(FIC) A duet (Batman/Superman, PG-13)
I bought Left 4 Dead 2 for Steam and I've spend most of my free time killing Zombies since last week! it has been the definition of stress relief :D I suck at it, though, but the online community is actually pretty nice and fun and articulated! so even though I'm such a n00b I haven't been shamed to death yet. There's still hope for me!
Anyway, random L4D2 comment over. This is my last story from the music meme! *dances* I finished a meme! it only took me 4 months! ...wheeee! so. Well. Here it is!
Title: A duet
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Batman/Superman, J'onn/Diana, JLA
Word Count: 1600+
Summary: An intergalactic gala in Eldiran.
For bradygirl_12 and the song 'Una musica brutal' by Gotan Project. Beta by mithen, all mistakes and randomness are mine.
"May I have this dance?"
Clark looked at the man beside him.
"With the Princess, that is. I mean, you're okay, big guy, but you're not my type."
Diana nodded at him, her eyes bright with laughter, and Clark let go of her hands, bowing slightly to Wally. "Right back at you, Wally."
"I never knew all of you were so much into dancing. Had I known before I would have take advantage of it," Diana said.
"Doesn't hurt to ask, Princess."
Clark stepped back, zig zagging between couples as he tried to move out of the dance floor. Diplomatic missions were rarely this fun, and there was something about Eldiran that made the city -strangely- inherently joyous. Like every atom vibrated in a different frequency, one that charmed its inhabitants into a carefree state of delight.
He grabbed a chair and pulled it close to the only other occupied seat at their table. "I'm surprised you don't have an alien bombshell around each arm," he said, looking at the dancers moving in front of them.
"Needed a moment to myself." He gestured, bare hands moving lazily in the air. "Everyone is so... enthusiastic."
"And this is a bad thing?"
"Not per se, I suppose." He leaned back, a small smile on his lips. He looked... ruefully relaxed, Clark noticed. Like he felt guilty for not being distrustful of the carefree atmosphere. "Just overwhelming. The music is magical in nature, isn't it?"
"I think so. This whole place feels magical, though. Not in a bad way, just, you know. Who knew places like this existed."
"Probabilistically speaking, they had to be somewhere. But I know what you mean. I keep waiting for things to sour."
Clark turned to him, their shoulders brushing. He frowned. "Do you think they're hiding something?"
Bruce shrugged. He was warm, but then, the air around them was warm and inviting. Clark tried to pinpoint the source of the pleasant energy around them, wondering if they were being manipulated or mind controlled somehow, but the people around them dined and danced and talked happily, the atmosphere friendly and comfortable. They were even unobtrusive, giving them their space, never pushing them to mingle or talk, never pressing for secrets or pushing hidden agendas. Suspiciousness felt out of place, but Clark could see why Bruce would hold on to it.
It was just his nature.
Clark felt a golden heat spread through his chest. He knew the feeling -or perhaps it was just akin to a feeling he had had before, like telling the truth while bound by Diana's lasso, a comforting pleasure spreading through your body as you did what was compelled from you. He smiled. The magic in this planet compelled them to accept and understand each other, like a hotspot of goodwill towards all that lived.
No wonder everyone felt giddy.
"I don't think anyone has anything to hide here. Judging doesn't seem to be... encouraged."
Bruce turned to look at him, his brows knitting in thought, his lips pursed. Clark waited for Bruce to come to the same conclusion he had. Bruce was the kind of guy who would would experiment with his own thoughts, shaping them like pieces of a puzzle, looking for the one that fit the gaps. He was obsessive and thorough to the point of being infuriating, he was careful and deeply private. He was brilliant and gorgeous and Clark wanted him.
He felt another rush of heat spread through him as he held Bruce's thoughtful gaze. Damn the magic, it wouldn't even let you hide from yourself.
"Huh," Bruce said at last, breaking the visual contact. "You're right. Not unlike Diana's lasso, isn't it?"
"What do you think?"
"I think that I don't like magic."
Clark chuckled, tracing his friend's profile with his eyes. Bruce was still stubbornly looking at the dancers. "Besides that."
"It's coercion. To trick you with Pavlovian magic so you're willing to engage in prescribed behavior for another hit. It's wrong. Yet it's not unlike social coercion for good behavior back on Earth, just a bypass of the choice with a magical imperative. It seems to work in the same way, though it's clearly more effective here."
Clark laughed. "Come on, Bruce. It's a unique chance to say anything and be certain you won't be judged for it. To share a secret knowing it'll be accepted without reserves."
"Accepted and wanted are quite different things. As are accepted and shared. Besides, it's a magical compulsion. I would not-" he turned mid sentences, his gaze lingering on Clark's lips for a second before he met his eyes, "-I would not burden anyone just for the sake of getting something off my chest."
Clark turned away, looking at the dancers. Diana moved gracefully, a candid smile on her lips as she led J'onn through an alien waltz. He sighed, the magic of the music making it impossible to even feel disappointed. "I guess you're right."
"It seems to also lower inhibitions," Bruce said, a thread of laughter in his voice. "This is a very dangerous planet."
Clark smiled, seeing Ollie and Dinah getting a bit too comfortable in one of the tables near by. "Knowing those, this planet is just an excuse to get their kink on."
Bruce laughed. "Ah, what the hell," he said lowly before standing up. He turned to Clark, one hand outstretched. "Let's go, before I think myself into a stand still."
"What?"
"Dance, Clark. Would you like to?"
Clark stared at the offered hand for a second before taking it, savoring the softness of his skin and the temperature difference between them, the strength of his friend pulling him to his feet. "What kind of stand still?"
"Fight the compulsion to do what I want or do what I want despite the compulsion."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
Bruce threw him a laughing glance as he pulled him to the middle of the dance floor. "You're underestimating my ability to think in circles." For a moment, he stood there awkwardly, looking at the space between their bodies and then at the other dancers. Clark felt suddenly very aware that he was doing this, he was negotiating dancing with Bruce, dancing with Batman. In an alien planet. In the middle of a the room, where the whole Justice League could look at them.
"Okay, let's see, do you want to lead?" Bruce asked.
"You know, B, I have a confession to make."
Bruce's head snapped to look at him, blue eyes cautious. "Magical coercion?"
Clark laughed, grabbing Bruce's hands. "No. Well, I don't know. It's just that I usually wait for you to take the lead. It's so hard to push you into doing things that aren't your idea."
Bruce fell into step with him, letting Clark pull him into the rhythm, but he was frowning. "That's... not very flattering at all."
"You're very stubborn."
"Well, I'm always open to sensible ideas. They don't have to be mine." He leaned forward, and for a couple of steps his lips were just a breath away from Clark's, the whole room, the music and the people completely forgotten as they moved together with the grace of a fight, the intensity of combat. Each breath a blow, a parry; their hands coming together and apart as the dance grew more complicated, always returning to each other's arms.
Honey heat coalesced in Clark's chest, promising to bloom if he would just accept it, if he would breach the barriers of fear and uncertainty. "You... smell very good," he said softly, and quickly wanted to kick himself. It was true, at least, and the music seemed sweeter, the rhythm pulling him a step closer to joy.
"You're a very good dancer," Bruce said, a little breathless.
"You... you too. I never doubted it, though. You're the most graceful creature I have ever seen."
"You smell like the sun," Bruce muttered, almost to himself. "Like a perfect summer. A perfect day. I could forget everything and let you be all, the only present, the only future. My only past." He took a deep breath. "Clark. Stop me. Magical coercion, it's not fair." Clark was lost in his eyes, the blue of the winter sky unclouded, full of promises and secrets, hard and beautiful. "It's not fair but it's true," Bruce said at last, never missing one step, following Clark's each move like an echo.
"You're everything I need. Everything I could want." Clark almost didn't realize it was him talking, except the pleasure that washed over him told him it was true, it had been true for a long time, he just never allowed himself to look at it too closely. He kissed Bruce, and it was natural, their bodies moving without any conscious thought, perfectly attuned to each other after hundreds, thousands of fights, training drills, sparring sessions. Patching each other's wounds, carrying each other away from danger.
Taking each other as they were, and finding they were always better together than apart.
---
Diana turned with the music, laughing as J'onn made them spin around the room, a dance of luxurious freedom. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw her teammates around the room, dancing and eating and drinking and talking. They seemed happy and relaxed.
Not far from where she and J'onn were, Bruce and Clark moved together, setting their own pace, ignoring the music altogether. They had found their own rhythm, their melody a song they had been singing apart for a long time, now a joyful duet, the piece complete.
She smiled at J'onn, letting herself fall into the magic of the dance, the truth of its rhythm, forgetting about the world as he drank in her laughter and she drowned in ruby eyes.
Anyway, random L4D2 comment over. This is my last story from the music meme! *dances* I finished a meme! it only took me 4 months! ...wheeee! so. Well. Here it is!
Title: A duet
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Batman/Superman, J'onn/Diana, JLA
Word Count: 1600+
Summary: An intergalactic gala in Eldiran.
For bradygirl_12 and the song 'Una musica brutal' by Gotan Project. Beta by mithen, all mistakes and randomness are mine.
"May I have this dance?"
Clark looked at the man beside him.
"With the Princess, that is. I mean, you're okay, big guy, but you're not my type."
Diana nodded at him, her eyes bright with laughter, and Clark let go of her hands, bowing slightly to Wally. "Right back at you, Wally."
"I never knew all of you were so much into dancing. Had I known before I would have take advantage of it," Diana said.
"Doesn't hurt to ask, Princess."
Clark stepped back, zig zagging between couples as he tried to move out of the dance floor. Diplomatic missions were rarely this fun, and there was something about Eldiran that made the city -strangely- inherently joyous. Like every atom vibrated in a different frequency, one that charmed its inhabitants into a carefree state of delight.
He grabbed a chair and pulled it close to the only other occupied seat at their table. "I'm surprised you don't have an alien bombshell around each arm," he said, looking at the dancers moving in front of them.
"Needed a moment to myself." He gestured, bare hands moving lazily in the air. "Everyone is so... enthusiastic."
"And this is a bad thing?"
"Not per se, I suppose." He leaned back, a small smile on his lips. He looked... ruefully relaxed, Clark noticed. Like he felt guilty for not being distrustful of the carefree atmosphere. "Just overwhelming. The music is magical in nature, isn't it?"
"I think so. This whole place feels magical, though. Not in a bad way, just, you know. Who knew places like this existed."
"Probabilistically speaking, they had to be somewhere. But I know what you mean. I keep waiting for things to sour."
Clark turned to him, their shoulders brushing. He frowned. "Do you think they're hiding something?"
Bruce shrugged. He was warm, but then, the air around them was warm and inviting. Clark tried to pinpoint the source of the pleasant energy around them, wondering if they were being manipulated or mind controlled somehow, but the people around them dined and danced and talked happily, the atmosphere friendly and comfortable. They were even unobtrusive, giving them their space, never pushing them to mingle or talk, never pressing for secrets or pushing hidden agendas. Suspiciousness felt out of place, but Clark could see why Bruce would hold on to it.
It was just his nature.
Clark felt a golden heat spread through his chest. He knew the feeling -or perhaps it was just akin to a feeling he had had before, like telling the truth while bound by Diana's lasso, a comforting pleasure spreading through your body as you did what was compelled from you. He smiled. The magic in this planet compelled them to accept and understand each other, like a hotspot of goodwill towards all that lived.
No wonder everyone felt giddy.
"I don't think anyone has anything to hide here. Judging doesn't seem to be... encouraged."
Bruce turned to look at him, his brows knitting in thought, his lips pursed. Clark waited for Bruce to come to the same conclusion he had. Bruce was the kind of guy who would would experiment with his own thoughts, shaping them like pieces of a puzzle, looking for the one that fit the gaps. He was obsessive and thorough to the point of being infuriating, he was careful and deeply private. He was brilliant and gorgeous and Clark wanted him.
He felt another rush of heat spread through him as he held Bruce's thoughtful gaze. Damn the magic, it wouldn't even let you hide from yourself.
"Huh," Bruce said at last, breaking the visual contact. "You're right. Not unlike Diana's lasso, isn't it?"
"What do you think?"
"I think that I don't like magic."
Clark chuckled, tracing his friend's profile with his eyes. Bruce was still stubbornly looking at the dancers. "Besides that."
"It's coercion. To trick you with Pavlovian magic so you're willing to engage in prescribed behavior for another hit. It's wrong. Yet it's not unlike social coercion for good behavior back on Earth, just a bypass of the choice with a magical imperative. It seems to work in the same way, though it's clearly more effective here."
Clark laughed. "Come on, Bruce. It's a unique chance to say anything and be certain you won't be judged for it. To share a secret knowing it'll be accepted without reserves."
"Accepted and wanted are quite different things. As are accepted and shared. Besides, it's a magical compulsion. I would not-" he turned mid sentences, his gaze lingering on Clark's lips for a second before he met his eyes, "-I would not burden anyone just for the sake of getting something off my chest."
Clark turned away, looking at the dancers. Diana moved gracefully, a candid smile on her lips as she led J'onn through an alien waltz. He sighed, the magic of the music making it impossible to even feel disappointed. "I guess you're right."
"It seems to also lower inhibitions," Bruce said, a thread of laughter in his voice. "This is a very dangerous planet."
Clark smiled, seeing Ollie and Dinah getting a bit too comfortable in one of the tables near by. "Knowing those, this planet is just an excuse to get their kink on."
Bruce laughed. "Ah, what the hell," he said lowly before standing up. He turned to Clark, one hand outstretched. "Let's go, before I think myself into a stand still."
"What?"
"Dance, Clark. Would you like to?"
Clark stared at the offered hand for a second before taking it, savoring the softness of his skin and the temperature difference between them, the strength of his friend pulling him to his feet. "What kind of stand still?"
"Fight the compulsion to do what I want or do what I want despite the compulsion."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
Bruce threw him a laughing glance as he pulled him to the middle of the dance floor. "You're underestimating my ability to think in circles." For a moment, he stood there awkwardly, looking at the space between their bodies and then at the other dancers. Clark felt suddenly very aware that he was doing this, he was negotiating dancing with Bruce, dancing with Batman. In an alien planet. In the middle of a the room, where the whole Justice League could look at them.
"Okay, let's see, do you want to lead?" Bruce asked.
"You know, B, I have a confession to make."
Bruce's head snapped to look at him, blue eyes cautious. "Magical coercion?"
Clark laughed, grabbing Bruce's hands. "No. Well, I don't know. It's just that I usually wait for you to take the lead. It's so hard to push you into doing things that aren't your idea."
Bruce fell into step with him, letting Clark pull him into the rhythm, but he was frowning. "That's... not very flattering at all."
"You're very stubborn."
"Well, I'm always open to sensible ideas. They don't have to be mine." He leaned forward, and for a couple of steps his lips were just a breath away from Clark's, the whole room, the music and the people completely forgotten as they moved together with the grace of a fight, the intensity of combat. Each breath a blow, a parry; their hands coming together and apart as the dance grew more complicated, always returning to each other's arms.
Honey heat coalesced in Clark's chest, promising to bloom if he would just accept it, if he would breach the barriers of fear and uncertainty. "You... smell very good," he said softly, and quickly wanted to kick himself. It was true, at least, and the music seemed sweeter, the rhythm pulling him a step closer to joy.
"You're a very good dancer," Bruce said, a little breathless.
"You... you too. I never doubted it, though. You're the most graceful creature I have ever seen."
"You smell like the sun," Bruce muttered, almost to himself. "Like a perfect summer. A perfect day. I could forget everything and let you be all, the only present, the only future. My only past." He took a deep breath. "Clark. Stop me. Magical coercion, it's not fair." Clark was lost in his eyes, the blue of the winter sky unclouded, full of promises and secrets, hard and beautiful. "It's not fair but it's true," Bruce said at last, never missing one step, following Clark's each move like an echo.
"You're everything I need. Everything I could want." Clark almost didn't realize it was him talking, except the pleasure that washed over him told him it was true, it had been true for a long time, he just never allowed himself to look at it too closely. He kissed Bruce, and it was natural, their bodies moving without any conscious thought, perfectly attuned to each other after hundreds, thousands of fights, training drills, sparring sessions. Patching each other's wounds, carrying each other away from danger.
Taking each other as they were, and finding they were always better together than apart.
---
Diana turned with the music, laughing as J'onn made them spin around the room, a dance of luxurious freedom. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw her teammates around the room, dancing and eating and drinking and talking. They seemed happy and relaxed.
Not far from where she and J'onn were, Bruce and Clark moved together, setting their own pace, ignoring the music altogether. They had found their own rhythm, their melody a song they had been singing apart for a long time, now a joyful duet, the piece complete.
She smiled at J'onn, letting herself fall into the magic of the dance, the truth of its rhythm, forgetting about the world as he drank in her laughter and she drowned in ruby eyes.