Diabolical | T. Drake ✔

[18] Reunion In The Basement

Tim had been right in thinking that he had finally made a friend other than Stephanie.

It took only seconds for Connor to start opening up to Tim as he was showing him around the Manor. And Tim too discovered that Connor wasn't reserved or silent at all, he was just waiting for the right person to talk to.

However, merely talking would be an understatement; the boy was a nonstop chatterbox.

By the next day, the two were sticking together as if they had known each other for years and Steph too was surprised to see how quickly they had become friends. Seeing that the two were inseparable, she suggested taking the Supersons out for sightseeing in Gotham.

Bruce had put forward the condition that they could go if they had an adult to look after them. And Tim had ended up convincing Jason to be that adult. Although it didn't take long for Jason to figure out that he had fallen into a trap and now had a really troublesome trio on his hands plus one adorable little boy who had decided to stay glued onto his shoulders.

So it was safe to say that everyone except for the adult in charge had an awesome time visiting the Museum, the Arcade as well as the ice cream parlor.

The next day, Tim took Connor with him to the research center where he was currently working on antidotes for treating various types of chemical toxication. By the time they came back, it was already past evening.

That night when the vigilantes left for patrol, Tim had an idea up his sleeve. He waited for Lois and Jon to retire to bed and then snuck into Connor's room which was right beside his, an alteration that they had made just last night.

"Boo," he tried to give him a scare but of course, Connor could have easily heard him from a mile away.

"Hello Tim," he smiled, "your footsteps aren't hard to miss."

"Says the guy who has super genes," he flopped down on his bed, blue eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Looks like you have something to say."

"I was thinking about what we should do tonight," Tim spoke up, noticing the curious spark in Connor's eyes as well, "since I have already shown you the Manor and my labs too, we would have to find another pastime."

"Cool. So what did you think of?"

His eyes lit up, indicating that whatever he was thinking about was something he badly wanted to do, "I will take you to where I used to live before I came here."

Connor paused, "you mean your previous home?"

"Yup, the place where Bruce found me although you wouldn't call it a home once you see it. It's supposed to be my family home, technically, as it is still Drake Manor... But those days are all past and this family is way better than the one I was born into. Also, unfortunately, the only place I have access to is the basement."

Connor was curious as to why Tim was so enthusiastic about taking him to a basement. In the short time that he had spent with the boy, he had found out that he was very different from others but not a single second spent with him had made him bored.

Tim always had surprises although it would vary from person to person whether they found those surprises worth it or ended up being freaked out.

But Connor was not among the people who found Tim weird or creepy. He was himself a very curious soul as he was still learning the ways people behaved and how things worked in normal daily life. Being a clone and stuck in Cadmus' laboratories meant he had a very narrow exposure to the world before being adopted by Superman.

So he found Tim a marvelous bundle of new things he could learn. He was fascinated by how differently the boy thought compared to others and he could see that Tim too appreciated his company.

It hadn't been even a week since they met but their bond was already strengthening into that of close friendship.

Connor was used to feeling like an outcast but with Tim, it felt as if he fit right in. Both were different in their own way and the thought that he wasn't alone was quite comforting.

"Wait, does anyone know we're going there?" He asked, noticing that Tim was super quiet and it seemed as if they were sneaking out of the Manor.

"Of course, Alfred knows," Tim replied without a second's hesitation. Alfred didn't know yet but Tim thought he definitely would find out so in a sense he wasn't lying about it.

"Okay then."

"But you still have to be quiet. And alert me if you hear anyone coming after us."

"Okay."

Tim led the way past the security systems as he effectively kept deactivating them and they reached the large iron gate outside in a short while. Deep down, Connor felt they were doing something wrong but the thrill and the adrenaline rush made him feel more alive than he had ever done before so he didn't object.

They got out of the Wayne family's property and Tim turned to see a light flicker on in the manor. Of course, Alfred knew now that they had snuck out so he looked up at the CCTV camera positioned above them and waved followed by a thumbs-up.

"Just sending a brb signal to Alf," Tim told Connor who was looking at him questioningly, "now come, we have very little time until he alerts the Bat."

"So he didn't know we were going to sneak out?"

"What? Of course, he knew, Alfred knows everything," Tim shrugged breezily, gesturing to him to follow, "maybe this is where your super speed can come in handy. I will direct the way, you will be the mode of transport as we won't find any buses at this hour."

A few minutes passed in deciding what could be the best way for Connor to take Tim with him. Eventually, they had to settle on Connor scooping him up as he was quite light and that was the safest way so far.

They reached the abandoned Drake Manor in a much shorter time than it would usually take due to Connor's super speed. Tim had quickly gotten off and patted his back appreciatively, "dude, you should apply to be a professional marathon runner. Easy career, lots of money."

"No thanks, I am still figuring a lot of things out before thinking about a career," he replied.

"Touche. There's a long time left until then," Tim led him to the back where the entrance to the basement was located, "back when I lived here, I thought I would grow up to be a crazy scientist."

He lifted the latch and slid down so Connor followed as well. They landed in the basement and Connor looked around in wonder, being able to see everything clearly due to his Kryptonian vision.

"This was my first ever lab," Tim lit up the small light in the center, illuminating the area with a weak yellow shade. "And wait, we're not the only ones here. Come on."

He had bent down where a small burrow peeked out from the cracked wall. Connor watched in amazement as Tim clicked his tongue and shortly after, a swarm of rats rushed out.

"Woah, they really multiply fast," Tim remarked, setting down the buns he had brought with him, "I should have brought twice the food for these little rascals."

"There won't be any need for that," a sinister voice startled both of them and Tim straightened, recognizing who it could be, "your rats have already been fed."

"Doctor Crane..."

"Next time I will bring you a flashlight," the man stepped out from the shadows, throwing Tim's word from his last visit to Arkham at him, "when was that time going to come, midget?"

Tim gulped seeing that it was indeed Jonathan Crane who must have broken out of Arkham and was taking refuge in his basement. Connor had noticed the hostile expression on Crane's face so he instinctively came in front of Tim as if to shield him.

"It's fine, Connor. He just wants to talk," Tim made Connor step aside, facing the man who was better known as the Scarecrow in Gotham, "there's nothing to worry about."

He muttered darkly, cracking his knuckles as he edged close to the two boys, "there will be once I get done with you."

***