Chapter Text
Bruce and Dick barge into the kitchen, Jason just a step behind them, with a loud BANG as the door flies open.
Everyone froze, except for Alfred who sent a scathing look at the three.
"Where's Tim?" Dick gasped out between breaths.
The teens around the table all looked at each other and then at the three by the door. Then back again. The expressions of 'What the hell is going on?' were clear on their faces. Damian's scowl deepened while Cass and Duke just blinked at them slowly.
Stuffing another waffle in her mouth, Steph finally spoke up, "Hw jusht wint to 'eed th' b'be." She swallowed, "Alfred sent 'im to feed the baby, why?"
"Do you need him for the investigation?" Duke asked, finally snapping out of his stupor. But the three men were already racing down the hall.
Once again, the remaining occupants around the table shared a look.
With a clatter of utensils, they sped after their father and older brothers.
-
Damian didn't know what to think when his father and two eldest brothers crashed into the kitchen after being away for a few minutes.
He recalled his Father's and Richard's somber tone when asking for Todd that morning. At that point, he thought that maybe they'd found something during their investigation, which they presumed the younger one either couldn't handle or did not want to burden them. However, for that to happen, the news must've been especially dire and/or somber.
But it was such a non sequitur- First, they call out Todd. That made sense. Todd was the oldest member of the family after Father and Richard (Pennyworth not included). He was also, although Damian loathed to admit, one of the smartest people in the family. One didn't build a crime empire overnight through sheer stupidity. Todd was an adult, which meant he was more often included in the more important or gruesome affairs. But all of them were vigilantes. All of them have seen some truly gruesome scenes and although Father was reluctant to allow his children (the ones who were still kids) near the more horrifying cases, he still understood that they've ALL seen these horrors and that he can't protect them from everything.
Not to mention how Bruce liked to keep his family safe. One of the best ways to do that was to keep them informed. What wouldn't he inform them of?
Family matters. Something serious.
Damian scrambled forward to catch himself after he nearly fell on that stupid Persian rug again-
There was a development in the case, there was no question about that. But what development?
Rerun the facts.
Father and Richard entered the kitchen looking somber and serious. They asked for Todd. Todd would be a logical conclusion if this involved his night-time activity specifically and not his age as Cassandra was the same age as him.
What contacts did Jason have? His gang, criminal empire, vigilante contacts, ex-League of Assassins-
There. The League of Assassins. The investigation into Ra's heir and his final message. The Detective. There was a development and they needed Todd's input.
So Father and Richard came across some new information last night and it was serious. Todd needed to be briefed.
Was the League of Assassins already back? No. They would've called Cassandra too, with her experience. But it would also explain why they didn't want to inform Damian. Then what-
Mother. Todd had experience with Mother, unlike Cassandra. And Richard probably wouldn't want to disturb Damian with whatever news they have of his mother.
Next fact. The three unceremoniously crashed into the kitchen 16 minutes and 24 seconds after they left.
Another development. Probably due to Todd's input.
Damian rounded another corner. Two pairs of footsteps trampled behind him as he barely kept pace with the three older men. With a jolt, Damian realised they were heading toward the nursery.
Where Ra's heir was.
But Richard hadn't asked about the child. He'd asked about Drake. About Tim.
Damian suddenly had a very bad feeling about this. For a second, the thought flashed through his head that maybe Richard had some kind of reason to believe Drake might hurt the child. Maybe for some round-about way of revenge. The boy was Ra's' child and Drake had always looked out for possible threats. However, Damian dismissed that thought quite easily, though the discomfort remained.
Drake may be brutal and efficient at times. But he did not hurt his family. The older man never went after Damian for revenge despite Damian's obvious threat to his position and life. Also, he'd seen the way Drake looked at the baby when he first held him. At that moment, the little one had become a part of Drake's family; the tiny jealous part of him wished that Tim had accepted him too, but then he remembered that it was Damian who spat on Drake's offer of brotherhood. They were family now anyway, though there was still a small bit of lingering distrust from both sides.
Damian had thought that part of the distrust came from him being an Al Ghul. Drake's face of pure awe and love when he held one of Damian's blood family dispersed those ideas.
Oh.
It wasn't exactly a sudden shock. It was a revelation for sure. However, the young Wayne had already suspected that Drake held familial love towards the baby. This... just explained the intensity of it. And made Damian a bit sick at the implications.
Ra's used Tim's genetic material to create a baby just like with Bruce, just like with Damian.
Oh. Please no. Damian thought.
The only consolation Damian had at that moment was the reminder of the cloning equipment they'd found along with the child. And that Tim was never in close contact with Ra's but Damian didn't know that, he'd chased Drake away, for a whole year, a lot could happen in a year.
Was that why Grandfather targeted Drake? What happened, for Drake to gain Ra's attention? He'd found Father when everyone else thought he was dead.
Suddenly, Damian wanted to know exactly what went down during that year Father was lost in the time-stream.
Damian finally rounded the last corner.
He was gonna wrangle answers out of his older brother, and then he was going to make sure he was the finest uncle (nephew? no one could know) the world had ever seen.
-
Jason was mad at himself. No. Not mad. Enraged.
He could feel the Pit's green anger influencing his emotions, his thoughts. But he didn't care. Not at that moment. The only thing he could think of was how OLD the baby was.
Tim was 18 now. But he sure as hell wasn't when the baby was conceived. Unless there was some considerable aging done during the baby's incubation.
Jason shuddered, a thought piercing through the green haze.
Cloning. The baby was a product of cloning technology.
It felt like a weight was lifted off of Jason's shoulders.
And then the cloud of rage crowded his mind once more. How dare he. How DARE he. How dare Ra's use his little brother's genetic material like that. (He remembered hearing of how Superboy was made, about what Lex did, about how Superman rejected the boy-)
He remembered Tim. Jason remembered his face full of emotions when he held the child- his child. He was best friends with Superboy, a clone. Tim would never judge his own child due to the way he was created.
Jason felt an inexplicable sense of pride at the thought. Jason and Tim may have a bunch of issues concerning each other but there was plenty of THAT going around in this family. They were brothers, friends, co-workers, the two who had pulled the wool over Bruce's eyes the most thoroughly, there was a lot of shared pride with that feat.
The older man still felt guilty about the things he'd done. However, therapy was actually helping; that was a surprise to Jason.
KILL.
Jason nearly tripped when the urge hit him.
It hadn't happened in nearly 6 months. Sure, he still killed occasionally, but not with the bloodthirt he'd first had out of the Lazarus Pit.
Jason wanted to kill Ra's.
That motherfuckin' speech. The fucking bastard's last fuck you.
Tim must've known. He was too smart not to have figured it out. Not to mention he probably had more pieces of the puzzle than any of them. Jason frowned. When had Tim had time to meet Ra's and get him interested in him? Ra's trained Bruce and then Bruce beat him, that's how Damian came about, wasn't it?. Did Tim beat Ra's?
"After the damage you caused last time..." Ra's rasped, "I thought I had stopped underestimating you, Detective. But it seems you have exceeded even my greatest predictions."
Shit. Of course, he did.
Tim was too smart for his own good.
They'd wondered who could be smart enough to compete with Bruce for the title of 'Detective'. Obviously, it'd be the world's Second Greatest Detective (or First, now?), Tim. The smartest Robin.
Jason couldn't help but let out a groan as he started to slow down into a jog rather than a full sprint as he, Bruce, and Dick were nearing the nursery.
He wanted to facepalm.
"See. Even Timbo here agrees, and he's OUR resident detective." Jason remembered saying.
He literally spelled it out for the entire family. And they MISSED it. What a bunch of dEtEcTiVes they are, missing the obvious. Bunch of idiots, more like.
Did anyone else know?
Obviously, Bruce and Dick saw the DNA results, but who else put together the pieces?
Maybe Cass. With her skills at reading people, she definitely knew something was up.
Steph? She knew Tim maybe the best out of all of them.
Duke was too new to have picked up on it because he didn't have enough context.
Damian? Maybe. He was a smart kid. It could be either. Not to mention his connection with the League of Assassins and his deeper knowledge of both Ra's and Talia.
Alfred? That was a stupid question. Alfred knew everything. Well, nearly everything. Jason would bet a large amount of money on the fact he knew.
Jason's steps slowed. His feet took him closer and closer to the corner before their final corridor.
-
Cass leaned back in her chair as the thundering footsteps of the others quietened. Alfred just sighed disappointedly. Children, always in such a rush.
The Butler gracefully swept through the kitchen while warning, "It's a bad habit to swing on one's chair."
His hand carefully pried a tile from the wall and pressed a button behind it. Cass' eyes widened when the wall next to the old man came away to reveal a secret passageway.
Alfred turned and gestured to the dark passage with a glint in his wisened eyes. "Shall we, Lady Cassandra."
Cass grinned.
Alfred Pennyworth really was the master of the house.
They closed the door behind them and the kitchen became silent once more.
-
Steph, despite her panting breaths, gaped when she finally spotted the nursery... with Cass and Alfred standing but the partially opened door.
Bruce and the other boys didn't seem to be fairing much better than her anyway, so she counted it as a win. Damn those two sneaky bastards. How the hell did they get here before them? Even Bruce seemed surprised and he knew every nook and cranny of this mansion. Well, Steph thought this was just another proof that the two transcended mortal laws.
She approached the others who were standing outside the nursery. Steph only looked on in confusion.
What was going on? What does this have to do with Tim and the baby? Because it obviously had something to do with them.
Unfortunately, she had a feeling she knew what it was.
Steph stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Tim.
He was smiling. Not the fake Press smile. Not the 'I'm uncomfortable, please get me out of here' smiles. Not the 'fun' smile. It wasn't his 'I feel safe here' nor his Robin smile. Hell, it wasn't even his 'Family' smile. It was something else. Something Steph recognised. She recognised the pure happiness in his smile, the protectiveness, the unconditional love... the sorrow.
Oh. Steph felt something wet on her cheeks but she could not look away.
Not when she saw her own smile reflected in Tim.
Tim held his child with all the gentleness of a flower. He babbled unintelligibly at the baby in a way that Steph would laugh at in any other circumstance.
How did she not see it on the ship?
The absolute wonder on his face when he held him.
Steph's heart felt shattered, at that moment because she couldn't hold her own. She gave away her child at 15 because she was too young to provide a better life and so her child could grow up without the dangers of her nightlife. They were with good parents, she knew. They were loved and had the best childhood they could have.
But she felt so cold all of a sudden. That little life, that little smile that was once hers but not anymore for the child's safety.
Jealousy was an unfair emotion, Steph knew. She shouldn't feel jealous, she gave up her baby... and Tim didn't.
He didn't tell them. Did he know?
Of course he knew. His face said it all.
All of a sudden she was thinking of the what could have beens. Could she have raised her child? Seen their first laugh? Their first steps?
But... Tim was 18. He had the resources to support both himself and his child. He was a legal adult. He had the family to help... he had Steph.
She remembered how Tim was there with her, every step of the way. Now, she would be there for him.
Yes. Steph decided. She would be there for him every step of the way.
Smiling softly, she leaned agains the doorframe.
Then her thoughts turned darker. The kid couldn't have a normal life. The League may be dismantled but there may still be sympathisers or ancient enemies who might target the baby.
Family protects eachother though. Steph thought.
Yeah. She'll protect the kid.
-
Bruce was nearly in tears. He had a grandson. Tim, his son, had a CHILD. He couldn’t-
But he COULD believe it. And it made so much sense.
Of course Tim was the Detective. His boy was so smart. So much smarter than he was at that age.
Oh god. He was a grandpa.
Bruce took quiet steps towards Tim.
Tim heard him anyway as his head turned to look at Bruce.
There was fear in his eyes and so much determination it nearly crushed Bruce. Tim would do anything for his child... and so would Bruce.
He sat down in the chair next to his son. The tension was already rising, he could feel it. Tim felt cornered. Like they might not support him through every endeavour.
And that... that was partly Bruce's fault. He knew he wasn't the best father. He had problems with all of his children. He wasn’t ready for Dick, he was too harsh with Jason and Steph, he didn't spend enough time with Damian or Cass, he's still awkward with Duke, and Tim... Tim saved him from himself yet Bruce never really thanked him did he? Not in any substantial way.
He would do better. Bruce promised to do better by each and every one of his children. As well as his grandchild.
"What’s his name?" Bruce asked as gently as he dared.
Tim stared at him for what felt like minutes but must've only been a few seconds. Judging him, analysing him.
Slowly, quietly Tim said, "Aiden."
Bruce hummed, "It's a beautiful name."
Tim smiled and chuckled as he brokenly said, "You're a grampa."
Bruce nodded.
"May-" Bruce took a breath to steady himself, "May I hold him?"
Instead of answering, Tim gingerly handed over baby Aiden.
Bruce cradled the boy like the most precious treasure.
And the first of his tears slipped down his face.
Through blurry eyes he could see Tim's shocked expression. It made him laugh, that true belly laugh that rumbled through his chest.
Steadily, Bruce reached out and hugged his son. Soon, he could feel the rest of his children crowding around, joining the hug.
There were tears, laughs and quiet words. Through it all was a deep sense of happiness and relief.
"What does the name mean?"
"Fire. Sun fire."
Yes. They will be fine. It would all be alright.