maskormenacelogs | (no subject)

WHO: Batman & The Flash
WHERE: The Hall of Justice
WHEN: December 21st
WHAT: Batman wants to talk to Barry
WARNINGS: Nothing, will edit as needed

[Being back here is strange, but perhaps not as strange as it should be. Not after the revelations of his most recent trip home. Not after the shifting and re-shifting of his world, his travels through time, meeting his father-- there's so much more, this almost seems milquetoast in comparison. But it helped him to put a few things in perspective; to remember a few important things that he seems to forget so often. He wasn't sure yet how he would go about all of it, but the first step was often the most important, and sometimes also the most difficult. But he's Batman. There are few things in this world that he can't accomplish.

He calls Barry into the Hall's conference room, standing alone with his back to him as he surveys the massive screen at the far end of the room, the large circular round table creating distance between them.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ the flash appears in a rush of golden kinetic energy and air. if there were papers on the table, they'd be flying toward all four corners of the room. the door closes behind him, a click that could fool anyone into thinking someone invisible is in the room with them. there isn't. barry doesn't like slamming doors if he can help it. ]

'Sup, Batman. [ he says it — voice vibrating ever so slightly — with a mouth full of chicken. the flash, after all, is eating one of his many chicken wings. he needs to keep those calories up! while his memories of his life may be fading, barry's body tells him he needs to eat the justice league out of house and home. ]

Want a chicken wing? [ throwing his thumb over his shoulder, his feet move as though he's about to duck out himself. ] I can go get some.

No. [A pause, and he turns to Barry.] I wanted to talk to you about something.

[ barry's uncertainty is obvious with the way he slows down on eating that chicken wing. he even glances at it, wondering if perhaps this is the time they fire him — "you're too fast" or "we don't appreciate you playing poker face so loudly whenever you think it's most convenient for you" or, the worst: "you ate my lunch". he braces himself for it, the inevitable feeling that'll overtake him of them breaking up. ]

Okay ... [ he takes a bite of that chicken wing, and then: ] Do you need something delivered to someone? I even forgot some Christmas shopping. Some people are so hard to buy for.

Shut up for a minute, Barry. [His tone biting, brow tightening.]

I... went home recently. Back to Gotham. To my world.

[ do you know how quick minutes last for speedsters? ]

[ well, this is a very long minute for barry allen. it almost spans two and a half normal minutes, because what's going through his head is really simple: gotham, the city he hopes exists on his earth. it sounds really cool, even if a bit dreary. ]

Oh. [ for a brief moment, he wonders if batman is sad about that. it's hard to tell with all the dark shades. ] Is this a bad thing?

[ it'll come to him shortly that batman called him "barry". ]

A lot's happened. We'll leave it at that. But it helped me to remember something important.

[He takes a step around the table, and closes the distance between him and Barry.]

Your name is Barry Henry Allen. Your middle name is from your father, Henry, and your mother was Nora. The Barry Allen from my world is one of my oldest friends. It's part of the reason why I asked you to help me found this league of ours.

Trust doesn't come easy to me. But... he-- you-- helped me to see my father one more time. You've helped saved the world more times than I can count.[Batman removes his cowl.]

My name is Bruce, Barry. I thought you deserved to know.

[ holy shit, batman! ]

[ that chicken wing goes — where it ends up, nobody knows. it doesn't seem to matter. at the end of the day, there's going to be a bucket of chicken wings at the equivalent kentucky fried chicken. there will never be another day where batman — bruce wayne — removes his cowl and says he's exchanged friendship rings with you. did the stress of keeping too many secrets de-age him? something to circle back to. barry and tangents cannot be best friends right now. ]

[ barry follows suit, removing his mask, letting that flop of hair settle as a bird's nest on his head. ] I'm guessing other me either hasn't gotten the lectures about not messing with time, or he's learned to block his ears.

Is your dad ... [ he shakes his head. being a csi means he should be able to read between the lines: papa wayne must be gone, just like henry and nora. ] Sorry I don't ... remember anything. I don't know if there's a Bruce Wayne on my Earth. [ he shrugs his shoulders sheepishly. ] I've never been to Gotham.

It's alright. I know you don't know me. And I know you're not him. [He puts a hand on Barry's shoulder.] But I recognize my friend in you. That's all that matters to me.

[ a thought pops into barry's head, although it's half-formed given the memories he's forgotten — mom dying and thus the man who killed mom. but it doesn't stop his knee-jerk reaction, the need to know if there's a bartholomew allen out there who is the flash and yet hasn't been affected by eobard thawne. he can talk to iris and cisco, but speaking to another person like him — a hero, even if batman claims to be anything but — is what he's been after for so long. ]

[ be his oliver queen, batman. ]

Does the me you know … Is the Reverse-Flash his greatest enemy?

You've got some pretty dumb enemies, Barry...

[A quirk of his eyebrow.]

...but yes, I know all about Eobard Thawne.

[Including watching him half melt and die right in front of him, but he'll omit that little tidbit.]

[ if only they all dressed up like penguins. ]

If the Porter brings him here ... [ fingers crossed it doesn't. barry brought him up for a reason, and it's a reason that will prove the flash is so stupid. ] You've got to make sure that the Justice League doesn't take him on by themselves. I probably don't need to tell you he's the worst, but ... He's like a cockroach that never dies. If he finds out the real identities of the people who are on this team, it's going to be bad.

[ translation: bruce, keep doing what you're doing and separate batman from bruce wayne. but as the person who is his friend in another universe, he feels that barry would say the same thing. eobard thawne is the most horrible person on the planet, but for the life of him, he can't remember what he looks like. ]

They listen to you. You've got the whole raspy voice thing going for you.

I've had some time to work on it. [Wryly, and then after a beat.] Don't worry, Barry. If Eobard Thawne comes to this world, we'll be here to stop him.

[The m'fuckin' Justice League. Batman doesn't sound too worried. Especially considering he just fought him like... a couple weeks ago.]

[ that's disgusting. ]

[ he smiles. bruce wayne sounds like the one person he admires most, mr queen. ]

Thanks. [ for everything, bruce! read between the lines, buddy. barry allen may not remember much of his life thanks to the flashpoint repercussions, but he knows what his gut is telling him: bruce wayne and batman are worthy of trusting. ] And thanks for telling me ... Your secret's safe with me. Promise. I'd pinky swear but I have a feeling you're not into that? [ yet, he sounds hopeful at the end, anyway. ]

We'll skip it this time. [More dry bat-humor as he slips his cowl back on, and he starts to exit the room, but one more thing...]

Oh, and Barry. [He looks over his shoulder.] Tell your friend to stop installing back doors in my servers.