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Chapter 3
Bernard was very happy to feel Tim's hand in his as they made their way through the park. Tim's hair was stuffed under his hat, stylish sunglasses covering his eyes which he wasn't so happy about it. It sucked that Tim had to hide when they went out together if they wanted to act anything more than friends but he didn't want to cause trouble for Tim. And Bernard wasn't unknown in a certain…society, being seen with a full human could cause issues for both of them. He would never forgive himself if someone targeted Tim to 'teach him his place' in the ranks. Which was just stupid given that Gotham had no structured ranks or anything.
"At least Ivy's settled in the last years or this would be a bit more dangerous," Tim murmured, leaning against him slightly, and Bernard laughed.
"No way I'd agree to come here if she hadn't." Even if her pollens didn't affect him, his hormones and stuff were just enough vampire to make him immune thankfully.
They ended up tucked away in a nice, sheltered area of the park. Bernard lay back in the grass and Tim reclined beside him, removing his sunglasses. Tim had been quieter the last few weeks, ever since Scarecrow, but he hadn't pulled away. Bernard got the feeling he was overthinking something.
"Kiss?" he asked softly, reaching up to slide his hand to the back of Tim's neck and Tim smiled, leaning down for a kiss. "Is everything okay? You've been quiet since…"
Tim suddenly couldn't quite meet his eyes. "Do you…you saw…" he was obviously struggling and Bernard sat up, taking his hands in his.
"Tim, whatever it is, it's okay," he promised.
"You saw me," Tim whispered. "How…how can you want to stay with me."
Bernard frowned in confusion before his eyes widened. He let go of one hand to reach out and touch Tim's cheek. "Your scars?" he asked softly, and Tim stared at the grass.
Even if he didn't know who Tim was, his shooting had been very public, he used to skateboard, most of them were explainable. He moved his other hand and carefully slid it under Tim's shirt, fingers skimming gently over the scar where Tim's spleen should be. Tim shivered but finally looked up at him again.
"Tim, you were shot, I saw the news that day…thought I'd lost the chance to reach out to you again. You nearly died, could have been paralysed. Of course it left a scar. Scars are normal, everyone has them."
He took Tim's hand again, guiding it under his own shirt to where the chains had left their mark on his skin, another point to them not being normal since it would have taken a lot more than straining against normal chains to leave him scarred. Tim frowned, his fingers tracing alone the mark, eyes widening as he realised what it was from. Bernard glanced around and they really were secluded from sight, so he pulled his shirt off, Tim's eyes widening. He lay down again, drawing Tim's other hand to his chest as well.
"Ber…"
"Only fair," he grinned, and something in Tim seemed to relax a little.
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Tim carefully traced the silvery scars on Bernard's chest…scars that matched where the chains had lain across his body on that horrid alter, tying him down. He'd seen Bernard fighting them, fighting to live, even as the knife had moved down, had known he was terrified yet defiant to the last. Tim hadn't realised he'd fought so hard that the chains had bit deeply enough to leave scars.
He'd been so scared, that once Bernard saw him without a shirt that he'd be disgusted and leave him. He'd been so out of that night though, hadn't even considered it when he let Bernard help him shower but it had been stuck in his head since. But Bernard hadn't left, still looked at him like…like he didn't know but it made him feel good. And then he was kissing Bernard, feeling fingers in his hair, his hat falling off. He was pressing Bernard to the ground, probably putting more weight on him then he should (he might be skinny but muscle wasn't exactly light), but Ber wasn't complaining. Quite the opposite really, one hand moving from Tim's hair to slip under his shirt again, stroking his skin.
And then he forced himself to sit up, panting slightly. And then he scrambled for his hat, hearing nearby movement, Bernard pulling his shirt back on as he sat. no one interrupted though, still it was better safe than sorry. A photo of the two of them the way they were at the moment splashed over the Gotham press was not how he wanted to come out.
He took a deep breath and set out the picnic lunch that Bart had helped him put together. Speedsters and food…you never got in the way. Sure, Bart had very strange tastes at time but he was good at putting food together as well.
"So, graduation is next month."
"Finally," Bernard groaned, taking a sandwich. "So glad to be done with high school. Not all of us can get away with dropping out," he teased.
Tim stuck his tongue out at him before opening the thermos of hot chocolate.
"Are you coming?" Bernard asked softly.
"It's in my work diary," he promised, along with his civilian and vigilante planners. "You've got what, three tickets? Who else did you invite?"
"Don't really have anyone."
"Well…you know Tam and she'd gladly cheer you on. There's B too," he offered.
"Really?"
"Only if you want," Tim told him. If Bernard only wanted him there then that was fine, but if he wanted the others then Tim would drag them there if needed.
Bernard stared with wide eyes before slowly nodding, which meant he had some planning to do.
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Bruce sat beside Tim in the auditorium, Tam on Tim's other side. It had been made very clear to him that he was to come and things were so tenuous with Tim that he had left himself six reminders to come to Bernard's graduation. He'd found himself looking a little into the Dowd family when he realised the young man was inviting them over his own parents and what he'd found hadn't been conclusive but giving a sixteen-year-old their own apartment? Yes, Tim had moved out but that had not been because Bruce wanted it.
When was the last time he went to a high school graduation? Dick had graduated, even managed a little college, Barbara had graduated too though he hadn't attended since there was little reason for Bruce Wayne to do so. Jason…Jason would have loved too once. Stephanie had been 'dead' when she should have graduated and had since gotten her GED. Tim had dropped out to go searching for Bruce. Cass was studying on and off online, taking her own time with things. Duke would be next of the brood and then eventually Damian.
That Tim had suggested him as someone to come had made his hope swell, his son still wanted him in his life. And then he smiled as Tim shifted, leaning into his side a little as he pointed out Bernard in his cap and gown.
"Do you regret not being down there too?" he asked.
Tim looked up at him and then back at the stage, considering. "No, I never really liked school. I like learning, but things I want and find interesting."
Bruce nodded; he'd been much the same. Most of his kids were really. And then they fell silent as the lights went down and the ceremony began. When it was over, they got in the car, Alfred at the wheel, surprising Bernard with dinner in a private room of the Italian restaurant Tim had told Bruce they'd been meaning to try for a while.
"You didn't have to do all this sir," Bernard looked around in surprise, and Tim took his hand.
"Please, call me Bruce," he told the teen. "And it was no problem. You've graduated high school; you deserve to celebrate. And I'd like to get to know my sons' boyfriend." He kept Brucie under wraps, there was no press or anything and he didn't want to put on an act with someone who obviously meant a lot to his son.
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Tam was kind of enjoying watching Tim's pain as Bernard and Bruce talked. Honestly, his introduction to the family was going a lot better than hers had, no assassins involved…so far. Hmm…she should probably call Pru to tell her about Bernard. Being invited to his graduation had been a surprise, they'd only met three times after all. Then again, he never mentioned his family and Tim never did either.
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Tim lay on the couch, grinning as Kon threw popcorn into Bart's mouth, Cassie curled against Kon's side. He was glad they had stuck together after Kon had come back. He knew about the brief attempt Tim and Cassie had made of dating while he was dead and had accepted it. They'd been grieving and had tried to fill the hole left by his passing. They loved each other but it was the same way they loved Bart, the love of family. Cassie had been a steadying influence when Kon needed it and he made sure she lightened up too, especially when she'd felt like she was drowning under the stress of leading the Titans.
"So, when do we get to meet your guy?" Kon asked.
"When you won't totally freak him out?"
"What, he's dating you, how can we be freaky compared to that?" He smirked, and Tim threw a pillow at him.
"Sorry Tim, but I'm with Kon. You're the weirdest of all of us," Cassie laughed, and Bart nodded.
"Hmph." Tim glared at them, getting more laughter but they went back to the movie.
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Bernard sipped at his mug of blood, enjoying the filling warmth, wishing the night was clearer so he could see the stars. It was strange to think that he was done with school, unless he went to college. He wasn't sure if he would be or not. He had a college fund and should be able to get a scholarship if needed but did he want to keep going at school at the moment?
Without school…he could go with Tim on some of his trips so long as he had enough time in advance to arrange things. Overseas…he might have to hunt for blood since he wouldn't be part of the bagged distribution network, if there was one. Plus, sharing a hotel room or suite would make hiding supplies rather difficult. He'd never had to hunt before but it was a skill he should have, right?
He wished he had someone to talk to sometimes but there was no one. Sure, he ran into some full vampires on occasion but their opinions on a half-breed were very obvious the instant they caught his scent. Maybe it would be different outside of Gotham?
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Jason stood on the rooftop opposite the old Monarch Theatre, waiting for the kid to appear. He wasn't really sure about this but…he could use another pair of eyes on the case. He hadn't really interacted with Re…Tim since they had fought before Dick became Batman. He'd left Gotham after that and when he'd come back, there'd been a new stabby Robin. He had feared he had killed the kid but he'd found no death notification and then suddenly the LoA had been in Gotham, going after the company and everyone B had loved. And then apparently the kid had been kicked out a window by Ra's al Ghul himself, at least, according to Dick who had only barely made it in time to catch his unconscious ass. There'd been talk of an engagement…and then he'd ended up ringing Alfie after catching the news of one Tim Drake-Wayne being shot live on television. He'd seen the way Tim's body had jerked, spinning, blood flying…hearing that it hadn't really been Tim had been a relief in a way he hadn't expected.
Then the kid had set up shop in the old theatre…right on the edge of his territory. He'd been ready to step in but Red Robin never patrolled the Alley. Jason found he actually approved of the work on the place, he hadn't destroyed the heritage of the building when he rebuilt it as an apartment block and…he hadn't charged an arm and a leg for the apartments within either. Even provided good security as well, including letting people in if they were being followed and the like. And several buildings along the border of Jason's territory had been bought and seemed to be undergoing similar renovations.
But they'd kept their distance from each other, despite where Timbit had chosen to live. Too much bad blood, right? And yet…Tim had gotten him out of prison, had given him a chance…and he'd immediately blown it. Surely after stabbing him in the chest the kid wanted nothing to do with him, but it wasn't O that sent him that intel last month.
And then he spotted a shadow slipping away from the building, on foot, well, grapple rather than bike. He stepped out of the shadows so that he'd be seen, seeing Tim hesitate, so he whistled the same way B would to get Robins' attention. He saw RR hesitate but then he fired his grapple, swinging over the street to join him, keeping a safe distance between them.
"Hood," Tim greeted.
"Red," he offered in return. "Could use another set of eyes, you up for it?"
Tim stared at him, the full cowl on tonight, it wouldn't surprise Jason if he'd been wearing it more since the Scarecrows' attack. He hadn't been there but he'd seen the news footage later, seen the full syringe plunge into his neck, and then the kid stumbling away, terrified. Even if someone had called him for help, they'd been too far away for him to get too quickly enough to help. According to Babs, Tim had been coaxed off the street by a civilian he'd saved once before. That had been very lucky, things could have gone a lot worse for him.
"Sure," Tim agreed.
Jason tossed him the stick and Tim used his gauntlet computer to access it, studying the data.
"Looks like one of the Penguin's operations, but something's weird…" he was frowning as he brought up something else.
The cowl really made him look different, older, the suit adding bulk and even height. Alfred had obviously tailored it to fit him better since it had originally been made for Jason. But the kid had made Red Robin his own over the last year.
"Looks like there's a shipment coming in tonight."
"Should we interrupt?" Jason smirked, and Tim considered before nodding.
They took off for the docks, Tim keeping pace with him.
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Tim was surprised by Jason wanting to work with him on an actual bust but it kind of felt nice. He had always dreamed of flying through Gotham beside his Robin, a dream he had pushed aside after Jason died and then after the Tower. But Jason had mellowed since that last fight they'd had after Bruce 'died'. He didn't kill much anymore, only the really bad offenders, Tim kept an eye on that since he lived so close.
They made it to the docks and split up to cover both sides of the warehouse. Tim made his way up the roof, glancing down through a small vent. Small, but not too small for him. There were advantageous to being the smallest other than Damian and he was starting to catch up. Well, Cass had a very similar build to Tim but she could squish through openings Tim wouldn't have tried even when he was inches shorter.
He made it into the rafters and looked down at the men moving about, shifting crates. At least it didn't seem to be drugs, with Jason's penchant for explosions he'd have to use his rebreather to keep from ending up high. Jason had his helmet to filter them after all so he didn't really seem to consider that. Weapons maybe? Hopefully, not loaded since if they were there was a risk of them going off or the goons grabbing them when they ran out of ammo for their own.
His comm double clicked and he dropped down, taking down two of the goons. Time for fun.
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Bernard winced and carefully pulled his shirt off, grimacing at the three slashes through the sleeve. He hated going to the only blood supplier in Gotham but it was something he had to do in order to get his blood packs. The claws had sliced deeply into his arm but he had still managed to get away and with his bag intact. He went to the bathroom to get his med kit since some vampires didn't exactly bother to clean their claws and while he had a stronger immune system than a full human, he could still get an infection. Especially given what was in Gotham.
He turned as there was a knock on the window, hearing a heart racing in worry…Tim. Damn it. He went to the window and unlocked it, sliding it up.
"Red Robin," he greeted.
"Are you alright?" he dropped into the room, voice more Tim than RR. "Those are deep." He reached for Bernard's arm.
"Making a habit of looking in my windows?" he asked, and he could see a trace of red spread under the cowl. "You know, I do have a boyfriend," he pointed out, unable to help teasing him.
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He hadn't meant to stop at Bernard's but seeing him shirtless had almost caused him to slam into a wall. And then he'd seen the blood and rushed to the window, knocking before he realised what he was doing. And now…was Bernard teasing him? Did…was it possible…could Ber know? Had he done something to give himself away? He took Bernard's arm, seeing the three slashes in his upper arm, they were deep.
"Got a medical kit?" he asked.
"Seriously, it's fine, I can deal with it," Bernard told him.
"This needs stitches, I can do them if you don't want to go the doctor."
"Red Robin, I'm fine, it's nothing to worry about."
"But…it's…" he struggled to speak, mind feeling fuzzy, what was….
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"That's it, just relax Tim," he murmured, stroking the little skin visible on Tim's face even as he wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him as he swayed, his body relaxing.
A part of him loved seeing Tim so relaxed and pliant but he knew that was wrong. It was the vampire part of him, the part that wanted to sink his fangs into warm skin.
"Take the cowl off," he told him, and Tim obeyed, revealing a distant gaze, his pupils had constricted, face relaxed.
He nuzzled at Tim's throat, hearing a soft sigh from Tim. He pressed his fangs to Tim's throat and then bit down gently. He only took a sip before licking the wound closed. He closed his eyes, resting his head against Tim's shoulder, stupid instincts. It was because of the attack, his vampire instincts closer to the surface than normal, he needed to leave an obvious claim on Tim, even if no human would be able to or smell the bite. He wrapped himself around Tim, ensuring he would smell like him and the got him to put his cowl back on.
"It's time to go home Tim, you peeked in my window and saw me shirtless, and then continued on your way. You didn't come to my window or apartment and didn't see anything off. You'll erase any recordings or evidence of you coming into the apartment. Understood?"
"Mmm…yes…" Tim mumbled.
"Put your cowl back on and go then."
Tim pulled it up and left.
Bernard watched him for as long as he remained in view.
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Tim entered his nest, stripping out of his gear, not even realising as he pulled up the records from patrol, erasing everything to do with his pitstop at Bernard's. He got in the shower, embarrassed by how he'd nearly hit a wall when he'd spotted Ber without a shirt. He hadn't done something like that since his early Robin days.
They had a date tomorrow so he needed to get over that, he'd seen Bernard's bare chest before! Ugh, stupid hormones. He got a search running on where Penguin's crates had come from and headed upstairs to get some sleep before work.
He was up again in three hours to head out to WE for a half day in the office to work on some paperwork. The clock felt like it had stopped since he was waiting for their date. He'd gone over everything with Bruce and Lucius, they had a plan in place for when he was spotted with Bernard so he was relaxing more when it came to going out together. He knew there would be backlash but he was allowed to live his life as he chose and the company could weather a dip in stocks.
It was a relief to finally head home and change out of his business suit for more casual clothing. He made sure he looked nice and then headed for Bernard's on his bike since Ber liked riding behind him. And he was right on time, Bernard waiting for him outside his building. He grinned at Bernard who smiled back and accepted the second helmet, getting on behind him, holding on around his waist.
They were soon at the pizza place, chatting and laughing like normal.
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Bernard was relieved it had worked, Tim seemed totally oblivious to his late-night visit or the fact that Bernard had been hurt. Not that he was anymore, the wound had healed, just the faintest lines as if he had scraped by something. Now that his instincts had settled, he felt really bad about what he'd done, but…how could he have explained the claw marks? Even for Gotham that was weird.
The pizza was really good and Tim was more relaxed but hearing that they had a plan for when the press caught wind of their relationship was a relief and explained why he was more laid back. It was nice to not have to worry about hiding but they weren't going to kiss passionately in the pizza parlour either.
TBC…
