Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

#1 - Baseball Game (Gotham Knights)
#2 - "I just gave you a hug, what more do you want from me???"
#3 - Vacation
#4 - "He is like a vampire, but instead of blood, it's coffee."
#5 - "Yo mama so-" "My mama is dead" "Oh, yeah. Right..."
#6 - "-And that is exactly why Wonder Woman is the only valid member of the Justice League."
#7 - Magic AU
#8 - "I am a luxury *dramatic pause* few can afford."
#9 - Uncle Superman
#10 - Platonic Soulmate AU
#11 - Road Trip
#12 - Halloween
#13 - "Rise, my Satanic Furby!"
#14 - "Hey there, Demons. It's me, ya boi."
#15 - Wings AU
#16 - Assassin AU
#17 - Haunted House
#18 - Character A and Character B, sworn enemies, are in charge of preparing the annual Christmas party
#19 - "Due to the fact that Bruce Wayne is almost never spotted in public when Batman is injured, one can conclude that they are in fact... dating. In this essay, I will-"
#20 - Villain AU
#21 - Fake Family AU (Like Fake Dating, but instead it's platonic)
#22 - Civilian AU
#23 - "I disrespect your city, Superman! Look at me!! I'm dancing on your streets. This is my city now!"
#24 - "Cool motive, still murder."
#25 - "Omg, you're hurt!" "It's okay, pain is temporary and we're all gonna die one day."
#26 - "You're not a bad person. You deserve to be saved."
#27 - "I just wanted to be like you." "And I wanted you to be better."
#28 - Royalty AU
#29 - "I am your brother, I think I'm perfectly entitled to be protective!"
#30 - "I had the same teacher you did two years ago, so now you are legally required to give me all your homework."
#31 - "I know you think I'm a horrible person, but please, just let me keep you safe. Just this once."
#32 - "You have a boyfriend/girlfriend/partner!" "Yes, I'm 18, I'm allowed to date." "No, no you're not. I just made it illegal."
#33 - "I know you want to stab me, but please, not the butterknife. Let me have some dignity."
#34 - "No one cares" "I care" "No one important cares"
#35 - "Why are you drinking vodka at 2 in the afternoon?"
#36 - *sarcastically* "How tragic."
#37 - "Fun story, but in which chapter do you shut up?"
#38 - IKEA
#39 - Twitter AU
#40 - Prison AU
#41 - Vampire & Werewolf AU
#42 - Celebrity AU
#43 - "If you make one more pun, I will shove your head through the wall."
#44 - *sarcastically* "Here's a fun idea for bonding time! Leave me alone."
#45 - High School AU
#46 - Rival Sports Teams AU

Chapter Text

Tim was screwed. Tim was completely and utterly screwed. Why? Why would he make such a horrible decision? He's ruined everything. He agreed to let Stephanie met his parents, how could he turn her down. She has been nothing but amazing over the past few weeks, and she only asked to meet his parents. Tim could write an entire novel about why it was such a bad idea to let that happen, but it could be summed down to two main points.

The first being that Stephanie couldn't know what his parents were like. Cold, distant, and so incredibly judgemental. What if she thought he would grow up to be just like them? What if she couldn't deal with them and left? He couldn't let that happen, he loved Stephanie, loved being around her. He doesn't know what he'd do if she thought that he would turn out just as bad as them.

The second point was that his parents couldn't meet Steph. They were very strict about the 'You will grow up to take over Drake Industries and marry a wealthy heiress that will boost out image'. Tim hated it, it was so old fashioned. Not to mention that Stephanie came from a poor family. Her father had a rap sheet longer than the periods of time his parents ignore him. Her mother was an addict. If his parents found out, they would tear into her, force Tim to end their relationship.

But he made the mistake of saying yes to her request. How was he supposed to break this to her? That he was actually the kid of two millionaires and that his parents were the monsters under your bed. To her, he might be her boyfriend, but he was also just the average kid who sat next to her in Math.

A voice broke through Tim's panic, bringing him back to the present. "Hey, are you even listening to me?" Jason asked. Jason was his English tutor. As smart as Tim may be, he just couldn't seem to grasp some of the concepts they teach in class. It didn't help that he never paid attention to the teacher. Janet and Jack Drake are friends with Bruce Wayne, so they managed to get Jason Todd-Wayne to tutor him since he was something of a prodigy. Over the past few months, he and Jason had spent every Monday and Thursday afternoon together and they had grown closer. Despite the fact that Jason was two years old than him at 17, he felt like one of the only real friends Tim had ever had. He was insanely hilarious, if not highly blunt and sarcastic. He was prone to ranting, often on topics like fictional characters, types of cars, and being respectful to women, and it was a hell of a lot more interesting than his teachers droning on about the quadratic formula.

Normally Tim would try to pay attention if only to be nice to Jason, but with everything going on, his mind kept slipping.

"Sorry, just a lot on my mind. You were talking about Charles Dickens?" Tim asked, turning to look at the black-haired boy. Jason gave him a deadpan look before gesturing to one of the many papers on the table inside the Wayne Manor Library. It was on Shakespeare's plays and the themes behind them. Oh well, he tried.

"If you're not going to pay attention, at least tell me what wrong," Jason said, tilting his head to the side as if he were trying to dissect Tim's mind. On one hand, Tim was here to study and he didn't want to burden Jason with his problems. But he also needed help and Jason was great at thinking about things from outside the box. In fact, most of Jason's solutions aren't even in the same galaxy as the box. With a sigh, Tim explained.

"Stephanie wants to meet my parents and I said yes." Tim picked at the loose string on the hem of his shirt.

"Well, isn't that a good thing? Relationship progression and all that??" Tim let the string go and looked Jason in the eye.

"You have met my parents, right?" Jason winced before shrugging.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. So what are you going to do?" Jason asked, leaning forward in his seat.

"Do? I'm not going to do anything. Just accept my fate and all that. I mean, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I already agreed to let Steph meet my parents. If I follow through on that, it puts our relationship at risk. If I bail on her, she'll be mad at me and it will put our relasionship at risk. I can't lose her. I know it's only been like a month and a half, but Jay, she is one of the few good things in my life right now. The only thing I can do is hope for the best," Tim groaned, putting his head in his hands. Jason just hummed.

"Maybe not," he said. Tim poked his head up, his eyebrows furrowed.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that's not your only option. Stephanie doesn't know who your parents are, right?" Jason asked, getting that look on his face. That look is one Tim likes to call I-have-a-crazy-idea-that-could-either-cause-armageddon-or-cure-world-hunger-and-there-is-no-in-between. It was a look that Tim fell victim to too many times. Ever so, Tim still went with it.

"No, not yet."

"Disregarding the fact that that is probably information you should have told her about earlier in your relationship, I think I have an idea." Tim made a go-ahead motion with his hand. "What if we get Bruce to pretend to be your dad?"

It was like one of those movie scenes where everything pauses and they play a record scratch over it. "Wait, what?!" Tim knew this would end badly, but Jason was on a roll. There was no stopping him now.

"Yes, yes, this will work! I mean, Bruce is already a compulsive liar (don't tell him I said that, he only lie to you and tell you he's not) so he'll have no problem playing his part. Dick is never home due to the fact he has a 'social life', whatever that is, so we don't need to worry about him. You have mastered the art of literally not caring about anything whatsoever unless you have at least 3 cups of coffee."

"Hey!"

"I'm like the President of the Drama Club, so I can pull my own weight and if the dinner goes off as planned, then you and Steph can continue to be a happy couple and all that romantic bull crap. It's foolproof!!" Jason looked so proud of himself that Tim didn't have the heart to tell him that this plan was definitely not foolproof. For one, they can't keep this lie up forever. Two, they don't have nearly enough time to come up with an effective backstory. Three, when (not if, when) Stephanie finds out, she will be pissed. Besides, Murphy's Law, what can go wrong, will go wrong.

But even if Stephanie does find out, there is no telling when. Tim would have enough time to figure out how to tell her without sounding like a jerk. He didn't want to lie to Steph, he's heard it many times, honest communication was a must when you're dating someone. Another must is not letting your parents murder your date, so Tim was stuck.

"If I do agree to this, frankly crazy idea. Will you help me come up with a few thousand good reasons why Stephanie shouldn't dump me when she finds out, and she will," Tim asked. Jason nodded his head.

"Yeah, sure, why not. I mean, what could go wrong?" Everything, everything could go wrong.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Bruce Wayne was standing in front of him, above him was probably a more appropriate term. The 6'1" mammoth of a man towered above Tim's 5'7" and 135 pounds while wet frame, still he wasn't intimidated. Bruce was basically a gentle giant, the only time Tim had been truly scared was when Bruce had found out that there were kids at school bullying Jason. That was five years ago, Tim was ten at the time, and he couldn't forget it. Those kids certainly hadn't. There was a frown on his face, but his eyes were searching Tim's face. He knew that his answer actually mattered to him, which is not a feeling Tim felt often growing up with Janet and Jack Drake. Nevertheless, Tim nodded his head.

"Yeah, if only to get more time." The frown disappeared and he bent down to fix the tie on Tim's suit. Tim had called his parents to tell them he was spending the night with Jason so they could study more and play video games. Since he couldn't go back home, Jason lent him one of his old suits.

"Ok, Selina will be here soon," Bruce said standing up straight. The older man had contacted her once Jason filled him in on the plan. While she and Bruce were on one of their off periods, she still agreed to come. Tim had met her a few times and she was pretty cool. Selina had a whole bunch of cats though and Tim was allergic, so she wasn't as cool. "Remember, you are my youngest son, I adopted you when you were 9. Jason was 11 at the time and Dick was 14. Dick left when he was 17 and moved to Bludhaven, but he visits often. On the off chance, she asks about who your biological parents are you, what do you tell her?"

"They both died of sickness when I was young," Tim supplied.

"Ok, and I assume you know enough about us to improve if needs be," Bruce said, sitting down in one of the chairs in the living room. Tim nodded before coming to sit across from him. It was silent for a minute before Tim spoke up.

"Hey, Bruce, I just want to say thanks. You didn't have to do this, and I-uh, appreciate it," Tim stuttered, his gaze on Jason's hand-me-down shoes.

"Anytime, Tim-"Bruce was about to continue when Jason burst into the room. He yelled something along the line of 'The package has arrived!!!!', which probably meant Stephanie was here. Bruce stood up to go get the door and left Tim to think.

He wondered exactly how real this was. They weren't wrong when they said there is a little bit of truth to every lie. Whenever Tim was over, Bruce always checked in at least once to make sure he was okay. He was always supportive, even if it was in little ways. He and Jason even showed up to a few of Tim's robotic competitions whenever his nannies couldn't (as a 15-year-old, Tim was quite upset that he still had nannies, but it was better than nothing). He couldn't remember the last time his own parents had come to support Tim at any of his events. He wondered if this was what it was like to have a real dad.

Surprisingly, the first impressions had gone off without a hitch. Stephanie believed the story they sold and Jason didn't even say anything mildly threatening and/or concerning, which was a good thing considering he had once said he would slice Tim's foot off and shove it down his throat if he didn't get his feet off the table. Ah, the ever-intriguing brotherly love. Wait, brotherly?

After she had finished putting her coat back on so Alfred could give her a ride home, she pulled Tim to the side.

"I'd like to think, as far as meeting the parents for the first time goes, that was pretty good," Steph said, a crooked smile on her face.

"Yeah, but of course it did. You're amazing," Tim said, reaching out to grab her hand. A light blush covered both their checks as Stephanie leaned forward to plant a kiss on Tim's cheek.

"Yeah, well, I know that." Stephanie dramatically flipped her hair and Tim let out a snort. It was quiet for a second before Stephanie said: "You're really lucky, you know?" Tim made a confused noise and tilted his head to the side.

"What do you mean?"

"Your family is what I mean, genius. For such a smart guy you're pretty dull, I hope you know that."

"Wow, thanks," Tim responded sarcastically.

"You're welcome!... But seriously though, you'd have to be a blind man to see how much they care. I mean, your dad practically ranted on about how you high you scored on your SAT. He's so proud of you, I wish I had parents like that." 'I wish I did too' Tim wanted to say, but he had kept up the lie so far, there was no need to ruin it.

"Yeah..." Tim let out a chuckle and awkwardly rubbed his neck. They both leaned forward to take one last kiss before Stephanie pulled her hand out of Tim's.

"Well, I'm gonna head out I guess. See you later, alligator." Stephanie pointed finger guns at him, which Tim returned, before heading over to Alfred and the car. Tim thought over Steph's words. They were just acting, it was nothing more than a lie. Well, at least, that's what his brain was trying to convince him of. He wanted so desperately for it to be real. Looking over at the three. Selina, giving him a little smirk, Jason calling him over him over, and Bruce giving him a smile, it brought a feeling of home he never found with his real parents. And frankly, that made him happy.

Chapter Text

"What the f-" A yell disturbed Tim's fragile state of rest. Opening an eye, he glanced at the figure in the doorframe. Jason stood there, wearing his classic leather jacket and slightly pissed expression. He was holding a grocery bag which held what looked like ice cream and whiskey.

Groaning, Tim sat up on the couch. "Oh, hey Jay." Tim was still dressed in his Red Robin suit, sans the cowl. "What are you doing here?" Jason sputtered before tossing the grocery bag onto the countertop.

"What am I doing here? Replacement, I live here," Jason said, walking closer to the couch. It was coming back to Tim now, the fight with Ivy and his subsequent retreat to the nearest safe house, which happened to be Jason's. Because of course, it had to be Jason's. If anything, Tim should be happy because he was the least likely to tell Bruce, but on the other hand, it's Jason. Jason suddenly stood over him, his eyes narrowed. "Wait, are you hurt?"

"It's okay, pain is temporary and we're all gonna die one day," Tim mumbled, shoving his face into one of the mismatched pillows on Jason's couch. Jason responded by shoving Tim's face back up.

"I'm just gonna ignore that frankly concerning answer and ask what happened?" Jason growled, repositioning Tim so he was sitting upright. Jason pulled off his gloves and boots as well as his utility belt, leaving Tim in his undersuit.

"Wow, Jay, stripping me already?" Tim said, a dopey smirk on his face. Jason scoffed.

"First off, I am well aware of how uncomfortable these uniforms can be if worn for long periods. Second of all, dude, you're my little brother, that's just weird," Jason said walking over to the laundry basket and tossing him a t-shirt and sweatpants. Tim would be lying if he said that the little brother thing didn't make him smile a little. "And back to my original question, what did you do?"

"Why do you assume it was my fault?" Tim asked, pulling the undersuit off and replacing it with Jason's borrowed clothes. Jason rolled his eyes before scanning the boy before him. His eyes locked onto a nasty cut on his upper arm.

"Well, was it?" Jason's voice rang out from the kitchen where he retrieved a first aid kit.

"Well, uh, I guess."

"That's what I thought. So what did you do?" Jason put a wet cloth over the cut, applying a bit of pressure. Tim winced at the pain, but then again, he's had worse.

"Ivy attacked one of the law firms near crime alley because they had defended one of those chemical plant companies and won. I stepped in, but then she hit me with one of those poison dust thingies and everything is a little loopy after that. Not sure when I got the cut though," Tim said, leaning his head back against the couch. Jason removed the cloth and started cleaning the wound with antiseptic wipes.

"Why didn't you contact someone else. Ivy is not an opponent you take on on your own." Out of everyone in the family, Jason was probably the person Tim would least expect the lecture from, but apparently, he was wrong. It was even stranger that Jason sounded weird while he was saying it. Like he wasn't just yelling at him for the sake of yelling at him, but actually concerned about him.

"Dick and Demon are with the Titans right now. B is in space with the League. Steph said something about not contacting her unless the world is ending because she; and Cass are having a girls night out," Tim sighed, looking up at the swirling lights on the ceiling. He didn't remember Jason having cool lights.

"Why didn't you call me?" Jason asked while wrapping his arm. Tim just shrugged. The lights had started to get brighter.

"Didn't think you'd come," He answered after a minute of silence. Jason's hands froze.

"What do you mean you didn't think I'd come?"

"You hate me. I mean, like you tried to kill me, dude. You're probably only fixing me up because Dick would be upset if you didn't." Jason let out a strangled noise before he scoffed.

"God, you're really stupid you know that right?" Tim lifted his head up to look at Jason. He was looking at him like Tim had just told him he was secretly a unicorn. "I used to hate you, yeah, and sure I tried to kill you, but Tim- I- listen, if there was one thing I would change in the past few years, it would be that. You didn't deserve that. I was furious and hurt because I woke up six feet under only to find out Bruce had replaced me not even two months after my death. I wanted so hard to be angry at you, but it was Bruce all along. I took out my frustration on you, going so far as to try to kill you.'

But now, Tim if there is anyone in this family I actually like being around, it's you. It's just to hard to hate you, I would know. And it wouldn't be just Dick who would be upset if anything happened to you. Steph, Cass, Barbara, even the Demon Brat. And Bruce, you should hear the way he talks about you. He is so proud of you and if you go and do something stupid like I did, and you died. He would cross the line, so even if you think everyone is too busy or just doesn't care, reach out anyway. Please," Jason looked at him, and for once, Tim was taken back by the seriousness on his face.

"I- yeah, ok," Tim nodded as Jason finished wrapping the cut.

"Good, now can we move on, I don't know if my ego can handle another chick-flick moment." The normal cynicism and general standoffishness was back. Tim only nodded as his head started to spin.

"Don' feel so good," Tim slurred. A flash of panic appeared on Jason's face, but it disappeared as soon as it arrived.

"Don't worry, that's only your body fighting the toxins, just go to sleep for once," Jason said, taking a seat next to him. Tim leaned over to rest his head on Jason's shoulder. Jason started humming a song that Tim couldn't recognize, but that coupled with the hand in his hair helped him relax. The world started to go dark as Jason pulled a blanket over Tim.

"Thanks," Tim murmured.

"Yeah, just don't go telling the others, I have a reputation you know," Jason said, his soft tone contradicting his words. Tim let out a small laugh before finally falling asleep.

Chapter Text

Damian was going to stab someone, that he was sure of. Another thing he was certain of was that someone would be Jason Peter Todd-Wayne. The only thing he was unsure of was whether he would stab him before or after Todd shot him. Whoever's brilliant idea it was for them to work together was about to lose a few toes (It was probably Grayson).

Every year father hosted a Christmas Gala. It was the biggest event of the year and it was a time of squeezing every dollar possible out of the attendees. The funds raised by the even would go to charities all over Gotham to help underprivileged kids experience Christmas. While it was for a good cause, Damian hated the gala. Because it was hosted in his own home, there was no escape from the fake smiles and elderly women pinching his cheek and calling him cute. The only thing that Damian hated more, was the Christmas Day Party.

The Christmas Day Party was a smaller event, only family members and close friends attended. But because it was only for family members means that both Todd and Drake were in attendance. They were the bane of his existence and he was already forced to spend enough time with them as it is. When he heard that Todd had agreed to come this year, Damian thought it wouldn't get any worse. He was wrong.

Both Todd and himself have been appointed the jobs of planning the party and Damian was ready to run him through with a katana.

"No, Brat, it's Christmas, we can't have black streamers. That's just depressing, we are going with red<' Todd repeated for the third time.

"Tt, clearly you haven't paid attention to the decor in the manor. Red will clash with the color scheme and I will not be held responsible for your decorating shortcomings. If you cannot agree with me then maybe you should leave the planning to me, seeing as I am clearly the superior decorator," Damian said hanging another gold ornament onto the giant tree. Considering they were so focused on making sure the decorations looked perfectly, it was strange to see the tree this way. It had the classic red, green, and gold ornaments, but there were other odd additions. A few of the paper ornaments they had all made in class at one point were hanging on the tree, as were strands of popcorn. It only got weirder from there. Random domino masks and pieces of their uniforms were hanging from the branches. Damian was certain that the red rug under the tree was one of Superman's capes. Multiple replicas of Hal Jordan's ring sat near the bottom of the tree and a Wonder Woman doll served as an angel on the top. Superboy's glasses were right next to one of the many Batarangs on the tree. If any civilian managed to wander into the family room, their secret identities would be immediately threatened. Nevertheless, Grayson insisted on the garish decor.

"I seriously can't believe you just used the term 'superior decorator'," Todd shot him an incredulous look. Damian scoffed. "But, no, unfortunately, we have to work together. If I left all the planning to you then I'd be too focused on watching out for booby traps rather than enjoying my first Christmas back with family."

"I am going to end Grayson for thinking that you and I would be an appropriate partnership. If he thinks he can get away with disgracing me like this, then he clearly doubts my conviction," Damian growled while aggressively shoving one of Arsenal's arrows in between the branches.

"Cool motive, still murder," Todd said while reaching up to tie Zatanna's bowtie to a branch.

"You talk like you hold the moral high ground here Todd. What's your kill count again?" Damian asked smugly before pulling a chair over so he could reach higher on the tree.

"It's gonna be one more if you don't shut up." Todd rolled his eyes, fixing one of Kid Flash's googles.

"I'd enjoy watching you attempt that, Todd. I am clearly the more advanced combatant here," Damian scoffed. If looks could kill Todd would be a pile of ashes, but unfortunately, he wasn't a Kryptonian. He'd have to settle for intimidation.

"Oh, wow, I'm shaking in my socks right now." Sarcasm dripped from his voice. "But, like, seriously though. You are 2'4" at most. What are you gonna do? Headbutt me in the shins?"

"First of all, I am 4'8". Second of all, say goodbye to your kneecaps, you uneducated urchin," He snarled, tossing a cheap Justice League themed ornament at his head. Todd swatted it out of the air with a laugh.

"Nice try, Brat. So how 'bout we settle on gold streamers and call it a day. I don't know about you, but frankly, I'd prefer just to get this over with."

"Tt, that is something we can both agree on, Todd."

The day of the party had arrived and Jason was proud of himself. Damian had been relatively passive compared to what he was normally like and they had managed to effectively throw a mediocre party. Of course, there were downfalls, Damian's attendance being one of them.

They were in the middle of opening the presents. So far, Dick had gotten no less than three t-shirts that had some sort of dick pun. Tim was already reaping the benefits of the brand new computer system Bruce had gotten him. Barbara has collected an army of superhero-themed plushies and Bruce was drinking from five different Worlds Best Dad mugs. One of those was from Jason, of course. It was originally a Worlds Best Mom mug, but he scratched it out with a sharpie and wrote Dad. Bruce looked like he was going to cry when he saw it and nearly crushed Jason to death with one of the rare hugs he gives out. Barbara had gotten Cass new ballet shoes and she looked like she was dying to try them out, but she stayed behind to watch Stephanie open the present from her.

So far Jason has only opened his present from Dick, which was a little snowglobe from Colorado, where Dick and Jason had gone skiing a few times while Jason was Robin. He was not crying, he wasn't ('Liar' the voice in his head screamed).

So once Stephanie opened her present Tim leaned forward, about to grab another one of his presents when Damian shot forward and swatted his hand out of the way. Tim made an affronted noise, but Damian had already grabbed a different present. It was rectangular shaped and had 'Todd' written in Damian's neat handwriting on top. Jason heard Dick give out a little coo, but he ignored him.

Damian tossed him the present, a look of indifference on his face, but there was a hint of hopefulness on his face. Jason raised his eyebrow but opened the present anyway. There were two books inside, the first being what looks like a handwritten book by Damian titled "The Art of Defeating Dumb Older Brothers". Jason flipped through the book, it had a lot of pictures and very descriptive language. A laugh bubbled up in his throat.

"I figured since, I can easily defeat you in combat, you might need a little assistance to make the fight a little more fair for you," Damian smirked to which Jason responded:

"As if I'd need help taking down your entire 1'2" baby body" Damian seemed a little more relaxed knowing that Jason liked the first book. Jason put it to the side to look at the second one. It was a first edition copy of Pride & Prejudice. Jason looked back up at Damian. "How did you know I-"

"I asked Grayson, he said that was the first book you read while at the Manor and obviously, I couldn't let you continue reading a regular copy of the book. So, I procured a first edition copy," Damian interrupted him. Jason smiled before yanking the boy forward into his lap and wrapping him into a hug. He let out a yelp and struggled for a moment before relenting.

"If you try this again, I will remove your head from your body, Todd," Damian seethed. Jason could see Dick taking pictures and Stephanie and Tim trying to hide their laughter. He ignored Damian's threat.

"Thanks, Baby Bat. I really like the gifts," Jason said, deciding to go the honest route instead of teasing him like he normally would. Damian looked up at him as if he was trying the read his mind before he relaxed and leaned back against Jason's chest.

"Well, of course you like them. I picked them," Damian said, in a weak attempt to regain his dignity.

"Omg, this is too cute," Dick squealed from where he was sitting next to the Babs. Jason just rolled his eyes and flipped him the bird. For his first Christmas back home, it wasn't bad.

Chapter Text

Jason laid across the towel. The sun was beating down on him and the man next to him. Dick thought it would be a great idea for them to spend the day at the pool behind Wayne Manor, he was wrong. The sweltering heat made it difficult to get up, much less walk all the way over to the pool. Even Dick's undying optimism was faltering seeing as he had stopped trying to cheer Jason up ten minutes ago.

Bruce was gone for the weekend and Dick had volunteered to watch Jason claiming he wanted to get to know his new baby brother. Of course, it was Sunday and Jason was only just recovering from the "fun" bonding activities Dick planned yesterday. Now he had to suffer in this heat.

With a groan, Jason slowly stood up, dragging his towel with him. Dick's head poked up from where it was resting between his hands. He looked confused.

"Where are you going, Little Wing?" Dick asked, using that infuriating but somewhat tolerable nickname. Jason looked at him like he was crazy.

"Inside, duh. I'm Robin, I refuse to die because of heatstroke," Jason said, kicking Dick lightly in the side, hoping to prompt him to come inside as well. Dick look slightly offended by the suggestion.

"But, we're having bonding time," Dick pouted and for a second, Jason was tempted to indulge his older brother just so he would stop looking at him like that.

"No, we are burning to a crisp in miserable conditions when I could be inside enjoying a book in the nice and cool library," Jason snarked, turning on his heel to head back to the porch. Dick scrambled to his feet behind him and jogged to catch up. Thankfully, Dick was about a foot and a half taller than him (A/N: Due to malnutrition, Jason was a tiny dude when he was Robin, it was his dip in the Lazurus Pit that fixed that. At least, that's my headcanon) so he provided shade over Jason.

"Well, what if do something different for bonding time," Dick suggested, chipper as always. Jason only scowled. How could he be so pleasant in conditions like this?

"Here's a fun idea for bonding time. Leave me alone," Jason shot a glare at Dick before slamming the back door open. He felt Dick pause behind him as Jason stormed off. He was not going to deal with another one of these stupid bonding sessions. The only mistake Jason made, was looking back and seeing Dick's face. He looked hurt, like a kicked puppy. Jason's heart clenched and he wanted to turn around and fix it, but he kept going. None of their bonding activities had been any fun for Jason. They all seemed to be done for Dick's benefit. He didn't enjoy meeting Dick's Titans friends, who disregarded him with a glance. He didn't enjoy going to watch a mindless horror movie with Dick when he had much more interesting literature at home. And he definitely didn't enjoy melting in the July heat.

So, Jason left Dick standing there and definitely didn't feel guilty about it.

Jason felt guilty. He couldn't even focus on his book, which was a first for him. He kept going back to reread the same page because his mind kept going back to Dick. An hour had passed and Dick hasn't come to bother him yet, so Jason must've really messed up. Dick was only trying to be nice. He dropped all his plans for the weekend to come to spend time with Jason. To get to know his brother better and Jason had shoved that back in his face.

Jason put the book down on the side table and stood up. He walked over to the door, about to go find Dick, before he paused. What if Jason really did hurt Dick's feelings and he was angry. Would he hurt him? He didn't want Dick to turn out like Willis. Jason doesn't know what he'd do if he does.

The logical part of his mind screamed that he should just apologize, that Dick wouldn't hurt him. But his emotional brain kept bringing up images of Willis, what he did to him and his mom. His breathing quickened and he leaned against the wall to stop himself from falling over. It was to no avail as Jason slid down to the ground anyway. He curled into a ball as memories started to flood his vision.

He remembered Willis coming home drunk every evening. The slur of his voice and the sharp words he spewed. Sometimes he would use a belt or his hands. If he had one, he would use a beer bottle or burn a circle into Jason's shoulders using a cigarette. But it was okay because he'd rather it be him than his mama. Most times Jason was able to jump in before Willis hurt his mom, who was usually high as a kite.

Jason's hands shook as he wrapped them around himself in an attempt to comfort himself.

He was so caught up in his panic that he didn't notice the soothing hand rubbing circles on his back. A voice broke through the haze.

"Hey Jay, come on, breathe with me," Dick said, pulling Jason into his lap. He started to exaggerate his breathing. Jason pressed his face into Dick's chest and attempted to follow the pattern. Dick started talking about random things. The old lady who he helped cross the street the other day, how many planes flew over Gotham in a day, a funny joke he told Kid Flash the other day, among other things. Eventually, Jason's breathing returned to normal as Dick rambled.

"You good now?" Dick asked, pausing in his story about the essay he wrote in 8th grade. Jason nodded before responding.

"Yeah, sorry for that. For everything," Jason mumbled. Dick stopped rubbing circles into his back only to start running his hand through Jason's hair.

"There's nothing to be sorry for Jay," Dick hummed. Jason batted his hand out of his hair and looked up at Dick.

"But there is, I was a jerk earlier. You were only tryna be nice and I- I-," Jason paused, a small frown on his face as he looked down at his hands. "You must hate me now."

"Awwww, Little Wing. I could never hate you," Dick said, putting his hand under Jason's chin and lifting his face to look at his own.

"Really?" He asked hesitantly. Dick smiled before wrapping his arms around Jason and bringing him in for a hug.

"Really," Dick stated, "But if you really are sorry, how about another bonding activity?"

Jason raised his eyebrows. "I just gave you a hug, what more do you want from me?" Dick laughed and gave him a smile that could power entire solar systems.

"Nothing more than your love and affection, Jay," He said, not knowing he already had both.

"Geez, you're such a sap," Jason scoffed.

"I try my best," Dick smirked. He pulled his little brother into another embrace, one that Jason wholeheartedly returned.

Chapter Text

The situation wasn't ideal. Trapped for who knows how long in an unknown place by an unknown enemy. They had gotten the jump on Tim and Damian during a gala held at the Gotham City Children's Center. The men dressed head to toe in top of the line gear and cleared the place out with a scary efficiency, taking anything that looked of value. The party was a smaller one, with more upper-middle-class people than celebrities, so when they spotted Tim and Damian Wayne, the youngest sons of Gotham's most famous citizen, they decided that the boys were of value too.

The bad guys had sedated the brothers taking them to wherever their lair was. Unfortunately, they couldn't even afford good heating. Tim and Damian were in a small room with no windows and one door, which was locked and guarded at all times. There was no furniture bar the small cot in the corner. The floor and walls were grimy and the paint was falling off, but the foundations held strong when Tim tried to breakthrough. The room was dark and cold so Tim and Damian had to huddle together to stay warm.

Every so often they would slide food and some water under the door, but it was barely enough for one person, let alone two growing teenagers. It was usually half a sandwich or maybe some chips. Tim let Damian had it, but as the time started to pass it seemed like he was forcing his little brother to eat it, as Damian started insisting that Tim have some as well. Tim didn't know how long they've been here, but it's been more than a few days at this point. Damian made him one of the sandwich halves at one point, but it didn't help much.

They didn't know what the criminals planned to do with them. Probably ransom, but they couldn't be sure. The walls were soundproofed and it seemed like their breathing were the only sounds for hours at a time. Now they were sitting on the cot, Damian laying in the corner and Tim sitting up against the wall. Despite the dismal conditions, Damian still refused to come any closer, not wanting to 'associate with those who are below me', which is ironic considering he is 4'7".

Tim was staring at the other wall, devising possible escape routes, all of which ended as a failure. They couldn't use any of the training they received as that would put too much suspicion, but even if they did, the chances weren't that great. The men were well trained and well equipped, and without their uniforms, they wouldn't dare take them on. Right now the best solution seemed to be to wait for Bruce to either pay the ransom as Bruce Wayne or rescue them as Batman.

"Drake?" Damian suddenly spoke up, interrupting Tim's thought process. The boy was quieter than normal and even sounded less demanding, which was a small mercy. Tim turned to look at him. Damian's normally dark skin tone was starting to pale slightly due to the lack of sun, he looked thinner and the suit he was wearing at the party was almost dirty and messed up beyond recognition. Tim knew he probably looked similar, if not worse.

"Yeah?" Tim asked, turning back to gaze at the wall. Damian shuffled on the bed before it suddenly got quiet.

"Do you think Father will save us?" He could tell that Damian was trying to sound confident, but there was a small waver of doubt in his voice. Doubt that Tim was very familiar with, after years of neglect by his biological parents it wasn't uncommon to become scared if he didn't at least see or talk to Bruce at least three or four times a week. It had been days since he had last seen his adoptive father.

"Yeah, Damian. I'm sure he is looking everywhere for you," Tim said after a moment of thought.

"For me?" Damian sounded confused. Tim turned back to see Damian's face contorted into a frown that Tim would describe as cute if he didn't know what the 13-year-old's personality was like. Tim just made a noise of affirmation.

"What about you?" Now Tim was frowning. What about him? Damian was Bruce's son, he would burn down the world to find him. Would Bruce do the same for Tim? He knew that Bruce cared, he's been making an effort recently to show that, but Tim had doubts. Tim had too many doubts when it came to family.

"I- I mean, I guess he would be looking for me. Maybe?" Tim stuttered as Damian gave him a calculating look.

"He's looking for both of us," Damian said firmly before leaning back into the corner. That has got to be the nicest thing he had ever said to Tim. The sat in silence before Damian spoke up for a second time. "Why do you think it's taking so long?"

"Um, well, they're probably keeping us here for ransom, right?" Damian nodded. "So, if they haven't reached out to Bruce, it might be hard for him to find us. Bruce was on a League mission when we last talked so he might not know we're gone yet and even if he does know, these guys are professionals. You saw the stuff they had? They came prepared and most likely didn't leave many clues."

"Why wouldn't they have contacted Father yet?" Damian asked, picking at a loose string on his suit jacket. Tim shrugged.

"To cause panic. The longer we're gone without any word from our captors, the more Bruce will worry. They think that if he is scared out of his mind from worry he'd be more likely to pay more than if they immediately contacted him. I mean, they'd still get a lot of money if they did it earlier because Bruce would pay anything for you-"

"For us," Damian cut in. Tim was starting to get worried from all these nice things Damian was saying. If he hadn't been with him for the past few days, he might've thought he was a shapeshifting alien.

"I, yeah, sure. Bruce would still pay anything for us, but they don't know that. They probably think he's like all the other rich parents," Like Jack and Janet Drake, "And doesn't care about his kids, which isn't true, but still."

"Do you have a plan?" Damian asked. Tim sighed, proper food wasn't the only thing they were laking right now, he couldn't figure out a proper way out yet.

"No," Tim kept his answer short as he went back to glaring at the opposite wall. Damian scoffed.

"Wow, now I know why Grandfather calls you 'Detective'," Damian snarked, lightly kicked Tim on his thigh, "Honestly a child could figure out how to get out of this, you're just moronic." Ah, there's the classic Damian.

"Well, if it's soo easy, why don't you get us out?" Tim said, turning his glare to his little brother. Damian returned it with just as much ferocity but stayed silent. Tim snorted, "That's what I thought." Damian growled, opening his mouth to retort when the door slammed open.

A man, dressed in all black, including a mask, stood in front of them. His arms were crossed and he held a gun in his hands. "Get up, you're leaving."

Bruce hadn't paid the ransom. In fact, Bruce hadn't ever heard they were gone. The league mission must have run longer than Tim thought, there was no way Bruce missed this. What if he just doesn't care? I didn't a voice that sounds suspicious like his mom spoke in his head. Tim tried not to think about whether she was right. He tried not to think about all of the doubts she caused him.

The men had taken them to a small warehouse after cuffing Tim and Damian so they couldn't move their hands. The men brought them here in a van, fortunately, they spoke just loud enough that Tim could hear what they said about Bruce. What they didn't talk about is what they would do with the boys. The men were antsy, that was obvious. They had kidnapped two children of the most prominent person in the Gotham and had held them captive for an unknown amount of time in a city known for its dark and brutal vigilantes, Tim doesn't blame them for being scared.

Multiple scenarios ran through Tim's head as they pulled off the sacks on their heads. There were three muscled giants with them. The same masked man from before stood in front of them. The two other men stood nearby. Neither of them was wearing a mask. One had bright red hair with an undercut and the other had an ugly tattoo with random patterns covering the left side of his face. Tim assumed the masked man was the one in charge.

He looked around the warehouse. It was empty and decrepit. Of course, they choose an abandoned warehouse, so cliche. You would think that the Gotham official would take a hint and get rid of all the abanded buildings.

The only good thing about the structure was the windows. The skylights allowed moonlight to fall unto them. Tim winced at the soft light, so used to the darkness, but tried soaking it up anyway. Damian seemed to be doing the same, just less noticeable.

"What are you doing?" Tim asked warily, shuffling closer to Damian. The man looked down at them.

"You are loose ends," He said with an untraceable accent, not answering the question. Nevertheless, Tim's eyes widened almost comically. Everyone knows what happens to loose ends in Gotham.

The man unholstered his gun, pointing it at Damian. In the moment that Tim's heart stopped, multiple things happened. The masked man pulled the trigger which sent a bullet flying right towards the face of his baby brother. Tim moved, right in front of Damian, shoving the boy to the side. And, finally, the pain. No matter how many times they are shot, bruised, or cut it doesn't hurt any less. The pain burned, causing Tim to let out a shout.

Damian was frozen behind him, hands still tied behind his back. But he wasn't focused on that. Despite, the bullet in his chest, Tim could only hope that Damian was okay. Which was strange in itself, considering a) there is a bullet in his chest b) he is probably bleeding to death right now and c) since when had he started caring about Damian?

Damian broke out of it when Tim let out a soft groan. The smaller boy growled at the man in front of him.

"Well, that was unexpected." If Tim wasn't so out of it, he would swear the man was smiling, "But, that doesn't affect anything." Once again, the man turned the gun to Damian, but the boy acted faster. He kicked the weapon out of his hand, away from either of the other men. Damian hit the man where the sun doesn't shine before vaulting onto his back. He used the man's neck the pull off the handcuffs, temporarily cutting off their captor's airways.

Blonde hair and face tattoo ran at Damian, causing the boy to release his chokehold on the bad guy. Tim tried to focus on what happened next but suddenly the ceiling started spinning and he was beginning to lose his grip on consciousness. He wondered if anyone would miss him when he died. Would Bruce mourn for him? Dick? Stephanie? Cass? Jason? He hoped they'd be okay.

The pain flared up as his body was dragged behind one of the crates in the warehouse. Tim hissed, swinging and missing at whoever decided to move him. They caught his fist and kneel down next to him. Damian's face floated in and out of his vision.

"I know you think I'm a horrible person, but please, Drake, just let me keep you safe. Just this once," Damian's voice broke through the haze as he applied pressure to Tim's wound. If he was any more aware, he might have been confused that Damian was worried for him of all people, but imminent death seemed to grab his attention. Tim moaned and tried to lean himself on a crate. If he died, he wanted to die with some dignity. But Damian didn't let him, gently pressing him back into the ground.

"I used one of their phones to contact Father, but you need to stop moving or else you are just going to lose more blood, Drake," Tim mumbled an agreement, hoping his end came soon, he didn't know how much more of Damian's nice little brother act he could handle.

As the world started to go dark, Tim was able to croak out: "Tell the others I'm sorry."

"Tell them yourself!" Damian yelled, pressing harder, but it didn't matter when Tim finally passed out.

He woke up to the smell of the medbay in the Batcave and the beeping of a heart monitor. Bandages were wrapped tightly around his chest and an IV was in his arm. Tim looked around, spotting Bruce sleeping in the chair next to him, holding Tim's hand. A blush spread across his cheek at that, and it got worse when he saw Cass sleeping at the end of his bed, Dick and Jason sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, fast asleep with Jason's head on Dick's shoulder. His family had saved him. They were actually there. For a minute, the dull pain in his chest seemed to be replaced by a warm feeling.

Tim turned his head to find Damian sitting in the other chair. The boy was wide awake and staring at him with what could almost be described as a small smile. Almost.

"You saved me?" Tim said although it was more of a question than a statement. Damian tilted his head to the side.

"Isn't that what brothers do?" Tim sucked in a small breathe before nodding.

"Yeah, yeah. I guess you're right," He said, a warm smile as he reached over a dragged Damian into the hospital bed. Tim ignored the offended noise Damian made at the action and held his little brother in his arms. Looking at his family, Tim was happy to find that no, he didn't have any more doubts.

Chapter Text

Becoming a werewolf had enhanced Tim's sense of smell to astronomical levels. Sometimes it was a nuisance, sometimes it helps, but for the most part, Tim doesn't notice it. Right now, however, Tim wished more than anything that he was normal.

He associated his family with different smells. Bruce smelt like crisp bills and black coffee. Dick had a varying aroma of circus smells. Jason was a strange mix of cigarettes, gunpowder, and old books. Dark chocolate was Cass and Stephanie was Cotton Candy, except for the fall months when the only thing you could smell on Steph was Pumpkin Spice latte. Damian smelt like metal and paint. Over time, Tim adjusted to the smells, even found comfort in them. But there was one smell they all had, blood.

It was a constant within the household. A normal human wouldn't be able to tell, but it was so obvious to Tim. Even if he was home alone, their scents lingered. It was the one smell Tim hated. Too many memories, too many mistakes. He had even voiced it once or twice, but the only answer he got was Jason just complaining even louder that whenever Tim was around the only thing he could smell was a wet dog.

But sitting next to Bruce's bed in the medbay, he couldn't smell it at all. His adoptive father lay unconscious, as he has been for a few days now. Tim had no way for telling if he was ok because Bruce is a vampire and already dead. There was no heart rate to monitor, no "Vampire Medical Knowledge for Dummies" book, nothing. He couldn't bring Bruce to a hospital because no one knew vampires and werewolves even existed. For all he knows, Bruce's condition could be spilling and Bruce would die a second time (which is weird to think about considering he's already undead). Dick and Damian were off-world with the Titans, Jason was on a no-contact undercover operation, and Stephanie and Cass were taking care of an extremely time-sensitive mission in Hong Kong. Which leaves Tim to take care of their comatose father.

Tim knew that Bruce didn't need blood as much as his siblings. He was older and had adjusted to a mix of both regular foods and blood, and he didn't need to drink for days in a row sometimes. But he gets absorbed in his work and forgets, Tim can't remember the last time Bruce had used a stolen blood packet from one of those blood drives or even a small animal.

They all tried so hard to make sure that the others take care of themselves. Checking in regularly with each other (especially Jason and Damian, who can get quite violate if they are well feed) was instinct at this point. How the fact that Bruce had been neglecting to take care of himself had slipped past them all bewildered Tim.

Tim was curled up in wolf form next the Bruce. Because Tim was so young, only 16, his wolf form was really small. That might not seem bad, but most werewolves live to at least 300, so Tim was technically the equivalent of a five-year-old. When Tim first came to live with Bruce, his wolf-form was barely bigger than Bruce's hand, and he hadn't grown much since. The amount of grief he got about it from the others was crazy.

"Master Timothy, may I please suggest you take a break from watching over Master Bruce to take nap or maybe even a bath," Alfred's voice rang out from the door. Alfred was the only human member of the family, but sometimes he seemed more supernatural than the rest of them. Especially when he was able to sneak up on them like that.

Tim turned his head to look at the man. Alfred looked perfect, as always, but he could see the exhaustion on his face. He was just as worried as Tim about Bruce.

Despite his incredible sense of smell, it didn't seem to help with his own aroma. But considering that Tim hadn't slept in the past few days, or bathed, so he could watch over Bruce, he wouldn't be surprised if Jason was right about the smelly dog thing.

On one hand, Tim didn't want to leave Bruce, but, god, he was tired. He took a nap yesterday, right by Bruce, but he hasn't even left this room yet. Right now a warm bath and some rest sounded very enticing.

Tim sat up, shifting back into his human form. After spending so long as a wolf, Tim felt a little queasy standing up and walking over to Alfred.

"I will watch over Master Bruce in your absence, Mather Tim," Alfred said, resting a comforting hand over his shoulder. Tim gave him a shaky smile, his canines poking his lips.

"Thanks, Alf." Alfred gave him a nod. Exiting the room, Tim looked back at his father and his heart clenched in worry. He doesn't know what he'd do if he lost another parent.

Chapter Text

September 20th, 2019

Soldiers flooded the room, circling the two boys. Tim held a sleek machine to his chest, grasping it with an almost protective sense. Damian had a ball of fluff in his arms that seemed to be moving. They stood back to back as the men advanced. The smaller growled at their approach.

"It was an honor, Robin," the tall boy spoke, shifting the machine underneath one arm so he could grab his bo-staff with the other.

"I suppose you weren't half-bad, Red Robin," the other spoke as he put the fluff ball on his shoulder and drew his katanas. "You are not the last person I would choose to die with me here."

"Thanks? I guess?"

"Put down your weapons and surrender or we will open fire," One of the soldiers yelled, raising his gun. The others followed suit. The boys just smiled before they jumped into the fray.

September 18th, 2019

"I cannot believe you, Drake. I am aware that you have almost no standards, but this might be an all-new low for you," Damian scoffed. Tim was lying on the floor of his room, surrounded by a dozen mugs with a varying amount of coffee in them and fifteen different Monster drinks and five-hour energies. There was a bag of chips next to his leg and his computer was turned to full brightness in the darkroom. The curtains were shut and the only thing he was wearing was a pair of stained sweatpants and one of Superboy's t-shirts. Tim's hair was tied back using a glittery scrunchy and he had a red hairband holding the remaining strands out of his eyes.

A page titled "Proper Naruto Running Techniques" was pulled up on the screen. "I'm studying, Demon Brat. Go bother Bruce," Tim mumbled, his eyes glued on the screen. Damian scoffed, sitting in the empty chair next to Tim's unused desk.

"What exam requires you to research an anime?" Damian asked. Tim finally drew his eyes from the screen to look at Damian. he had deep bags under his eyes, but Damian had never seen him so happy. Well, maybe happy isn't the right word, more like maniacal.

"Not an exam, a raid," Tim said firmly.

"A raid?"

"A raid," Tim repeated as if that explained everything.

"And what exactly do you plan on...raiding?" Damian asked, almost dreading the answer. Tim grinned, before turning back to his computer and opening another tab.

"Area 51," He said while gesturing to the Facebook page. Damian didn't bother reading it as he had already deemed it ridiculous.

"For one, Drake, a weakling such as you would not be able to even get past the first defenses, unlike someone of my skill. Secondly, why would you want to raid Area 51?" Damian scoffed. He leaned back in the chair and looked up at the opposite wall where various pictures of Tim with others like Kon, Cassie, Bart, Dick, Jason, Cass, and Stephanie were hung up. Damian even saw one of him and Tim at the zoo near the bottom of the pictures. Dick had dragged them to the zoo after he found out that Jon was with his father on a mission for a month and Damian had no one to spend time with. Tim tagged along, not wanting to be left alone in the house while Bruce was gone.

Tim looked him straight in the eyes with a scary intensity and a wide smirk. "To see them aliens," Tim said. Damian's eyebrows shot up.

"Isn't your boyfriend an alien?" Tim just shrugged.

"Yeah, but like... I wanna get one of those classic tiny grey aliens. Kon and I can keep it and train it in our memeing ways."

"No one cares about your memeing ways"

"I care!" Tim protested.

"No one important cares," Damian corrected.

"Hey remember the Golden Rule! 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you' an' all that," Tim said, turning back to his computer. Damian got up out of the chair and sat next to Tim on the floor.

"I thought Father's rule was too never kill?" Damian asked. Tim snorted and didn't answer. Damian scowled, standing back up. He grabbed the door handle. "This is idiocy, I am informing Father of your plans to raid Area 51."

"Go ahead, but you'll lose your chance," Tim said cryptically. Damian narrowed his eyes, his hand lowering to his side.

"Chance?" Tim smirked.

"Yeah, brat. You said that I wouldn't even get past the first defenses and that you could. I, frankly, don't believe you. This is your shot to prove me wrong, I mean if you can get us past level one then you would really show me. But if I went and succeded, it would be pretty embarrassing for you. Besides, Cass was supposed to go with me, but she bailed." Damian was quiet for a moment, debating Tim's words.

"I will show you, Drake, that I am indeed the superior here," Damian snarled before leaving the room and slamming the door behind him. His hasty exit caused him to miss the satisfied expressions on Tim's face that meant he got exactly what he wanted.

September 20, 2019

Standing in front of the base, Tim knew he should feel at least a little nervous, but the only emotion he had was a giddy excitement. He adjusted his grip on his Bo Staff and glanced at Damian. His little brother was feigning disinterest, but Tim could already see him trying to figure out the best way in. Jokes on him, Tim came prepared. He's already developed multiple possible entries and exit points as well as pinpointing the areas where the important stuff was most likely kept. He also had Jason covering for them, considering he was the expert at lying to Bruce.

People were standing at random campsites around the border. Tim and Damian were getting a few looks, but they weren't the strangest people here by far. If Tim squinted, he could see Wally West, Donna Troy, and Roy Harper. Wally was pacing in anticipation, Donna was stretching, and Roy was on the phone. If they dopey smile and blush on his face was any indicator, he was talking to Jason. Tim was certain there were other heroes here, but he didn't see any at the moment.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Damian asked impatiently. Tim turned to face him. The boy was scowling and glaring at Tim.

"A distraction," Tim answered. Damian made a confused noise, but Tim ignored him, turning back to face the crowds of people. People started to rise and the camps were sparked into movement as people started to make their way towards the border. The guards stationed there started shifting nervously.

With a mighty roar, the crowds surged forward. Tim reached out and grabbed Damian's hand, dragging his little brother behind him as he made his way towards a less guarded section of the border. Damian yanked his hand out of Tim's grip but followed him nevertheless.

Reaching into his belt, Tim tossed a few smoke bombs at the remaining guards. Both he and Damian slipped past them, allowing themselves a quick look at the absolute madness going on over near the crowd.

They made their way towards the facility, taking down anybody they came across. The disabled the alarm system with ease, sneaking in one of the side doors. They encountered two government agents, both of whom Damian took out while Tim rewired the alarm.

"See, Drake. I told you that you wouldn't get past the first defense without me," Damian looked so smug that Tim couldn't help but laugh.

"Damian, Batcow could've gotten past this, you didn't do anything that I couldn't have." Damian sighed like Tim was an immature child that claimed to know everything after two full days of school.

"Sure, Drake. You should continue telling yourself that."

They made their way through the facility using Tim's map, facing lasers, robots, and soldiers with the aim of a Storm Trouper. It was vaguely concerning that one of the most famous US Bases had such dismal security. Tim would be a fool not to use the 'My day is ruined and my disappointment is immeasurable' meme right now. He thought this would be a challenge, but at this point, taking down Condiment Kind would've been easier.

They steadily approached a large door. It was the entrance to one of the governments top security vaults. Well, maybe security is a bit of a strong word considering the defense they had here.

Tim drew a cord from his gloves and plugged it into the keypad, waiting for his virus to let them in. He found this to be pointless because not even a second later the door slammed open, debris flying everywhere. He whirled around to find Damian holding a detonator.

"You were taking too long," He said, before stepping over the door to enter the room. Tim glared at him.

"When did you learn to use explosives?"

"Tt, obviously Todd taught me. Father had to leave town for a mission and he must have thought someone needed to watch me. Which is untrue, I can handle myself. Despite that fact, he called Todd anyway and we spent the weekend blowing up abandoned buildings. The destruction was quite enjoyable," Damian said as if he were talking about a fishing trip or something mundane.

"You have problems, both of you," Tim muttered under his breathe. Damian must've heard him because he flipped him the bird. Another thing he must have learned from Jason.

Tim opened his mouth to speak but fell silent when the items within the vault came into view. Thousands of different pieces of tech were carefully cataloged and stored. The walls were lined with cages with different aliens in them. Tim didn't see any of the classic green or grey ones, but that didn't deter his awe. Damian approached the cages while Tim walked towards the tech horde.

"This is inhumane, the way they keep them," Damian said, frowning.

"Well, technically, they aren't human. SO it isn't inhumane. But, yeah that's pretty bad," Tim conceded, painstakingly drawing his eyes of a glistening grapnel gun. The cages were small and he couldn't see any food or water in them. The creature didn't look humanoid, like most aliens Tim has come into contact with. They looked more like space pets. The fur on the ones with hair was matted and dirty. Tim could see the rids of most of them.

Damian walked over to the control panel, his hands floating above the switches. A strange look was on his face.

"What are you doing?" Damian was quiet for a moment before he responded.

"I am going to free them," He stated. Tim raised his eyebrows but didn't protest. Damian slammed his hand down on a big red button and light started flashing in the room. The cage doors swung open and the animals flooded out. Tim had to jump onto one of the shelves to avoid being trampled, Damian doing something similar with the control panel. Minutes passed and the flashing red lights didn't stop, but eventually, the crowd of creatures started to thin as the stampeded out the broken door.

Tim started to climb down but stopped when a glint of metal caught his eyes. What seemed like a regular microwave was settled on the shelf, but the card in front of it says otherwise. He couldn't believe his eyes, it was a microwave that warms the food, not the bowl. Tim nearly went into shock, but grabbed the microwave anyway and finished his descent towards the ground.

Damian approached him and apparently he too had found something. It was a tiny yellow ball of fluff. Tim was about to ask Damian why he decided to kidnap a pom pom, but then a head poked out from the fluff. The entire thing unraveled and suddenly the image of those annoying snake-like fluff things you found in the shop inside Cracker Barrel flashed in his mind. It made a chirping sort of noise as it moved from around Damian's hand.

"I've named him Severus Snake," Damian said with absolute seriousness. If Tim wasn't holding the most beautiful piece of machinery he's ever seen, he would've fallen to the ground laughing. He knew that Dick had forced Damian to read the Harry Potter books in an attempt to catch him up on pop culture, but this was too good.

"Okkkkkkkk..." Tim turned from Damian, about to head towards the door and away from this joke when he heard footsteps.

Soldiers flooded the room, circling the two boys. Tim held a sleek machine to his chest, grasping it with an almost protective sense. Damian had a ball of fluff in his arms that seemed to be moving. They stood back to back as the men advanced. The smaller growled at their approach.

"It was an honor, Robin," the tall boy spoke, shifting the machine underneath one arm so he could grab his bo-staff with the other.

"I suppose you weren't half-bad, Red Robin," the other spoke as he put the fluff ball on his shoulder and drew his katanas. "You are not the last person I would choose to die with me here."

"Thanks? I guess?"

"Put down your weapons and surrender or we will open fire," One of the soldiers yelled, raising his gun. The others followed suit. The boys just smiled before they jumped into the fray.

The sheer amount of guards threw Tim off, but he still threw his punches as if the world was ending to protect the microwave. Damian was doing the same, nearly taking a guy's head off for touching Severus Snake. Thankfully he only incapacitated him, it would be hard to explain to Bruce the events that led to Damian breaking his most beloved no killing rule.

The soldiers were quickly taken care off. After tying them up, Tim and Damian made a hasty escape, not wanting to endanger the new loves of their lives.

Tim couldn't wait to tell Cass about what she missed out on.