Chapter Text
Clark bolted awake as he heard it.
“Bruce, wake up.”
They rushed down the hall, where Jason was already en route. His eyes were burning luminescent emeralds in the dark.
“You heard it too?” Clark asked.
Jason growled in response.
They opened the door, where the yelling was coming from.
“No… Mama…” Damian was thrashing under the covers.
“Grandfather… no… NO,” Damian was deep in the throes of his nightmare.
Bruce and Jason were immediately at Damian’s side, trying to gently wake him up.
“Ahki, aistayqaza min nawmika,”
“Habibi, wake up, it’s just a dream-”
“No- Timothy! …Grandfather…” Damian continued to struggle.
Bruce was gently stroking Damian’s hair, making gentle shushing noises.
Damian’s hand reached under his pillow as he continued to thrash.
“Grandfather… KILL YOU!” Damian’s eyes blazed luminescent emerald as the karambit flashed in an arc of instinctual desperation.
Clark saw a deep crimson arc of arterial spray flash across the room as Bruce grabbed his neck, and crumpled.
Damian’s chest was heaving as his lambent green irises scanned the room for threats.
“Ahki, ahki, tanaffas, tanaffas,” Jason cooed, as he held Damian close, gently taking his fingers off the karambit.
Clark ran in, checking Bruce’s condition. That was a lot of blood.
Bruce groaned, grabbing his neck. Clark inspected it, pulling Bruce’s hand away. The wound looked more like he’d gotten a cat scratch.
“Close call,” Bruce mumbled, as he got up to check on Damian.
Clark knew what he saw. And the floor told the story.
Clark’s mind froze in fear as he remembered what Dick told him.
This was his first time, he realized. The first time he’d really understood. Bruce wasn’t infallible. He could die. He did die. He has died many times before. And Bruce would never believe him. He would simply have to hold that memory, of Damian’s eyes flashing in raw fear, the flash of the hooked talon blade, of the spray across the room as Bruce’s throat opened. He’d have to hold it forever.
“Habibi, you just had another nightmare, it’s okay, you’re safe,” Bruce said, as if nothing happened at all to him. His son’s welfare took priority.
“Do you want to come sleep in Baba’s bed?”
“I am too old for that, Father, you know this.” Damian sniffled.
“Jason, would you like to sleep in Baba’s bed?” Bruce asked.
“Hell yeah I do, old man, my nightmare sucked,” Jason replied, still holding Damian protectively.
“...I will join Todd to support him,” Damian said, in a small voice.
Bruce smiled.
Miraculously, Bruce was able to carry both of his sons at once, with Jason riding on his back, and Damian cradled in his arms.
He deposited them in his bed, where they both snuggled into the middle. Bruce gently climbed in after them, cradling their bodies with his.
Clark didn’t know what to do, because in an instant Bruce was on Dad Time. Maybe he’d go lie on a couch.
“Clark,” Bruce called, softly. “The formation’s weak on that side,” he pointed to the other side of the bed.
Clark was frankly shocked. Bruce wanted him to be part of this?
“Me?” Clark asked.
“I would hope I could rely on Superman to protect my children,” Bruce returned, snuggling into Damian.
Clark obeyed, climbing into the bed, and laying next to the boys. He was laying flat, making a wall with his body but not really integrated with the pile. After a moment, Jason grumbled and reached over his shoulder, grabbing at Clark and tugging him closer.
Clark took the hint and budged in. Before too long, the boys had resumed their slumber, sleeping peacefully between Bruce and Clark. Bruce fell back asleep not much longer, and only after that did Clark succumb to sleep.
“Hey, Damian?”
“Yes, Kent?” Damian didn’t look up from his artwork.
“How would you like to go to the zoo today?” Clark asked.
“I am banned,” Damian replied, simply.
“Uh, we’d go to the Metropolis Zoo, it’s further, but we could go if you want?”
Damian turned in his chair, eyeing Clark with his stern look, before turning back to his work.
“Very well.”
“Do you have clothes you don’t mind getting dirty?” Clark asked.
Damian fully spun in his chair. “For what purpose?”
“This isn’t really what I had in mind when I said we would do whatever you want,” Bruce whispered across the front console of the black Honda Odyssey as Clark brought the vehicle to a stop in the parking lot.
Clark placed the handicapped marker on the rear-view mirror.
“I didn’t hear the magic words,” Clark replied nonchalantly.
Bruce looked at the back of the vehicle. It could be worse, Bruce thought. 4 was more manageable than 7, but Bruce’s real worry was Damian. He was an absolute wonder with animals and definitely loved them more than humans, but he was also extremely insensitive to man-made rules if they felt like they didn’t apply to him. And while nobody was hurt, and nobody wanted legal action, the Gotham Zoo banned Damian citing liability reasons.
“Damian.” Bruce leaned around the seat to look at his son one last time before putting on all the crap he needed to go outside. “Listen to Clark today.”
“Yes Baba.”
“Damian. Not like you listen to me. Today, you listen to Clark as if he were Al-Umm Al-Hanunah.”
“Yes Father.”
“I’m still not certain this was a great idea,” Bruce whispered.
“It should be fine, we talked about it beforehand.” Clark responded.
“Okay, but you’re pulling him out of the tiger pit this time,” Bruce grumbled as he clambered out of the minivan.
The Waynes all wore brimmed hats and sunglasses, save for Damian who wore his special light-dampening contacts for the occasion. Bruce and Tim both wore cloth medical masks. Stephanie put sunblock on Cass.
They made their way to the zoo entrance in pairs, Clark with Damian, Steph with Cass, and Bruce pushing Tim in his headrested wheelchair.
“Doreen! Good to see you today, how’ve you been?” Clark said to the ticket attendant.
“Oh, Clark! It’s been awhile, I’m doing well, thank you. How are your folks? Doing well?”
“They’re doing great, thanks. I brought my…” Clark froze. He didn’t think this far. It had dawned on him that he was on a date, in public, with an incognito billionaire and his children.
“...friends from out of town,” Clark smiled.
“Oh goodness, so many!” Doreen exclaimed with excitement.
“Also, this one would like to volunteer today,” Clark put his hand on Damian’s shoulder.
“Oh, how wonderful! And what’s your name, young man?”
“Damian,” he said, shyly.
“Damian, well it’s lovely to meet you, and you’re in luck, I saw Dr. Nwadiwe this morning, I’m sure he’d be happy to have you help!”
Clark paid the admission, finished exchanging pleasantries, and they went inside. Bruce tugged on Clark’s sleeve.
“Clark.”
“Yes, dear?”
Bruce flushed under the sunglasses and mask.
“Let me pay for things like this,” Bruce mumbled.
“But I wanted to, I mean, we took your car and everything, it’s only fair-”
“No it’s not.” Bruce stood still for a moment. “Clark, money is no object to me. It matters more for you by necessity. You are already giving me your most precious resource.”
“What’s that?” Clark asked.
“Your time, Clark,” Bruce answered.
“So, please. Let me. Think of it like… a perk,” Bruce continued.
Clark felt a little embarrassed, and a little small, if he was being honest with himself. He and Bruce really occupied two completely different worlds, but Bruce seemed to be trying his best.
“Okay, Bruce.”
Bruce squeezed Clark’s hand.
They made their way to the zoo map to plot out their various routes.
“Okay, Stephanie, here is the card, please try not to lose it. Remember our rules about waste please. I would also like to have lunch together if that’s okay,” Bruce handed the black card out of his wallet, then looked at Damian.
“Be good for Clark, okay?” He hugged his son. “Bahebbak ktir.”
“Wana kaman bahebbak,” Damian grumbled in teenage rebellion against embarrassing public displays of parental affection.
“Okay, Tim, where do you want to go?”
Tim stretched with a yawn and sat up in his chair. “Mmm… can we go see the lizards and insects first? Then let’s go to the bats.”
“The bats?” Bruce asked, incredulously. He had figured his kids would be completely uninterested in bats, they had plenty of bats at home.
“Yeah, Dad. Aren’t they your favorite? I want to see them with you before I gotta take a nap.”
“Okay, Tim,” Bruce smiled under the mask.
“And I wanna see what Dami’s doing-”
“Of course, whatever you want, hon.”
“Now, Damian, wait-” Clark’s protest was about as effective as a paper umbrella in a typhoon.
Dr. Nwadiwe watched his latest volunteer drag in the shadiest person he’d seen in a long time. His entire face was hidden behind a ballcap, sunglasses, and a medical mask, with only dark, lanky hair poking out from the cap. He was dressed in worn jeans, a hoodie, and a dirty-looking denim jacket. His hands were mostly covered by black wraps, and his fingernails were also painted black. Beyond his initial appearance, there was something… off about him.
“Dami-”
“Dr. Nwadiwe, this is my Father. Father, Dr. Nwadiwe.”
“Uh, how do you do, Mr…?”
“Sorry, just a moment,” the man asked.
“Habibi,” the man turned to his son. “What is this about, please?”
“The big cat reserve… They need more room- ”
“Dami, we can’t just-”
“The tigers, Baba! ” Damian was crying.
“Okay, okay, just… I’ll talk to him, okay?” The man was getting choked up.
“Hi,” the man said, after clearing his throat. “I’m so sorry to be taking more of your time, I’m sure you’re very busy.”
“Sure, what can I help you with? Damian was a great help today. He has a real passion for understanding animals.”
“So,” the man cleared his throat. “Hypothetically, about what would it take to, say, expand the Big Cat Reserve program in your zoo?”
The doctor looked at the man over his glasses.
“Well,” he said, inhaling deeply. “Obviously we would need to purchase more land, construct new habitat, not to mention the extra equipment costs and staffing-”
“So it’s a funding issue?”
“Well, ultimately, yes.”
“Rough figure?”
“Excuse me?”
“How much would it cost, do you estimate?”
“In the tens of millions of dollars.”
“If you had that funding, would you do it? Expand the reserve?”
“Well, obviously, yes, but, first of all, who are you? This is a conversation to be had in a board-room, not my office, and if you’ll beg my pardon sir, you don’t strike me as the kind of person who I would be talking to about this anyway-”
The man fished a black card out of his wallet, and slid it across Dr. Nwadiwe’s desk, with his other hand making a “shh” gesture.
The man looked at the card. It was simple, expensive black cardstock with embossed silver text:
Bruce Wayne
Chairperson, Wayne Enterprises
The doctor turned over the card and reviewed the contact information.
“What the hell is this?”
“Please excuse me, we’re on a family trip,” Bruce Wayne apologized.
“You’re right, this isn’t the venue for this conversation,” he continued. “However, if I may walk you through it: You’re absolutely correct, my son has a real passion for animals and seeks to understand them, and he empathizes with them. He has taken an interest in your facility, and is showing concern for the happiness and welfare of the animals. My son has asked me, his father, to use my considerable power for the benefit of these creatures. It is not an understatement to say that I would do almost anything for my children. So, Dr. Nwadiwe, I am offering to give you the funding, as well as whatever else I can offer in order to make my son’s dream come true.”
“I suppose you’ll want to name it after him, too,” Dr. Nwadiwe retorted.
“Dami? Is that something you want?”
“Why? I don’t see how that helps the animals,” He answered.
Dr. Nwadiwe’s eyes narrowed.
“Baba,” Damian began signing gestures at the man.
“You’ll have to ask them, habibi, that’s a lot, they’re very busy.”
Damian disappeared outside the office for a moment, then returned.
“Dr. Nwadiwe, sir, may I continue to volunteer here on a weekly basis?”
The doctor blinked. “Yes, Damian, I think that would be fine, your performance was exemplary today.”
Dr. Nwadiwe looked at Bruce. “That was a much easier ask, you understand that, right?”
“I’m sorry, no, I didn’t understand that, in my mind it was like inviting himself over to your house,” Bruce admitted.
“But offering millions of dollars for a zoo expansion to a complete stranger with no prior arrangements, casually, isn’t an issue?”
“No, it never occurred to me. My son asked me to help, so I am offering to help,” Bruce explained.
“Give me a call anytime after next week, and we’ll arrange a more formal meeting that fits your schedule, does that sound acceptable?” Bruce asked.
Dr. Nwadiwe sighed, and stood up, offering his hand to make a deal. “Very well. I’ll be in touch to discuss the matter further.”
“Thank you so much for your time, Dr. Nwadiwe,” Bruce said as he took the man’s hand and shook it in a friendly manner.
Later, Dr. Nwadiwe was inspecting the business card with idle curiosity. On a hunch, he went to the volunteer sign-in sheet. He looked at the entries for today. There, in perfect, practiced penmanship, was the entry.
Damian Wayne
“Huh.”
“Something the matter, doctor?” His assistant asked.
“No, quite the opposite. I just always imagined winning the lottery would feel… different.”
The car ride back was peaceful. Steph and Cass were asleep in the back. They had run into a school field trip, and bought treats and face-painting for all of the kids. They also did a big tour of the zoo, spending a lot of time in the aviary and watching a demonstration on African Eagle Owls. Their arms were bundled full of stuffed animals. Damian was humming next to Tim as he sketched on a tablet.
“So what’d you get?” Tim asked, cuddling a new gila monster plushie.
Damian beamed. “Father agreed to help the big cats.”
“If Dr. Nwadiwe agrees to work with me,” Bruce appended, his eyes closed as the late afternoon sun cut through the trees.
“If it works out and he accepts, then that’s your birthday present for this year, okay?” Bruce lied.
“Yes Baba. Thank you, Baba.”
“You are more than welcome, habibi.”
“Damn, Dami. Jay’s gonna be hella jealous. Sucks that he was busy today.” Tim said.
“It’s understandable,” Damian replied, sketching out a tiger. “We will do something later.”
“Clark.”
Gulp. Eyes on the road, ten and two.
“Yes, Damian?”
“Thank you for today. And for agreeing to help me with my new volunteer position.”
“‘s no problem, darl- Damian.”
Clark looked in the rear-view mirror, seeing the contented faces of happy children. He looked to the side, just briefly, to see the speckles of light shining through the trees, sparkling on Bruce’s now sleeping face.
This felt right.