Fic: Recharge; Part 1/6; DCU/Marvel; Tim Drake (Robin III)/Remy LeBeau (Gambit); NC-17
Title: Recharge
Part: 1/6
Author: Aravis Tarkheena
Pairing: Tim Drake (Robin III)/Remy LeBeau (Gambit)
Continuity: Current DCU comics verse cross over with Ultimate X-Men, to keep things simpler. However, Gambit is the 616 version because he’s cooler. If this sounds confusing, don’t worry. It makes sense in the context of the story.
Rating: this part PG; Over all NC-17
Warnings: Lots of explication. Emo Tim. Hiro. He needs a warning all by himself.
Disclaimer: Not mine, everyone's legal.
Word Count: 2,000ish
Author's notes: This is for darthbatgirl. Consider this a bribe for more Thick as Theives. <3
Recharge
Tim Drake picked his way through the well lit storage room, taking in the various pieces of equipment and machinery. Large shelving units were filled with robotic parts, computer chips, power tools and instruments whose purpose Tim could only guess. The whole room was packed from floor to ceiling with the shelves, boxes, tables and cabinets that were all but bursting with the bits and pieces of things.
Everything smelled strongly of plastic, dust and WD-40. The harsh fluorescent lights that lined the ceiling of the room made all but the most brightly painted pieces of machinery look like washed out and unusable clutter. Tim was starting to wonder how he could find anything in this mess, let alone the specific component he was to be looking for.
“Tim!” Hiro’s voice called to him from somewhere in the general vicinity of the doorway to the room. Not that Tim could see him through the mess of shelves and clutter.
“Here, Hiro!” Tim called back and coughed slightly when he inhaled a large quantity of dust.
“You find it yet?” Hiro asked him and by the sound of his voice he was making his way over to Tim, easily navigating through the mess of machinery and parts.
“Hiro, I’m not entirely convinced that I could find my way out of here, let alone find the particular piece you’re looking for in all this mess,” Tim informed him caustically, peering at the contents of some of the upper shelves of the unit in front of him.
“That’s because you’re not looking in the right place,” Hiro told him impatiently as he disappeared behind a large crate of what looked like robot arms. Tim wondered, for moment, how many C3PO units were walking around Hiro’s fortress without their arms.
It was an unnerving thought to consider.
Tim sighed heavily and sniffed as the resulting onslaught of dust tickled at his nose. He rubbed his hands over his itchy face and reminded himself that Hiro was his friend and he was doing Tim a favor. Toyman wasn’t used to working with a partner. It made sense that he would be a little impatient with Tim. It said a lot about their friendship that he would even try.
The two of them had never been particularly close in the past. They would get together and hang out, play video games and build robots, stuff like that. They had never really had an emotional connection before.
All that changed after Kon had died. Kon’s death had hit Hiro pretty hard and he had turned to Tim. They had gotten closer, over years. Talked more, worked together a bit more often but their friendship had still been long distance.
Tim had called Toyman a little over a week ago asking for help with some modifications on his suit. Now that he was operating mostly solo in Gotham City, he realized that he would probably need some enhancements. Tim had gotten used to having dozens of people to call for backup at any given time. Now that he didn’t have that luxury, he was going to have to be even more careful than he already was.
Hiro had told him about this Electronic Grid Fabric he had been working on that would enhance the strength of the wearer and create a force field around the suit. Sort of like computerized body armor. Hiro had told Tim that he could control both the level of strength the suit provided and the level of protection.
It sounded more than perfect to Tim and he asked Hiro if he could make Tim a test suit to try out. Hiro had agreed so readily that it made Tim wonder whether or not Hiro had designed the stuff with him specifically in mind.
Hiro wasn’t known for his keen sense emotional empathy, but even he had heard the strain in Tim’s voice. After a few phone calls to discuss the progress of the suit, he had suggested that Tim take a break from things in Gotham for a while. He asked Tim to come to Japan and help him finish up his Electronic Grid Fabric and make designs for his new suit.
After a day or two of thought, Tim had agreed. He did need a break from Gotham and the pressures of his life as both Tim Drake and Robin.
Losing Bruce had been a blow to all areas of his life. It had been different when Ives got sick and his father and Dana had died. Even after that he could still lose himself in being Robin. The same was true when he lost Kon and Bart, he could still focus on the Tim part of his life and have, at least, a small break from the grief.
But Bruce had been in every part of Tim’s life. Bruce had been his father, his mentor, his teacher, his brother, his friend and everything else that Tim had needed him to be. Now Tim felt like he didn’t have any of those things at all and he was left floundering. He felt more than a little directionless.
He knew there needed to be a new Batman. He also knew that he couldn’t be that. It was true that he had taken Robin and made it something of his own. Something independent of both the Bat and his predecessors. However, after his last trip to the future he was absolutely terrified of donning the cape and cowl.
Dick was reluctant to take up the job as well, probably for similar reasons. Neither of them had ever wanted to be Batman.
Dick was taking Bruce’s death just as hard as Tim. He hadn’t been back to Gotham in months. He pointedly avoided anything and everything to do with the Manor and the Cave. It broke Tim’s heart not to have Dick at his side, but Tim understood why he couldn’t be and Dick called every day to check on him.
Jay had been the best about things, lately. He and Tim had sectioned out the city for patrols and even created shifts to make it easier for the two of them. At first things had been rocky and hostile between them but as time went on, neither of them had the emotional energy left to fight with each other while they were both grieving for Bruce.
They had formed a rocky truce in the time being. They shared information and sometimes Jason even slept in the Manor. Tim had realized that very first night that he liked having Jay there. The Manor felt so empty without Bruce, like a mausoleum. Jay brought back more than a hint of life to the place.
Jay was many things; unobtrusive was not one of them.
For once, Tim was grateful for that.
Jason had also agreed to work with Huntress in Tim’s absence. It had been nice of Jay. Tim would have said it was even ‘very adult’ of him if Tim hadn’t known full well that Jay agreed to work with Helena so he could see in that skimpy outfit she called a uniform.
Not that Tim could blame him. That was half the fun of Huntress team ups anyway. That and harmless flirting.
It was true that Jay had been great of late but Tim still fully expected to come home to a locker filled with rotten eggs or a bees nest in his bedroom, but for now he would just feel grateful Jay hadn’t minded that he left.
The time away from Gotham was supposed to give him focus and clarity. He was supposed to be formulating a plan on how to go forward with his life and in which direction he wanted to take it. He was supposed to be coming to terms with losing Bruce. He was supposed to be thinking about how to change his life for the better.
Instead all he could think about was the date on his return plane ticket to Gotham. The date loomed over him, large and forbidding. He had been in Japan three days and he was no closer to figuring his problems out than when he had stepped off the plane.
It wasn’t for lack of trying. He stayed awake at night weighing his options in his mind. He thought about being what being Robin meant in a world without Batman as he ate his breakfast. He thought about Wayne Enterprises and how he would assume control of it while he showered. He thought about his relationships with Jay and Dick and Cass as he worked with Hiro in the lab. He thought about the Titans and whether his decision to leave them was wise. He thought about Steph as a mixture of love and anger roiled in his belly. He thought about Ives and Zoanne and Bernard and every other person in his life he was letting down and causing to worry.
Despite all his thinking, planning and consideration, he was still no closer to any answers.
His plane left in another four days and he was more stressed out than when he had arrived.
Ironically, as it turned out, it was much easier to just live than to think about how, exactly, you should be living.
Tim sighed again and slumped heavily against the shelving unit behind him. He looked up curiously as something rattled against the shelf before falling almost six feet though the air to hit the cement floor of the storage room with a loud clatter.
Tim winced and closed his eyes for a second, not wanting to see exactly what it was he had damaged, or how badly.
“Tim! What was that?” Hiro’s voice came from the far left corner of the room. He sounded both annoyed and distracted. Tim wondered, idly, if he could tell Hiro it had been nothing and just put whatever it had been back on the shelf without Hiro noticing. It could be years before Hiro even thought to look for whatever the thing was and there was even money on whether he could even find it again in all this mess, or not.
Tim grimaced and mentally cursed himself for having a conscience. His life would be so much easier if he didn’t.
“I’m not sure Hiro,” he called and knelt down next to the object.
Upon closer inspection, Tim realized he really did have no idea what the thing was. It was a light grey color with a few buttons on the top. It had an almost triangular shape with two handles on one end and a long extension at the top. It looked vaguely like a video game controller.
Tim was still examining it nervously for any signs of damage when Hiro walked over to him. Tim glanced up.
“It doesn’t look broken,” Tim ventured and reached for it.
“It’s fine, just be careful not to hit the red-“ Hiro’s instructions were cut off abruptly when the heel of Tim’s palm brushed over the red button on the top of the controller. There was a loud ‘woosh’ a bright light and Tim went dizzy around the eyes before everything went black.
Part Two
Part: 1/6
Author: Aravis Tarkheena
Pairing: Tim Drake (Robin III)/Remy LeBeau (Gambit)
Continuity: Current DCU comics verse cross over with Ultimate X-Men, to keep things simpler. However, Gambit is the 616 version because he’s cooler. If this sounds confusing, don’t worry. It makes sense in the context of the story.
Rating: this part PG; Over all NC-17
Warnings: Lots of explication. Emo Tim. Hiro. He needs a warning all by himself.
Disclaimer: Not mine, everyone's legal.
Word Count: 2,000ish
Author's notes: This is for darthbatgirl. Consider this a bribe for more Thick as Theives. <3
Recharge
Tim Drake picked his way through the well lit storage room, taking in the various pieces of equipment and machinery. Large shelving units were filled with robotic parts, computer chips, power tools and instruments whose purpose Tim could only guess. The whole room was packed from floor to ceiling with the shelves, boxes, tables and cabinets that were all but bursting with the bits and pieces of things.
Everything smelled strongly of plastic, dust and WD-40. The harsh fluorescent lights that lined the ceiling of the room made all but the most brightly painted pieces of machinery look like washed out and unusable clutter. Tim was starting to wonder how he could find anything in this mess, let alone the specific component he was to be looking for.
“Tim!” Hiro’s voice called to him from somewhere in the general vicinity of the doorway to the room. Not that Tim could see him through the mess of shelves and clutter.
“Here, Hiro!” Tim called back and coughed slightly when he inhaled a large quantity of dust.
“You find it yet?” Hiro asked him and by the sound of his voice he was making his way over to Tim, easily navigating through the mess of machinery and parts.
“Hiro, I’m not entirely convinced that I could find my way out of here, let alone find the particular piece you’re looking for in all this mess,” Tim informed him caustically, peering at the contents of some of the upper shelves of the unit in front of him.
“That’s because you’re not looking in the right place,” Hiro told him impatiently as he disappeared behind a large crate of what looked like robot arms. Tim wondered, for moment, how many C3PO units were walking around Hiro’s fortress without their arms.
It was an unnerving thought to consider.
Tim sighed heavily and sniffed as the resulting onslaught of dust tickled at his nose. He rubbed his hands over his itchy face and reminded himself that Hiro was his friend and he was doing Tim a favor. Toyman wasn’t used to working with a partner. It made sense that he would be a little impatient with Tim. It said a lot about their friendship that he would even try.
The two of them had never been particularly close in the past. They would get together and hang out, play video games and build robots, stuff like that. They had never really had an emotional connection before.
All that changed after Kon had died. Kon’s death had hit Hiro pretty hard and he had turned to Tim. They had gotten closer, over years. Talked more, worked together a bit more often but their friendship had still been long distance.
Tim had called Toyman a little over a week ago asking for help with some modifications on his suit. Now that he was operating mostly solo in Gotham City, he realized that he would probably need some enhancements. Tim had gotten used to having dozens of people to call for backup at any given time. Now that he didn’t have that luxury, he was going to have to be even more careful than he already was.
Hiro had told him about this Electronic Grid Fabric he had been working on that would enhance the strength of the wearer and create a force field around the suit. Sort of like computerized body armor. Hiro had told Tim that he could control both the level of strength the suit provided and the level of protection.
It sounded more than perfect to Tim and he asked Hiro if he could make Tim a test suit to try out. Hiro had agreed so readily that it made Tim wonder whether or not Hiro had designed the stuff with him specifically in mind.
Hiro wasn’t known for his keen sense emotional empathy, but even he had heard the strain in Tim’s voice. After a few phone calls to discuss the progress of the suit, he had suggested that Tim take a break from things in Gotham for a while. He asked Tim to come to Japan and help him finish up his Electronic Grid Fabric and make designs for his new suit.
After a day or two of thought, Tim had agreed. He did need a break from Gotham and the pressures of his life as both Tim Drake and Robin.
Losing Bruce had been a blow to all areas of his life. It had been different when Ives got sick and his father and Dana had died. Even after that he could still lose himself in being Robin. The same was true when he lost Kon and Bart, he could still focus on the Tim part of his life and have, at least, a small break from the grief.
But Bruce had been in every part of Tim’s life. Bruce had been his father, his mentor, his teacher, his brother, his friend and everything else that Tim had needed him to be. Now Tim felt like he didn’t have any of those things at all and he was left floundering. He felt more than a little directionless.
He knew there needed to be a new Batman. He also knew that he couldn’t be that. It was true that he had taken Robin and made it something of his own. Something independent of both the Bat and his predecessors. However, after his last trip to the future he was absolutely terrified of donning the cape and cowl.
Dick was reluctant to take up the job as well, probably for similar reasons. Neither of them had ever wanted to be Batman.
Dick was taking Bruce’s death just as hard as Tim. He hadn’t been back to Gotham in months. He pointedly avoided anything and everything to do with the Manor and the Cave. It broke Tim’s heart not to have Dick at his side, but Tim understood why he couldn’t be and Dick called every day to check on him.
Jay had been the best about things, lately. He and Tim had sectioned out the city for patrols and even created shifts to make it easier for the two of them. At first things had been rocky and hostile between them but as time went on, neither of them had the emotional energy left to fight with each other while they were both grieving for Bruce.
They had formed a rocky truce in the time being. They shared information and sometimes Jason even slept in the Manor. Tim had realized that very first night that he liked having Jay there. The Manor felt so empty without Bruce, like a mausoleum. Jay brought back more than a hint of life to the place.
Jay was many things; unobtrusive was not one of them.
For once, Tim was grateful for that.
Jason had also agreed to work with Huntress in Tim’s absence. It had been nice of Jay. Tim would have said it was even ‘very adult’ of him if Tim hadn’t known full well that Jay agreed to work with Helena so he could see in that skimpy outfit she called a uniform.
Not that Tim could blame him. That was half the fun of Huntress team ups anyway. That and harmless flirting.
It was true that Jay had been great of late but Tim still fully expected to come home to a locker filled with rotten eggs or a bees nest in his bedroom, but for now he would just feel grateful Jay hadn’t minded that he left.
The time away from Gotham was supposed to give him focus and clarity. He was supposed to be formulating a plan on how to go forward with his life and in which direction he wanted to take it. He was supposed to be coming to terms with losing Bruce. He was supposed to be thinking about how to change his life for the better.
Instead all he could think about was the date on his return plane ticket to Gotham. The date loomed over him, large and forbidding. He had been in Japan three days and he was no closer to figuring his problems out than when he had stepped off the plane.
It wasn’t for lack of trying. He stayed awake at night weighing his options in his mind. He thought about being what being Robin meant in a world without Batman as he ate his breakfast. He thought about Wayne Enterprises and how he would assume control of it while he showered. He thought about his relationships with Jay and Dick and Cass as he worked with Hiro in the lab. He thought about the Titans and whether his decision to leave them was wise. He thought about Steph as a mixture of love and anger roiled in his belly. He thought about Ives and Zoanne and Bernard and every other person in his life he was letting down and causing to worry.
Despite all his thinking, planning and consideration, he was still no closer to any answers.
His plane left in another four days and he was more stressed out than when he had arrived.
Ironically, as it turned out, it was much easier to just live than to think about how, exactly, you should be living.
Tim sighed again and slumped heavily against the shelving unit behind him. He looked up curiously as something rattled against the shelf before falling almost six feet though the air to hit the cement floor of the storage room with a loud clatter.
Tim winced and closed his eyes for a second, not wanting to see exactly what it was he had damaged, or how badly.
“Tim! What was that?” Hiro’s voice came from the far left corner of the room. He sounded both annoyed and distracted. Tim wondered, idly, if he could tell Hiro it had been nothing and just put whatever it had been back on the shelf without Hiro noticing. It could be years before Hiro even thought to look for whatever the thing was and there was even money on whether he could even find it again in all this mess, or not.
Tim grimaced and mentally cursed himself for having a conscience. His life would be so much easier if he didn’t.
“I’m not sure Hiro,” he called and knelt down next to the object.
Upon closer inspection, Tim realized he really did have no idea what the thing was. It was a light grey color with a few buttons on the top. It had an almost triangular shape with two handles on one end and a long extension at the top. It looked vaguely like a video game controller.
Tim was still examining it nervously for any signs of damage when Hiro walked over to him. Tim glanced up.
“It doesn’t look broken,” Tim ventured and reached for it.
“It’s fine, just be careful not to hit the red-“ Hiro’s instructions were cut off abruptly when the heel of Tim’s palm brushed over the red button on the top of the controller. There was a loud ‘woosh’ a bright light and Tim went dizzy around the eyes before everything went black.
Part Two