There was something off about Kon's new friend. Despite the fact that he had met the boy in Gotham of all places and he happened to know about their secret identities there was still something off about him. He looked normal enough coming from a place so decrepit most people had moved. His hair was slicked in a style Clark didn't even know still existed among the young kids. Face handsome with only a slight hint of baby fat. All in all Tim looked like any seventeen year old kid. Apart from his eyes. Shrewd and calculating it was no wonder Kon couldn't keep his identity from the boy.
"Thank you for dinner Mr Kent," He was polite too. No accent seeping through his RP which made it that much harder for Clark to place what was odd.
"It was no problem. I'm just glad Kon made a new friend," The teen had even sworn not to tell about their identities. He was practically an ideal friend for Kon. One of the not superhero variety.
"Urgh, he makes it sound like I'm seven," Kon shared a withered look with Tim "He lets me fight crime yet when it comes to ordinary matters it's like I'm still a kid."
"You are still a kid," Clark pointed out "Only four years old by my estimation." Kon rolled his eyes as Tim chuckled politely.
"See. I bet your dad doesn't treat you like this," Clark perked up. Anything new about Tim was interesting.
"Worse," Tim grimaced slightly "He means well and I see where he's coming from but he's still overprotective. I had to sneak out to visit you here."
"You mean he doesn't know you're here?" Clark had visions of cops swarming the place. It would just be his luck not to be put away for vigilantism but kidnapping of some kid Kon brought over for dinner.
"He does," Tim reassured "He just had trouble letting me go so I saved him the hassle."
"Badass," Kon muttered.
"So long as he knows you're here," Clark said weakly and went to throw away their take out box.
For most of the evening Tim had been helping Kon with his homework. Clark had butted in that Kon needed to learn to do it himself but Tim had insisted. From that Clark had learnt that Tim was quite smart. He had barked out answers as fast as Kon ate pizza and pretty soon they were done and moving onto the games Kon had accumulated.
Right now it was a stand-off in Mario cart. Tim had just looped over Kon's car when the door went. Leaving them to their shouting match Clark opened the door to find another teen on the other side.
"Tim here?" Clark felt himself nodding.
"Is he mad?" He jumped a foot in the air. Not hearing Tim move it was a surprise to see him standing so close. Even more when he saw Kon double take where Tim had been sitting to his new position by the door.
"What do you think?" What could only be Tim's brother drawled. Slick black hair that escaped in two strands on his forehead he looked just as elegant as Tim. With this teen though there was no denying that there was something dangerous about him.
Tim turned to Kon on the couch "I have to go. It was nice coming here," To Clark "Thank you for letting me stay over."
"You're welcome," Clark heard himself say and then they were gone.
For three hours after Tim left Clark was subjected to drawn out whining and pouting from Kon. 'Why couldn't you have offered to let him stay the night?' 'Do you honestly hate me that much?' 'Why don't you like any of my friends?'
Clark answered each question as best he could. No, he didn't hate all of Kon's friends. Just maybe this one. He didn't feel right around the boy and having Kon spend time alone with him without Clark there made him feel a bit overprotective.
Finally Kon let the subject lie. If only because Tim had texted him and he was too busy replying to do otherwise. He stayed up a few hours longer if only to make sure Kon didn't spend all night up talking to Tim. He knew it was cruel but experience had taught him that it was the only way to receive one well rested Kryptonian so he took Kon's phone off him when midnight came. He wasn't surprised when the first thing Kon did as he woke was sneak into Clark's room and steal his phone back.
The mystery of Tim's oddness plagued him all day at work. Kon had pouted all morning when Tim didn't reply to him. Clark thought this was maybe good news. Perhaps their friendship would be short lived. That all changed when he walked through the door at nine with take out and found the boy back in his living room.
"Kon said it was alright," Clark just nodded and set the take away on the bench. "He went to go save some child from a rapist. He said he wouldn't be long."
"No, no. You're always welcome here," the words tasted bitter in his mouth. Really he had nothing to fear. Kon was invulnerable, there was no way this boy could hurt him. Then again, Gotham had an unusual amount of Kryptonite stored in its streets... "I got Chinese, just help yourself."
For the second night that week Tim and Kon played games and acted like any normal teenager would. Then at eleven the door went and once again Tim's brother was glaring his way into Clark's apartment. Nothing was said between the two boys this evening except pointed glares at each other. With the promise of talking tomorrow Tim was gone and Clark endured almost the same night as the one before with Kon.
"He thinks you don't like him," Kon accused.
"When did he say that?" Clark challenged.
Kon faltered "He didn't have to. Why else would he have his brother come and 'get him'."
"Maybe because it's late and he needs to go home. Kon not everyone can do what you want them to," That had the teen slamming into his room and holing himself there the rest of the night. Sometimes he wondered if it would have been better to keep Kon at the farm for a couple more years. Ma and Pa always knew the right thing to say.
The next morning Clark stumbled into the kitchen to see Kon pouting over his phone again. It seemed his anger at Clark hadn't dissipated during the night since the look he sent him was as cold as their fortress.
Clark internally moaned at himself as he sat across from him "How about you ask him if he wants to spend the night."
Kon's eyes narrowed "Really?" Clark nodded and watched as Kon internally lit up. He kept a nonchalant façade as he typed quickly on his phone "I'll ask him."
Around five as he finished typing an article up he received a text. One frowny face had Clark beaming before he read the rest of it. 'He said no, but his dad asked if we wanted to attend a party he's having?' Clark could already foresee the endless nights of begging ahead and asked when it was.
Thursday the following week Kon had Clark in every single shop Metropolis had to offer. "We need something classy!" was his excuse. The party was fancy dress and Kon was on a mission to impress Tim with their 'totally awesome costumes'.
"Classy? This is fancy dress. I say we borrow one of the league's suits and go as, I dunno, Aquaman and Aqualad," He got a glare for his suggestion.
"We can't go as other superheroes. That's just lame," Kon twisted his face "Besides, Aqualad? Last time I tried to try his outfit on he punched me in the kidneys."
Clark grinned "Alright not Aqualad. So what do you want to go as?"
Kon thought about it for a while "Well Tim already knows we're Superman and Superboy. Maybe we can-"
"No," he wasn't going to chance it "We're going to a party. Just because Tim knows who you are doesn't mean everyone does."
"Oh come on!" Kon whined "Well why don't I go as Superman and you Superboy. You know, switch it up a bit." Clark shook his head. He wasn't going to chance it. "Then how about we modify it. Tim really wants to see me in my outfit." Ah, so that's what this was about.
"Can't you just show him another time?" Kon shook his head.
"It's a party. Probably the only time I can wear something Super without being noticed," Clark didn't have the energy to fight with the lack of logic in Kon's argument.
"Alright fine. But we're modifying it!" Clark called as Kon ran off to the next fancy dress shop down the street.
Saturday night had the pair of them dressed like eighteenth century nobles. Tight pants and a long buttoned tail coat the same colour as his Super suit. Kon had spent the better part of Friday dedicatedly painting 'S' onto their coats and lace shirts. The effect was subtle and Clark was honestly impressed with the pair of them.
They didn't bother getting the train to Gotham. Flying was quicker and had them arriving just a bit later than the time Tim had specified. The manor they found matching the description the teen gave blended in with Clark's ideal of Gotham. Dark, old and foreboding it loomed over luscious greens that somehow grew in the lack of sunlight Gotham provided.
Tim's brother answered the door. He looked a little shocked to see them but waved them in when Tim came to see who it was.
"I didn't think you would come," The boy grinned. He was dressed in an elegant suit and compared with his brother stood out from their small group. It seemed that Jason, as he introduced himself, was a bit of a zombie fan. Bloodied from head to toe and wearing some kind of acrobat uniform that was torn in places he made quite a spectacle.
"You look great," Clark complimented.
The boy bared his teeth in an imitation of a smile "So do you. Shame we weren't expecting you."
Tim elbowed him "I told Dad they were coming. It's not my fault nor theirs that you weren't notified."
They came to the ballroom where Tim quickly dragged Kon off to a corner to show off some new games system sitting on the table. Clark stood with Jason not really knowing what to do with himself.
"Are we the first ones here?" Jason smirked at the question and sidled off to somewhere other than the ballroom.
It was empty. No one but the three of them were there. Clark felt intrusive and awkward as the minutes passed and he accepted that there wasn't a fancy dress party. Not one with other people at least since Jason was most definitely in costume.
Rubbing his neck for lack of things to do he finally spotted a balcony. Perhaps he could wait out a couple of hours while Tim and Kon amused themselves before dragging the little traitor back home. It was the best idea he could come up with and by the time he was fully on board he was opening the balcony doors and slipping out.
Smoke hit him full in the face. Coughing and blinking to adjust around the fog he spotted a man already occupying the balcony.
"Sorry," the man said, snuffing out the smoke in a few quick movements.
"That's alright," Clark waved off "You know, smoke really isn't good for your lungs."
"You sound like my ex," The man chuckled and twisted what Clark saw was a pipe around his fingers. Clark wondered if he was a guest at this party or one of Tim's family. So far he was hoping for guest. The costume was different from what he had already seen of the family. A full body suit complete with a cowl and cape that obscured his features from view. It looked quite old from the worn look of the fabric and scratches adorning the plating. Clark was just admiring the bat symbol scraped along his chest when all hopes of him being another guest were quelled with four words "You must be Clark."
Sighing he held his hand out "Pleased to meet you. I'm guessing you're Tim's dad?"
The man smiled slightly beneath his cowl "Bruce. I was quite surprised when Tim insisted the two of you come. He's quite taken with your... son?"
"Tell me about it," He wasn't going to correct the man. Quite frankly he himself didn't know what Kon and he were to each other. "I took Kon's phone away from him for an hour the other day and he didn't speak to me until I gave it back. Apparently I had interrupted an 'important conversation'."
"That's nothing. I told Tim to tidy his room and had apparently interrupted another 'important conversation'. Not only did he pay Damian to clean it for him but he spent the rest of the night making messes around the manor so I was too busy to ask him to do something again," Clark laughed outright at that.
"I take it Damian's one of Tim's brothers," Bruce nodded. "So that's Damian, Jason, Tim..."
"Cass, Dick and Steph," Bruce finished.
"You have a large family," Clark noted. Bruce shrugged. "Not that it's bad. I always wanted a large family myself."
"It used to be larger," Clark didn't ask more about that. Somehow Bruce's tone suggested it wasn't a nice story.
Looking for a change in conversation his eyes revisited the pipe resting in Bruce's gloved hand "I didn't know anyone under fifty still smoked those."
"How do you know I'm under fifty?" Clark smirked at Bruce's point. With the cowl on it was hard to judge just how old Bruce was.
"I don't I guess," He listened in the next room and heard Kon move upstairs with Tim. Still no one had entered the ball room except for himself and Kon. "Is there actually a fancy dress party or have I been duped?"
Bruce hummed and glanced inside "There is a party, and it is fancy dress. However you're the only guests that aren't part of the family."
"I thought so," Clark sighed.
"Tim said you would like to come and it is his birthday. It seemed foolish to deny his request," That explained the new games system conveniently located in the ballroom.
"I didn't bring him anything," Clark admitted guiltily.
"I didn't expect you to. Tim has a way of overlooking what others would assume is important," Clark still felt guilty. "Besides, I've bought him enough things over the years that anything you brought would have been dim in comparison."
"Gee thanks," Clark mumbled.
"I meant no disrespect," Bruce hopped up on the balcony ledge. "It's just that he's a very spoilt boy."
Clark looked over Bruce again. "So, fancy dress. Tim's idea?" Bruce nodded. "What did you come as then?"
Bruce looked down at his costume "There was a theme... You wouldn't get it."
Clark didn't want to pry "Fair enough." He still couldn't help look over the costume again. Something about it was just screaming familiar at him "You know, you look like some people I know. They wear similar clothes to that."
"You mean the league?" Clark felt his eyes widen. Kon said Tim swore he wouldn't tell. "It wasn't hard to connect the dots. You're practically wearing your super suit Superman."
"Kon said we would have blended in," He defended.
"And you probably would have," Bruce gave him. "But it's just you, me and a horde of my children. One who is quite a big fan of yours," Clark noticed Bruce leaning to the side and turned to see a boy in his late teens jumping slightly behind the glass in glee.
"Damian or Dick?" Clark remembered.
"Dick. He's my eldest," Dick was wearing something similar to Jason. An acrobat's costume, bloodstained and torn in places.
Clark gave him a little wave and watched as the teen grinned and scampered off somewhere. That 'where' appeared to be his room since he came back laden with a notebook and several magazines Clark knew he wanted his signature on.
"I loved that save with that Journalist. You know, the one where you caught her in mid-air as Luthor shot at you with Kryptonite lasers," Clark remembered that fight. It had been one of the defining parts of his and Luthor's relationship. The part where he realised that Luthor was actually willing to kill him. Not just kill him but take down anyone and everyone to achieve it.
"It was rather frightening. Being shot at is different than it looks on television," Dick nodded eagerly and held out another magazine for Clark to sign.
"So Tim was wondering if Kon could spend the night," Dick announced. Clark couldn't tell if he was asking him or Bruce for permission.
He looked to Bruce and saw the man staring straight ahead into the ballroom, like he was the one with x-ray vision. "So long as they stay in his room..."
"I don't have a problem with it," Clark agreed. "Just tell me the time to pick him up."
"Eight sound good?" Dick asked.
"Morning?" Dick shook his head "Evening?" Then again with the rate they were going he wouldn't be surprised to learn they moved in with each other by the end of the month. "I guess that's alright. Are you sure you want him to stay that long?"
Bruce nodded "It's Tim's birthday."
Once Clark had escaped Dick's ever growing pile of magazines he had Bruce take him to tell Kon he could stay the night. Needless to say he was Kon's favourite guardian once again after that conversation.
"I think I'd better go," He didn't feel right staying in the manor.
"Are you sure? Tim did invite you," Bruce offered.
"I think it was more out of politeness. I'll bring him a present tomorrow when I pick Kon up. Thank you for having me though," Bruce nodded and showed him out.
Along the way he saw the rest of Bruce's kids pop their heads out from where they had been hiding. They were introduced and with every costume Clark saw he started to guess the theme was either circus related or zombie. Maybe a mixture of both.
Clark had thought he would have been worried sick the next day. He'd just left Kon in the lion's den after all. Yet there was something about Bruce that had him reassured that Kon would be there and in one piece when he went to pick him up later. Until then he filled his time by flying over Gotham and Metropolis. Saving people here and there but mostly just enjoying the air gusting through his cape.
Finally eight came and Clark didn't bother to change out of his super suit as Cass answered the door. She motioned for him to follow her and led him through various hallways Clark vaguely remembered travelling yesterday. Stopping outside of a room he knew was Tim's she left him to knock himself.
Tim answered still in his pyjamas and called for Kon who was just emerging out of a nest of blankets. Handing off the new flash themed shirt he'd bought Tim, Clark waited as Kon gathered his clothes and changed out of the borrowed pyjamas. Finally berating him when they were flying back to his apartment.
"Don't tell me you spent the whole day in bed?" He still looked tired.
"We were up all night," Kon whined. "Tim got a new system and I just had to beat him on it." Clark rolled his eyes. "Then there were his brothers. You should see them, they're amazing! Apparently Dick used to be in the circus and he taught the rest of them these cool acrobatic tricks. He taught me some too but I need to work on my flexibility before they look as cool as when Dick did them."
"Circus huh?" that explained the outfits "Speaking of circuses, why didn't you tell me it was Tim's birthday. No! Why didn't you tell me we were the only ones invited?"
Kon cringed "Tim said you might not come if I told you."
"Why did Tim even want me there? I have no problem with you going on your own," Lies.
"He said his dad wanted to meet you and it just seemed like a good opportunity," Kon shrugged not knowing what else to say. He supposed he couldn't blame Kon fully. After all the mastermind behind all of it was in Gotham.
He changed the subject."Did you have a good time anyway?"
Kon regaled him with the rest of his story. Backtracking here and there and when breakfast came the next morning he still wasn't finished telling Clark how much fun Tim was. Thankfully Kon had school and he had work so for a few blessed hours he escaped Kon's excited chatter.
"This came for you," Lois handed off.
Clark stopped typing to catch the parcel thrown into his lap. Experience had taught him to look first before he tore into anything and with a few squinted looks he was left more confused than ever. The paper left nothing but another box, this one hiding an envelope inside.
He handed it off to Kon when he got in, watching as the teens face changed from tired to begging in a matter of seconds.
"Can we go?" Clark had already tried phoning the manor to decline his own invitation but he realised he hadn't got their number. What was more odd was that there was no listed number from the operator either. All he got was 'That phone has been offline since 1963 sir.'
"You can," Clark allowed. "I don't really think it's for me," The invitation had been to an astronomy night at the manor. Complete with dinner and a complimentary breakfast in the morning.
"What! You love astronomy. I told Bruce so when I was there," Feeling trapped he knew he was going to have to lie his way out of this.
"Well I do but I think I have monitor duty that night. Tell Tim you're still coming though," Kon shrugged as any excuse to be around Tim won out over Clark's absent presence.
Friday came and Clark waved Kon off as he made his own way to one of the Watchtower's teleporters. He had managed to switch Oliver for himself for which the archer was most thankful for. Clark was honestly happy to do it. Not only did it mean he wasn't lying when he told Kon he was busy but it also meant he could fill the hours away with a distraction whilst his son played with Tim.
"Something on your mind Kal?" Diana had monitor duty for another two hours before she switched with J'onn.
"Kon's at another sleepover," He mumbled.
"So? He sleeps at Titans tower almost all the time," Clark hummed his agreement.
"This is different. The kid he's with... there's just something not right about him," He alerted Barry about a school collapsing as Diana thought over her response.
"Is he hostile?" Clark shook his head "Does he have any questionable traits?"
"No, honestly he's really nice. Well behaved, polite... still there's something wrong with him. I got the same feeling when I met the rest of his family too," Really there was no need for this feeling. Dick had been a delight and save a few hesitant stares from Jason and Damian the rest of the family were nice to him when he was there. Bruce played the perfect host of course. There was nothing he could fault them on save for the smoking.
"Perhaps it was the environment you met in. I find men often feel threatened when they're out of their comfort zone," That didn't explain why he felt off when Tim was around his own apartment.
"Maybe," he allowed.
"You should get to know them better. From what you tell me Kon's quite taken with his new friend. You might be having to put up with the boy for a while yet," Clark internally groaned at Diana's point.
Kon came home cheerier than he had the last time he stayed at Tim's. "I had to go before breakfast. Tim practically collapsed on me as the sun came up and I thought it would be better to eat here than wake someone else up."
Despite being up all night Kon had energy enough to talk all the way through his breakfast and follow Clark through his weekend patrol. Apparently since they lived quite a few miles outside of the city they got to see a lot more stars. Kon said it wasn't as good as Smallville but the friendly atmosphere made up for it.
Finally, as the sun started setting, Kon took a nap on the couch. Clark only had a moment to appreciate the silence in the room before the door went. Answering it he was met with possible one of the most handsome men he had ever met, and he spent his weekends with Oliver Queen.
"Can I help you?" He choked out.
The man smiled and peered in "Good. I was wondering where he flew off to. I would have hated to tell you your son's missing."
Clark recognised that voice and connected it with the face he was seeing here. Bruce was definitely under fifty. "Did you want to come in?" He asked finally finding his manners.
Bruce smiled and sidled past him "Thank you." Clark saw him take a quick look around his apartment. It was nothing compared to his own manor. "I was disappointed when Tim said you couldn't come."
"I had monitor duty, sorry. I tried phoning to tell you but I didn't have your number," He wasn't going to bring up the operator. Somehow he knew he'd look foolish if he did. After all, he was pretty sure Barry didn't have a land line.
"That's quite alright," Bruce waved off. "It's actually why I'm here. I wanted to make sure I got a correct date from you. You see, it's Halloween next week and it's a tradition in my house to play some games. Hide and seek, that sort of thing... Tim was rather hoping Kon would come and I was rather hoping you would. I thought that if I came and gave you enough notice you could maybe find time to join us." Halloween. One of the busiest days of the year. There was a party at Luthor's he was planning on sneaking in. "You don't have to."
For some reason Clark found himself accepting. "No, I'm glad to come. I may have to move some things around," Bruce smiled at his agreement. It made him all the more handsome when he did so.
"Thank you. It was nice having someone to talk to the other day. As much as my family loves me they often leave me out of their more childish schemes. It'll be more enjoyable to have someone else there when that happens," Clark could only imagine how lonely it must be when the kids went off and left him in that large manor of his.
"Then I'll definitely be there," He would have to get Lois to infiltrate Luthor's party. "Kon will be more than happy to go as well. I just hope it's not costume themed again."
Bruce's laugh was short, low and rich like melted chocolate. Clark rather liked that about him "No. Just come in something comfortable. There'll be a lot of running around."
"Will do," He promised and showed Bruce out.
Needless to say Kon was more than happy to attend Bruce's Halloween party.