I ...I'm not entirely innocent...
Batman watched the young man fly across the sky on a beam of emerald light.
"He's learning, Bruce." Clark stood next to him, impervious to the cold and the night. "He's doing fine."
"You think I'm hard on him." Batman turned to look at his best friend the alien. Don't ever forget that this kind and gentle man is an alien. And when you look at his dark blue eyes and raven hair, remember he's also married. "He holds the most powerful weapon in the galaxy on his hand. That means he has great responsibility. He has to know how to be a hero. A super hero."
"He knows. And if he didn't - he's an adult. It's up to him to learn how. He's not like those children of yours."
Batman froze at hearing those words. He turned back to the night sky. There was no trace of green left. "He's not...I don't..." He thought. "He is Dick's age."
"Dick is someone to be proud of. He's young, but he's a true hero." There was something significant in Superman's face, but Batman couldn't determine what it was.
"This is different. Dick has been a hero his entire life, and Dick doesn't have a ring. And he knows how to be cautious. But Kyle...he's...he's cocky. He'll go the way of Hal. And Ollie. And Barry. We've lost too many friends." Hal Jordan, who wore and disgraced the ring on Kyle Rayner's finger, and even though he'd died reigniting the sun, Batman still could not see him as a hero ever again. Barry Allen, whose nephew took on the mantle of the Flash after he died in that crisis no one could quite remember. Oliver Queen, the first Green Arrow, succeeded by the son he'd never known and now alive again, in what Batman would have called a miracle if he'd believed in them.
"And none of them as beautiful as Kyle." Now that handsome face held a full blown smirk.
"Clark!" This was nothing to joke about, nor did he appreciate Superman enjoying himself at Batman's expense.
"What are you surprised at? I'm a reporter. I see things. And I'm not entirely innocent. A lot more goes on in small towns than you would expect, city boy. And Kyle is beautiful, just speaking objectively. And he doesn't have the same...strings as..."
"What are you implying? I've heard those rumors, and Dick is myson. I can't, won't...no matter how he..." Batman shook his head to clear it of confusion. "Whatever I am, whatever I feel -- and I don't say it's true -- Kyle is...not interested, any more than...than you would be."
Clark smiled, and there was something in that smile that made Batman wonder what would have happened if there hadn't been a Lois. Or what happened before there was a Lois in that small town. "You might find out. He's very beautiful, and he thinks you hate him. The worst thing would be that you'll show him you don't hate him." Clark clapped him gently on the shoulder and flew off.
II ...taking his shadows with him...
Kyle stretched his back. "There is nothing happening today. Why are we even here?" He leaned back to watch the monitors again. "I just might fall asleep out of sheer boredom." Wally, who had been checking the other monitors at top speed, turned into a red blur. A moment later, he handed Kyle a hot cup of coffee.
"Sorry, dude. The Watchtower espresso machine takes too much time." He leaned back in his own chair, pushed back his cowl and began to sip his own coffee.
"Thanks, Wall. Good idea about the masks." Kyle let his dissolve. "Ain't nobody here but us superheroes. Usbored superheroes." He took a drink. "But the coffee's good."
"You know, I could be back on Earth with my wife who misses me and who sometimes forgets what I look like and who is going to school with cute and smart future doctors. All I got is cute."
Kyle grinned. "At least you got the wife. Jen turned downmy proposal. Also, um." He took another sip of coffee. "She's not waiting for me. She's taking a breather. She said she needed some space."
"Ouch, man. I'm sorry. You and Jade were tight. You even got her back in the Green Lantern biz."
"It's not that bad." Kyle shrugged. It wasn't bad at all. When Jen made her announcement two days ago, it had hurt for all of a few minutes, and then he realized she was right. They made love once more and then she took off. Maybe she'd be back and they'd be better than before, maybe she wouldn't. Either way, they were friends. "I'm cool."
"Okay. But if you need someone to talk to...before I met Linda, I was the king of dump."
"Hah, fat chance. See, I like smart chicks. The problem with smart chicks is that they do eventually figure out that they're smarter than I am and go bye-bye."
"Yeah. I'm still waiting for Linda to figure that one out." They laughed. "Why won't something happen? I could be back in Keystone. There's stuff happening in Keystone."
"We should be grateful for boredom. It should be our greatest desire." Both young men looked up at the harsh, raspy voice.
How did he manage to find shadows in the Watchtower monitor room? Did he just manufacture them himself? Because he was standing in the shadows, with only his white lenses glowing at them.
"S...sorry, Batman." Wally swallowed audibly. Kyle couldn't say anything. Those lenses were looking at him. He could feel it. Why was the Batman looking at him, and why did he feel like his spandex was invisible?
Then he was gone, taking his shadows with him.
"Eek!" Kyle mimed wiping sweat off his forehead. "How does he do it?"
"You mean, how does Mr. No Powers make even Supes shake in his boots? I wish I knew." Wally's laugh was nervous.
Kyle wasn't nervous. Kyle wasn't sure what he was right now. "If I didn't know he was Bruce Wayne, I'd say he just needed to get laid or something."
"What does being Bruce Wayne have to do with anything?" Wally tossed off his coffee and began to pace. Next to Wally, Kyle actually had an attention span.
"Oh, come on, Wally. I don't exactly follow the Gotham society pages, but he's a single, handsome billionaire who dates a different girl every night."
"Dude. Think. Justthink. Whatever Bruce Wayne does, the Bat is prowling the rooftops by midnight. That doesn't leave much time for the ladies. Besides, you really think Bats is going to let himself go that much?"
"Oh. Good point." Kyle saw something odd over in Quaraci, but it turned out to be a minor fire that they managed to control all by themselves. Wally started to chuckle.
"You know. Sometimes I wonder if heever has."
"Oh, God. You mean...Bats is a ... a ... hey. What about Catwoman?"
"I asked Nightwing once. He said it's all been looks and nothing else."
"Nightwing. Hmm." Kyle grinned. "You think those rumors were true?"
"Nope. I know better." And why did Wally look so smug?
"How do you know? Did you ask Nightwingthat?"
"Yep. And he said they weren't true. And I believe him."
"Why? It's not something a loyal former sidekick would talk about."
"I was in bed with said loyal former sidekick at the time." Once again, Kyle's mouth dropped wide open, while Wally took a turn around the walls just for fun. "I knew that would get you, GL. I knew it!"
"You andNightwing?"
"When we were Teen Titans."
"Oh, God." Why did Wally have to put that thought in his mind?
"Come on, Kyle. We were a bunch of kids and there were no adults around, and we were spending all our time together. Of course we experimented. What do you think? Or does the idea of two guys shock you?"
Kyle shook his head. "That part about you being kids makes sense. And I got nothing against guy/guy stuff. Idid go on the road with Connor, remember?" Now, that had been an adventure. It'd been Kyle's first time with a guy and Connor's first time ever. "We should start a bi superheroes group. Get that new Starman in. Connor'd be out, though."
"Can you imagine the public's reaction to an out gay or bi hero?"
"I don't want to think about it. You know, my assistant, the one for my day job, is gay. He's just a kid, maybe sixteen. I found out when he developed a crush on me. I told him I was straight, and as I was all but living with Jen at the time, I think he believed me." Kyle shook his head. "I hated lying to him, but it killed the crush, so I guess it was a good thing."
Wally shrugged and began running around the room and speed checking the monitors.
"Lantern."
There was that rasping voice again, and those eerie white lenses peering out of the shadows.
"Yes?" Kyle made himself breathe.
To his surprise, Batman drew a deep and nervous-sounding breath, then hesitated. "Um. Bruce Wayne would greatly enjoy Kyle Rayner's company for lunch tomorrow afternoon, if circumstances permit."
Wally slammed to a stop, nearly stumbling over a chair. Kyle swallowed a couple of times.
"W...what would...why?"
"Social reasons."
Kyle knew he'd get no more of an answer. He steeled himself. "Yes. Er. I would be honored to join...Mr. Wayne...for lunch. When and where?"
"1 PM, Gotham time. At Bruce Wayne's office. You'll meet there."
Kyle nodded. "Okay."
"Excellent." Batman faded into the darkness again.
"Oh, man, oh, man, oh, man!" Wally flung himself down.
"I know." Kyle stared at the monitor screen and saw nothing.
"Did Batman just ask you on adate?"
"Yeah. Too weird."
"Dude. You own a suit? One that's not green?"
"Yeah." He looked at his screen again.. "Masks on, Flash. We got trouble in Paris. Big snake attacking the Louvre. Call out the troops. And he'd better not mess my hair. I got a date with a billionaire."
Under the jokes and the adrenaline, Kyle felt alternately hot and cold.
III ...heroes' eyes...
"So, why am I here, Mr. Wayne?" He blinked, startled. Kyle put down his soup spoon and looked him straight in the eyes. Kyle's eyes were clear and blue.
"I'm sorry, Kyle. I was distracted." Kyle's beauty had distracted him. He'd been handsomewith the mask obscuring those eyes and half of his face. Without it, he was nearly as pretty as...Don't think those thoughts. He fought the rasping voice down. "As Batman said on the Watchtower, it's purely social. And, please, I insist that you call me Bruce."
"I'll try." Kyle took another sip of his soup, and looked around the small, nearly empty bistro. His eyes were never still. He had hero's eyes, always on the alert. "You never asked me on a date before. Bruce."
"Date? What makes you think...I just thought it was time Bruce Wayne met Kyle Rayner. Our alter egos have worked together for so long, after all." He sipped his club soda. The rough pate in front of him really demanded wine, but he never drank.
Kyle put down his glass of mineral water and grinned. "I know a date, Bruce. I mean, we do know each other. We've fought next to each other for years."
"Batman knows Green Lantern." He thought that was obvious. "It's something different."
"Whatever." Kyle shook his head. "I don't know about you, but there's no difference between Lantern and me. We're the same guy. Me. Kyle. In costume or with a pencil. I'm stillme." He narrowed his eyes. "But you're not. I'm really just eating with Bruce. Not Bats."
He didn't know how to answer that. "Is it because you use your artist's training for your powers?"
"Not really. I mean, yeah, sort of, because I do, or at least I use the same place in my brain for both my artwork and my constructs. But - it's just a costume, a mask. It doesn't change who I am." He hesitated. "No, that's not true, either. I'm not the same guy I was before, but it's the ring, not the mask. And maybe the ring just brought out a part of me I never knew before. And that part doesn't shut down when I wear normal clothes. I'm always Kyle Rayner, and I'm always Green Lantern. Does that makes sense?"
"You don't get down time, do you?"Neither do we. He willed that damned voice to shut up again.
"Part of the price." Kyle looked haunted as he said that. Haunted by the spectre of his predecessor, more than likely. "Why heroes burn out or..." He buried his face in his hands.
"It's..." He reached out awkwardly, and touched Kyle's black hair. It was coarse and not as dark as Dick's, but it was still soft. "Groups help."
Kyle raised his head. "Why am I here? Why does Bruce Wayne want to know Kyle the artist?"
He swallowed and took his hand back. A couple of hairs clung to it. He rubbed them together. "Bruce can have all sorts of reasons. Wayne Foundation gives grants to artists, and you might..."
"I make my own living." Kyle stood up. "I'm not like...like Wally or Roy. I don't need handouts. And. I don't need or want to be your...boytoy."
"I'm not looking for a toy, boy or otherwise." He could only whisper, even though he wanted to speak up. The bistro was empty. No one could hear them. "I can buy all the 'toys' I want. I don't want someone I can buy, or scare, or...need to protect. I want...an equal. I want a...a l-lover who understands what I am."
Kyle dropped down, the anger draining from his face. "I didn't know...Wally said, but I didn't believe...there's no one?"
He shook his head. "My...the other costumes here. They're friends or family. Or children. And the thought of children...and Bruce Wayne only exists for a few hours. He can't have...relationships."
"Why me?" Now Kyle was whispering.
"You're beautiful." He smiled for a moment. "And you're powerful enough to take care of yourself, but you're still human."
"I look like him. Like Dick."
"You could just as easily say you look like Clark, with your blue eyes and dark hair. You don't. You have an accident of coloration and a similarity of age, but you're not Dick. You're Kyle, and. You're beautiful."
"What if I say no?"
Of course he'll say no. He doesn't want us. Bruce made an effort to sound calm. "Then we continue as friends and colleagues, and I won't bring it up again." Please say yes.
Kyle stood up and walked around to his back, and put his hand on his shoulder. "You're beautiful, too. Bruce. Let's see where this goes."
IV ...he would give his life...
"You only have a twin bed, Bruce?" Kyle looked around the bedroom. It wasn't quite the leather and wood elegance he'd been expecting after seeing Bruce's study downstairs. It was neat and filled with books, but there was something about it - about the twin bed and faded wallpaper and carpet, and the lack of pictures. Elsewhere, the manor was filled with works of art - enough that Kyle would happily spend days just looking and copying. There wasn't even a mirror on the wall here.Bruce shrugged. "It's where I sleep. When I sleep."
Oh, my God. No one else, no one outside of his family, has seen this. Kyle didn't know whether to be frightened or flattered.
He'd felt the same way when, after two weeks of dating, Bruce invited him to his home. Those two weeks had been amazing, whether they'd met in Gotham in suits and ties or in New York in sweaters and jeans. They'd had elegant lunches, explored museums, took long walks and just talked. Bruce filled his days, and gave him dreams at night. Sometimes, he almost forgot who this man was - both the billionaire and the Bat - and just saw the man who barely let him kiss him good night. And who never made the first move.
And then tonight happened. Dinner at Wayne Manor, with Bruce, with his pretty blonde bodyguard staring at him with confusion and jealousy, and with his butler smiling in approval as he served them dinner. Someone else was supposed to be there, a woman named Leslie, but she'd begged off. Some sort of medical emergency, Kyle gathered. He had no idea what he'd eaten, except it tasted good. Bruce, as usual, ate as if he were fueling a gas tank. He'd seemed relieved at the butler's smile. The butler who was more than a butler. And then, after dinner and coffee, Bruce stammered and asked him to come to his room. And the butler smiled and the bodyguard scowled, and Kyle took his hand and let Bruce lead him away.
"Isn't it a little...small?" Kyle was almost as tall as Bruce, and he hated how his feet hung off a twin sized bed. Bruce shrugged again, as if that wasn't important. He still held tight to Kyle's hand. "Why...?"
Bruce stepped forward and drew him closer, and tilted his head. Kyle smiled for a moment, and wrapped his arms around him as far as they could go, and kissed him - not the little pecks he'd been permitted these past two weeks, but a real kiss. Kyle started out as gently as he could, just using his lips, letting Bruce take his time, letting him relax to the contact. It took less time than Kyle had expected for Bruce to respond, awkwardly and sweetly, but fully. Bruce's hands began to move on his body, bringing chills and shivers, and Kyle had to pull them even closer together, until he could feel Bruce firm against him.
He broke the kiss then, despite Bruce's soft moan, and began to undress him. He pulled off the sweater, surprised that there was no spandex beneath it - just pale skin and hard muscles. Bruce moaned again when Kyle began to stroke those muscles, began to lick his nipples. His hands touched Kyle's hair, pulling it. Kyle didn't mind. He continued stroking and licking until he came to Bruce's belt buckle.
"Not yet." Bruce's voice was hoarse, almost rasping. Almost Batman's voice. He stepped back. Kyle stood.
"Not yet? Do you just want to neck? Because I can do that." He'd be frustrated as hell, but he didn't care. Bruce was worth it, and he knew he had to be careful with him. He was turning out to be fragile in a way Kyle had never imagined Batman to be. He hoped the frustration didn't show in the low murmur he'd permitted himself.
Bruce shook his head. "I just...please. Take off your clothes. I want...I want to see you." Kyle never could get used to that stammer. Bruce only stammered around him. He took off his own clothes, piece by piece, not trying to drag it out but not hurrying. He felt Bruce's dark eyes on him. Finally, he stood in front of Bruce, clad only in his power ring. He wondered if he'd be asked to take that off, too. He'd have done it.
Bruce had removed his own clothing, but even nude he managed to shroud himself in shadows. He looked at Kyle, his eyes, the only things Kyle could see clearly, wide with wonder. "You have no scars. You're perfect."
"The ring. It heals me. Physically." His voice felt harsh next to Bruce's whisper.
"Can I? Touch you?"
Kyle nodded.You can do anything you want, Bruce.
His hands were large and powerful looking, and Kyle knew from past battles how strong they were. They felt like wings brushing his skin. Bat wings? The thought made him smile and shiver. Bruce's fingers brushed his chest, riffled through his chest hair, danced across his nipples and then lower and lower, until they touched his penis, which was achingly hard, and then lower, tickling his scrotum. Kyle could barely stop himself from jumping. Instead, he spread his legs. Bruce took the hint, and probed between for a moment before reaching behind. He moved closer, leaving his shadows.
Kyle gasped. "Bruce? You're...you're not..."
Bruce looked at him. "I rarely am. It's called sublimation. But, if anyone could bring me to life, it's you. You are the most beautiful man I've ever seen. Even just touching you is overwhelming." At his words, his flaccid organ twitched and filled. "You see?" Then, without warning, Bruce smiled and slid down Kyle's body until he was on his knees, and then took Kyle in his mouth. Kyle gasped.
"You...you don't...You don't have to do this..." Bruce continued to suck on him, inexpertly and poorly, but enthusiastically. He resisted all of Kyle's efforts to push him away - although Kyle could feel himself being less and less noble as Bruce's technique improved. And then he stopped. "Bruce?"
"This is only half the fantasy." He panted for breath. "I want you...to take me. Dreamed about someone like you taking me."
"You've never done this. With anyone." Bruce, still on his knees, shook his head, his hair brushing Kyle's thighs. "Are you...are you sure?"
He looked up at him. "Yes." His eyes glowed.
How could he do this? Kyle looked down again. He saw bright eyes, full of hope, on top of a body honed like a weapon, scarred from battles won and lost. He also saw, in a rare flash of insight, a damaged soul looking for some sort of wholeness and logic, and he knew then that he held that soul in his hands and that he would give his life to keep it from further harm. That he was in love with Bruce Wayne, with Batman. He stroked Bruce's hair. "Are you ready for this?"
"Yes."
Kyle pulled him to his feet, and found himself in the middle of a passionate kiss, breaking it only to have Bruce lead him to that narrow bed. He stopped him. He couldn't make love to Bruce there.
"Floor?" Bruce seemed to read his mind. Kyle nodded and together they sank to the old carpet, snagging pillows as they did. Bruce's hand found Kyle's penis again. He wasn't much more practiced with his hands than he was with his mouth, making Kyle wonder still further. He touched Bruce, who nearly pulled away at the contact. And he wanted Kyle to have sex with him? Kyle would have stopped things right there, maybe should have, but Bruce looked at him and he couldn't. And t hen Bruce relaxed and responded to Kyle's touch. There was joy and wonder in Bruce's eyes at that.
Then he turned over onto his stomach, laying his head down on one of the pillows. He spread his legs impossibly wide. Kyle's breath caught at the sight. But there was something missing.
"Bruce...condoms? Lubricant? I wasn't expecting..."
Bruce was silent for a moment. "Do we need them?"
"If you don't have them...I can use my ring. I've done it before." Even as he said it, he knew Bruce would reject it. He slumped down beside Bruce and held him. "I know. No."
"I." Bruce closed his eyes. "No powers. No superheroes. Just us."
Kyle kissed his cheek. "Just us." He turned Bruce over, turned the big man over as if he were a child, and held him close on the faded carpet, and moved so their groins were aligned. Bruce was still hard beneath him. Kyle began to move. This he was practiced in; this was something he'd enjoyed with Connor. Bruce's eyes were shining as they moved closer and closer to orgasm, but he made no noise at all when he reached completion, unlike Kyle's own joyful shout.
They lay there for a long time, just holding each other in silence. And then Bruce got up, cleaned himself off and disappeared.
Kyle wrapped himself in the blanket and waited for the Batman to finish patrolling the night so Bruce could come back to him, knowing neither wanted him to help. He stared at the ring he dared not use.
Va ...all that concerns me, Master Kyle...
"Did I just molest an eight-year-old?" Kyle held the cup of hot chocolate carefully in his hands as he sat down next to the fire. Alfred, Bruce's more-than-a-butler, sat across from him, holding his own cup. He frowned.
"That's a rather complex question, Master Kyle. Given my employer's...unusual mental state and his history, I can see why you would ask it." He took a deep breath. "All things considered, and granted that I do not know, nor do I wish to know, what transpired between the two of you this evening, I would say that you did not molest Master Bruce." He smiled and took a sip of his chocolate.
Kyle breathed a sigh of relief. He'd been nervous since Alfred had waved the robe inside Bruce's room. He'd put on the robe, constructed some little wet/dry vacs to clean up their mess, and followed the man to this handsome guest room. The robe, a dark emerald, fit him perfectly. He wasn't sure what he thought about that. "You seem to almost approve of what we did, Mr. Pennyworth."
"I do approve. I approve of whatever occurred, and I most certainly approve of you."
He felt like he'd gotten a parental blessing. "It doesn't bother you that I'm a man."
"Quite the contrary. All that concerns me, Master Kyle, is that you love him and you make him happy. Given his behavior this past fortnight, you do make him happy. He even smiles on occasion when speaking of his plans for you, and he was as nervous as a teenager preparing for tonight."
Kyle shook his head. "That's almost impossible to believe, of either Bruce or Batman. But...how do you know I love him? I just figured that out tonight." He couldn't help smiling at the memory.
"Because, Master Kyle, you are drinking cocoa and eating biscuits here with me." He indicated the plate of cookies between them. "If you were merely infatuated, like our Ms. Bordeaux, Green Lantern would be flying over Gotham City with him right now."
Vb ...just watching the boys...
Toss. Swing. Balance. Toss. Those were rhythms of his body as he moved across the rooftops every night. This night was no different - the same, familiar rhythms, the same rooftops, less familiar after the Earthquake and the rebuilding of the city, but familiar enough. Even the sound of Sasha's toss, swing, balance, toss behind him were no longer strange, nor those of Spoiler off to his side in the distance. The criminals they stopped or caught or frightened away were the same, too - at least in spirit.
Only his body was not the same. It obeyed him as quickly as ever, it moved as gracefully as ever. None of his skills, none of his edge was gone, but it was still different. Better. For the first time, his body felt like it belonged to him, like it was something besides a weapon or a means of locomotion, too easily harmed to be truly effective. Bane had thought he'd taught Batman this when he broke him over his knee, but Batman already knew it.
It still was all that.
Batman paused on a particular roof. Behind him, he could hear Sasha stop, and he knew that two rooftops away, Spoiler had also frozen in place. He'd been keeping an eye on this place at this time for days now, as many young men came in with mysterious packages, and left seemingly empty handed. Something was going on there, something other than legal. He knew it. He just needed the proof.
"Are you watching for clues, Batman? Or just watching the boys?" Sasha's voice, pitched just right for Batman's ears, dripped with vitriol.
He turned to face her, gathering the mantle of the Bat around him. She shrank back. "Irrelevant." He turned back. Something had to give. Something beyond the fact of the parade of, yes, attractive men. That, too, was familiar. As was a shadow of a profile off to the side - and was that an umbrella? He moved closer, and the shadow disappeared, as did the pretty boys. Still. It was something. He signaled to the two young women. Spoiler left for her home and Sasha journeyed with him back to the house.
Along the way, he scanned the skies for trails of green light, but there were none.
He and Sasha parted in the hallway. He could feel her eyes on him as he took off his cowl and cape and walked down to a room not his own.
Kyle was asleep on one side of the wide bed, beautiful in the dying firelight. He noted the silver thermos on the table, the cup beside it, but let it be. Instead, he took off his costume and Bruce climbed into bed, where a sleeping Kyle gathered him into his arms.
VI ...destroying walls...
He was warm. When had he ever been warm before? Flash of gunfire, of pearls and blood and screams. His screams. Not since then.
He lay quietly, absorbing all the warmth he could from the man sleeping beside him. 'It won't last. Don't get used to it.' Bruce told Batman to be quiet, to enjoy it.
He must have moved, because the warmth increased. The man, his man, his Kyle, embraced him and he returned it. Batman was silent, quelled by the way Kyle pressed soft kisses on his cheeks, his forehead, his neck. Bruce did his clumsy best to respond, thinking it a poor bargain.
"Good morning, Bruce."
Bruce finally opened his eyes. There, inches away, just at the limits of his near vision, was Kyle's face. His eyes were still drooping with sleep, his hair was mussed and his cheeks were covered with dark stubble.
"You're beautiful. So very beautiful." Kyle blushed a little and smiled, and 'beautiful' became inadequate. At least he didn't hide from the compliment.
"So. Did Batman get anyone last night?" Kyle leaned towards Bruce and started nuzzling his neck.
"Uh. The usual. That feels good. And the Penguin is up to something." Kyle nodded against him and held him tighter, bringing his face into Bruce's shoulder. Bruce shivered. He was too happy.
"Thank you. For not...for staying." He hoped Kyle understood what he wasn't saying.
"I knew." He did. "I knew you wanted me here. And. You didn't need me out there. Because. If you did, you'd have called me. And I would have come."
"Green Lantern would. Is supposed to. What about you? Kyle? Would you come if Bruce needed you?"Because I do.
"Lantern is a given, yeah." He kissed Bruce. "Yes. Kyle...I would come running. Flying. Teleporting. If you needed me." He took a deep breath. "It's probably way the wrong time, but my timing has always sucked." Kyle pulled far enough away that Bruce could see his eyes, bright in the morning light. "I love you. You. Bruce Wayne. Batman. Bruce. You."
At first, those words made no sense. By the time they penetrated, he was sitting halfway across the bed, staring at Kyle, his hands wrapped around his knees.
"Bruce? Bruce, I'm sorry. I knew it. I knew my timing sucked. I'm sorry." Kyle sat cross-legged, looking at him. His face was a picture of misery. "I...no pressure. Really. Forget I said it."
Forget it? How could he forget it? Those words were destroying him, destroying walls he'd built. "I...I..." He couldn't find his own words. He had no words. Bruce and Batman both tried to find them, tried to tell this beautiful man how he...they...he felt, except he didn't know. Or he did. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He had to say something, or he'd lose Kyle, and he couldn't lose Kyle.
"I'm an idiot. I'm such a stupid idiot. I'm sorry." Bruce expected Kyle to go, steeled himself to it. Instead, Kyle crawled over to him and wrapped himself around him. "I'm sorry, Bruce. If you want me to, I'll go."
"Stay." Bruce heard himself say that word in Batman's voice, the only voice he had left. And Kyle stayed and Bruce let himself get lost in his warmth again.
VII ....a rational human being...
Kyle could feel her eyes on him. She never stopped staring. She stared harder when he poured Bruce a cup of coffee, and harder still when he leaned over and kissed his cheek.
"Sasha, I assure you. Kyle is not a threat to me." Bruce stared back at his bodyguard. She sniffed and pretended to read her newspaper. Alfred just shook his head and continued to dish up bacon and eggs at the stove.
"I can't take this anymore." Kyle pushed away his plate. It smelled delicious and was cooked exactly to his taste, but the first bite stuck in his throat. "Ms. Bordeaux, you and I need to talk." He was probably putting his foot in it again, but better that than letting it fester. Bruce caught his arm, but Kyle looked at him, and he let go. On the other hand, Alfred gave him a nod and a smile, so he was probably doing something right.
Sasha's lips thinned. She nodded tightly and turned. He followed her out of the kitchen to a small office off to the side. It was extremely neat, with notations such as "Master Bruce: Dentist" on a wall calendar.
"Won't Mr. Pennyworth mind?"
"No." She sat down on the single chair and folded her arms. "You wanted to talk, Mister Rayner. Talk."
Kyle sighed. "I didn't think you'd make this easy." He put his hands behind his back. "I know you're in love with Bruce.'
"I am..." She half stood for a moment before flopping down again.
"Ms. Bordeaux. Sasha. I've been called a lot of things in my life, but perceptive isn't one of them. 'Blind.' 'Clueless' - that's a big one. I've been known to miss things right in front of my nose. Hell, my assistant had a monster crush on me for months before I noticed. So, if I can tell how you feel about Bruce, there's no way you can deny it."
She let out a small chuckle. "No one could say you have an ego problem."
"Just being honest. I'm handsome, talented and clueless." He absently picked up a notepad and a pencil. "So. You're in love with Bruce."
"Fat lot of good it's going to do me." She bit her lower lip. "You of all people should understand. Or maybe I should compare notes with your assistant?"
He laughed. "Terry's a fifteen-year-old boy. Who is going to be really mad at me, because I told him I was straight. I'm really good at that, too. Being an idiot. That includes this thing with Bruce. My life is now about a thousand times as complicated as it was before."
She thought for a moment. "You know. Better you than me. Being Bruce Wayne's girlfriend is just out of my league. No one cares what his bodyguard wears. And he's such a...well, a..."
"Mess?" Kyle smiled at her.
"A gorgeous mess." She sighed, and laughed.
"You know, you are not doing this right at all."You are an idiot, Rayner. It's going okay. Why are you messing this up?
"I'm not?"
"No. You're supposed to be screaming at me in jealousy and pulling out my hair or something. Who said you could be a rational human being about this?" He folded his arms, still holding the notepad and pencil.
"Oh, don't get me wrong, pretty boy. I'm jealous as hell, but what am I going to do? I don't want to lose this job." She shook her head. "And I get to share in his little...hobby." She looked up. "You know about that hobby?"
He took a deep breath. She was still taking this well, but he was about to make a mistake. Except, she'd figured out Bruce. It had taken Alfred five minutes and a decent dose of logic to learn the truth - it shouldn't take her much longer. Time to show her he trusted her. "I have the same hobby, Sasha."
"You have...oh, God. You would be. You would be in the tights and mask club." She laughed again. "There is no way I can compete."
Kyle shrugged. "From what Mr. Pennyworth tells me, you're in the same club now."
She stopped laughing. "I guess so, but it's...it's my job. I signed on to protect Bruce Wayne. If Bruce Wayne insists on running around in a cape in the middle of the night, then I have no choice."
"That, and you, well."
"Yeah. That, too. Hey. How come you weren't out there last night, pretty boy? I mean, if you're a superhero, then you've got training or powers or something. You should have been there." She glared at him.
"I wanted to be. You don't know how much it killed me to stay behind." He broke the pencil point and picked up another. "But. You have an excuse. And. In Gotham City, I'm just Kyle. Unless the whole crowd's been called in. And Batman never calls in the rest of the gang unless there is absolutely no choice."
"I do not understand that. I just don't." She ran a hand over her hair. "So. Which one are you?" She shook her head. "I used to basically ignore the details of you guys, you know? Whatever you did - save the world, fight some other jerk in a costume, fix up a disaster - it didn't really matter who did what. I mean, I cried a little when Superman died, cause he's so...him, but..."
"Yeah. I know." He grinned a little. "Before I became one myself, I didn't attention, either. Before I got this..." He spread his right hand, letting the ring glow just a bit. "I'd barely heard of the other guys who wore it."
"You're that new Green Lantern. The kid." Her eyes widened.
"I'm going to be that until I'm completely gray, aren't I? Assuming I live that long. Yes, I'm Green Lantern. And I've been GL for a couple of years now - you'd think some of the shine would have worn off." He shook his head.
"Why are you telling me this? I...I'm supposed to hate you."
"Because Bruce Wayne trusts you. And. Because I need to trust you. You're his Cover and his bodyguard. I love him, Sasha, and if I can trust you with him, I can trust you with my codename."
Sasha looked at him. And looked some more. "Thank you. Kyle."
"Here. This is for you." He handed her the sketch he'd made of her, in a costume of his own devising.
She took one look, giggled and put it in her pocket. "You must really hate me. Skirts, boobs and a cape?" But she didn't throw it away.
VIII ..."You're not supposed to be scared."...
Kyle settled into the monitor chair, looking down on the Earth from the Watchtower on the Moon. Eight hours of this, shared with Wally, assuming the world remained quiet. "You want the second watch, Flash?"
"You kissed him." Wally stood stock still and stared at him. "You kissed the Batman, and in front of the whole JLA. You kissed Batman on the cheek and you made him blush."
"Which part amazes you more?" He leaned back and dissolved his mask. He himself was surprised he'd hadn't melted with embarrassment, but Bruce had been right. They'd gotten it over with and now everyone would adjust.
"I don't know. You're really doing it! You're really dating Batman!" Wally danced around the room.
"Grow up, will you? You're acting like your little cousin Impulse." Kyle shook his head. "I have a relationship with Bruce."
"Does he take off his cowl? Do you use your ring? Do you guys use batcondoms?" Now he was laughing.
Kyle constructed a large green glove and knocked Wally over. "Lay off it, guy."
Wally bounced back. "Oh, come on, dude. It's funny. You and Bats!"
"Just knock it off." He turned back to the screen. Something was up in India.
"I don't get you. You didn't mind it when I teased you about Jen. Or even Donna." Wally was sitting on the other chair now, staring at him. Kyle shrugged, and focused on India some more. Something looked off. "Oh, my God. It's serious."
"Yeah. It kinda has to be."
"Um. That sounds..." Wally let his own cowl disappear, letting his red hair clash with his crimson costume. Kyle's artist's eyes considered the combination. "Kyle, are you happy?"
"Yes. When I'm with him, I'm the happiest I've ever been." Memories flowed through him - waking up with Bruce in his arms, long walks through Central Park, through Robinson Park, matinees on Broadway, finding out just how fast a learner Bruce was in bed - and learning things from him. Curling up in front of the fire after dinner with Alfred's cocoa and cookies, reading esoteric books. Sketching Bruce's body as he worked out. Just being with him.
"You don't sound it. You sound..."
"Scared?" And there came the other memories. Bruce disappearing for hours every night, after making love with him; Bruce coming home with his costume, his skin and sometimes his psyche in tatters. Bruce lost in his nightmares, shattering Kyle's sleep with his screams, Alfred hovering at the door. The look in his eyes when Kyle had to spend the night back home, when Kyle had to be Green Lantern.
"Yeah. You're not supposed to be scared."
"You are if you're in love with someone like Bruce. Scared for him. Just. Scared."
"Because he's doing what we're doing, except no powers?"
Kyle shook his head. "He's good. I mean, he's been hurt and he might yet get himself killed, but he's good. No. Because of why he's doing it and because of what it does to him, and. And he's really private and I'm saying too much."
"Oh." Wally turned to the screen. "What the hell's going on in India?"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...it's that. This is weird for me. He's not my first guy, he's not my first hero type. And I have been in love before, too. Although this is a lot more intense. But they've all been equals. Partners. Or, if they weren't, they were...I needed them. Even Connor - we wereboth virgins so far as guys were concerned and maybe he didn't have powers, but he's damn good with that bow and arrow. Bruce. Needs. He needs everything I can give him, and I want to give him everything. And I want this to go on as long as we do, but I'm afraid I'll run out. And. He's brittle, inside."
"Yeah. It has to be serious. Does he...love you as much?"
"I think so. I need him, too. I've finally started to grow up, I think. And he knows that." Kyle smiled. "He won't say it, but he does. We're a pretty messed up pair, but we're a pair. And I think I'm the luckiest guy in the world, scared to death or not."
"Cool."
"Thanks for listening, guy."
"Not a problem...oh! Kyle, look closer. They're dancing! It's a movie! We're watching Bollywood."
"Okay. Then I guess we don't call out the troops tonight." The two men laughed.
XI ...with all the passion....
"He's very beautiful." The words followed a whoosh and two light steps.
Batman didn't turn. That sound was familiar enough for him, and he didn't want to take his eyes off the horizon, where a green glow was coming towards him. "Yes." In so many ways.
"I'm happy for you. We all are."
Now he had to look. He held his wrist as he twisted to face Superman. "Why?"
"You hurt yourself. Did you keep fighting afterwards?"
"Not important. Why?"
Superman rubbed his hair. "Why. Um. Because you're happy. Because it's not a good thing to be alone. Because being in love is...wonderful and we're glad two of our friends...are together."
"It's..."Batman clenched his fist for a moment. Then he checked the area for surveillance. Satisfied, he pushed his cowl off his face. "This relationship may be the...worst thing I've ever done."
"I don't understand. Bruce, when you look at him - even in that mask, you light up. You're happy. Even now, without your lenses, you're staring at him. You can't even see him from here."
Yes, I can. I can always see him. "That's why I'm not doing the smart thing. He's keeping me sane, Clark. Tim's tried, Dick's tried. Hell, you've tried. You know me almost as well as they do. Alfred's gone gray trying. He doesn't try. He just...does." Kyle laughing when he got too serious; Kyle calmly taking care of his injuries. Kyle quietly holding him when the demons invaded his dreams again. Kyle making him smile just by rubbing his eyes in the morning.
"Now I know why you're scared."
Bruce thought about denying it. "He'll wake up one day and leave, and I'll be useless. I've never let myself get this dependent before. And it's too damn fast. It's only been a few weeks, Clark, but he's part of me now."
"When it's right, it can happen that way." Clark smiled. "And he was hardly a stranger those weeks ago."
Bruce shrugged with one shoulder. "He might as well have been. Just a beautiful boy." He bit his lips. "What does he get out of this that he stays with me?"
"He gets you, Bruce. He loves you, and he needs you, too. You're happier, and he's steadier. He acted like a leader out there today, and he did a good job."
"He was heading that way already. But, yes. I was proud of him." All this time, the green glow had grown. Now he could see Kyle on back of a flying tiger construct, waving his arm. Minutes later, Kyle had landed. He jumped off the tiger's back and patted it before it dissolved, roaring as it did. At the same time, the Flash ran up in a red blur.
"We got the buildings all livable - walls and floors stabilized, basic utilities rehooked." Wally gave them a parody of a salute.
"You know, we're doing that stuff - plumbing, electrical work - without a license." Kyle's eyes had flickered at Bruce's naked face for a moment before he was distracted by the broken wrist.
"Speak for yourself, greenboy. I'm a member of all those unions back in Keystone. Well, honorary member. And when did you getyour medical degree?" Kyle had constructed a miniature X-ray machine and was probing gently at the broken bones.
"EMT certificate. Real one." He grinned at Bruce. "Does this hurt? And don't play stoic."
"A little." A lot, but Bruce ignored pain, even as Kyle used his artist trained fingers and eyes to heal him.
"How's that?"
Bruce flexed his wrist. No pain, no stiffness. "Perfect." He had to smile.
"Of course." Kyle smiled back, his eyes glinting with mischief.
Acting without thought for the first time in years, but unable to resist, Bruce grabbed him, held his firm, warm body close to him and kissed him with all the passion he could muster. Kyle responded with a happy sounding sigh.
"Come on. I'll take you home."
Bruce could only nod. He let Kyle wrap the two of them in green light and fly them through the night skies to Gotham, holding him tightly all the while.
The End
Copyright 2002 Debra Fran Baker and NightRoads Associates