If You Could Turn Back Time

Ch 20

Dick groaned, opening his eyes. He winced at the brightness of the lights shining down on him, and quickly closed his eyes again.

"Sorry," someone that sounded an awful lot like Bruce said, dimming the lights.

Dick opened his eyes once again and looked around the small clean room he was in. He raised an arm to rub at his eyes and suddenly noticed all the medical equipment that was attached to him. "What's going on?" He croaked, only having vague memories of the last time he'd been conscious.

"We were kind of hoping you could tell us more about that," Bruce said, his voice filled with worry.

Dick was silent for a moment before he started sitting up.

"Woah!" Bruce said, trying to push him back down.

"Get off of me," Dick snapped. "I'm fine."

"Dick," Bruce said, noticing how the acrobat tensed and lifted a hand to his face, feeling for his mask.

"Right, I pulled it off. I'm such an idiot," Dick mumbled under his breath.

"Dick. When were you going to tell me about you being Nightwing?" Bruce asked.

"Hmm, well I was thinking never, but now you know so I guess that plan is foiled," Dick said.

"And what about whatever else is going on with you... that weird... transparent patch of skin? Why didn't you tell us about that? The league could've helped... I could've helped," Bruce trailed off.

"Well maybe I don't want your type of help. The kind that took five years of my life from me. Were you even looking for a cure all that time? Or were you just going to leave me as a child?" Dick asked, glaring at Bruce.

Bruce was silent.

"That's what I thought," Dick said. "So what I'd like to know is why you care so much about fixing me now?"

"You're my son... I care for you..." Bruce said awkwardly.

"Oh ya? If you care so much why did you replace me... twice?" Dick asked, his voice breaking.

"Dickie... I wasn't trying to replace you. Jason and Tim... they were suffering. They needed someone to take them in like I did for you," Bruce explained.

Dick sighed, turning away from Bruce and putting his head in his hands. "It still hurts," he whispered.

"I know bud... and I'm sorry," Bruce said, rubbing soothing circles on Dick's back. "But having the others only makes your family bigger. We want you back in our lives Dick."

Dick was silent for a long moment. "But what if I mess it up again... the more people I allow myself to love the more I have to loose."

Bruce came to stand in front of his son, wrapping the younger in a tight hug. "That's not how love works Dickie. You don't loose the ones you love when they die, they stay with you, and motivate you to keep going."

Dick sniffled, and buried his head in Bruce's chest. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... Dad," he sobbed.

"It's alright Dickie," Bruce said. "I'm the one who needs to apologize for everything I've done wrong as a parent and as a mentor. I pushed you away when what you really needed was to be held close... and when I had the chance to start over with you as a baby... I thought more about what I wanted than about what you would want. And for that I am so sorry," Bruce said.

"I never thought I'd hear you apologizing," Dick said with a sad laugh. "I forgive you... In fact, I think I forgave you a long time ago."

Bruce rested his chin on the top of Dick's head. "Now lets go get this whole weird passing out sketchy spot situation sorted out."

—

The room was silent when Dick finished telling about everything that had happened after Salt gave him his magic.

"May I examine this strange looking patch of skin?" Fate asked.

Dick shifted nervously. "Uh... sure," he said eventually, pulling off the shirt he'd been wearing. He bit his lip when he noticed how much bigger the spot had gotten. It now encompassed his entire chest and stomach, circling around to his back and traveling down his arms, tendrils of it reaching up his neck and over his jaw.

"Woah," Tim said. "You look like a living skeleton in there."

Dick grimaced. That wasn't something he'd ever thought he'd be told...

Fate hummed and held up his hands, a soft golden glow surrounding Dick for a moment.

The light disappeared when fate lowered his hand, and he looked uncharacteristically troubled.

Dick's heart dropped... it must be something serious.

"It would seem," Fate said quietly. "That this energy is feeding off of you like a parasite." He made eye contact with Dick for a moment. "If we don't get rid of it somehow it will destroy you."

Dick sucked in a breath, feeling Fate's statement settle like a weight around his neck. He felt his chest tighten, his breathing becoming uneven as tears gathered in his eyes.

"There's a way to fix this right? There has to be something," Bruce said, a hint of desperation in his voice.

"There is one thing I could try, but I have a suspicion that the only one who can fix this is the man who caused it in the first place," Fate said coming to float a few feet in front of Dick.

Dick bit his lip and looked to Bruce before taking a deep breath and nodding to Fate to continue.

Fate closed his eyes and held up his hands, pointing them towards Dick.

A glowing yellow ankh shot towards Dick, hitting his chest and spreading through his body.

Dick cried out in pain, grabbing at his chest and hunching over as the light around him began to shift to blue. The blue traveled up the ankh, slowly overtaking the yellow and leaving what looked like tiny fractures in its wake.

Once the blue reached Fate's hands the ankh exploded in a cloud of energy, sending both Fate and Dick flying across the room.

Tim and Bruce immediately rushed to Dick's side, checking him over for injuries.

Dick groaned, sitting up and rubbing his head. "That wasn't very asterous," he mumbled weakly.

Fate floated off of the floor. "It is as I suspected. The only one who can reverse this is the sorcerer," he said. "I'm very sorry."

"Dick, I want you to come stay at the manor until this whole thing gets sorted out," Bruce said, helping his son up off of the floor.

"Bruce, I have my own apartment, and my own city to protect," Dick argued.

"I'll send someone to patrol it like I have been for these past two weeks," Bruce said nonchalantly.

"Wait what?!" Dick yelled, pushing away from Bruce to stand unsteadily on his own. "I was out for two weeks?"

Tim nodded. "You were really sick... we all thought you were going to die," he muttered, looking down at his feet.

Dick took a few calming breaths. Two weeks... no wonder Bruce was concerned. "Fine," he finally said through gritted teeth. "I'll come stay at the manor... But you have to promise me that you'll work your hardest to get this fixed," he said, jabbing a thumb at his chest and staring into Bruce's eyes.

Bruce nodded.

"Well, let's go then," Dick said, turning and stumbling in the direction of the zeta tubes.

Bruce caught Dick before he could fall, slinging his eldest's arm over his shoulders and acting as a crutch.

"Just so you know, I'm only coming back for the cookies," Dick said. "So you better tell Alfred to start on the dough."