I woke, uncomfortable and cramped. Sleeping upright wasn't a good idea. Tim was sprawled out on the couch he'd claimed, his now scraggly hair falling onto his face.

We'd been at it for a month, the poor kid having to commute every weekday after school and Sunday nights, but he was determined, just as much as Dick or I.

Dick's head was halfway in my lap, mindful of my cast even in his sleep, neck bent at an awkward angle. Some stumble had begun to grow on his chin, prickly in a way I knew he hated.

It was still dark out, the sun's rays not even breaching the horizon yet.

Carefully, I moved out from under Dick, grabbing my crutch and using it to help me stand. When he grumbled in his sleep, I quickly set a pillow beneath his head, hoping to make him as comfortable as possible.

Maneuvering around, I managed to find a couple blankets for both boys, covering them before making my way slowly to Dick's bed. It wasn't far from the living room and I'd take that over the couch.

It took some shuffling but I slipped under the comforter, breathing in the smell that was just simply Dick Grayson.

"You know, you should really consider my offer" Father's voice lingered in the back of my mind.

I clenched my jaw, holding my hands over my ears. Why couldn't I have a moment of peace?

"You're destined to become a criminal, I'm the best there is, your mother was an acquaintance of mine. It's in your blood kid" Father had been going on and on about this for weeks. "You're not meant to be with heroes, they'll cast you off at the first sign of trouble."

No

Not real

Not real

Not real.

I could and would choose my own path. Family doesn't have to end in blood, Dick always told me that.

"Poor kid, you think you have a choice" Father whispered back. "You have a darkness in you, I know you do. You hide it from others in the vain hope that it'll vanish."

No. No. No.

"Maddie" Dick. That was Dick. But was he real? I kept my eyes shut, barely hearing him over my ears. "Mads, what's wrong?"

As soon as he touched me, I flung my arms around him, burying my head in his chest. I hadn't realized that I'd been crying, but apparently a few tears had slipped down my cheeks.

"Hey" he wrapped his arms around me, resting his chin on my head. "It's okay. Was it a nightmare?"

"No" I mumbled.

"Alright, was it the hallucinations?" He tried.

I nodded. Dick rubbed my back, whispering assurances that It'd be alright. "It's okay. I'm here now. They can't get you with me"

"I beg to differ" Father's voice was smug.

Instead of answering him, I just buried myself further into Dick's comfort. "I can't do this Dick"

He pulled back, cupping my face. "You're stronger than me you know" he thumbed away any tears.

"No, what we're doing, it's too risky. He's going to find out and he's going to be so angry" Fear drummed through me as I grabbed at his wrists. "I can't do it again. Not when I know his wrath."

"I know you're afraid" he searched my eyes. "And we're gonna get him, there's no way that even Slade can withstand the League. With all of his money gone, he won't have a way out."

Sniffing, I leaned into his touch. "You think we can really take him down?" I didn't dare to hope.

Not when it's been so brutally stripped away from me before.

"I know we can, with Tim, we'll be unstoppable" Dick assured gently with a small smile. "I'm going to keep my promise to you"

"Why did you guys tell me?" Tim, speak of the devil, had apparently woken up.

"Good morning to you too sleepy head" Dick adjusted to see his little brother. Taking a moment before answering him. "We told you because you need to know why this is so important, why we're both so motivated."

"No I know, why me" He shoved his hands in his sweatshirt pocket. "You could've gone to Bruce"

Dick and I exchanged glances. "We both know that your hacking ability surpasses Bruce and maybe even me"

"It's definitely better than mine" I joked, leaning against the pillows.

Seemingly remembering something, Dick got up, grabbing the cast saw and plugging it into the wall - it had apparently stolen from the Batcave when he made the move here."I'm gonna take your cast off, but continue" then he realized he was the one who had been speaking, he sent a glance to his brother. "I'm not too keen on Bruce finding out what happened with Slade anytime soon"

I moved the covers away, adjusting slightly to give him better access.

"I've been on the run from safe house to hideaways for the last two years" I tried to put my focus on Tim instead of the saw, even if I knew it to be harmless. "I can't go back, I refuse to. Taking him down is the only option. Dick and I have already tried it the other way"

Tim still had a suspicious gleam in his eyes. "I seem to remember you sending Dick back to Gotham. He was practically unstoppable trying to get back to you, you seemed perfectly fine with going back to him then."

Before I could respond, Dick jumped in. "She was trying to save me." He pried apart my cast. "Going back was the worst thing she could've done for herself but she did it in an attempt to give me back any semblance of a life"

"Tim, being his daughter didn't save me from anything" I explained as Dick got up, offering me his hands. Together, I got up, hesitantly putting weight on my leg. "I was tortured much the same way Dick was"

"That's not vague at all" Tim shifted on his feet.

"Tim, I want you to look at Maddie right now" Dick carefully stepped back, goading me into moving forward. "During the invasion of the mountain, Slade found her, then proceeded to snap her leg, and that was after what he did when he got her back for that week"

"A man I trusted my entire life betrayed me" I wobbled, yet Dick was there to catch me. "If I'd known, I would've stayed in that Hell Hole."

"She wouldn't have because I would've rescued her" Dick took another cautious step back.

"And he would have died" I shot back pointedly. "I think I'm done for the day" I shifted my weight back to my other leg.

"I almost told Bruce" Dick scooped me up, carrying me bridal style to the couch. "When she'd been gone for two days."

We sat down and Tim seemed to take it all in. "You don't want Bruce to know because.."

"I did a lot of things as Slade's apprentice" Dick sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Bruce would never look at me the same way if he knew"

"Did you kill someone?"

"No" Dick leaned back against the couch. "But I stole and broke his other rules."

"I swore on Thomas and Martha's graves didn't I?" Tim sat down, an understanding settling between the three of us.