Dick wasn't one to ask of anybody what he wouldn't do himself. So when the group was asked to offer up memories to be downloaded, Dick was the first one to volunteer.
He didn't hold much back. Like Kon, it was mostly the really embarrassing stuff. And the whole 'sleeping with Babs' thing when delivering the invite to his and Kory's wedding.
And Tarantula. Just...leaving that whole thing out.
He left a lot of the bad things. Failures. Not being able to save people. The loss of 'Haven was new and particularly sharp in his mind. So many lives lost.
But there were all the great times, too. His early life with his parents. Losing them, but finding a family with Bruce. With the first Titans. The jealousy over Jason and the acceptance of Tim. The joy of a life where the decisions were his, the friends and family and ups and downs and relationships and love.
There was the training. So much training. Being a leader with all that entailed. The desire for justice over revenge.
And over all of it, the love. The love for his town. His team. All the disparate parts of his family, even the ones he didn't get along with. All the Titans. Holding Roy as he went through withdrawl. Holding Lian for the first time, rescued while Roy was injured. Being there for Wally and Garth and Donna when he was needed and kicking himself when he couldn't be.
Because it was all love, at the end of the day. And it didn't matter for a moment that they didn't share a drop of blood. They were his. And he would fight for every last one of them. As long as he didn't have to kill anybody. Because Dick didn't do that.
Re: Subthread 1: Pre-fight Memory Download
He didn't hold much back. Like Kon, it was mostly the really embarrassing stuff. And the whole 'sleeping with Babs' thing when delivering the invite to his and Kory's wedding.
And Tarantula. Just...leaving that whole thing out.
He left a lot of the bad things. Failures. Not being able to save people. The loss of 'Haven was new and particularly sharp in his mind. So many lives lost.
But there were all the great times, too. His early life with his parents. Losing them, but finding a family with Bruce. With the first Titans. The jealousy over Jason and the acceptance of Tim. The joy of a life where the decisions were his, the friends and family and ups and downs and relationships and love.
There was the training. So much training. Being a leader with all that entailed. The desire for justice over revenge.
And over all of it, the love. The love for his town. His team. All the disparate parts of his family, even the ones he didn't get along with. All the Titans. Holding Roy as he went through withdrawl. Holding Lian for the first time, rescued while Roy was injured. Being there for Wally and Garth and Donna when he was needed and kicking himself when he couldn't be.
Because it was all love, at the end of the day. And it didn't matter for a moment that they didn't share a drop of blood. They were his. And he would fight for every last one of them.
As long as he didn't have to kill anybody. Because Dick didn't do that.