Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tim's birthday was in half a year.

Too early to be thinking about it, he knows, but with what happened on his 16th birthday, he told himself it was a reasonable excuse. He also didn't really have outstanding birthday parties when he was younger and his parents were still alive. 

Hm.

Tim did have one birthday party, when he turned fifteen, but it didn't change the fact that Bruce had tested him on his birthday after knowing him for three or so years.

It still rose a bitterness that made his skin crawl. He blew out a breath, trying to chase the angry buzz away. He didn't want any reencounters of tests on his birthday...

...in fact, maybe it would be better if his birthday didn't happen at all.

A lightbulb seemed to light up over his head, and his brain started working automatically.

He couldn't make his birthday disappear... but maybe he could make it so everybody forgot, instead.

A mischievous smirk played on his lips, his eyes glinting, a new interested spark lighting up. It wasn't going to be an awesome birthday, but it was sure to be better that way.

Tim rose from his seat at the Batcomputer -- where he had been for the past five hours as the sun rose -- and saved and closed his case files before he went up the stairs up to the manor. 

He snatched a granola that he had planned to eat yesterday but was left forgotten on a side table next to the living room couch, peeling off the wrapper up another flight of stairs to his room. He needed to make a... he thought of how many steps this process would take.

Mumbling a little as he made it quickly to the top of the stairs, he thought of a reasonable number that wasn't his usual '54 step process' or something like that that he would usually do with this much time.

But sometimes, simplicity was best. He thought this as he entered his room, closing the door silently behind him, though there wasn't really anybody around. Tim was trained in the art of being silent since he was young and still as fragile as glass.

He jumped onto his bed, bouncing once or twice as his hand snuck to under his pillow, sneakily sliding out his private, secret laptop. It had all the things he could need and it was his pride and joy.

Whenever he was kicked out of the Batcave and banned from devices and working -- no one would believe him if he said that he wasn't a workaholic -- he would put up a fight for show, fake sleep or only sleep for a few minutes, and then sneak out his laptop once he was in the clear.

It was a strategic and genius plan that he had mastered over the years to perfection that Tim was very proud of.

He pulled up a fresh new platform to plan on, and he was off!

He had decided to do five easy, simple steps. But of course, knowing Tim's luck, this would be easier said than done.

And here he presents the five 'easy but are no doubt going to be harder than he thought' steps!:

1. Clear all calendar or online reminder of his birthday known to human and nonhumankind

2. Go even further to find some events to put on his birthday date and around it just in case

3. Make sure the Titans and Young Justice also forget

4. Live through the actual day

5. Wait two weeks to make sure they actually forgot

Tim leaned back to admire his short five-step plan, lips twitching into an almost smile. He thought about how each step would go. He had pondered whether to add a question mark to the end of step three or not, but decided not too, because he could promise that the Titans and Young Justice would leak to his family about his birthday, or tell them that they forgot. He shook his head. That would not end well.

He just had to hope that Babs wouldn't catch the random calendar changes and tinkering he was doing, but Babs was on a short vaca with Dick and their other friends for an old reunion, so if he wanted to do step one and two, he should do it right now. They would be back tomorrow evening, so he basically had a full day and a half, if his day was free.

1. Clear all calendar or online reminder of his birthday known to human and nonhumankind

Thankfully, his day was somewhat free, the only things he had was joining the new member of their family for their daylight patrol, and a few cases that he could do during it.

But right now, he needed to erase all traces of his birthday.

He erased all of the calendar reminders first, which there were of everyone's birthday, but hopefully his lack of birthday reminder was lost in the chaos.

Tim had to somehow also make sure that the family wouldn't find out from online, and he was again thankful for the fact that they got rid of galas for their birthdays, or else that would be a whole other problem that would be not that hard to get rid of but Tim would have definitely dreaded doing. Not that he loved galas, but it would take more work since if they did have birthday galas, someone would definitely end up asking about how everyone else's birthday galas would be, and that would ultimately include him.

Then they would probably talk about his as well as the others so then they would be curious if his ended up never happening.

So again, he was very grateful that they got rid of gala birthdays. It would have ruined the person's birthday automatically, anyways.

But he was getting offtrack. Back to the online thing.

It was thankfully going to be easier than he thought, since people don't really talk about birthdays much, just the once in a while mention. The family had never made their birthdays a big thing outside of their family, but sometimes they would have to if one of them was turning eighteen or twenty-one. Y'know, one of the significant birthdays to other people. Tim wrinkled his nose.

But Tim was only turning seventeen, which wasn't that big of a deal to people. So he was in the clear for this year.

He never tells other people his birthday anyways, so he was pretty much safe online, too. It would be even better if there's a big event that takes up the whole news just in case.

Tim was getting too deep into this. Any further and he would make a whole catastrophe to cover up the small chance of his birthday being mentioned on the news. He wasn't that big of a deal in Gotham. 

He finished getting rid of all reminders of his birthday in the family calendar, even ending some online debates on when his birthday is by burying it so it was as if it happened seven years ago when it actually happened last year. Just precautions.

Tim also secretly went into all of his friend's calendars, deleting those reminders as well. After erasing the reminders from the Titan's calendar and Young Justice's calendar, he was done.

Finally.

He looked outside his window to see it was bright out. Tim had started around three a.m., and now, looking at the time in the top right corner of his laptop, which was on charge the whole time as he worked so it didn't die on him midway, he saw it was still only 5:53 a.m.. Erasing reminders was easy after all, and most of the time he was working on burying online things about his birthday.

Duke, the fresh new member of his family, was probably patrolling right now or soon, and Tim, like he had said earlier, was planning to join the younger, since it's one of his first times patrolling after he joined the family.

Duke had told him he could join him at seven in the morning instead of starting with him so he could get some sleep after his own patrol. Tim, who ended up not sleeping at all anyways, was still thankful for Duke's thoughtfulness. He probably would be dead if he did two patrols back to back along with his plan.

He closed his laptop, pushing it back in its regular place under his pillow. Rubbing the grime in the corners of his eyes, he hopped off his bed, stretching out his stiff limbs. 

Since Tim was going to get changed into Red Robin anyways, he didn't bother changing, instead just brushing his teeth. Rinsing his mouth after two minutes of good teeth brushing, he slowly opened the door, thankful that Alfred made it so that the doors didn't creak like a haunted house. All of them have went outside of their rooms in the middle of the night or early morning with various reasons, so Alfred sought to it to at least make it so they wouldn't wake others. He was still scared of that though. His parents always hated it when he was young and foolish and woke them up in the middle of the night because he was feeling sick. They had gotten mad and locked him in his room until he learned his lesson.

He peeked outside his door for no reason at all, and then noticing how stupid he was being, he opened the door more and closed it behind him, turning off his lights on the way out. Treading carefully but quickly, he crept down the flight of stairs, tip toeing even though he was silent even when he wasn't. 

Light on his feet, still scared of waking somebody up, he turned the hands of the iconic grandfather clock and entered the Batcave, taking care to also close the Cave entrance and exit behind him. This time, now in the basement of the manor, he took less care of sneaking around and just normally walked, which he probably could and should have been doing the whole time.

But Tim was Tim, and you could never be too careful.

He changed into his Red Robin suit, rechecking his belt and bo staff to make sure everything was good. After glueing his domino on instead of the dreaded condom cowl that his siblings would always make fun of (with the exception of Cass who only said she liked the domino better once politely when Dick wheedled her for her opinion), he did a small warm up.

The only reason he had the cowl anyways was because it was one of Jason's old choices where he ended up picking the Red Hood, and Tim had just taken the cowl even though he himself thought the domino was better. He had even started roasting the cowl himself along with the others.

Checking the time, which was now 6:45 a.m., a little early, but early was better than late. Turning on his comm, he said a greeting.

"Hey, Signal!" Checking the trackers built into their suits, he saw that Signal was next to the docks.

"Red! You're a little early," Signal's voice was bright and excited, and Tim couldn't hold back a smile. Even on the cameras, Tim could see Signal brighten. It made his chest feel warm, and his smile grew even more fond than it already was.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Tim sheepishly said, but Duke waved his apology away.

"Nono! It's perfectly fine! Just want you to get as much rest as you can after your own patrol," Duke said, and Tim marveled at how kind the kid was.

"Thanks. Where do you want me to meet you?"

After Tim and Duke came back a few after dusk, and the house was full again. The day before, everyone was off doing their own thing.

Dick and Babs were at their reunion, which they were back from, both of their faces adorned with soft smiles and eyes and mind full of memories, both old and new.

Bruce and Damian had went to volunteer at the pet shelter, Bruce finally making time for his youngest son.

Steph had gone to pick up Cass from the airport, since the latter had just arrived from Hong Kong. It turned out they had both gotten lost, and it had taken more hours than it was supposed to yesterday. They had arrived late at night while Tim was still in the Batcave, clueless of their arrival as he was too deep in his current biggest case.

Jason was off doing his own thing as usual, but he was back for this night.

The manor wasn't usually this full, but it was Saturday night, the sun setting so it could rise again for a fresh new Sunday.

And Sunday meant Sunday brunch.

Sunday brunch was something that happened, well, every Sunday, and it was the one day where there was the highest chance of everyone being in the same room, let alone the same house (well, manor). 

But enough of Sunday brunches.

Tim and Duke, both of their stomachs growling with hunger, entered the kitchen, where Alfred, who was an angel in their sights, was waiting with their dinner.

With enthusiastic thanks, they departed the kitchen with their dinner to see the grueling sight of Damian and Jason bickering on opposite sides of the dining table. 

Duke and Tim exchanged wary and exasperated glances.

Though Jason was barely at the manor and Duke barely got to see Damian and Jason's mostly arguing moments, it was already an old sight.

Tim himself felt bad for Duke, since it was only his sixth day here. Tomorrow would mark the first week.

The two stood there, watching the other two do a more crazed version of western styled duels around the dining table. Tim sighed, deciding to spare Duke, who was looking more awkward and uncomfortable every second.

"Jason, Damian," he said blandly, and said brothers snapped their heads to them, noticing them for the first time, which was frankly embarrassing for them since they were all vigilantes.

"What, Replacement?"

"What is it now, Drake."

Tim blew out a sad breath at the nicknames, neither what he would prefer. "Duke and I want to eat and we can't really do that when you two are having a duel around the dining table."

Duke squeaked when he was mentioned, startled. Jason and Damian, who both glared at each other and had a silent argument, decided to take pity on the newest member (only Duke, never Tim),  and leave, narrowed eyes never leaving the others.

Tim sighed once again, setting his plate down. Sure, the table was long, so they probably could have sit down, but it was hard to eat when two vigilantes are pouncing around as if people didn't eat here. Duke sat too, placing his plate in front of him.

"Sorry about that, you'll get used to it," Tim wryly smiled, and Duke smiled back, letting out a light but sincere laugh.

"It's alright, I'm already half used to it by now," Duke dug in, and Tim followed.

"By the next week, you're going to be part of the chaos."

Duke shuddered. "I'm both looking forward to that and not looking forward to that."

They both shared a bright laugh, and continued eating.

Once they finished, they put their plates away and heading upstairs. When it was time for them to part ways, Tim raised a hand in farewell, which Duke returned.

"G'night, Duke."

"Good night, Tim."

Chapter Text

2. Go even further to find some events to put on his birthday date and around it just in case

A month had past since he had thought of his amazing birthday plan. Also known as 'Making Everyone Forget My Birthday' plan. Amazing name, he knows. If he wanted to make it shorter, it could also be called 'MEFMB', which sounded funny if he actually tried to say it as a word. 

Tim snorted.

But it was time for the second step.

So he had to do some research.

He had to find some kind of event to take each person's attention away on and around his birthday. Hm.

For Bruce, he could probably set up something at Wayne Enterprises for him, since he had been working with them for some while, so he would most likely be able to do that.

For Dick, maybe he could find an event for him and Damian to go to. It would take their minds off what else is happening, not that Damian would even care.

Jason, Tim doubted he knew when his birthday even is, so he could probably just leave him as is. Maybe do a case or two with him.

Duke. Hm. Duke wouldn't know when his birthday is without the calendar or asking, so Tim was most likely in the clear.

Steph would probably be the hardest, but maybe she and Cass could go to Hong Kong for a little while.

Alfred, as long as everyone else forgets Tim would probably be good.

He looked up art events for Damian and Dick, squinting behind his blue light glasses when the bright screen of his laptop contrasted in his pitch black room. 

It was around the time where everybody woke up, but Tim was too tired to turn his lights on and start the day. Scrolling, he found the perfect thing. Damian's school was holding a summer art camp, which happened the week of his birthday. Scrolling down a little, he saw that they also needed chaperones, which would be perfect for Dick. He saved the link and put it into his plan.

Abruptly, his door burst open, and he scrambled to close and shove his laptop under his pillow.

Jason, who had burst in and turned the lights on to a wide eyed Tim who sat on the ledge of his bed, raised an eyebrow. "Hey Timbo."

Tim sighed at the nickname, throwing a pillow found on the floor at his older brother. "What is it, Jay."

"Alfie made breakfast, so hurry up," Jason grinned, a crooked but amused thing, and threw the pillow back at his face. Tim moved his head to the left, catching it with his right hand. 

"M'kay, thanks for letting me know," Tim replied, "knock next time though, you lunatic." Jason rolled his eyes, leaving the door ajar as he left. "Close the door!"

Jason poked his head back in, stuck his tongue out like a child, and left, the door still open. Tim grumbled, but got up to get ready for breakfast.

After he excused himself from breakfast, he had to plot.

He couldn't just go up to Dick and Damian and tell the Demon Brat about his own school event. They would be suspicious immediately. Plus it was months from now, so he would seem like he had an alternate motive (which he did but that wasn't the point). 

Tim decided to just put it into their calendar and they would think it was normal. He could only hope for the best.

Tim's phone rang. Kon's contact showed on it, and he answered it with a grin.

"Hey, Kon," he greeted, sitting himself on the couch.

"Tim! Still up for the hangout this weekend, right?" Kon asked, and Tim could hear a rushing of wind on the other end of the call. Kon was probably on a fly with Jon right now.

"Yeah, I'll see you there. You on a flight with Jon right now?"

"Ye--" Kon's phone cut out, and Tim stayed silent as random noises replaced Kon's voice. Waiting patiently, he knew what would happen only a second later.

"Hey Tim!" Jon's excited voice sounded from his phone, and Tim grinned.

"Jon! How are you?" Tim hadn't seen the younger Super in a while, and he wondered if he could bring Damian while Kon brought Jon during YJ's meet up so they could hangout. They hadn't in a while since they were busy and lived in completely different cities.

"I'm great! How about you?" Tim was glad to hear that the kid was doing well, the boy was like pure sunshine, and seeing one of the brightest people down was never a happy thing.

"It's been pretty good. Make sure to annoy your brother a lot for me," Tim mused, and Jon's cheerful laugh filled his ear as Kon's indignant squawk voiced in the background.

"I'll make sure to do that." After a shuffling noise and a battering of wind, Kon's voice was back.

"Hey, I'm back! Jon's been kind of restless, so he took the chance to battle me to talk to you," Tim could hear Kon shake his head in fondness and amusement. Tim snorted.

"Speaking of that, I've got an idea. How about you bring Jon to the hangout and I'll bring Damian and they can actually hang out for once?"

Kon hummed. "That's... a good idea. Jon's been ranting about how he wishes his schedule was more free so they could hang out more for weeks. It's adorable but it's driving me insane." Jon's indignant squawk -- which was an adorably exact replica of Kon's earlier -- made him chuckle amused under his breath.

Tim laughed. "Damian's just being more Damian. I'll talk to him about it, and since he's free this weekend, I think he'll agree. Plus, it's Jon, he'll be ecstatic, even if he doesn't show it."

"I just told Jon about it right now, and he agreed. So I doubt Damian will say no."

"Yep! I'll tell him right now before he's busy. See you!" He retracted his phone from his ear, close enough so he could still hear, but far enough so he could visually see the call end.

"Seeya!"

Jon squeezed in a farewell before the call could end. "Bye!"

Tim mused for a second after the telltale end of the call sounded. He stood up.

Time to search for Damian.

It should be an easy feat, but knowing that the manor had multiple rooms and floors, it might be harder than he had thought. At least he could narrow it down, since he knew his younger brother's favorite places in the manor. They may argue a ton and seem to hate each other, but Tim loved the kid, though Damian may not really know it.

He first checked Damian's art room, poking his head in and sweeping the whole room with analyzing eyes, humming in thought. Searching his memories, he perked up when he remembered that he had seen Damian go in the direction of the many empty guest rooms when breakfast had ended, so he headed there.

Opening the door, peeking in, and closing the door for every guest room he checked was a tedious process that made him grumbled under his breath, but beggars can't be choosers, he thought. With a sigh, he opened another door, but instead of seeing another empty room and closing the door with one more blow to his ego, he finally saw Damian.

His younger brother was seated on the floor, his back to the primly made bed, whispering... to his hands? Tim couldn't really tell from his place at the door, but now he had Damian's attention, the latter's head whipping up when Tim opened the door.

"Damian!" Tim said, his voice ending in an awkward in between of a question and an exclamation. He winced internally, but focused on the sight in front of him. Damian had made his so his body was covering whatever was in his hands, and Tim narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but didn't voice a question yet.

"Drake! What... are you doing here?" Damian ended awkwardly, which was weird and normal at the same time. Tim internally shrugged, not really caring at the moment, and instead took it for himself to enter the room, plopping himself on the neatly made bed, courtesy of Alfred. He sprawled himself on the bed, feeling his muscles relax a tad bit when his back met a nice encounter of white blanket.

"Was looking for you," Tim responded, turning his head to see Damian's bewildered face, who was now turned to be facing him.

"Me?!" When Tim nodded, undeterred, Damian's face became even more unbelieving.

"Why?" Damian narrowed his eyes, which flickered down to his hands. This time Tim's eyes narrowed, and he abruptly rolled over, trying to peek over the edge of the bed, causing Damian to yelp in surprise (which Tim was definitely going to make fun of him for later) and scrambled backwards, holding his hands close to his chest carefully but quickly.

Tim propped himself on the edge of the bed with his elbows, already apologizing to Alfred in his mind for rumpling up his fine bed-making skills, and leaned forward as far as he could, trying to catch a glimpse at what his brother was hiding in his careful hands.

"Whatcha got there, Dames?" he questioned airily. Damian scowled at him, his hands shifting.

"Do not call me such names, Drake. And I do not have anything," Damian glared at him, chin lifted slightly in defiance. Tim rolled his eyes, ignoring Damian's eyes drilling a hole in his head.

"Cut the crap, lemme see," Tim reached forward, much to Damian's chagrin, grabbing the younger's wrist and pulling lightly but insistently, to see what his little brother was so adamantly hiding.

Damian refrained for a moment against Tim's tug, but then sighed and finally gave in, letting his hands shuffle forward and open up as Tim retracted his hand.

It was a baby bunny.

Tim's eyes widened, and he cooed at the tiny, light brown ball of fluff, sliding off of the bed to sit in front of Damian, cross legged. Damian stayed rigidly still, eyeing Tim warily.

Ah.

Throughout the time since Damian had arrived on their doorstep, wide eyed and raised by the league, the boy had taken an adorably huge liking to animals.

And such started an adopting obsession.

Now, Damian already had Titus, Alfred the cat, Batcow, and Goliath, but was that enough for the little terror?

No! Of course not!

Which was amazing!

Though it was annoying sometimes, behind the scenes, Tim was a supporter of Damian's animal obsessions. Bruce was adamantly against keeping Batcow and instead sending her to the Kents, but Tim knew and saw how Batcow made Damian's eyes sparkle in awe and love, and he couldn't let Bruce send her away, even if it was to a friend's.

Sooo, he may or may not have made a deal and guilt tripped Bruce to secure Batcow's place in the family. 

(Now, the deal he kind of made was not that bad. It was just taking Bruce's place in Wayne Enterprises meetings, more specifically the ones that basically had no meaning and was just people arguing.

It had cost him some hours of relaxation and gave him a mind splitting migraine that made him want to strangle Sharon and Michael, who were the main arguers of every meeting, but it was worth it to see Damian's face light up when Bruce finally accepted Damian's wishes for Batcow to stay.)

Damian, of course, did not know about his deed, but Tim was absolutely fine with that. It was honestly better that the little terror didn't know, it would save Tim some embarrassment.

Back to the actual topic. Damian was a critter lover, and Bruce had already told him that no more animals were to stay in the manor anymore, so no wonder Damian is nervous right now.

He probably thought that Tim would snitch on him.

Tim blew out a soft breath, looking up from the adorable fluffball to meet Damian's still anxious green eyes.

"I'm not going to snitch on you, Dames," Tim reassured, smiling a little. The stress that had built up on Damian's shoulders throughout the two second thought process Tim had about Damian's animal obsessions disappeared in quick success, lips twitching upwards a little. Tim grinned at the sight.

"Oh. Thank you," Damian said awkwardly, then cleared his throat, "this is Muffin. One of my acquaintances from school has a bunny that had a litter around a week ago and asked her classmates if any of us wanted some of them. I... may have taken the opportunity." Damian huffed.

Tim laughed, "You better pray that Bruce or Alfred don't catch you, but I wouldn't be surprised if Alfred already knows." He shook his head. Alfred was all-knowing.

Damian chuckled a little under his breath. "Let us hope that Muffin and Loaf get to stay."

Tim tilted his head. "Loaf?" Damian nodded seriously.

"I did not want Muffin to be alone without her family, so I took her brother with her." Damian stood up, handing Muffin to Tim, who held her like she was made of porcelain, like the fragile vases in Drake Manor that his parents would buy and lecture him to not break. If he did break them, he would get in so much trouble. So with careful experience, he held Muffin like she was one of his parent's vase, cooing at her.

Damian came back with another fluff of a baby bunny in his hands, but with a darker brown color, reminding him exactly of a loaf. Muffin, also reminded him of her namesake, the color of her fur reminding him of the lighter parts of a muffin.

Tim cooed again, this time at Loaf, who Damian held up to his face.

"So, why were you searching for me, Drake?" Damian raised an eyebrow, and Tim remembered what he was originally here to do.

"Oh yeah! Cute detour aside. Do you want to go to Titans Tower with me during the weekend so you can hang out with Jon while I hang out with Kon and the others?" Tim asked, and he could literally see Damian's eyes light up when he heard Jon's name.

Damian tried to look indifferent. "That would be... very nice. Thank you." With a small smirk, Tim took the yes and nodded.

"Great! I'll text Kon about it and then text you when to meet me in the cave." Damian nodded at him, and Tim stood up, wiping imaginary dust off of his pants. "Seeya Dames."

Damian scowled at the nickname, nose wrinkling, but didn't say anything, which was surprising. Maybe the kid was actually tolerating his presence.

He closed the guest room door behind him, then startled when he came face to face with Alfred, who was standing with a perfectly raised eyebrow.

"Heyyy, Alfred," he sheepishly said, standing in front of the door.

"Master Tim, you should know that Master Damian is not allowed any more animals in the manor, correct?" Alfred said, and Tim resisted the urge to shrink. Muffin and Loaf were amazing, and Tim and Damian weren't going to give up without a fight. But since Damian was inside the guest room right now with said bunnies, it was just Tim.

"Yes, Alfred. But these are two baby bunnies we're talking about. I'm sure I can convince Bruce again," Tim insisted, and Alfred analyzed him for a moment, and then noded.

"I'm sure you can. Convincing Master Bruce to keep Batcow was an even bigger feat for you," Alfred mused, and Tim chuckled. "As long as you get Master Bruce's permission, Damian may keep the bunnies." Tim nodded briskly.

"Thank you, Alfred!" Tim exclaimed, smiling. Alfred smiled a little back.

"Of course, Master Tim. Though make sure this never happens again. At least tell me, if not Master Bruce."

Tim nodded again, "Sorry Alfred, I'm sure we can do that."

"Of course. Now, let's go back to both of our duties, shall we?" At Tim's nod, Alfred went off, going back down the hall. Tim watched him go for a few moments, before deciding to go himself.

He had a few texts to make, after all.

Damian didn't really get what was happening.

He had watched Tim leave, resisting the urge to demand to know why the older boy was being so nice to him, but that was it, wasn't it? Tim was always nice. They always fought, of course, but they had times like these when they got along. Those moments always confused him more than the fights.

Damian blew out a frustrated breath as he put Muffin and Loaf back in their temporary box. It made him even more frustrated that he hadn't gotten a proper area in the manor to put the two in, but he would find a way. 

He could always ask one of his brothers....

Damian scowled. That was an idea to think about later. He heard someone talking from the other side of the door, which had closed a few seconds ago. Creeping up to it, he turned his head to hear better what was happening on the other side.

"--yy Alfred." That was Tim's voice. Damian's eyes widened. Alfred?! Bruce was going to take the bunnies away, he just knew it. Damian cast a devastated look to where Muffin and Loaf sat, unaware.

His attention went back to the conversation when he heard Alfred speak. "Master Tim, you should know that Master Damian is not allowed any more animals in the manor, correct?" Damian bit his lip when he heard his name, and bit even harder when he heard the rest.

"Yes, Alfred. But these are two baby bunnies we're talking about. I'm sure I can convince Bruce again."

Again?

What was that supposed to mean?

"I'm sure you can. Convincing Master Bruce to keep Batcow was an even bigger feat for you," he heard Alfred muse, which made his eyes widen even more. "As long as you get Master Bruce's permission, Damian may keep the bunnies."

Batcow??

Damian remembered that Bruce was going to send Batcow to the Kents, much to his chagrin, but out of the blue, he told Damian that they could keep her....

Did Drake do that?!

His eyebrows furrowed. Drake had no reason or motive to do that, so why would he?

"Thank you, Alfred!" Drake.

"Of course, Master Tim. Though make sure this never happens again. At least tell me, if not Master Bruce." Alfred. Damian noted what he said.

"Sorry Alfred, I'm sure we can do that." Drake again.

"Of course. Now, let's go back to both of our duties, shall we?" Alfred.

Damian waited a little more for Drake's answer, but there was nothing, instead almost silent footsteps leaving. Drake must have nodded. He guessed that Drake was the one lingering at the door, since the footsteps just before were further away than where he heard Drake's voice.

Then he heard Drake's footsteps leaving, and once he knew he was in the clear. He opened the door, peeking out. 

The hallway was empty.

Breathing out a sigh of relief, he went back to the bunnies and fed them, made sure that they had enough water, and then sat down, clueless on what was happening.

He lied down on the floor, arms spread out as far at they could.

What was happening?

Chapter Text

Tim waited in the Batcave for Damian, watching the stairs in the corner of his eye as he scrolled on his phone, texting Kon. Said Super sent a picture of himself and Jon, Kon in his signature leather jacket with spikes while Jon had a shirt with their symbol plastered on the chest. Expected of Jon, he mused. Kon texted that they were on the way, and Tim huffed in relief when his own younger brother came down the stairs.

To a normal person, it would look like Damian almost looked bored or uninterested in going, but Tim was a bat, and he could read people like a children's book, including his brother, who was also a bat. Damian's feet were going faster than his usual saunter, practically bounding down the stairs with unrestrained glee in Damian's book. The boy's face was also satisfied, a pleased look drawn on his face as he reached Tim.

"Finally," Tim drawled, and Damian scowled at him, "you took forever. Ready to go?" Damian nodded. Tim examined him as they walked to the Batplane, tilting his head a little. Damian seemed... a little off. The younger boy was examining him as well, though they both hid it with ease. Damian looked like he was trying to solve a puzzle, and Tim had all of the pieces, though he didn't know it.

Tim shook his head internally. He could think about it later.

They went into the Batplane, Damian's whines (yes, whines, Damian) of wanting to be the pilot going through one ear and out the other. He plopped himself into the pilot's seat, putting in the location of the Titan's Tower into the gps, turning on autopilot.

He spun the seat around as the plane started lifting off, Damian settling into his own seat with grumbled underneath his breath and thinly veiled yet half-assed death threats. Tim snorted, the runt had stopped his attempts to kill a while ago, though Tim never got to find out why.

He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, hoping that the trip was short.

He had business to deal with.

"Tim! Damian!" Kon waved when they exited the Batcave, he and his brother having waited for them after Tim had texted of their arrival.

"Dami!" Jon cheered, and Tim almost questioned if the boy was a speedster by the way that he was vibrating. Damian didn't protest the nickname, instead letting his lips lift for a small, mere second into a barely noticeable smile. They all still noticed, and Jon somehow brightened even more.

"Hello, Jon," Damian greeted, approaching the boy quickly.

"Hey Kon," Tim greeted as well, "hey Jon!" Kon pouted.

"Heyyy, how come you sound happier to see Jon more than meee," Kon whined, and Tim rolled his eyes as he walked to their side.

"It's Jon," he shrugged, and Kon paused for a moment, before he nodded.

"Okay, you have a point," the boy grumbled. Tim snickered at him as Jon grinned cockily at his older brother as he slung an arm around Damian's shoulders. Jon was a total miracle worker, because he didn't even get shrugged off.

"Let's go, Damian!" Jon steered them away, leaving Tim and Kon as he excitedly dragged the youngest to the elevator. They were on the roof, so Tim had to blink away the sunlight beaming straight into his eyes to watch his brother walk away, Damian's hands shoved in his pockets, not looking at Jon but visibly listening.

"They grow up so fast," Kon said dramatically as he wiped away invisible tears. Tim rolled his eyes and smacked his friend on the shoulder. Hard.

It hurt him more than the indestructible Kryptonian.

Tim smothered a hiss of pain behind his teeth, pursing his lips as he scowled at a laughing Kon. The other knew by now that it wasn't a big of a deal, and now found it hilarious whenever Tim forgot he was indestructible, much to Tim's chagrin.

He 'tch'ed, so similar to Damians 'tt's that it made him slightly grimace. "Whatever, let's go. Where's Bart and Cassie?"

"They're downstairs, in the theater," Kon spoke as they followed Damian and Jon into an elevator just as Jon started spamming the button excitedly. The door opened and the young boy finally stopped, instead practically bouncing through the elevator doors, pulling Damian along. Kon and Tim followed swiftly behind, the younger boys pressing a button to the kitchen while the older boys pressed the button to the entertainment floor. which was where the theater was.

The entertainment floor came first, and they waved goodbye to Jon and Damian, the former waving back quickly while the latter gave them a single nod as farewell. A side of Tim's lips quickly quirked up in amusement.

Once they opened the theater doors, two bodies launched themselves at him, and Tim had to forcibly push down his instincts to fight, instead bracing himself. They toppled to the ground, Tim laughing as Bart and Cassie started talking at the same time, Bart in superspeed and Cassie in normal speed, but stumbling over her words from how fast she was still talking.

"Okay, okay!" Tim laughed, pressing a palm into each of their shoulders that were on the outside as pushed them back a little so he could sit up and they weren't talking right in front of his nose. "One at a time!" They both opened their mouth at the same time. "Cassie first." Bart pouted at him, and he laughed while Cassie let out a cheshire smile at them.

"Kon was being mean and made us stay here," Cassie threw a glare at Kon, who raised his hands up in surrender. 

"Aww, come on Cassie, it was only a five minute delay," Kon groaned at her, but Bart scowled back.

" We haven't seen Tim in forever!" he crossed his arms. "And you should know by now that five minutes is practically a lifetime for speedsters. Kon adorned a sheepish look, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Sorry, guys," Kon said, though he was smiling at them with no restraint, almost bordering a smirk. Tim rolled his eyes at their antics, though he felt slightly bad for Bart. Five minutes for a speedster could not have been easy.

"S'all good," Bart's smile now challenged Cassie's cheshire smile with his own, "but you can't watch Wendy the Werewolf Hunter for the next week!" Kon squawked in horror, clutching his chest in what Tim wished he could call dramatics. 

No, Kon was being totally serious.

Tim snorted as Kon started roughhousing with Bart, who ran circles around him as Kon also used his superspeed to try and catch him. He shook his head at their antics.

He had missed them. And all of this.

They had been hanging out until nightfall, and Tim was grateful that he and Damian were free the whole day. 

He flopped down on the couch, arms spread out in an eagle pose and he gazed up at the ceiling, which was bland and white, but was also littered with signs of love.

By signs of love, he means burn marks from Bart trying to run on the ceiling, slight splotches of discolored plaster, speckles of glitter from rambunctious pranks, small holes, and huge dents from when a body slammed into the ceiling. Tim ignored the fact that some of the signs of love were made by yours truly.

Bart giggled at his antics, speeding around the couch in circles so fast it made Tim close his eyes in fear of getting dizzy and sick watching the blur of red around him. He sunk into the darkness of his eyelids, humming in content. 

Until Kon had to ruin it all by poking him in the arm. Tim turned a scowl in his direction, but peeled open his eyes nonetheless, instead putting as much of a deadpan look in his eyes. Kon's bright blue eyes sparkled shamelessly at him.

"C'mon Rob, I wanna play Mario Karttt," Kon whined, poking him in the forehead this time, but before he could do it again, Tim snatched his wrist, scowling even harder, but a wave of amusement made his lips twitch. Kon, ever perceptive, noticed, and responded with his own blinding grin. Tim resisted the urge to cover his eyes, instead rolling his eyes, taking them off of the literal sun in front of him for a small moment before resting them on him again. Kon's blinding grin was thankfully replaced with a pout.

"No. Go ask Bart, he out of the two of us, actually has energy," he grumbled, throwing an arm over his face. Too much social interaction, he thought, even if it was spent with his friends. All of the time alone in his childhood couldn't be fixed, even after a few years. His social battery had never needed to be high in the past, and he was still getting used to it.

"But he always cheats!" Bart gasped while Cassie barked out a sharp and fierce laugh at his affronted expression. Tim lowered his arm to muffle his own laughter. 

"That's outrageous!" Bart stomped a foot like a petulant child. "You cheat more than me!"

Tim grinned, but stood his ground. "Well then, play with Cassie then." Before Kon could reply that Cassie was also a cheater (which was also very true, the girl would elbow everyone to throw them off whenever she could. Once Tim had suffered 32 elbows from her in Rainbow Road, but it made his victory of being in first place even better), Cassie intercepted with a snort.

"No way," Cassie pointed a thumb at Kon, "clone-baby here gets too grumpy when I beat his ass."

"You mean cheat," Bart put in, sniggering, but threw his hands up in a hurried surrender when Cassie swung around to glare at him.

"You, cannot be talking, mister," Cassie rolled her eyes as she affectionately flicked Bart in the forehead, who beamed up at her, ecstatic that he was not (wo)manhandled for his comment. 

They liked roughhousing a lot. It was tiring yet fun.

More of a eye roll for Tim (though it was accompanied with a smile), since the others were metas and he obviously wasn't, but he was the most skilled of them all, and knew how to beat them all easily.

"Whatever. Tim's more fun to play with," Kon grouched, ignoring the other's gasps of offense, "he doesn't even need to cheat to beat all of us, and I need to beat him!"

Tim's phone alarm then went off, and a rock suddenly lodged into his throat, which seemed to sink to his heart and lodge into it, weighing it down. He had set an alarm so he wouldn't chicken out of doing step three of his process, and here it was.

He had half wished that it wouldn't go off.

Tim sighed, sitting up and turning off his alarm, which was being peered at curiously by his three best friends. 

He might as well get it over with.

Tim cleared his throat. "Anyways, I've got something to tell you all." Three pairs of eyes immediately locked onto him, and he avoided their gaze, instead looking at their foreheads. "I, um, would greatly appreciate if you don't tell my family about my next birthday."

Their reactions were instantaneous.

"What the fuck?"

"No way!"

"What in the world are you talking about?!"

Welp, it looked like they forgot about Mario Kart now, he laughed without humor in his mind.

Tim winced, knowing that their reactions would be something like this, but not ready for it all the same. He lowered his eyes from their foreheads, which were now full of lines from their raised eyebrows, to meet their's. He could still feel them boring into him though, and his body threatened to tense, flee, or fight.

"I have a good reason," he said, calmly despite his heart thrumming against his chest. He wasn't scared. Not of his friends. They've been through so much together, and he trusted them with his life and others'. No. He was scared that his plan was for nothing, and he might have to go through everything again. He didn't want that.

"And what would that reason be?" Kon pushed, leaning forward, arms crossed. Tim now felt a little self conscious that he was the only one sitting. Cassie, who had calmed down the fastest and was now watching him with a keen eye while the other two were wracking their minds, noticed, and walked over slowly to sit next to him, her thigh pressing into his as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Tim leaned into it.

"We've got your back, Tim," Cassie said, "we just wanna know why you don't want the other Bats to know when your birthday is anymore." Cassie was ever always the voice of reason.

Tim blew out a breath, "Okay." He sent a smile at her, and she smiled back. "Uh. I just don't want a repeat of that other birthday," he mumbled, and the others tensed, "I don't want a repeat."

"Oh," Bart muttered, "right. That happened." Tim laughed, though his heart still seemed to be weighed down to his stomach. Kon sat down beside him, and Bart speeded forward to tackle Tim in a hug, who let out an 'oomph', but Kon's strong hand rested on his back to prevent him from tumbling backwards.

Bart still had some flashes of lightning bouncing about in his fluffy, red hair, and Tim watched it with a smile as it slowly disappeared, getting smaller and smaller by the second.

"Are you sure?" Kon asked, but Tim knew that he got it, with all of his stuff with Clark and all.

Tim hesitated, which was noticed by all of them, but he nodded. He was sure. "Yeah, I'm sure," he voiced his thoughts out loud. "Best to play it safe, you know?" The others nodded in understanding, and Tim only realized how tense he was before until he relaxed, slumping into Bart's hug and both Cassie and Kon's hands that were rested firmly but kindly on his back and shoulder. He melted into it. Bart hugged tighter.

"Okay," Bart nodded, "we won't tell them." Cassie and Kon nodded along, agreeing. 

The rock in his heart evaporated.

Tim imagined it floating away, disappearing into thin air. He smiled.

"Thanks, guys," Tim murmured, burying his face into Bart's hair, which tickled at his face, but not in an itchy way. He buried his nose deeper, and Bart hummed happily, arms tightening. Cassie's hand disappeared, and instead, he felt a head rest on his shoulder, blonde hair tickling his neck. Kon's hand reached further to wrap around his waist, like a protective yet comfortable hook.

"It's no problem, Boy Wonder," Cassie said, and Tim smiled into red hair.

They lapsed into silence, but as much as Tim loved cuddling with his friends, they could do that later tonight. They were all going to sleep over after all.

He lifted his head, letting a mischievous grin wash over his features. The others noticed the change of mood instantly, Bart lifting his head a little to try to get a peek, Cassie turning her head, barely a twitch, while Tim could feel Kon's gaze on him. It all felt comforting.

"So, about that game of Mario Kart..." he trailed off, eyes twinkling in mischief and burning with competitiveness.

Kon released his hand around Tim to leap up off of the ground, pumping a fist. "Yes!!!"

Tim giggled, moving a little to show that he was going to stand up, and Bart and Cassie shuffled so he could move now, the two metas now lying down on the couch behind him. He stood up, stretching.

He had a game to win.

The morning came almost too fast, but also was an amazing day and night. Tim's heart still buzzed with happiness as the four of them exited the elevator to the kitchen, where Damian and Jon were awaiting for them, Damian perched on the kitchen island, typing on his phone, while Jon peered into the cabinets and fridges (yes, fridges. They had to have multiple because of the people with very fast metabolisms). He looked like a lost sheep by the way he looked at all of the food.

They were probably waiting for them, since they both had no idea how to make food, even something as simple as scrambled eggs. Though, admittedly, Jon was better than Damian, since he had cooked or baked with his family a lot before. But it didn't mean he knew any of the recipes by memory alone. Damian, on the other hand, just never learned how to cook or bake, in the League, or the manor.

Of course, the two kids knew how to make cereal, but by Jon's confused look, it seemed to be that they both had no idea where it was.

Damian looked up from his phone and nodded at him in greeting. "Drake. Where is the cereal." It was less of a question and more of a statement, but Damian had been acting nicer since the day Tim found out about his bunnies, so Tim took it in stride.

"I'll get it, can you get the bowls? They're in the cabinet behind you." Damian 'tch'ed, but turned and hopped down off the island anyways, reaching up to open the cabinet that had the bowls. "Kon, can you get the spoons?" Kon nodded, and they walked over.

Grabbing all of the kinds of cereal they had, he walked out of the kitchen to place it on the huge dining table, which was made to fit all of the inhabitants of Titans Tower, though all of them except for them were here right now. Walking back, he frowned when he peered inside of the fridge and saw that there was no milk to be found. He turned to Bart, but before he could ask with a tinge of hesitance, Bart saluted quickly and dashed off.

He arrived back a second later, a carton of milk and Kon's wallet in hand. Kon yelped, patting himself down, spoons still clutched in one hand, and groaning when he found that his wallet was nowhere to be found. 

Tim grinned. "Thanks, Bart!" He took the milk and placed it with the cereal as Kon placed a spoon at each seat, making it so it was three seats across three more seats.

Damian also walked over, his hands now full of six bowls stacked on top of each other, placing them at each seat. Damian and Jon decided to sit across from each other so it was easier to talk, and Tim and Kon sat next to Damian (Tim knew Damian would like it more if somebody more familiar sat next to him) while Bart and Cassie sat next to Jon. Bart and Jon grinned at each other, their similar cheerful personalities matching well, and Jon didn't mind not sitting next to Kon.

"We're gonna go after this," Tim informed Damian, who showed a little disappointment in his posture, but Damian nodded. Jon pouted as he dug into his Lucky Charms.

"Awww," Jon said, "we should totally do this again sometime!" Damian, who adorably perked up, poured Frosted Flakes into his bowl. Tim poured Rice Krispries (the cereal version, of course) into his own bowl. He liked the way they crackled when combined with milk. Like a fireplace that radiated the warmth and heat that he had never had. That was why it was his favorite when he was a kid, and it had stuck throughout the years.

"Yes. That would be... acceptable," Damian allowed a small smile, which made Jon light up with joy. Tim wouldn't be surprised if that small but genuine smile fueled the sweet kid until their next meeting.

"Heh, maybe we should drop by Gotham sometime," Kon said, and Bart and Cassie paused the conversation they were having in the background to all turn to Tim with three matching cheshire grins.

"I, for one, think this is the only good plan you've ever thought of," Cassie joked, and Kon let out a squawk noise of protest.

"I," Tim exaggerated the 'I' as much as he could, "think that you will not drop by Gotham." He said this with a lace of threat in his voice as he poured the milk. Crackling noised from his bowl, quiet, yet loud. It was comforting either way. He placed an elbow on the table, leaning on it so he could hear the cereal better without looking weird. It filled him with nostalgia. Memories that were filled with quiet manors, cold floors, and the feeling of loneliness in the air.

He hated it and loved it at the same time.

For some small reason, the cereal he was eating right now had caused him such unbridled joy when he was alone. It filled in the empty silence, creating an illusion that he was not alone.

"I agree with Drake. Father would not like it if you came to Gotham without permission," Damian raised another spoonful of cereal, "you all know how he feels about metas. And you all know about his rule." Damian shoved the spoonful in his mouth.

"Fine, fine," Cassie said, pouting, "one day." She muttered the second part, and Tim sent her a heatless yet still threatening glare. But he sent Damian a nod, smiling with his eyes. He knew Damian would see it. After all, they were taught by the Bat himself. Damian looked at him for a moment before looking away, but Tim saw the small flicker of pride in his eyes. Tim smiled.

They were getting closer.

"I'm going up now, you two," Dick stretched, yawning, "don't sleep too late, Babybird." Tim let himself have a discreet, soft smile at the nickname. It was a few days after he and Damian came back from Titans Tower, and Dick had swung by, planning to stay a few days. It was an event that he welcomed.

"I'll try not to," Tim nodded, turning his head to give Dick a different smile, but it was no less sincere than the other one. "Good night."

"'Night!" Dick waved with a grin as he went up the stairs, and Bruce grunted, one that meant good night in their internal translators. Tim turned back to his computer.

Time passed, around thirty minutes, and Tim could sense in the air that Bruce had something to say to him. He twitched, worrying what the man could possibly want to tell him. He gnawed at his bottom lip.

"Tim," Bruce approached him a few days after Tim and Damian's trip to Titans Tower when the Batcave was empty except for the two of them. He and Bruce both liked staying up late to do cases and whatnot. Tim didn't turn, instead humming to show that he was listening as half of his brain focused on the case he was working on while the other half 

"Yeah, Bruce?" he decided to respond when Bruce stayed silent, voice obviously distracted. Bruce's footsteps were drowned out by his thoughts, and his brow furrowed when he noticed something unusual about the case. He snapped, surprising Bruce, who stopped in his tracks right behind him.

"Ah, it was the neighbor," Tim said, raising his head to the side, noticing Bruce, who set a hand on the back of his chair.

"O-Oh, that's good," Bruce said, surprised at the random, out-of-the-blue statement. "But I'd like to speak to you."

"Oh, yeah. What's up?" Tim blandly said, crossing his legs and lifting them up onto his desk. Bruce blinked at the action, and Tim smiled a bright, innocent grin. Bruce returned an exasperated look. Tim may look like the innocent child who listened to daddy's orders, but he was quite the opposite once you got to know him.

"Alfred said that you and Damian are hiding some critters."

Well, shit.

"And that you were supposed to tell, me, but it's already been a week, so Alfred came to me himself," Bruce continued, and Tim rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Ah, I knew I forgot something," he muttered under his breath, but looked up at Bruce anyways. "Sorry, Bruce, guess I forgot."

"You know that they can't stay," Bruce sighed, and Tim clasped his hands together, setting his legs down and shuffling so he was actually sitting upright with a good posture for a change, to give Bruce a wide-eyed look.

"But Bruce, you haven't seen them," he said, on the verge of pleading, but settled on the line in between. "They're so... cute." He separated his hands to make a strangling motion.

Ah, yes, cuteness aggression.

Bruce looked slightly startled at the motion, and make a constipated look that showed his internal conflict, and Tim felt slightly bad for him. Maybe he could take it easier on the man and take it down a...

Nah.

"They're so fluffy," Tim continued, grasping onto Bruce's shirt (that Alfred had made him change into instead of stinking up the cave in a sweaty Batman suit) with a slightly crazed look that was a little overexaggerated.

He says 'little', because those bunnies really were adorable. Really, really adorable.

Tim had always wanted pets as a kid, but wasn't allowed to due to his parents.

"Jesus, Timothy, shouldn't you know at this age that you should not fraternize with filthy animals," his mother had chastised him on one of the rare days that his parents were home, barely giving a seven year old Tim a glance, even when he had asked for a pet.

Tim honestly didn't blame them, he was seven at that time, after all, but he had asked only once again, when he was eleven, and they had still said no. He never bothered again. 

Even when he was adopted by Bruce, he never bothered to ask. And once Damian arrived with a love for animals, the manor was filled with them, and by Bruce's exasperation and repeats of 'no more animals', Tim knew not to ask.

"Uh, that's wonderful Tim," Bruce said, but seemed to straighten up, remembering that he's the Batman (that Tim realized wasn't that much, over the years), and gave Tim a stern look. "But you should know that we've already had too many pets in the manor, and I've got to set a line."

"Why not talk to Damian, then?" Tim said, cocking his head, sending a deadpan look Bruce's way. Bruce sighed.

"Damian's been avoiding me since I found out. I think he knows by the way I keep trying to approach him," Bruce pinched his nose, "which is why we're here right now."

Tim hummed. "There has to be a way he can keep them," Tim sent Bruce a look, prompting. Bruce sighed deeper.

"I'm not making another deal with you, Tim. You've done enough for me as is, last time," Bruce said, and Tim suppressed a shudder at the memory of the long, horrible meetings he had to withstand. "I shouldn't have made that deal in the first place. I am the adult, after all." Tim bristled at the statement. He was plenty mature to take up some of the work, no matter how much he hated it.

"There has to be something," Tim pouted, crossing his arms, and Bruce sent him a look of warning, which didn't scare Tim, just made him pout harder.

"There's no space anymore in the manor," Bruce said, and Tim knew that was a lie. The manor was huge. Absolutely ginormous. Even bigger than Drake Manor! And he knew his house was big. He used to wander every single hall, venture into every room, when his parents were gone. All of them were bland though, and it made him feel like he was in a hospital without any patients, just him.

"That's a lie, and you know it," Tim countered, and Bruce crossed his arms, huffing. "It's not a money thing, it's not a space thing, and it's not a 'too much work for Alfred' thing, since Damian does all of the work himself, so what is it?" 

Bruce blew out a breath. "We're not a pet shelter. We can't keep doing this."

"What's the harm?"

"The harm, is that he just can't keep any more. I have to be stern with these things, so Damian doesn't feel that he can get away with things like this in the future, when he's older," Bruce said, finally slumping into a chair next to Tim instead of standing there, obliviously looming like the vigilante he is.

Tim scoffed. "This is Damian? He's been raised by assassins? Had to follow every single rule in his childhood?" If you could even call whatever Damian went through 'childhood'. "Animals is like, the only thing he likes enough to break rules for it, other than Robin." Art was also one of Damian's amazing hobbies, but what rules would there even need to be placed for that?

"That's... true," Bruce slowly said, a contemplative expression appearing on his face as he raised a hand to his chin.

Tim leaned forward, prompting him to continue. Bruce shuffled awkwardly. Then finally, after a painstaking moment, opened his mouth.

"...Fine." Tim cheered, throwing up his hands in an exaggerated fashion, and Bruce rolled his eyes. 

"But!" Tim groaned. Always with the 'but's. "Only if I get to meet them, and Damian tells me about their presence himself." Tim hummed. It wasn't that bad for a 'but'.

"I think I can make that happen." 

Bruce nodded. "Good." He paused. "Go to sleep." Tim scowled at him, but pushed himself up off of his chair anyways. He stretched, pulling his arm across his other before he switched. Just to be annoying, he reached down to touch his toes. Feeling Bruce's deadpan expression drilling into the back of his head, he snickered under his breath. He popped back up.

"Fine, but only if you come along," he glared at Bruce, lips twitching in amusement as Bruce glared back. Bruce stood up as well, following him as he walked back up to the manor. 

Once they reached the family wing, Tim opened his door, waving over his shoulder. "Night, Bruce."

"Good night, Tim," Bruce said, and Tim closed his door behind him.