Treacherous | Dick Grayson

10

Ashley sat on the roof of the motel, staring out into the darkness as cars passed and keeping a watchful eye on the two teenagers even with the knowledge that Dick and Kory were beneath her, watching over them as well. Finally feeling a semblance of peace, a stray tear fell as emotions grappled her and a silent choked sob as the feelings of the last few days finally caught up to her. She forced the sob to stop and let out a shaky breath as she pulled out her phone and dial Roy. 

"Ashley?" She heard a groggy voice answer the phone.

"Roy" Ashley replied, her voice wavering as she whispered his name. 

"What's wrong?" Her oldest friend answered. 

"Everything" She replied. "Nothing, god it was stupid to call this late. I'm sorry" She said, crying again. 

"Emotions aren't stupid, Ash. No matter what he has you thinking" Roy told her. 

"Dawn might not wake up and don't get me started on Dick and everything that's going on" She told him, wiping a tear from her eye. 

"What do you mean, Dawn might not wake up? And since when is Dick a thing again?" Roy asked confused. 

"I can't believe I gave you the money to stalk everyone with Argus and you haven't kept tags on us" Ashley said with a laugh, furiously wiping her tears. 

"Seriously Ash, what's wrong? Lay it all out, I'm here" Roy told her, truly concerned for her for the first time in a year. 

"I found Dick in Detroit before I came to Star, then you know I left to help with Hank and Dawn with a job. I also died there too, Roy. I was ready to go when he put the gun behind my head" Ashley told him as a tear streaked down her face. "I was ready but Dick showed up the day before and Dawn told him about the job, and I obviously didn't die. I was mad or upset. I don't know, I can't even really distinguish the two completely but he said he wanted to talk but then Dawn got the shit beaten out of her on her roof and pushed off by some psycho-family who is looking for the teenager that Dick saved and is a very bad coma. They don't think she'll wake up" Ashley continued. She took a brief moment to collect her thoughts before continuing. "And now I'm with Dick and I've got two teens on my plate and he refuses to act like he left me, like he wasn't gone a whole year, like it's old times when it was me, you Dick, Donna, and Garth. Like we're still happy but- I don't know anymore. Maybe it's all stupid" Ashley muttered the last sentence as she kept a watchful eye on the teens through her tears. 

"So just to make sure I got this right, you hunted down Dickhead, are on the verge of losing Dawn and you're on a revenge mission with Dickhead?" Roy asked, wrapping his head around her summarization of events.

"Long story short, yes" Ashley said to him. 

"If I need to Ash, I'll deploy Argus for this" He told her seriously. 

"I don't need Argus, Roy. I need everything to make sense again" Ashley told him. "I haven't even told him that I told Dad to fuck off with the batshit, that I told Dad I was done. I haven't even told Dick that I told Alfred to sell penthouse" She said sadly. "Everything is helter-skelter to me, I've been practically attached to Hank and Dawn at the hip the last four years and it just doesn't make sense anymore." She told him, her sad voice becoming dejected. 

"This all does sound extremely overwhelming for you" Roy agreed. "If you need me at all Ash, I'm there" Roy promised. 

"No, no. I'll eventually figure this all out, Argus is busy and it needs its leader there" Ashley told him. 

"Drop of a hat" Roy promised her. 

"I'll wake up tomorrow Roy, and whatever the hell is going on with these emotions will be gone" She told him.