Chapter Text
“Damian,” Tim called. “Wait!” Damian jumped to the next roof. Tim was still following. Why wouldn’t they leave him alone? He grappled to a building to his right. Dick dropped down in front of him.
“Now is that any way to greet family?” He dodged the man’s attempt at an embrace and continued, rolling his eyes as he did so. These people… He knew Jason was there when he heard gunshots. Jason may be his favorite of his father’s kids. He didn’t mind Jason. He kept on until he felt the steps of the Dark Knight himself. Damian sighed as he turned to see his father. He could see the rest of them running to catch up.
“Ra’s sent you?” He shrugged. It was Ra’s and his mother. They both wanted to see how Bruce was doing. His mother so that she could make sure he wasn’t dating any new girls. Ra’s for any new battle plans against the League. That, and they wanted him to check up on the cells. Oh, and ‘get to know his father and learn from him.’ What kind of crap was that though? They used to go on and on about how the League and Leviathan all he would ever need to know. Now his father had the answers? He’d had to fight back an eye roll at the comment. “What’re you doing?” He shrugged again. Dick cleared his throat and nudged Bruce. The man smirked. “Say hi to your brothers.” Damian awkwardly waved at them.
“Hi, Dami! Can he give me a hug, B?”
“Give Nightwing a hug.” The young man smashed into Damian with a death-grip hug. “Ten seconds.” Dick took five more than he was supposed to. Tim and Jason watched the sight with smiles, even though Jason’s couldn’t be seen. “Dick, let him go.” The man released him. “Are you coming to the manor?”
“He is. C’mon, Dami. Agent A’s waiting.” Dick took the teenager’s hand as the went down the fire escape.
…
Dick came out of the cave, freshly showered. The rest of the boys except Damian had already changed. “Dami, take the face mask off. It’s creepy.” Damian rolled his eyes but complied. Dick smiled contentedly as he sat down on the floor in front of the sofa. “Regale upon us your adventures. I haven’t seen you in forever.” Damian shrugged. “No, you’re not doing this to us. Tell him, Jay.” Jason choked on the cookied he’d been inhaling. “We’ll come back to you. Timmy?”
“Well what am I supposed to say?”
“I dunno. Make him stop being so quiet.”
“Stop being so quiet, Damian. Have I pleased you, Dick?”
“No, you have not. Dami, speak.” Jason snorted.
“You really just told him that? That’s rich.”
“He knows what I mean.”
“I didn’t.”
“Well no one cares about you. Dami, I order you to sign something.”
Something. Jason burst out laughing.
“Ah, Demon. Well, guys, I’m out.”
“No, we’re having a sleepover. Jay, find a movie. Timmy, go find some clothes for Dami to borrow. Dami, go shower. I’ll go get Bruce.” The boy jumped over the back of the sofa to head to the bathroom. Dick nodded his assent as he left to get Bruce. The young man headed down to the cave. “Bruce, we’re watching a movie.”
“I’m busy.”
“Your son, who you barely see, is back.”
“It can wait.”
“It’s been forever, Bruce. Come on, can’t you--”
“It’ll wait.” Dick rolled his eyes.
“I’m sure he misses you.”
“He already saw me.”
“As Batman.”
“If I finish early, I’ll come up.” Dick waited for ten minutes. Bruce didn’t say anything more.
“Fine.” He pouted as he stomped back to the screening room. Damian was back wearing some of Tim’s sweats and a t-shirt. No one asked about Bruce. Dick sat on the couch since Jason and Tim had the loveseat taken. Damian sat in front of it by Jason’s feet. ”C’mere, Dami.” He waved the teenager over. Damian came to Dick and sat down by him. Dick smiled as Jason started the movie. “What’re we watching, Jay?”
“Some comedy movie.” Dick nodded as it began. He noticed Damian’s lids droop as they watched. He grinned at the cute sight. Not that he’d tell Damian it was cute. He liked his intact vocal chords, thank you very much. He saw that Damian’s hands were bandaged. How had that happened? He waved at Damian as the teenager caught his gaze. The young assassin rolled his eyes as he turned back to the screen. Dick found himself watching Damian watch the movie more than he watched it himself. A grunt could be heard as Bruce entered the room towards the last third of the movie. He took a seat on the couch by Damian. Damian turned his head for a second, but turned back quickly. Nothing happened for the rest of the movie.
“Okay, Dami, now tell us all about what you’ve been up to.” He shrugged. “There has to be something interesting?”
“What happened to your hands,” Tim asked. He shrugged. “You can’t answer everything with a shrug.” Damian shrugged again as if to say, ‘Watch me.’ Jason smirked.
“Lemme guess. You burnt them trying to cook.” He shook his head. “No, your mom got all mad ‘cause you snuck out to go to party and kissed your cousin.” Tim scoffed.
“He probably got bad grades.”
“We’re not all nerds like you, Tim. C’mon, Demon, sign something. I’m getting rusty.” Damian didn’t do anything. “Fine, then we’re calling you mom. Hand me your phone.” Tim retrieved Damian’s phone from the end table and gave it to him. Jason called Talia.
“Did you mean to call me, my love?”
“It’s Jason, your favorite.”
“Where is Damian?”
“He’s here. We wanted to know how his hands got screwed up.”
“I was in an important meeting.”
“So, tell us the story.”
“I don’t have time for your games.”
“We’d appreciate an answer.”
“Did you ask him?”
“Yeah, but he’s being uncooperative.”
“Why is this important? Is my beloved asking?”
“No…”
“Do have him give Damian a look over.” She hung up.
“Well that helped nothing.”
“Demon, I’ll give you a treat if you tell us.” He smiled.
Nothing special. Just your run of the mill rebellion.
“What’d you do?” He shrugged. “You don’t know what you did or you’re not sharing?” He shrugged again. “You shrug too much. You’ve always shrugged way too much.” Damian responded with a shrug. “Kid, you’re driving me crazy.”
As if you weren’t already.
“I am not crazy, thank you very much.” Damian gave him an incredulous look. “Dick, defend my honor.”
“You don’t have any,” Tim explained. Jason frowned.
“Fine, be that way. Well, people, I’m leaving.”
“Where’re you going?”
“None of your business, Replacement.”
“I thought we were done with that.”
“Goodbye.”
“Wait, Jay…”
“What?”
“You’re not going to stay?”
“Don’t you have to get back to Blud?”
“Oh, I do, I guess.” Dick stood, but not before giving Damian a hug. “Bye, guys.” He walked out with Jason.
“Does this mean we can go to the cave now?” Bruce shrugged as he and Tim headed there. Damian followed, by went to the medbay. Bruce frowned as he watched.
“Something wrong, Damian?” He shook his head as he looked through the drawers until he found gauze and tweezers. He and Tim both watched from a distance. Damian stuck the tweezers in his ear. Tim yelped.
“Uh, Dames, can you not--” He was cut off when Damian pulled out a small sliver contraption. It sparkled through the blood. Bruce came over and pulled the otoscope from a different drawer. He stuck it into Damian’s bloody ear. He checked for damage to the ear canal, but didn’t see any.
“Can you hear?” Damian shrugged. “What about you other ear?” Tim was already looking in the other one with an extra.
“Bruce, he has two.” Tim took the tweezers and pulled the other one out. He inspected it. “What are these?” Damian rinsed his ears out with saline. They waited for his hands to be free.
It makes one deaf.
“Who put them in?”
Doesn’t matter. He began walking up the steps before Bruce could finish questioning him. He gestured for Tim to follow. The young man jogged to meet the boy. They walked up the stairs. Tim grabbed Damian’s arm and took them to his bedroom. They sat on the bed.
“When’d you get those in?” He shrugged. “Is your hearing back?” He shrugged again. “Bruce is checking them out.” He nodded and laid down. Tim grinned a bit as he grabbed his laptop and sat against the headboard. Tim covered him up with a blanket.
…
Later that night, when both boys were sleep, Bruce appeared in Tim’s room with his medical supplies. He figured it would be easier to check Damian out while the teenager slept. He turned Damian onto his back. Damian had grown a bit more used to them over he years. Bruce could see that in the fact that he didn’t wake. He turned on the lamp to see better.
Bruce started by feeling lymph nodes and such. Damian wasn’t disturbed by the intrusion. The teenager whimpered softly when Bruce lifted his shirt. A hand pulled it down. Bruce tapped Tim. “Hm?”
“Hold his hand.”
“Who’s?”
“Damian’s.” Tim turned on his side and opened his eyes a bit.
“Dick was joking when he said I was gay.”
“He keeps putting it here. Just hold it to keep it out of the way.” Tim frowned but did grab the hand closest to him.
“This is awkward, Bruce.” The man didn’t respond as he lifted the shirt once more. Damian’s body was littered with scars. He had so many more than Bruce did, which made no sense in his mind. He’d been Batman longer than Damian had been alive. He traced his thumb across a particularly bad one. Damian’s hand twitched under Tim’s grip. Tim sat up to inspect the scarred torso as well. He frowned as what he saw. “Where'd he get all these?”
“I don’t know.” Damian’s eyes opened halfway. Tim looked to Bruce. The man decided to ignore it. The young assassin’s eyes eventually fell once again. Bruce returned the shirt to its original position. Tim laid back down as Bruce covered Damian back up. “Are you off tomorrow?”
“Uh, yeah… why?”
“Take him somewhere.”
“Where?”
“It doesn’t matter. Have Jason come along too.”
“Why’re we taking him somewhere?”
“Talk to him.”
“Why can’t you talk to him?”
“Because you all are going to.”
“Fine.” Tim released Damian’s hand and began to drift off again. Bruce gave both of his boys a last look before leaving.