So sorry this took so long to finish! Long story short, injured my wrist pretty bad, had a paper to finish that I hadn't started, 20+ hours of work, and a snowstorm. Hope the wait was worth it! It's a tad shorter than the last chapter, but still pretty good! Enjoy!
Fawcett City, U.S.A.
October 5th, 2010
The car ride is silent. Billy isn't sure if it's because Mr. Wayne is a quiet person or if it's Billy's own hostile attitude towards… well, everything that's keeping everyone quiet. Billy's unwilling to break the silence, and it seems, so are they. The entire ride is - in a word - awkward. Tense is another word Billy might use.
It's almost worse because Billy is sitting in the back and both Mr. Wayne and Dick Grayson are sitting in the front seats, passing meaningful looks back and forth so smoothly that it reminds Billy of how Batman and Robin communicate. In fact, something about them is oddly familiar, and not just in how smoothly they communicate. But that's silly to think; Billy has never seen either of them before today.
It doesn't take long for Mr. Wayne to pull the car to a stop in front of what has to be the fanciest hotel Billy has ever seen in his short life. There's a man in a red uniform waiting by the door who takes the keys from Mr. Wayne and immediately gets into the car, driving it off towards a parking lot. Billy watches for a moment before following Mr. Wayne and Dick into the hotel.
Rich people are weird, he decides. Is it really that hard to park your own car? Or to have to walk more than fifteen feet in slightly chilly air to get inside a building? Mr. Wayne doesn't seem like the type of person to be so lazy. Billy doesn't really like Mr. Wayne at the moment, but he doesn't think he's so self-centered either.
As they walk through the hotel, Billy watches Mr. Wayne. He smiles a lot, more than Billy would expect. He also comes off as slightly goofy. But the thing is Billy doesn't think that's how Mr. Wayne really is, because as soon as they're out of sight of the hotel receptionist and other guests in the waiting room, he goes right back to being the quiet and introspective man who gave Billy his mom's letter and drove them here. Mr. Wayne puts on a very noticeable front, at least to Billy.
He files the information away for later.
They don't walk very far. In what feels like no time at all to Billy they arrive at a hotel room. Mr. Wayne slides a card and the door pops open, revealing a room that is at least as large as Billy's old house from when his parents were alive.
He snaps his mouth shut. He hadn't even noticed it had dropped. The whole place looks like it should be where a movie star stays, or even a king. Heck, some of the gods Billy has met would be happy to stay here, and they're the pickiest beings Billy has ever met.
Billy tries to keep his emotions in check. As cool as this is (and extremely extravagant), he doesn't want to be impressed or amazed. He doesn't want to acknowledge that any of this may be true. That maybe, just maybe, C.C. Batson isn't his biological dad. He just wants to go home and pretend that this isn't happening.
After a moment, Billy notices a woman near the back of the room. She has brown hair with grey streaks. She also wears a lab coat. This is probably Dr. Leslie Thompkins, Billy realizes.
"Hello," she says, looking up at the sound of the door closing and walking towards them. "I see you're back, Bruce. And you must be Billy. I'm Dr. Thompkins. How do you do?"
"I'm Billy Batson, but I guess you knew that."
Dr. Thompkins' lips twitch at his name as if he's told a spectacularly funny joke and she is trying her hardest not to laugh. Billy isn't quite sure what she finds so funny about his name, but she seems like an okay person. Something about her is just very soothing.
"Do you know what you're doing here?" she asks.
Billy scowls slightly. "Yeah. I do. Mr. Wayne told me he wants to do a paternity test because of a letter my mom sent him after I was born."
"Go ahead and sit down then," she says, gesturing towards a chair. "I'm just going to be doing a cheek swab. Then I'll use that. An analysis shouldn't take long; the equipment is all here."
Billy sits down. "Doesn't DNA analysis take longer to do than an hour? I thought it took a day or two."
Dr. Thompkins seems surprised by his question. She shoots an impressed look to Mr. Wayne.
"Normally it does," she concedes. "I have equipment that makes it a bit faster and easier."
"Ah," Billy says. It makes sense Mr. Wayne is able to have it done quicker and easier. He has money. Money makes everything easier and faster.
As Dr. Thompkins gathers what must be the proper equipment. Out of the corner of his eye, Billy sees Mr. Wayne sit down awkwardly on the end of a bed as if he's not quite sure what to do with himself. Something about that strikes him as funny, even if he doesn't laugh. Dick sits down on the floor at Mr. Wayne's feet.
Billy isn't quite sure what to make of Dick. The teen is so friendly it's abrasive. Billy's met his fair share of teens during his years being homeless. Most of them aren't this friendly. They're okay, sure, but they're also high half the time. It makes it hard to talk to them or enjoy their company.
"Open please," Dr. Thompkins says.
Billy drops his mouth open and lets her swab it with the cotton. The rubber gloves she's wearing are uncomfortable and feel strange when they brush the inside of his mouth. She removes the cotton after a moment, leaving his mouth dry.
She drops the cotton swab into a plastic bag quickly and zips the bag.
"The results should be back in about an hour. I'm going to go and run them in the other room."
As she leaves, Billy finds himself thinking that he hadn't even noticed the hotel room had more rooms. How big is it?
Billy hopes that the test comes back negative. He hopes that he's not Mr. Wayne's son. But the more Billy thinks about it the more he can see it being true. His mom wouldn't have written the letter if it wasn't the truth. And honestly, Billy looks like Mr. Wayne a lot. A lot more than he looked like C.C. Batson, at any rate.
The room is quiet. No one really talks or moves, nor do they make a move to do so. Billy thinks it's because they're not quite sure what to say to him. There's a moment where Mr. Wayne shifts as if to stand up or say something, but in the end, he stills again. Billy's thankful for that, in a way. He doesn't think he's ready to face this all, not fully, at least.
They all stay quiet for the rest of the hour until Dr. Thompkins comes back, lips thin and almost frowning. She's holding onto a small stack of papers tightly, knuckles white. Billy thinks he knows what she's going to say.
"The paternity results are here," she says, holding the papers out to Mr. Wayne, who is quick to snatch them and reads quickly. She retreats to the other room and closes the door, leaving the three of them alone.
Mr. Wayne's face is stiff. Billy finds himself unable to read the man's expression easily, which is beyond frustrating.
Finally, Mr. Wayne looks up at Billy. He feels his heart sink.
"I am, aren't I?" Billy asks. "Your son, I mean."
Wordlessly, Mr. Wayne stands up and gives the papers to Billy. Mostly they're full of techno mumbo-jumbo that Billy doesn't have a chance of understanding unless the Wisdom of Solomon is coming into play.
The chances of Doner 1 being the biological father of Doner 2 is 99.78%. This is considered a positive result because of-
Billy sets the papers down, hands shaking slightly. He drops his hands to his sides so no one notices. Mr. Wayne is his dad, biologically at least. The letter had said that his dad, C.C., knew about it, he knew that Billy was Mr. Wayne's son. Did he still love Billy? He remembers his dad loved him, but what if it was all a lie?
Well, it was, in a way. They hadn't told Billy. They'd lied about it and said he was C.C.'s son. Even his mom lied to him. And sure, maybe they'd eventually been planning to come clean, but they'd died before they could. They'd died and left Billy alone with Uncle Ebenezer.
(At least there's one positive, Billy finds himself thinking. He's not related to Uncle Ebenezer.)
Billy feels hot tears well up in his eyes, threatening to spill over. He wipes them roughly with his sleeve.
A moment later, he feels a hand on his shoulder. Billy looks up into Mr. Wayne's eyes. He looks, not pitying, but understanding, which is a step higher than Billy had expected. It's strange. It's not exactly unwelcome.
"I am sorry, Billy," Mr. Wayne says sincerely. "If I had known…"
"What?" Billy asks dully, feeling drained and lifeless. "What would you have done? Taken me from them?"
"No. But I would have been there for you after they died. I would have been there instead of your uncle. Maybe I could have been there and you wouldn't have run away."
Billy stiffens. "You know about that, huh?"
"You aren't in a foster home. You haven't been adopted. Officially, you're still a missing person. The only reason was that I found your name on a school field trip checklist. Not in the system though…"
"So, what now?" Billy asks, trying to steer the conversation away from his magical attendance. "You're not going to leave me alone, are you?"
Somehow, Billy knows the answer. Mr. Wayne isn't anything like he seems to be on television. He's nice, kind, understanding. It's hard to be mad at him.
"No, I'm not."
"I can't leave Fawcett," Billy tries. He sounds desperate. He is desperate. Fawcett City is his life. It's his home. All his friends are here. His work is here. It's where he lived with his parents when they were alive.
"You can't continue living alone," Mr. Wayne argues. "It's not safe, especially not if you're only ten."
"I've been plenty safe so far," Billy mutters. "I don't need to be protected. I never have."
"You're ten. Wouldn't you like to feel safe? Have a warm place to sleep?"
Billy bites back the comment about his apartment being warm. He can't let them know about his magic. Not yet, at least. He doesn't want to put them in danger or make them think he's a bad guy.
"Billy, the point is Bruce doesn't want to hide you like an inconvenience or get rid of you. You're not a problem and he's not ashamed of you. He just wants you to be safe. He's just really, really bad with feelings," Dick finally bursts out.
"It's not that," Billy says. To be honest, the idea that maybe Mr. Wayne may have wanted him hidden so he didn't have to deal with a surprise son hadn't even occurred to Billy. It is nice to know that he doesn't want to hide Billy, though. "I just really love it here. It's where… it's where I lived with my parents."
Sure, now the tears are crocodile tears, but if it works… well, he's not exactly going to complain. And even though the tears are fake now, a big part of his words is true. He doesn't want to leave because it's the last place his family lived together, whole and happy. But he also doesn't want to leave because this city needs Captain Marvel. He can't just leave.
"I- I understand that," Mr. Wayne says awkwardly. "I do. But I can't just leave you alone. Please, understand your mother asked me to take care of you if anything happened to her or - or your father."
And Billy does. It's certainly nice to know that his mother didn't want him staying with Uncle Ebenezer, at any rate. That she had a backup plan.
"I understand," Billy says. He does, really. And he knows there's no possible way he's going to be able to convince Mr. Wayne to leave him alone. In a way, it will be nice. To not have to worry about money anymore. Or the other things he generally has to worry about.
Mr. Wayne doesn't say anything else and removes his hand from Billy's shoulder. He stays in place for a moment before wandering off after Dr. Thompkins, leaving Billy and Dick Grayson alone.
"Bruce can be a little rough around the edges," Dick says. "It doesn't mean anything though, so don't take whatever he says to heart, or do, depending. He's kinds of… weird."
Billy looks over at Dick. "Well, it's not like that's that strange. Grown-ups are always weird."
"That they are. I'm still trying to figure out why myself."
"Me too," Billy agrees.
"And about your parents, I'm sorry."
"It's been a long time."
"Still," Dick says, sounding much too knowing about the feeling of having your family die. "Sorry. I know how much it sucks. Especially when you have to go live with a stranger."
Billy studies Dick, who is no longer looking at him. And somehow, Billy can see himself living with them. He'll just need to figure out a way to keep working as Captain Marvel.
Fawcett City, U.S.A.
October 6th, 2010
Billy stays the night in the hotel with them. They let him have one of the many rooms himself, even let him lock the door. It makes him feel much safer. He may think they're good people, but he's not dumb. He's not just going to trust them completely.
The only issue is today is a school day. Billy can't just skip, but apparently, he's supposed to. He doesn't like that. Billy hasn't missed a day of school except for when he's been sick. It feels irresponsible to miss it today, even if it's for a good reason. Maybe he should make them think he's transferred. He's pretty sure he can cast a spell to do that.
Billy will have to somehow sneak away to cast another spell. Or maybe he'll just call in sick for now and let Mr. Wayne deal with it later. He's sure the man can for him. And that way Billy doesn't have to worry about getting caught sneaking away and/or using magic. Those are both things he really doesn't want to have to explain.
"Oh, you're awake," Dick says, emerging from the room he was sleeping in (seriously, four bedrooms! In a hotel!). "How did you sleep?"
Billy shrugs. "Okay, I guess. The beds are too soft."
"Yeah, I know, right," Dick agrees. "I hate sleeping in them too."
Billy hums in agreement. He wonders if he could make a run for it. Not that he wants to, of course. And even if he did Mr. Wayne could probably just have Superman come find Billy. He probably has access to him since he funds the League.
If Billy's being honest with himself, having someone alive who cared about him, like a parent, kind of, is going to be nice. It's exciting. Strange, but exciting.
The more he thinks about it, the more Billy realizes he looks like Mr. Wayne too. And not just because of similar hair color and skin tone. Billy really looks like him. He has the same eye shape, same nose, same mouth, same everything, really. Except for the eyes. He has his mom's eye color.
"We're heading back to Gotham City today," Dick says.
"I figured. I don't really want to. I like it here."
Billy really has to figure out how he can keep being Captain Marvel too. He'll just have to sneak away and transform, then fly to Fawcett City. Luckily, he can fly at the speed of sound, so it shouldn't take long. It is inconvenient though. He'll also have to find out some way to keep an eye on the news in case there's anything big that happens in Fawcett so that he can come and help, whenever.
"Fawcett does seem like a cool city," Dick agrees.
"It's just - Gotham is bigger. I won't know anyone. But everyone is going to know me, aren't they?"
"Probably."
"Here I'm a normal kid, but in Gotham, I'm going to be a billionaire's son. Or at least living with a billionaire. It's weird."
"I know exactly what you mean. But it's not as bad as it seems, I promise. You adjust, at least."
"I don't want to adjust. I want to have everything stay the same. And I know that's dumb," Billy says. "But I don't want to be a billionaire's son. I just want - I want…"
"Your parents back," Dick finishes softly. "It's cool, but you'd give everything up for your parents. Even a billion dollars. Or living with someone who has a billion dollars."
"Is that bad?" Billy asks, slightly desperate. "That I'd rather have them back than have Mr. Wayne know about me existing?"
"I think I would give anything to have my parents back," Dick says. "Even my friends. The life I have now. I think I'd probably give it all up in an instant if there was even a chance I could get them back. I miss them."
"Do you think - will I have to call Mr. Wayne dad?" Billy asks. He doesn't want to call the man dad. His dad is C.C. Batson and always will be, regardless of the information about having an alive biological father. "I mean, I guess he is, but he didn't raise me. My dad did. I don't want to call anyone else dad."
Dick laughs. It's a little thick like he's holding back heartbreaking tears. He looks at Billy with a grin so wide that Billy's surprised the teenager's face isn't split open in two.
"No, Bruce won't make you do that. I'm pretty sure he understand why you won't. He's pretty awesome like that. He wouldn't say no to being called Bruce though. Between you and me, being called Mr. Wayne makes him feel old."
"Thanks, Dick," Billy says.
"It's no problem at all. I get this is all pretty crazy and definitely not asterous."
Billy bites his tongue to keep from asking about that last word. He doesn't want to be rude. Not when Dick is being so understanding.
"Yeah," Billy finally says. "Not asterous."
In character? Hopefully. Hope you liked it. Also, I have no idea how DNA tests work. Assume it goes faster because Bruce has tech other's don't that he brought with. :D