He didn't care if Alfred was going to look at him disapprovingly and click his tongue at the mess he was making, but Dick was on a mission. He had to find the right outfit in order to go to the band.
The band which Bruce forgot to give him the name.
Which was pretty lame, but the day before was pretty weird and awkward between Bruce and Terry. One of which was trying to pretend to be him.
Dick paused for a moment once that thought registered before going back at it.
God how did this become his life now?
Whatever Bruce was going to take him to see a band.
Which they haven't done in… Dick squinted his eyes in concentration as he stared at a shirt. When Dick was ten? So like it's been three years.
Also that shirt wouldn't do.
'God Dick, just pick one.' Terry groaned. 'You're worse than Matt.'
Dick stopped as he picked up another shirt. "What do you mean?"
'He spent what-an hour?-searching for a outfit to wear for his birthday party but ended up wearing the. Same. Thing. He always wears.'
"Oh my god." Dick spoke in a small voice, both amused and a bit not quite believing it. And yet, it sounds something like a kid would do. "Also it hasn't been an hour."
'Yet.' Terry deadpanned.
Just to prove the older teen wrong, Dick threw the next shirt he picked up on. Turning around to the mirror he could feel the irritation and grumbling at the sight of Superman's icon on his chest.
He cackled, making Terry's irritation grow deeper.
'I hate you so much right now. I hope you know that.'
"No you don't." Dick grinned with mirth.
If this was what it was like having an older sibling then Dick loves it. Maybe he could get Bruce to-
Knock Knock
"Are you ready?" Bruce's voice called from the other side of his door.
With a wide grin, Dick answered, "yeah B! Let's do this thing!"
Quickly the door opened. An amused smile greeted him. One of Bruce's eyebrows were quirked up once he laid eyes on the type of shirt.
Oh right. The anger at Superman.
"I'm starting to give the guy the benefit of the doubt." Was all he said.
And Bruce? This seemed to have pacified him.
'Wait is he seriously wearing a t-shirt and jeans?' Terry suddenly asked, completely befuddled. It sounded like this was something that wasn't possible. Or at least it sounded like he thought so.
Pure excitement filling him, Dick grabbed his guardian's hand in order to get him moving.
'Yeah!' He thought over to Terry. 'It's a band concert! Like the mosh pit kind! You don't look fancy at that sort of thing.'
The absolute most a person could look fancy at a concert is to wear business casual. But since they were going in with t-shirts and jeans it was all good.
Together, they went down the grand staircase, through the foyer, and out into the bright world. Bruce has slipped his hand away, grabbing his inconspicuous car keys.
Clicking of familiar shoes alerted them of another presence.
"I do hope you'll make good choices sirs." Alfred said. He stopped in front of the front passenger door, ready to open it for Dick whenever Bruce actually unlock the thing.
"Oh we'll be fine Alfred," Bruce said as he went ahead and press the unlock button of his keys, "and sorry for not getting a ticket for you."
Alfred sniffed. "I meant food wise. I heard that they don't serve… the healthiest choices. As for the ticket, I'm afraid I'm not much of a 'rock and roll' sort of person."
"Come on Alfie," Dick interjected, moving in as the man opened the door, "the food's just fine. And besides, you can listen to your own music here! It'll be like you're with us in spirit."
His grin only made a grey eyebrow rise. Man Alfred's been doing that a lot lately.
But then the older, British gentlemen only sighed in the way that he does when he knows he's in a losing battle. Dick and Bruce were going to eat something or another over at the concert and there was nothing Alfred could do about it.
"Do be careful then."
Both guardian and ward slip into the car with a smoothness that only they know. A wide smile and a tamer one showed themselves to the man.
"We will." Bruce, once again, reassured.
Here, Alfred leaned in, and gave a smile of his own. A genuine Alfred smile. "Oh, and do have a fun time will you?"
Dick's grin somehow grew even wider. "We will!"
Nodding, Alfred closed the door. The duo buckled up, and Bruce began to drive away.
Glass separated him from the city as the vehicle moved around the streets. It felt like ages since Dick actually went around Gotham like this. In a normal car, doing something that lucky teens get to do with their families. Now if only they had a pet.
Time felt odd, in the car, as they pass by houses, trees, tall skyscrapers filled with businessmen and women and short stores filled with goods. People walking by on the sidewalk from infants to the elderly. Anyone could be innocent or guilty. A civilian turn to a life of crime, or victimhood, or even heroism. And possibly, the very rare civilian that never got caught in a villain's plot.
But also children who are hurt. Who's future that are unsure. Like Jason. Like Matt.
One who he has met, another he's only been told about.
One, who's brother he's been bonded too, is searching for. It was July tenth; day five of being together like so. Day five of not getting any clues of Matt.
And he could feel the soft anxiety that was going to consume Terry alive eventually. Somehow, and he wasn't quite sure when, but Dick detected it. It was small, like a speck. Something Terry was hiding away. Shoving it down behind closed doors, underneath carpets, steel bolts, iron boxes, and obsidian chests. Something that wormed its way through.
Terry didn't want it to show. Terry didn't want it to be known. Terry didn't want to be here. Terry wanted to be out there.
Neither Dick nor Terry have any choice in the matter.
But now they had other duties. Helping Jason out. Patrolling with Br-Batman. Fixing up buildings and houses for those who don't have one, or need a new one.
Going… to see a band play.
Guilt instantly sunk its fangs into his heart. Its claws were wanting to tear into, or out of, his chest. A mighty beast that declared him its next victim as his thoughts spiraled ever downward.
Maybe they should've told Bruce.
But then what if Bruce doesn't believe them? What if he thinks they're some sort of…
'Hey.' A familiar voice gently poked his mind.
Suddenly Dick could breathe again.
'What's up?' He asked, silently thankful for Terry's interruption.
'You don't… feel excited.'
Internally, he winced. How much of that did Terry felt? Was it loud or soft? Could their emotions be loud or soft? Or would it be more like… overwhelming or just… whelming?
'What do you mean? I'm totally excited.' Dick lied badly, like a bad liar.
He could feel the deadpan stare. If Terry could deadpan stare at him, that is.
'No you're not. You did, earlier, but not so much now. It's like… I'm not really sure what to call it other than "a jumbled mess of negative emotions."'
That… sounds about right.
'Look, Ter, don't worry about it. My mind kind of went and did its own thing. That's all.'
He doesn't think Terry bought it.
'Dick.' Terry's voice was firm, yet held a certain amount of gentleness to it. Sort of like Bruce's, sometimes.
'Terry.' He said back, not really feeling like actually talking about it.
Honestly if both boys were in their own bodies, they probably would be having a stare off. But since they didn't, the next best thing was to have a stare off with his reflection in the window.
Tired blue eyes stared back at him. Seeing this startled him. Blinking rapidly, refocusing on his eyes and the image was gone.
"Everything alright?" A voice asked. It took a second for him to realize that it came from the outside, rather than in his head.
Turning to the source, Dick saw Bruce watching him with a worried gaze. The car had stopped in a line for a red light.
He stealthily swallowed as he thought of an answer. "Yeah I'm fine. Just thought I saw something that's all." He tried to give a reassuring smile.
Bruce… didn't look exactly convinced. Fortunately for Dick, the traffic light turned green, and cars started to move. Of course this forced Bruce to continue driving. He didn't want to be That Guy who just sat at a green light, wasting not only his but others opportunities to continue forward.
Honestly, was it a Batman thing for them to notice that something was on Dick's mind? Well, Bruce is a detective and Terry can literally feel his emotions and vice versa.
As they continued their drive, Dick's mind went back to the earlier train of thought. Maybe they should just let Bruce figure their situation out on their own? He doesn't quite know if he could tell Bruce. He… wasn't quite sure how the man would react. Best case scenario was that Bruce would understand, believe them, and help Terry out. Worse case scenario…
Dick didn't want to think about it, but he'll have to.
But… maybe another time.
Also, when was Bruce planning on telling him the name of the band they're seeing? He wasn't going to keep it a secret was he? Dick wanted to know right then and there!
"We're here."
Blinking rapidly, Dick found himself in the position where Bruce was giving him an amused smile. The car was sitting still in a parking spot within a parking lot.
With a wide grin in place, Dick cheered, scrambling to get out of the car.
"Dibs on the greasiest funnel cake they got!" He shouted as he managed to step out into the sunlight.
Bruce, getting out of the car as well, chuckled. "Aren't funnel cakes for festivals or carnivals?"
Turning on his heel, Dick went to face the man. "You don't know the true amazement that is funnel cakes." A cheeky grin grew on his face. "Also you forgot to mention circuses."
Hands held up in mock surrender. "So I did." He was clearly still amused.
"Yeah, and that means you owe me a funnel cake!" And with the exclamation, Dick started to run.
Not even a second later did Bruce yell after him, saying, "you're going the wrong way!"
'Is there literally no signs anywhere saying what band is playing?' Terry asked as Dick waited for Bruce to come back with the funnel cake.
Literally the moment Bruce and Dick reached the vending area Dick smelled the sweet, delicious aroma of funnel cake. He then sent Bruce to go grab him one. Then he tried to go find any band merch to buy.
'I honestly can't believe I found nothing.' Dick replied, still searching high and low for at least a t-shirt or two.
Although there was a bunch of people around wearing punk band merch. Unfortunately for Dick, there were too many band names and logos too look at that he couldn't actually pinpoint which ones they were. Actually now that he thought about it, a lot of people looked like they were wearing punk clothes in general. Maybe it was a punk band?
He wasn't going to lie, it would be kind of hilarious if it was actually a pop band or pop star playing.
An image of a crowd of punks with mohawks, leather jackets, skulls and crossbones and so much more screaming like school kids at someone like Taylor Swift popped into his head. He couldn't help but snort back a laugh at that.
But then two girls wearing gothic lolita and sweet lolita dresses walked by, giggling. They were looking over by him. It took a moment but he realized they were giggling at him.
'Ooo looks like someone's catching people's eyes already.' Terry just had to tease him.
Burning blood rose up to cast his face aflame. 'Shut up.' He grumbled.
He just wanted to know what was playing.
"Just how big is this place?" He mumbled to himself, irritated.
And the longer he searched, the longer it took for him to realize that Bruce wasn't back yet.
Actually it was Terry that brought that detail to his attention.
'Shouldn't Bruce be back with your funnel cake by now?' He had asked, as Dick stared intensely at a group of people wearing Three Days Grace shirts. Dick was thinking about maybe getting one too if that's what they were seeing and the merch was nearby. But when Terry said this, like a switch Dick's mind swapped over to Bruce.
Back and forth his head swiveled around. No sight of the man.
Maybe… he shouldn't have gone to find merch.
Nothing but a sea of punks greated his eyes. No scent of Bruce's cologne was wafting through the air. (Although now that he thought about it was Bruce even wearing it today?)
Instead something familiar came by his nose. Something sweet. Something greasy. Something like…
With wide eyes, and an empty stomach, Dick yelled, "FUNNEL CAKE!"
Deep chuckles alerted him of the source of the smell.
Turning his head, the young teen found…
"Bruce!" His eyes landed on the man. In one hand was bags filled with stuff he couldn't see and the other- "MY FUNNEL CAKE!"
Snatching the warm goodness from the man's hands, Dick began to chow down.
Giggling, that was obviously not from Bruce's was heard once more.
'No.' He thought, shocked still. Slowly, Dick turned to see the same lolita dress duo giggling at him.
WHILE HE WAS STUFFING HIS FACE WITH FUNNEL CAKE.
'Funnel cake how could you betray me so?!' He wailed internally.
Bruce patted his shoulder, and led him away from the girls, saying something or another about finding their seats.
Dick just sulkingly ate his funnel cake the whole way.
As they got to their seats, Dick had finished his sweet. Honestly he wished those girls weren't giggling at him.
'Maybe you shouldn't have gone absolutely wild on that cake.' Terry snickered, knowing what Dick was thinking.
'Shut up dude. Funnel cake is the bomb and I haven't had it in literal ages. Let me live.'
Deciding to ignore any other teasing from Terry, Dick decided to take a look at their surroundings. Balcony seats. Sweet.
"Where were you?" Bruce suddenly asked from his own seat.
Dick turned his head to look at Bruce. Confusion was clear on his face as he said, "uh, looking for merchandise? Apparently this place is huge enough for me not to find like, any of it. At all."
"Dick." Bruce started, face completely deadpan. "I had told you to wait by the stairs. You weren't at the stairs like I told you."
Dick did not remember this. At all.
"Wait really? You sure?" He asked, as if Bruce was remembering wrong. He probably wasn't.
"I'm sure." Yeah. Bruce didn't remember wrong.
A small amount of irritation bubbled up. He furrowed his eyebrows and said, "look, I'm sorry for wandering off, but I'm fine. Honestly all I wanted to know what band is playing."
It was then that confusion showed itself on Bruce's face. "You don't know what band is playing?"
He scoffed. "Uh, yeah. You never told me."
Slowly, Bruce blinked. "And you… never thought to ask someone?"
Dick opened his mouth… only to close it.
A look something akin to worry appeared on Bruce's face while Dick felt his own heat up. "You really never thought to ask someone huh."
He let his head fall into his hands. He so didn't want to deal with that right then.
Too embarrassed to continue conversation, Dick stayed silent as everyone was getting ready for the concert to start.
It grew dark inside the building. They wait.
He watched as stagehands do last minute adjustments as anticipation began to flow throughout the crowd. The stagehands leave… and in their place, the band stands.
The pure excitement that was running in the crowd was almost tangible. Dick's heart began to pound. He really wanted to know who was playing… and then… he knew it when those first few notes were played. Plucked straight from a piano.
"When I was… a young boy…" Gerard Way sings.
And the crowd goes wild.
"OH MY GOD IT'S MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE!" Dick screams, whipping his head over to Bruce.
Bruce was smiling.
"Yeah. I thought you would like it."
"My father took me into the city… to see a marching band…" Gerard continued once the cheers went down.
Whipping his head back, Dick watched the show. The crowd began to sing along. Automatically he sang too.
"He said, 'son, when you grow up, would you be, the savior of the broken… the beaten and the damned?' He said, 'will you defeat them? Your demons, and all the nonbelievers, the plans that they have made? Because one day, I'll leave you, a phantom, to lead you in the summer. To join the black parade.'"
Once again everyone went nuts.
As Gerard sang, it felt as if something connected. He wasn't sure if it was because he was seeing them live, or it was the sheer surprise of getting to see them.
Or maybe it was because he was experiencing it with Bruce. With Terry.
No matter what though, he continued to sing.
"We'll carry on! We'll carry on! And though you're dead and gone, believe me, you're memory will carry on! We'll carry on! And though you're broken and defeated, your weary widow marches on!"
And it was then that the band broke into parts, and the crowd along with it. Some following Gerard, others in the background. And Dick? He went along with Gerard.
It was beautiful.
When that last boom of the drum faded, the crowd broke into a mass of screams and cheers.
"Hello Gotham!" Gerard spoke, gaining even more whistles. "Now as you all know… Gotham can be a scary place during the night. You've got plants, clowns, penguins… and teenagers."
The crowd loved it.
"This next song is dedicated to all those teenagers that don't scare me."
"They're gonna clean up your looks, with all the lies in the books, to make a citizen out of you. Because they sleep with a gun, and keep an eye on you, son, so they can watch all the things you do. Because the drugs never work, they're gonna give you a smirk, cause they've got methods of keeping you clean. They're gonna rip off your heads, your aspirations to shreds, another cog in the murder machine."
People began to jump up and down to the beat.
"They said all teenagers scare the living shit out of me, they could care less, as long as someone'll bleed. So darken your clothes, and strike a violent pose, maybe they'll leave you alone, but not me!"
And it continued like that. The pure energy of singing along and dancing and swaying was simply amazing. It became more somber when Helena and The Ghost Of You came up, but went back into it with Famous Last Words.
But to actually hear the words "remember when you were a madman, thought you was Batman, and hit the party with a gas can" was amazing in Na Na Na. They so definitely had to have put that song in because they're in Gotham.
And when SING came up? Well, Dick just had to sing along.
"This here's going to be our last song guys." Gerard said after taking a sip from a water bottle.
The crowd was clearly disappointed.
"I know, I know, but it's a good one. Something sweet to end on. Here's Summertime."
First came the drums. Then the guitar. Then the synths.
"When the lights go out, will you take me with you?"
It was a good song, but Dick was sad to see it end. He thought it was over.
Bruce, however, liked to prove him wrong by keeping him in his seat with, dare he even say it, a mischievous grin.
And then Green Day started to play American Idiot.
"BRUCE!" He nearly squeaked, "WHO ELSE IS PLAYING?! OH MY GOD"
So of course Bruce laughed at him.
After American Idiot came, Holiday. After that was Know Your Enemy. And after that was Basket Case.
It was so fucking awesome!
Then 21 Guns began to play and honestly Dick shouldn't be surprised. After all, My Chemical Romance played some of their sadder songs too. Boulevard Of Broken Dreams came up next. When Wake Me Up When September Ends started playing, Dick felt… sad. It just really connected to him. When I Come Around was their last song, and it was good.
And then Panic! At The Disco started playing with But It's Better If You Do which transitioned to I Write Sins, Not Tragedies and it was so awesome.
Each song that they played was simply great!
But to top it all off?
Fall Out Boy was the last band. The first song was the classic Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued while the last was I Don't Care.
It was so… so…
'Schway?' Terry offered, amusement coloring his tone. It was the first time he talked since the concert started.
"YES!" Dick couldn't help but yell aloud. Quickly noticing Bruce's own amused look, he quickly added, "I can't believe we actually saw them! Bruce why didn't you tell me?"
His guardian gave him a half shrug. "Well, evidently it wouldn't be much of a surprise if I told you. Right?"
Rapidly nodding, Dick vibrated with pure excitement. "Okay yeah whatever you say B! Can I have my merch now?"
He chuckled. "How about we wait until we get back. For now, you can hold onto this."
Dick blinked at the pamphlet. There in dark red letters was the name of the bands and the songs they played.
My Chemical Romance
Welcome To The Black Parade
Teenagers
Helena
The Ghost Of You
Famous Last Words
Na Na Na
SING
Summertime
Green Day
American Idiot
Holiday
Know Your Enemy
Basket Case
21 Guns
Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
Wake Me Up When September Ends
When I Come Around
Panic! At The Disco
But It's Better If You Do
I Write Sins Not Tragedies
9 In The Afternoon
Behind The Sea
She Had The World
The Only Difference Between Martyrdom And Suicide Is Press Coverage
Lying Is The Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off
Time To Dance
Fall Out Boy
Our Lawyer Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued
Dance, Dance
Sugar, We're Going Down
Thanks For The Memories
G.I.N.A.S.F.S: Gay Is Not A Synonym For Shitty
(Coffees For Closers)
This Ain't A Scene It's An Arms Race
I Don't Care
Okay yeah Dick wanted the merch more, but it was still cool that he had a reminder of what songs were played.
Grinning, Dick looked up to Bruce. "Best. Day. Ever."
Leaning back on his bed, Dick turned on his laptop. Light flooded his face as it booted up. He cracked his knuckles. A grin adorned his face.
"Let's get to it."
Having updated his computer, he made his search for local companies who would do the job, and get it done. Going local helps the economy of one's area after all.
It took a while, ignoring any quips coming from Terry (even if he did agree on some bad name choices), but he finally found a relatively new website. With a little elbow grease and research (read: hacking), he found that Kimberly's Home Repair and Renovation was too new and hardly had any business. It would surely go out of business since it was providing designs that no one in Gotham would want. At least, not right now.
If Dick played his cards right, not only would he be able to get what he wanted, give them what they want, and end up giving Gotham a brighter future.
Well, hopefully one that Poison Ivy wouldn't want to exploit.
Contacting them through email, he told them of the old Victorian house, what he wishes to do with it, and the opportunity to experiment a little with house that sorely needed a do over. He even offered to help pay for expenses.
If truth be told, Dick knew this would be a gamble. After all, he didn't know if they would take the job. And if they did he didn't know what the end result would be like.
He did know that Kimberly and her staff were good people. His research (read: hacking) showed that they were, indeed, good folk. He found it a bit admirable that they all had such diverse backgrounds. And if they all worked together well enough then clearly Kimberly had an eye for talent.
But with Kimberly's situation, it was more than likely she would take the job.
When everything was all said and done, such as getting the bank accounts ready and things of that sort, Dick went back to his day.
As he went to go search for a board game to play with Bruce, since it was still a bonding day, the songs from the concert rang around his head. His smile grew wider when Terry absentmindedly sang along.
That night, criminals felt shivers go down their spines as Robin sang.
I'm back y'all! Truth be told I wanted to wait a bit longer to get some more chapter's down, but with the news of MCR getting back together on Halloween, I realized that huh. I should probably at least get this chapter out. Now, I'm not quite the happiest with this chapter, but I wasn't quite sure how else to write some parts. Maybe later down the road I'll rewrite it a bit and reupload the new version but who knows. Either way, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter!