Falling into Gotham (Dick Grayson Fan Fiction)

Chapter 16

"You found out your dad was Mr. Mxyzptlk and didn't tell me until now?!" Zatanna shrieked over the phone. I flinched and moved Dick's phone farther away from my ear.

"Sorry, coach. A lot happened." I sighed. I sank deeper into the guest room bed. After last night's debacle, we all decided that today we would inform Bruce that I did more than just fall into a portal. Before we did that, though, I thought it would be best I also talk to Zatanna about how I could unlock more of these powers Mr. Mxyzptlk was speaking about.

"Do you think it's even a good idea to try and dig deeper into this? I mean, he said he'd be back once you unlocked more magic," Zatanna asked.

"The way he described it, no matter what I do, the magic will become stronger and stronger. Think about it, I didn't even try with the portal that brought me here. Imagine what might happen next? I might accidentally wipe out a continent while brushing my teeth! I need you to help train me so that in the event I do unlock more magic, I know how to control it."

"You're right," she said. "I'll continue training you. I'll have to call Constantine and tell him he's dealing with that demon alone. This is more important."

"Thank you, Zatanna."

"It's no problem, Angela. Now give Dick his phone back. I have to yell at him now too," she said angrily. I laughed and then handed the phone back to the man. He was standing next to the bed, and by the way his face blanched, I was sure he heard everything. He put the phone by his ear.

"Hi Z," he mumbled.

"How DARE YOU—" I tuned out the rest of their conversation. I could tell she was ripping him a new one by how much he was flinching. I hopped out of bed and padded my way towards his bathroom to get ready. Donna was walking out as I was walking in.

"Hey Angela, how did you sleep?" She smiled warmly at me.

"Not well, to be honest," I answered. "I was up half the night worrying Mr. Mxyzptlk would come back, and then I spent the next half worried about meeting Bruce."

She placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry. Bruce is reasonable. He might seem intimidating at first, but overall, just know he's a real nice guy."

"Thanks, Donna."

"No problem, Angela. Now you go wash up, we're leaving for Gotham soon." She patted my shoulder one last time and then walked away. I went to get ready and freshen up. Donna and I, unfortunately, didn't have extra clothes to change into, so we were in the same outfits as last night.

As soon as everyone had freshened up, we hit the road. The ride to Gotham was mostly silent. Dick was concentrating on driving, Donna's eyes were glued to the outside, and I was trapped in my head, going over everything.

The thing that bothered me the most was the fact that Mxyzptlk tricked and played my mother. She was a wonderful woman who didn't deserve her whole world turned upside down just to please some fifth-dimensional short guy with a loneliness problem. My heart ached thinking about it. My mother was in her last year of med school when she met 'my dad.' She always told me it was like love at first sight. They were drawn to each other like magnets.

Did he manipulate that too? Did he even love her like she loved him? She told me growing up that my father died in a car accident, that a cop came to the house when she was about to give birth to me and told her the bad news. She cried for days, and then she had to give birth and raise me alone.

If I ever become strong enough, I'm going to kill him for what he did to my mother. I'm going to ruin his life!

"We're here," Dick said. I snapped out of my thinking and looked out the window. There, in all its Gothic glory, was Wayne Manor. I've always wanted to see this place in real life. I've been to fan events and cons where they have set pieces from different Batman-related media of the manor, but this was different. This place was grandiose and more than my imagination ever thought.