Date: Thu, 2 Sep 2004 06:32:05 -0700 (PDT) From: Author James <authorjames2002@yahoo.com> Subject: Return of a Real Dark Knight 23 Disclaimer: This story is fiction. There are two celebrities who will appear from time-to-time. The other characters are fictitious. Any similarities to persons living or dead are completely coincidental. In this story, I have continued the adventures of Batman, my Batman, which his story first began in "Tales of a Real Dark Knight" in the Boy Band section of this archive. It spanned 250 chapters. You will find many universes merging, as the above copyrights reveal. I hope you all enjoy this. Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel and all related characters created by Joss Whedon. Copyright 20th Century Fox. Batman, and all related characters created by Bob Kane. Copyright DC Comics and Warner Bros. X-MEN, and all related characters created by Stan Lee. Copyright Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox. The Vampire Chronicles and all related characters created by Anne Rice. Copyright Anne O'Brien Rice. I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered. I appreciate any feedback that you may want to give. I do hope that you enjoy it!!! Any emails you send, please tell me what chapter and story you are commenting on. Thanks. authorjames2002@yahoo.com I also have several online messenger services. If you want to chat with me in real time, email me and tell me the services you use and I will tell you my screen name. Chapter 23 On My Own The young man was tossed against the wall by his father. As he slumped, his father grabbed him by the hair on the top of his head and jerked him up. "Get up, faggot!" the older man yelled. "I'll show you what it means to be a fag!" The older man punched the young boy in the face causing blood to gush out his nose. Tears streamed down the young man's face and mingled with the blood as he whimpered, "Please, dad, please. Don't hit me." "Begging is for pussy's!" the young man's father said as he punched the youth in the side of the head. "You're not going to be a pussy! Not if I can help it!" The boy's father wailed away on the youth knocking him into the way and into furniture. Then he grabbed the boy's hair again and drug him outside. He threw the boy off the porch and onto the walkway to the street. "Get the fuck out of my house, faggot! And don't come back until you are a real man!" The boy pulled himself up as best he could despite the excruciating pain he had as a result from his father's beating. He stumbled down the walkway the rest of the way and went down the street. 'It doesn't seem worth it,' the boy thought as he headed toward downtown and the place where he was going to end it all. A short while later, the rain began; and the youth continued his journey down the road toward his destiny. His nose had stopped bleeding, but there was still blood on his face. His eye had swollen shut, and he felt pain in his side, possibly from a broken rib. Still, he wondered if it had all been a mistake and that his mother would come looking for him. 'Who am I kidding?' he thought. 'I'm a stranger in my own family. Nobody cared to know who I was or what I was about. It wasn't until I revealed who I truly was that they said anything to me. Maybe someone will come looking for me. Maybe someone cares enough to help me.' A song came into his head that fit what he was going to. He remembered hearing it one time on a station that played music from a decade ago. I'm standing on the bridge I'm waiting in the dark I thought that you'd be here By now There's nothing but the rain No footsteps on the ground I'm listening but there's no sound Isn't anyone trying to find me? Won't somebody come take me home? It's a damn cold night Trying to figure out this life Won't you take me by the hand take me somewhere new Don't know who you are but I, I'm with you I'm with you The youth looked around at the cars and people passing him. No one said anything to him or acknowledged his presence. It was as if he were a phantom. I'm looking for a place I'm searching for a face Is anybody here I know? Cause nothing's going right And everything's a mess And no one likes to be alone Isn't anyone trying to find me? Won't somebody come take me home? It's a damn cold night Trying to figure out this life Won't you take me by the hand take me somewhere new Don't know who you are but I, I'm with you I'm with you Oh, why is everything so confusing? Maybe I'm just out of my mind Yeah, yeah... Preston was the first to notice the young man standing on the bridge in the rain looking out at the water. I pulled the van over to the side of the road and backed up near the boy. I climbed out and walked up to him. "Are you okay?" I asked. Despite the pouring rain, I could see the damage done to his face. "What's happened?" It's a damn cold night Trying to figure out this life Won't you take me by the hand take me somewhere new Don't know who you are but I, I'm with you I'm with you I'm with you Take me by the hand take me somewhere new Don't know who you are but I, I'm with you I'm with you I'm with you The youth broke down into tears. I took him by the hand and we went to the van. He climbed in the back and I turned the heat on full. He looked no more than sixteen years old, with blonde hair and green eyes. He stood about six feet tall and was very thin. I was worried he had been on the streets for a very long time and was undernourished. "Hi," Preston said trying to be cheerful. "My name is Preston." "Ryan," the youth said. "I'm Eric," I added. "What were you doing on the bridge?" "Walking away." "From what?" Preston asked. "From my life. See, I just came out to my parents. I figured I would be accepted by them. Turns out I was wrong. My dad beat me and they kicked me out of the house and haven't come looking for me." "You are safe now," I replied as I put the van in gear. "I can take you someplace safe. But first thing's first, we're going to a hospital." I eased the van out into traffic and we headed for the nearest hospital. Randy decided to take a walk outside and headed to Blue Jacket Park. As he walked, he contemplated on his hero, his crush, his "true love": Batman. He knew that things couldn't happen between him and the mysterious masked man. The two were from completely different worlds. 'What could he and I have in common?' he thought. 'He's from a different world. I know this is all in my head, that it isn't real. But, it could be, couldn't it?' The rain began to fall but he didn't pay it any attention as he thought about his situation. He remembered a song he heard from one of his Uncle's CD collection and he began to sing it, as it fit what he was feeling. "On my own Pretending he's beside me All alone I walk with him till morning Without him I feel his arms around me And when I loose my way I close my eyes and he has found me "In the rain The pavement shines like silver All the lights Are misty in the river In the darkness The trees are full of starlight And all I see is him and me Forever and forever "And I know It's only in my mind That I'm talking to myself And not to him And although His age is twice as mine Still I say There's a way for us "I love him But when the night is over He's gone The river's just a river "Without him The world around me changes The trees are bare And everywhere The streets are full of strangers "I love him But every day I'm learning All my life I've only been pretending Without me His world will go on turning The world is full of happiness That I have never known "I love him I love him I love him But only on my own" Randy wiped the tears away and walked on down the path. Soon he would head home and try to hide the intense feelings he had. He figured that if others saw how emotional he felt about the Batman, they would want him to go to counseling. And he didn't want that. As much as he respected his Uncle Eric's job, he didn't want to be labeled someone with emotional problems. Preston and I stood outside the room while Ryan was being expected. I was concerned about Preston's reaction to seeing what Ryan looked like. He paled when Ryan said that his father did that to him. "I could never imagine you or Pop doing anything like that to us kids," Preston said as he leaned against the wall. "It just doesn't make sense. Why? He's gay. So what? He can't control it. And even if he did, what does it matter? Guys make him happy. It just isn't right." Preston put his hand over his eyes and he sobbed. I pulled him to me and hugged him. "I know. It's horrible. It is inconceivable that a parent could do that to his or her own child." "You'll help him, right, Dad? You'll see that he gets help?" "He'll get help, Pres. I'll make sure he gets it." The doctor came out and told us we could go in and talk with Ryan. "Do you want to come in?" I asked Preston. He shook his head 'no'. "Not yet." "Okay. Come in when you are ready." He nodded and I headed into the exam room. Ryan had his shirt off and a bandage was wrapped around his stomach. "I've got a few cracked ribs," he muttered. "I'm sorry your father did this to you. Is there anything you want me to do?" "Can you kill them?" "I know you are angry at them. You have every right to be angry. But killing them won't solve anything. How will they ever see you succeed in life? You succeeding would be such a torment to them because of what they did." Ryan reached around and attempted to put his shirt on. I moved over and helped him get it on. "Thanks," he muttered. Once his shirt was on, he asked, "Where will I go?" "I'm going to take you to the Hunter Center for Teens. There you will be able to rest and get all the help you need." "Will I be able to live there?" "If need be, yes, you could live there until you turn eighteen." "What do I do after that?" "After that, we'll figure out something. If you want to continue your education, we can make arrangements with the state for financial aid. If you want to get a job right away, we will help you find a job. The Center does a lot of things." "Cool," Ryan said as he buttoned up his shirt. "Why isn't Preston in here?" "He was upset by what happened to you." "Preston seems like a good-natured guy." "He is." The doctor returned and Preston slipped in behind her. She gave Ryan instructions and told me what had happened as well. Knowing that I was connected with the Department of Child Services allowed her to tell me what was going on. She made me promise to bring justice to Ryan by helping Ryan bring criminal charges to them. I assured her that was one of many things I was going to do to help the youth. She signed the papers and then we headed back to the Center. Once there, I assisted Ryan through the process of filling out the paper work and getting his room. Preston went to my office while this went on. He was still upset about all that we encountered earlier in the evening. It definitely marked him in some way, I could tell. After getting Ryan settled in, as well as getting the pain pills and antibiotics needed to fight off any infection that may stem from his injuries, I went to my office to check on Preston. "Do Watchers do this, Dad? Do they see people who are hurt for no good reason?" "Often times they do. It is their job to train the Vampire Slayers so that innocent people do not get harmed. It doesn't completely prevent the harm that comes to innocents, but it does lower the numbers significantly. If it didn't, I don't think the Council would be in existence today." "Then I've chosen the right job. I may not have special abilities like you or Sarah. But I'm going to do what I can to stop this stuff. It's wrong." I was so proud of Preston at that moment. All the years of raising him, of teaching him about life, brought him to this moment. He was willing to go through the discomfort he felt of seeing people harmed so that he could do his part in helping the rest of the world. To Be Continued...