Fic: Gotham Nocturne (7/10)
Title: Gotham Nocturne: Chapter Seven
Pairing: Clark/Bruce, Lois Lane
Disclaimer: The boys belong to DC and to each other, but not to me.
Series Notes: Gotham Nocturne is part of The Music of the Spheres, a combined Superman Returns/Batman Begins series. The whole series can be found here.
Rating: PG
Summary: Lois's concern for her co-worker is interrupted by the arrival on the scene of a new player.
Word Count: 3000
Clark Kent was bent over his desk, typing furiously--or as furiously as one could type while deliberately keeping one's rate non-superhuman.
"Hey, Smallville." He looked up to see Lois Lane standing by his desk, her arms crossed and one foot tapping, scowling.
"Uh, hello there, Lois. Is there--is there something wrong?" He wracked his brains for what might be upsetting her and came up with nothing.
"You're working late again tonight," she said accusingly.
"Well, yes. Is that a--a problem?"
"You've worked late here the last four nights." Her scowl was firmly in place. Since when did Lois get angry that he was working hard? As he stared at her, puzzled, she bit her lip and the frown transmuted suddenly into concern. "Are things okay between you and Bruce? I mean, he hasn't--if that jerk has broken your heart, I swear I'll--" She balled up a fist and shook it menacingly.
Clark burst out laughing. "No, it's not that, Lois. Things are fine with Bruce and I. Really!" he added as she continued to look dubious. "We're both just really busy right now, it's no big deal." As if on cue, his cell phone beeped. "See, that's him right now. May I...?" He picked up the phone when she nodded: "Hi honey!"
On the other end of the line, Bruce snorted. "Hello, light of my life. You know, I was just thinking, it's been a while since I've been to Metropolis. Mind if I come over and spend some time there, maybe stay a night or two?"
Clark felt a rush of gratitude. "That'd be great. I'll see you soon, we'll go get Italian somewhere." He flipped the phone closed and smiled brightly at Lois. "See? No problems at all."
Lois looked relieved. "I just..." She said a hand on Clark's shoulder. "I worry about you, Clark. I'm glad Bruce takes good care of you."
"He does," Clark said warmly.
As Lois moved away to get back to work, he heard Bruce's voice in his ear. "Don't say I never did you any favors, Clark. I know that woman, if she got it in your head I was neglecting you, we'd both be in for a world of hurt."
Clark bent over his report again, knowing he was blushing slightly. Usually he was the one who kept the channel open and listened to Bruce's daily life; he found himself oddly moved that Bruce was listening in on him.
He typed in companionable silence for a few moments. Then Bruce cleared his throat slightly. "I've missed you, Clark. I don't know...what the problem is, exactly, but I can tell you need a little space right now. I hope you don't mind me coming to spend some time with you."
To Clark's surprise, the report he was typing blurred slightly. Unable to keep silent, he whispered, "I miss you too. Please come."
"I'm packing a bag as we speak," Bruce said. Clark could hear drawers opening and shutting. "I think red silk pajamas rather than black this time." He began humming to himself, some song from the 1980s, and Clark joined in under his breath, smiling. People had noticed that he hummed to himself a lot more since beginning to date Bruce Wayne, but they attributed it to happiness rather than having an irreverent playboy singing slightly off-key in his ear.
Not many people knew it was both.
"Ms. Lane?" The voice that cut into his secret duet was polite, but there was something under it that made Clark look up. Standing next to Lois's desk was a tall, dark-skinned woman with a build like a refrigerator, wearing a nicely-tailored black suit. Her hair was cut short and severe, and her face had the expression of a woman accustomed to being obeyed. Clark felt himself tense involuntarily, his hum catching in his throat.
Lois looked up from her paperwork. "Yes, may I help you?"
The woman reached into a pocket and flashed a badge at Lois. "Amanda Waller. U.S. government." Putting the badge back, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Statuesque" hardly did the effect justice. "I need to talk to your boy in blue."
Lois stood, looking absurdly fragile next to Waller. "He's not my boy--" she started, but Waller cut her off with a slice of her hand.
"Skip it. How do you get in touch with him?"
Lois eyed her warily. "Most of the times I've talked to him we've met on the roof of the Planet, but--"
"Let's go, then." Waller headed for the elevators.
Lois shot Clark a worried look and started to follow. "Uh, should I...?" Clark asked, standing, and Lois grimaced assent.
Clark trailed them up to the roof, half-expecting Waller to protest his presence, but she ignored him completely. Once on top of the Planet, Waller turned to Lois. "All right. Call him up."
Lois's eyes sparked. "I don't have some kind of Kryptonian dog whistle, lady. He doesn't just come when I call him."
"You must have some way of signaling him." If anything, Waller looked bored. "Hidden in a ring, or a watch, or something."
"I have no such thing!" Lois shook her head in disbelief. "The only times I can really count on him showing up are when I'm in danger or falling from the sky or something," she said jokingly.
Waller shrugged. "Very well, then." A sharp motion, and she had Lois's hands in a vise-like grip, dragging her toward the edge of the roof.
"What the hell are you doing?" Lois yelped as Clark made ineffectual panicking motions. She slammed one of her high heels into Waller's foot, but Waller didn't even seem to notice it, pulling her inexorably toward the edge.
"What does it look like?" Waller said stoically.
"Clark! A little help here, Clark?" Lois said as her feet were dragged over tarpaper, trying to sound sanguine and mostly succeeding.
"Gosh! I'll--I'll--go get Perry to stop her!"
Clark bolted for the door, wincing as always at Lois's exasperated "Clark Kent!" behind him.
Moments later, Superman rose into the air in front of Waller and the struggling and cursing Lois, feet from the edge.
Waller nodded. "Kal-El. Nice to meet you. Amanda Waller, U.S. government."
Superman glanced pointedly at Lois. "Was that necessary?"
"Apparently." Waller released Lois's hands and addressed Superman as if the reporter wasn't even there anymore. "Jonathan Crane. Scarecrow."
Kal matched her laconic tone. "What about him?"
"The recent phobia attacks in Gotham are almost certainly his work. The federal government wants him in custody."
Kal raised one eyebrow. "I don't interfere in Gotham," he said shortly, hoping his sudden unease didn't show.
"The Batman won't rest until he's captured. Once he captures Scarecrow, the federal government intends to take custody of Crane." One massive shoulder lifted in an eloquent shrug. "If there's some collateral damage...well, you'll be free to work in Gotham again."
Kal felt his blood run cold at Waller's implications, but he kept his face remote. "That has nothing to do with me."
For the first time, Waller's face showed an emotion: contempt. "You listen to me, alien. You and Batman may be enemies, but as far as the government is concerned, you're no better than he is. You both seem to think you can operate outside the laws--that makes you both nothing more than vigilantes in our book. And we'll treat you like it if we have to. Both of you." Her eyes narrowed. "Are you absolutely sure, Kal-El of Krypton, that you fished every last bit of that Kryptonite out of the bay?"
Superman heard Lois's horrified gasp behind him and prayed she wouldn't call any more attention to herself. "You're bluffing."
"Maybe. But you'd be well-advised to help us take Crane into custody. Without your help, who knows how many government agents Crane or Batman might kill. Do you want their blood on your hands?"
"Batman--" Kal bit down hard on his automatic defense of Bruce and turned it into a general glower.
"Work with her for now," Bruce's voice murmured in his ear, and Superman felt a momentary relief that they had traded in traditional radio signals for untrackable subcutaneous Kryptonian crystal receivers last year.
"I have no interest in seeing anyone die," Kal said ungraciously, gritting his teeth.
Waller eyed him narrowly, then drew a small beeper out of her pocket and tossed it into the air, just far enough from him that he had to shift in the air to catch it. "Be ready to move when we tell you to." She pointed her chin at the device. "Consider that your dog whistle."
She turned and left the rooftop.
Superman glared at the device. Lois's voice broke into his reverie: "Are you sure you got all that Kryptonite out of the bay?" Worry for both him and their half-Kryptonian child was stark in her eyes.
"I hope so. I can't be absolutely sure."
"That's a lot of heat coming to bear for a freak in a burlap sack." Parental concern was giving way to the abstracted look she usually got when she was on the trail of a big story.
"It is."
"It is indeed," mused Bruce.
Superman hovered, watching Lois and listening to Bruce, two of the most intuitive minds he'd ever known at work.
Lois looked up at him and nodded. "I guess I need to get back to work. If you'll excuse me..." As she turned to go, she pointed meaningfully at the little box in Superman's hand, her eyebrows arching.
As the door closed behind his co-worker, Superman focused on the little radio device, using x-ray vision to check for bugs and tracking devices. It was free of anything suspicious except for a sentence engraved on the plastic inside the case in microscopic letters: And here I thought we trusted each other. He snorted an involuntary laugh, then lifted into the air. Perry hadn't been in his office; Lois would assume that Clark had bolted from the building altogether in search of him. The Planet building fell away beneath him.
"Batman's after Scarecrow. Waller's after Scarecrow and Batman. Superman's working with Waller on the assumption that he'll be willing to see Batman killed." Bruce's voice was abstractly interested, as if he were turning the major players around in his head like puzzle pieces. "This could be an interesting dance indeed."
"It's going to take some very delicate negotiations," Superman said.
"Ah, but we have an edge they don't know about, don't we?" Bruce's voice was smug, and Clark couldn't help smiling. "Is the invitation to come down to Metropolis still open?"
"You mean it? You'll come here?"
"Sure. They'll be trying to keep track of Batman, so better to give them a couple of nights when there's no sign of me. Let them stew. There's no chance Crane will do anything after that close call--he's a coward at heart. He'll be waiting until the Ides of March to make his next move." Clark heard a car door slam. "I'm on my way. See you in a couple of hours."
Clark listened to the companionable purr of the engine as he floated above Metropolis, watching the twilight shadows stealing over his city, touching the marble and steel with purple and azure. Metropolis was beautiful in the darkness, her lights gleaming against the dusk like diamonds on black velvet. Superman drifted, feeling safe. Feeling relieved. He had worried that the fear toxin might have long-term effects, but there were no lingering repercussions at all.
He looked toward Gotham, wondering if he could pick out the headlights of Bruce's car on its way to see him.
Gotham loomed on the horizon, its dark form punctuated with countless eyes, gleaming and avid. Watching him, bright and sleepless and hungry.
Shivering, Clark descended from the sky.
Pairing: Clark/Bruce, Lois Lane
Disclaimer: The boys belong to DC and to each other, but not to me.
Series Notes: Gotham Nocturne is part of The Music of the Spheres, a combined Superman Returns/Batman Begins series. The whole series can be found here.
Rating: PG
Summary: Lois's concern for her co-worker is interrupted by the arrival on the scene of a new player.
Word Count: 3000
Clark Kent was bent over his desk, typing furiously--or as furiously as one could type while deliberately keeping one's rate non-superhuman.
"Hey, Smallville." He looked up to see Lois Lane standing by his desk, her arms crossed and one foot tapping, scowling.
"Uh, hello there, Lois. Is there--is there something wrong?" He wracked his brains for what might be upsetting her and came up with nothing.
"You're working late again tonight," she said accusingly.
"Well, yes. Is that a--a problem?"
"You've worked late here the last four nights." Her scowl was firmly in place. Since when did Lois get angry that he was working hard? As he stared at her, puzzled, she bit her lip and the frown transmuted suddenly into concern. "Are things okay between you and Bruce? I mean, he hasn't--if that jerk has broken your heart, I swear I'll--" She balled up a fist and shook it menacingly.
Clark burst out laughing. "No, it's not that, Lois. Things are fine with Bruce and I. Really!" he added as she continued to look dubious. "We're both just really busy right now, it's no big deal." As if on cue, his cell phone beeped. "See, that's him right now. May I...?" He picked up the phone when she nodded: "Hi honey!"
On the other end of the line, Bruce snorted. "Hello, light of my life. You know, I was just thinking, it's been a while since I've been to Metropolis. Mind if I come over and spend some time there, maybe stay a night or two?"
Clark felt a rush of gratitude. "That'd be great. I'll see you soon, we'll go get Italian somewhere." He flipped the phone closed and smiled brightly at Lois. "See? No problems at all."
Lois looked relieved. "I just..." She said a hand on Clark's shoulder. "I worry about you, Clark. I'm glad Bruce takes good care of you."
"He does," Clark said warmly.
As Lois moved away to get back to work, he heard Bruce's voice in his ear. "Don't say I never did you any favors, Clark. I know that woman, if she got it in your head I was neglecting you, we'd both be in for a world of hurt."
Clark bent over his report again, knowing he was blushing slightly. Usually he was the one who kept the channel open and listened to Bruce's daily life; he found himself oddly moved that Bruce was listening in on him.
He typed in companionable silence for a few moments. Then Bruce cleared his throat slightly. "I've missed you, Clark. I don't know...what the problem is, exactly, but I can tell you need a little space right now. I hope you don't mind me coming to spend some time with you."
To Clark's surprise, the report he was typing blurred slightly. Unable to keep silent, he whispered, "I miss you too. Please come."
"I'm packing a bag as we speak," Bruce said. Clark could hear drawers opening and shutting. "I think red silk pajamas rather than black this time." He began humming to himself, some song from the 1980s, and Clark joined in under his breath, smiling. People had noticed that he hummed to himself a lot more since beginning to date Bruce Wayne, but they attributed it to happiness rather than having an irreverent playboy singing slightly off-key in his ear.
Not many people knew it was both.
"Ms. Lane?" The voice that cut into his secret duet was polite, but there was something under it that made Clark look up. Standing next to Lois's desk was a tall, dark-skinned woman with a build like a refrigerator, wearing a nicely-tailored black suit. Her hair was cut short and severe, and her face had the expression of a woman accustomed to being obeyed. Clark felt himself tense involuntarily, his hum catching in his throat.
Lois looked up from her paperwork. "Yes, may I help you?"
The woman reached into a pocket and flashed a badge at Lois. "Amanda Waller. U.S. government." Putting the badge back, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Statuesque" hardly did the effect justice. "I need to talk to your boy in blue."
Lois stood, looking absurdly fragile next to Waller. "He's not my boy--" she started, but Waller cut her off with a slice of her hand.
"Skip it. How do you get in touch with him?"
Lois eyed her warily. "Most of the times I've talked to him we've met on the roof of the Planet, but--"
"Let's go, then." Waller headed for the elevators.
Lois shot Clark a worried look and started to follow. "Uh, should I...?" Clark asked, standing, and Lois grimaced assent.
Clark trailed them up to the roof, half-expecting Waller to protest his presence, but she ignored him completely. Once on top of the Planet, Waller turned to Lois. "All right. Call him up."
Lois's eyes sparked. "I don't have some kind of Kryptonian dog whistle, lady. He doesn't just come when I call him."
"You must have some way of signaling him." If anything, Waller looked bored. "Hidden in a ring, or a watch, or something."
"I have no such thing!" Lois shook her head in disbelief. "The only times I can really count on him showing up are when I'm in danger or falling from the sky or something," she said jokingly.
Waller shrugged. "Very well, then." A sharp motion, and she had Lois's hands in a vise-like grip, dragging her toward the edge of the roof.
"What the hell are you doing?" Lois yelped as Clark made ineffectual panicking motions. She slammed one of her high heels into Waller's foot, but Waller didn't even seem to notice it, pulling her inexorably toward the edge.
"What does it look like?" Waller said stoically.
"Clark! A little help here, Clark?" Lois said as her feet were dragged over tarpaper, trying to sound sanguine and mostly succeeding.
"Gosh! I'll--I'll--go get Perry to stop her!"
Clark bolted for the door, wincing as always at Lois's exasperated "Clark Kent!" behind him.
Moments later, Superman rose into the air in front of Waller and the struggling and cursing Lois, feet from the edge.
Waller nodded. "Kal-El. Nice to meet you. Amanda Waller, U.S. government."
Superman glanced pointedly at Lois. "Was that necessary?"
"Apparently." Waller released Lois's hands and addressed Superman as if the reporter wasn't even there anymore. "Jonathan Crane. Scarecrow."
Kal matched her laconic tone. "What about him?"
"The recent phobia attacks in Gotham are almost certainly his work. The federal government wants him in custody."
Kal raised one eyebrow. "I don't interfere in Gotham," he said shortly, hoping his sudden unease didn't show.
"The Batman won't rest until he's captured. Once he captures Scarecrow, the federal government intends to take custody of Crane." One massive shoulder lifted in an eloquent shrug. "If there's some collateral damage...well, you'll be free to work in Gotham again."
Kal felt his blood run cold at Waller's implications, but he kept his face remote. "That has nothing to do with me."
For the first time, Waller's face showed an emotion: contempt. "You listen to me, alien. You and Batman may be enemies, but as far as the government is concerned, you're no better than he is. You both seem to think you can operate outside the laws--that makes you both nothing more than vigilantes in our book. And we'll treat you like it if we have to. Both of you." Her eyes narrowed. "Are you absolutely sure, Kal-El of Krypton, that you fished every last bit of that Kryptonite out of the bay?"
Superman heard Lois's horrified gasp behind him and prayed she wouldn't call any more attention to herself. "You're bluffing."
"Maybe. But you'd be well-advised to help us take Crane into custody. Without your help, who knows how many government agents Crane or Batman might kill. Do you want their blood on your hands?"
"Batman--" Kal bit down hard on his automatic defense of Bruce and turned it into a general glower.
"Work with her for now," Bruce's voice murmured in his ear, and Superman felt a momentary relief that they had traded in traditional radio signals for untrackable subcutaneous Kryptonian crystal receivers last year.
"I have no interest in seeing anyone die," Kal said ungraciously, gritting his teeth.
Waller eyed him narrowly, then drew a small beeper out of her pocket and tossed it into the air, just far enough from him that he had to shift in the air to catch it. "Be ready to move when we tell you to." She pointed her chin at the device. "Consider that your dog whistle."
She turned and left the rooftop.
Superman glared at the device. Lois's voice broke into his reverie: "Are you sure you got all that Kryptonite out of the bay?" Worry for both him and their half-Kryptonian child was stark in her eyes.
"I hope so. I can't be absolutely sure."
"That's a lot of heat coming to bear for a freak in a burlap sack." Parental concern was giving way to the abstracted look she usually got when she was on the trail of a big story.
"It is."
"It is indeed," mused Bruce.
Superman hovered, watching Lois and listening to Bruce, two of the most intuitive minds he'd ever known at work.
Lois looked up at him and nodded. "I guess I need to get back to work. If you'll excuse me..." As she turned to go, she pointed meaningfully at the little box in Superman's hand, her eyebrows arching.
As the door closed behind his co-worker, Superman focused on the little radio device, using x-ray vision to check for bugs and tracking devices. It was free of anything suspicious except for a sentence engraved on the plastic inside the case in microscopic letters: And here I thought we trusted each other. He snorted an involuntary laugh, then lifted into the air. Perry hadn't been in his office; Lois would assume that Clark had bolted from the building altogether in search of him. The Planet building fell away beneath him.
"Batman's after Scarecrow. Waller's after Scarecrow and Batman. Superman's working with Waller on the assumption that he'll be willing to see Batman killed." Bruce's voice was abstractly interested, as if he were turning the major players around in his head like puzzle pieces. "This could be an interesting dance indeed."
"It's going to take some very delicate negotiations," Superman said.
"Ah, but we have an edge they don't know about, don't we?" Bruce's voice was smug, and Clark couldn't help smiling. "Is the invitation to come down to Metropolis still open?"
"You mean it? You'll come here?"
"Sure. They'll be trying to keep track of Batman, so better to give them a couple of nights when there's no sign of me. Let them stew. There's no chance Crane will do anything after that close call--he's a coward at heart. He'll be waiting until the Ides of March to make his next move." Clark heard a car door slam. "I'm on my way. See you in a couple of hours."
Clark listened to the companionable purr of the engine as he floated above Metropolis, watching the twilight shadows stealing over his city, touching the marble and steel with purple and azure. Metropolis was beautiful in the darkness, her lights gleaming against the dusk like diamonds on black velvet. Superman drifted, feeling safe. Feeling relieved. He had worried that the fear toxin might have long-term effects, but there were no lingering repercussions at all.
He looked toward Gotham, wondering if he could pick out the headlights of Bruce's car on its way to see him.
Gotham loomed on the horizon, its dark form punctuated with countless eyes, gleaming and avid. Watching him, bright and sleepless and hungry.
Shivering, Clark descended from the sky.