So I'm not really sure how often I should post new chapters. It takes a day - tops - to rewrite, but I don't want to be posting daily. Maybe two or three times a week? Opinions? How often do you guys think I should post new chapters for this?
Gotham City, Wayne Manor, U.S.A.
October 4th, 2010
If Bruce is honest with himself, cleaning his desk out for the first time in over ten years is a lot more work than he expects. It needs to be done though, even though he doesn't really want to. He can't deny that finding paperwork will be easier when it's not lost in one of the piles of old documents Bruce has floating around that he really should just get rid of.
Once the surface is cleared off (a monumental task on its own) he starts to go through the drawers. It's amazing how many things he's accumulated in them have nothing to do with work. Bruce is fairly sure he doesn't even make clippings of newspapers, so it's a question how any of the numerous clippings ended up spread in the drawers. There are also quite a few letters, most open, however, a few aren't. He sets the unopened letters aside to look through later and tosses the opened ones. There's also more old paperwork, which joins numerous other things in the trash.
In the end, Bruce has rather large stacks of paper clips, pencils, pens, staples, and blanks paper. He has a few clipboards as well, plus two or three unopened letters to look at.
Or organizes everything else first. The stapes go in a tiny plastic tub which is then put back in the top left drawer. The paper clips join the staples in a plastic tub of their own. The pens and pencils are placed loosely in the top right drawer. Blank paper is in the bottom right drawer. The clipboards are stacked in the bottom left drawer.
Bruce sits down on his leather office chair behind his desk and breaths deeply, eyes closed. It's amazing what even cleaning such a small part of the house can do for him. He takes a moment to enjoy the feeling before reaching for the unopened letters.
One is an invitation to a gala that happened back in 2004. Bruce did go, but he always thought he'd never received an invitation in the first place, or maybe they'd missed sending him one. He'd been able to get in because everyone knew who he was. The second is a funeral notice for a businessman Bruce never liked when he was alive. Bruce had sent flowers after his death though. He tosses both.
The third letter is different. It's handwritten, first of all. He recognizes the handwriting. It hits him suddenly with striking familiarity. The only problem is it says it's from Marilyn Batson.
Bruce, as much as he wants - needs - to know everything, he stayed away from her. He's been tempted to search her, almost has, but he's never actually done it. It just doesn't seem like something she'd want him to brood over. And he's done a spectacular job of not brooding over her if he says so himself.
Apparently, she had married C.C. Batson.
Bruce had always hoped she was lying about calling him. Apparently not.
He slowly opens the letter, careful not to tear anything. His heart clenches at the familiar sight of her looping S's and crooked T's. He takes a moment and just looks at the handwriting. Not reading, just looking.
Dearest Bruce,
I know you're probably wondering why I'm sending you this letter. I know I am. The last you heard from me is telling you we can't be together. Now I'm writing you a letter. This isn't what I wanted to do, but C.C. has always been a better person than me. He insisted I write to you.
We married. I thought you should know. That isn't the point of the letter, but it seemed important to add. I do love him. I love you too, though, Bruce. But I don't think we were meant to be. Both of us knew that. No matter how much we denied it for those few months in Peru.
I don't regret it. Being with you, that is. I hope you don't either. It ended in heartbreak, but the result was amazing. I have a son, Bruce. His name is William Thomas Batson. He's not C.C.'s son. He's yours and mine. He was born on October 1st, 2000. He came early. I was so scared, but the doctors say he'll be fine. He just needs a little extra love.
I wasn't going to tell you about him. I didn't want to. C.C. insisted though. He says a man deserves to know he has a son. But to be clear, C.C. is William's father or is going to be. I don't want you in William's life. (I did name him after your father, however.)
You're an amazing person, Bruce. You're a good person. I don't doubt that. But William doesn't deserve to be confused. He doesn't deserve to have to move back and forth just to spend time with his father. He deserves stability. And let's be honest, you're not the most stable person. Or emotionally vulnerable.
You have the money where you could most definitely get William from us and we'd never see him again. I don't think you will. You know I don't want money. You know I'll do my best to love him. We both know C.C. will be an amazing father.
If anything ever happens to C.C. and me, I also wanted you to know. You'll be a better person to take care of him than C.C.'s brother, Ebenezer. You'll love him. Ebenezer won't. You won't be named in our will (the publicity!) but this is so you know it's okay to get him from Ebenezer. Do whatever it takes if that ever happens.
With Love,
Marilyn Batson
Bruce drops the letter to the desk. He has a son. A ten-year-old human child. He's had a child all these years, a son he's never known. He would have known though if only he'd cleaned out his desk. He has a son named William Thomas Batson.
She named their son after his father.
She doesn't want him to know his own son.
It makes sense, he supposes. Being a vigilante isn't the safest career option. He may die at any time. And from what she wrote it seems like William has had a good life. He has a nice, normal, undamaged man for a father. He has a perfect mother.
Bruce's heart aches. He could have had her and William. He could have been a father. If he'd been able to convince her (or himself. Mostly himself) that he would give up his quest for justice they could have gone back to America together. He could have raised a son in the Manor. He could have had more children. Dick certainly would have liked to have children his age (or near to it) when he first came to live with Bruce.
His mind whirls with a million miles an hour with all what-ifs and could-have-beens.
It's in this state that Alfred finds Bruce in a few hours later, sitting in his chair with his head in his hands, pale and unresponsive.
"Master Bruce, whatever is the matter?" Alfred asks, sounding concerned and curious.
Bruce doesn't answer at first. Instead, he takes a moment longer to compose himself at least slightly and looks up at Alfred with red-rimmed eyes.
Bruce gestures to the letter still sitting innocently on his desk.
"Read it," he tells Alfred shortly.
It sounds like a command, but both him and Alfred know it isn't Bruce who gives the commands. Bruce knows Alfred won't be offended at the tone, especially once he reads the letter. He definitely won't take the words at face value after reading it. And Bruce knows Alfred can tell he's in pain. Not physical pain, emotional.
Alfred raises an eyebrow and grabs the letter smoothly, taking a moment to read through it. As he goes his eyebrows climb higher and higher. Near what must be the end of the letter, Alfred's eyebrows are so high Bruce knows if he still had hair his eyebrows would be hidden in it.
"There it is," Bruce says tiredly.
Alfred looks up at Bruce, whole posture softening.
"So… is it true, Master Bruce?"
"I don't know, Alfred," Bruce sighs, burying his face in his hands again. "We were together in Peru briefly." Bruce decides to spare the detail. Those aren't things he needs Alfred knowing. "Judging by when she says her son was born, he would have to be mine. But… I don't think I should look into it further," Bruce admits. As much as it hurts to say, Bruce should probably just let sleeping dragons lie.
He feels hopeless. He wants to respect Marilyn's wishes, and yet at the same time… he wants to, needs to know more about the boy. His son. He's torn between following her wishes to stay away or looking for more information.
Of course, she could be lying to him, but Bruce's gut tells him she's not. It's not like she demands hush money in the letter, and he knows there haven't been any rumors of him having a son, well, none any more credible than usual.
"If I may be so bold, Master Bruce?"
"Of course, Alfred," Bruce replies automatically.
"Follow the young woman's wishes. Stay away, for now. But… it can't hurt to look up the boy, see whether he's happy and look at pictures of him." Bruce sends Alfred a thankful look. Alfred smiles fondly at Bruce and pats him on the shoulder. "I shall leave you alone with your thoughts, for now, my boy."
Alfred turns away and begins to head out of the study. Just as the door is about to close, Bruce whispers brokenly: "She named him after my dad, Alfred."
Gotham City, The Batcave, U.S.A.
October 4th, 2010
It isn't hard to find Marilyn by simply searching her name. The Batcomputer organizes every mention of her online chronologically starting from after they'd parted in Peru. The first one is a wedding announcement between her and C.C. Batson.
There are lots of smaller mentions of her that Bruce ignores. He doesn't ignore a birth announcement of a boy named William Thomas Batson to her and C.C. Batson. Bruce reads it eagerly. It doesn't say a lot, mostly talks about how he was born early.
Bruce changes the search after that, instead, he looks for every mention of William Thomas Batson. There isn't a lot. He's mentioned in a few articles alongside Marilyn and her husband. Mostly just saying he travels with them when they go on archeological digs around the world. But soon - too soon - there are only two mentions of William left. One is in a death announcement for Marilyn and C.C. Batson, who were murdered while on a dig in Giza. the next is a missing person report filed by his uncle, Ebenezer Batson.
Bruce feels his heart clench. Was William killed in Giza with his mother and father? (Bruce isn't his father, he knows that even if he is biologically William's father, he's not the one who raised him.)
Bruce does more digging, praying that William hadn't died. He doesn't know if he can handle that, gaining and losing a son in a matter of hours.
Soon he finds it, a mention of William. It's from a newspaper doing an article on the Batsons. William had stayed home with influenza when his parents died. He ran away from his uncle's home a few weeks later.
Bruce remembers Marilyn's begging to keep William away from Ebenezer if anything happened to her and C.C. and suddenly he wonders. How bad is Ebenezer Batson really? Is he the monster she makes him sound like, or simply just not good with children? That will require more investigating later, but for now, Bruce needs to find William. If he's even still alive.
Bruce does a more in-depth search, looking through homeless shelter records, foster records, and death records for a boy between the ages of six and ten that matches William's description.
Fawcett City, however, is not known for its hard crime. In all honesty, it's one of the best cities in the U.S. to live in if you want to avoid gangs, murders, and robberies. Always has been, and Captain Marvel just makes it that much safer. Plus the Captain has a way of putting civilians at ease.
Bruce entertains asking Captain Marvel for help but disregards the idea a minute later. He doesn't want anyone to know what's going on, for now at least. All Bruce knows is that he can't find William anywhere in Fawcett City. Not dead, not homeless, not in the system. All Bruce knows is once he finds William - if he finds William - the boy will be coming to live with him, even if Marilyn was wrong about him being Bruce's son.
(He doesn't think she's wrong. Marilyn was always so smart, smarter than Bruce, probably. She knows what she's talking about 100% of the time. He trusts she's not wrong about William, even if he will have to be sure.)
Then Bruce, just as he's about to expand his search parameters to a one-hundred-mile radius of Fawcett City, sees something unusual. William's name on a school field trip list. As a student. But as Bruce looks closer he notices that there's no paperwork, no proof William even goes to the school. No records of him. It's like he just showed up one day and no one questioned it. The fact that he doesn't have guardians or a house and isn't even technically enrolled.
Curious.
How he managed that is beyond Bruce. No hacking. Just… Bruce isn't even sure how to explain it, to be honest. It's obvious William is smart, to have managed this he has to be. But how? How had he managed this?
But even as Bruce searches more he finds himself thinking more and more about William. He finally has a solid lead on the boy's whereabouts. According to the most recent field trip the entire school took, William was still attending. Bruce knows where his son is. And he's still in Fawcett City. He doesn't know where William sleeps, but he does know where William spends his day.
"Hey, Bruce! You down here?" a familiar voice yells. "Alfred said you were when I asked. He wouldn't tell me why though."
Bruce ignores Dick. If he really actually wants to talk to Bruce he'll come down himself. A moment later Dick comes into sight with his backpack slung behind his back, only one arm in a strap. Dick's still in his school uniform, which means he must have just gotten home. He hates the uniform with a passion Bruce is always impressed by.
"Hey, B. I was wondering if I could head out to the mountain? Wally and I are planning a video game marathon, and to teach Supey to play without crushing the controllers. Speaking of, do we have any extra controllers, you know, just in case?"
"There should be some extra controllers in the cupboard above the TV," Bruce replies automatically. "Before you go I need to talk to you about something important."
"Did someone break out of Arkham?" he asks. "Was it Scarecrow or Poison Ivy. Did Riddler show up? He has been in the wind since escaping from Belle Reve."
Dick looks almost giddy at the idea. Bruce spares a moment to worry about how excited Dick looks at the prospect of violent criminals breaking out of jail and mental wards and worries. He'll have to talk to him about that. Later.
"No one broke out of Arkham. But tomorrow you're taking the day off school and we're going to Fawcett City."
"Am I allowed to ask why?"
"We're going to try and find my son."
Dick freezes and turns to look at Bruce with wide eyes.
"Did I mishear you?"
"No."
"You have a son? When did this happen!?" Dick screeches.
"About ten years ago," Bruce deadpans. "I wasn't… aware until today. I met the boy's mother in Peru while training. We didn't stay together. She sent me a letter about the boy, asked me to stay away unless she and her new husband died. I just found the letter today."
"They died, didn't they?" Dick asks.
Bruce inclines his head. "Almost four years ago now. The boy was taken in by his uncle, but he ran away a few weeks later. I don't know where he's been living, but he has been going to school since he was seven. As far as I can tell he just showed up and no one questioned it."
Dick hopped onto the consul of the Batcomputer and swung his legs back and forth. "Could she have lied?" He doesn't ask about Billy's mysterious ability to go to school, but Bruce finds that less important to think about as more time goes on.
"She's not the type to lie," Bruce says. "She could be wrong, I suppose, but I'd be surprised if she was. Even if she is, he'll be coming to stay with us. She mentioned in her letter that she didn't want his uncle to be his guardian."
"If he's coming to live with us I guess I should know his name," Dick says.
"William Thomas Batson," Bruce says. "After my father and her husband's father."
Dick stares at Bruce for a long moment before he bursts out in a fit of laughter.
"Sorry, sorry," he giggles. "It's just, oh god, his last name is Batson. He's the Bat's son! Bruce, that's hilarious!"
Don't worry; we get to Billy next chapter. :)
Also, I hope I made the letter seem genuine enough. I'm not sure how it sounds. Opinions?