(Upload) Learning to Fly - Happy Birthday... of sorts, DaMo!!
Happy Birthday DaMo!!!
You know, I totally suck at the time zone thing. It's no longer your birthday for you, but I hope you had a great one! I bring you a sort of belated present. In my defense, it's the 2nd's noon here! This is from me and tmelange, who did the beta because she's great like that :)
Fandom: DCU
Characters: Bruce Wayne and John Grayson
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bruce is a tragic bastard.
Word Count: 1036
Summary: While Mary Grayson was pregnant, John needed a partner to fly.
AN: This is an AU, but I wouldn’t put it past Bruce. I have tried to calculate Bruce and Dick’s age difference like a gazillion times, and I’ve decided Bruce is about 13-14 years older than Dick. I fell in love with John Grayson while writing this. I also know pretty much nothing about the trapeze routine, so let’s hope it was vague enough to not be stupid.
Started on July 29th 2006 at 11:30 am
Finished on July 29th 2006 at 12:50 pm
Learning to Fly
John finished adjusting the ropes, and handed the trapeze to the boy next to him.
“Remember to always double check your equipment, son. You can never be too sure,” he said, taking a step back. The boy grabbed the bar, his blue eyes never leaving John’s. It was a weird sight in the circus, a boy who looked as grave as his young apprentice.
“What are we doing today, sir?”
John smiled. Despite all his efforts, the boy kept a wall of respect between them. “We’ve been over this before, Tommy. I don’t want to hear another ‘sir’ or ‘Mr. Grayson’ from you today. If you’re going to place your life in my hands, the formality is out of place.”
The boy looked uncomfortable for a moment then nodded. “What are we doing today then, John?”
“A swing, a pass and a flip. It’s very important to have the bases down. It has to come naturally to you, like breathing.”
The boy didn’t complain, and without more instructions, started his routing in the trapeze. John really liked Tommy; he was driven and respectful, eager to learn. He was a great performer too, if a little too serious, but no one could blame a trapeze artist for taking flying seriously. John knew the kid loved flying as much as he did; it wasn’t something you could fake. Tommy never complained either. When John had made him work extra hard the first two months of his tenure, the boy had practiced hour after hour until he was ready to join John in the trapeze while Mary couldn’t fly.
John grabbed the incoming trapeze, and joined the boy in the air. Tommy was still small, but he was strong and well balanced. John jumped and grabbed the outstretched arms that were swinging his way. Tommy held on, and on the next swing John jumped back to his own bar.
“Back flip, son.”
Tommy jumped, a little unsure. John could tell the boy was scared; back flips involved throwing yourself to the void with blind faith in your partner. It was always a rush.
John grabbed Tommy’s arms, and swung him back to the crow’s nest. One swing later, he joined him.
“Don’t jump if you’re not sure you’re going to be caught, Tom. Better safe than sorry.”
“I’m sorry,” Tommy scowled, angry with himself for his less than perfect performance.
“It’s okay, kid. It’s okay to be scared. It’s just some advice. Trust your instincts, they know better than your head. A real partner won’t let you fall, you can be sure of that.” John put a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “It’s pretty high up here. Are you afraid of heights?”
Tommy eyed him sideways, then looked down at the circus arena. “A little,” he confessed.
John smiled. “Smart boy. If you’re not a little scared then you won’t be careful when you jump. But there’s a time for being scared, and then there’s a time for flying.” John sat on the edge of the crow’s nest, his legs dangling in the emptiness below them, and signaled his apprentice to do the same. “When we’re not flying, you need to look at the abyss until you can see it with your eyes closed, son. You need to know the abyss better than you know yourself. Let it become your companion, tell it your secrets. That way, when you jump, there won’t be nothing about it that you won’t know.”
Tommy smiled, a small wry smile at first, then a full grin. The boy didn’t smile enough, John decided. He returned the smile, but looked at the boy warily. “What’s so funny?”
“’When you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you’” The boy quoted, and then laughed, delighted.
“You have a twisted sense of humor, Thomas Penn.”
“I try,” the boy kept grinning, black hair falling over his forehead. “Are Mary and the baby going to visit today?”
John looked over at the various arena entries, looking for his wife. “They should be here any minute now.” He put an arm around his apprentice’s shoulders. “Say, son. Will you be staying next month?”
Tommy shrugged. “Mary will be back then. You won’t need me.”
“We could make a bigger act. You don’t have to go. I would rather you didn’t, actually. Little Dicky is fond of you, and so am I.”
The boy blushed. “I like Dicky too. You’ve been very nice to me, Mr. Grayson.”
“John,” the circus artist corrected.
“John, yeah. Sorry. You and Mary have taught me to fly. I won’t ever forget it.”
“Do you have brothers back home, Tommy?”
“No, sir.” The boy sighed. Home was a difficult topic for the young apprentice, and John tried not to pry, but he cared for the kid.
“Dicky could use a brother.”
“Well… I’m going to be traveling a lot. And Dick is very small. He won’t remember me.”
“But we will, son. When you go back to your home, we’ll go visit. Would you like that?”
Tommy’s eyes lighted up, and he gave John a big smile. “A circus in Gotham! I would love that. I could show Dicky around,” The boy offered, almost shyly.
“I’m sure he would love that, Tommy. C’mon, let’s go down.”
Tommy looked down at the abyss, where Mary was waving at them with a little dark haired baby in her arms. Tommy waved back at her, and climbed down the crow’s nest, following John.
---
Batman checked on one of his safe houses, and looked at the mail in front of the door with curiosity. He picked it up, and once inside the batmobile, he opened the letter.
“Dear Tommy,
Circus is in town. Come meet us! You won’t believe how big Dicky is, but I guess you’re so big yourself I will barely recognize you.
Is the abyss looking back at you yet, son? If you still remember how to fly, stay after the show, and we’ll jump one more time. See you soon!
John”
There was a flyer of the circus with the letter. Batman smiled to himself, and set course to the Manor. He hadn’t been to the circus in a long time.
You know, I totally suck at the time zone thing. It's no longer your birthday for you, but I hope you had a great one! I bring you a sort of belated present. In my defense, it's the 2nd's noon here! This is from me and tmelange, who did the beta because she's great like that :)
Fandom: DCU
Characters: Bruce Wayne and John Grayson
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bruce is a tragic bastard.
Word Count: 1036
Summary: While Mary Grayson was pregnant, John needed a partner to fly.
AN: This is an AU, but I wouldn’t put it past Bruce. I have tried to calculate Bruce and Dick’s age difference like a gazillion times, and I’ve decided Bruce is about 13-14 years older than Dick. I fell in love with John Grayson while writing this. I also know pretty much nothing about the trapeze routine, so let’s hope it was vague enough to not be stupid.
Started on July 29th 2006 at 11:30 am
Finished on July 29th 2006 at 12:50 pm
Learning to Fly
John finished adjusting the ropes, and handed the trapeze to the boy next to him.
“Remember to always double check your equipment, son. You can never be too sure,” he said, taking a step back. The boy grabbed the bar, his blue eyes never leaving John’s. It was a weird sight in the circus, a boy who looked as grave as his young apprentice.
“What are we doing today, sir?”
John smiled. Despite all his efforts, the boy kept a wall of respect between them. “We’ve been over this before, Tommy. I don’t want to hear another ‘sir’ or ‘Mr. Grayson’ from you today. If you’re going to place your life in my hands, the formality is out of place.”
The boy looked uncomfortable for a moment then nodded. “What are we doing today then, John?”
“A swing, a pass and a flip. It’s very important to have the bases down. It has to come naturally to you, like breathing.”
The boy didn’t complain, and without more instructions, started his routing in the trapeze. John really liked Tommy; he was driven and respectful, eager to learn. He was a great performer too, if a little too serious, but no one could blame a trapeze artist for taking flying seriously. John knew the kid loved flying as much as he did; it wasn’t something you could fake. Tommy never complained either. When John had made him work extra hard the first two months of his tenure, the boy had practiced hour after hour until he was ready to join John in the trapeze while Mary couldn’t fly.
John grabbed the incoming trapeze, and joined the boy in the air. Tommy was still small, but he was strong and well balanced. John jumped and grabbed the outstretched arms that were swinging his way. Tommy held on, and on the next swing John jumped back to his own bar.
“Back flip, son.”
Tommy jumped, a little unsure. John could tell the boy was scared; back flips involved throwing yourself to the void with blind faith in your partner. It was always a rush.
John grabbed Tommy’s arms, and swung him back to the crow’s nest. One swing later, he joined him.
“Don’t jump if you’re not sure you’re going to be caught, Tom. Better safe than sorry.”
“I’m sorry,” Tommy scowled, angry with himself for his less than perfect performance.
“It’s okay, kid. It’s okay to be scared. It’s just some advice. Trust your instincts, they know better than your head. A real partner won’t let you fall, you can be sure of that.” John put a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “It’s pretty high up here. Are you afraid of heights?”
Tommy eyed him sideways, then looked down at the circus arena. “A little,” he confessed.
John smiled. “Smart boy. If you’re not a little scared then you won’t be careful when you jump. But there’s a time for being scared, and then there’s a time for flying.” John sat on the edge of the crow’s nest, his legs dangling in the emptiness below them, and signaled his apprentice to do the same. “When we’re not flying, you need to look at the abyss until you can see it with your eyes closed, son. You need to know the abyss better than you know yourself. Let it become your companion, tell it your secrets. That way, when you jump, there won’t be nothing about it that you won’t know.”
Tommy smiled, a small wry smile at first, then a full grin. The boy didn’t smile enough, John decided. He returned the smile, but looked at the boy warily. “What’s so funny?”
“’When you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you’” The boy quoted, and then laughed, delighted.
“You have a twisted sense of humor, Thomas Penn.”
“I try,” the boy kept grinning, black hair falling over his forehead. “Are Mary and the baby going to visit today?”
John looked over at the various arena entries, looking for his wife. “They should be here any minute now.” He put an arm around his apprentice’s shoulders. “Say, son. Will you be staying next month?”
Tommy shrugged. “Mary will be back then. You won’t need me.”
“We could make a bigger act. You don’t have to go. I would rather you didn’t, actually. Little Dicky is fond of you, and so am I.”
The boy blushed. “I like Dicky too. You’ve been very nice to me, Mr. Grayson.”
“John,” the circus artist corrected.
“John, yeah. Sorry. You and Mary have taught me to fly. I won’t ever forget it.”
“Do you have brothers back home, Tommy?”
“No, sir.” The boy sighed. Home was a difficult topic for the young apprentice, and John tried not to pry, but he cared for the kid.
“Dicky could use a brother.”
“Well… I’m going to be traveling a lot. And Dick is very small. He won’t remember me.”
“But we will, son. When you go back to your home, we’ll go visit. Would you like that?”
Tommy’s eyes lighted up, and he gave John a big smile. “A circus in Gotham! I would love that. I could show Dicky around,” The boy offered, almost shyly.
“I’m sure he would love that, Tommy. C’mon, let’s go down.”
Tommy looked down at the abyss, where Mary was waving at them with a little dark haired baby in her arms. Tommy waved back at her, and climbed down the crow’s nest, following John.
---
Batman checked on one of his safe houses, and looked at the mail in front of the door with curiosity. He picked it up, and once inside the batmobile, he opened the letter.
“Dear Tommy,
Circus is in town. Come meet us! You won’t believe how big Dicky is, but I guess you’re so big yourself I will barely recognize you.
Is the abyss looking back at you yet, son? If you still remember how to fly, stay after the show, and we’ll jump one more time. See you soon!
John”
There was a flyer of the circus with the letter. Batman smiled to himself, and set course to the Manor. He hadn’t been to the circus in a long time.