Title Navajo Dreams
Author Kim
Summery what if Bruce Wayne raised Roy Harper.
DC owns them.
Part 8
Roy stripped off the black domino mask he wore as part of his robin costume and threw it angrily on the table. "It's never good enough for you is it...Nothing I do is ever good enough for you." he said, with barely contained anger as he turned to face his mentor.
Batman drew his cowel back to reveal Bruce Wayne, he stood glaring into his wards angry green eye's "It won't be good enough until you learn to do what I say without question." he growled in a low voice.
"If I'd done what you told me to...you'd probably be dead by now...I'm sick of being pushed to the background all the time...I can handle myself..You know that, you should..You've taught me everything I know...Why do I have to get the easy ones all the time hey?" Roy stomped past Batman, plonked angrily down on a chair, and began removing his green pixie boots.
"You don't get the easy ones...I know what your capable of.. even better than you do yourself at times...Your hot headed and impulsive and that's going to get you killed one day..." Bruce's hissed reply was cut off by his angry ward.
"Get me killed...GET ME KILLED?...I SAVED YOUR BUTT TONIGHT...HOW THE HELL DO YOU THINK I GET ON WHEN I'M WITH THE TITAN'S...YOUR NOT AROUND BITCH'N AT ME ALL THE TIME THEN." Roy bellowed.
Alfred appeared from behind Bruce "Master Roy..indoor voice please." he said calmly as he stooped to retrieve the boots Roy had hurled across the floor.
Roy fell silent, casting and angry glare towards Bruce...he sprang to his feet and stomped off towards the showers.
Bruce stared after him for a moment, then sighed, the boy had just turned seventeen and more and more Bruce found himself at a loss as to how to deal with him...Roy was hot headed and determined and difficult to reason with. "He thinks he knows all the answers Alfred...Sometimes I don't know what to do with him." he said.
"He does appear to be somewhat irritated with you tonight Sir." Alfred remarked.
"That seems to be the case all the time lately Alfred...He needs to realize how serious this line of work is...The place for quips and worthless banter is not in the middle of a fight...And this nonsense about taking his bow out with him on patrol...Who doe's he think he is, Green Arrow?" Bruce fumed.
"If I may Sir...At seventeen Master Roy stands on the threshold of manhood..It's perfectly normal for him to feel the need to...'step out from your shadow', to coin a phrase...Master Roy has always had some difficulty containing himself when it comes to this...banter..as you call it...But that in itself may not be a bad thing...simply different to the way you yourself like to do things...The fact that he wishes to use his bow in his work..is simply another reflection of the differences between you...Master Roy is a very accomplished archer, it's quite normal he would have a desire to incorporate that skill into his outings." Alfred said gently.
"It's fine for him to be different Alfred...But while he is working with me he'll do things my way...Or not at all." with that Bruce stalked off to the other shower.
Alfred sighed, there had been much tension between the two Master's lately...he feared things would come to a head soon.
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Two weeks later Roy skipped down the stairs..whistling happily as he went towards the front door..Picking up the key's to his motor cycle from off the hall table on the way past.
"Where do you think you're going." asked Bruce as he came out of his study.
"Out...I'm meeting a friend.."Roy started stopping as Bruce cut in.
"No you're not...you agreed to spend the afternoon in the cave entering those files in the computer." Bruce said firmly.
Roy felt himself tense, but refused to snap...That's right he had agreed to finish those files off, they'd talked about it yesterday..He had forgotten that he had organized this outing weeks ago...His friend had just called to remind him.."I'm sorry Bruce..I forgot I'd organized this a while ago..."
"Roy you've got to get your priorities right...either your serious about crime fighting or your not...If your serious, then it comes first.. over all your outside commitments, and if your not then you should pull out now." Bruce stated bluntly, he didn't want to be hard on the boy...But he needed to be sure Roy was committed, and dedicated..He seen too many wannabe crime fighters die in their line of work, he didn't ever want to have to face that with Roy.
Roy felt anger rising again..this time he knew he couldn't hold it back.. " YOU THINK I'M NOT COMMITED?...I'M JUST AS COMMITED AS YOU ARE BRUCE...BUT I"M STILL ME...I CAN'T BE YOU." Roy took a breath and lowered his voice...grateful that Alfred had left to go into Gotham to run errands earlier in the day. "I've tried Bruce...Hell..you can't imagine how hard I've tried...I wanted to be just like you..I wanted you to be proud of who I am...But I'm not like you..I'll never be as good as you are..And I'm sorry I disappoint you..." Roy stopped his angry tirade, " I'm sorry." he said quietly, his eye's locking with Bruce's for a moment before wheeling around and heading out the door.
"Roy wait..." Bruce yelled..walking swiftly to the doorway only to have the door slam in front of him.
Resting his brow against the door, Bruce heard Roy's motor cycle leave. "I'm sorry too son...and I am proud of you." He said softly.
end of part 8
