noble and true (with a heart of steel)

Clark is sitting at his desk in The Daily Planet when he gets the phone call that Dick had been taken by the Court of Owls. The desk creaks ominously under his clenched fist. Clark is hoarse when he replies to Bruce, "I'll do whatever you need me to do to get him back."

Bruce sighs, "I hate asking this of you in the middle of the workday but-" his voice cracks. Bruce clears his throat and tries again, "Can you please come to the Cave?"

"Of course, B. I'll be right there, okay?" Clark promises. Clark almost hits Perry when he stands. "Chief-"

"Kent, I need you at the Mayor's office this afternoon for the press conference. Take Jimmy with you," Perry snaps at one of his star reporters before looking up and noticing how devastated Clark looks, "Son, what's wrong?"

A strangled noise leaves Clark's throat, drawing the attention of Lois and Jimmy. His friends come over to his desk and look at him in concern. "CK, you alright?" Jimmy asks.

Clark shakes his head, "No. I...Can we talk in your office?" Clark asks Perry.

"Of course," Perry replies before he ushers Clark, Jimmy, and Lois into his office. He shuts the door and draws the blinds behind them. "Clark, what's wrong? Is it your parents?"

Clark collapses into one of the chairs and puts his head in his hands, "It's B."

"Batman?" Lois asks, "Is he hurt?"

"No," Clark draws in a deep breath, "Robin has been stolen. The Court of Owls took him. B needs my help."

"Son, take as much time as you need. This is a matter of family," Perry places a hand on Clark's shoulder.

"But-" Clark begins to protest.

Perry shakes his head, "You consider them your family, don't you?"

Clark gives them a small smile, "Yeah. In many ways, Robin is like a son to me. And B is….he's B."

Perry nods, "Then take some time off. You have some unused vacation time that's just been sitting there."

Clark looks at Perry funny, "How? I take time off all the time to go, well, you know."

Perry grins and winks, "When you're on a mission, you're just taking a trip to get the news. You always come back with the best articles or with ideas for good articles. Besides, your face is constantly on the front page and that makes the Planet a hell of a lot of money, least we can do for you."

"Alright. I'll take some vacation days," Clark laughs before sobering up, "Thank you, Perry. It means a lot to me."

"You go get those sons of bitches and get Robin back. Gotham needs all the help it can get," Perry tells Clark in a serious tone. "He's a bright young lad who doesn't deserve whatever that fairy tale horror show is putting him through."

Clark nods and stands. Lois pulls him into a hug, "Give 'em hell, Smallville," she orders him when they break apart.

Jimmy grins at his friend, "You've got this, CK!"

Clark clasps Jimmy's shoulder for a brief moment, "I'll keep you all updated," Clark gives them all a tiny smile before he disappears out the door. A while later they hear a sonic boom.

Clark forgoes entering through the Manor and takes the special entrance to the Cave. "Hey, B," Clark greets his friend as soon as he lands. He walks over to the bank of computers as Bruce turns around. Bruce looked horrible. His eyes had deep rings under them, he had several day's worth of stubble, and it looked like it had been a while since he had stopped long enough to take a shower. Clark pulls Bruce into a hug and the other man willingly goes. "C'mon," Clark gently tells him, "Let's go get you cleaned up. Dick wouldn't want you to run yourself ragged. You need to shower, shave, and eat something."

Bruce makes a noise of protest, "No-"

"Bruce," Clark takes Bruce's chin in his hand, "you need to get some rest or you won't be running at full capacity. If you get some sleep now then you'll be able to more effectively look for Dick."

Bruce stares into Clark's eyes for a few long minutes before he finally relents, "Alright."

Clark gives Bruce a small smile, "Alright," he repeats as he helps guide Bruce to the shower area. Bruce quickly showers and shaves. When Clark gets Bruce to the Manor's kitchen, he eats mechanically. He doesn't even protest when Clark guides him to the master bedroom and tucked into bed.

Before Clark can leave to find his usual guestroom, Bruce catches his sleeve, "Can you please stay? I…" Bruce trails off, unsure how to continue and explain himself.

Clark nods, "You don't have to explain. I'll stay," Bruce scoots over and Clark slides in beside his friend after using his super-speed to slip into a pair of Bruce's pajamas. Clark is mildly surprised when Bruce doesn't move to the opposite side of the bed but instead allows their arms to touch. "We'll get through this. We'll find Dick," Clark promises Bruce.

Clark hears Bruce make a sound in the back of his throat that he can't quite interpret. If he didn't have super hearing, Clark would have thought that Bruce had fallen asleep for how long he keeps quiet. Finally, Bruce says, "I know. We're Superman and Batman."

Clark grins up at the ceiling in the dark of the bedroom, "And we'll bring in the rest of the League if we have to. We'll bring down the entire fucking Court of Owls."

"Thank you," Bruce whispers, "I was going crazy with only Alfred here in the house." Clark reaches out and squeezes Bruce's hand in reply. After that, the pair eventually falls asleep, their arms touching and hands clasped. Several hours later when Alfred checks on Bruce, he smiles to himself when he finds Clark curled around Bruce, who has his arm wrapped around the other man's waist.

Endnotes: So, yeah, I decided it's my 'verse and fuck it. Jimmy, Lois, and Perry know that Clark is Superman. They're smart as fuck reporters (and photojournalist) and I'd like to think that Clark trusts them enough to tell them.