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The Prince of Gotham	By : CalecusX Category: Harry Potter Crossovers > General - Misc Views: 5896 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 7
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Batman. I make no profit from any of them.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
Patience. Patience and tolerance were something they said to be gained from age and experience. Unfortunately, the norm had never really applied to him.

"I mean, I was there with my dad, but I still couldn't believe it," Roger babbled on, his words flowing out in an endless downpour. "Weren't you scared? I would have been terrified, and those lions were huge."

It took almost all of Harry's self-control to not groan out loud or smack his head on the table as he tried to ignore his fellow classmate sitting next to him. Scattered around the room were other children wedged in their seats, attempting to write the alphabet as instructed. However, the attention span of kids these days were down right atrocious, and thus, it had trickled down to mindless chattering before long. Their teacher was now a bundled mess of stress and a few galleons shy from a nervous break-down as she tried to bring back discipline.

"The rhinos were big too, but I didn't get to see them when they escaped from the cages," the other boy continued on without exhaustion, as if he was powered by a well-oiled motor engine. Harry had stopped listening ever since his thoughts tipped numbingly near the precipice between insanity and boredom.

A few months had passed since that scuffle at the zoo. It was a pleasantly chaotic scene when help finally arrived to wrangle all the animals up, and most of the authorities were left scratching their heads as they pondered on how the creatures had escaped in the first place. Rumours arose that it was a group of animal activists that released the creatures, but police investigators could only confirm that it was an accident. Somehow, Harry highly doubted that.

He suspected the 'foreign presence' controlling the lions was behind the whole affair. Despite the trouble caused by the occurrence, there was one positive aspect that came out of it: that was his first encounter with something truly magical other than himself. Of course, he was wary of this new being, but another part of him was indisputably excited to discover magic existing in this world — proof that Harry wasn't the only magical being left. That knowledge by itself had eased the loneliness he didn't know was baring down on his mind.

Meanwhile, Kongo - the eerily intelligent gorilla - was acclaimed as a hero for 'saving the Wayne boy', and the primate's actions were praised throughout the city. Sometimes, Harry would arbitrarily visit the gorilla during the night under an invisibility charm, often bringing with him a treat of fruits. During those visits, Harry would usually get the chance to see more into Kongo's mind, exploring glimpses of the gorilla's past. Strangely enough, there were parts in its memories that were too shrouded for Harry to view, and he didn't know what to make of that.

Besides for the gorilla's rendezvous with Harry, Kongo also became a celebrity of sorts for Gotham Zoo. Unfortunately for Harry, the same also applied in a way. There was no one in Gotham who didn't know his face or name by now. The Gotham Gazette had been printing articles of that story for days, and it didn't help that a lot of people had taken pictures of the event. At least they didn't deign him with a ridiculous title like the 'Gorilla Boy' or some other nonsensical moniker — that remained his only solace in this situation.

However, when school started, he was wary that it would be like his first year of Hogwarts all over again. Luckily, that was not the case; although, Roger seemed to be the sole exception. People only stared at him on the first day, and after that, he was like any other kid. Well, not exactly like the other children. Granted, he didn't remember much of primary school in his old life, but Harry was certain the kids then were not so wild. And he really couldn't help but wonder: had children always been so loud, obliviously inconsiderate and just plain messy?

Harry then edged away from a kid that was blatantly picking her nose, but he couldn't stop himself from staring incredulously. 'Oh dear, Merlin, she can't be thinking of—'

Apparently, no one had ever told the little girl that it was not hygienic to ingest such unsavory things.

Roger chose that moment to poke him roughly on the arm, trying to recapture his attention. "Oh! And my favourite part was the gorilla jumping away from the lions; that was so cool!"

His eyebrows twitched in annoyance.

o-O-o

The forest wrapped around Wayne Manor was like a blanket of moss. Bruce silently trudged through this vegetation as his brother continued to count for Hide n' Seek. The weather was pleasant, but the sky was filled with grey clouds, very much like that day a few months ago.

The day after Adrian's birthday trip to the zoo, reporters hovered in droves outside their manor. He was more than accustomed to reporters when attending galas or fundraisers, yet Bruce still disliked the hounding attention from them, whom were all eager to get an interview with his brother. Thankfully, his parents prevented such attempts, and he was relieved that Adrian didn't seem too affected by it. Everything seemed to have calmed down by the time it was fall and once school had started for his brother. Hopefully, things would remain that way.

Bruce brought his attention back to his surroundings when he almost tripped over a rock. It was probably not a good idea to zone out and walk at the same time. With a shake of his head, he concentrated back on the game. Now, where was a good hiding spot?

He soon came upon a series of bushes that were closely crowded together to form a kind of barrier and smiled to himself; Adrian shouldn't be able to find him this time. Bruce swiftly jogged through the plant, intending to hide somewhere behind it. Before he knew it, the world seemed to tip sideways, and Bruce felt the ground swallowing him up as his stomach lurched dangerously.

He fell.

o-O-o

Harry mussed up his ebony hair and huffed in equal parts humour and bewilderment. Hide n' Seek with Bruce shouldn't be this extraneous, yet here he was, bending under garden benches and climbing over stone walls in search of his brother. Sunday afternoons were usually spent relaxing with his family or playing outside with Bruce. Although, presently, it was more of a hunt for his brother than anything. In the end, he decided to cast a locating spell because it really was taking too long, and Harry had this urgent feeling that something was not right.

Following the pull of magic, he walked a little beyond their property and into the forest. The spell eventually lead him to an outcrop of trees and bushes — particularly towards a leafy shrub straight ahead of him, which was evidently his brother's hidden location. He then jolted in surprise when a lone bat flew over the shrub, a parting high pitch screech was the only evidence of its presence as it disappeared in the distant sky. Berating himself for reacting to such a silly animal, he continued on towards the plant.

Harry plowed through the shrub, expecting to find his brother within its gangly branches. However, he ended up on the other side of the plant with no sign of Bruce at all. Befuddled at this, he casted the locating spell again, wondering if there was a mistake. Unexpectedly, the spell pointed further away to a small fissure in the ground, which would have been innocuous and unnoticeable to any person walking by. His heart plummeted to his stomach as realisation slowly anchored in. Harry ran as fast as he could to the edge of the crevice before looking down in near panic. Nothing but blackness met his sight.

"Lumos Maxima." A white orb appeared in the air, emitting ripples of translucent light. His gaze soon locked on the orb as it descended steadily into the shadowed chasm. From the luminescence, jagged rocks burst forth, and thick roots were like gnarled limbs that hooked out — all seemingly untamed and untouched. Cold fear then gripped him harshly as the motionless sight of Bruce emerged in the soft glow.

Before the next breath could be exhaled, he was already by Bruce's side through apparition, kneeling down and cautious of moving his brother. Instincts from hard fought battles kicked in as Harry threw out a scanning spell to check him over. The beat of a second seemed to pass like a grain of sand in an hour glass as he waited. Yet the scan finished a moment later, and his eyes shut briefly in quiet relief; Bruce was only unconscious.

Other than a few scratches, the only serious injury seemed to be a broken arm. It was a clean break along the bone, and such wounds could be mended without too much difficulty. Harry sent a silent 'thank you' to Madame Pomphrey for teaching him all she knew when he became interested in healing. He was no where near proficient as a qualified healer, but Harry was quite adept at manipulating the magic to enter the body and fix most injuries; that more than anything made up for his lack of experience.

Both hands soon found themselves hovering over the wounded forearm. Brows knitted in sharp focus as he tried to summon his magic and form the energy delicately enough to seep inside another body. A glow of bluish hue surrounded his hands like a glove. It remained frozen for a second before cascading down to his brother's arm in a rush. He could feel the magic weaving intricately through the bone at once, finding the fracture and sealing it slowly back together. When the last segment of bone was mended, it left him leaning forward in exhaustion while the glow faded away from his hands.

Just as his magic receded back, the sun chose that instant to shine down on them through the crevice, illuminating the ground they sat upon. Having no more need for the white orb, he extinguished it with a whispered, "Nox."

The warm ray played across his brother's soft features, high-lighting the arch of his nose and the smooth planes of his cheekbones. The sight irrevocably sent a pang under his chest to see how vulnerable Bruce was, laying there like that. He knelt there in placid contemplation, watching his brother. It was scary how easily Bruce could have fatally injured himself from the fall — how easily he could have lost him.

With a sigh to push such thoughts away, Harry decided to wake his brother up. Surely, Bruce didn't appreciate sleeping on the floor of a dank and chilly cave any longer than was necessary. He shook his brother carefully and called out his name, arousing him from deep unconsciousness.

Dark lashes fluttered faintly, stubborn on remaining shut. A few more shakes of the shoulder were necessary before blue eyes gradually opened to meet his. "Adrian..?"

A smile sprouted on his face, glad to hear the familiar voice. Bruce sounded tired and dazed, but was fine otherwise. "Hey, Bruce. You okay there?"

The Wayne heir nodded his head gingerly and tried to raise himself up to a sitting position. A hand on his shoulder assisted him as Bruce looked around. "Wha-what happened?"

"Well, there was this hole," he gestured above them, "and you took a nice tumble down it before deciding to take a nap."

Bruce blinked slowly, probably attempting to process his explanation in the sanest way possible. "... I fell... from all the way up there?"

"Yup."

"I- I think I remember," Bruce whispered. His eyes then narrowed in concentration, very similar to when he was trying to solve a particularly hard puzzle until a loud gasp escaped him. "My arm!" Bruce lifted his arm immediately and extended it in every direction, testing its flexibility. A look of astonishment soon painted his face when there was no pain accompanying the movement.

"Your arm?" he asked innocently.

"Yeah, I must have landed on my arm because it was really painful when I tried to move it," Bruce mumbled in confusion, "but it doesn't hurt anymore."

Harry hummed a noncommittal response. No way was he going to clarify any further on that predicament.

Suddenly, Bruce's demeanor took on an abrupt change, a flash of fear crossing his face minutely. The Wayne heir then searched franticly around the shadowed walls of the cave, as if expecting a monster to jump out and attack them. It was not a look he distinctly liked on his brother.

"Bruce?" He hoped nothing else was bothering him; Harry was certain he healed everything from the fall.

Bruce turned his head to stare at Harry for a long stretch of time. The silence from Bruce began to unsettle him quite a bit. Yet it was the gleam of desperation in his gaze that had Harry anxious. "You found me," the Wayne heir stated simply, referring to their game as the unbalanced air around him finally evaporated.

Harry was tempted to either laugh or hug his brother for snapping out of his strange mood; he settled for a half-grin instead. "Of course, I did — I would always find you."

Bruce shook his head in wry amusement. "I guess I'm really lucky that you're so good at Hide n' Seek."

He suppressed a smirk at that. Perhaps someday Harry would allow his brother in on his secret prowess for the game... maybe.

"Come on," he extended a hand to help Bruce up. "I think it's time we get back. Mom and dad must be pretty worried by now."

"Yeah," said Bruce, standing and brushing the dirt off his trousers. "Hopefully, we weren't gone for too long."

From the position of the sun, Harry would estimate it to be around a little more than an hour at most since their game began. Fortunately, Alfred was too consumed with the cleaning today to be monitoring their little escapade, which would have brought an earful of lecturing on another occasion.

While adjusting his sight to the dimness of the cave, it was then that a slight problem occurred to Harry.

"Adrian, how are we going to get out?" asked Bruce, peering up at the mouth of the fissure before glancing back at him, finally noticing Harry's immaculate form that should have been impossible to achieve in their current surrounding. "And how did you get down here anyway?"

"Uh..." Harry's ever wonderful eloquence seemed to have wandered off, leaving him horribly tongue-tied at the moment. Apparently, he really didn't plan this thing through when he'd healed his brother. Shit.

TBC
- 6
- 7
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The Prince of Gotham