A/N Well, a little longer than a week, but not quite two weeks either. That's acceptable, right?
Anyways, as always, a very big thank you to all my readers and an especially important shout out to Purplehood and Meritt for all their help and support in this story. I don't think this story would have progressed any further than chapter one without them.
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He heard the voices as soon as he was out of the Cave, the old grandfather clock shutting on its own behind him.
"Dick!" That would be Jason.
Hearing Jason shouting at his older brother on an almost daily basis was not an unusual occurrence.
It was, however, the slightly panicked tone in Jason's voice that had Bruce feeling alarmed.
"Don't let go! Don't let go!" That was Dick.
Whatever the two of them were doing, their voices were coming from the front sitting room.
He hurried in that direction.
"DICK! I can't get down!" There was no mistaking the clear-cut panic in Jason's voice.
Bruce broke into a run, unable to deny the sudden pang of worry.
"What's going on here?" He burst into the room, almost immediately feeling his jaw drop in shock at the sight that greeted him.
While Dick was safely planted on the floor, Jason dangled above them. Several yards above them, to be exact, clinging for dear life to the priceless, crystal chandelier that had been his mother's favorite.
He didn't miss the matching looks of shock and pure terror that flashed across both boys' faces upon his entrance.
"Dick dared me to!" Jason shouted almost immediately, before Bruce had a chance to do more than open his mouth.
Dick held up his hands in surrender. "I didn't think he'd actually do it!" he protested.
"Did you think I wasn't going to try?" Jason shouted furiously from above them.
Bruce held out a hand to silence them. "Enough!" he ordered, shutting the two of them up with a glare. He rubbed hard at the tension in his forehead. Deep breaths. As much as he wanted to, exploding was not going to help the situation.
Still…
When he raised his head next, he couldn't refrain from glaring at the two of them. "What. Were. You. Thinking?" he demanded.
"I told you!" Jason shouted. "It's his fault!"
"Hey-!"
"I don't care what Dick told you to do. You still climbed up there when you knew, you knew, you weren't supposed to."
The chandelier spun nauseatingly, the movement initiated by Jason's sudden shift of position. Bruce felt his heart lurch in his throat as the boy's eyes went wide and he yelped, clinging harder to the chain holding the chandelier up.
His heart was beating faster than he'd like to admit and he swallowed. "Jason," he said carefully, forgetting the anger, forgetting Dick, forgetting everything but getting Jason down from that chandelier in one piece, "I need you to come down now." He spoke slowly, for his own sanity's sake, if not for Jason's.
If possible, Jason's eyes grow even wider as he stares at Bruce. "I… no way! Bruce, I can't get down!"
"Yes, you can." Bruce struggled to keep his breathing even. "How did you get up there in the first place?"
Jason's eyes slid to the staircase's railing, before returning his gaze to Bruce.
Bruce followed his gaze and let out a long sigh. "Jason…" He rubbed two fingers against his temple, kneading at the growing tension.
Somehow, he'd managed to make the jump from the banister to the chandelier. The kid was more resourceful then he often got credit for.
"Okay, Jason," he said, forcing himself to sound calmer than he felt. Breathe. Just breathe. "I'm going to help you down, okay?"
Jason bit his bottom lip, studying him for a brief moment, before nodding quickly. He still looked a little unsure, but Bruce was going to take whatever he can get.
"Okay, good." Bruce scanned the room, trying to decide what might be of use. He hadn't planned for situations like this. That was going to have to change though.
Right after he got Jason down from there and then grounded him and Dick for life.
His eyes landed on the railing on the second floor, which, if he wasn't wrong, Jason had used to make the leap to the chandelier.
Bruce judged the distance, a plan already forming in his head.
"Okay, Jason…" He took a deep breath. "We're going to get you down, but I need you to trust me…"
Jason's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why? What're…?"
Bruce shushed him with a wave of his hand. He darted up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time.
Reaching the top, he leaned over the railing, glancing downward and swallowed. It was a long way down.
Bruce couldn't screw this up.
Taking a deep breath, he faced Jason again.
The boy's eyes were wide, unsure.
He'd guessed what the plan was.
"Jason," Bruce said, his voice calm, betraying none of what he was feeling underneath. He paused, seriously considering what he was about to say. "I'm going to need you to jump. I'll catch you."
If possible, Jason's eyes got even wider. "Are you serious?"
Below, Dick stared up at the two of them, sucking in a breath. " Uh…Bruce? Are you sure that's a good idea?" he asked.
Bruce ignored the questions. "Dick… can you move the couch? Get it underneath the chandelier? If Jason falls… at least he'll have something to land on."
"You think I'm going to fall?" Jason cried, horrified, as Dick began moving furniture below them.
"No," Bruce said, through gritted teeth, "but if you do, wouldn't you rather hit the couch instead of the floor?"
Jason muttered something unintelligible, his hands gripping the chain holding the chandelier and Bruce let out a long sigh. "Think of it as part of your training, Jason." That, at least, should get the boy eager enough to forget about his misgivings and trust him.
The couch was now directly underneath them. If Jason fell, it likely still wouldn't be pleasant, but he wouldn't break anything.
"Okay, Jason," Bruce held out his hands, leaning over the railing, "I need you to jump." Please trust me, Jason.
And Jason did.
Bruce could see the uncertainty and, finally, the bold determination that played across the boy's face in quick succession.
Slowly, Jason loosened his grip on the chain, steeling himself.
For a moment, Jason took in the empty space between himself and Bruce.
Then, he took a deep breath and jumped.
Bruce stretched his hands out, ready to grab Jason once he was in reach.
Their fingers brushed against each other, but Bruce's hands closed on thin air.
Jason had mistimed the leap.
He wasn't going to make it.
He was falling.
"NO!" Bruce threw himself forward just as Jason dropped with a small gasp. His hands closed around Jason's thin wrists, preventing the boy's descent from continuing any further.
Bruce exhaled shakily, tightening his grasp on the boy's wrists as he slowly began hoisting him back up.
He could have laughed at the shocked expression still frozen on Jason's face, but his own heart was still stuttering too much for him to even consider it.
"Bruce," Jason pleaded, reminding Bruce of the situation still at hand. Releasing a breath he hadn't even known he was holding, Bruce heaved him up, until Jason was able to get a grip of his own on the banister. Even then, he kept a firm grasp on the boy, dragging him up and over.
Jason collapsed against his chest, and Bruce wrapped his arms around him, holding him tight and allowing them both a moment to calm down.
Dick was already at the top of the stairs, having sprinted up the moment Jason was safely over the railing.
Bruce's eyes slid over to meet those of his eldest. "I… he…" Dick gasped out, looking from one to the other. He let out a huge breath, grasping onto the railing for support.
Then, slowly, he looked up, managing a half-smile, that was in part guilty and in part relieved.
Bruce frowned at him, feeling a good portion of his insides deflate as he did so.
Everything was okay. No one was hurt. Nothing was broken.
Everything was okay.
But that didn't mean he was happy with either one of them.
The throbbing in his temple returned with a vengeance, but he ignored it, frown deepening.
"What," he began, struggling to keep his voice even, "did the two of you think you were doing?"
Instantly, Jason took a step back and he and Dick guiltily shared mirrored expressions.
"Dick dared me?" Jason tried, but most of the passion was gone from his voice.
Bruce groaned, significantly calmer than he would have expected and ignoring the brief protest that came from his eldest. "Regardless of what Dick did or didn't 'dare' you to do, you're responsible for your own actions. You're not allowed to "
Jason looked horrified. "But it's a dare, Bruce! You don't just… not do a dare!"
Bruce sighed heavily. "Jason…"
"But you don't!" Jason protested. He turned to Dick, looking to him for support, and Bruce found his attention turning to the older boy as well.
"So you dared him to climb up there?" Bruce asked for clarification, raising an eyebrow in his eldest son's direction. The humor in the situation was… undeniable, but he forced himself to remain serious. Any discipline he decided to dish out would not be taken seriously should he not.
Dick shifted uncomfortably, not quite meeting Bruce's eyes. "We were playing a game," he said, looking Bruce in the eyes after what seemed like a long a moment.
If possible, Bruce's eyebrow climbed even higher. "And what part of this game involved you daring Jason to climb the chandelier?" With his peripheral vision, he could make out Jason standing off to the side, his arms crossed, glaring at the floor.
Dick shrugged, offering a small smile. "Uh… when he said he could do it just as well as I could? That part?"
"So you dared him to climb up there?"
"Like I said, I didn't think he'd actually do it…"
"Just because you're the circus brat…!" Jason began, but Bruce cut him off with a stern, "Enough!" and Jason quieted down with a huff and Bruce glared at the two of them. "Both of you. Enough."
"But I didn't…" Dick shut up at a glance from Bruce.
"What am I going to do with you two?" he muttered.
"Uh… not ground us?" Jason asked hopefully.
Bruce glared at him, not amused. Then, slowly, he allowed a smile to take over his features. "Okay, then." He paused. "Extra chores for a week it is then."
"What?" Both Dick and Jason gaped at him in horror. "Two weeks?"
"You're lucky it's not three weeks," Bruce deadpanned, looking at the two of them pointedly. "And it's that, or you're banned from the Cave for the same amount of time."
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A/N Soooo, I'm actually not sure when I'll be able to get the next update out. Chapter six only has a little bit more to go, but is still not complete. Real life has been a real pain in the posterior. :p So pretty much, I don't know when I'll have the chance to write or post. It shouldn't be too long of a wait though!
Anyways (I really say that word too much, don't I?), thank you for reading and please review and let me know what you think! :D