maskormenacelogs | Train-surfing, or Bored Teen Hero at Play [Open]

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Train-surfing, or Bored Teen Hero at Play [Open]

WHO: Kid Flash (Bart Allen) and YOU!!!
WHERE: Anywhere there's a railroad
WHEN: First Week of October
WHAT: Riding the open rails the wrong way!
WARNINGS: Teenage stupidity, possibly reckless endangerment, will edit if needed

[ooc: Catch Bart anywhere high-speed or light rail is found, because he gets around]

One of the nice things Bart had found out about the way the nanites interacted with the 'net on this Earth was that when he didn't feel like running between places or trusting his luck to the Porters, he could pull up bus and train schedules at a thought, and read as quickly as he wants. Which is what leads to Kid Flash going train-surfing.

Sure, he could have gotten a ticket and rode inside, but on top of the train, he could feel the wind in his face in a way that tended to fade when he ran as his frictionless aura shielded him from pesky things like air resistance and heat. Besides, balancing on trains was fun, and getting on and off took a little timing and precision. Not to mention any fans that caught him on video will enjoy the thrill of it, without actually endangering anyone or spending every free moment catching purse-snatchers and other petty criminals. He does that, too, but this is just about the joy of the moment.

Kid Flash can't help the tight-lipped smile that keeps threatening to turn into a full-fledged grin as he shifts his weight in reaction to the movement of the car beneath him, a map of the rails with current track schedules and timings kept current on an internalized heads-up-display. And when he notices that he isn't alone anymore, that grin is realized, amber eyes lighting up behind the mask.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

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"If I don't have anywhere to be in a hurry, it's nice to take things slow. You'd be surprised how lonely it can be living that fast," Bart said, shaking his head slightly.

"That totally sounds like the guy I kinda knew back home. He's always been the one that manages to seem almost normal and well-adjusted. I envy that about him. The ways he manages to keep his feet..." It's hard not to have a little bit of hero-worship where the First Robin is concerned. He's the one who made everything Bart and his generation have done even remotely possible. That Dick had been with Kon when Bart failed to get there didn't hurt, either, for all that he tried not to make that about him.

"I don't think there's ever been a Robin who didn't love trainsurfing. I learned about it from one. Granted, it's a little easier when you can match speeds instead of having to use the grapple-lines, but I could do that, too." Except he didn't have the ability to carry that much in the way of tools with him when he ran.

Tim snorts quietly, even though he's pretty sure it won't be heard over the noise from the train. "Someone in this life who's normal and well-adjusted? I mean... come on. We wear kevlar-nomex pajamas with our underwear on the outside of our tights and go beat up bad guys every night. I think normal is a long sight off." He grins a little. He's joking... mostly. And he'd actually kind of figured Flash had the corner on 'normal and well-adjusted,' since he's literally the most chill member of the League, but maybe it's different in other universes.

"There've only been two of us where I'm from, so it's kind of a small sample size, and since the original model taught me how... I guess you're right." He glances sidelong at Bart. "Have you met the other ones?"

"If anyone could pull it off..." Bart points out, but lets that line drop. "And I wish I could wear something a little more protective sometimes. I hate the blisters I get catching bullets if there's enough of them in the air."

But there's only so much aura to go around, and he'd rather be frictionless than armored, most of the time.

"I mostly knew 3, your counterpart as far as names go. I knew the girl who took over for him for a short time when she was Spoiler and I hear she's Batgirl now. But the second was already dead when I showed up, and his return mostly affected Gotham and not the wider world. And B prefers it when we don't get involved in his family issues. I feel blessed to have met the Bat-Butler." And the last is with a wink to show he knows Alfred is way more than that.

Huh. Tim is getting more information from Bart than he had from their 'family meeting.' For someone who's 'not involved in family issues,' he's pretty well informed. And not just anyone gets to meet Alfred.

He shakes his head a little. "There are a lot more of all of you than there are where I'm from. Only two Robins, no one my age, and only a handful of second gen heroes at all. Nothing like the teams you're talking about."

"It was me, Superboy, and Robin, to start. Everything else came later," Bart admits.

"I guess the Flash family is a little more social. And with Jay having been a founding member of the JSA and Grandpa Barry with the League, it makes things interesting."

He really doesn't know what else to say.

"Impulse was the youngest, physically, although technically I've got two years on Kon. But he gets to be an adult here..." which might be a slightly sore spot, but Bart doesn't mind a huge deal.

And there are a lot more of those names Tim hasn't heard before. There are a lot of heroes in his world, and he's starting to feel like it has the least number of capes of any of the cape worlds. He can't even really tell himself he's not jealous anymore, because he really does wish he could talk to people who aren't Bruce, Dick, or Barbara about the things that go on in his day to day life, but there's just no one else. At least, not back home.

"I'm guessing you're Impulse?"

"I was. Someone else has that name now, and I wish her joy with it," Bart said, and a fond little smile crosses his lips. "I won't say it's easier with more of us. I mean, Gotham does just fine without much interference, right?"

For Gotham's level of 'fine,' anyway. He knows better than to say it's a perfect place to live. But it definitely does a lot worse when the outside world tries to come in.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, It's Gotham, so 'fine' is a relative term, but we haven't sunk into the ocean yet, so I guess we have that going for us." There's a note of pride in his voice, despite his actual words. Gotham may objectively be one of the worst cities, but it's Tim's home, and he loves it anyway. "I wouldn't say no to a few more Robins and Batgirls around, though."

He shrugs a little. Not going to happen. Probably.

"So, if you outgrew Impulse, what comes next?"

"It really depends on what happens to the people who were there before. There really hasn't been more than one Batgirl or Robin at a time, until maybe recently. There's never been more than one Kid Flash or Impulse at a time, either. We're not Green Lanterns, here," Bart responds, remembering how crushed Tim was after Steph died. He still doesn't know exactly how she came back, or if it wasn't as clear-cut as all that.

"I suppose there could come a time to drop the Kid part again. Or find a new name to wear. It really depends. Impulse retired because I needed him to. I had something I thought I wanted to show, and it had a lot to do with stepping up as a member of the family.

"It's like what would happen if Bruce couldn't be Batman. Gotham needs Batman, but my Tim would say Batman needs a Robin. If the mantle stays empty for two long, someone will try to fill it."

Tim has had a little time to get used to the idea that people outside the immediate family know their identities, but it still throws him for a second to hear Bart casually reference Bruce as Batman. And then to process the thought of Bruce not being Batman. It's hard to imagine. Alsmot impossible to imagine, really. He wonders if his Bruce has ever given any thought to retirement, or what happens if he gets too old to be Batman. If. Because that's definitely not a guarantee.

But that's pretty tangential to the conversation they're actually having. He goes by Kid Flash now--wait. 'Drop the Kid part again.' What does that mean? Was he the Flash? Tim looks curiously at him. Way too young, right?

"So... Were you the Flash? And now you're Kid Flash? Or is there a 'Nightwing' version of the Flash?"

"A few years back, there was this thing, and I ended up spending the equivalent of four years in the Speed Force, and when I came out, after my powers returned, I stepped into my grandpa's suit. Literally, since it was grown from the same materials he'd used. It had to be done, since I'd had to leave Wally in the Speed Force, and Jay...well, he is almost a hundred. He's slowing down, even with the prolonged youth he got with his powers," Bart said, trying to explain.

"But that me, the me that was the Flash was killed by a group of the Rogues. I remember most of that time, but it's not something I really dwell on. But when I had the chance to come back, I realized I wanted things as I felt they should be, with me as Kid Flash, and Wally as the Flash, and because of how things worked out, I could."

But the other bit, the 'Nightwing' part. That had him smiling, even through the remembered pain.

"No, there isn't a 'Nightwing' version. Although Jay Garrick as Flash has a different look than Grandpa Barry or Wally. But I could choose one of the other speedsters to take up, like Windrunner." One of Max's older names.

There are a lot of names in there that Tim doesn't know--Jay, Max, Barry. The only Flash he's ever heard of is Wally. As far as he knows, there's never been another one, and there certainly isn't a Kid Flash or Windrunner around where he's from. More missing heroes.

But there's some History in there too, and even Tim's not so dense that he doesn't see 'the me that was the Flash was killed' for the sensitive subject it is. Bart is friends with someone who looks and sounds like him, but... they're not friends, and he's not going to ask for the kind of detail that a friend would.

"...Sounds like things have been pretty crazy for you. Is that something you'd want to do? Pioneer a new Flash ID?"

"Pretty much par for the course, really," Bart said, shrugging a little. "I don't know. It's a lot of work, and even then, you can never really leave behind who you were before."

He doesn't know what he wants, although a part of him wishes things would stay the way they were, with Wally and Grandpa and Irey and the whole family finally together in one place. But that was just wishful thinking.

"What about you, boy wonder? Ever feel like stepping out of the shadows?"

He snorts. "I'm pretty sure that's against the rules. Shadows are kind of part of the game. But I don't know. Maybe someday." He shrugs, frowning thoughtfully. "I mean. Nightwing said it first--'no one can be a boy wonder forever.' I'm gonna outgrow Robin someday, and that's probably going to be before the big guy retires and Nightwing steps up. I guess I'll have to figure it out then."

Bart has a hard time trying not to snicker, because he has an equally hard time envisioning this Tim outgrowing anything, at least in stature.

"I think a few of the Legion members could be held up as proof otherwise, but none of them were ever Robin," Bart said, shrugging back. "Not sure anyone could really fill B's shoes, anyways. Although the other one here might be the closest to getting there. If you don't mind quiet and deadly.

"But what do I know? I've already been kicked out of the Batcave." And Gotham in general.

He doesn't know much about the Legion. He knows that the League has had contact with them, but he mostly chooses to file it under 'time travel stuff that gives me a headache.' Kind of like this whole adventure, really.

He smirks. "Yeah, she seems pretty cool. And I'd ask what you did to get thrown out of the Batcave, but breathing the wrong way when Batman's in a bad mood can get you tossed out."

"Does he have other moods?" Bart asks, but he's only half-serious. "I still maintain that the Batmobile is on Beast Boy." A wink. Because there's so much more to that story.

"If she's willing, you should train with her. It's a humbling experience, and worth it. The woman can pick out the slightest thing wrong with your form."

"I have no idea what or who you're talking about, but the way you're saying it--I don't think I believe you." He grins back. It's a little cautious, but they're actually... Not screwing it up for once. That's... cool.

He nods a little at the suggestion. "I'd like to. She seems pretty good."

"Shapeshifting in the car is kinda distracting. Although apparently shipping a Batmobile cross-country is something you can hide in the Batarang budget," Bart said, simply.

"And she's amazing. I think it might be a requirement for Batgirls, but I haven't known that many."

"They're custom, obviously," he replies absently. "And between the three of us, we go through a ton of them every night. You could probably hide a harrier jet in the Batarang budget and it would just get a raised eyebrow and a 'Robin, if you need target practice, do it in the Cave.'"

He shrugs a little and grins. "I've just known the one, and she's the best, but if she's in charge of future Batgirls, I'm betting they're at least as good."

"See, that's one of the advantages you have. I actually have to worry about what a new pair of sneakers cost." Not that he really burns through soles or anything like that. Well, not in a long time.

"At least you guys actually work together. Trying to get my family in one place...well, herding cats is definitely easier."

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Train-surfing, or Bored Teen Hero at Play [Open]

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(sorry. November hiatus, but I loved this thread and would love to continue!)

(totally allowed, and it's amazing they're not screwing this up!)

(it's honestly impressive.)

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