Chapter Text
Why would Damian expect anything less? Why was he expecting these incompetent fools not to underestimate him? Well, he should have expected that. He’s physically ten years old. He isn’t stupid enough to not understand that not all ten year old boys go running around with katannas and roast people’s hearts over open flames for kicks. He knows that a normal ten year old boy would turn tail and run screaming from the danger that he himself runs towards like an old friend. A normal ten year old boy would totally be coddled by his family and allow it, because that boy is ten years old.
But Damian did not expect this underestimation to go on so long, nor to be so extreme.
Batman is fine. He’s a little bit wary of Damian, that’s for sure. It’s to be expected. He’s
completely in the ordinary when in terms of his apparent son appearing out of nowhere and being a master assassin.
It’s Nightwing and Batgirl that he can’t stand. Batgirl in particular. Grayson has this nasty habit of making Damian feel like something small and insignificant, always telling him to get away from a fight before he gets hurt, pushing him backwards, refusing to train him at times or even just giving Damian information like he thinks Damian can’t handle it. He hates it.
But Gordon is on a whole other level. She’s the definition of a helicopter parent. Always asking him how he’s doing, making sure he’s ‘alright’ and ‘feeling okay in the head’ like it’s suddenly a concern. She hates it when he puts himself in danger. But nothing angers her more than when he goes after the Joker or Harley Quinn. Same with Grayson. Even Batman sends Damian back to headquarters whenever the Joker and Harley Quinn come up.
What really makes Damian mad is that every time he’s sent away (very disgruntled) Batman, Batgirl and Nightwing are constantly on the comms, demanding to know his location and if he feels like he’s in danger. Damian hates it, but the one time he switched off his comms was the one time Gordon actually shouted at him. Gordon is usually so soft-spoken compared to the two other people in the vicinity, so hearing her shouting at him for something so small- it didn’t shake him, he was just a little bit stunned- confused him enough so he never did it again no matter how much it annoys him.
When he joined up with this team, Damian expected a bit of backlash from them. He’s not stupid. He’s ten. He is far from their definition of an average ten year old. Nightwing is a fossil and Batman is who-knows-how-old, so they’re a little out of their depth when it comes to children, but Gordon is fresh out of high school and clocks only twenty 22 years of age. She’s claimed to be a successful babysitter and therefore has much knowledge of how to deal with Damian. And yet, she never fails to drive him up the wall with how much she babies him in a fight. You’d think given how many times he’s personally saved each of their lives that they’d be a little bit more accepting of the fact that he can and totally will take care of himself .
After nearly six months, it’s getting a little ridiculous.
A simple robbery. That’s all it was. One robber loading up on cash from the bank. A single vault being emptied. They could handle this.
“It’s just one guy.” Batgirl murmurs over the comms. Damian shoots her a look of utter dryness from across buildings.
“Oh jeez, really?” He calls back. “I thought that with all that carnage there’d be more.”
“I don’t like this.” Batman cuts them off before Nightwing can get involved. “Robin, you and Batgirl stay out here and monitor while Nightwing and I go inside.” Damian has learned by now that taking on Gordon means taking on Grayson too. They’re a pair, and not the romantic kind. The close-knit sibling kind that Damian absolutely does not envy, thank you very much. It’s almost habitual for them to come to each other’s aid when Damian makes a snide comment at one of them.
He totally doesn’t long for those moments when Barbara makes him those popcorn bowls with the extra butter and the spice he can’t quite figure out but makes the whole bowl taste extra good. Or when Dick takes the time to teach him a cool new shortcut he picked up, whether it be with weapons, combat or a new alley in the streets he found to get around easier. Those little moments of domesticity that Damian never knew how much he would enjoy until he had it. Sometimes it was almost enough to get Damian to give Grayson and Gordon a pass for treating him like a child.
The times when Barbara comes to him for mechanical advice. When Dick shares a moment and tells Damian he’s a good Robin, the best he’s seen. Given that Dick himself was once Robin and Damian’s bullshit meter is unparalleled so he knows Dick is telling the truth and Barbara could easily go to Dick instead, Damian takes it all to heart more than he probably should.
But he also takes all those times he’s been pushed aside to heart too. When the Bats come together in unison for the sole reason of telling Damian to beat it and get out of the danger zone. He hates it. He hates it he hates it he hates it he-
“Hey kid.”
Damian whirls around, his hands flying to his belt. Standing right behind him, just feet of rooftop between them, is the Joker. The Joker. One of the two villains that Batman, Nightwing and Batgirl are all totally and completely adamant that Damian is forbidden to fight. Now he’s here, so close it’s making Damian extremely uncomfortable. He shouldn’t have been able to get that close to Damian…
Immediately his hand goes to his comm, but Joker speaks again. “Oh, go ahead and call for big brother and big sister, and even big daddy to come save you, but then will you ever find out why they think so lowly of you?”
Every fiber of Damian’s being knows that this is emotional manipulation. That he should just ignore the Joker’s words and call for…
Grayson and Gordon are not his siblings. They may be siblings to each other, but not to him. And blood absolutely does not make Bruce Wayne his dad. Still, Damian lowers his hand, instead filling it with his katana.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Damian spits. “They don’t think lowly of me.” The Joker laughs a horrible, absolutely psychotic and unhinged laugh.
“Then why in the world would they kick you out of a fight?” He demands, giggling furiously like Damian’s troubles are the funniest thing in the world. “Why would they forbid you, a master assassin, a child raised and trained by Ra’s al Ghoul himself from helping them win? You’re a valuable asset, everyone can see it, but those Bats you call a family refuse to acknowledge it. Well, I can show you why.”
Okay, Damian doesn’t like that. “I don’t want you to show me anything.” He snaps. “If you have something to get off your chest, you can do it right here, right now. And they’re not my family. They’re just the people I’m around more often than others.” The Joker howls with quiet laughter. Damian’s no fool; Joker doesn’t want Batgirl to hear him. Joke’s on him though. Damian can reach her in a matter of seconds if he wants to.
“It’s a trap!” Damian’s blood runs cold when Nightwing’s voice cuts through the comms. “It’s Harley! Batgirl, Robin, do you have eyes on anything else? Harley’s got bombs. We can’t get out.”
“I’m not seeing anything from here.” Batgirl replies almost instantly. “What do you need us to do?”
“Evacuate any and all civilians from the vicinity.” Batman orders. “At least a one hundred foot radius of us. We need to limit casualties while we think of a plan to get out of here.” Damian knows. He knows that he should say something. But what can they do? Batgirl needs to work on crowd control and Nightwing and Batman are stuck in the bank. If Damian keeps Joker occupied, then that’s time he isn’t spending helping Harley. Yes, Damian will keep Joker distracted.
“That’s different from lowly.” Keep him talking Damian. Just keep him talking. Joker’s smile widens even more.
“Or is it?” Joker’s head tilts at a terrifying angle, his eyes blown impossibly wide. “Because from how the world sees it, they think you’re weak. They look down on you and seek to protect you. You’re young, afterall, what could you contribute?” Damian’s hands tighten over his katana. He hates how the Joker is right. He’s so right it hurts. Does the world really see him the same way as his fam-the rest of the team?
“You’re wrong.” Damian exclaims, hoping to any higher power that his voice doesn’t sound as desperate as he feels. He has no idea why he wants the Joker to be wrong so badly. He doesn’t care what other people think of him. He’s not supposed to care what other people think of him! “They have no reason to think I’m weak! It’s just my age that throws them off their guard.” The Joker puts a hand on his hip and looks at him condescendingly.
“Is it?” He asks again, wagging his pointer finger at Damian. “Did they ever tell you what happened to the last Robin?” Damian’s blood runs cold. “Because when they look at you, I can guarantee that all they see is little Timmy. Would you like to know what I did to him? Because I for one would LOVE to show you!”
Now Damian is running on a panicked adrenaline when Joker lunges at him. He backflips onto the ledge of the roof and lands in a crouch. What happened to the last Robin… Damian knows that he’s the fifth Robin, and Nightwing is the only ex-Robin he’s ever met or even heard of personally. Batman never talks about them…
What did Joker do to him?
“Step on it Harley!” Damian’s eyes go wide at Joker’s shout. Immediately a barrage of missiles fly at him from nearly all angles. Damian flips off the ledge back onto the rooftop and dances away from the missiles, but when they land there isn’t any explosion or debris. There’s only a sticky green goop. A trap. They’re trying to capture-
Damian’s hand flies to his ear, his mind suddenly going from a million mile per second race to a very cold, very hard stop.
“It’s all a trap for me!” He screams. “The Joker is here! He’s trying to catch me!” The Joker’s cackle rings in his ears.
‘When they look at you, I can guarantee that all they see is little Timmy.’
A fear that Damian can’t remember ever feeling before shoots through his body when his foot stops moving. He looks down to see it embedded up to his ankle in the green goopy substance. He’s trapped. He can’t move. The Joker is stalking up to him on tall platform shoes that move through the goop easily. Another missile explodes right next to him, and the goop starts creeping up his body. Damian throws his stars and holds out his katana, but Joker nimbly dodges everything.
“Poor Timmy.” Joker whines. “Batman will be so, so sad when he learns of your shared fate.” Damian swipes at him with the katana, but Joker ducks and instead grabs Damian’s arm. His katana clatters out of his grip and Joker twists Damian’s arm behind him, wrapping his free arm around Damian’s neck in a choke hold. He can’t breathe. Damian scratches at Joker’s arm with his free hand, but his heart beating furiously and deafeningly in his ears screams at him that it’s a fruitless endeavor.
“My, my, my,” Joker sings. “How the dear old bat will hate me ever more. You know, I took not just little Timmy from the game, but his dear little Jason as well.” Damian hates this. He needs to get out of here now!
“The best part is,” Joker hisses right in Damain’s ear as he tightens his grip, making Damian squirm even more as more air is forced from his body. “Neither of them are even dead!” Damian’s heart freezes.
It’s at that moment that Damian makes his call and does something he never thought he’d ever do. He lets go of Joker’s arm to reach up and touch his comm device in his ear, struggling for enough air to call out.
“Dad…help me. I-I don’t wanna be like Timmy…”
Joker’s smile is so wide it threatens to snap his face in two. “Daddy’s not coming to save you this time, you little-”
“NO!” Damian doesn’t register he’s falling until he’s able to process Batgirl’s arms around him. Her hand cupping his face and tilting his head to look up at her. She’s calling his name. Her big blue eyes are brimming with tears. He can hear distant howling that must belong to the Joker, but he’s too busy gasping for air that doesn’t seem to want to come to pay much attention. Batgirl looks up in the direction of the howling, then back to Damian.
“I’ll be right back, I promise!” She gently sets Damian on the ground and hurries off. Oh ho ho, Damian isn’t getting sidelined again. He shakes his head to clear it of the fog and is pleased to find that his foot has been cut loose from the green goop and he can move freely. He gets to his feet -he only wobbles a little!- and grabs his fallen katana. He charges back into the fight with Batgirl, only to get waved away by her batarangs.
“Stay back Robin!” She shouts, and Damian has to take a step back because he has never heard this much malice come from anyone before, let alone sweet, soft-spoken Barbara . “You know what they say, fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me! I won’t get shamed this time! This is personal now!” The Joker howls with laughter.
“Aww, are you still hung up on little Timmy?” He taunts, dodging her blows. When she speaks again, Damian is shocked to hear the sobs wracking her voice.
“I’ve seen so much in my time serving alongside Batman and Nightwing and the Robins,” She gasps, swinging her fists and weapons at a speed Damian didn’t think she could move. “But what you did to Tim will forever be the worst thing I have ever seen!” Damian furrows his eyebrows.
“Batgirl, what did he do to the last Robin?” He shouts. “What’s going on?” A heavy hand clamps down on his shoulder, and he looks up to see his dad, Batman, looming over him with his heavy gaze fixed on the Joker.
“That is the last Robin.” His voice is low. “What you’re looking at now isn’t the Joker’s first body. The only thing that separates the face of my worst enemy and the face of my dead son is a thick coat of white paint.” Cold, numbing dread fills Damian’s chest. He can’t breathe. The Joker…Timmy was… oh no…
“For the last time, Joker!” Nightwing flies into battle and lands behind Batgirl. Of course, wherever she is, he’s close behind. “Stay away my brother!” Joker backs up, clapping his hands to his face with wide, owlish eyes. Now that Damian looks at him closer, he looks…very young. Much younger than some of the pictures Damian has seen. He can’t be any older than Dick. Meanwhile Harley Quinn looks more like Batman’s age.
“But how can I stay away from your brother when I wear his body?” Joker asks innocently. “What you ask of me is simply impossible, brother dear.” Batgirl screams in rage and swipes again.
“Then die in a hole you miserable, sick, twisted son of a-” The Joker yowls in pain when Nightwing and Batgirl’s unified slash hits true. He collapses to the ground and turns on his stomach, wincing up at the two advancing heroes through squinted eyes. He presses a hand to his ear.
“Harley, execute backup.” He hisses. Damian’s eyes go wide when Batman’s arms immediately encircle him and hold him tightly, spinning him around to shield Damian with his body. Something big hits the ground in between Batgirl, Nightwing and Joker and immediately begins to spill smoke. The two vigilantes cough and sputter, backing up quickly. When the smoke clears, the Joker is gone.
Damian breathes hard, not realizing he’s gripping Batman’s arms until the man lets go. That used to be his predecessor?
“How did-” Damian doesn’t get his question out before both Batgirl and Nightwing are in front of him, demanding to know if he’s okay and what happened. Batgirl is cupping his face and examines him while Nightwing scans his body for injuries.
Now, before today, this would have pissed him off. But after what he’d just witnessed, he understands; they’re genuinely scared. Their fear comes from a place of trauma and loss and ultimate betrayal. They lost not one, but two boys they considered brothers to the Joker, and one in the worst way imaginable because he was left alone with Joker and probably with Harley as an accomplice, given that the others are just as skittish about her as they are with Damian. Even Barbara panics when she’s alone with either of them, calling for backup with a high pitched octave of fear in her voice.
When they look at you, I can guarantee that all they see is little Timmy.’ The phrase gains a new light to Damian. They see someone they lost, but they see a chance to remedy what they did wrong. They see him as the chance to fix their mistake; if they can keep Damian from Timmy’s fate, then it’s like they saved Timmy too. Then they don’t have to live with the guilt of what happened because Damian is okay. Damian knows they’re not so shallow that the only thing they see is Timmy when they look at him. They see a brother, a son, just like they did in Timmy. They see someone they care about who is in the same position as Timmy. The position that led to the downfall of their family member.
Does that mean…that Damian is a family member? Nightwing did tell Joker to stay away from his brother-could that mean…?
“Damian!” Batgirl gives his shoulders a violent shake. “Please, answer us!” Damian blinks himself out of his thoughts and looks up at her. Tears are streaming down her ghost white face and pooling at the edges of her mask before spilling overboard. Nightwing is shaking and even Batman is paler than usual.
But…
Damian reaches up and gasps Batgirl and Nightwing’s arms. “Were you worried about me?” He asks. “Or were you just worried about Timmy?” Batgirl and Nightwing freeze. Nightwing looks at Batgirl.
“You were there…” He whispers. Batgirl doesn’t spare him a glance, keeping her eyes on Damian.
“You!” She gasps. “I’m always worried about you, just like I’m worried about Dick and Bruce and even Tim. I worry about Damian Wayne, don’t you ever dare think otherwise!” Damian can only blink at her.
They care about him. She really cares. They all do. An unfamiliar warmth blossoms in his chest and all he can do is lean forward, wrapping his arms around the two heroes that have called themselves his siblings.
“I would have appreciated it if someone had told me the truth.” He says softly. Batgirl and Nightwing are stiff for only a moment before returning the hug and Damian bites back a sigh; he’s not getting out of this anytime soon given how tightly Batgirl is holding him. “Maybe if someone had happened to mention that the Joker is actually my predecessor, then I’d have been less inclined to stick around him.” Batgirl’s shoulders start to shake. As soon as Damian realizes she’s crying, he wants to back up and get away because tears just make him feel uncomfortable, but he knows that pulling away from her now will only make it worse.
“D-Damian I’m so-so sorry for not te-telling you!” She gasps. “It was-you were-they just-!” Damian raises his head to see Nightwing wrap an arm around her as well. Her face has been firmly planted on Damian’s shoulder, as if she’s afraid he’ll disappear. After finally learning about Tim, Damian can’t hold it against her if she really thinks that.
“We didn’t want you to know how far exactly the Joker is willing to go.” He says softly. “I was out of the country, but Barbara saw the whole thing. She said…she’s only had some pretty awful things to say about it. I only saw the after effects and kid, it was bad. It was really, really bad. I’ve never seen a child look so broken. The last thing we ever wanted was for the same thing to happen to you.”
“But we still should have told you.” Batman says gravely. “It would have prepared you, perhaps it would have suggested you be more cautious around him and Harley Quinn and help you understand why we keep you from such fights. We lost Robin. Twice. We got him back. Joker and Harley would find endless joy in taking him away from us again.” Damian nods. He understands now. He knows how the Joker’s mind works. Taking Damian away now would lead to unimaginable pain on Batman’s side, Damian is sure of it. The man has an uncanny disability to show emotion, one that Damian has both inherited and nurtured. But Damian knows just as sure as he knows the sun is hot that his father loves him. He’s just bad at showing it. Damian doesn’t judge; he’s just as bad with emotion.
“Let’s get home.” Nightwing sighs. Batgirl keeps a firm around Damian when they stand, and Damian doesn’t have the heart to throw her off. Her face is paler than a sheet and still stained with tear tracks. He doesn’t want to know what she had to see with Tim, but if he can help keep her calm simply by allowing proximity to reassure herself, then he’ll go through with it.
The authorities have arrived by now to the bank, Commissioner Gordon included. Batgirl tenses. Damian knows of her relationship with her father; she loves him very much and he can only guess that she’s restraining herself from running to him. He doesn’t know yet of her ‘secret hobby’, as she calls it and this is hardly the time nor place to reveal it.
The bank is a mess. An explosion that Damian is astounded he didn’t hear has destroyed the front wall of the giant building, leaving it all exposed. Caution tape sections off the entire area and reporters and journalists flock every side. Cameras flash brightly in Damian’s eyes and he winces, bringing up a hand to cover his face. Batgirl pulls him closer to her and Nightwing moves slightly in front of them both. Damian scowls.
“I don’t need your protection.” He snaps quietly, although he makes no move to separate himself from Batgirl or leave Nightwing’s shadow. Batman puts a hand on Damian’s shoulder for only a moment before removing it again.
“We know you don’t.” He doesn’t look down at Damian when he talks. “But we know you don’t like the cameras.” He made his way towards the Commissioner, the other vigilantes in tow. C.Gordon looked over from his officers when he saw the group approaching. His mustached face pulls into a tired smile.
“Wanna tell me what happened this time?” He asks. Batman doesn’t usually (if ever) stick around to speak with the authorities, so the surprise in C.Gordon’s eyes is called for. Batman only glowers.
“Harley Quinn baited Nightwing and I into the bank while the Joker went after Robin.” He gestures to Damian with a single hand. “Luckily Batgirl was able to step in before they got him. The bank was merely a consequential casualty of Harley Quinn and the Joker’s attempt to kidnap Robin. I apologize you were dragged into our mess. Good day, Commissioner.” And then he turns on his heel with a sweep of his cape. “Back to base everyone.” He pushes on some buttons on his wrist comm, and the Batmobile rolls to a speedy stop in front of them. Batgirl takes her arm back from around Damian when they climb in together while Nightwing and Batman slide into the passenger and driver seats, and Damian realizes with a start that he wants to be close to her again. He wants to feel her warmth again.
He bites down hard on his lip and subtly scoots closer to her, hoping against hope she doesn’t notice. He even makes a show of pointing to something outside of her window and leaning over her to do so, but when it ‘disappears’ Damian doesn’t move from his new position squished up against her. Batgirl looks out of the window for a moment longer before noticing how close he is and quickly puts her arm around him again. Damian calls that a win.
But something is nagging him. Something the Joker said. So he breaks the silence of the Batmobile to speak.
“Father?” He calls up softly. He sees his father’s gaze flick up to him in the rearview mirror to show he’s listening. “I know that I am the fifth Robin. Nightwing was the first, and Tim was the one right before me. What happened to the others?” Batman sighs while Nightwing stays completely silent, but leans against the window and covers his face.
For a moment, no one speaks, and Damian isn’t sure if Father is going to relieve him of his inquiry until Father finally speaks.
“Tim was the third Robin.” Father’s voice is uncharacteristically soft, and both of Batgirl’s arms are firmly locked around Damian. He’ll never admit it to a soul, but he revels in the contact and the warmth her body brings to his own. “You saw what happened to him. He was a small kid, smaller than you when he was your age. He’d be nearly nineteen by now. He was 13 years old when Joker and Harley got their claws on him. He went back to his parents after I stripped him of his title and sent him to recover. When he was around 15 his mother contacted me and told me that he had been changing. I knew what she meant more than she did. Tim was gone, and I didn’t know.”
“Right after him was Stephanie Brown.” That gets Batgirl to snap her head up to look at Father with a wicked grin on her face. “She was Robin for only a few months, but I had to let her go because she was too rambunctious to be Robin. The Riddler’s daughter. She thought she had something to prove, that she had to make up for everything her father had done. I told her that her turmoil was clouding her vision and putting her in danger. She went into civilian life a little while ago.
Damian looks at Batgirl, who’s grinning broadly. “I knew Steph. She was wild.” Nightwing just barely perks up.
“Yeah, she and Tim dated for a bit too,” He adds. “They broke up when Tim started getting too intense, and he told her that he used her as a tool to keep up with news of us. Broke Stephanie’s heart, but we all know that Joker kept her around for that reason. Tim was the reason he asked her out for the first time.” Father gives a small, sad chuckle and Damian had the heart to feel bad that he doesn’t really care about Tim’s dating preferences. This is cool to learn, but there’s still one more Robin that Father has yet to mention. Jason. He’s still alive. If Joker phrased it like that, then Father must think that-
“Jason Todd was the first Robin to carry on the name after Nightwing,” Father continues, and Damian perks up good and tall to listen. “I remember Dick being extremely pleased to not have to put up with me by himself anymore.” Nightwing laughs sadly.
“He was the best brother I could ever ask for.” He adds softly. “And Tim. And you Damian. You’re all the best. Nothing like each other, but so awesome in your own awesome way. The girls too. I’ve always counted myself lucky that I got to meet and fight alongside all four other Robins and Batgirl.” Damian fights back the urge to roll his eyes. Just when they get to Jason, Nightwing has to go and be Nightwing and make it sentimental.
“Yes, cool thanks, but what happened to him?” Damian demands. Batgirl hoots while Nightwing laughs and turns over his shoulder to look at her and Damian.
“Sorry about the mushy stuff, Dames, but how else am I supposed to let you know just how much I love you and your brothers and sister? You’ve never asked about them before.” Damian crosses his arms with a huff fit for a ten year old.
“Tt. I never knew asking about them was on the table.” He shoots back. “Now what happened?” Nightwing’s expression drops and he looks to Father for help. Father sighs.
“He was also kidnapped by Joker.” He replies. Damian’s breath catches.
“Did he take Jason’s body?” Damian asks. “Like he took Tim’s?” Father shakes his head and keeps his eyes firmly on the road.
“We were going after Joker and Harley when we were separated and he got taken. We looked for him for six months before we located him in an abandoned warehouse. Joker had beaten him within an inch of his life. We couldn’t get to him in time. The warehouse blew up before we could reach him. It took me two years before I could pick up another Robin, and even then I didn’t really pick him. Tim was… just what we needed to move on.” Damian furrows his eyebrows.
“How old was he?” Batgirl asks as they pull into the Batcave. Father sighs.
“Fifteen.” Batgirl’s eyes are clenched shut as tears threaten to boil over. “He was only thirteen when I adopted him. Do you remember that Dick?” Nightwing chuckles.
“I’ve never seen someone cry so hard.” He replies softly. “He was jumping so high he might as well have touched the ceilings.” Batgirl chuckles wetly.
“I remember being so jealous when I met you guys.” She adds. “You were both adopted
by Batman and I wanted to be part of the family so bad. Jason stood up right then and there and dubbed me his sister. He was so funny.” Damian groans.
“And did you seriously think he actually died?” He demands, sliding out of Batgirl’s arms and out of the car. Batgirl makes a small noise when he separates himself from her, but he chooses not to dwell on that for the time being. “It’s the Joker! He implanted himself like a parasite into Tim’s mind and is the most sadistic and criminally insane man in the world! Do you seriously think he would just kill such a good bargaining chip and leave it be?” Father swiftly and deftly slips out of the Batmobile and approaches Damian. He doesn’t look happy, but Damian won’t back down.
“Jason is dead.” Damian balls his fists.
“What could Joker possibly gain by saying he isn't?” He snaps. “He fully intended for me to end up in his clutches and that I would never be given the opportunity to relay any of that information to you! Why would he tell me if he didn’t want you to know? He was upset that I was saved by Batgirl and you saw it! He was upset! He knows that I’ll tell you that he told me, that Jason is alive! He’s alive and so is Tim! Tim might be beyond saving but we don’t know if Jason isn’t either! It’s something that I think is worth looking into, but you know him better than I do. You know where he would go, if at all. Maybe something happened to him. Maybe the Joker still has him. But he wouldn’t have told me if he didn’t want you to find out!”
The Batcave is silent. “Dad.” Nightwing’s shaky voice sounds from behind Father. “Did you ever actually see Jason’s body? I mean his dead body, not his breathing one?” Father’s own fists are tight, the leather gloves squeaking against his grip.
“I saw him breathe.” He whispers dangerously. “I know he died, because I saw him just moments before.” Damian shakes his head.
“You know there are tricks to-”
“Jason is dead!” Father shouts. Damian’s eyes go wide and he takes a step back, his adrenaline spiking. He shakes his head furiously. No, no no stop it. Father is Father. Father is not Ra’s al Ghoul. Father is kind. Father is not Talia.
But he’s still scary.
Batman pauses and sighs in defeat, his shoulders slumping. He takes off his mask and tries again, only to falter. Nightwing pulls his own mask off and picks up.
“Damian, it’s been six years. He would have come home by now.” Grayson’s hands are in the air, palms facing Damian like he’s trying to placate him. It only makes Damian madder. Batgirl’s hand comes to a rest on Damian’s shoulder, but he shakes it off violently.
“The rest of you can go ahead and give up on Jason if you want!” He exclaims furiously. He can’t believe this! This family is acting so torn apart and distraught over Tim’s death, but completely dismissing Jason like he’s nothing! Like he wasn’t an actual member of their so-called family! “But if you adopted him, then he’s my brother! And I don’t give up on my family so easily. If he’s alive, then I’ll find him and I’ll tell him that his brother searched for him night and day until I had answers. If he’s dead, then I’ll find him and give him a proper burial. The Joker doesn’t do things by accident. But things do get in his way. I’m taking his failure to capture me as my chance to find Jason, dead or alive. Don’t think about trying to stop me.”
Damian sweeps out of the Batcave, his mind already whirling a million miles a minute to figure out what his first steps would be. The very first thing he would have to do is find a picture of Jason. Age it up and see if scanners pull up anything similar. Then he needs to know what warehouse Jason was supposedly killed in. Cameras can be traced and reviewed. Damian is positive that he can retrieve any and all footage that might have been erased by Joker or Harley.
Crashing down on the chair before the Batcomputer, Damian cracks his knuckles and gets to work. Fingers flying across the keyboard til something comes up. But hard as he tries, Father was never one for photos. He can’t find anything.
“Master Damian.” Damian snaps his head up to find Pennyworth standing above him. Damian gives him a nod before turning back to the large screens.
“Hello Pennyworth.” He mumbles. Pennyworth clears his throat and Damian sighs, turning the chair to face him. Pennyworth doesn’t often insist on Damian’s attention, but when he does it’s always worth his time. Pennyworth’s shoulders slump ever so slightly.
“I heard about the fight.” He says softly, his mustache quivering so slightly it would have gone unnoticed had Damian not been looking for anything like this. He offers Pennyworth a small smile. Pennyworth has always had a strong connection with all the Robins and Batgirl. Of course he cared about Tim, so the thought of losing Damian must have been hard on the old man.
“I am unharmed, Pennyworth, but I’m grateful for your concern. Now that I know about my predecessor’s untimely and quiet unfortunate end at Joker’s hand, I will make sure to be extra careful. Especially now that I know he is looking to use my body and erase my mind just as he did to Tim. You will not have to worry about me.”
And it’s true. Damian doesn’t often admit to needing help or even to his own fear, but the prospect of ending up like Tim truly terrifies him. He’s almost never heard of a fate as horrible as Tim Drake’s, and Damian is determined to give his own Robin story a better ending. For both himself and for Tim. He’ll watch over Father, Dick and Barbara like how Tim never could. The best way to do that is to protect himself from Tim’s fate. He will be better. He will stay safe from the Joker and Harley Quinn.
Pennyworth breathes a small sigh of relief. “You have… no idea how refreshing it is to hear the sincerity in your voice.” He says. “After losing two children I thought of as…as grandchildren of mine, I don’t think I could bear to lose you too. Which is why I am here to help.” Damian perks up when Pennyworth reaches into his pocket and pulls out a wallet. He unfolds it and presents it to Damian, who takes it with gentle hands. Inside are several pictures of multiple people, all save for two are wearing various Robin suits sans masks. One Robin is a girl and the other, Damian is sure, is Barb.
Damian himself looks up at him from the wallet, a grumpy expression on his face. He remembers when this picture was taken; it was his first time in uniform. Father looked so proud when Dick snapped the picture but insisted on doing so without the mask. Damian always thought it was problematic; if someone were to break into the Batcave -as unlikely as that is- and see the picture, they’d immediately have Robin’s identity. But if that’s younger Damian, that means these other three pictures of boys in Robin costumes must be…
Suddenly Jason is put on hold as Damian looks closer at all three boys; Dick, Jason and Tim. He’s never seen the latter two or Stephanie Brown.
Tim looks so, so young and so much smaller. He has the biggest smile on his face and he’s pointing at the Robin insignia on his chest with all the enthusiasm in the world. His brown eyes are practically glowing with excitement, his dark hair is sticking up in all directions and he’s…he’s not wearing pants. None of the boys are wearing pants.
“Are those…booty shorts?” He’s seen Barbara wear them for training on occasion, but he’s never seen anything that short on a male before. Pennyworth chuckles.
“A tradition put into place by Master Richard.” He supplies. “In memory of his acrobatic parents. You know they died in a sabotaged trapeze act?” Damian shakes his head, now completely focused on the picture of his eldest brother. Looking at it, Dick actually pulled it off, given that the rest of the outfit looked like an acrobat’s leotard. His hair is gelled back neatly and he’s smiling to himself proudly, like he had been working his entire life just for that moment. His hands are at his hips to show off the Robin insignia on the chest. Jason and Tim, however, look absolutely ridiculous with their own personal add-on’s to the outfit. Pennyworth chuckles.
“Well, it looked good on Master Richard, but I can’t say the same for the other boys. Part of the reason we didn’t show you any pictures of them before we gave you the new costume with real leggings was because Master Bruce didn’t want you to get sentimental about the speedo’s and choose to use it as well. Mistress Barbara was quite pleased when you took to the costume as well as you did.” Damian chuckles.
Stephanie Brown, the only girl Robin, looked plain annoying. Her blond hair was pulled back by a green headband and she had added a skirt. Her smile, unlike Tim and Dick’s, was just smug and awful, like she was on top of the world and knew it. Damian wrinkles his nose.
“She looks rude.” Pennyworth chuckles.
“Believe it or not, she was actually a lot more polite than you are now.” Damian snaps his head up to look at the old man.
“Are you serious?” He demands. “She looks so bad! So-so…snooty!” That gets Pennyworth to burst into laughter. Damian rarely hears him laugh so loud.
“Oh, I never said she didn’t have her issues.” He replies. Damian looks up at Pennyworth again. “All of you did and still do. We all rather liked Miss Stephanie, but her pride wasn’t her downfall. It was her guilt. Guilt over her father. She wished to see him dead, but Master Bruce and Master Richard were able to convince her to leave it at his arrest after she separated from the family. But before that, she let her guilt lead her to put the rest of the family in jeopardy on multiple occasions. She has been a good ally since. I can’t quite recall if you’ve met her, but once you get to know her, she’s a very sweet girl.”
Damian bites his lip and nods, then turns back to the final picture.
Jason Todd. He looks kind and gentle. One of his hands was behind his head and his eyes were screwed shut in a nervous laughter. He looked pretty stupid in the Robin costume, but he looked every bit of a superhero that Damian wants to be. He wants to be as effective as his father, but Jason’s smile brings something more to the meaning. His dark hair is slicked up in a more refined and controlled chaos than Tim’s, blown back like it was put in front of a harsh bout of wind and dried like that.
“He looks nice.” Damian whispers. Pennyworth takes a handkerchief from his pocket and dabs at his eyes.
“Out of all the Robin’s, he had the softest heart under the thickest shell.” He says softly. “Timid at first, like all of the others, save for you, but he gave the manor a light that none of us knew we needed until he was there. And then he was gone.” The sound of rustling fabric is the only warning Damian gets before Pennyworth kneels beside his chair and places a hand on Damian’s knee. Damian looks from the wallet to the old butler to see his pale face and his sad eyes brimming with tears. Here it comes. He’s going to attempt to talk Damian out of this. He’s going to insist that Jason is dead, just like Father did-
“I did not see Jason’s demise.” Pennyworth’s voice shakes. “Now, I trust Master Bruce, but the Joker… What he did to Master Tim left everything we knew about him to shambles. It took years for his final plan to truly set in. Time is something the Joker is not afraid to use. If Jason truly is alive, then I have faith that you are the person to find him. If he really did survive that day, six years ago…” Pennyworth squeezes his eyes shut as a tear leaks down his face. Damian’s heart trembles just seeing it. Pennyworth rarely portrays any emotion beside positive ones. To see him so upset, so vulnerable makes Damian want to get on his own knees and hug him tightly.
“If my grandson is alive, please Damian, bring him home. Bring your brother back to us.” Something thin is pressed against Damian’s hand, and he looks down to see a piece of paper held tightly in Pennyworth’s trembling hand. Immediately Damian covers Pennyworth’s white hand with his own and takes the paper with the other.
It’s a picture of Jason. He’s older. He looks more sure of himself now, around fifteen. He’s smiling at the camera with all the confidence in the world, his blue eyes crinkling happily at the edges.
“This was taken just days before the Joker stole him away from us.” Pennyworth’s voice cracked. “It’s the most recent photo we have of him. Use it. Use it and find him.” Damian looks up at Pennyworth. The old man’s eyes are still clenched shut, tears falling down his face. Damian’s resolve breaks and he slides from his chair to his own knees and hugs Pennyworth as gently as he can. The butler makes a sound of surprise, but hugs Damian back nonetheless, reaching up to run a hand over Damian’s hair. He’ll probably never admit it, but Damian thinks it feels awesome.
“I won’t let you down, Jaddi.” Damian promises, the term slipping from his lips before he can stop it. Immediately his face turns red, even though he knows Pennyworth doesn’t know what it means. He’d never been allowed to call Ra’s al Ghul grandfather, and Pennyworth has mentioned several times throughout this conversation that Jason and Tim were like grandsons to him, and that Damian was their brother, so by association, Damian is his grandson too. Even Damian doesn’t want to dare assume anything, but he couldn’t help the slip up.
Pennyworth doesn’t say anything, only chuckles and stands when Damian breaks the hug. He wipes his eyes with his handkerchief again and nods to Damian before hurrying away. Damian watches him go, then furtively wipes his own eyes and gets back to work.