Forgotten Bonds

A Teen Titans Fanfiction

by Anthezar

Full Summary: Robin; the Boy Wonder; ex-protégé of Batman the Dark Knight; leader of the Teen Titans; protector of Jump City, California; and civilian named Richard 'Dick' Grayson never imagined that certain decisions he'd make would have such a transcending impact in his life. What was a simple decision to go undercover and try to win the trust of his arch enemy, Slade, only ended up destroying the trust of his four best friends.

Not only that, the enigma Slade has his single eye on Robin and desires the Boy Wonder's abilities for himself. Kidnapped by the all powerful criminal, Robin cannot hope to escape and must endure the terrible hardship being under the man's capture. In the midst of his struggles to escape, Robin does something dangerously foolish and ends being harshly punished; beaten until unconscious. Angry at Robin's treatment, Slade's best friend, Wintergreen, intervenes on his behalf and demands that Slade change his tactic so that the two of them may start anew.

'Who is Slade?'

Will Robin be able to see past the stiff molds of Hero and Villain? Will he ever be able to see past the mask and see the true man behind it? And will the bond they begin to slowly form tear down Robin's morals; or will it throw the old saying "Can't teach an old dog new tricks" out on its tail?

A story of sorrow, of pain, of hope, and of change – the impossible tale between a Hero and a Villain, and that even the blackest of hearts have a glimmer of light within them.

Genre: Angst, Drama, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Action, Friendship, Family

Warnings: Violence, physical abuse, and later on, mild corporal punishment – well, not mild for the one on the receiving end of it, but mild for the reader. Heh…

You've been forewarned~

Also, just to note: there will be no romance and this is not slash – at all.

Author's Notes: Credit and copyright goes to the original creators of the Teen Titans, Robin, Deathstroke, Batman, and the like. This work was only created for the sake of enjoyment, learning, and hopefully inspiration to all aspiring writers to attempt the impossible.

The only thing that is asked is that this work not be taken and claimed as your own in respect for all the hard work, countless hours, love, and dedication that went into this novel.

I truly hope that you enjoy this story. I know that I fully enjoyed writing it.

Anthezar

Chapter One

Into the Darkness

September 12th, 2008. Friday, 1:24 am.

'Who is Slade?'

Robin laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling of his room from behind the safety of his domino mask. The darkness of the night surrounded him, yet offered no escape from his feelings or previous actions. The sentence constantly flittered through his mind, never ending; each word taunting and teasing him: 'Who is Slade?' Robin scowled at the ceiling and turned onto his side.

He had blown it.

How could he have been so stupid? Slade had easily seen through his plan – probably from the beginning even. Robin was right back where he had started with the man. But now, because of his stupidity, he had damaged the trust of his friends.

Trust.

Easy to destroy, but took time to build.

Slade had said that.

Robin definitely had destroyed his friends' trust. It had been so simple, so easy to do. Because of his obsession to find out who Slade was and his plans, Robin had blurred the line of right and wrong. He had stolen to gain Slade's trust.

That was what the plan had been. Don a criminal alter ego and offer himself in partnership to Slade. Robin had thought it was working out, but it fell apart before his very eyes – he had stolen for the man and hadn't told his friends the plan, thus destroying the very thing he cherished most.

He'd even created specialized weapons made out of an illegal, highly unstable and volatile chemical, Xenothium, to fight against his friends; a strong binding for Starfire to restrict her powers, a mouth covering for Raven against her incantations, a opener to enter the systems of Cyborg to shut him down, and a sticky, inescapable goop for Beast Boy to trap his transformations.

All for the sake of one goal.

"Two wrongs don't make a right, Robin."

Robin growled as the smooth, lecturing tone of Slade's voice flooded through the foremost of his thoughts. The growl came deep from within his throat – an almost feral noise. Irritation and anger rose up, burning his insides like lava.

How dare that psychopath lecture him! How dare he have the audacity to lecture him – him, Robin; the Boy Wonder, hero of justice. Who the heck did he think he was to scold Robin, when the man himself was a criminal?! He had absolutely no right to point out Robin's mistakes. He'd only been trying to stop the madman.

That was all.

Honestly.

Robin let out a long sigh, the anger in his heart slipping away as easily as it came. He turned over onto his other side, sighing once again. He pulled the covers closer to his neck, burrowing deep beneath their warmth; his raven black bangs dangling over his forehead.

Psychopath or not, Robin couldn't help but admit that the man was right. Two wrongs did not make a right. He shouldn't have stolen those computer chips. He had been too impatient – just like Slade had chided over and over in that low annoying, smooth voice. If Robin had done it right, then he should've included the other Titans. But he hadn't. Thus, his friends were angry with him; hurt that he hadn't trusted them with his plan.

Maybe it would've worked had he included them in it.

But that was in the past now. He couldn't dwell on the what ifs anymore. He had to deal with his actions, now – the present. He had to regain the trust of his friends. Robin couldn't help but shiver beneath his covers, despite the warmth that blanketed him.

What if he couldn't rebuild what he had destroyed?

Cyborg and Beast Boy had totally reamed him out first. Their voices had been loud, furious, and indignant. Not that Robin could blame them. He definitely deserved their ire. He had broken their trust, after all.

Beast Boy had loudly and constantly complained with: "Dude! Why didn't you ask for help! I can't believe you're the reason for my month of bad hair days!"

There were a few of: "I can't believe you couldn't trust us with this. Man, I honestly thought we were closer friends than that." from Cyborg.

Raven's one simple, monotone declaration had been a little quieter, but a much harder pill to swallow than the rest: "You are an idiot."

But it was Starfire's talk with him that had been the real stab in the heart: "We did learn one thing from all this. You and Slade are… similar. He did not trust you and you did not trust us."

Just how stupid could he get?!

Robin rolled onto his back and resumed his scowling at the ceiling. Depression settled into his heart and began to weigh down heavily against his chest. His eyes burned, but Robin knew there would be no tears. He shut his eyes, squeezing them tightly; hoping that, perhaps, tears would come to wash away the terrible sin he had committed against his friends.

How long would it be before he could regain their trust?

It was because of his obsession with Slade that he had made this poor choice. Robin had been impatient and determined to discover and stop Slade's plan. He had pushed away his friends; alienated them in his complete obsession. He admitted it. He had been—was, still even now, completely obsessed.

But he had to be.

Slade was a dangerous man – a dangerous criminal. Robin just couldn't let a man like that loose in the city. People might get hurt because of him. What if he was planning a mass murder? Or what if he was going to try to bring the whole city under his command. What if—

Robin sighed again, forcing his thoughts to stop. It was bedtime – he should be sleeping, not brooding over a madman.

Robin supposed he obtained his work ethic from Bruce. During the five years that he had been the man's ward, Robin had rarely – if ever – seen the man take a leisurely rest. Usually Alfred, the aged British butler, had to drag the man to bed during those intense times when he had a big case.

But someone had to do it.

Someone had to protect the citizens. Someone had to protect the innocents from those nut jobs that decided they could go crazy in the streets. Someone had to protect the people from aliens, demons, metahumans, or whoever got it into their head that they were above the law.

It was Robin's duty to protect those innocent people.

Well, he liked to think that, anyways. Truthfully, he felt terribly burdened by it. He was just a fourteen year old kid. Honestly, he should just be hanging out with friends; his only worries: acne problems, grades, and girls.

Instead, there was a heavy weight and burden on his shoulders – the weight of peoples' lives.

While he enjoyed his crime fighting, sometimes he did wish for the normal moments. Here in Jump City, he never let up on the persona of Robin. He was Robin, the Boy Wonder, twenty-four seven. Ever since he had left Bruce, left Gotham City behind, he had also left behind his first identity.

Richard 'Dick' Grayson, son of John and Mary Grayson.

None of his friends knew his real name. They didn't know he had been a well known circus acrobat with his parents. They didn't know that his parents had been murdered right before his eyes when he was only seven years old; trapeze wires sabotaged so that his parents fell to their deaths. They didn't know he was taken in by Bruce Wayne, the playboy billionaire of Gotham City.

They didn't know that even with Bruce's altruistic kindness, Dick had felt the loneliness nearly suffocate him; almost drowning him in its terrible weight. While he was extremely thankful to Bruce for taking him in when he'd had no one else, the man wasn't exactly father material. Maybe a wiser, stern older brother; but definitely not a father.

And when he learned that Bruce Wayne was really the Dark Knight of Gotham City, the cold, aloof Batman that every villain feared, Dick had relished in his role as Robin. He had been eager to push away the bitter loneliness that his parents' deaths had left him with.

His friends also didn't know why he had left Batman and Gotham City behind to flee across the country to Jump City of the west coast.

What they didn't know could fill a library.

They only knew "Robin". Robin: strong leader, outgoing personality, brave, focused to a detriment, determined, driven, enjoyed video games, told terrible puns, hung out with his friends, loved to do pranks, and kicked bad guy butt like no tomorrow.

Dick, on the other hand, was a bit introverted. In fact, at times, the quite opposite to Robin. Dick was somewhat timid, shy, loved hugs and affection, highly sensitive, gentle, mischievous at times, avoided the limelight – despite his past work with his parents, wanted to please, hated contention, and wished for normalcy.

Robin wasn't sure if he remembered that boy anymore, though. That boy laid behind a mask that never came off – ever. If he took off the mask, would Dick surface once again? Would those unfiltered crystal blue eyes view the world in its purity? Would he blend with Robin's personality or would Robin disappear altogether when the mask came off? If he did, would the other Titans accept Dick?

But their trust had been shattered.

Could they honestly accept anything from him anymore?

Had he completely blown it with them? Could he really piece together the shattered shards of their trust? He couldn't blame them, if he couldn't. He certainly lost their trust through his actions – it was completely his fault. He didn't deserve their trust anymore.

Robin's throat constricted as he swallowed the dry lump that had built up inside. Gosh, he wanted to cry. His emotions were burning his eyes. But Robin didn't cry. Dick could and would – but Robin couldn't. He was the leader of the Teen Titans and he had to be strong for the group.

If he took off the mask, would the tears flow, then?

Robin let out a shuddering sigh as he sat up. The darkness was illuminated by a faint stream of light from the window; the glow of the moon the only light that came from night sky. The light shadowed the empty walls; the illusion of the darkness prevalent.

He couldn't sleep.

I have to stop thinking like this, thought Robin bitterly. I'll never get to sleep if I can't calm my thoughts down.

Sighing, Robin pushed the warm covers away and threw his legs over the edge of his bed; his pajama pants twisting slightly. Might as well grab a midnight snack. Maybe some food in his stomach would bring sleep.

Robin set his sock covered feet onto the carpet and stood up. He moved quietly, a habit that had been ingrained in him during his time with Bruce. The shadows swallowed him easily. He walked into the other section of his room that had been walled off with a doorless opening.

Robin looked at the darkened walls. There were numerous newspaper clippings of criminals that he had plastered on their surfaces. Countless criminal faces seemed to sneer at him through the darkness, taunting him in his sleepless night. He shivered slightly as he thought, Maybe I should do some cleaning tomorrow. All these faces staring at me… Totally giving me the creeps.

He slowly walked past his desk, ignoring the items of interest that he had collected from his fights with Slade. As he reached the door, he pressed the control button and the door slid open.

Destiny was such a curious force in life.

Sometimes it brought hope and happy times, while other times it brought the greatest of trials – trials that seemed like the heaviest burden of all, which felt as if it could crush the soul. Such moments sometimes felt so terrible, so discouraging, so hopeless.

But that was the crazy thing about life. Trials arose for everyone; but most of the time, they were viewed as annoyances – moments that wasted one's time. And while trials were always hard and challenging, sometimes the gifts or blessings that came forth in the end were worth more than all the jewels and wealth in the world.

Luckily, though, such times were never endured alone.

A gentle breeze fluttered through the room; trilling, lilting in a transcending, tender warmth – the prelude of changing destinies; the prelude of trials, yet the prelude of something ever so life altering in the grandest skies of hope.

"Hello, Robin. Couldn't sleep?"

Robin sucked in his breath and whirled around furiously, his eyes searching the darkness for the source of the voice – that terrible, smooth voice.

Gosh, he hated the way it sounded so smug.

"Slade," hissed Robin. "Show yourself!"

"You've been tossing and turning a lot tonight. You need better sleeping habits."

"Shut up!" snapped Robin, taking a step forward back into his darkened bedroom. The door slid closed behind him from inactivity. Robin couldn't see anything in the room; the darkness shielding Slade from his view.

"My, aren't we the disrespectful little boy. No matter. That's easily rectified."

"What are you playing at, Slade? Why are you here? Why are you spying on me?" demanded Robin. He felt naked without his utility belt; bare and unarmed before a dangerous enemy. He couldn't attack blindly in the dark without his weapons; so, he began to inch towards his end table in the other section of the room where his belt lay.

"Still so impatient, Robin. I had hoped that maybe you had learned something from our recent experience. Looks like I was wrong."

"There's nothing to learn from you," hissed Robin viciously.

"Now that's where you're wrong, Robin. I have a lot to offer. A lot to teach you."

Robin stopped and frowned in the darkness. What was this madman talking about? 'A lot to teach you.'? Wasn't Slade a criminal? Didn't he hate the Teen Titans for getting in his way? Didn't he want them dead, like all the other criminals? Why would he offer to 'teach' Robin?

"What are you talking about?" asked Robin, resuming his slow inching towards his belt. He slowly passed the dividing wall. There was a low chuckle.

"Have I said something that interests you, Robin? Good, because I'm offering you something that many would die for."

Slade's smooth voice was beginning to grate on Robin's nerves.

"Oh, like what?" drawled Robin.

"All my power, all my knowledge."

Huh?

"All for you. You just have to become my apprentice and swear to serve me."

What…?

Robin couldn't help but stop his advancement towards his end table, frozen by Slade's pronouncement.

He was offering… a partnership? Why would Slade offer something like that? What was Slade's motives? What did he want? What were his plans? What were his goals?

All the questions that had plagued Robin's mind and heart began to pour through him once again – all those questions that had led him to his terrible, foolish choice, which then broke the trust of his friends and blurred the line of right and wrong.

Was Slade really offering a partnership now after all this?

No…

No, that wasn't it. No, he was just like Batman. The man was offering the position of 'sidekick'. There was no way he'd be partners with Robin. There was just no way.

Robin gritted his teeth furiously.

He was sick of it. Totally sick of these men underestimating his abilities. He wasn't a sidekick – he was a leader. Robin was nobody's sidekick. No, he was the leader of the Teen Titans. He was powerful and strong in his own right.

Robin was a leader.

Although, Robin knew deep down the offer was tempting, just a little – if he was honest with himself. This man was powerful – that much he knew and admitted. Robin had a frightening respect for the man's power, but he'd never admit it out loud to anyone. There were times where Robin felt dangerously drawn to the man; curious to what made the man tick; curious to know who lied behind that mask; curious to learn where he gained that power – but such feelings were quickly hidden because of where Slade's morals lied. But this man certainly had a lot to offer. He probably could teach Robin a thing or two.

Too bad he was on the wrong side.

"Thanks for the offer, Slade. But no thanks," said Robin offhandedly with a broad smirk. He bolted towards his end table, his hand reaching for his belt.

He never made it.

A bladed hand sped through the darkness, connecting with Robin's neck. Stars erupted in his eyes as pain flared from the blow. He dropped to his hands and knees, gasping. Another attack connected with his stomach, causing him to smash into the side of his bed. With the wind completely knocked out of his stomach, Robin struggled to breathe.

"You're so cute, Robin. You honestly think you have a choice in this matter."

A groan of pain slipped from Robin's mouth. He could see Slade's metal boots in front of his eyes. He glanced upward; the dark man towering over him. Even in the darkness, Robin could feel the overpowering presence from this man.

Gosh, he hated being so short.

Robin coughed and gasped as he struggled to sit up; clutching his stomach with one arm as he pushed himself up with the other. He had to fight. He had to win. He couldn't let this man loose inside Titans Tower. His friends were in danger.

He had to protect them.

Another swift kick connected with his stomach. A muffled cry of pain escaped from Robin's lips before he could clamp his mouth shut. A hand grabbed Robin by the hair and jerked his head to look upward. He was forced to look into the face of the masked man – half orange on the right, half black on the left, with fours slits over his mouth for breathing. The only human feature visible was a grey blue left eye, surrounded by the orange of his mask.

The eye narrowed beneath the metal.

"Pathetic, Robin. I expected more of a struggle from you. Too bad your last night wasn't filled with pleasant memories with your friends."

Another blow smashed into Robin's head. Stars glimmered once again in his sight, slowly fading away into dark spots – he was blacking out. He collapsed to the ground, sliding downward into the darkness. He closed his eyes, thinking how he failed his friends. He hadn't even had the chance to apologize – tell them how sorry he was and how stupid he'd been.

He would never get the chance to say he was sorry.

I'm sorry, guys… Please forgive me…

That thought stood at the forefront of his mind as the blackness took over.

ooOOOOOoo

Next Time: Chapter Two: The Missing Leader – The Titans discover something very wrong and realize that Robin is missing.

Author's Notes: GUESS WHAT? Your girl Anthy has a YOUTUBE CHANNEL. I've been vlogging about writing, featuring my furry assistants, Zelda and Luna. It's really just a bunch of shenanigans and me being crazy. xD There will be some writing tips eventually, too. I'm having way too much fun. Come check it out if you wanna watch my silly face! Hahaha. Just search Anthezar in Youtube and you'll find me! It would mean the WORLD to me if you would subscribe to my little baby channel! Hehe!

If you like my writing, then check out my latest fiction The Marked Heroes on my FictionPress account (Anthezar). You can also read it on my Wattpad account (Anthezar), my RoyalRoad account (Anthezar), or my website www . anthezar . com.

Thanks for reading! See ya next time! Comments = much love! ^.^

Anthy