Disclaimer: As always I own nothing but the original characters and the situations all characters end up in. Everything else belongs to someone else and that's the way of it.

Note: Because of a game Blake will be playing with an OC later in the story, this fanfic will take place in Fall 2016, despite the fact that technically this would sorta take place four years after 'Batman Begins'.

Showing Some Skin

Instinct whispered that Talia wanted Blake naked as much for the purpose of humiliating him as to see the bruises that no doubt currently decorated his body from head to toe. Talia wanted to see both very much. And while common sense had him looking at the floor as opposed to at her while he exaggerated his injuries, inwardly Blake smirked at Talia for thinking that this would inflict further mental pain on him. Please. He'd grown up in foster care AND worked in Vice for three fucking years.

Some of the houses he'd been shipped to had been decent, but to plenty of people he'd just been a number or a paycheck, not a living person deserving of respect and kindness. And in Vice, well he'd often gone undercover as a prostitute to roust johns and move unnoticed in Gotham's Underworld. Hell, he'd even done some turns as an undercover stripper a few times, since he'd had some experience with the profession thanks to his father having been a bartender and bouncer for a strip club when he'd been a kid. When his old man hadn't been able to afford a babysitter he'd brought Blake to work with him, so nakedness was nothing new to Blake. And the strippers who'd been his babysitters at times had indirectly taught him plenty about not only how to manipulate and handle men, but also how to see his naked body as simply a tool and weapon, not something to be embarrassed about.

And to paraphrase Eleanor Roosevelt, no one could make him feel inferior without his permission, and Blake sure as fuck wasn't giving anyone that right.

He'd stopped giving anyone that power over him a long time ago.

So look all you want, Bitch. Think that I'm nothing and whatever shit you want to, Blake silently invited Talia as he resolutely looked down rather than risk her seeing too much in his eyes. I'm not broken or inferior, and what you think doesn't mean shit to me.

"He's not nearly as damaged as I thought he'd be." Talia's tone had the faintest hint of displeasure, though her gaze remained scientific, like he was a bug under her microscope.

"The men tied him to the bed. He couldn't put up a fight."

Partly to back Bane up, partly to be a smartass, Blake lifted his arms up to draw attention to the marks left on his wrists from being tied up. In truth most of the bruising was from being tied up before, as he hadn't struggled nearly as much when they were tying him to Bane's bed.

The sound Talia made in the back of her throat suggested that she still thought more damage should have been done. But she didn't push the issue further, her tone becoming almost teasing. "Well look here and smile, Detective. I'm sure Wayne misses your pretty smile."

Looking up as ordered, Blake saw the phone she had in her hand, aimed at him with the obvious intent to take pictures or record a video to send to Bruce. And knowing what it would do to his friend, to see Blake bruised because of him, Blake didn't stop himself from lifting his chin in defiance, his posture straightening even as his body protested. Nor did he flinch as he spoke to the woman who was looking at him like he was already dead in her eyes.

"Sending him pictures with your notes, now?"

Surprise was in her eyes for a moment before Talia coolly asked him what he meant, her head tilting in a way that reminded Blake of videos of snakes poised to strike.

"You write Wayne letters. I've seen them."

Actually, it was more accurate to say that Wayne had been so disturbed by the letters she'd sent him that he'd asked Blake for his professional opinion of their contents. And he'd agreed that there was cause for worry after reading them. The woman was seriously fucked in the head, and obsessed with Wayne to boot. Not even in a twisted, romantic way, but in a 'No one dumps me so I'm going to fuck you up' sort of way. Only Talia's brand of fucking someone up would probably involve torture and dismemberment over a long period of time.

And a glance in Talia's direction made Blake pretty sure Bane hadn't known about these letters, and she wasn't pleased that he was now in the know. Especially since a look in Bane's direction had Blake thinking Bane was not pleased.

"You think there's something wrong in reminding him that he'll pay for what he did to the League?"

"Really? Because that's not the vibe I got from them at all. Reading between the lines, I mean."

"Ah, but you're not terribly bright, are you."

Since that had been a statement, not a question, Blake saw no point in answering. Nor did he flinch when she backhanded him.

No, he went back to studying his feet, absently wondering how long it would take for said feet to start turning blue in this fucking cold he was being subjected to. Not that he couldn't handle being cold, he'd had no say in that for the first half of his life, but he hated being cold even more than being hungry. Which he also was. Not to mention that he needed to piss soon. Really soon now that he thought about it. Dammit. Why did it always work that way? It was the same with small injuries and bruises. The never hurt so much until you noticed and thought about them. Fuck.

Being annoyed with his bodily functions distracted Blake enough that he wasn't aware that she took his picture, assuming she had. His attention returned to her only when she asked if there was anything he wanted to say to Wayne.

Looking up again, his gaze going to the phone on the chance that she was recording this as opposed to just taking pictures, Blake spoke the words he'd come up with earlier, when he was thinking about how he might send his friend a reassuring message without it being obvious. "I'd tell him that he was right about Bane. And not to worry."

"Right about Bane, how?"

Still looking at the phone, Blake gave an answer that was both truth and yet not what he meant at all. "That he's bigger than my ex Will. I didn't think that was possible."

Actually, what he was really referring to was the fact that Wayne, after learning Blake's type when it came to men and how often he had dry spells because of their rarity, had stated that Blake would be all over Bane like a herd of kids on candy. After just being freed from Fat Camp.

Which, having now met Bane, was a statement he was willing to agree with.

What could he say, Blake silent smirked over. He liked his hugely built, intelligent bad boy alphas, and they were like unicorns in Gotham. Bane was an all you can eat buffet after rabbit food for months.

And he should really stop thinking about food; it was making his stomach growl annoyingly loud.

"Better get used to your stomach making those sounds."

Having made her parting shot, and a crappy one at that, in Blake's opinion, Talia strolled out like she owned the place, though she didn't slam the door, which he appreciated. Though that was probably for Bane's benefit, not his.

Waiting until the sound of her retreating footsteps reached his ears, Blake then glanced over to Bane with a hopeful smile he'd been told was adorable thanks to his dimples. "Would it be possible to use whatever passes for a bathroom now? Please."

A short nod, Bane pointing in the direction of the door he'd gone through the night before.

Oh thank Christ. Indoor plumbing.

Mentally sending thanks to the powers that be, Blake headed in that direction with careful strides, the twinges in his backside making every move uncomfortable, but not enough so that he regretted it. Far from it. Totally worth it, actually.

Making quick use of the facilities, which were rustic to say the least, Blake reminded himself that beggars couldn't be choosers, not to mention the fact that he was just lucky the facilities were indoors. Just the idea of having to piss outside, on the mountain he assumed they were on, made his balls want to draw up in fear.

Washing up afterwards, Blake dried his hands and then used the cloth to do a quick spit wash, cleaning up as best as he could before heading back out to find Bane waiting for him.

Beside a bowl and an apple.

Food.

"I will blow you for that apple."

Bane raised an eyebrow. "Do you make it a habit to offer sexual favors for fruit?"

"No. Police officers get paid crap, yes, but I'm not that poor. And even when I was, I preferred stealing. Much funner for me." Blake grinned now. "Blowing you would be even funner, though."

"Eat."

Excellent. And he couldn't decide whether to take the offer as a compliment or an insult. But food was being offered, and that was way more important at the moment.

"You might want to dress first."

Jerking at just the mention of having something to wear, Blake quickly whipped his head around in search of something he could possibly wear, his eyes landing almost immediately on the articles of clothing that had been laid out on the bed while he was in the washroom. Clothes. HIS clothes.

Hurrying over, twinges and aches be damned, Blake hopped from one foot and then the other as he got his smelly gym socks on his feet first, desperate for a barrier between his feet and the cold wood floors. His track pants were next, the material sliding on easy, followed by a T-shirt and hoodie, the sound he made when completely covered close to orgasmic.

They might smell a little, he'd been finishing up his morning run when they'd taken him and he'd worked up a sweat, but they were his and well-worn in, brushing against his bruised skin with loving care that felt heavenly after that scratchy blanket or just bare flesh against the elements.

Okay. Time to eat.

)

Even the mushy crap in the bowl was edible enough, once he'd sampled that as well. The apple was better though, and that Blake thoroughly demolished after the mush since he did NOT want that to be the taste he carried around in his mouth for the rest of the day. Especially since he didn't know how much food he was going to be given in the future. Not a heck of a lot if Talia had anything to say about it, but Bane had to realize that basic needs had to be met, and food was one of them.

As was the water he was given to drink, which was friggin amazing even if it was too fucking cold.

"You said you had not been taken in eight months last night, but you are Wayne lover?"

Ah, he'd wondered when Bane would notice that incongruity. And had been pondering how he was supposed to answer that, given that he'd lose his value as a bargaining chip if they found out that he wasn't as important to Wayne as they thought he was. Yes, he could claim that they were friends, and had a sorta brotherly bond, but he wasn't about to count on that being enough to save him. Particularly since he was starting to get the vibe that he had Talia to thank for his present circumstances, as opposed to her father. And jealous exes weren't known for hating friends as much as currents. She'd dispose of him and then go after someone else. Someone else who mattered to Bruce.

"He hadn't gotten me into bed yet."

"You are a prize we snatched away before he could claim it."

Biting back his opinion on being viewed as a thing to be won, especially when Bane sounded so pleased at the idea, Blake just nodded while mentally rolling his eyes over this whole mess all over again. I mean seriously, he saw a lot of stupidity, he lived in Gotham, after all, but he still couldn't believe that no one involved in the plan to capture him had stopped to consider the facts. Like, just for starters, the fact that Bruce Wayne didn't sleep with men. Had experimented a little in high school, yes, but had never gotten past making out with a few even then. The man was straight, and Blake was most definitely male. And sure the tabloids speculated to the contrary occasionally, but what sane person took those things seriously? They were called rags for a reason.

God, no wonder they were all dumb enough to get sucked in by Ra's al Ghul.

"You were a thief before becoming a cop?"

Blinking at the question, Blake wondered again how little research had gone into him before these idiots had snatched him up. I mean seriously, getting into his juvenile record should have been easy as pie for these guys. Maybe not Bane, but that had more to do with the fact that he could see the man having trouble operating a keyboard with fingers that big.

Not that he was complaining.

"What DO you know about me, exactly?"

"Detective John Blake of the GCPD. Beta. Born and raised in Gotham. Age twenty seven. Only child, with both parents passing on early in your life. You spent time in foster care, and are a known companion of Bruce Wayne. Do you wish a reciting of your census stats?"

Wow. They'd been so crappy in their research they didn't even know his actual first name? That was just sad. Though good too, since he didn't like being referred to as Robin. Of course now he might not ever be called by his name, Blake mused, being a pet now. Robin was better than being called Pet, but he'd deal.

And back to the question Bane had asked.

"My mom died when I was three, Dad when I was ten. After that I bounced around a lot in foster care before I got placed permanently. I was an angry little shit, and I spent as much time on the streets as I could rather than the 'homes' they placed me in. I usually didn't have money of my own, so I stole it and stuff I wanted. Partly as a fuck you to the world, but also because I had a serious sweet tooth." Blake smirked, though that quickly died as he realized that he hadn't even had a last taste of anything sweet before he'd been taken. Fuck, even bastards on death row got a decent meal before their executions.

"You became a cop, yet you did not let go of your anger."

With most people Blake was impressed when someone had the instincts to see beneath his masks, but in this case Blake would have been surprised if Bane had failed to. "I learned to hide and channel it." As had Bane, though not in the way Blake had. Bane used his to control his environment and he people in it, while Blake used his to shield others from becoming him.

Bane inclined his head in agreement. "Why a cop? A cog in the government wheel that failed you."

"Better a cog that actually does its job, then a wrench fucking everything up that much more. Though in all honesty, I wanted to be just like Batman when I was a teenager. Before I figured out that I didn't really have the money to make that work. "

"When did he reveal to you who he was?"

"He didn't have to. It was pretty obvious, really." Because unlike the League of Shadows, Blake knew how to research even as a teenager. "The press didn't agree about much, especially in the beginning, but there were enough images of him caught on phones and security cameras that I could guess height, weight. Then there was approximate age given the amount of training he'd obviously had and the shape he was in, on top of the amount of money he'd have to spend to make not just his clothes on the down low, but his toys and headquarters as well. Add in someone with a good reason to become a vigilante…he was on my short list and then I met him. Just briefly, but I looked at him and I knew. Though I didn't say anything about it for years."

No, he'd kept quiet until about four years ago, when Ra's al Ghul had paid Gotham a short visit. The whole thing had ended in the man and his not dead or captured followers fleeing the city, though not before destroying Wayne Manor and helping Crane fuck up a lot of people with his drug shit. He'd nearly ended up dead himself while on patrol that night, but Wayne had saved his life and after, he'd searched the man out to thank him. Thank him and ask if he'd be willing to train him. Make him stronger.

Training these guys didn't know he had. Suckers.

"There is nothing about Wayne worth admiring."

"He saved my life."

"That doesn't make him any less weak."

"If that's the case, then his willingness to save others, despite his weaknesses, makes him more worthy of admiration."

A long, drawn out silence was Bane's response to that, the room's temperature seeming to drop even more as the hairs on the back of Blake's neck stood up.

"You have much to learn, Pet. I will enjoy educating you, I think."

And so saying Bane gave Blake his back and started walking towards the bedroom door, calling out instructions for Blake to remain in the room and not cause trouble for the rest of the day. He would see that food and water was brought to him, but he was to remain here. If he ventured outside the room he would be punished.

"Yes, Sir."

Bane didn't look back, simply closing the door behind him.

Leaving Blake alone to think. And plan.