Target Practice

[emit_dark]

 Who: Tim and Alba
Where: The Park
When: January 11th, after class
What: It's all in the reflexes....
Rating: PG 
Status: Closed, Incomplete

Comments

[emit_dark]

"Well I found other targets, the caves are huge!"

'Dodged a bullet on that one. Jeez she's good.'

Before the thought could even finish, Tim was already taking in her indignance at the idea that Bruce never smiled and burst out laughing right there. He almost wished Nightwing were there to hear that. It had surprised Tim once too, but he'd gotten used to it pretty quick. "He...doesn't have a lot to smile about? And yeah, gloom, doom, glowering, the whole nine yards." The day that glare didn't haunt Tim's dreams was the day he gave up his mask and mantle.

"Yeah I never really paid attention when Bruce tried to teach me stuff." He knew how bad that sounded but it was true. Tim absorbed enough of the behavior to mimic it convincingly if he needed to, and that was that. It was a tool to him, like anything else he'd learned under Bruce's tutelage.

"Bruce would never let me have a pet, though I think most of the pressure came from Alfred--he's the butler. I think having a dog or something would drive him nuts." The thought of Alfred running around after a puppy was amusing though.

As they neared Brandenburg, about to take the turn back up to the main road, voices caught Tim's attention. A figure, swaying and loud, stumbled out of the hotel doors ahead of them, cursing loudly. All of Tim's instincts went on high alert and he put a hand on Alba's shoulder, stepping in front of her at the same time.

"Hey, punk." A gruff voice barked out over the night air and Tim groan, leaning in to whisper against Alba's ear.

"Just keep going."

[ablealba]

Alba gave him a look, but didn't push it farther. It was still curious.

"Everyone has to have something to smile about at some point in their lives. As much sadness as people deal with, there's got to be some happiness in everything." Alba was a firm believer in that, thanks to her mother more than anyone else. Alba's mom had lost so much of her life to waiting for her dad to be around due to his chromo-impairment. And then it happened again with her own daughter. But that didn't mean that Clare never smiled. Her mom smiled as much as she cried and that was saying something.

"It would be irresponsible of me to get one here." Alba hadn't had one at home, though when she got home next, she'd see if her mom wanted one. It'd be nice to be with someone when she was gone. "But back home I didn't either."

As they turned the corner, Alba noted the man as well, without looking at him. She was an excellent observer if nothing else. But she was certain the two of them wouldn't have a problem with the guy if they both kept going together. And worst case, she was sure Tim was almost as good a runner as she was. But when Tim put his hand on her shoulder, Alba looked over at him sharply. His whisper was met with a stubborn frown. "Not if you're not coming, too. You're not much older than I am, Tim. And besides. I'm not leaving you behind for who knows what to happen. That's just mean." It was bad form was what it was. She wouldn't even leave her older and very capable friends behind. Not that she didn't think Tim was capable, but Alba was just as able of defending herself. Between what she'd learned from her dad and Mr. Baron and the classes that her mom made her take, she didn't have much to worry about.

[emit_dark]

Dark brows knit. This wasn't the time to argue if things were about to get rough.

"Okay, then stay as close as you can." Slowly, Tim reached into his pocket and took out his batarang, holding it concealed, ready for a swift under-hand throw.

"You kiddies think somethin's funny?"

So it was their laughter that had gotten his attention, Tim thought quickly, glancing up and down each potential route of escape. 'Not like I need it, I can take jerks like him down in my sleep.'

"Maybe, whatcha gonna do about it?" Tim taunted, meeting the surprised look Alba gave him with a calm one. He knew what he was doing--pissing guys like this off was the best way to gain the upper hand.

Moments later the drunken man let out an angry growl and lunged at them, but the batarang was already flying--there was a cry and the sound of breaking glass as the bottle the man was holding broke, the smell of alcohol and blood mixing in the heavy evening air.

"Why you little piece of--" Something glinted as the man passed under a flickering streetlamp and Tim's eyes widened--a broken bottle head.

"Dodge!" He called to Alba, grabbing her wrist and pulling her into a hard frontwards roll on the snowy sidewalk. Thankfully it took their assailant longer to recover, and the lighting was better where they landed.

"Alba, your batarang, use it." Tim urged, "While he's still down he's a stationary target, aim for the bottle. Don't worry, I got you covered." Slipping his backpack off his shoulders, Tim unzipped and plunged a hand into the pocket, pulling out his grapple gun.

[ablealba]

Tim didn't know Alba well enough to know that she'd argue with him even if it were the exact wrong time. She was not leaving him. When Tim started taunting the guy, Alba did not approve. Yes, sometimes it was fine, but most of the time it was completely unnecessary and you could get away without managing to do that at all.

When the man growled and lunged at them, Alba was ready to dodge him entirely, even weighed down with the winter coat and school bag. When the man did head toward them, Alba didn't need a second word to dodge. She was already heading to when Tim grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a roll on the sidewalk. Mr. Baron was definitely going to notice that. But Alba pushed that to the back of her mind, survival instincts taking over.

When Tim urged her to use her batarang, Alba hardly hesitated for a second. It would be very simple for the two of them to just get away from it all. But soon enough she aimed at the bottle as easily as she'd aimed at Tim's branch before. She'd channeled all the nerves into adrenaline the way that she'd done so readily when traveling through time. The bottle was hit squarely and she looked over at Tim to see what he'd planned on doing next.

[emit_dark]

Maybe Tim didn't have to hold Alba's hand through the whole process, but it was too much of an instinct. Until he could really trust that she could handle herself, he would always move to protect her, the same as Bruce or Batgirl did for him.

When she nailed the bottle though, it hit him that maybe she could, and an apology was in order once the creep was taken care of; so, taking the grapple gun, Tim attached a batarang to the end and fired, tying their assailant securely about the middle. He grunted and cursed, but couldn't break free.

"Maybe a night out here will let you sober up a little, huh buddy?" Tim sneered, turning to Alba a beat later.

"Are you alright?"

"Let me outta here you little ba--!!

"Let's get going. There's no reason to be here when the hotel reports a public disturbance." They slipped up the street, all the way back up to North Main without Tim saying much. The fact of the matter was he was incredibly impressed and realized in hindsight that his hand-holding had been a bit out of place.

"Look, sorry if I babied you back there." Tim started at last, "you obviously know what you're doing and I know what it's like when people do that it's just so ingrained with me I couldn't help it. But seriously, that was awesome. You nailed that thing; just like in a comic book--we really make awesome team."

Then he paused, because the next thought he had went against everything he had been told and trained to do but...

'Don't do it Tim, don't do it, just take her home and make something up about a sledding accident when Mr. Baron asks.'

"Alba, if I told you something about me, something that would explain how I can do what I can, and why I have a secret cave back home, you wouldn't tell another living soul, would you?" Though he was scared, he was smiling, because as soon as the words were out he knew this was right.

[ablealba]

Alba might've appreciated the hand holding but she would absolutely never admit it. She was entirely too proud and independent to do that.

She nodded that she was fine as they walked up the street in silence. Part of Alba was angry, but she knew how bad of an idea it was to be around when police came. She had nothing if not an excellent sense of self-preservation.

She was about to tell him so but he apologized before she had the chance. "It's fine, but future reference, I can take care of myself, you know." She'd been doing it for as long as she could remember.

As Tim paused, Alba was trying to figure out a plausible lie to tell to Mr. Baron. If he was told that there was a drunken man coming after them while walking home from school she was sure he'd do something extreme like make sure she took the carriage or order her an escort. She did not need that.

She frowned as he smiled. "Of course I'd keep it a secret." Why on earth wouldn't she?

[emit_dark]

"Yeah, I gathered that. You're picking up on this stuff quicker than I did." At least, she was so far--she didn't have Bruce's gauntlet in the Batcave to run through for an hour and half every night.

When she gave her word Tim nodded, realizing that explaining was something he wanted to do where it was warm and not so exposed. "Might want to sit down for this, I think." Though there was a part of him that was still screaming in vain for him not to do what he was about to do, he also knew that would be easier to ignore if he was warm and out of earshot of any impending police sirens. "Hot chocolate work for you?" The Lovecraft Diner was in the middle of the dinner rush--no better time than for two kids to go unnoticed.

A pretty, young waitress found them a booth near the back, so close to the kitchens anything they were saying could be easily disguised by the mad dinn coming from beyond the two wide, swinging doors.

"Now under any other circumstances I wouldn't be doing this but I figure, we're not even from the same universe so it doesn't matter much in the end anyway." Tim took a deep breath and looked Alba directly in her observant blue eyes. "When Bruce took me in, I learned something about him, something big. For as long as I could remember, as bad as Gotham City always was there were good guys out there fighting to keep the real crazies at bay. Batman and Robin. They were my idols. Even though my dad worked for one of the slimiest, ugliest, most evil goons in Gotham, I collected all of the info on Batman and Robin I could... I mean, they were legends! Well due to...why Bruce ended up taking me in, I learned that he was Batman! Ever since I moved in, he's been training me, just like he did the first Robin. So what I'm saying is...in my neck of the woods, I'm sort of a super hero."

[ablealba]

Alba shrugged. "I'm a fast learner." She had to be. Alba was going to protest about the fact that she should go straight home, it was getting late. But she needed some more time to think up a proper cover story to tell Mr. Baron. One that would be convincing. So she nodded to the question about hot chocolate.

She listened to Tim as he explained that he was a superhero, and she slowly took a sip of her hot chocolate as she listened. "That is just...so cool. And dangerous! You're not much older than I am. Is it really fair for a thirteen year old to be a superhero?" It was insanely cool, but she couldn't believe that someone actually let someone so young do something like this. It was nice that there were people fighting the evil in town, but did it have to be a kid?

[emit_dark]

....Of course she would repeat almost exactly what Nightwing had said the night he finally learned about the fallout between him and Bruce.

'You'll understand one day. I mean, this isn't exactly right.'

Tim had wanted to protest then-- there was nothing to say that he would have the same falling out. Heck, if he had it his way, he'd be Robin forever.

"But Nightwing was younger when Bruce started training him as Robin. It's...well yeah it's dangerous but Bruce needs me, he needs all of us." A hint of pride entered his voice. True, the old man didn't always show that he needed them, but at the end of the day, through fear toxins and mutated livestock, they were a team...a family. "Besides, for as many kids that dream about running around with Batman saving the city I really am. It's a dream come true, honestly." There was an imploring edge to Tim's voice that he didn't exactly intend, as though he needed Alba to believe that what Bruce was doing was right, that it was...necessary.

"Anyway, that's the truth. So if I get protective every once and a while it's instinct. I'll try to be better about it in the future."

[ablealba]

"Maybe it's a dream come true, and maybe he needs you, but take it from someone who can't control their power. Sometimes having powers isn't good. It's what killed my dad." Alba was a little bit scared that eventually it would be the death of her, but she was 12. She didn't think about it too much. "I know that there have to be people to protect other people, but it shouldn't be kids."

She nodded, sipping her hot chocolate. "Well don't pretend that I can't take care of myself. I'm going to need to think of something convincing to tell Mr. Baron about why we're so late and why I look all out of sorts." Sometimes having to be accountable to people was irritating.

[emit_dark]

Tim frowned listening to Alba, lips still pale from cold turning decidedly down to hear how opposed she was to the idea. "Then I guess you wouldn't be interested in helping me out while I'm here? Which is perfectly okay, I was just hoping that maybe you'd want to." In the end, it was her choice. She'd lived a whole different life than him, and besides, reasonably speaking there was no way she could commit to anything.

But damn if it didn't suck, knowing that someone with that much natural talent was right in front of him.

"Well the streets are still in pretty bad shape, would he believe we were playing, or maybe rushing in here to get out of the cold and you tripped? You're not too bad off." It would have to be a pretty spectacular trip-and-fall but on ice that wasn't really difficult to accomplish. "But um, yeah, we should probably get home."

[ablealba]

Alba frowned. She wasn't trying to be mean, but she felt as if she'd hurt his feelings. "I might be interested in it. Just...it's dangerous. And I cannot tell Mr. Baron. We'd have to think of some convincing cover stories. And...I don't know if I'm exactly the most...reliable person." After all, who would want to have a girl who could disappear into thin air at inconvenient moments.

She shook her head at his suggestion. "No, I don't trip. I pay too much attention to sidewalks and ice to trip. And when I slip I catch myself." There was no way he'd believe it. Mr. Baron would sooner believe Alba got herself into trouble, she was sure.

[emit_dark]

"Well right now, I just go on patrols around town, scoping things out, information gathering...beating up the occasional drunk jerk." Tim shrugged and began to smile again when Alba mentioned not being reliable. "Don't worry about it. According to everything I've read on the forums, technically any of us could just vanish back to our own time and universe, can't let that stop you from living, though, right?" Despite everything, Alba did seem pretty normal, she was going to school, and making friends, same as him.

"Yeah, I guess so." Dark brows knit in thought, "There's really two choices, we could over play it or underplay it. Over play it, and you walk in with a bandage on your wrist and over your cheek, anywhere it's really obvious. If he worries that much about you, the panic will allow you to not say much, muddle through a bit of mothering and that'll be that. If he asks later, you'll have had more time to think of something." Tim paused, taking a breath. "Underplay it, and hey, kids are kids, they get hurt--if he's still suspicious, just be really careful for a while, walk on eggshells to not do anything remotely dangerous. Go home right after school, stick close to home. After a while it'll barely register as odd. Also, by then, I'll have a few things that'll help when we do go out next. As for a big cover story, well, we're in class together, we can meet to study, work on projects, those standardized tests are coming up soon. There's a lot to choose from."

Thankfully Tim was used to stuff like this. Granted, he never really had to hide his injuries for Bruce, but sometimes out of pride he still did-- he wanted him and Batgirl to see that he could take as much abuse on the job as they did.

[ablealba]

"You don't think the town police have it covered?" Granted, Alba didn't know too much about the police in town. But she was trying really hard to be objective about this all. And it would help Tim in the long run having someone to challenge him. It would make sure he wasn't lazy, not that she really thought he would be. "But mine's different. I mean, I haven't jumped since getting here, but that doesn't mean that I won't. I could jump back home, or I could jump somewhere else entirely and be gone for seconds or weeks." Or apparently months.

Alba frowned. She was thinking of something that would worry Mr. Baron just enough to not make him suspicious. "I might go with the overplaying. I think I can manage something." Though he'd know she wasn't too injured, she was sure, by his vampire abilities, but she couldn't be positive. She'd just have to work it exactly enough.

[emit_dark]

"Their reaction to me walking in there to report finding someone trying to sabotage the train station was to 'send some out to check.' I mean, this place might be a little different but where I come from that's...lax to say the least." Tim couldn't help it-- he'd dealt with too many crazies in lab coats to let that slide. "They definitely know what up, but I'm not sure their approach is proactive enough." That was the danger when weird was common place. It made people lazy, willing to accept that these things happened and there was nothing they could do.

Listening to Alba, Tim shook his head, tentatively reaching across the table to hold her free hand, cheeks brightening in a blush. "It doesn't matter to me, Alba, you're here now. That's good enough for me, if it's good enough for you." He withdrew his hand a second later, letting it rest on the table, almost unsure of what to do with it.

"You know, we could always tell the truth." Tim suggested. "At least, part of it-- that's, if you mind my playing up being a night in shining armor." It would, potentially, kill two birds with one stone. "And that way we don't need to freak about hiding some big secret."

[ablealba]

Alba shrugged slightly. "Maybe. I'm used to the Chicago police being too proactive." In fact, being used to running from them when she jumped through time and landed in a bad spot or somewhere blatantly without clothes.

She noted the blush and couldn't help but grin slightly at it. Her idea would be perfect as far as she was concerned. But she wasn't sure Tim would be so thrilled with it. "It's definitely fine by me, but I just wanted to warn you, it could happen any time. I'd just poof and disappear when you're talking to me." Usually she had a few seconds to a minute's head notice if she couldn't stop it.

Alba frowned. "What part of the truth?" She was worried that Mr. Baron would be more worried about her with respect to the truth than a well intentioned lie.