Pawn of the Sea

Chapter 10

Author’s note:  Thanks to my  fabulous beta, Simon.

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Batman came in from his patrol of Gotham and quickly made his way to the shower. All was quiet in the cave, and somehow even from here he knew it was that way in the mansion as well.

It was odd not having Alfred here to greet him after his nighttime work was done, but Bruce knew now that Dick was out of the woods, everyone, including his faithful butler, had succumbed to the exhaustion of worrying about a loved one.

Bruce emerged from his shower and wrapped himself in a thick robe, making his way to the infirmary. He quietly pushed open the door and peeked inside.

Just as Garth had promised, Dick was sleeping peacefully, head resting on Garth’s broad chest, wrapped in his lover’s arms. Bruce sighed with resignation, seeing how content the two men looked together. In their relaxed state they looked very much like young Robin and Aqualad, tired from a difficult mission.

Never in a million years back then, would Bruce have thought these two would end up together, but even he couldn’t deny the rightness of the scene before him or the love and genuine affection he had witnessed between the two earlier.

He just hoped they could weather the aftermath of Dick’s ordeal without too many scars.

As Bruce turned to leave, Dick began to thrash and mumble in his sleep. Bruce arrived at the bedside just as Garth was stirring, awakened by his lover’s restlessness.

“No! No!” Dick muttered as he tried to pull himself away from Garth’s embrace.

“Dick,” Garth called softly, trying to soothe his lover out of his nightmare by gently brushing the hair out of his eyes. Suddenly his eyes shot up to Bruce. “He feels hot. I think he has a fever.”

Bruce reached out and place a hand on Dick’s forehead as well, confirming Garth’s suspicions for himself. “Dick?” he called softly. “Dick, can you wake up?” When he got no response he looked up at Garth. “I’ll get Leslie,” he said as he turned and made his way to the small room where Leslie was asleep.

Garth continued to try and ease Dick’s troubled sleep. “Dick, it’s okay, you’re safe. Can you wake up? Dick?”

The other man just seemed to grow more agitated until his eyes suddenly snapped open and he pushed violently at Garth. “No! Don’t touch me!” Dick scrambled off the bed, wearing only a pair of black boxer briefs, and slowly backed away from his lover, dragging his IV line and monitoring wires with him.

Garth stood up, making sure to stay at a safe distance, not wanting to agitate Dick any further. He knew the man was mistaking him for Braden again and Garth didn’t want to cause him any further distress. Dick’s legs were trembling though, and Garth didn’t want him to fall and hurt himself, or pull out his IV, either. “Dick, it’s me. It’s Garth,” he said, as he slowly began to approach his lover.

“Stay away from me,” Dick hissed, backing up even further.

Luckily Bruce and Leslie chose that moment to enter and Garth was relieved to have help.

“What’s going on here?” Leslie asked in her no nonsense tone.

“A dream, I think,” replied Garth quietly. “I’m not sure if he’s awake or not. He won’t let me near him.”

Leslie carefully approached Dick’s trembling form. “Dick? Can you hear me? It’s Dr. Leslie.”

Dick pulled his terrified gaze away from Garth, slowly turning toward the familiar and comforting voice. “Leslie?” he rasped out in confusion.

“Yes, it’s me. Honey, do you know where you are?”

Dick looked around the room for a moment. He finally nodded in recognition. “The cave?” he asked, more than answered, still feeling disoriented from his dream of Braden.

“Yes, you’re in the infirmary in the cave. You’re safe now. I’m here with Bruce.”

“Bruce?” Dick’s eyes wandered over to where his father was making his own slow approach, not liking how shaky the younger man looked.

“I’m here, Dick. You’re safe, but you’re sick and you need to go back to bed.”

“Bed?” Dick’s eyes made his way back to the bed, and then he noticed Garth still standing close by. His gaze shifted from confusion to fear to anger, and then to recognition, and finally guilt, all in a matter of moments. “Garth?” he whispered.

“Robbie,” Garth replied.

“I…” Dick’s words were cut short when his legs began to collapse out from under him.

“Whoa there, chum,” Bruce called as he quickly grabbed him. “Time to get you back to bed.” Leslie took Dick’s other side and they both supported him as they slowly made their way to the bed.

“Let’s take a look at you,” said Leslie as they were settling him in. “Bruce tells me you have a bit of a temperature.”

Bruce hovered as Leslie conducted her exam, while Garth stayed out of the way and watched. At one point Dick turned his head and his eyes met with his lover’s and held. In that one moment Garth could see that Dick had remembered the rape and Dick could see that Garth knew about it.

Dick looked away first, closing his eyes as he turned away. Garth closed his own eyes and clenched his fists.

At that moment Leslie stood. “Well, I don’t think it’s too bad, considering.”

“What do you think is causing it?” Bruce asked.

“I think it‘s just his body trying to fight the poison,” Leslie replied. “His temp is 102.1, nothing to really worry about. We’ll just keep an eye on it, won’t we, Dick?”

There was no response from their patient, whose eyes were still closed. “Dick?” Bruce prodded him quietly.

“Oh, what?” Dick opened his eyes and neither of them missed the stricken look of pain in his eyes before he covered it up with a fake smile. “Sorry, I zoned out for a minute.”

“Never mind, honey.” Leslie patted his arm. She knew he was covering up whatever was bothering him about his nightmare, but this was not the time to pursue it. He needed to rest. “Why don’t you try to get some sleep? Do you want Garth to climb back up there with you?”

“Uh…well…I,” Dick squirmed at the thought of his nightmare and having anyone touch him, let alone hold him. Dick realized Garth knew what happened with Braden, and he had been so understanding. But now that Dick had remembered it all, he could feel Garth’s hesitance to be with him. He knew Garth was trying to be strong, but why would he want to be with someone who had let himself be raped, and used that way. Dick turned his head away, awash in guilt and shame.

“I can’t,” Garth answered abruptly. “Er…I mean I should go back to the pool and hydrate.” He looked at Dick. “I’m sorry, I…uh…could come back in a little while or something.”

“No!” Dick answered a little too quickly. “I mean, no, you should stay in the pool…to…uh hydrate I mean.”

“Yes…right. Thank you. Uh…if you don’t need me I think I’ll go.” Garth, looking positively miserable, turned and hurried from the room. God, Dick couldn’t even look at him. It had been a nice few hours having Dick in his arms before he remembered how Braden had hurt him; it was almost possible to pretend that they were home in their own bed again. How had Garth failed to protect him from his own family? Garth’s shoulders slumped as he made his way to the pool.

Leslie and Bruce exchanged troubled looks before turning their attention back to Dick. He was staring at the door where Garth had just left, wearing a pained expression. This could become a bigger problem later and they all knew it.

“Dick, are you all right?” Bruce asked.

Dick plastered his smile back in place and turned eyes to Bruce. “Sure, I’m a little tired, though.”

“Of course, you sleep,” Bruce agreed.

Dick closed his eyes again, and Leslie pushed a light sedative into his IV to help ward off anymore violent nightmares. She motioned for Bruce to follow her out the door.

“What are you going to do?” she asked Bruce quietly when they were safely out of earshot.

“What do you mean?” Bruce replied, being purposefully oblivious.

“Don’t mess with me,” Leslie answered sharply. “Dick has obviously remembered what happened. You saw them; they could barely look at each other.”

“I’m sorry for them, I truly am, but don’t you think this is something they need to work out for themselves?”

Leslie leaned in dangerously close and Bruce thought briefly of putting her in uniform and turning her loose on the streets because frankly she was scaring him just a bit. “Bruce Wayne, you need to be a father to that boy right now. Not his mentor, not his guardian, or whatever the hell you’re calling yourself these days. He needs you, Bruce. Now put away all your bat bullshit for once and be there for him!”

Leslie turned away from him, not waiting for a response, and Bruce beat a hasty retreat out of the cave in order to ponder Leslie‘s words in solitude.

It was not until Bruce was out of sight that Alfred emerged from the shadows. “Stirring up trouble,” he asked.

“I’m afraid so, Alfred, but only for a good cause,” Leslie replied as she shot him a wry smile. “And what are you doing up at this hour?”

“Ahh, I heard a commotion down here on my com and thought I should investigate, since I was feeling quite refreshed from my nap. How is Master Dick?”

“Running a slight temperature, but getting stronger I think. He’s remembering more about what happened to him.”

“Ahh, a most difficult time for he and Master Garth, I suppose, then,” Alfred replied sagely.

Leslie looked slightly surprised. She and Bruce had agreed that they and Garth would be the only ones to know about Dick’s assault. They would leave it up to Dick whether or not to share it with anyone else. “So, Bruce told you that Dick was raped?”

“No, but you just did, and it was no more than I already suspected. I really wish you and Master Bruce would not try to keep these things from me,” he added reproachfully. “After all, I am the boy’s family as well.”

“You’re right, Alfred. We should know better by now. You always find out, anyway.”

“Quite so,” Alfred replied. “And now if you will excuse me, I think I shall go and look in on my grandson.”

He turned and left, a shocked looking Leslie staring after him.

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“Whoa! Garth, dude, where’s the fire?” Roy asked as Garth rushed passed him in the hallway, not even noticing his friend’s presence. Roy reached out and grabbed Garth’s arm. “Hey, Gillhead, where are you going? Why aren’t you with Dick?”

Garth evaded Roy’s gaze. “Uh…I have to re-hydrate. I’m going to the pool.”

Roy studied his friend more closely. “Garth, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing!” He pulled out of Roy’s grasp. “I really should go.”

Garth began to walk to the pool again, but Roy, not to be thwarted, followed. It didn’t take long to catch up. “Come on, man, I may be a pain in the ass most of the time, but I can tell when something’s bugging my friends. You can tell me, man.”

Garth sighed heavily and stopped at the pool entrance. “No, Roy, I really can’t, but I know you won’t shut up until I say something. Dick had a nightmare and remembered parts of his ordeal and he‘s got a fever. Leslie says he’ll be all right, but he didn’t really want me in bed with him anymore, so I came down here. End of story.”

He moved to the pool area, but before he could dive in Roy stopped him again. “Not so fast, fish boy. No way Dick would kick you out of his bed. I saw how you two were before we left. A bomb wouldn‘t have separated the two of you and I know your magic lets you last longer out of water than this. Tell me what really happened.”

Garth looked pained. “Please Roy, just let it go. It’s not my place to tell you.”

Roy searched Garth’s eyes for a moment longer until he could no longer stand to see the pain he saw there. He looked away, and in the same moment it dawned on him what had happened to drive his two friends apart. Probably the only thing that would separate the two young lovers. He sat down heavily in one of the deck chairs. “Fuck,” he whispered to himself.

“What?” Garth asked cautiously as he eyed his deflated friend.

Roy looked up. “That Braden guy raped him, didn’t he? He raped Robbie?”

Garth’s face crumpled. “Yes,” he whispered.

“Fuck,” Roy swore again. He moved to Garth’s side. “Man, I’m sorry, Garth. I’m so sorry.”

Garth pulled away angrily. “Why are you sorry for me? Robbie’s the one who was hurt. Because of me.”

“Hey, calm down, man,” he soothed as he wrapped his arm around Garth’s shoulders. “It’s not your fault. You must know that. And I’m sorry because this affects both of you. I…I know how hard it is to recover from something like this.” Roy looked earnestly into Garth’s eyes.

Garth’s eyes widened. “You…you do?”

“Um…well…you know back when I was using…well, if I didn’t have cash sometimes the dealers would make me pay in different ways, you know?”

“Oh, Roy…” Garth began.

“No, don’t.” Roy raised a hand. “This isn’t about me. It’s over and behind me, and Robbie was a big part of helping me out of that mess. I just wanted you to know that you can talk to me, okay man? I get how you both are feeling.”

Garth nodded and then his shoulders began to shake as the emotional weight of everything crashed down on him. “Thank you, Roy,” he gasped out between sobs.

Roy wrapped Garth in his arms. “Anytime, buddy, for you and Dick, anytime.” Garth sobbed harder and Roy just pulled him in tighter. “Anytime,” he whispered one last time.

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