Happy Holidays, Margaret!
Title: Batman and the Immortals
Author: Laura/genna12001 aka The Not-So-Serious Pencil Magician
Written for: Margaret/mogwai_do
Crossover with: The Dark Knight
Characters/Pairings: Duncan/Methos, Bruce Wayne
Rating: PG-13, slash
Author's Notes: What would Methos do if he bumps into Bruce Wayne?
Summary: When two worlds meet and friendships made, difficulties will be overcome.
Batman and the Immortal
Duncan MacLeod pushed open the door to the bar and was almost instantly hit with the buzz of a nearby Immortal. As his eyes adjusted to the low lighting of the bar he saw that it was his lover Adam Pierson. Adam nodded his head in greeting then turned back to the debate that he was having with Joe Dawson who was leant against the bar beside him. No doubt, Duncan guessed, Joe was once again attempting to get the money owed to him by Adam for his bar tab. He made his way over to them and took the bar stool at the other side of Adam.
"Hey Mac," Joe halted his argument to greet him.
"Joe," Duncan said back. "How's it been tonight?"
"Same as normal," Joe replied before moving off to serve a customer at the other end of the bar.
"So, Old Man, what do you want to do tonight?" Duncan asked turning to his lover.
"Joe is playing later so I wouldn't mind getting a table near the stage and then something to eat before he starts."
"Sounds like a plan." With that Duncan lead the way to one of the few empty tables by the stage. It wasn't long before dinner and drinks were ordered and the two immortals settled into an easy conversation.
******
Joe had taken his stool on the stage, guitar in hand and just about to start his first song when the buzz of another Immortal entered their consciousness. Both turned without thought and looked as the door opened and a dark haired stranger entered, hand to his head as if trying to fight off the Immortal buzz. Unlike Duncan and Methos this man did not look around. The two lovers looked at each other silently communicating that the stranger was obviously new to the game.
Methos watched the stranger move towards the bar and the take a bar stool where one of the bar staff quickly served him. There was something about him that Methos recognised but it was lost somewhere at the back of his mind. Judging from the posture of the stranger, Methos realised two things at once, first this was a man of money, and the second was that the man was no stranger to violence.
Once the man had a drink in his hand he looked around the rest of the bar. As his eyes drifted around the room, Methos continued to watch. His eyes finally landed on Methos, and stared right back. It was only when Methos felt a soft kick that he pulled his eyes away from the stranger only to look disbelievingly at his lover.
"What?" Methos asked in defence.
"Do you have to make it so obvious that you're looking at him?" Duncan almost hissed close to his ear. "He obviously doesn't realise what he is. Aren't I the one that's usually trying to gain the new student?"
"Well there's something about him. I almost feel like I know him some how." Methos admitted. "It's like there's something pulling me towards him and even now I'm fighting it as much as possible; it's still almost impossible to stay seated and not make my way over there."
"Should I be jealous?" Duncan asked jokingly.
Methos took the question to seriously and looked dead into Duncan's eyes. "Never." He said then proceeded give Duncan a hard kiss on the lips.
Almost breathless, the pair broke apart and Duncan smiled at Methos. "Not that I'm complaining about the kiss, but you do realise I was joking about the jealous thing? Right?"
"Yes, I just couldn't help myself." Methos grinned then moved back from Duncan and slouched in his chair. Well, as much as one could slouch in a hard-backed wooden chair. Methos always seemed to make it look easy though.
Methos glanced back towards to stranger and noticed how his eyes quickly flicked away from them. Methos looked back over towards him.
Methos downed the last of his beer and stood, taking his and Duncan's bottles with him. He walked towards to bar, but rather then waiting for one of the bar staff to serve him he reached behind the bar pulled back two full bottles of beer. Expertly flipping off the tops, Methos quickly put his empty bottles in the bin behind the bar. As he turned to go back to his seat he glanced at the stranger and had to hold back a smirk as he noticed the stranger once again looking at him.
Having made up his mind, Methos detoured on his way back to the table. Stopping in front of the stranger, Methos held out his free hand. "Adam Pierson."
The stranger quickly glanced at the hand but didn't take it. "Bruce Wayne."
Realising that Bruce wasn't going to take his hand, Methos stepped back and lowered his hand. "What brings you here?"
Looking back at Methos with a look that clearly stated he didn't trust him, Bruce answered flatly, "I was told the beer was good and the music was better."
"Right," Methos answered back, realising he wasn't going to be getting any answers from Bruce. "Well then, I hope you enjoy show."
Methos made his way back from the bar, left the beers on the table and then walked up to the stage where Joe was just finishing his third song and taking a quick drink.
"Joe, I need to borrow your computer," Methos stated.
Joe quickly flicked a look towards Bruce then back towards Methos. "You know I can't do that."
"Oh don't worry about it. I won't be going into that database, hell I very much doubt that guy will be in that database."
With a final look towards Bruce, Joe sighed and took the keys to the back room out of his pocket and passed them over to Methos. "I will be checking, and if I find you have been looking at that database I'll make sure you pay your bar tab before you leave here tonight."
"Sure, no problem, Joe. Although I have to warn you I don't carry that kind of money around with me." Methos smirked as he walked off, leaving Joe to shake his head at his friend's antics.
Passing Duncan, Methos told him that he'd be right back, then headed back towards the back office.
Taking a seat behind the desk, Methos knocked the mouse, causing the screensaver to clear and reveal an Internet window. Making quick work Methos quickly logged into the FBI database using one of his alias passwords.
Doing a quick search on the name Bruce Wayne, Methos quickly discovered all about his past. Looking through the case file of the murder of Bruce Wayne's parents, Methos felt sorrow for the child who witnessed his own parents' murder. There were vague details about some time spent in a foreign prison, Methos was puzzled slightly that it didn't state which prison or which country. It went on to say that Bruce now owned the majority of the shares for Wayne Enterprises. With another click Methos brought up another window on the computer and did a general search for Wayne Enterprises. What he found was a glossary of all the different departments that were part of Wayne Enterprises. There was a wide selection of departments; some were benign but others where obvious covers for government projects.
Having found out as much as possible about the man and his company, Methos then went on to do a general search for Gotham City. Gotham City was one of the few places where Methos had never visited and from what he read about the city there looked like a pretty good reason for not visiting either. The city itself was plagued with violence and crime. There was even an eccentric vigilante that had taken up residency within the city. Looking at the blurry photo of the vigilante who called himself 'Batman', Methos sighed. "Just my luck to find another Immortal boy scout."
******
Taking his seat back at the table with Duncan, Methos did a quick glance and noticed the Bruce was now no longer sat at the bar. Checking the whole room he noted that he was nowhere to be seen. "When did our new friend leave?" Methos asked Duncan.
"About five minutes after you went into the back room." Duncan answered, only sparing a quick glance towards his lover.
"Let's get out of here." Methos said downing his beer in one and standing up.
Knowing that Duncan would be right behind him, Methos never looked back as he walked towards to the exit.
As he pushed the doors open, Methos took a deep breath of the cool night air and closed his eyes for a second, letting the night wash over him.
"Come on, Old Man." Duncan said as he passed Methos and headed towards his car. Just as they were about to get into the car, both men paused when they felt the buzz of another Immortal.
Looking around, Methos quickly spotted the dark figure off the right. "Who are you?" A deep grainy voice asked.
"Like I said inside, Mr Wayne, my name is Adam Pierson," Methos answered quickly throwing a look towards Duncan, which clearly said, 'Leave this to me.'
When only silence greeted his answer Methos continued. "You didn't really think I would know it was you, Mr Wayne, or do you prefer the name Batman when you're in this persona?"
"Who do you work for?" The shadow asked.
"Well last time I checked I wasn't working for anyone in particular," Methos said as he leant back onto the car.
"What are you?" asked the shadow, and by now his voice had dropped deeper with frustration.
"Oh, now that the right question." Methos pushed away from the car and walked towards the shadow. "I'm immortal. Methos stated as he stopped in front of Bruce and was now able to clearly see his face
Methos smirked as a brief look of fear crossed Bruce's features then quickly went back to his blank look. "I've seen many things, but someone who was Immortal is not one of them."
In a blink of an eye, Methos had a dagger in his hand. Almost as fast, Bruce moved to take the dagger off him but Methos was faster. Moving back out of Bruce's reach, Methos brought the blade up to his empty hand, where he sliced a large but into his palm.
"Look!" Methos said as he pushed his hand in the direction of Bruce's face.
It wasn't long before blue lightning started kissing the edges of the cut. It almost looked like the lightning was knitting the skin back together. A few more minutes and the blue lightning stopped and the hand was healed, only the blood still on the hand showed that there ever was a cut there to start with.
"How is that possible?" Bruce asked, unable to keep the shocked look off his face.
"Like I said, I'm Immortal." Methos said looking slightly smug, then continued. "And so are you."
"That's not possible." Bruce said taking a step back from Methos.
"I can prove it to you." Methos said gently.
"I don't think so." Bruce said, and started backing away from Methos without making it look like he was desperate to do so.
Methos nodded his head then started to turn away with a look of disappointment on his face. Without warning, Methos turned back and attacked. It was only because of his training and the years of being Batman that Bruce was able to spot the attack and attempt to defend against it.
The movements were almost blurred as the two warriors fought. Although many would say that Methos was someone who would rather run away then stand and fight, that was a cover story, just like the name Adam Pierson was just a cover identity. Even now with the hand to hand he was doing against Bruce he still wasn't showing his full ability. It was more than he'd let anybody see of his true self in a long time, but still this was almost like child's play for him.
Within minutes Bruce found himself pinned face down against the ground with Methos breathing close to his ear.
"All I wanted to do was this," Methos said as he ran the blade against one of Bruce's palms leaving a crimson line behind.
Methos pushed away and stood over Bruce and he moved, bringing his injured hand up for his inspection. It didn't happen as fast as it did for Methos but Bruce was soon seeing the blue lightning dancing across his palm healing the damage there.
"This can't be possible," Bruce said still shocked looking at his now fully healed hand.
With the help of Methos, Bruce found himself on his feet and being guided to a black 1964 Convertible Thunderbird were he was pushed gently inside.
"Where are we going?" Bruce asked as he slowly came back to himself.
"My place," Duncan stated sounding none too happy about what had occurred in the last few minutes.
******
Bruce looked around the nice looking loft apartment/conversion where he was seated, while Methos and Duncan had a not so quiet discussion in the kitchen area.
The place was nice. It wasn't somewhere he would see himself living but it was a lot nicer then some of the places he's seen over his years travelling before returning back to Gotham.
Methos strolled over to him, two beers in his hand, and as he passed he gave one to Bruce. "So do you want to tell me why the bat flew the roost?"
"Had to lay low for a while," Bruce answered then took a sip. "There was some trouble a few months back. An eccentric criminal decided to make Gotham his new home. He called himself The Joker. He got the underworld of Gotham to work for him; those that wouldn't, he killed. He kidnapped my friend and her fianceé. He had them put into two separate abandoned buildings at almost the opposite sides of the city. Both locations were rigged to explode at the same time. We were looking at was only minutes to be able to find them. He'd give us some clue as to where they were held and who was held where. I couldn't get to both in time so I got another friend who works for the police to help. I went after my friend while they went after her fianceé or so we thought."
Bruce took another drink of his beer and watched silently as Duncan came and sat on the arm of Methos' chair.
When he felt he could talk again, Bruce started again. "When I got to the first location, I discovered that I hadn't gone after my friend after all, but her fiancée. I found him on the floor in a puddle; I did the only thing I could. I got him out of there. We were just leaving the building when it exploded. I thought I had got us out in time but whatever Harvey had been lying in was flammable and he was alight before I could get it off him. It scared him, almost half of his face was gone and over half of his body was severely burned. That wasn't the end of it though."
Bruce's voice caught again but he forced himself to go on. "They didn't get my friend out in time. She died there that day when I could have helped her. If I had only realised in time that the Joker was playing another of his games, I could have got there in time and it would have been Harvey that had died. I know that sounds harsh but it would have been better than what did happen."
Stopping again to take another drink in attempt to wet his mouth, Bruce went on. "Harvey was withdrawn and he refused pain medication. When he found out about Rachel's death it was like it was the last straw and he tried to kill that police friend of mine's son. There was nothing I could do to stop him without killing him. He just wouldn't stop coming. If it got out that the one legal hero of Gotham turned into a murderer it would have got bad, worse then it already is in Gotham. We did the only thing we could and made it look like Batman was the bad guy. Batman has been on the run since then."
"How did you get around that?" Methos asked when it looked like Bruce wasn't going to continue.
"I haven't." Bruce sighed and rubbed his face. "Batman disappeared off the streets of Gotham about a month after that. I had to stick around long enough for it not to look strange that Bruce and Batman had disappeared at the same time, but after another month or so I just couldn't stay another minute there. I had to get out."
"Is that when you came to Seacouver?" Methos asked.
"No, I travelled around for a while just trying to get my head on straight. Trying to think of a solution to the Batman problem. The only problem is I can't seem to think of anything. No matter what I can't seem to find a solution where I can continue helping the people of Gotham and having them regain there trust in me."
"That night, as far of the people of Gotham are concerned, Harvey Dent wasn't the only one that died. The Dark Knight also died, and just like Harvey Dent there is no way of bringing him back." Bruce got up and walked over to the window and looked out onto the silent street below.
******
The next morning found Duncan working through his usual katas when he felt the presence of another Immortal. He faulted slightly as he surveyed the room to see who it was. Only when he noticed that it was Bruce who had entered the room and taken a seat watching him did he go back to concentrating on his kata once again.
When the kata was finished Duncan walked towards the bench where Bruce was sitting and picked up his towel, which he left there.
"That was the most advanced kata I've ever seen anyone performed." Bruce said in awe.
"Well, I've had more time to practice it than mortals get." Duncan answered as he picked up a bokken and tossed it in Bruce's direction. Then taking one for himself, he walked back to the centre of the floor and turned back around to face Bruce.
"Let's see what you know already shall we," Duncan said, holding out his hand in invitation for Bruce to join him.
Bruce hesitatingly got to his feet and made his way over to Duncan. "I don't think I'm going to be anywhere near how good you are."
"I didn't think you would be. The point of this is just to gauge what you know and what you need to learn." Duncan answered smoothly.
"I thought Adam was going to be doing my training." Bruce asked, puzzled.
"I will be, but Duncan no doubt will also be playing a part in your training as well," Methos answered as he took a seat where Bruce had just been seated.
Bruce nodded then turned back around to face Duncan. Before long, Bruce and Duncan were a blur of movement as they went about their practice duel. Methos watched on, taking mental notes of what needed improvement in both men, but for then most part he concentrated on Bruce.
This went on for almost thirty minutes before Bruce made a fatal error and found himself kneeling on the floor with a bokken at his throat.
"Not bad," Methos said rising from his seat and walking towards them. Taking the bokken from Duncan, Methos felt Duncan move away as he turned and faced Bruce. "Let's try it again, but this time against me."
"Can I have a rest?" Bruce asked, finding that he was slightly winded.
"Would an a real opponent allow you to take a rest?" Methos asked straight-faced.
"No." Bruce sighed then returned to his feet and faced Methos for another practice fight.
******
It was a few hours later when Bruce and Duncan were relaxing after their earlier workout that Methos strode into the loft with a determined look on him face.
"We're going to Gotham," Methos said as he stopped in front of Bruce.
"We can't," Bruce said, sitting up straight.
"No, we can, and we are going to," Methos answered before Bruce could protest more. "I have a plan for Batman and Bruce to remain two separate entities so that you, Bruce, won't be accused of being Batman. Once you don't have to worry about Batman been unmasked as Bruce Wayne, you can let Batman get on with his task at hand. Once Batman returns to protecting the city rather then running from the police, the public will once again have somebody to look up to."
"That will never work," Bruce stated stonily.
"Why?" Adam asked.
"Batman killed their saviour. Harvey Dent was, in their eyes, the man that was one-handedly going to change Gotham, and they think that Batman killed him." Bruce sighed then shrunk back into his seat and mumbled under his breath. "And I did."
"Then we're going to have to make them understand," Adam stated.
"How are you going to manage that without making their hero look like the psychopath that he was in the end?"
"By giving them the real killer." Methos smiled evilly.
Both Duncan and Bruce looked at Methos with a look of horror on their faces.
"What?" Bruce almost shouted once he got over the shock of what Methos had just said.
"We give them the killer," Methos stated again just as calmly.
"If we confirm that Batman killed Harvey Dent, how will that make the people of Gotham look up to Batman again?" Duncan asked as it looked like Bruce was on the verge of losing his temper.
"I never said that we'd tell them Batman killed Dent, I said that we would tell them who did kill him." Methos answered smirking once again. "I will confess that I was the one that killed him."
"That will never work, as most of the police where there are the time that it happened. They chased Batman off just after Harvey Dent was found dead." Bruce almost growled at Methos. "And you're also forgetting that Gordon knows the truth and he would know what you're telling is completely false."
"Who is Gordon?" Methos asked although he thought he might have an idea.
"Police Commissioner Gordon," Bruce answered, calming down slightly.
"Does he know Batman's real identity?" Methos asked, already guessing that he did.
"Yes."
"Then in that case I think Commissioner Gordon should get a call from Batman to let him know what's going to happen." Methos took a closer look at Bruce and sighed. "Bruce this is going to work, we'll get Gotham back on its feet."
"I hope you're right," Bruce sighed himself and then said a silent prayer.
******
They planned for almost a month, making sure that everything was going to go according to plan. Duncan went ahead two months before Bruce and Methos. Methos used that time to teach Bruce more about Immortal life, but at the same time it gave him the excuse to get to know his new student.
When Bruce returned home just over two months after Duncan, Bruce found himself in one of the bad parts of town and when he was mugged, Batman swept in to save him. A conveniently placed reporter quickly turned the mugging into a front-page story and the whole of Gotham soon knew of their wealthiest citizen's saviour.
Only two weeks later a guilt-struck man bearing a remarkable resemblance to Methos walked into Gotham Police Station, confessing to the murder of Harvey Dent. No more then two days after that the guilt got the better of the young man and he committed suicide.
Once again Batman was plastered across the front pages, but this time it was to let the whole of Gotham know that he was innocent. If innocent people caught a glimpse of the dark figure in the night they were no longer scared. Once again Batman was known to be helping the City of Gotham.
The police still wanted Batman under arrest, but like before, there was never a sense of urgency. Gotham could in no way be described as peaceful, but it was a peaceful place then. Batman was needed too and it was clear to everyone that Batman was still needed.
END
Author: Laura/genna12001 aka The Not-So-Serious Pencil Magician
Written for: Margaret/mogwai_do
Crossover with: The Dark Knight
Characters/Pairings: Duncan/Methos, Bruce Wayne
Rating: PG-13, slash
Author's Notes: What would Methos do if he bumps into Bruce Wayne?
Summary: When two worlds meet and friendships made, difficulties will be overcome.
Batman and the Immortal
Duncan MacLeod pushed open the door to the bar and was almost instantly hit with the buzz of a nearby Immortal. As his eyes adjusted to the low lighting of the bar he saw that it was his lover Adam Pierson. Adam nodded his head in greeting then turned back to the debate that he was having with Joe Dawson who was leant against the bar beside him. No doubt, Duncan guessed, Joe was once again attempting to get the money owed to him by Adam for his bar tab. He made his way over to them and took the bar stool at the other side of Adam.
"Hey Mac," Joe halted his argument to greet him.
"Joe," Duncan said back. "How's it been tonight?"
"Same as normal," Joe replied before moving off to serve a customer at the other end of the bar.
"So, Old Man, what do you want to do tonight?" Duncan asked turning to his lover.
"Joe is playing later so I wouldn't mind getting a table near the stage and then something to eat before he starts."
"Sounds like a plan." With that Duncan lead the way to one of the few empty tables by the stage. It wasn't long before dinner and drinks were ordered and the two immortals settled into an easy conversation.
******
Joe had taken his stool on the stage, guitar in hand and just about to start his first song when the buzz of another Immortal entered their consciousness. Both turned without thought and looked as the door opened and a dark haired stranger entered, hand to his head as if trying to fight off the Immortal buzz. Unlike Duncan and Methos this man did not look around. The two lovers looked at each other silently communicating that the stranger was obviously new to the game.
Methos watched the stranger move towards the bar and the take a bar stool where one of the bar staff quickly served him. There was something about him that Methos recognised but it was lost somewhere at the back of his mind. Judging from the posture of the stranger, Methos realised two things at once, first this was a man of money, and the second was that the man was no stranger to violence.
Once the man had a drink in his hand he looked around the rest of the bar. As his eyes drifted around the room, Methos continued to watch. His eyes finally landed on Methos, and stared right back. It was only when Methos felt a soft kick that he pulled his eyes away from the stranger only to look disbelievingly at his lover.
"What?" Methos asked in defence.
"Do you have to make it so obvious that you're looking at him?" Duncan almost hissed close to his ear. "He obviously doesn't realise what he is. Aren't I the one that's usually trying to gain the new student?"
"Well there's something about him. I almost feel like I know him some how." Methos admitted. "It's like there's something pulling me towards him and even now I'm fighting it as much as possible; it's still almost impossible to stay seated and not make my way over there."
"Should I be jealous?" Duncan asked jokingly.
Methos took the question to seriously and looked dead into Duncan's eyes. "Never." He said then proceeded give Duncan a hard kiss on the lips.
Almost breathless, the pair broke apart and Duncan smiled at Methos. "Not that I'm complaining about the kiss, but you do realise I was joking about the jealous thing? Right?"
"Yes, I just couldn't help myself." Methos grinned then moved back from Duncan and slouched in his chair. Well, as much as one could slouch in a hard-backed wooden chair. Methos always seemed to make it look easy though.
Methos glanced back towards to stranger and noticed how his eyes quickly flicked away from them. Methos looked back over towards him.
Methos downed the last of his beer and stood, taking his and Duncan's bottles with him. He walked towards to bar, but rather then waiting for one of the bar staff to serve him he reached behind the bar pulled back two full bottles of beer. Expertly flipping off the tops, Methos quickly put his empty bottles in the bin behind the bar. As he turned to go back to his seat he glanced at the stranger and had to hold back a smirk as he noticed the stranger once again looking at him.
Having made up his mind, Methos detoured on his way back to the table. Stopping in front of the stranger, Methos held out his free hand. "Adam Pierson."
The stranger quickly glanced at the hand but didn't take it. "Bruce Wayne."
Realising that Bruce wasn't going to take his hand, Methos stepped back and lowered his hand. "What brings you here?"
Looking back at Methos with a look that clearly stated he didn't trust him, Bruce answered flatly, "I was told the beer was good and the music was better."
"Right," Methos answered back, realising he wasn't going to be getting any answers from Bruce. "Well then, I hope you enjoy show."
Methos made his way back from the bar, left the beers on the table and then walked up to the stage where Joe was just finishing his third song and taking a quick drink.
"Joe, I need to borrow your computer," Methos stated.
Joe quickly flicked a look towards Bruce then back towards Methos. "You know I can't do that."
"Oh don't worry about it. I won't be going into that database, hell I very much doubt that guy will be in that database."
With a final look towards Bruce, Joe sighed and took the keys to the back room out of his pocket and passed them over to Methos. "I will be checking, and if I find you have been looking at that database I'll make sure you pay your bar tab before you leave here tonight."
"Sure, no problem, Joe. Although I have to warn you I don't carry that kind of money around with me." Methos smirked as he walked off, leaving Joe to shake his head at his friend's antics.
Passing Duncan, Methos told him that he'd be right back, then headed back towards the back office.
Taking a seat behind the desk, Methos knocked the mouse, causing the screensaver to clear and reveal an Internet window. Making quick work Methos quickly logged into the FBI database using one of his alias passwords.
Doing a quick search on the name Bruce Wayne, Methos quickly discovered all about his past. Looking through the case file of the murder of Bruce Wayne's parents, Methos felt sorrow for the child who witnessed his own parents' murder. There were vague details about some time spent in a foreign prison, Methos was puzzled slightly that it didn't state which prison or which country. It went on to say that Bruce now owned the majority of the shares for Wayne Enterprises. With another click Methos brought up another window on the computer and did a general search for Wayne Enterprises. What he found was a glossary of all the different departments that were part of Wayne Enterprises. There was a wide selection of departments; some were benign but others where obvious covers for government projects.
Having found out as much as possible about the man and his company, Methos then went on to do a general search for Gotham City. Gotham City was one of the few places where Methos had never visited and from what he read about the city there looked like a pretty good reason for not visiting either. The city itself was plagued with violence and crime. There was even an eccentric vigilante that had taken up residency within the city. Looking at the blurry photo of the vigilante who called himself 'Batman', Methos sighed. "Just my luck to find another Immortal boy scout."
******
Taking his seat back at the table with Duncan, Methos did a quick glance and noticed the Bruce was now no longer sat at the bar. Checking the whole room he noted that he was nowhere to be seen. "When did our new friend leave?" Methos asked Duncan.
"About five minutes after you went into the back room." Duncan answered, only sparing a quick glance towards his lover.
"Let's get out of here." Methos said downing his beer in one and standing up.
Knowing that Duncan would be right behind him, Methos never looked back as he walked towards to the exit.
As he pushed the doors open, Methos took a deep breath of the cool night air and closed his eyes for a second, letting the night wash over him.
"Come on, Old Man." Duncan said as he passed Methos and headed towards his car. Just as they were about to get into the car, both men paused when they felt the buzz of another Immortal.
Looking around, Methos quickly spotted the dark figure off the right. "Who are you?" A deep grainy voice asked.
"Like I said inside, Mr Wayne, my name is Adam Pierson," Methos answered quickly throwing a look towards Duncan, which clearly said, 'Leave this to me.'
When only silence greeted his answer Methos continued. "You didn't really think I would know it was you, Mr Wayne, or do you prefer the name Batman when you're in this persona?"
"Who do you work for?" The shadow asked.
"Well last time I checked I wasn't working for anyone in particular," Methos said as he leant back onto the car.
"What are you?" asked the shadow, and by now his voice had dropped deeper with frustration.
"Oh, now that the right question." Methos pushed away from the car and walked towards the shadow. "I'm immortal. Methos stated as he stopped in front of Bruce and was now able to clearly see his face
Methos smirked as a brief look of fear crossed Bruce's features then quickly went back to his blank look. "I've seen many things, but someone who was Immortal is not one of them."
In a blink of an eye, Methos had a dagger in his hand. Almost as fast, Bruce moved to take the dagger off him but Methos was faster. Moving back out of Bruce's reach, Methos brought the blade up to his empty hand, where he sliced a large but into his palm.
"Look!" Methos said as he pushed his hand in the direction of Bruce's face.
It wasn't long before blue lightning started kissing the edges of the cut. It almost looked like the lightning was knitting the skin back together. A few more minutes and the blue lightning stopped and the hand was healed, only the blood still on the hand showed that there ever was a cut there to start with.
"How is that possible?" Bruce asked, unable to keep the shocked look off his face.
"Like I said, I'm Immortal." Methos said looking slightly smug, then continued. "And so are you."
"That's not possible." Bruce said taking a step back from Methos.
"I can prove it to you." Methos said gently.
"I don't think so." Bruce said, and started backing away from Methos without making it look like he was desperate to do so.
Methos nodded his head then started to turn away with a look of disappointment on his face. Without warning, Methos turned back and attacked. It was only because of his training and the years of being Batman that Bruce was able to spot the attack and attempt to defend against it.
The movements were almost blurred as the two warriors fought. Although many would say that Methos was someone who would rather run away then stand and fight, that was a cover story, just like the name Adam Pierson was just a cover identity. Even now with the hand to hand he was doing against Bruce he still wasn't showing his full ability. It was more than he'd let anybody see of his true self in a long time, but still this was almost like child's play for him.
Within minutes Bruce found himself pinned face down against the ground with Methos breathing close to his ear.
"All I wanted to do was this," Methos said as he ran the blade against one of Bruce's palms leaving a crimson line behind.
Methos pushed away and stood over Bruce and he moved, bringing his injured hand up for his inspection. It didn't happen as fast as it did for Methos but Bruce was soon seeing the blue lightning dancing across his palm healing the damage there.
"This can't be possible," Bruce said still shocked looking at his now fully healed hand.
With the help of Methos, Bruce found himself on his feet and being guided to a black 1964 Convertible Thunderbird were he was pushed gently inside.
"Where are we going?" Bruce asked as he slowly came back to himself.
"My place," Duncan stated sounding none too happy about what had occurred in the last few minutes.
******
Bruce looked around the nice looking loft apartment/conversion where he was seated, while Methos and Duncan had a not so quiet discussion in the kitchen area.
The place was nice. It wasn't somewhere he would see himself living but it was a lot nicer then some of the places he's seen over his years travelling before returning back to Gotham.
Methos strolled over to him, two beers in his hand, and as he passed he gave one to Bruce. "So do you want to tell me why the bat flew the roost?"
"Had to lay low for a while," Bruce answered then took a sip. "There was some trouble a few months back. An eccentric criminal decided to make Gotham his new home. He called himself The Joker. He got the underworld of Gotham to work for him; those that wouldn't, he killed. He kidnapped my friend and her fianceé. He had them put into two separate abandoned buildings at almost the opposite sides of the city. Both locations were rigged to explode at the same time. We were looking at was only minutes to be able to find them. He'd give us some clue as to where they were held and who was held where. I couldn't get to both in time so I got another friend who works for the police to help. I went after my friend while they went after her fianceé or so we thought."
Bruce took another drink of his beer and watched silently as Duncan came and sat on the arm of Methos' chair.
When he felt he could talk again, Bruce started again. "When I got to the first location, I discovered that I hadn't gone after my friend after all, but her fiancée. I found him on the floor in a puddle; I did the only thing I could. I got him out of there. We were just leaving the building when it exploded. I thought I had got us out in time but whatever Harvey had been lying in was flammable and he was alight before I could get it off him. It scared him, almost half of his face was gone and over half of his body was severely burned. That wasn't the end of it though."
Bruce's voice caught again but he forced himself to go on. "They didn't get my friend out in time. She died there that day when I could have helped her. If I had only realised in time that the Joker was playing another of his games, I could have got there in time and it would have been Harvey that had died. I know that sounds harsh but it would have been better than what did happen."
Stopping again to take another drink in attempt to wet his mouth, Bruce went on. "Harvey was withdrawn and he refused pain medication. When he found out about Rachel's death it was like it was the last straw and he tried to kill that police friend of mine's son. There was nothing I could do to stop him without killing him. He just wouldn't stop coming. If it got out that the one legal hero of Gotham turned into a murderer it would have got bad, worse then it already is in Gotham. We did the only thing we could and made it look like Batman was the bad guy. Batman has been on the run since then."
"How did you get around that?" Methos asked when it looked like Bruce wasn't going to continue.
"I haven't." Bruce sighed and rubbed his face. "Batman disappeared off the streets of Gotham about a month after that. I had to stick around long enough for it not to look strange that Bruce and Batman had disappeared at the same time, but after another month or so I just couldn't stay another minute there. I had to get out."
"Is that when you came to Seacouver?" Methos asked.
"No, I travelled around for a while just trying to get my head on straight. Trying to think of a solution to the Batman problem. The only problem is I can't seem to think of anything. No matter what I can't seem to find a solution where I can continue helping the people of Gotham and having them regain there trust in me."
"That night, as far of the people of Gotham are concerned, Harvey Dent wasn't the only one that died. The Dark Knight also died, and just like Harvey Dent there is no way of bringing him back." Bruce got up and walked over to the window and looked out onto the silent street below.
******
The next morning found Duncan working through his usual katas when he felt the presence of another Immortal. He faulted slightly as he surveyed the room to see who it was. Only when he noticed that it was Bruce who had entered the room and taken a seat watching him did he go back to concentrating on his kata once again.
When the kata was finished Duncan walked towards the bench where Bruce was sitting and picked up his towel, which he left there.
"That was the most advanced kata I've ever seen anyone performed." Bruce said in awe.
"Well, I've had more time to practice it than mortals get." Duncan answered as he picked up a bokken and tossed it in Bruce's direction. Then taking one for himself, he walked back to the centre of the floor and turned back around to face Bruce.
"Let's see what you know already shall we," Duncan said, holding out his hand in invitation for Bruce to join him.
Bruce hesitatingly got to his feet and made his way over to Duncan. "I don't think I'm going to be anywhere near how good you are."
"I didn't think you would be. The point of this is just to gauge what you know and what you need to learn." Duncan answered smoothly.
"I thought Adam was going to be doing my training." Bruce asked, puzzled.
"I will be, but Duncan no doubt will also be playing a part in your training as well," Methos answered as he took a seat where Bruce had just been seated.
Bruce nodded then turned back around to face Duncan. Before long, Bruce and Duncan were a blur of movement as they went about their practice duel. Methos watched on, taking mental notes of what needed improvement in both men, but for then most part he concentrated on Bruce.
This went on for almost thirty minutes before Bruce made a fatal error and found himself kneeling on the floor with a bokken at his throat.
"Not bad," Methos said rising from his seat and walking towards them. Taking the bokken from Duncan, Methos felt Duncan move away as he turned and faced Bruce. "Let's try it again, but this time against me."
"Can I have a rest?" Bruce asked, finding that he was slightly winded.
"Would an a real opponent allow you to take a rest?" Methos asked straight-faced.
"No." Bruce sighed then returned to his feet and faced Methos for another practice fight.
******
It was a few hours later when Bruce and Duncan were relaxing after their earlier workout that Methos strode into the loft with a determined look on him face.
"We're going to Gotham," Methos said as he stopped in front of Bruce.
"We can't," Bruce said, sitting up straight.
"No, we can, and we are going to," Methos answered before Bruce could protest more. "I have a plan for Batman and Bruce to remain two separate entities so that you, Bruce, won't be accused of being Batman. Once you don't have to worry about Batman been unmasked as Bruce Wayne, you can let Batman get on with his task at hand. Once Batman returns to protecting the city rather then running from the police, the public will once again have somebody to look up to."
"That will never work," Bruce stated stonily.
"Why?" Adam asked.
"Batman killed their saviour. Harvey Dent was, in their eyes, the man that was one-handedly going to change Gotham, and they think that Batman killed him." Bruce sighed then shrunk back into his seat and mumbled under his breath. "And I did."
"Then we're going to have to make them understand," Adam stated.
"How are you going to manage that without making their hero look like the psychopath that he was in the end?"
"By giving them the real killer." Methos smiled evilly.
Both Duncan and Bruce looked at Methos with a look of horror on their faces.
"What?" Bruce almost shouted once he got over the shock of what Methos had just said.
"We give them the killer," Methos stated again just as calmly.
"If we confirm that Batman killed Harvey Dent, how will that make the people of Gotham look up to Batman again?" Duncan asked as it looked like Bruce was on the verge of losing his temper.
"I never said that we'd tell them Batman killed Dent, I said that we would tell them who did kill him." Methos answered smirking once again. "I will confess that I was the one that killed him."
"That will never work, as most of the police where there are the time that it happened. They chased Batman off just after Harvey Dent was found dead." Bruce almost growled at Methos. "And you're also forgetting that Gordon knows the truth and he would know what you're telling is completely false."
"Who is Gordon?" Methos asked although he thought he might have an idea.
"Police Commissioner Gordon," Bruce answered, calming down slightly.
"Does he know Batman's real identity?" Methos asked, already guessing that he did.
"Yes."
"Then in that case I think Commissioner Gordon should get a call from Batman to let him know what's going to happen." Methos took a closer look at Bruce and sighed. "Bruce this is going to work, we'll get Gotham back on its feet."
"I hope you're right," Bruce sighed himself and then said a silent prayer.
******
They planned for almost a month, making sure that everything was going to go according to plan. Duncan went ahead two months before Bruce and Methos. Methos used that time to teach Bruce more about Immortal life, but at the same time it gave him the excuse to get to know his new student.
When Bruce returned home just over two months after Duncan, Bruce found himself in one of the bad parts of town and when he was mugged, Batman swept in to save him. A conveniently placed reporter quickly turned the mugging into a front-page story and the whole of Gotham soon knew of their wealthiest citizen's saviour.
Only two weeks later a guilt-struck man bearing a remarkable resemblance to Methos walked into Gotham Police Station, confessing to the murder of Harvey Dent. No more then two days after that the guilt got the better of the young man and he committed suicide.
Once again Batman was plastered across the front pages, but this time it was to let the whole of Gotham know that he was innocent. If innocent people caught a glimpse of the dark figure in the night they were no longer scared. Once again Batman was known to be helping the City of Gotham.
The police still wanted Batman under arrest, but like before, there was never a sense of urgency. Gotham could in no way be described as peaceful, but it was a peaceful place then. Batman was needed too and it was clear to everyone that Batman was still needed.
END