Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Warnings: There is some kissing scene here but nothing more than that. Again, this is a SLASH story with MALE on MALE action, so please turn around if you do not like to read it. You have been warned.

Note:

Reader-Anonymous-Writer: Thank you for your review. It was entertaining to read. I am not sure if you were pointing out the choice of name for Harry or the fact that Shayde sounds like something more shadowy. Either way, I thought it would be nice to show where I got the inspiration for Harry's name.

Haydrian: In English, it means 'dark' and in Latin, it means 'from Hadria'. One website gave the personality of Haydrian (Hadrian) as someone who tends to lead, is creative with new ideas and implements them with efficiency and determination, courageous and stubborn. I think that suits Harry to a tee. Plus Haydrian is a play of Harry's name.

Shayde: Means 'survivor of a fiery furnace' or 'defender'.

I think Harry is both and hence came up with the name Haydrian Shayde.

spiel: Thank you for your review. I'm sorry. I'm not sure if I will have Joker in this. I'm still trying to figure out whose life will complicate their relationship.

trizsh15: Thank you for your review. Yeah, I'm going for a happy ending. I was also a bit disappointed with Blackjack. As lovely as it was written, it was pretty tragic. Harry and Bruce have enough sadness already. They need someone to be by them.

Right Before Your Eyes

Chapter 4

These Stirrings of My Heart

Harry remained silent as he watched the staff of Wayne Manor gossip excitedly about the latest news on Bruce Wayne. Harry did not pay much mind to the rumors as he knew firsthand how much he hated rumors. However, the dark haired young man did take note of the media coverage concerning their employer for the past three weeks. Currently, he was sitting at table with the rest of the staff and watching the evening news.

On screen, a familiar luxury sports car drove up and a gorgeous man walked out gracefully. He was dressed to impress in a custom tailored dark suit. They watched as he handed the keys to his car to the valet and walked up to the door. He barely spared the reporters any mind though he seemed to be looking for someone.

His actions did not go unnoticed by the press and within seconds speculations on who Bruce Wayne was looking for made the news. Harry could only shake his head at the commotion the press was making. He felt extremely sorry for Wayne to be the focus of the media. The older man was far more gracious with the media compared to Harry. Harry was extremely grateful that the wizarding world was far more backwards than the rest of the world. All he had to worry about was newspaper reporters. If he had to worry about the television reporters as well, he would gladly strike a deal with Voldermort and run away from the Wizarding World. Not that Voldermort will take the deal, mind you.

Nonetheless, nothing could pull away Harry's thoughts of his boss. The man was exceedingly handsome. Had he not been attracted to Batman, he would have loved to check his boss out. As it was, Bruce's playboy ways was one of the biggest turn offs for Harry. Ah well, there was nothing wrong in…admiring the older man.

At that moment though, Harry was rather curious. From what he gathered from the staff, Wayne kept to himself and had been a recluse. Neither the staff nor the public had seen him for a good while. His absence from the spotlight had been noted, publicized and debated but the man had never issued any comment to clear the matter up. Popular debate was that Bruce Wayne was heartbroken over Rachel Dawes, a woman he had cared for and bitter over Harvey Dent, the politician he supported. Harry did not know how true this rumor was but he supposed there was some truth in it for the rumor to exist. Still, what made the self-exiled man come out of his hole?

Ah, Potter and Evan genes working overtime! Harry could only shake his head ruefully. Even now, his mind searched for something to occupy itself. He really did miss solving mysteries. Considering who his parents and godfathers were, Harry was not surprised.

Alfred walked in briskly as the staff continued chatting. His presence was enough to silence them and they looked away from each other guiltily. Harry bit back the amused smile and focused on Alfred instead. The butler was looking rather harried and irritated, although both emotions were kept well in check.

"Well, Master Wayne has decided to open house next week. It is a party to celebrate the city's continuous combat against crime and Master Wayne would like to show his support for it. It is rather last minute but I am sure we will be able to pull it off without any problems. Do you have any questions?"

The staff looked at each other and shook their heads even as most of them mourned the loss of perfectly good weekend. Alfred cleared his throat and nodded.

"Well, you each have your assigned duties as usual. Miss Harding, Miss Warren and Miss Nico, the usual clean up, if you please. You are to clean every room except for Master Wayne's. The decorators will be coming in three days earlier and I expect you to handle the decorators, Miss Harding."

Agatha Harding nodded her head. She was used to the parties held in Wayne Manor and was quite excited to be in the rush once more. Although the two girls are rather green, she was sure she could shape them up.

"Mr. Roland, you will be in charge of the parking system. A day before, I have arranged for five professional valets to help with the cars. Mr. Wright, you have about ten days to get the gardens into shape. I have full confidence that you will be able to deliver."

Both Edmund Roland and Terrence Wright nodded their heads. They too had done this before. However, they had others helping them then. It was going to be a little hectic this time around.

Alfred turned to the final man at the table. "Mr. Shayde, you will be in charge of the food, of course. You will be cooking for roughly 100 people. Every guest is by invitation, so the food will be for the guests and the staff. I am estimating a rough figure of 150 for the night. Will you be able to handle this?"

Harry nodded thoughtfully. He had never cooked for such a large number but there was always a first time for everything. "I would need some hands though. A few professional cooks would be a great help. It would also be advantageous if I can meet them a couple of days before and get a steady rhythm going. I would need at least five."

Alfred nodded, already estimating this. "I have a few cooks from Wayne Enterprises who will meet your needs. They will be brought in a few days. We will discuss the menu later. That's all for now. We will be very busy next week so make sure nothing gets in the way. If the party is successful, I will ask for a longer weekend for all of us. So please do your best."

The staff nodded. The women were excited about the party while the men were rather neutral about it. Either way, there was going to be a lot of work.

However, for once, Harry was rather excited. He wondered what the parties here were like and the chance to cook for such a huge crowd was both challenging and daunting. It was exactly what he needed.

Though there was something else that he was looking forward to. Harry could not wait for the weekend.

XXX

The motorbike stood proudly in the garage. Harry stroked it reverently. It really was a beauty. He had chosen to go with the classic black overall color with red and gold flames to represent Gryffindor colors. The bike was flashy and classy and the color only added to its overall personality. It had a low seat, which was convenient with Harry's height and the engine was a total babe. Harry had given in to temptation and bought the little beauty. Edmund and Terrence had both whistled appreciatively when they saw the beauty he bought and praised him for his taste.

Now, Harry was ready to bring his baby for a good spin. It was a nice weekend. The weather was nice and cool and the city was thrumming with energy. The wild magicks of the city sung to him. The need to bathe himself with the magicks of the land was almost desperate. Harry could feel it in the air.

He sped down the road, the air darkening around him. His dark jeans and jacket provided enough camouflage from unwanted eyes. The wind whipped around him and cold air felt wonderfully refreshing. It was like being in the air once more. The giddiness that Harry felt only increased as he recklessly increased his speed and shot down the empty lanes leading towards the city.

He placed a discrete Notice-Me-Not charm on himself and his bike. The anonymity provided gave him the chance to explore the city without being harassed. Harry did not come across anything that needed his attention and soon the desire to be somewhere high called out to him.

Once more, he chose Wayne Towers as his picnic spot and apparated there. He parked his bike and placed a Disillusion Charm on it on top of the previous one. Satisfied that his bike was protected, he leaned against the railing and took in the colorful city.

It was beautiful in its own way. The light and the dark were not so pronounced here. Everything was so shady and grey. Harry knew he should feel more uncomfortable but the darkness of the city called to him just as much as the light. It was a good balance.

Harry always thought he was more grey than light anyways. Unlike his friends, he had been prepared to kill. He had killed since he was eleven. For all that Dumbledore preached about forgiveness, he was more than willing to put Harry in a position of taking another man's life. His childhood had been spent in a cupboard. His life spent hiding. Everything screamed dark and yet people expected him to be untouched, pure, unblemished.

No one could understand just how different he was. No one bothered to understand. He would not fit into their world if he was different from what they expected. While Harry could understand that, he was not willing to go along with it anymore. He was already so tired.

"This is the second time I find you here, in a place you should not have excess too. Is this going to be a regular occurrence?" a familiar deep voice asked from behind him.

Harry turned around, a relaxed smile dancing on his lips. "Maybe. It seems as though this is the only place I can get ahold of you. Thought I would take the chance to see if I could see you here. You look good, Batman."

Lips tightened in response and the black clad man found himself tightening his fists. "If you can tell me how you got up here, I will be able to warn the owner. Wayne Enterprises deals with weaponry. If there is a hitch in the security, it is best if they know now rather than later."

"Oh?" Harry asked mischievously. "This has nothing to do with your curiosity over me?"

"If I wanted to know about you, all I need to do is to look you up."

"Then, why haven't you?"

The challenge and laughter in the smaller man's voice caused Batman to frown. "How do you know whether or not I have looked you up?"

"You would at least use my name had you looked me up. Am I wrong?"

Batman remained silent, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the shorter man. Harry leaned back against the railing and studied the man before him. There really was something about him that simply called out to Harry.

"Why do you keep coming over to me? I do not think I have done anything to capture your interest…well, except coming up here. Why are you really here, Batman?"

There was a challenge in that question. A challenge Batman wanted dearly do answer. However, he stayed still and said nothing as he studied the younger man.

Harry almost moaned at the feel of his magic playing against his skin. Whatever it was that was going on between him and Batman had his magic acting out. Harry had never experienced something like this. He just knew that his magic approved of Batman and longed to be by the taller man's side. His eyes darkened at that thought. Now though was not the time to be giving in to his magic's games. He needed to keep his wits around Batman. So he kept his eyes on Batman and waited for him to answer his question.

Neither knew how exactly it happened. If anyone asked Harry, he would have said he had nothing to do with it. If anyone asked Batman, he would have answered that it was a moment of insanity that will never ever be repeated again.

One moment Harry was looking up at Batman challengingly. The next moment, his back was pressed painfully against the railing, one hand curled tightly against the metal as he steadied himself and another was curled on Batman's bicep. His lips were taken almost brutally by the dark knight. One of Batman's hands curled against Harry's head to keep it still while the other was curled possessively around Harry's waist. His lips had descended against Harry's in a swift move that even the former war survivor had not expected. The warmth of those thin lips against Harry's left the wizard's mind spiraling out of focus. He tried to move but the hold on his head and waist tightened. Unable to move, he slipped the hand on Batman's bicep up to his neck and pulled himself flush against the muscular body. He kissed back, fiercely to match the pace the taller man forced on him.

This unexpected move caused Batman to move back a little but this time Harry pressed insistently against him. He softened the kiss and Batman followed his lead, kissing the younger man softly. It was rather unexpected but Harry did not find himself caring at all. Batman's lips felt amazing against his. He licked the older man's lips and playfully nipped it before he heard Batman growl and retaliate. Harry chuckled but stopped and moaned as Batman used the opportunity to slip his tongue inside to taste him.

By now, both Harry's arms were around Batman's neck and Batman's arms were around his neck and waist. The two separated and came back over and over again for more. Their kisses turned from soft insistent ones to more open mouthed passionate ones. It was as though neither can stop tasting the other. No matter how many times they both thought to stop, the other would initiate the next kiss and they fell into the loop once more.

Harry's moans and whimpers spurred Batman on while Batman's growls and groans excited Harry. They moved around each other to try and get a better hold or a better angle. It was during this unexpected dance that Harry found himself against the wall, his legs wrapped tightly around Batman's waist and his hands were holding Batman's head firmly. Batman had pushed himself right against Harry, feeling the slender figure tentatively through his thick suit. He had one hand on Harry's ass and another around his shoulder. Their tongues continued battling against one another until Harry tilted his head, caught Batman's tongue with his teeth and sucked. The answering groan had him almost coming in his jeans.

They would have continued mindlessly, in the open had Batman not caught the sudden panicked call on the police radio. He pressed his head against the junction of Harry's shoulder and stilled forcefully, trying to make out what was being said. Harry remained silent. Instead of badgering his impromptu kissing partner, he worked on steadying his breath, an act which was not easy.

"I've got to go."

Harry nodded and slid his legs down Batman's body. He had not expected it to be a sensual act but apparently it was as Batman's breath hitched. He grinned at the taller man.

"You better go get them, tiger."

Batman's answering growl only made him laugh breathlessly. "I can't exactly say 'Go get them, bat' right? It doesn't sound as cool. 'Sides, you growl enough like one."

Batman briefly wondered if he could bang his head against the wall.

"I'll catch you around?" Harry finally asked. He was not sure exactly what happened between them but he did not want to simply let this go. What happened between them had the potential for something more. Though, even Harry knew that neither was ready for something more.

"I'll see you here."

"Okay."

Batman moved away and turned to leave before he stopped and turned to face the dark haired man. Harry was leaning against the wall, his face flushed with pleasure, his eyes darkened with desire and his pants blatantly tented.

He was the very picture of debauchery.

Batman wanted nothing more than to go back to Harry and finish what they started. Instead, he forcefully remained still and imprinted the sight to his mind.

"I'll see you around," he finally said. The answering beam was definitely worth it.

"I'll be here. Oh…not next weekend though. I have something on. I'll see you the week after."

Batman nodded, turned around and disappeared into the dark. Behind him, Harry slid to the ground and touched his lips in amazement.

"Definitely will be here. Wow! That guy can seriously kiss."

He looked down at his pants and sighed.

"And I have a date with some ice cold water. Well, damn!"

XXX

Bruce Wayne seriously tried to resist the urge of slamming his head repeatedly against any wall he could find. He really could not believe what he had done. Despite being almost a week since the incident, he could not get the taste of green-eyes out of his head.

First of all, he was not even sure why he had kissed green eyes in the first place. It was truly a moment of insanity. All he could remember was the way the other man had leaned against the railing, his body slouched lazily and looking like it was on display. Then, his forest green eyes had darkened, just a tad, and Bruce just knew he had to taste the man. After weeks of wondering how the man tasted, he just wanted to sate his curiosity.

He wanted to prove to himself that he was in no way attracted to the green eyed man. He wanted it all to be some sort of phrase. He wanted it to be nothing significant because otherwise, his unsatisfying sex life was due to the man before him. That was what he wanted.

The fates were apparently laughing at him because the moment his lips touched the younger man's, he was lost. The sheer sweetness of the younger man's lips against his, the scent of his musk and the feel of his body pulled Bruce in. It was also the first time he wished he was not wearing the damned suit. When Green-Eyes reached up and hooked his hand around Bruce's neck, he cursed the cowl he was wearing. He could just imagine the way Green-Eyes' hands would clench his hair in the moment of passion.

He had just wanted one kiss to disapprove his theory and ended up kissing the dark haired Brit within an inch if his life. Bruce had never lost control like that. Even at the most intimate moments of his life, he had been in control. To know that this one man managed to strip his hard earned control with just his kisses was enough to excite and terrify the older man.

He wished he could see the man once more. However, this was a party his genius mind had thought of and now he was stuck entertaining a bunch of suck ups who were trying to –discretely- find out about his self-imposed exile and return. Bruce wished he could simply snort but proper manners and decorum had been instilled in him since he was a child.

More than anything else, he wished he could get rid of the harpy on his arm. Her laughter irritated him. Her voice was grating. Her scent was too overpowering. He knew he was being unfair. The woman was beautiful with dark hair and green eyes but everything seemed wrong. Her hair was not the right texture. Her eyes were not green enough. Her scent was too feminine.

Yet he smiled and patted her hand and entertained her as he would any of the other women he entertained. He mingled with the guests, accepted their praises and deflected their probing questions. All the while, his mind was on someone else entirely and he wondered what his –lover? – companion was doing.

That was until a flash of forest green eyes in the crowd caught his eyes.

XXX

Harry had been on cloud nine since that day on the roof. Batman had agreed to see him once more. The older man also seemed as though he was reluctant to leave, which was a good thing as far as Harry knew. He also knew he needed to come clean to the protector of Gotham sooner rather than later but even that depended on what direction their relationship took them. For now, Harry was ready to go slow and steady and figure it out at their pace.

The party was a huge success. Everyone managed to do better than what was expected. Of course, the highlight of the party was Harry's cooking. The food kept disappearing at an alarming rate and servers were overworked with how many times they had to go between the kitchen and the party.

Harry was actually rather glad that it was coming towards the end of the meal and the start of the dessert. He was extremely tired and he was definitely looking forward to his bed. He smiled tiredly at one of the cooks and continued to fill the trays with cold desserts, suitable for a warm night. With all their servers worked to the max, Harry decided to deliver the first two trays to the front first to start of the dessert round.

He navigated through the bodies expertly and placed the new trays at the serving table. The servers smiled haggardly at him before two of them took the trays to serve. He turned and walked back to the kitchen as he knew there was still a lot of work to do. In his haste, he did not notice the figure trying to reach for him.

XXX

Bruce stilled when he saw a flash of familiar green eyes. He was here. He could not believe that the man he was thinking of was here of all places. He instantly said something to his companion to discourage her from following and slipped around the people in the around to get to the one man he was thinking about. He barely paid attention to where he was going and found himself back inside his house.

He saw a flash of dark hair disappearing around a corner and increased the speed of his steps to the point he was almost running. Without stopping, Bruce took the corner only to run straight into a server boy. The server fell heavily to the floor and the tray clanged noisily. Luckily, it was empty or it would have made quite a mess. Bruce too had fallen to the floor and winced at the loud noise. This was not what he wanted to happen right at that moment.

"Master Wayne?"

Wincing, Bruce looked up to see Alfred starring at the scene in confusion. Bruce flushed, immediately got up, dusted his clothes and held out a hand to the young server, who apologized profusely over the mess. He waved the youngster's apologies away and Alfred ushered him back to the kitchen. In the silence, he studied his young master and blinked in confusion. Bruce looked harried and frustrated. He was looking around for something before he gave up and leaned against the wall. In the shadowy corner, he covered his face with his hand and sighed. What the hell was wrong with him?

"Is there something I can help you with, Master Wayne? You seem troubled," Alfred offered tentatively. Bruce shook his head.

"I don't think so, Alfred. Not unless you saw a dark haired green eyed British man passing by. Don't worry about it. I better get back to the party."

He did not even turn to see Alfred's reaction. All he wanted to do was to figure out the depth of his obsession over a man he refused to investigate. Damn it all! He did not even know the man's name. Bruce sighed and put on his game face as he walked out to entertain his guests once more. At this moment, his name did not matter. Next time though, he would get his name and maybe find out what Green-Eyes was doing in Wayne Manor.

Alfred watched the back of Bruce Wayne until he disappeared around the corner. Then he leaned back at the shadowy spot, thought back to the scene and started laughing loudly until his stomach hurt. He was practically bowed over when a familiar British accented voice called out to him.

Alfred looked up at Harry's confused expression. "Are you alright, Alfred?"

Alfred once again saw the scene that had played before him in slow motion. He remembered Bruce's bewildered expression and the loss of control Bruce prided himself with.

Somehow, that started another peel of laughter.

Harry stared at the figure of Alfred laughing to tears before him and tilted his head in confusion. He really had no idea what was wrong but he hoped it was not serious.

XXX

Author's Note:

Hey guys! I'm back with another chapter! This is still nice and lighthearted. Some of you have questioned when Bruce and Harry will meet. Well, they will….soon. Just not yet. I'm actually having fun toying with Bruce like this and Harry is really rather oblivious.

Thank you all for your reviews. Your support helped me write a new chapter. I apologize for any unanswered questions. I also apologize for the long absence. The chapter refused to write and I had another idea playing in my head which insisted on being written first. For any Naruto fans, please check out my first Kakashi x Naruto pairing story, "When You Look Me In The Eyes". Feedback would be great! If you guys think I can improve my writing in any way, feel free to give me any advice.

Once again, thank you for your support. I really appreciate it. For now, I bid you all a good day and hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Happy Thanksgiving!