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[sub]"Mary Jane's Last Dance" | Chapter 3 | [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFasSEM6DXM]Post Theme[/url]
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[b]BRENTWOOD ACADEMY[/b]
Bristol Township, New Jersey
[i]January 3, 1968[/i]

[indent][color=silver]The boy ran his hands under the faucet. 

Standing at the sink inside the boy’s bathroom, he was definitely it today. Coming out of the bathroom stall, his stomach was still bubbling.

Alfie had made them some nasty soup. And it had been cold! That’s probably what had happened to Dick. Dead at the age of eleven. Poisoned by some French congealed snot that the butler had called [i]vicious saw[/i]. That’s what they’d put on Dick’s gravestone. 

Killed by [i]vicious saw[/i].

Well, that or the cafeteria meatloaf. Which was another contender. But meatloaf wouldn’t be nearly as dramatic on a headstone as whatever that French gobblety-gook Alfie had been spooning out last night.

No wonder Mister Bruce was so angry. If Dick had to eat Alfie’s cooking every night, he’d want vengeance, too.

Suffice to say, coming out of the bathroom, Dick Grayson was not looking to save anybody. He wasn’t waiting to get home so he could barrel into the Batcave to put on a cape or mask. He definitely was not feeling the [i]Boy Wonder[/i] and he kinda just wanted to go somewhere and maybe puke out whatever was left inside his guts.

Hands on his stomach, Dick barely raised his head as he stepped into the hallway. He’d turned toward where his locker was.

Jack Thayer and his merry troop of clowns were standing at Luke’s locker. 

Dick didn’t think anything of it at first. Instead, he swallowed and winced as his stomach seemed to do a flip inside his body. He’d dropped his eyes, which was when he realized that there was someone on the ground.

Luke Fox was huddled underneath the three of them, as they kicked and taunted him.

Dick swallowed a second time, but this time he could feel his hands balling into fists. Coming up behind Ray and Craig, the former Flying Grayson forcibly shoved the two other boys aside. The two staggered back, glancing at the unequivocal leader, as they all took their cues from Jack.

Jack Thayer was a seventh grader. A year ahead of Dick or Luke. He was tall for his age, and liked to use his size to intimidate those who were smaller than he was. 

Dick wasn’t intimidated.He’d seen people just like Jack his whole life. They were the ones who gave the traveling circus a bad name.

They were the ones who’d killed his parents.

Dick started to take a step toward Jack. The two boys held one another’s gaze for a long, quiet moment, before Dick finally looked away as he reached a hand out to give Luke a hand up.

“Look, everybody!” 

Jack’s voice sang out mockingly, stepping back to call attention to where Dick was helping Luke up from the floor. As though to illustrate the pair, he called out, “The coon and the [b][i]freak[/i][/b].”

As Luke got his feet underneath him, Dick moved so that he was between Jack and the colored boy. Then, he took that step closer to the bully. Craning his head back, Dick looked up and whispered, [color=#ffd700]“Call him that [i]one more time[/i].”[/color]

Jack just reared back to his full height, hands on his hips as he boasted loudly, “What was that?” 

A pair of arms seized hold of Dick from behind. Before the boy could react, a fist connected with the side of his face. 

“What are you going to do?” he heard Jack demand, mockingly, as stars exploded inside his head.

A moment later, a fist slammed into Dick’s midsection. He would have collapsed if not for the kid holding him up. He nearly hurled. Lurching as he gasped for breath and tried to get his bearings.

When everything started to clear again, he saw Jack’s face just an inch or so away, demanding, “Huh? [b][i]Freak[/i][/b].” 

Snapping his head forward, Dick rammed into Jack. Stars exploded across his vision a second time, as their heads collided. But Dick didn’t care. He didn’t care about the pain. He didn’t care how much it hurt. 

He was just really[b] pissed off.[/b]

As Jack recoiled back, Dick kicked up his feet. His left foot landed squarely in the center of Jack’s chest, his right found a foot on the locker next to where they were standing. It was enough to put the boy holding him -- Craig Pulaski -- off balance and give Dick enough leverage to vault over Craig’s shoulder. The hold broken, no sooner had Dick landed than the Flying Grayson spun Craig around and put [i]five across his eyes[/i].

And it felt [b]good[/b].

Ray Winter was up next. Dick ducked a clumsy hook, snapping in with a punch of his own that boxed Ray right in the ear. Getting up on the larger boy, Dick rained down a flurry of fast jabs at the other boy’s face, before knocking him down with a knee to the solar plexus.

Craig was back on his feet by then, coming back for Dick. 

Dick, his knee raised from attacking Ray, just straightened out the leg and let Craig do the rest. Boy ran right up on him, Dick’s foot connecting right at the boy’s crotch.

He didn’t think Craig sang in the choir, but damn if the kid didn’t have a [b]solid[/b] [i]alto[/i].

That just left Jack. Who was big. And he could be fast, too. He came at Dick and the Flying Grayson could barely move in time. Jack’s fist clipped him right across the mouth. The young Grayson shuffled back another step, as the taste of blood hit his tongue.

Fists raised, the circus performer looked out coldly at the kid across from him. Jack hesitated a moment, which was when Dick moved in. The swift jab with his right arm was a feint. Jack flinched, his left arm moving to block...

...when Dick hit him with the left hook.

Pain seared up through Dick’s arm, as his fist connected solidly with the side of the other boy’s face. He stepped into it. Following through, just like Mister Bruce had shown him, Dick stepped in with the motion. Jack went down, as Roger, Craig, and Ray were all starting to get back to their feet.

The three boys saw Jack on the ground, then looked at Dick and all skittered back several paces. For his part, Dick looked over at Jack. A mixture of mucus and blood splattered on the other boy, as Dick spit and said, [color=#ffd700]“I’ve been hit harder by a fuckin’ [b]clown[/b].”[/color]

[b]“MISTER GRAYSON!”[/b]

Fists still at the ready, the battered and winded Dick snapped his head around to look behind him. Already, Dick’s right eye was starting to show swelling around it. Jack’s punch had split open the boy’s lip, a trickle of blood dripping down over the boy’s chin. He knew even before he’d looked that it was Mister Charnov, standing over him.

[i][color=#ffd700]“Aw, shit.”[/color][/i][/color][/indent][/hider]