting his mouth. But there was no smile showing in his eye. There was only a deep sea of sadness in that grey blue orb. So, Dick tried a different direction, not wanting to discover why there was so much pain in that unbending eye.

Or really, he was afraid to find out.

“How did you make that healing serum?” asked Dick. “Did you adjust the formula that was used on you?”

A terrible light filled Slade’s steel grey blue eye, erasing the pain that was once there. That light spoke of mischief – there was no doubt about that.

“You sure you want to know?” asked Slade slyly; setting his arm onto the table and leaning forward slightly. Dick didn’t like the sound of that, but he figured being in the dark was worse than not knowing. So, he decided to play the man’s game.

“Hit me with your best shot,” smirked Dick. Slade chuckled and shook his head.

“That healing serum was created with my saliva and blood along with a mixture of other things. I created the formula from scratch. I did not use the old formula.”

Dick’s mouth dropped in disgust. “Your saliva and blood are in the serum? And you stuck that in me?!”

Slade chuckled even more. “I asked you if you were sure if you wanted to know. Should’ve known something was going to be weird.”

“That’s not just weird! That’s just plain gross!”

“Just a bit,” smirked Slade. “But it works.”

“But how were you sure if the serum would work with me?” asked Dick, remembering Wintergreen’s hesitancies with using it on him. “Your blood could’ve been rejected by mine.”

“Well, I had samples of your blood from our encounters,” said Slade with a sly smile. “I carefully crafted that serum just for you. It only works with you.”

There was a long moment as Dick digested that statement.

“Wait… Wait a minute,” started Dick quietly after a few moments. A feeling of terrible anger began to rise up inside his chest. There was something about that statement that he just did not like. It didn’t sound right. It just didn’t sound right at all. “What do you mean, it only works with me?”

“I created the formula for you and you only,” said Slade. “It won’t work on anyone else – well, it might; but it’ll probably kill them in the end.”

Dick narrowed his eyes.

“So, you’re saying that you created it specifically for me.”

“That is what I just said, yes.”

Dick stood slowly, his newly clenched fists shaking at his sides.

“So, you knew that you would beat the crap out of me,” said Dick; the injured anger threatening to burst forth. “You knew you’d have to beat me into submission and just wanted a little insurance, didn’t you?”

“That’s ridiculous,” said Slade with a dismissive shake of his head.

“It is not!” cried Dick. “It’s a legitimate reason! And it’s obvious that’s the reason why you made it. You knew you’d need it.”

The anger was rising higher and higher in his chest. It felt as if his chest would explode with the fierce fire. He just couldn’t understand Slade’s motives any more. He almost felt betrayed by the whole thing – which he hated that feeling the most. It was obvious the man had prepared for Dick’s potential disobedience. One moment, the man seemed human and then in the next, Dick was slapped with the conniving criminal mastermind. He was sick of it. He was sick and tired of being shown the human side of Slade, only for it to be shattered away in his hands. He just couldn’t piece together the man that Slade was.

“That’s simply not true,” said Slade, shaking his head again. “You’re being ridiculous, Dick. You are overreacting to the facts. I keep telling you to control your emo—”

“You know what; screw you, Slade,” snapped Dick, not caring that he just interrupted the man. He whirled away and marched towards the hallway, shaking in anger.

“Cross over the threshold of the hallway and you’ll regret it,” said Slade, his tone going dark. “Get back here, right now. You are not to speak to me that way.”

Dick hesitated; stopping suddenly. He knew it was not a good idea to make this man mad, but he was thoroughly irritated by it all. The man was such a hypocrite. He seemed all normal; but it the terrible reality, the man was just a manipulative criminal. Just a plain old jerk.

And Dick wanted nothing to do with him.

Dick took a step forward, throwing away all caution. He didn’t want to be forced to stay. He was done with this stupid play day. He didn’t want to talk to the man. This was just all crap. He didn’t have to take this.

“I’m warning you, Dick. Do not disobey me.”

Dick whirled around furiously. “Or what, Slade?! You’ll get a new reason to use that freaking healing serum on me? This is such bull! You’re such a hypocrite. You say one thing, but you do another. You’re such a liar. What trust? You’re confusing the heck outta me!”

Slade stood up. Dick automatically took a few paces backwards. His heart rate began to rise; his fear rising with it. The man was going to hurt him again – there was no doubt about it. The man was furious; totally furious. Dick could see the rage in the man’s unbending grey blue eye.

But then, Slade turned to the side for a minute; putting his hands on his hips and looking up at the ceiling. His chest heaved a number of times as he took a few deep breaths. The man did this for a few moments before he looked back at Dick with a firm, sharp eye. The absolute fury that had been within his expression had abated slightly.

He still looked very scary, though.

Then, swiftly, Slade took two strides to him and before Dick could do anything, the man had him by the shoulders. Dick was roughly turned to the side before a hard strike whacked his backside; a familiar sharp sting following up afterward. Blinking in shock, Dick was forced back to face Slade.

“Mind your tone and your tongue,” said Slade, his voice sharp and fierce. Dick could only offer a tiny nod, too overcome in shock.

“Now,” continued Slade. “For your information, I made that serum not in case I needed to heal you for your disobedience, but in case you were injured on an assignment when you go on one someday. I keep telling you to control your emotions. You got yourself all worked up over false information that you concocted up in that childish brain of yours.”

Dick was still in shock. Slade hadn’t punched him in the stomach like he’d normally do. He hadn’t slapped or backhanded him across the face either.

No, he had done that – that thing that was done to bratty little five year olds.

It was then that the heat flushed through Dick’s cheeks and he quickly ducked his head as embarrassment flowed through him. He hated this feeling. The sting was already fading, but what he really hated was being so helpless against this man. Slade could do anything to him and there was just nothing he could do to stop the man.

Even when the man got it into his head that he could now do things like this.

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself?” asked Slade.

Oh, man. Why did Slade have to do this? Why did he have to act like this? Wasn’t that something a disappointed father would say after a stern reprimand? Slade was not his father. He had no right to do this. This was not cool – not cool at all. The man really was changing. He really was going to restart everything. He really was going to become normal.

Oh, this was just not cool.

“Well?” prodded Slade.

This wasn’t fair at all! Why did Dick have to swallow his pride against the man? He was the criminal. He was the one who had kidnapped him. Why the heck did Dick have to kowtow to this man? He wasn’t doing anything wrong. He was being kept against his will. Why did he have to be treated like this?

Slade began to turn him to the side again. Dick’s apprehension level rose and his mouth opened.

“I–I’m sorry!” cried Dick. He did not want the man dealing with him like this. He hated this. He hated having to swallow his pride now. Slade was the one who had been in the wrong all along. There was no reason why Dick had to be respectful to this man! This just was such bull crap if Dick ever saw!

But he just couldn’t win against this man.

Dick was turned back to face Slade. Luckily, Dick was spared from any other unfortunate smacks, for which he was grateful. He hated feeling like a little kid like this. It was such a horrible, helpless feeling. He wasn’t sure what was worse now – feeling like a naughty little child or feeling pure terror before an abusive captor. Getting punched in the gut hurt worse than this, but at least he didn’t feel that childish, twisting feeling in the pit of his stomach.

He wasn’t a freaking little child, after all!

Slade curled a finger beneath Dick’s chin and gently forced him to look up into his face.

“For what?” breathed Slade. Dick’s eyes widened. He actually had to think about it now? Oh, crap. This was bad. What the heck could he say to appease this man? This was getting stranger by the second.

But that glint in Slade’s eye spelled trouble if he didn’t answer quickly.

“Fo–for defying you and being disrespectful,” said Dick hurriedly, hoping if he threw out both that one of them would stick. He could only hope that the man would let him go. He tried to look submissive, wondering if that’d work, too.

Slade was appeased.

The hand withdrew and rubbed against Slade’s face for a moment.

“The healing serum was created for your protection and not for any sinister plot that your little mind can come up with,” said Slade; his hand dropping down afterwards. Slade let out a weary sigh. “This day is just not going as I thought it would.”

The man looked so tired as he spoke. It confused Dick even more. But he was extremely thankful that the whole unfortunate event was over and done with. Slade acting like a firm handed… whatever, was completely messing with Dick’s mind.

And who did they have to blame for that…?

“That’s Mr. Wintergreen’s fault, don’t you think?” said Dick, crossing his arms.

“Mmm.”

“I don’t suppose you could fire him?”

“You’d probably be dead if it weren’t for him,” said Slade with a dry smirk.

“Oh, wow, Slade. That makes me feel so much better. I can really trust you now,” drawled Dick with a hint of bitterness. Slade gave a small shrug, smirking more.

“I’m just being honest with you, boy,” said Slade. “You aren’t exactly easy to deal with, you know. Just a bit on the difficult side.”

“My parents beg to differ, thanks,” snapped Dick, whipping his head away from Slade. It just wasn’t fair. He wasn’t difficult. That’s what kids were who went to ‘juvy’. Dick wasn’t difficult. Slade was the difficult one.

There was another sigh before Dick felt a hand on his shoulder temporarily. It squeezed once before lifting away.

“Come on. This long day isn’t over and I have no doubt Will has more conniving plans to subject us to. No doubt it’ll involve playing with these blasted board games.”

Dick looked up and watched as the man walked over to the fridge. He forced himself not to put a hand on the shoulder that had been touched by Slade. It was so strange to feel the man casually touch him in that way. Was Slade doing that more and more now? He did it yesterday and last night. Just one touch seemed to bring everything down and lessen the tension inside Dick’s heart; making him forget the part that made Slade seem so frightening – reminding him that the man could be warm with human touch.

Slade opened the freezer and pulled out a box. Dick caught sight of it and raised his eyebrow at it. The box was a frozen layered chocolate cake.

“Um… What are you doing?” asked Dick.

“Getting breakfast,” replied Slade flatly, opening a drawer. The sound of crashing, clinking silverware lifted through the air. Slade rummaged through the drawer and withdrew a knife and two forks.

“Cake for breakfast?” said Dick, his tone drowned in disbelief.

“Not like Will fed us yet and I honestly have no patience to cook right now,” said Slade, grabbing two medium plates from the cabinet. “I know he’s a stickler for proper eating, as am I, but he’s not around at the moment – since he fled – and if we have to endure this blasted play day, then we might as well eat some cake.”

Dick had to choke back a giggle. It was positively absurd. But there it was, Slade dishing out a heaping piece of chocolate iced cake onto a plate – twice in fact – one for Dick and for himself.

This day was just getting stranger by the second.

Thus, the rest of the day passed quickly for Dick. The two of them managed not to kill each other as they went through every single game known to man that Wintergreen brought for them. If Dick let himself admit it, the day was sort of… fun and relaxing. It eased the tension in his heart.

Dick didn’t notice when the old man first entered the kitchen, but Wintergreen did and often, too. The first time had been to serve the two of them a late breakfast – after scolding the two of them for eating the cake. Dick watched as Slade merely smirked at the old man and told him, “If we have to endure this play day, the least you can do is shut up and let us eat the blasted cake.”

There were other times when the old man prepared snacks for them. Overall, the day wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been – even though there were multiple times that Slade completely trounced him in certain games. The man seriously was impossibly intelligent.

But it wasn’t too bad.

ooOOOOOoo 

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