for knightbynight: For now and hereafter...

[stands_for_hope]

[some time after the events here]

Superman and Batman were partners in more than a work sense. Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent were an adorable (if mildly ridiculous) couple. Kal-El of Krypton and a man who defied any definition outside of the single letter 'B' made time on weekends, worked around world crises and teenage tempers, and occasionally fell into bed together when the stars aligned. Thankfully, they aligned relatively often.

Wayne Manor received a delivery of organic produce and baked goods once a week from a small, independent farm in the heartland. Lois Lane was a little less likely to agree with snide comments about the uselessness of Bruce Wayne, especially after seeing the utter madness that was Clark's desk after a few weeks. The texting habits of a certain blond teenager in Kansas rose sharply... and in parallel to that of a certain former street punk in Gotham.

Life was... well, it was good, even if it was also Life. Until it wasn't. Until everything changed.

They all had enemies, of course. But the problem with Superman's enemies was that they were coherent enough to decide to team up. And crazy enough to use the kind of weaponry that could make whole cars just vaporize into nothing.

Crazy enough to point that weapon at a somewhat-pinned Batman and a Wonder Woman who was digging him out from the rock. Crazy enough to point that weapon at Batman.

Bruce.

B.

Clark didn't even make the choice. His heart made it for him. The beam shot out of the Toyman's mechanical monstrosity and Clark flew, the pain of the beam itself nothing on the fact that he was leaving Bruce behind. That his vision of them as old men together would never happen. That he was leaving behind a world that needed him.

The guilt that, if it meant saving them, saving him, he didn't regret a thing.

Comments

[knightbynight]

Bruce was not being affectionate. Bruce was giving Clark a massage, for entirely selfish reasons.

He rolled up and straddled Clark's hips with his knees, sat up and was able to use both hands, now, and that was likely going to make him much more effective at digging his fingers into muscles, stroking over cloth covered skin and just touching.

"You can be a cat who killed bunnies and are wearing their corpses as slippers. Sharks would just eat the cat."

[stands_for_hope]

"Rabbit is stringy," Clark murmured because Bruce was getting in there and for whatever reason that Bruce was doing it, Clark was enjoying it just as selfishly. But he had enough of his brain still online to tilt his head back to look at Bruce.

"...that's just a bit ghoulish, Bruce."

[knightbynight]

"I dress up like a bat to scare people," Bruce said, dryly. "I'd hope being a bit ghoulish isn't entirely surprising." He was sitting there and, actually, basically sitting on Clark's ass now. It was working for him, and giving him the access he wanted.

Except Clark's head up.

He responded to that by putting his hand on Clark's head and pushing it back toward the pillow. "Head down."

[stands_for_hope]

"Yes, dear," Clark said obediently, with a little smirk into the bedding. And, perhaps, a little shift of his hips underneath Bruce.

[knightbynight]

Bruce swatted Clark's shoulder a bit, but mostly got busy giving Clark a proper massage. Nothing overly suggestive, just a good, heavy, weight and a lot of touch and physical contact. Things that he couldn't have done just cuddling but could do like this, with a concrete objective.

"Don't call me that," he said, way later than necessary.

[stands_for_hope]

"Absolutely, honey," Clark answered, his shoulders shaking just once in withheld laughter.

[knightbynight]

"Clark. I am at your back, you live in my house, I have a rainbow of kryptonite and I am Batman. If you think I can't find a way to make you regret this, you don't know me nearly as well as I think you do."

This entire thing had gone from profoundly painful to profoundly ridiculous but he was serious about the threat. Clearly. Probably not the green stuff, definitely not the red stuff, but silver? Yeah. Okay, maybe not since he'd pay for it as much as Clark but he would find something.

[stands_for_hope]

Clark looked back at Bruce and the smile was so very wide. A little smug, of course. Because he'd always be a little smug at Bruce since they'd gotten together. Being with Bruce, he thought, would make anyone just a little smug. It was one of the few manners of smug he allowed himself, as a matter of fact.

That was why his answer was--

"Looking forward to it," was his answer, because sometimes, just sometimes, Bruce wasn't the only one who enjoyed a bit of a challenge.

[knightbynight]

Bruce narrowed his eyes at Clark in a way that very few would have found funny but he had no concerns about Clark taking as too much of a threat or warning signal - or even stopping that smug, ridiculous grin.

"Well, you're feeling better." He was glad.

[stands_for_hope]

"Why wouldn't I feel better?" he said as he laid his head back down and let his eyes close, still smiling. Bruce's glares still held power, just... not when they were like this, and not in situations like this. He could tell actually angry from Batgrump in his sleep.

[knightbynight]

"You were Superman. That was either going to make you feel better or backfire." Since Clark had asked- and Bruce was currently sitting on his ass, it seemed like a perfectly reasonable time to tackle that issue.

[stands_for_hope]

"I was Superman," he agreed, content with the past tense. "And I will be again. Right now, I think... I think I can be Clark for a while. Or Kal. Whichever one feels good."

He breathed in deep and slow, soothed just from the weight on his back. Clark trusted, emphatically, implicitly... so someone at his back, especially this someone, was just another person beside him.

"Not long. Just... long enough."

He needed to be Superman. But he knew how important being Superman was. And how much more there was to Superman than being able to punch really hard. Damaging the image of Superman could do real harm. So... he would wait. And he would trust Bruce to help him figure out how long 'long enough' was. Because even when he wasn't sure of Superman, Bruce was.

[knightbynight]

Bruce was sure.

"You were Superman half an hour ago." That needed clarified - okay, no it didn't, but it did explain the checkin, better than a seemingly nonsensical statement of the obvious. "You need the break. I hope you get it. We'll all do what we can to make sure you get it and that Superman is there to go back to."

But if another situation came up, and it was down to Superman or living with the consequences of his action - Well, he'd put his own money on Superman pulling through, just like he had this time.

As for how long? It was going to be a natural transition, Bruce thought, and hopefully not a clear one. Something that came back because of need and growing confidence in Clark.

[stands_for_hope]

"I can be Superman for a couple of hours now," he agreed, letting his head tip to the side on the pillow. "And that will grow."

The smile was audible.

"Batman's looking out for me, after all. And the man has never met a challenge he didn't kick squarely in the ass."

[knightbynight]

"...How long is the sappiness going to last?" Not that his own had actually gone away, but. He was weirdly more comfortable with his own than Clark's. Maybe it was that Clark's was a lighter emotion.

[stands_for_hope]

That got him lifting his head a little to turn back at Bruce, one eyebrow firmly raised. Then he snorted, rolled his eyes, and let his head go back down.

"Oh cram it, Bruce."

Which he figured was decidedly unsappy.

[knightbynight]

Bruce looked down at Clark's ass and then back up at Clark, albeit the back of his head. "Do you want to specify what I'm cramming where, or can I make it up as I go along?"

[stands_for_hope]

That got a snort out of him and he didn't even turn. Instead, he shifted his hips back and forth.

"If that turned you on, feel free to make it up as you go along."

Which, he was well aware, had a 30% chance of getting sex and a 70% chance of Bruce coming up with something truly wicked and infuriating.

...he was honestly good with either right now.

[knightbynight]

Bruce considered that, then got up and slipped silently out of the room - the entire suite. He didn't leave the Manor, though, and if Clark was really curious was, in fact, going into the kitchen and opening the refrigerator.

[stands_for_hope]

Clark stayed on the bed. He was listening, of course, and he may have even glanced towards where he could hear Bruce's heartbeat with a bit of x-ray vision. But he stayed on the bed. His new bed. And let his eyes droop a little.

[knightbynight]

Bruce was gone for a good, long, while. He hoped he was gone long enough for Clark to at least doze off, but he had no intention of startling Clark with anything. So he puttered around in the kitchen for a while. He made himself a turkey sandwich and ate it, and even drank a glass of milk.

Then he rummaged around until he found an aerosol can and pie - the whole pie - stuck a fork in the pie and carried it all upstairs again.

[stands_for_hope]

Clark was starting to wake up as Bruce made his way up the stairs. His sleep cycles were much shorter now, literally only as long as he needed before he woke up, but he didn't move much once he was awake. Instead, he just reached over to his dresser and pulled one of the books he'd brought back with him over to read.

He had no idea why Bruce needed a pie, a fork, and an aerosol can, but he figured it'd be entertaining to find out.

[knightbynight]

The can was whipped cream and the fork was to eat the pie, Clark don't be ridiculous what else would he be doing with it?

Except he disappeared into Clark's closet with all of it, and merrily went about filling all of Clark's shoes with pie, whipped cream, or both.

When he came out there was a piece of pie in the pan left, and the fork. That, he handed to Clark. Then he got back in bed just like he hadn't done something he'd have considered immature in a 7 year old.

[stands_for_hope]

Clark reached up, took the pie, and took a bite... before blinking up at Bruce. It was clear he'd been about to say something very different from what he ended up saying.

"...this is my mother's pie."

Blink. Then a frown. Not a genuinely upset frown, just a frown. He glanced at the closet before turning back to Bruce.

"...and you're buying me new shoes."

[knightbynight]

Bruce shrugged, clearly unconcerned. "Eventually. Meanwhile, you're stuck with your slippers." Enjoy that. Or - "Maybe I'll buy you the bunny ones." Before anything like shoes appropriate for any fucking thing.

About the pie: "Alfred loves you." And: " What were you going to say before you changed your mind?"