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Changes Ahead

Bane followed closely behind his mate, wanting to see the other man's reaction to the bedroom they'd be sharing. The League had two other holdings in this particular city, both of which Bane preferred over this one in terms of security and setup. He could have requested the use of one of the other two, both were currently unoccupied, but Bane had chosen this one because it was the most likely to please Robin. At least aesthetically. In terms of Robin's very obvious intentions to try and escape this building-most likely it was far too secure for the omega's liking, but otherwise Bane thought this would appeal. Particularly the bed.

And he was right, Robin arrowing for the large king-sized bed immediately, sitting down on it first and making a very pleased sound when the mattress dipped under his weight. Between the softness of said mattress and the obvious quality of the sheets and covers...well Bane had to smile when he saw that Robin was actually kneading the fabric with his fingers. Just like a cat.

So tactile, his mate.

But even the bed wasn't enough to distract Robin for long, Bane observing the cop's quick survey of the room as a whole, then the more thorough attention of the second pass. Particularly when it came to the windows.

"We're up too high, the windows won't open, and there wouldn't be sufficient hand and foot holds even if you somehow found a way out."

"Windows that don't open are an extreme fire hazard."

"There are other ways out. Which you have no need to know about."

Robin looked over at him and smirked. "Actually, given that you sometimes have mere minutes in a fire, knowing the fire exits and how to vacate the building quickly is rather important."

"You won't ever be left alone, therefore that won't be an issue."

Making a dismissive sound Robin also dismissed him by going back to his study of the room, his dark eyes sharp and intelligent. Purpose in every glance.

It both hurt and amused him, Bane mused. Seeing his mate like this. He didn't want Robin to want to leave him. To so obviously be seeking some way to free himself from Bane's grasp. He could try telling himself that it was just because Robin felt he wasn't safe, and would want to stay with Bane otherwise, but Bane wasn't in the habit of lying to himself. That would serve no purpose, and only weaken him further. His mate did not wish to be his mate.

Not yet, anyway. And perhaps never.

Better to be amused, in other words, by the fact that the omega actually thought he could successfully escape his grasp. Especially when one factored in the fact that Robin would never leave Kei behind. Bane's mate wouldn't stand a chance of breaking free by himself, much less with that useless waste of water and minerals further hindering and slowing him down.

There was also, Bane realized, some cause for pride. His omega would never give up trying to free himself from being trapped. He would continue to try until he succeeded or decided that he wished to stay. His mate was a fighter. A survivor. One who would fail, obviously, but refused to accept that. Bane admired that about his mate. Even when it caused him endless headaches and grief.

"What?"

Not about to admit his thoughts, Bane opted instead to simply comment that Robin was showing surprising interest in the décor.

"Yeah...because this place actually has décor. I'm only now realizing that the League does know what color and comfort is. They just hate it because they hate everything. This came already furnished and decorated, admit it."

"I have no idea."

The look Robin shot Bane said he wasn't buying that at all.

"You're going to hate this mattress."

"Yes."

Another look. "So what, it's to butter me up?"

"So suspicious."

"I'm a cop, Dude. We literally get paid to be that way."

There was sadness now in the other man's eyes as he thought about his former career. Bane didn't like it, and had no trouble thinking of something to say that was guaranteed to distract the omega from those thoughts. Especially since it was the truth.

"One forgets you were once a government drone. Used to being bribed."

Immediate insult. "I never took a bribe!"

"You would be in the minority, then."

Robin opened and then closed his mouth. "I'm not going to say we haven't had a lot of problems with corruption in Gotham. My nose would probably grow so much I'd skewer people in the next country over. But that doesn't-"

"Your nose?"

"Yeah. Like Pinocchio. Who you probably don't even-but that's fine. It wasn't one of Disney's best. And it amuses me to think of all the jokes about his nose growing you won't get." An even wider smirk than before, followed by a dismissive hand wave. "Nevermind. The point is I was a damn good cop."

"It would have been...intriguing. Had we met that way."

"Is that your way of saying you'd like me to handcuff you to the bed? Because I'm game."

Wait...what?

"Your face. Or I guess your eyes, Mr. Tin Can." Snickering, Robin laid back on the bed, appearing to stare up at the ceiling. "Don't worry, I was joking. I actually never used my cuffs that way. I prefer other methods."

Robin turned his head and winked in Bane's direction.

A foolish man would ask. Bane was no fool. Though numerous scenarios were now forming in his mind that were sure to haunt him. When they weren't making Bane want to snap spines and dislocate the limbs of those who'd dared to touch his mate before him.

"Okay...not sure what you're thinking now. But you're sending off some extreme Alpha vibes."

"I am always Alpha."

"That you are." Robin agreed, still sounding amused. "And I would have totally caught you back in the day. And maybe found excuses to visit you in prison regularly because I'm just that stupid."

"There is no prison in Gotham that could hold me. And then I would have come for you."

A long moment of silence.

"You didn't mean for that to be hot...but it totally was."

Shaking his head, Bane stated that he had no idea how Robin had ever been a successful cop, behaving as he did.

"Why? You don't really think that I behaved this way when I was a cop, do you? I'm not a complete idiot, Bane. I've got a hell of a lot of masks to wear when I need them. They just aren't physical things like your stupid tin can." Robin rolled his eyes and then turned his head back up so that Bane was looking at his profile once more. "Gotham City. Where everyone wears masks to survive, one way or another."

Curious, Bane cocked his head slightly to the side. "And how many of your masks have I seen?"

"Who can say. That's the thing about wearing masks long term. Eventually you forget they're there, and they become your 'true' face."

Pumping his legs up to bring him forward and into a sitting position, Robin very pointedly didn't look at him as he started undoing the laces of the boots he'd been given to wear. "I'm going to take a nap. Jet lag. Did I ever tell you I'd never left my city before all this? Now here I am, on the other side of the ocean. I'm told jet lag's a real bitch."

"Sleep." He had to clear his voice first, but Bane managed to get the single word out clearly.

"That's the plan."

Robin, being Robin, tossed the boots into a corner once he was free of them. Because of course he didn't put them away neatly, most likely because he knew that would annoy Bane. Which it did. And while Bane stewed over that Robin lifted up the sheets and covers, sliding beneath them with a sound of pleasure before curling up into a ball. As was his habit.

Shaking his head over his mate, Bane walked over to the switch that, when he flipped it, had the blackout screens dropping down to cover the windows. Blocking out the light and plunging the room into complete darkness.

That done he removed his own boots, left them at the door, and then walked over to join his mate in their uncomfortably soft bed.

"You're taking a nap too?" Robin asked, head popping out from underneath the blankets he'd been hiding under. He wouldn't have been as visible to most, but Bane's eyes had grown and formed in the dark. He could see the room and his mate well enough.

"I will stay with you, yes." He didn't imagine he'd sleep, though.

Quiet, then Robin was shuffling closer and Bane felt the other man press against his side, Robin's head on his shoulder. Bane wrapped an arm around Robin's waist to keep him there.

"Who would you have been, if you hadn't been scooped up by the League? Or if you'd had the common sense to leave them. Maybe opened your own dojo or training facility? We could have met when you saw me kicking ass on the street, complaining about my technique or something. I would have let you talk me into teaching me the 'right way'."

"It is pointless to speculate."

"Why?"

"Because this is the life we are living. A story can't change it."

"Cynic." Robin breathed against Bane's chest, then he went silent as he drifted off at Bane's side.

Content to be there, it seemed. For now.

)

Having taken charge of Kei Barsad directed the younger man to the room he'd been told would be theirs, the room featuring two double beds. This was his first time residing at this particular League residence, but he'd gone over the blueprints multiple times. It was as advertised. The décor was not to his taste at all, but it was far from the worst he'd ever been faced with. Kei seemed to appreciate the bed at least, the boy already moving to take a seat on the bed closest to the window, testing its give.

It appeared to have more give than Barsad generally preferred, but oh well. He could sleep on anything.

"You didn't sleep before. You should rest until dinner."

Kei glanced over his shoulder in Barsad's direction. "Okay. Are you leaving?"

"Is there a reason you can't be left alone to sleep?"

"No. I was just asking."

While Barsad watched Kei went back to staring straight ahead, the younger man's hand coming up to wrap around and rub his opposite wrist in a way Barsad had seen him do many times in the past. Except this time Barsad noticed for the first time that the bracelet Kei was usually fiddling with when he did that was missing. The bracelet Hatachi had given Kei that had once belonged to his original son. Barsad had never seen the boy without it.

Frowning, Barsad asked Kei if he'd lost his bracelet.

"No. I placed it in Father's fist before they set him on fire."

It took a moment for Barsad to get over the way Kei had phrased that.

"You didn't wish to keep it?"

"It was never really mine. I thought he should have it back."

Moving forward before his brain reminded him why it was best to keep distance between them, Barsad found himself awkwardly coming to a stop a foot from the other man's bed. Kei was keeping his back to him too, showing no sign that he was even aware that Barsad was still in the room. He hoped that the alpha was at least that aware of his surroundings, but that was possibly wishful thinking on his-

"Barsad?"

Huh. Well that was somewhat reassuring. Though more likely a fluke.

"Yes?"

"Now that he's gone, there's no point in pretending I was his son. So could I have my name back?"

"Your name?"

"Yeah. Can I be me again, or do I have to be Kei until you guys kill me?"

Oh. Yes. The boy's name wasn't actually Kei. It was...Simon. That was what the cop had called him when the two had been reunited.

"You wish to be called Simon?"

"It's my name. Simon is me. Kei's a lie."

Simon, Barsad thought, rolling the name around in his head as he considered the request. He couldn't see any reason why the boy couldn't take back the name he'd been born with. Everyone had always known the truth of the boy's parentage, humoring Hitachi by pretending otherwise. The lie had served its purpose, but now that purpose was over and it was little enough for the boy to ask, to have his true identity acknowledged.

Though the irony of naming someone of the boy's...uniqueness Simon, which meant 'listen or hearing' and variations of that...listening was NOT this Simon's superpower in the slightest.

"I will speak to Bane about it."

"Okay. Thanks."

"You're welcome...Simon. Now go to sleep."

Ever so slightly Kei-no, Simon-angled his head, just enough that Barsad could see a hint of a smile before the alpha did as ordered and leaned down to start undoing his boots.

Leaving him to that Barsad got out of there before he did or said anything else.

Simon, he thought again to himself. It was a...good name.

)

As predicted Bane got little quality rest, though he enjoyed the quiet time with his mate regardless. When it was time to get up for dinner Bane gently shook Robin awake, not surprised in the least when he was greeted with grumbles and a shove that did nothing, of course. Robin, being Robin, burrowed deeper into the covers and ignored Bane's commands to get up-again, no surprise-and so Bane simply scooped him up, blankets and all, and carried him off towards the door, Robin playing dead because this was Robin. Of course he was going to be that contrary. Maneuvering him up and over his shoulder to free his hands-something Robin did not like at all and made the omega squirm and thrash in his blanket cocoon, Bane opened the door and let them out.

Once in the hallway Bane asked if Robin wished to continue this way, or if he was willing to walk on his own two feet like an adult.

The little minx pinched his ass. Hard.

Fine then. Over the shoulder it was.

With his mate wiggling like a landed fish Bane walked calmly down the hallway and through the living room area and into the dining room. No one commented on what they were seeing, well other than the boy who was just that stupid. And Kei only smirked and shook his head, which for him was an improvement.

Placing his hands where Robin's hips were located, Bane lifted him up and then down so that he was standing. Or close to it. It was hard to tell with the blankets in the way.

Removing his hands, Bane wisely stepped back and watched, with some amusement, as Robin untangled himself from his blanket cage.

Naturally the first words out of his mate's mouth was the statement that Bane was going to pay for that.

"You will behave the rest of the night."

"Wanna bet?"

"That depends. What's the boy's wellbeing worth to you?"

Robin's eyes narrowed.

"You will eat your dinner and then we will leave here to see the specialist. You will not speak, unless spoken to, and you will do nothing to draw attention to yourself or the circumstances you and the boy find yourselves in. Anyone you involve-in any way-will end up dead. You and the boy will be punished. Understood?"

The glare he was getting, on top of the crossed arms and hostile body language, suggested that yes, Robin got it.

"What's the cover story then?" Was what Robin finally asked.

"You are my future mate. We wished to know if your use of Umbra has damaged your ability to have children. I've told him our mating was arranged, to explain your hostility and anger towards me currently."

Naturally he'd seen this coming.

"And you're probably paying him handsomely not to ask too many questions, right?"

"Correct."

"Joy."

And so saying Robin picked up the blankets and stated that he was going to return them to the bedroom.

"Leave them on the couch. Then come eat."

Robin would find a way to make mischief or trouble in that brief time out of his sight. Bane knew it.

"Fine."

As was expected the meal was a tense one, though for the first time since he'd known Robin the other man didn't complain about the food put in front of him. They'd ordered out for the meal rather than prepared it themselves, and the pasta met with approval. As did the bread, which both Gothamites ate far too much of. Apparently they both considered white bread to be essential to their diets, and the sounds both had made over this bread had been disturbing.

His mate was only to make those sounds within their bedroom. And Kei was not to make those sounds at all within his hearing.

Ever.