Chapter 12: Family Reunion

The reporter had tried to get behind the wheel, but he had never driven a Bugatti in his life and Bruce was a much better driver than he was. Besides, he wasn't afraid of speeding, or of paying the fines that would follow. They had remained silent for most of the journey and the only time they had exchanged words was about the events in Blüdhaven. Clark had a hard time enjoying long transport journeys, but it was best not to leave the billionaire alone.

They arrived at the mansion in the middle of the night. They entered quietly, which was easy for Batman and Superman to do. Bruce knew his mansion and where the boys' rooms were. He went to Jason's room and opened it, and then entered it completely.

Jason was on morphine and sleeping soundly, Clark could tell by his deep, even breathing. He looked again at Jason's condition with his various visions and had nothing to report.

"He's fine," he whispered to Bruce.

Bruce watched him for a moment and then pulled the sheets back over him.

Then they moved to another room, only to find Dick's empty. While Clark raised an eyebrow in silent questioning at the Bat, the latter went to Tim's room. The current Robin was sound asleep in his bed while Dick had fallen asleep dressed on the sheets. After a great reunion, the two boys had not left each other. Bruce closed the door and they stood in the hallway.

"Did Alfred get you a room? "

Clark nodded, to which the Bat replied:

"Then leave it. "

Bruce's cold tone dried the Kryptonian on the spot. He thought he'd be more gentle in kicking him out of the Mansion, after hours of unnecessary driving for him. Bruce went back out into the hallway and Clark followed him, making his way out. At the time, he felt worse than bad. Bruce was kicking him out of his house after all that and he had to admit it hurt.

"Kal. "

He turned to see Bruce raise an eyebrow and point in the direction of his room. Bruce wanted him to sleep with him? He got his answer pretty quickly. As soon as Bruce closed the door, he kissed the reporter. He could feel the emotions contained on his lips.

"Thank you. For saving them. "

Clark smiled as he stroked the back of the Bat's neck.

"Don't thank me for that, Bruce. "

The Kryptonian pulled his head close and kissed him again. The two men hugged in a more than affectionate embrace.

Holding him to his chest, he felt the Bat's nose pressed into his neck, his breathing heavy. Never before had Clark seen Bruce reveal so much of himself. Never before had he imagined him hugging someone and letting his emotions run wild. Clark hugged him as if his life depended on it. He was crazy about this man. He would get down on his knees if he asked. He would do anything for him. He let out Kryptonian whispers. Bruce lifted his head and pulled away from Clark to look him in the eye. The Bat had shed no tears, but his gaze glowed.

"What did you say? "

"It's my secret. "

He kissed him on the temple and began to undress. By mutual agreement, the two men slipped into bed and fell asleep, their bodies pressed together.

Bruce opened his eyes slightly when he felt movement beside him, and remembered the events of the night before. He was no longer in Atlantic City. He'd come home because his boys had almost died. And he had slept with Clark. Clark was gone, but he could still feel movement in the room. He straightened up to see Clark putting on his polo shirt from the night before, his hair still damp.

"You're putting the same stuff back on?" Bruce grunted, letting his head fall back on the pillow.

"I'm running late, and I wasn't going to make the trip to Metropolis in my underwear. "

"Where are your clothes from yesterday? "

"In Alfred's hands. "

It took Bruce a few seconds to figure out why.

"Oh. You were in civilian clothes. Didn't anyone see you at least? "

"No, don't worry. "

Clark finished putting on his shoes, retrieved his phone and leaned toward Bruce, only to stop in his tracks. Bruce thought he was really sweet. Clark Kent was an extremely shy and insecure person when it came to relationships. If he himself was not demonstrative of affection, he could see that it confused Clark to not know how to act. He had to admit to himself that it amused him greatly.

The Kryptonian launched himself into the water and placed a kiss on Bruce's lips, before saying:

"I'll bring your stuff back tonight. Don't kill the boys. "

He smiled at him before opening the window and flying away. The cool breeze cooled his skin, but only for a short time: Clark had taken care to close the window behind him.

Bruce got up from his bed a few minutes later and got dressed in his gym clothes. He smiled as he put it on, remembering the look on the Kryptonian's face the first time he saw him like that. He let out a sigh as he walked out of the big house to do his exercises outside.

It had never been anything but lust between them. That would be fooling himself even more than they had in recent years. With hindsight, he had come to see the situation more clearly, and he had spotted the deviations in behavior that should have tipped him off soon enough. But Bruce had stuck his head in the sand, and so had Clark.

He had been one of the first people to know Clark without his costume, and probably the first vigilante. While he had long had the upper hand in personal information about Clark, Clark had become so involved in his personal life that they knew just as much about each other. And even though they were different in many ways, they had forged this strong bond between them that had brought them closer than they had ever thought possible.

Bruce hit the trunk harder. Ever since he'd tasted Clark's skin, he'd wanted more. He couldn't help but have emotions that he once would have called parasitic, and now they were slowly filling a void he'd always had inside him. He couldn't help but find Clark adorable every time he blushed, or was embarrassed or awkward, or smiled at Bruce.

He thought back to the look in his eyes and the smile that betrayed his emotions. The Bat couldn't tell how long Clark had been behaving this way toward him, but he wasn't immune to it anymore. It was taking its toll on him and he had changed. He still couldn't decide if that was a good thing.

"Can I join you?" a voice he could recognize in a thousand words asked.

Bruce nodded and turned to the newcomer, getting into a fighting stance.

"Are you mad at me for not telling you?" Dick asked as he began the assault.

The Bat parried his string of blows and attacked back, causing Dick to back away with a pirouette.

"No. I guess you thought it would go over better if Clark played the middleman. "

"Guilty. "

Bruce attacked the young man, knowing full well that he was more agile and faster than he was. But he knew his student by heart. He knew his techniques. He dodged a kick from Nightwing and threw a hook punch. But the acrobat knew how to take a punch. He immediately got up and did a spin to get over Bruce, grabbing him by the shoulders and flipping him backwards.

The Bat landed hard on the ground and was flipped over by Nightwing, trying to pin one of his arms down. He had trained him well. But he rolled to the side and Dick was forced to let go, cursing. Bruce got to his feet and as soon as his opponent was on his feet, he threw a series of punches until he broke through his defense. He was about to kick him in the ribs when he stopped, thinking about what Clark had told him. Dick saw his hesitation. Bruce stopped fighting.

"We're done. "

"It's not like you to hesitate. "

Bruce didn't answer and retrieved his briefcase to go home. On the porch, Alfred was waiting for them with two tall glasses of water.

"Hello Master Bruce, Master Richard. Master Jason is still sleeping, and so is Master Tim. "

"Tim is lazy," commented Dick.

"Oh, he reminds me of others... " Alfred replied in his usual innocent way.

Bruce and Dick looked up, both feeling targeted.

They entered the mansion and Bruce went up to his room to shower and get dressed. He canceled his morning appointment and rescheduled it, checking his calendar as he did so. He had forgotten about that fundraiser in Metropolis. He had received a message from Oliver, who had asked if he would come. Bruce had said yes, but reminded the millionaire that they were not supposed to know each other well.

He prepared himself for the rest of the day and went downstairs to the small living room, where he knew Alfred had served breakfast for Dick and himself. He arrived first and Dick came through the door a few minutes later with Tim still wide awake.

"Morning, everyone. "

"Good morning, Tim. I guess you were up late yesterday. "

The teenager grunted and sat down at the table. Bruce could feel Dick's gaze on him as he read the paper, and knew his teasing mood.

"So that dinner with Clark?" he said with a big smile.

Bruce wasn't surprised by the question. He had expected it.

"Very pleasant until he told me about your incident in Blüdhaven. Very clever of you. "

He looked at Dick, then at Alfred. The butler showed no reaction.

"Let's just say we thought you'd be in a better mood. You are, aren't you? "

"I'll wait until your ribs heal before I crack them again, Dick. "

Dick swallowed and Tim chuckled.

"Nice try! I think Clark ratted you out," the younger man added.

"I sometimes forget that he has X-ray vision," the older one justified himself.

"I'm glad he doesn't forget. "

Bruce's tone had been firmer. No one spoke again for a long time. Then finally Dick said:

"Bruce... you're not going to tell Jay to leave, are you? "

"No. And neither are you. "

Dick was surprised.

"What made you change your mind? "

"Sometimes I know when I've made a mistake, Dick. I think you've pointed that out to me quite a few times, haven't you? "

It was a rhetorical question. Tim grinned, totally satisfied.

"It's going to be nice to have you back at the Manor! I'm bored after high school. "

"Aren't you part of a team?" asked Dick.

"Oh, you missed some of it. "

Dick raised an eyebrow and looked at Bruce.

"We'll have a lot to talk about. Especially your report on Blüdhaven. "

"Yeah, I guess so. "

"But first, let's go see Jason. "

Bruce left the table first, but the two Robins challenged each other on the way to the table to see who would get to Jason's door first. One went up the stairs on the outside and the other ran up the ramp doing pirouettes and then ran down the long hallway. They waited for Bruce to enter. They received a Jason-like welcome.

"What a bunch of pachyderms! Let the others sleep! "

He wanted to turn over in his bed, winced at his wound, and finally pulled the sheet over his head.

"Get the birds out of the way! "

"What a welcome Jay!" Tim replied, pulling the sheet back.

Jason grunted.

"I'm getting mugged at the same time! Last time I take a bullet for you Birdy! "

"Don't call me Birdy," Dick shouted.

"Birdy ! "added Jason.

Dick was about to reply when Bruce commented.

"Well, I see you're doing well. "

Jason gave him a hateful look. It wasn't the first time he'd given Bruce this look, but it always hurt him. He'd thought about it the night before, about how he should act around Jason. Maybe Clark was right. He had to accept Jason.

"Yeah, thank Alfred and Clark for me! I guess I'll have to get out of here soon? "

"You can stay here as long as you like. "

Bruce turned around.

"And that's it? No questions, no conditions, no morals? "

"Questions later, same rules of life and you don't care about morals. "

Jason's eyes widened, as did the other two young men. Red Hood hadn't expected this. Bruce continued:

"What matters is that you are all alive. I'd like to know the story, though, but for now you can rest. " He turned to the other two Robins. "And you will leave him. "

The three young men looked at him in complete amazement.

"Uh...okay. "

"Alfred will come by and change your bandages. See you later. "

Bruce left the room and walked down the hall. Dick caught up with him, looking at him as if his foster father had grown a second head.

"You really should have dinner with Clark more often. "

His tone was serious, but he still had a small smile on his face. Bruce replied:

"Now, the report. "

"Yes, sir! "

And the two men went down to the Cave. The report would be long.

Clark closed his eyes in the elevator. He wanted to savor the few seconds of silence he could get in. He knew that when he got to his office, there would be a high probability that his ears would be assaulted by Lois or Perry. He took one last sip of coffee before walking through the doors.

"Clark! "

These estimates were not bad, but not correct either. Perry and Lois were calling him at the same time. The hierarchy prioritized. Perry walked over to him. At least he wasn't asking him to go to his office. Then against all odds, he hugged Clark:

"Well done Clark! Good job! I wanted to send Lois to the scene, but I guess you were more persistent! That's great Clark! Bravo! However, I'm counting on you to think about your colleague, right? I want lots of articles, scoops, gossip! I expect a lot from you! "

Perry's enthusiasm was more than apparent. But Clark didn't understand what he had done that was so extraordinary.

"Okay, Perry... "

His boss winked at him before returning to his office. Clark glanced questioningly at Lois, who looked ready to jump down his throat. Finally, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"Kent!" the reporter shouted.

He felt compelled to go over to her.

"How did you do it? I've been trying for a week to get invitations on the sly so that no one would double-cross me! How did you do that?! "

Clark raised an eyebrow.

"How did I do what? "

"It's that Elena, isn't it? Oh, you little creep, you're playing it so cool," she said in an accusatory tone.

The Kryptonian lost his patience.

"What the hell are you talking about, Lois? "

"Invitations for the big party at the Metropolis Museum! What do you think I was talking about?"

Clark frowned.

"I don't understand, it's a private party... "

"And you got an invitation! "

She pointed to the paper and waved her fingertips at it. Clark took it from her hand and read the piece of paper. He was indeed invited to this party. The initiative must have come from Elena Colona, the conservator. She must have liked his article.

"Are you opening my mail, Lois? "

The young woman looked falsely innocent.

"Bill made a mistake when he delivered the mail, because it had the museum symbol on it and I thought it was a positive response to my request. "

Clark couldn't help but smile.

"You're a good liar. "

"Thank you! "

The young woman returned to her desk and Clark did the same.

"Well, I guess I have no choice. Would you do me the honor of accompanying me tomorrow night to this wonderful opportunity to attend a social event? "

"I'd love to! I hope you have something to wear! "

Clark rolled his eyes. He couldn't wait for his day to be over soon.

Clark quickly moved on to Gotham Harbor. With the recent events, he had forgotten to get that list of container tenants. Only the night watchman was on the premises, but he was likely to see him. He had to create a diversion. Clark passed between the first containers and made sure he was seen by the guard. When he heard the guard call out to him, he took off running, and then went around him to the open office. He had to be very discreet. Fortunately for him, there were no cameras. As soon as he had finished his transfer to the USB key, he went out and disappeared from the port.

He raised his glasses before knocking. Alfred came to open the door. He wasn't surprised to see him and Clark wondered for a moment what a surprised Alfred might look like. He would probably raise an eyebrow. He often raised his eyebrows.

"Mr. Clark, I've cleaned your clothes. I'll get them for you. "

"Thank you, Alfred. I brought Bruce's. Where is he? "

"In the Cave, with Master Richard. They've been there all day. "

Clark nodded. Dick's report must have been long.

"And how is Jason? "

"Master Jason and Master Tim took the opportunity to bring the console into the home theater."

Clark smiled slightly.

"They're playing with fire. "

Alfred smiled back and showed Clark where the room was. Clark went to the room only after passing through Bruce's room and greeted the boys. He found them both playing a war game. A game that Clark had heard of often. He checked on Jason, who seemed to be doing well.

"In your face Jay! "

"Wait till you see, you're lucky it's only on a screen! "

He chooses this moment to intervene:

"Are you sure this is a good way to rest, Jason? "

Both players turned their heads to Clark.

"Ah, Uncle Supes! Great, you're here to lecture me? "

Clark took the liberty of tapping the back of his head.

"That's not my job. So get off your butt and make room for me! "

"Oh yes, we're going to beat you up, Clark! "exclamend Tim.

"I'm going to blow you away," the reporter replied.

Jason elbowed him.

"Shut up, you two, I'm the weapons expert here! "

They started a game. Clark wasn't going to talk about Jay's activities in Blüdhaven, not now. He just enjoyed the time and the relaxation. He immersed himself in the video game. The first game was won by the token braggart, then the second, then the third. Jason was unstoppable and was scoring big time. Clark was slow to start and was already struggling to catch up to Tim's score. He won the next game by a surprisingly large margin.

It was his only moment of glory in the game. Even more motivated by beating Clark, Jason and Tim pounded away at the joystick and hammered away at the keys. Although he had excellent reflexes, Jason and Tim knew the game inside and out. The traps they set for him had repeatedly defeated him. The domination of the game was therefore between Jason and Tim, who had recovered. The current Robin had managed to equalize his victories several times, without managing to stay in the lead.

Again, the game that was being played there would determine which of the two boys would dominate. While Clark tried to catch them as best he could, being the prime target of the other two.

"Dinner will be served soon, gentlemen. "

Clark was startled and looked at his watch. He'd been here for over two hours.

"I didn't see the time! Sorry boys, I'll have to let you get on with it. "

"It's not like you're winning," Tim replied and Clark elbowed him in retaliation.

"You're included in the guests, Mr. Clark. Master Bruce informed me of this at lunchtime. "

Clark raised his eyebrows, not having been given any information about the party.

"Uh, thank you, I suppose. "

"I'm not even surprised," Jason commented, laughing.

The Kryptonian slapped the back of his head, leading to his death and Jason's death at the hands of Tim. Alfred left the room and Clark said:

"This is the decisive part, guys. "

"You buy a beer tour if I win," Jason said.

"Same here! "

"Do I look like a victim or what?" Clark replied, killing Tim and Jason in revenge.

This time Clark came back into the game:

"You will pay for this affront! "

Jason dropped his controller to mime quotation marks as he spoke:

" « You will pay for this affront »," said the cocker spaniel-eyed man in the short suit.

Clark stuck a semtex on Jason to kill him.

"The four-eyed man blows you away! "

"Oh Jay, you've got Supes all hot now! "

The journalist was not going to end this last game on a dismal defeat. It was out of the question. He was going to teach those pretentious little guys a lesson. He tracked down Tim and Jason in the game and killed all the other players in his reach. Just as he missed a kill, Clark turned around and put a claymore right in front of Tim, which exploded. Clark's character was badly wounded, but he survived.

"Uh, savage that Clark!" commented Tim.

Jason executed Clark with a bullet to the head.

"Wait your turn Jay, you're not going to take it to heaven! "

Clark ran over half the map to find Jason. And shoot him.

"What a spiteful man you are, Clark! You're not going to beat me at this," Jason said defiantly.

"You think so?" Clark replied in the same tone.

In response, Jason kicked him, nearly causing Clark to drop the controller. The distraction was enough to kill Clark.

"Oh, you'll see! "

Clark grabbed Tim's jacket and threw it at Jay's head. Jay retaliated by grabbing the same jacket and the two men continued to bicker, paying no attention to Tim, who sneered slyly as he killed their characters. They were interrupted by a cold, firm voice that stopped them in their tracks.

"Home theater is not for this. "

Behind Bruce, Dick couldn't help but burst out laughing. Only the end-of-game jingle broke the silence.

"Uh... Good evening, Bruce. "

The Bat didn't answer and turned back. Tim looked at Jason and Clark with a mischievous smile:

"I won, you assholes! "

"I'm going to kill you, you little sneak," said the Red Hood to the Robin.

"Well, let's go before Bruce gets his nerves on the console," said Dick in a serious tone. He looked at Jason. "I guess you're all right now, dumbass. "

"Birdy. "

"I'm going to blow you away. "

"I'm waiting for you. "

The two boys had moved closer and were both clenching their fists. Clark intervened.

"Let's go! "

Bruce sat at the end of the table. To his left was Clark and then Dick, and to his right Tim and then Jason. Alfred had served the meal.

"What did your information tell us, Dick? Do you think it will still be valid? "

"Some of it is, but very little. We checked with Bruce. The Court is very well organized. A lot of their caches are empty now. We checked a lot of them today, with spy drones at the Cave. "

Clark thinks for a few seconds.

"Your big drones? "

"We have smaller ones now, they have a short flight range but we've customized the big ones. Tim has some good ideas," Dick explained.

Clark looked at his tablemate and winked.

"Wouldn't it be nice if he met Blue Beetle? "

"Funny, Clark, I was thinking the same thing," Dick added conspiratorially.

"Serious? I could meet Blue Beetle ?!" Tim exclaimed happily.

"Who's this guy?" asked Jay. "What a lame name! "

"Stop it! He's a pure genius of new technologies! Get out of here, Jay!" replied Tim.

"I'm sorry, this guy is a complete unknown. But with a name like that... "

"Shut up, Jay!" intervened Dick.

"What's the matter, Birdy? Do you feel targeted? But « Nightwing », former apprentice of « Batman », sounds like a guy who can't get away from his mentor, doesn't it? Do you still need daddy?"

"Jason. Be careful," Bruce replied threateningly.

Clark glared at the Red Hood, but didn't comment, even though it was partly about him.

"You're such a fucking idiot," Dick snapped. "You know damn well where my nickname comes from. Why do you get off on this bullshit? "

"It's so easy to make you mad. I love to get you mad. "

Dick kept his cool.

"By the way, you haven't told us why you were in Blüdhaven," said Bruce.

Jason put his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his palm, glaring at Dick in front of him. Everyone turned their attention to the young man, and Clark cocked his head.

"I actually tracked Dicky-Birdy down and being a total nut job, I followed him around for weeks until I found out he got discovered, so I figured I'd blow up a whole container of guns and ammo before I went to save his ass! "

Clark was the only one who didn't react.

"Damn it, Jay, stop screwing around and tell us what you were doing! "Dick replied.

"Okay, okay! I got a tip about a gun deal with another organization I hate, so I showed up to screw it up like I always do, and then this asshole comes up behind me! So that's it. Then there's the cavalry that almost buried us too. "

All eyes turned to Clark, who raised his hands in justification:

"Hey! I didn't hurt them! "

"You still almost dropped the church roof on us," Dick said thoughtfully.

Clark squinted.

"Is it because I don't have my costume that you question me? "

"You mean your pretty blue tights? "

"I wouldn't go there, Jay. "

He was referring to the outfit he wore as an apprentice. Red Hood squinted in turn before giving in.

"Yeah. Fair enough. But my outfit now is classier," the second Robin muttered to himself.

The man in front of him sighed.

"Stickers or not, thanks Clark. If it wasn't for your intervention, Jay would have stayed," Dick said.

The conversation became very serious again.

"That's my job. Still, you were very careless, Jason. "

Bruce agreed:

"Clark is right. It wasn't safe to go alone. "

"Yes, I know. I took a risk. I could never resist a Little Bird in distress. "

"You were the one in distress! And stop calling me that! "

Tim smiled broadly as he looked at the two of them.

"I love it when you guys come home. It's so much more lively. "

"As long as they don't ravage the Manor like they used to... "Bruce grumbled more to himself.

Jason and Dick both huffed in their corners. Clark grinned broadly. Then Jason suddenly flashed a petty smile that Clark spotted, and he was stared at by Clark's blue-green eyes.

"By the way, how long have you been coming here, Clark? "

The reporter was so taken aback that he didn't even know what to say. Bruce answered for him:

"I'm still at home, I guess. I thought I noticed that for the three of you, Clark was pretty useful, wasn't he? "

The three boys looked at each other and the two older boys looked questioningly at Tim, who smiled guiltily. Clark was relieved that Bruce had intervened. Until Dick opened his mouth again:

"Yeah, but Alfred had made a room and this morn-"

Bruce rose from the table.

"Jason should go get some rest. I guess he's got a lot to recover from. Tim, get ready. "

"Uh, I'm doing pretty good... " Red Hood started.

"You've been asleep most of the day! "

"I've woken up sometimes! "

Clark quietly got up from the table and went to join Bruce in the hallway. Then Tim left to go up to his room and as they walked to the library, they heard Jason whisper to Dick:

"Come on, Little Bird, don't be a pain in the ass! "

"You're a pain in the ass, Jay. "

"I know. "

Bruce frowned and Clark led him to the secret passageway of the Cave.

The two vigilantes descended to the Cave in silence. When they were sure they were alone, Clark remarked to Bruce.

"Jason wasn't lying earlier. For his reason in Blüdhaven. "

Bruce remained silent for a moment, beginning to undress and put on the Batman costume. Clark didn't take his eyes off him.

"I just figured out why you were talking about green. Jay should wear green," Bruce said.

"Oh, you see! Dick will be a little less blind. "

"I've never noticed Jay's behavior before. "

"That's because you weren't around him enough. Well, I didn't either, but Dick used to tell me about it. He may not see for himself, but he's not blind when it comes to us. "

"I know. "

Clark smiled and came over to hug Bruce, who had just finished putting on his costume. The Bat froze at the touch and the Kryptonian stepped back quickly.

"Sorry. I know I'm getting too affectionate... "

Bruce grabbed his arm and returned the kiss, before pulling away from him. Clark flushed instantly.

"I was surprised," Bruce replied.

Fun fact: the pseudonym "Nightwing" comes from a Kryptonian legend that Superman told Dick, and he is also one of the only humans to have ever entered Kandor, the great Kryptonian city.