A/N: Just so you know, this story is about young Mick. Just thought I would make that clear so there is no confusion.
I do not own Legends of Tomorrow or any of these characters.
Mick Rory leaned back on his bed and gazed in awe at the small flame that was burning on the match that he held in his hand. It really was beautiful. Mick was completely enticed by the flame and it was only when the match had burned so much that there was barely any wood to hold and he could feel the heat of the flames burn his skin did Mick begrudgingly put the flame out.
Mick scowled and tossed the burnt up match onto the floor with the others. Mick still wanted nothing more than to watch the dancing of a flame, to feel the burn of the fire against his skin. Sadly, because that had been his last match, he couldn't do that. Mick knew that, if he was really desperate, he could easily find something else to burn, something that would probably burn longer and make larger flames than matches did, but, as tempting as that was, Mick resisted because he had learned his lesson on how easily flames can get out of control. As much as he wanted to watch something burn, he didn't want that something to be the house. Even if he did hate this stupid orphanage place.
Mick had no idea what he, or any of the others, were doing here. All he'd been told was that they were in danger and needed to stay here until it was safe again, and there was absolutely no telling exactly when that would be. For now, Mick was stuck here in this house full of brats, most of which were younger than him.
The one good thing about this place was that Mick had his own room. At first, he was supposed to be bunking with somebody else, but his roomie had decided to sleep somewhere else. And it had only taken a small flame and a minor first-degree burn to convince the kid to switch rooms.
The solitude meant that Mick could light as many matches as he wanted, watch the flames dance for however long he pleased, and no whiny brat would be around to freak out about it. Except, Mick couldn't do that, because, at least for now, he was out of matches, and it irritated him to no end.
Mick crossed his arms and began tapping his foot anxiously. He cast his eyes across the room to try to find something else, anything else, to distract him. After sitting like this for a few minutes Mick sighed and got up. There was nothing for him to do here, and he knew that the rest of the house was boring as hell too, but Mick was beginning to feel restless. Even just walking aimlessly around the house would be better than doing nothing. Maybe, if he was lucky, he would be able to find a match or two somewhere in the house.
With the possibility of more fire to motivate him, Mick opened the door to his room and crept into the hallway. Usually, Mick wasn't one for creeping or sneaking around. Now though, he made an exception, because it was the middle of the night, everybody else was sleeping, and the last thing that Mick wanted to do was wake them all up.
The hallway was dark, but since the only light source that he'd had for the past few hours was a couple of small flames, Mick's eyes were pretty well adjusted to the darkness, so it wasn't hard to find his way around. Mick walked casually down the hallway, making his way for the stairs. Before he had made it too far, Mick heard a noise that made him stop in his tracks.
It sounded like a kid was crying. A really young kid, probably one of the babies that was in the house. At the moment the crying wasn't too loud, barely more than a whimper, but if Mick could hear it from the hallway, chances were somebody else could hear it too. And, though Mick didn't know much about babies, one of the things that he did know was that when they began crying, it was hard to get them to stop, and the crying would just get louder and louder. Pretty soon, the kid's wailing would wake up everybody in the house.
Yeah, Mick wasn't about to let that happen. He had to get the kid to stop, for all of their sakes.
Mick continued walking down the hall until he got to the room where he knew all the babies slept. It was easy to find the room, it was the only one that any noise was coming out of.
Mick took a hold of the doorknob and turned it slowly. Cautiously, because he didn't want to make even more noise, Mick opened the door and stepped into the room. There were a couple of babies sleeping soundly, Mick didn't even glance their way. He was here to try to get the crying kid to shut up, nothing more.
Mick was surprised when he saw which kid was crying. In most cases, Mick thought that all babies, and even toddlers and younger children, looked the same. And yet, he definitely recognized this kid. It was the baby that those strange women in the nurse outfits had shoved in his arms.
Even more surprising, Mick didn't just recognize the kid, he remembered his name too. Mick had actually been told the names of all the kids in this place, but he only bothered to remember two. Sara's, (she had slapped him, of course he was going to remember her name!) and this kid's.
"Hey, Leo." Mick said in a voice that was much more quiet and gentle than he usually used, but he was pretty sure that yelling at the kid wouldn't get him to calm down. "What's wrong with you?"
Of course, the kid didn't answer him, and Mick hadn't expected him to, but the crying did get a little quieter. That at least was a good thing.
"Come on, kid, you don't want to wake the others, do you?" Mick reached into the crib...only for the brat to clasp at one of his fingers like his life depended on it. Mick scowled and tried to pull away, but the kid had an iron grasp and just wasn't letting go. Mick knew that if he really wanted to he could easily pull away, but he didn't, because he didn't want to risk hurting him. Besides, baby Leo seemed more content now that he was holding Mick's finger like it belonged to him. Leo was barely whimpering now.
"That's more like it." Mick grinned. He was actually making some progress on getting Leo to calm down. Who knew? Unfortunately, he didn't seem to be working quick enough, if the mutterings and whimperings of the other brats waking up was any sign. Mick knew that if he didn't want to deal with a room full of crying babies, he had to quiet things down in here now, and keep it quiet.
Unfortunately, Leo was still kinda crying, and even if Mick succeeded in getting the baby to calm down in the next minute, the kid didn't look even the least bit tired, and chances were he'd just end up crying even more within a few minutes. So, the way Mick saw it, he had only one real option.
"Alright, hang on, Leo." Mick took his free hand and gently pried Leo's hand off his finger. Before the kid could get too fussy, Mick used his now very available hands to pick him up. It was a little awkward at first, but soon Mick was able to figure out how to hold the baby in a way that he at least thought was right. He must've been doing something right, because little Leo's crying stopped almost immediately.
"That's better." Mick whispered. Of course, if he kept on talking to the kid, the others would just wake up anyways. And there was no way that Mick was going to be standing here quietly for who knew how long. If he was going to be holding Leo until he fell asleep, Mick thought it at least fair that he do it in a more comfortable place, somewhere where he wouldn't be surrounded by a bunch of other brats.
So, with little Leo still in his arms, Mick quietly left the babies' room, walked right back down the hallway, and returned to his own room. It was a little awkward to try to turn the doorknob while he was holding Leo, but Mick accomplished it eventually. Upon entering the room Mick was glad to notice that the intoxicating smell of smoke still lingered. The room still smelled liked fire, and Mick wouldn't have it any other way.
Mick didn't bother to turn the light on because, with any luck, Leo would be falling asleep, and Mick knew that he certainly slept better in the dark. Besides, it would take too much effort to flip the stupid switch anyways. So, in the dark, Mick made his way to the bed, sat down, and made sure that he was really comfortable. He had a feeling he would be sitting like this for a while, because it didn't seem like Leo was planning on falling asleep anytime soon.
"So, kid, I guess you're not too tired either?" Mick asked. "Not that I blame you. It's been a crazy day, and something just feels kinda off about this place. Like, it's not normal, you know?" Mick looked down at the kid and was shocked to see that Leo almost looked like he understood what Mick was saying, and completely agreed.
"Who knows, maybe I just think that it's not normal because those freaks that brought us here practically kidnapped us." Mick frowned. Sure, he had come willingly, and regretted the decision almost immediately, but he was pretty sure that Leo and the other babies weren't quite old enough to have made the decision themselves.
The people who had taken them had said that they were in danger, which, yeah, sounded believable enough, which was why Mick had come with them in the first place, but based on what little Mick did know about what was going on, he'd almost rather deal with this danger himself. At least then he'd know what was going on, and he wouldn't be stuck in this place.
That's what this all boiled down to, Mick hated being kept someplace against his will. If he didn't like being somewhere, then he left. If he was in a place that he couldn't just leave from as he pleased, such as juvie, or this stupid orphanage/kidnapped child holding place, Mick became very, very irritated.
Mick had a tendency to become violent when he grew too irritated. Usually Mick would quell the urge to beat the life out the closest person by simply lighting a match. Mick's obsession with fire surpassed even his urges to cause pain. With no matches around to light, Mick had begun to feel the violent urges bubbling within him.
Just sitting here in the dark though, just him and little Leo, Mick could feel himself calming. He certainly had no desires to harm Leo, though Mick couldn't decide whether it was because he couldn't bring himself to harm a baby, or if it was because he actually found he kinda liked this kid.
And, based on how content the kid seemed to be in his arms, Mick was pretty sure that the feeling was mutual. After sitting there for a while, Mick noticed that the kid was beginning to doze off. Finally, Leo fell asleep, and Mick smiled. It was oddly satisfying to know that Leo felt safe enough in his arms to fall asleep.
Mick sighed, leaned back against the wall, and closed his eyes. Watching Leo as he fell asleep had made Mick feel suddenly tired as well. Maybe in the morning Mick would return the small child to its own room, but for now, Mick was glad that it was just the two of them.
Mick woke up a few hours later, thanks to the now shining sun which brought light through his window. Mick groaned, shifted slightly, and tried to just go back to sleep. Just as he was beginning to drift off again, Leo let out a small whine, which jolted Mick awake. He had nearly forgotten about the child still in his arms.
Looking down at said child, Mick saw that Leo was staring at him intently, as if the kid had just been waiting impatiently for him to wake up. What a brat. Mick glared at Leo, who continued staring at him. Looking into the kid's eyes, Mick was surprised at the color. Maybe it was just the way that the light was hitting them, but Leo's eyes were honestly the brightest shade of emerald that Mick had ever seen.
"Those are some eyes you've got there." Mick commented. They were certainly brighter than his own dull green eyes. Leo narrowed his eyes, as if trying to hide what color they were. Mick chuckled.
"Don't worry, kid, I won't tell anybody." Mick assured him. "This'll just stay our secret." Mick adjusted his hold on Leo and got off his bed. Mick went to the door, once again struggled with the doorknob, and made his way back into the hallway. Even though it was fairly early in the morning, he could already hear that all the other kids were up and about, running around and being noisy.
Mick ignored all the kids he passed. They were annoying, sure, but definitely not worth the effort to do anything about it. Though he did send a few warning glares to the kids who had stopped in their tracks and stared at him. Apparently, the sight of him gently holding baby Leo was a strange one. Fortunately, none of the kids said anything about it because, even though Mick had only been there for a day, they were already scared of him.
That was good. It would keep any of the brats from doing or saying something that would upset him and make him do something that they would regret.
Mick made his way down the stairs, turned down the hallway at the bottom, and leaned against the wall next to the door. This spot was quickly becoming Mick's favorite place in this house. He didn't know why he liked it, he just did. Yesterday, before Mick had gotten his room, he had chosen this spot as his 'I'm gonna stand and watch matches burn' spot. At the moment, he wasn't there to burn matches, he couldn't, not until he got more. Mick was just standing there, holding Leo.
"Looks like someone made a friend." Mick snapped his head to the left to see that that Sara chick was watching him. She seemed to be very amused.
"Shut up." Mick snarled. Sadly, Sara wasn't like anyone else in this place. She wasn't the least bit afraid of him, which meant that it she wasn't scared to comment on his newfound fondness for Leo.
"Don't worry, Mick, I'm not judging you." Sara smirked. "Though I am going to say that many people will be concerned about there being such a large age difference between the two of you."
"If you don't shut the hell up right now, I swear I'll-" Mick growled. Sara held up her hands defensively.
"Calm down. I'm just messing with you." Sara smiled and stepped closer. "Really I don't blame you for taking a liking to Leo. He really is an adorable baby." Sara reached out to touch him, but Mick pulled Leo away and growled threateningly. Sara raised an eyebrow.
"Getting a little protective there, don't you think? I'm not going to hurt him. And I won't take him from you either." Sara was fairly sure that those were the reasons why Mick didn't want her touching Leo.
"You'd better not." Mick said in response to both statements.
"How long have you been holding, anyway?" Sara asked. Mick seemed way too attached to Leo considering he had only met him yesterday.
Mick grunted. "Don't know. A few hours, I guess. He was crying last night, and holding him was the only way to shut him up."
"And he's been calm for you ever since?" Sara raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, so what?" Mick looked at Sara and wondered why she sounded so surprised by that. Didn't all babies calm down when being held?
Sara smiled. "The kid must really like you." Sara had done enough babysitting to know that kids, especially infants, didn't stay content for long. Especially not if they were separated from their mother. The fact that Leo had remained so content this whole time said a lot about how the kid felt about Mick.
"Can't imagine why." Mick muttered and looked down at the kid in his arms. After what happened yesterday (or was it two days ago? He wasn't entirely sure.) Mick didn't really like himself very much. So it was a little strange to hear that this kid liked him, a lot. Mick didn't really mind though, because he honestly liked the kid too.
"You know, you can't hold him forever." Sara pointed out. Mick glared at her and tightened his hold on Leo in a possessive way.
"Yeah? Says who?." Mick asked, his tone just daring Sara, or anybody else, to try to take Leo from him. Mick didn't wait for Sara to answer. He just walked away, taking Leo with him. This kid was his now, and Mick was prepared to burn anybody who tried to take him away.
At first, the woman who was in charge of this place had not been very happy with Mick's newfound fondness for Leo. She thought that Mick was too temperamental and dangerous to be around Leo, or any of the smaller children, at all. Fortunately she quickly learned that both Mick and Leo were calmer when in each other's presence.
Mick was much less likely to set something on fire if his hands were already occupied with holding Leo. As for Leo, well, as calm and quiet as he was when he was with Mick, he was quite the opposite if he wasn't in the older boy's presence. Honestly, it went better for everybody if she just let the two boys stay in each other's company.
In the next month, Mick and Len had become practically inseparable. Len's crib had even been moved into Mick's room because the lady that ran the place had simply grown tired of Mick constantly stealing the child out of its room into his own. Mick spent a lot of time with Leo, but even the two of them weren't together constantly. Leo was, after all, just a baby, and babies often took naps during the day. Whenever Leo was sleeping, Mick took the opportunity to go downstairs to the spot by the door. There, Mick would light a match (he finally got around to finding more) and watch it burn, same as he always did.
Usually, Mick would get instantly lost in the flame. He would become so mesmerized by watching the fire that he wouldn't even notice anything else going on around him. This time wasn't much different. As Mick watched the flame dance before him, he only vaguely noticed that people who weren't children were making their way up the stairs. One of them may or may not have said something to him, Mick didn't really notice.
A small part of Mick's brain told him that something weird was up. That it was a little strange that there were other adults here, because in the month that he'd been here, aside from that first day, the only adult that Mick ever saw was the woman in charge. No one else. The larger part of Mick's brain though really wasn't concerned enough to actually bother checking it out.
That was, until he heard a sound that he had become all too familiar with. Leo's crying.
Mick snapped his eyes towards the stairs. Something was wrong. Leo was supposed to be sound asleep, safe in Mick's room. It had only been a few minutes since Leo had fallen asleep, so he really shouldn't be awake now. Not unless something, or someone, had woken him up. Swearing under his breath Mick bounded up the steps two at a time and ran to his room. What he saw there made his blood boil.
One of those freaks that had practically kidnapped him and Leo, and, you know, a few others, was standing next to Leo's crib, holding the crying baby, trying to calm him down. Mick recognized this chick. She was the brown haired one who had handed Leo to Mick in the first place. Mick had no idea what she was doing here, or why she was holding Leo. All he knew was that she had woken Leo up, made him cry, and that was not okay.
"Put the baby down." Mick growled. He held up the match he was holding which, surprisingly, was still burning, in an unspoken threat that if she did not do what he had just told her to, he would burn her. He may only have one small match, but, by experimenting on himself, Mick had learned just how much pain could be caused by such a small flame.
"Alright. Just calm down." The woman slowly put Leo back and then raised her hands up to show that she wasn't a threat, but Mick wasn't buying it. Mick moved forward, shoved the woman out of the way, and did a quick check to make sure that Leo was okay. He didn't seem to be hurt, just a little scared. Still, Mick was going to make this woman pay. Before he could do anything though, another woman, a blonde one, appeared in the doorway.
"Kendra, what's taking you so long? Just grab baby Snart and let's-" She trailed off when she saw Mick standing there, glaring at the two of them. She noticed how tense Mick was and how he seemed to place himself between little Leo and the two of them. Blondie sighed and approached him. "Mick, we're not going to hurt him, or you, we just-"
"You want to take him." Mick said. He may be dumb, but he could hear just fine, and she had just barely said that they were going to take Leo. He wasn't going to let them. He didn't trust these two, or any of their friends.
"What's going on in here?" A bored voice drawled out. Standing in the doorway now were two more newcomers. The one who had spoken had a cold, smug expression. The other one was the man who reminded Mick of his dad. Mick frowned. Great. Why was everybody suddenly deciding that what was going on in his room was worth their attention?
"Nothing, Leonard." Blondie said. She sounded nearly as frustrated as Mick felt. "Rory's just being difficult."
"So what else is new?" Leonard smirked.
"Seriously though guys, we have this under control." Kendra said.
"Oh, you think so?" Leonard raised an eyebrow. His companion snorted.
"Absolutely." Kendra said stubbornly. She turned back to Mick and softened her gaze in a way that he absolutely hated. He didn't want her, or anybody else, to be gentle or understanding toward him, he just wanted everybody to leave him and Leo the hell alone.
"So, uh, Mick, I promise you that we won't hurt either of you, we're just here to take the two of you home, okay?" Kendra said in a patronizingly nice tone that made Mick feel sick. Yeah, she sounded nice, but also exceedingly fake.
"You mean you're here to try to take him home." Mick nodded toward Leo. "As for me, I don't have a home." Not since he had burned it down, or had this Kendra chick conveniently forgotten about that? Based on her stricken expression, yeah, she had totally forgotten about that.
"Mick, I-" Kendra looked like she was about to apologize, which infuriated Mick even further. He didn't want her freaking apologies! Thankfully, Leonard cut in before Kendra could say anything more.
"Alright, I think that's enough." Leonard turned a cold gaze to Kendra. "We'll take it from here."
"You think you can do better?" Kendra crossed her arms.
"Oh, I know I can." Leonard said smugly. "Now leave. Both of you." Leonard moved his gaze to blondie, who smirked at him, a knowing look in her eyes. Without argument, blondie left the room, dragging Kendra behind her. The second they were out the door the big guy, the one that reminded Mick of his dad, closed it.
"Now that we're alone, I want to make one thing perfectly clear. I'm only going to say this once, so listen very, very carefully." Leonard said. His tone was even more patronizing than Kendra's was, but Mick found that he wasn't insulted by it. He had the feeling that Leonard spoke to everybody this way.
"You may not have a home now," Leonard continued, "But he does, and we have to take him back, sooner rather than later."
"Why?" Mick asked. "What's the big deal? You guys took Leo from that place a month ago. I'm sure, by now, his parent's have given up on trying to find him, and-"
"His parents?" The other man (Mick had no idea what his name was, and he really didn't care) snorted. "They won't even notice he was gone."
Mick's eyes widened. "You want me to just let you take Leo back to a family who haven't noticed he was missing after a month?" Were these guys insane? And, more to the point, what kind of parent's didn't even realize that their newborn child was missing?
"How about you let us worry about that?" Leonard suggested, though it sounded more like a demand. Mick stiffened.
"How 'bout not?" Mick crossed his arms. "Why should I let you take Leo from me?" And no, Mick did not think that 'because he needs to go back to his parents who may or may not miss him' was a good enough reason.
"Look, I know that you care about Leo." Leonard actually looked uncomfortable when he said that, and Mick felt uncomfortable as well. Feelings and caring about someone else wasn't exactly something that Mick was familiar with, however, Leonard was right. As awkward as it felt, Mick did care about Leo, a lot.
"And you would do anything to protect him, right?" Leonard continued as he ignored his partner shifting uncomfortably behind him.
"Of course." Mick answered.
"Someday, Mick, Leo will have somebody of his own that he would do anything to protect." Leonard said, and by now his tone was less patronizing and more heartfelt. Mick could hear the emotion in Leonard's voice, and it was surprising, but he almost sounded scared. "And he can't protect her unless we get him home before it's too late." Mick could tell that Leonard knew what he was talking about, though he couldn't imagine how this man seemed to know.
Mick fell silent and considered what he should do. He certainly didn't want to give up Leo, but he could tell that it was important to these guys that they take Leo home. Sure, now they were giving Mick a chance to let them take Leo, but if he refused Mick knew that they could easily overpower him and just take Leo anyways.
"I don't want to lose him." Mick said quietly. He knew that these guys had a point, that Leo had a family to go back to. Mick understood that, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
"You won't." Leonard's friend in the corner grunted. "Trust me, you'll see Leo again, and sooner than you think. But only if you let us take him. Now."
Mick frowned and looked down at Leo, who was staring back up at him curiously. Maybe these guys were right. They certainly sounded like they knew what they were talking about. Mick still wasn't very happy about this plan, but, really, what choice did he have? If he didn't let them take Leo, what would he do?
It wasn't like Mick and Leo could just stay in this stupid orphanage forever. Absolutely not! Mick hated this place, and the sooner he got away from here, the better. Mick didn't have a home to go back to anymore, which meant he would have to live off the streets, because there was no way in hell he was going to let himself get put in another orphanage or foster home.
Mick knew that living on the streets would be hard enough if it was just him he had to worry about. And if he took Leo with him...no, that wasn't even a possibility. It would be suicide, for both of them.
As Mick thought and tried to figure out what to do, or, more like, while he tried to accept what he knew had to be done, his bedroom door was thrown open once again. This time by a very annoyed and very flustered looking man wearing a long coat.
"Gentlemen, in case you've forgotten, we are under a tight schedule and must be going now." The man said.
"Give us a minute." Leonard said coldly.
"We do not have a minute." The man said exasperatedly. "We need to return these two and the others. Now!"
Leonard's grumpy friend frowned. "I guess we'll have to go with plan B then." He reached into his coat, brought out a...was that a gun? Before Mick could react or even think about defending himself, the guy took the gun, came at Mick, and hit him over the head with it, hard. Instantly knocking him out.
When Mick came to, his first coherent thought was that he wished he was still unconscious, because his head was killing him. Mick waited until the throbbing of his head became a little less painful before he opened his eyes and saw that he was outside in a field. Mick immediately closed his eyes again, because damn it, the sun was bright.
It took Mick a minute to come to the conclusion that, since he was outside, that must mean he was no longer in the stupid orphanage anymore...well, at least he had that going for him. Mick didn't know exactly where he was, though he felt that he should. Mick didn't push himself too hard to remember though, because that required thinking, and his head was hurting enough as it is. He would figure out where he was when his head stopped feeling like it was going to explode.
Mick groaned and just laid there in the grass as he waited for the pain to die down a bit more. A few minutes later his thoughts became a little clearer and he began to remember what had happened, his conversation with Leonard, that guy knocking him out, them all trying to take Leo…Leo!
Mick's eyes snapped open and he quickly sat up...only to fall back to the ground in a groan of pain. Mick made a mental note to himself. Don't make sudden movements when you possibly have a concussion. It will hurt!
Mick lay on the ground, his breathing harsh and quick, which had nothing to do with his concussion and everything to do with his anger and panic about what had happened back there. Those freaks had knocked him out! And they had stolen Leo from him, which was completely unforgivable. The next time he saw any of their faces, he would not hesitate to burn them.
Speaking of burning things, Mick was fairly certain that he smelled smoke, a lot of it. Something big around here had been burning recently. Curious, Mick forced his eyes open and sat up again, slowly this time. In front of him was just more fields, so Mick looked to the left and gasped at what he saw. A burned down house.
His burned down house! No wonder these fields had looked familiar. He was back on his family's farm, except, that just wasn't possible. To Mick, it had been a month since he had been here, since the fire, since his parents had...No! Mick forced the thought out of his head. He couldn't think about them, not now.
Despite a month having passed though, the ruins of the house were still, miraculously, smoldering. The fire still wasn't completely out. If Mick didn't know any better, he would think that his family's farm house had just burned down last night. That only a few hours had passed.
But that just wasn't possible.
Another thing that indicated that the house had burned down just a few hours before was the fact that Mick could still see some firefighters near the house, along with some...cops. Mick felt panic rise within him. The last thing he wanted to do was deal with any cops right now. Mick lowered himself closer to the ground and hoped that none of them noticed him out here.
"Hey, you!"
...Of course he wouldn't be so lucky. One of the officers had spotted Mick and was heading his way, possibly to just ask some questions, possibly to arrest him. Mick wasn't about to wait around to find out. Without thinking, Mick shot to his feet and began to run. Mick had barely made it ten feet before falling to his knees, hands at his head, which was hurting more than ever. It felt like his head was on fire, and not in a good way.
Mick felt dizzy and nauseous and just wanted the pain to stop. He couldn't believe he had been so stupid as to run like that. First off, because if sitting up too quickly made his head hurt more, of course running would be even worse. The second reason that running was a stupid idea is because there was a freaking cop there! If the guy hadn't thought that Mick was suspicious earlier, he certainly did now.
And that was how Mick found himself arrested.
It didn't take long for the cops to figure out who he was and, based on his previous history of arsonry, that he was the cause of the fire.
Mick was extremely fortunate that the judge at his trial was sympathetic. She saw that, although he had been sent to juvie before for arsonry, nobody had ever been hurt or killed those other times. The fact that Mick's parents had died this time and he actually seemed pretty torn up about it (because he was. He had never meant for things to get so out of control.) caused the judge to conclude that the fire, though not an accident, hadn't been entirely intentional. She recognized that, yes, he had messed around with fire, but he hadn't meant for it to get as bad as it did.
The judge decided to sentence him to juvie, with a chance at parole when he had served half his sentence, and told him that this was his final warning. Mick considered himself lucky. She could have just as easily decided to try him as an adult, and Mick didn't think he was quite ready to be the new fish again.
So Mick wound up in juvie, for the third time in a row. He still didn't like it here, but, seriously though, who did like it in juvie or prison? But at least this place was tolerable. Mick got sent to the same juvenile center that he'd been sent to those other times, so he already had a reputation to lean on, both with the inmates and the guards.
Mick had spent his other two sentences building up his reputation. Intimidating the inmates, bribing the guards, and getting into fights whenever he was challenged by anybody. Yeah, it had been tough, but worth it because this time around, nobody even thought about messing with him.
Since his standing was solid, Mick didn't bother with getting in petty fights with the other inmates. Unless somebody else gave him trouble, he wouldn't give anybody else trouble. Mick knew that the more he behaved himself, the more likely his chance at getting parole was, and the sooner he got out of this place, the sooner he could begin trying to find Leo.
No, Mick had not forgotten about Leo, and he wasn't gonna. Those freaks had stolen the kid from him, and Mick was determined to get him back. He didn't care how long it took, though he was annoyed at the delay that being in juvie caused.
Seriously, being locked up sucked.
The best part of any day in juvie was when the inmates were allowed yard time. Mick enjoyed just the small bit of limited freedom they were able to get when out in the yard. Yeah, you still had the guards watching your every move, but sometimes the guards can be swayed. Just throw a little money their way, and they'll turn a blind eye to a bit of rule breaking.
That was how Mick was able to enjoy his yard time as he pleased, by burning matches and watching the flames dance. He had connections with one of the guards who supplied him with the matches, just so long as he didn't use them to burn anybody else. And, thanks to a bit of bribery, the rest of the guards turned a blind eye.
One day, a few weeks into his sentence, Mick started off yard time same as usual. He sat at the bleachers, lit matches, and got lost in the fire. After one of his matches had burned out, Mick began to reach for another one when he heard the sounds of a fight going on. Mick, who loved a good fight as much as the next con did, got up and joined the already forming crowd. Mick pushed his way to the front and began to watch the fight, though, based on the six against one odds, Mick was pretty sure this was more of a beat-down.
The poor sap that was the victim was some scrawny looking kid, one of the new fishes that had arrived just earlier that day. Mick was surprised. It was fairly normal for fishes to be roughed up a bit upon arrival, but not like this. Usually, this sort of attack was for personal reasons, which brought up the question; What the hell could this punk have done to piss off these guys so much.
The weirdest thing about this scenario though was that it was still going. In Mick's experience, just when things were starting to get good, the badges put an end to it like the spoilsports that they were. Usually, the guards put a stop to any and all fights long before they attracted an audience. Now though, the guards hadn't done a single thing to stop the fight.
Mick tore his eyes away from the show just long enough to look towards the fence and see that, yeah, the guards had definitely noticed that something was going on, but none of them showed even a sign of wanting to stop it. In fact, some of the guards seemed as entertained by the fight as many of the inmates were.
Alright, so this kid hadn't just pissed off some of the more violent prisoners, but he had also somehow gotten on the guards' bad side too? And it was just his first day here!
Who the hell was this kid?
Whoever he was, he was still being beat up, badly. It took some time, but the kid did finally stop trying to fight back. Mick couldn't help but be disappointed by this. He had liked the defiant spark.
The con who had probably started this whole thing, Jake Morson, grabbed the kid by his shirt. "You learn your lesson yet, fish?"
The kid's response was a cold, hard glare. Instead of backing down or begging, which was what most anybody else would do, the kid did what nobody expected. He spat at his attacker. The yard fell silent.
Mick raised in eyebrow. This kid had guts. Mick was impressed. Jack was not.
Jake snarled and wiped the saliva and blood off his face. "You're gonna regret that." He said viciously. Jake reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiv. For the first time since this beating had started, a look of fear came across the kid's face. This was no longer just a beat-down. This guy was planning on killing him!
The kid's eyes began darting left and right as he tried to find an escape, but there was none. He was surrounded. Trapped. As he searched in vain for an escape, the kid's eyes briefly met with Mick's.
The kid's bright, emerald green eyes that Mick would recognize anywhere. He had only met one person with that color of eyes.
Mick acted purely on protective instinct. Without thinking about it, he leapt forward and punched Jake right in the face, strong enough to knock him to the ground. Mick quickly snatched the shiv that Jake had been holding and, before anybody could blink, Mick had the weapon pressed threateningly against Jake's throat.
"If you even think about touching this kid again-" Mick's words trailed off, but he was sure he didn't have to finish his threat. Usually, a shiv to the neck sent a pretty clear message. Jake glared up at Mick and said nothing. Mick increased the pressure of the shiv against Jake's neck, causing the weapon to break the skin and draw some blood. Jake conceded.
"Whatever you say, Rory." Jake growled.
Satisfied, Mick stood up. He turned his glare to everybody else. "This kid's under my protection. You got a problem with him, you'll have to go through me." All of the inmates had either seen Mick in action before, or had heard about the aftermath. Nobody wanted to be the next person to get on his bad side. Reluctantly, everybody dispersed and went back to what they were doing earlier, though none of them were happy about the loss of entertainment. Mick was sure they would get over it though, because he was planning on teaching the six punks who had been involved in the fight a lesson they would never forget, and everybody was welcome to watch.
That would have to wait until later though. Mick had other things to deal with first.
"You alright?" Mick turned back to the kid who was still on the ground. The kid was watching him, studying him, as if trying to figure out what to make of him. Well, some things never changed. Mick held out his hand to help the kid up, but the brat wouldn't take it. The kid's gaze hardened, eyes full of suspicion toward him
"I just saved your butt. I ain't gonna hurt you." Mick snorted. "My name's Mick Rory."
"...Leonard Snart." The kid said. He still seemed cautious, but he took Mick's hand anyway.
Leonard…
Leo.
I found you. Mick thought to himself as he helped Leo to his feet. As soon as he was standing, Leo snatched his hand away from Mick's as if he'd been burned. Mick didn't get offended by the kid not wanting to be touched. He'd just been beat up, so a little caution was understandable.
"Can you walk?" Mick asked. He could see the fierce look still in Jake's eyes. That guy and his friends were still raring for a fight. Mick had to get Leo away from here before any of these guys got any ideas, and if Leo didn't want Mick to touch him, that meant that carrying was not an option.
"I'm fine." The kid said indignantly.
"Whatever you say, kid." Mick snorted again. "Come on, we gotta get those wounds taken care of. Unless, of course, you would rather stay out here and go another round?"
Leo frowned, but followed Mick back inside. They moved slowly, with Mick in the lead and Leo limping behind after him. Every step seemed to cause pain to Leo, but, stubbornly, he didn't complain or ask for assistance.
"This isn't the way to the infirmary." Leo commented as they turned down a hallway.
"The infirmary? Please, they wouldn't do a damn thing for you." Mick growled. "The docs won't even see you unless you're dying." He was only exaggerating a little. "No, we're taking care of this in my cell."
There was no more talking between the two of them until they got to Mick's cell. "Sit." Mick said gruffly as he began to gather some things. Leo hissed in pain as he sat down at the edge of Mick's bed. Mick knelt in front of Leo with a water bottle and scraps cloth from a shirt that he had ripped up. Mick wet one of the cloth pieces and handed it to Leo who used it to stop the blood flow that was coming from his nose.
"Thanks." Leo said awkwardly.
"What did you do to get on Morson's bad side anyway?" Mick asked as he used another damp cloth to try to clean the bloody scrapes on Leo's face. The younger boy shrugged.
"I don't know, next time they jump me though, I'll be sure to ask them why." Leo said with sarcasm dripping from his voice. Mick smirked. He was pretty sure their reasons had something to do with Leo's big mouth.
"What about the guards?" Mick asked. Leo scowled and clenched his fists.
"I didn't do anything." Leo said angrily.
"Yeah? Then who did?" Mick scoffed, because, as messed up as the guards were, he highly doubted that they all just suddenly decided to hate the new fish for no reason.
Leo glared at Mick, but, surprisingly, said nothing. This surprised Mick. Even though he didn't know this kid that well, Leo struck him as the kind of person who made snarky, sarcastic comments any chance that he could get. So, for Leo to keep his mouth shut about anything was kinda weird.
"C'mon, Snart, what happened?" Mick asked and then realized that the kid's last name sounded familiar. Well, yeah, it should, considering baby Snart was what that blonde chick had called Leo back at the orphanage. But Mick was pretty sure that he knew that name from somewhere else.
It took a minute for Mick to remember. Snart was the name of an ex-cop who had turned to crime a few years back. A lot of the cons in Central City talked about this guy. Snart had a reputation for killing anybody who even looked at him the wrong way. He also did a lot of work for the crime families, and it was only because of their protection that Snart always seemed to avoid arrest because, from what Mick had heard, the guy was an idiot. He was too hasty in his crimes, made too many obvious mistakes.
And, of course, Snart had a reputation for being a crooked cop...which probably explained why the guard's seemed to hate Leo so much. If there was one thing that badges hated more than cons, it was a badge turned con, somebody who went to the dark side. So, when Snart's kid (Mick was fairly certain that Leo was Snart's son. After all, it wasn't like Snart was a very common last name) wound up in juvie, the badges just let him get pummeled, and almost killed. They probably saw it all as some sick kind of justice.
"The badges not like your old man much?" Mick asked.
"They wouldn't be the first ones." Leo said, and Mick got the feeling that he included himself on that list of people that didn't like his dad. Mick didn't ask though. If Leo wanted to talk about his crappy father, he would.
"Alright, you need to take your shirt off." Mick said a short while later. He had been able to clean up Leo's face a bit, so that he no longer looked like he got hit by a truck. Mick was sure that Leo's injuries extended past just what could be seen.
Leo glared at Mick and scooted away from him. "I'm fine." He insisted.
"Yeah, sure." Mick took his hand and pushed lightly against Leo's chest, which caused the smaller boy to give a harsh cry of pain.
"Fine my ass." Mick said. "You're hurt, and I need to see how bad it is. If you don't take your shirt off willingly, then I'll take it off for you, and I promise it will not be a pleasant experience."
Leo's icy glare grew even harder and colder, but Mick stood firm. Finally, Leo sighed, scowled, and began to slowly, and ever so gently, take his shirt off. Now that Mick could see Leo's bare chest, he could understand why the kid had been so reluctant about taking his shirt off.
Mick had been expecting to see injuries and wounds. The boy had just been beat up after all. What caught Mick off guard was that the worst and most painful looking of these injuries looked older. There were plenty of scratches and cuts that were either nearly healed or scarred. Leo was also covered in bruises, and Mick knew that there was no way they could have been from today, because bruises didn't often form that quickly. Mick forced his eyes away from the wounds and looked back at Leo's face, but the kid refused to meet his eyes. Leo looked at the ground, ashamed. Dejected. Broken.
"Damn, Leo, what the hell happened to you?" Mick asked. He reached out to touch Leo, but the kid pulled away and glared at Mick harshly.
"Don't call me that!" The kid growled.
"Is that what your dad calls you?" Mick asked. The younger boy flinched.
"Just-don't call me that...please." Leo begged.
"Alright, Lenny, I won't." Mick said gently. Leo's eyes widened in surprise.
"What? You think I'm actually going to call you Leonard?" Mick chuckled.
"Lenny." The kid tested his new nickname. "Len...I think I can live with that."
"Good, now scoot over." Mick told Len, who obliged willingly. Mick sat on the bed next to Len Mick took one of the pieces of cloth and got it wet. "I warn you, this will probably sting a bit." Len nodded and braced himself. Mick took the cloth and, as gently as he could, began to dab at a nasty looking cut looked like it had been older but had been reopened. Len sucked in a breath and tensed, but didn't pull away. He waited patiently as Mick tried his best to clean the area around the cut.
"I don't know how much help this'll be." Mick muttered as he tended to, not just the cut, but all of Len's injuries. The kid just looked like he should be in so much pain, and Mick wanted to ease that pain. Though, he knew that there was only so much he could do with an old shirt and a water bottle.
"It's fine." And for once the kid's words weren't just him being stubborn or trying to hide his pain. Len was just trying to put Mick's mind at ease. "It actually feels good." Len closed his eyes and leaned his head against Mick's shoulder. It was the older boy's turn to tense, but when he saw that Len was actually starting to relax, Mick relaxed as well.
"Thank you, Mick." Len said quietly. Mick smiled and gently put a protective arm around Len's shoulders, drawing him closer.
"Get some rest, Lenny." Mick said. He could tell that the kid was tired. "I'll watch over you."
It didn't take long for Len to fall asleep. Mick felt a strange sense of pride that, even after all of this time, well, for Len, at least, the kid still felt safe enough around Mick to fall asleep. Len trusted that Mick wouldn't hurt him while he was vulnerable.
Mick, of course, would never hurt Len, especially not when he was vulnerable and unable to defend himself. Mick would protect Len, and always have his back, and nobody was going to take this kid away from him again. Not the badges or other inmates, not Len's bastard father, and definitely not those time-traveling jerks (Mick was sure that was what they were. It was the only thing that made sense!)
Lenny was his, and nobody was going to change that.
A/N: Yes! I finally finished it! Seriously, this thing took a while to write. Then again, it is much longer than my usual one-shot or chapter length, so I guess that's to be expected.
And yes, I did make Len's eyes green, not blue. I blame Prison Break for that, because I remember watching the show and in one scene, Michael's eyes are just the most beautiful shade of emerald green, and now I can't imagine him, or Len, with another eye color. I don't care what Michael's mother says in the show, his eyes are definitely green.
Prison Break influenced quite a bit in this story, like the juvie stuff, and the relationship between Mick and Len. There were actually several times while writing this that I almost typed Lincoln instead of Mick.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it.