Chapter Text
After pulling a stunt on a Justice League mission, Damian was forced to join the Teen Titans by Father's orders. Something about him needing to learn how to 'work with others’ as if he needed such a thing. Damian was self-sufficient as he was, and there were multiple occasions where he worked in a team with his siblings during the patrol. What else could the old man want? Father was never satisfied; that's what it was.
At least he could still put his advanced martial arts skills to use with the Teen Titans. Ever since Damian was brought back to life, his father constantly worried about something bad happening to him, always wanting to know what he was up to, while enforcing moral lessons he didn’t need to learn. It was exhausting. Father should trust him by now after knowing him for three years, but some things never changed, it seemed. At least spending time training with the Teen Titans wasn’t all too wasteful. The team itself, on the other hand, was atrocious. There was nothing Damian could possibly learn from that disastrous group of teenagers.
Koriand'r, despite her decent leadership skills, was too trusting of others and blinded by her own emotions, which could jeopardize the team significantly. Then there was Blue Beetle, whose potential was impressive, but when unfocused, the parasite took complete control. Emiko Queen was quite interesting... Similar childhood to Damian's, with similar guilt and frustrations. She could lead the team one day if she wanted. She was determined, fearless, and her backup plans were exemplary.
Impulse was... Well, Impulse. Damian could not comprehend how Drake withstood staying in the same room as Allen, let alone going on missions with him, but then again, Drake was prone to doing stupid things, so it supposedly made sense. What was baffling, however, was how Impulse continued staying in the Teen Titans, despite all his friends having gone their separate ways. In addition, Bart Allen’s mere presence was deeply concerning. Wasn't the kid consistently putting their entire timeline at risk by simply existing, living in a century that didn't belong to them? Did Allen not care? How could no one else question the reckless kid's motivations? Impulse was too dangerous, especially with those overwhelming abilities of his. Allen was not to be trusted.
Last but not least… Djinn. A real-life genie, so powerful she could grant any wish. Starfire, being the overly trusting leader that she was, saved Djinn's life one day during one of their missions and then invited her to join their team, no further questions asked. No research on her background, no interrogations, nothing. They all simply accepted a mysterious genie that came from nowhere with an open invitation to have access to all their identities and secrets. It was like they were asking to be betrayed and attacked at any given opportunity.
The Teen Titans was a lost cause.
But not for long.
Damian was going to change them, make them better. Efficient. Since Father was so adamant about Damian spending more time with the Teen Titans in broad daylight rather than going on multiple dangerous patrol nights with him, - something about how Father couldn’t afford to put his son’s life at risk after what happened with Heretic, an unnecessary concern in his part, truly, - Damian decided to make the best of the situation and turn this into a personal project to fix that sad, badly recruited team.
Damian was going to help the Teen Titans achieve their potential of becoming an army of meta-humans who would rule over their enemies and end crime for good... Well, that was most likely too much wishful thinking on his part, but Damian was bored.
***
His thirteenth birthday had finally come, and Damian wasn't quite sure how to feel about it. Growing up in the League, his birthdays were highly acknowledged by his mother, who also reminded him of how much further away he was from reaching his full potential, making it all the more crucial to continue to strengthen his skills. In Damian's view, however, his date of birth meant differently; it signified coming closer to the day he would finally be allowed to meet his father, but only if he could defeat his mother in a duel. At the ripe age of 10, Damian finally conquered their annual duel and was able to get the answers he so strongly desired.
But he wasn't in the League anymore, and Damian had been living with his father for years. There was nothing specific to look forward to on his birthday anymore, outside of striving to fight harder and seek more knowledge. Though it was difficult to admit, he knew there was still so much to learn, and he needed to be the ultimate best; Anything less would be unacceptable. He was going to earn Batman's mantle one day and hopefully surpass his father. But for now, he just had to deal with the life he was given and continue to refine his training.
Waking up determined, Damian went straight to following his morning workout routine, but hitting it harder than before. He was becoming a man, but with much to improve still. Hopefully, everyone will start respecting him more now, instead of viewing him as a child. After spending close to two hours at the gym, Pennyworth came, demanding that the boy take a break and enjoy a nice breakfast. The butler was kind enough to prepare his favorite meal, and since no one else was in the manor that day, Damian enjoyed the peaceful silence. It always got so loud and obnoxious whenever Drake and Grayson came over, especially Todd.
After finishing his meal, Pennyworth encouraged Damian to take Titus on a walk outside the manor, which ended up being quite nice, unsurprisingly. It was a beautiful, windy day at the park, and it was refreshing to be finally out of the house. There was nothing wrong about walking around in the spacious backyard back home, but something about being outside made everything feel relaxing. It was good to be a little far from the manor; it was like he was being trusted to be on his own, finally. Titus was extremely excited, of course, that dog loved people and chasing after the rabbits at the park. Damian let out a good laugh; Watching his Great Dane act so carefree and playful was always a fun sight.
It was a good day.
As Titus was starting to feel worn out from chasing rabbits, he found a stick near a tree and ran to his owner to play catch. Damian enjoyed the simplicity of it all; the nice, soft breeze tousling his spiky dark hair into buoyant curls, the people around him walking so calmly and aimlessly, and the humid air carrying the fragrance of earth after the rain. It was a beautiful day. There was a sweet and steady sense of joy overall, which brought Damian back to the times when he was tasked to carefully observe the landscape before painting. That was one of the first exercises taught by his old art professor, who instructed him to always be attentive to all the small details surrounding him. The way the sunlight hit the earth, the shadows, and how the leaves rustled from a breeze, while watching the dimensionality of objects and their shapes.
It was too bad he didn't have his sketchbook with him. It would've been nice to just sit on the bench and let his mind wander. From a distance, he could see a nicely built bridge that would've been fun to paint, along with all the vivid greenery from the vibrantly kept grass and oak trees that surrounded him. A buzzing sound abruptly interrupted his thoughts all of a sudden, Damian looked down and reached for his phone that was inside the front pouch pocket of his red hooded sweater. Upon checking, it was a call coming from an endearing friend of his.
"Happy Birthday, Damian!!" A very loud, obnoxiously excited voice shouted on the other line, forcing Damian to pull away his phone to protect his ear for a second.
"Thanks, Maya. How's Goliath doing?"
The young girl scoffed. "Gee, I'm doing great, thanks for asking! How about you? Ha, ha, you twerp. Goliath is doing great."
Damian chuckled. It was nice hearing back from her; it had been a while since they last saw each other. "Good to know. Where have you been off lately?"
"You know, just traveling. Goliath is a great travel buddy, by the way, he's the best. But I was gonna tell you, I decided to settle down now."
The boy raised his eyebrow in confusion. "What do you mean? Isn't that what you've been doing?"
"No, not really... I don't do my dad's job anymore, sure, but I've been searching for my mom for months, and I'm not getting anywhere. I don't even know if she's alive... And I'm just tired of feeling stuck. I don't want to be stagnant anymore, and this is probably a waste of time, anyway. My mind keeps coming back to my mom, and I know that if she were here, she would tell me to focus on my life..."
"Maya, it's not a waste of time, we'll find your mother--"
"So I decided I'm going to school." Maya finished happily.
"School? That's your version of settling down?"
"Yeah, I'm turning fourteen at the end of this year, Damian, I can't just ignore my education."
"Tt. And here I thought you were going to say something worthy of attention--"
"Jerk. Anyways, enough about me, what are you doing for your birthday?! It's your special day!"
"It's merely another day, Maya." Before Damian could continue his thoughts, his phone started to vibrate from several messages, most of them coming from Grayson, but there was one from Pennyworth, informing him he would be out to run some errands and that there wasn't a need for Damian to rush back home, which was nice of the butler to say.
"No way, it's your birthday! You gotta do something--" A loud growling noise seemed to distract the girl because she was no longer paying attention to the conversation. Her voice sounded more distant, but Damian could hear her shouting, "Goliath, get out of there!" There was a thud sound followed by a screech; the exact sound Goliath made whenever he threw a tantrum.
"Is everything okay?"
"Hey, sorry, yes, Goliath was just trying to eat a freaking boat, that weirdo. Ah, crap, Goliath just dropped the fisherman out of the boat. Um, I gotta go, but hey, make sure to celebrate your birthday, kay? Send me pictures!"
"You know I won't do such a thing."
"Fine, I'll make Jon do it, then. Bye! Happy birthday!" Maya said, hurriedly, but kept the same enthusiasm as earlier. She clearly didn't notice that the call was still going as Damian heard her yelling in the background, "Goliath, out! Oh, my gosh, I'm so sorry, sir--" With a laugh, Damian ended the call for her.
He stared at his phone, letting go a small sigh; Maya tended to be a bit too energetic sometimes, but not as much as Grayson, apparently. He checked his phone again and was surprised to see so many unread messages and 2 missed calls. Did Grayson not have anything better to do with his day? Reluctantly, Damian clicked on the message icon on his phone.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
You're turning 13, I can't believe it!!! Are you excited?
Dami! What do you wanna do today?
Museum? Arcade?
Alfie told me you went out with Titus, cool!
Hey, um, what time are you coming home again?
You don't have any plans for today, right? Damian?
Geez, Grayson was hovering again. All he wanted was to enjoy a quiet, peaceful day by himself; was that too much to ask? With another sigh, he decided to call that overly needy brother of his. To his surprise, however, Grayson didn't answer, so he decided to message him back.
I have no plans, and you better not plan for anything either. And thank you for the happy birthday message.
***
Damian had spent longer than he imagined at the park, and even Titus was looking tired after running so much. After ensuring Titus was hydrated, they made their way back home. It was a decent walk, not too close, but not too far from the manor either. The fact that Grayson was taking a while to respond was strange, though. Why would Grayson ignore him after bombarding him with messages just a few minutes ago? The boy shrugged. Grayson would eventually get back to him.
Since birthdays were supposed to be commemorated, this was one of the best ways for his day to be celebrated; Being left alone to his thoughts, just him and Titus. The day went a little similarly to the year before, actually. On his twelfth birthday, Damian requested Father and Pennyworth not to make much out of his day, to which, thankfully, they respectfully listened. Father was overall so apprehensive about how to approach his youngest on this marking day, that he ended up being willing to comply with any of Damian's wishes, as strange as they sounded, unlike his brothers, who clearly couldn't care less and came to bother him anyway. Damian didn't mind their company, to be truthful, but it was an odd sensation coming back from the dead. Rather than desiring to celebrate this new chance at life that was granted to him, he felt worse. It was a reminder of how he miserably failed in his fight against Heretic.
Damian reached for his chest from where he had been stabbed. It happened two years ago, but the images were still so vivid sometimes. If it wasn't for his family, he wouldn't be here. Walking alongside Titus, feeling the relaxing humidity in the post-rain air...
Coming back to life definitely put things into perspective.
He got back to the manor and found himself completely alone in the large mansion. The silence was nice at first, but as a few minutes went by, it felt too... quiet. Morbid, almost. Damian checked his phone again. Pennyworth was still out, occupied with errands. Father and Drake were both at WE working, and no one else lived in the manor. Nothing from Grayson still. He decided to try calling his older brother again.
No answer.
The dark-haired boy shrugged and went to the study room to start painting. Titus followed him, and Alfred, the cat, came to join them as well, jumping on the desk that was right next to him as he gathered all his painting supplies. He decided to draw the rain, with melancholic raindrops touching the ground on a gloomy Gotham. After what felt like hours, Damian checked his phone again. 2 hours had gone by, and still no sign from Pennyworth or Grayson. He tried calling them both, but no one answered his calls.
He was getting worried now. Was Pennyworth okay? What was taking him so long? And why would Grayson disappear on him all of a sudden? Damian could feel his body tense up. He left his canvas behind and decided to go investigate. Titus immediately came to him, staying by his side. The boy walked down the long hallway, his footsteps being the only sound echoing off the walls. Surely, the mansion was notoriously large and currently empty, but the continuous silence was increasingly worrisome. Damian checked his phone again to see if there were any notifications from someone entering the cave, but there was nothing.
A somber sensation of being watched suddenly came to him. Damian took a deep breath. What was he so nervous about? Whoever invaded his home was going to pay severely. He could handle it. He continued inspecting the rooms, staying as vigilant as ever. He kept on walking until he stumbled across a large mirror hanging in the hall, which startled him. It was only his reflection, of course, but his face... His face looked more mature. Adult, almost.
He was staring at Heretic.
Those same daring green eyes, filled with hatred, stared right back at him. He watched his clone holding onto his sword, raising it high enough so he could pierce through Damian's body again. A warm liquid started running down Damian's chest, the pain sinking in, with each of his breaths getting shorter and shorter... He fought hard to take one last inhale, but his legs and body were giving up on him. The pain throbbed, and his chest was bleeding out nonstop. Everything was going dark... Damian shook his head.
Those damn intrusive thoughts again. Without even noticing, he was holding his chest again. Damian focused on his breathing. He was okay. It was just his reflection; he was fine. Father told him how his mother killed the clone, and Heretic was gone. After concluding that he was definitely home alone and how stupid this whole thing was, he decided to go downstairs to the cave. Maybe some training would help him let off some steam and release all that tension coming from his own head. Feeling at ease again, Damian inserted the codes to open the access to the cave and took the elevator going down. As he arrived at the cave, the lights came on out of nowhere, making his heart hammer in panic.
"SURPRISE!"
Without even thinking, Damian automatically threw his Batarang, almost hitting Stephanie in the eye in the process. Titus started barking but was quickly excited by all the commotion.
"Hey, be careful!" The blonde commented as she ducked.
"I warned you all that a surprise would not be the best approach for Master Damian," Pennyworth scolded, with clear disappointment in his voice.
There was an awkward atmosphere amongst the family after Pennyworth's obvious disapproval of their surprise act, and everyone looked like they were quite embarrassed by scaring Damian. The birthday boy, however, just hoped he didn't look too pale from the scare. The last thing he needed was to look vulnerable in front of his family.
Pennyworth was the first to approach him, giving him a warm hug. "My deepest apologies for startling you, Master Damian. We all wish you a very happy birthday."
Damian returned the hug without exactly knowing what to say. So that explained why Pennyworth mysteriously disappeared; the man was busy with all the preparations. The cave was fully decorated, and even the large dinosaur had a little birthday hat with a large 'happy birthday' banner hung next to it. It was a little funny seeing the dark, serious cave looking all happy and festive. There was another banner hung on top of the Batcomputer, and there were colorful balloons everywhere. The large table where Father would discuss missions with his family was filled with cupcakes, sandwiches, spinach-artichoke dip, and a bowl of chips, as well as other eateries, including a large birthday cake nicely placed in the center. Pennyworth truly went all out. The whole family was there, but a very important person was not found amidst the crowd.
"Where's Father?" That was all Damian could say upon looking around.
"He's running a little late due to a meeting he persistently tried to cancel, but couldn't get out of. Rest assured, he'll be arriving in no time." Pennyworth assured, warmly.
"Happy Birthday, Dami!" Grayson came running to him, greeting the boy with a massive hug. "I just saw that I missed your calls, so sorry about that. I didn't have my phone with me when I was decorating. Hanging that birthday sign on the dinosaur was a pain."
The thought of the acrobat hanging a sign attached to the dinosaur was pretty amusing. "You're the one who put that in there?"
"Yeah, with my help!" Drake added, approaching the two. "It's not as easy as you might think, you know. Dick forgot the freaking tack, and all Jason did was watch and stuff himself with food."
"Hey, we can't let Alfred's food go to waste!" Todd defended.
Drake ignored him and continued, putting his hands on his waist as he admired their accomplished work. "I must say, being on top of the dinosaur was quite nostalgic. Remember when you tried to kill me that one time? Good times!"
Damian rolled his eyes. The two had already gone through enough near-death experiences and dangerous adventures together to work through the problems and insecurities they used to share. They were both over the whole 10-year-old child - assassin-trying-to-replace-Drake thing. "You know I regret what I did to you."
"Yeah, I know. Still not gonna let it go, though." Drake teased, ruffling his little brother's hair, which he hated. "Happy birthday, demon."
"I hate you."
"Love you too!"
Gordon, Cain, and Brown were the next ones coming to him to wish him a happy birthday. The cave got loud rather quickly, everyone excitingly talking at the same time. Jason busied himself with the eateries, Dick and Barbara were engaged in a conversation about random things, Tim and Stephanie encouraging Titus to jump at Jason just to mess with him, while Cassandra went to stroke Bat-cow behind the ear, her favorite spot. It was actually not bad watching everyone have fun and be so carefree. No one was wearing their uniforms; Ironic, since they were throwing a birthday party in a place of work. It was like being back at the park, relaxing and peaceful, despite the loudness and excitement coming from the crowd. Being next to people who cared about him wasn't too bad, after all. Damian gave a faint smile, but then noticed Pennyworth looking over his shoulder at the sound of footsteps from the stairs behind them. He followed the man's gaze, and to his surprise, Father was the one who had arrived, at last.
"Father!" Damian shouted, running to him, excitedly.
"Damian!" Father happily extended his arms to receive their warm embrace. He hugged his youngest so intensely that Damian felt his body crush a little. Bruce then pulled away from the hug and looked at his son's eyes with pride and gratitude written all over his face. "Happy birthday, son. Another year of life."
"Honestly, Father, you need to stop treating each birthday as if it were my last one. I am going to be just fine."
"Of course you are," Father responded, tenderly ruffling Damian's hair. The boy hated it when others did it, but for some reason, it wasn't as irritating when it came from Father.
Todd interrupted with an excited clap. "Alright, enough cheesiness, let's get the party started!" He then grabbed a nicely wrapped present that was on the floor, next to the Batcomputer, and came closer to his little brother, handing him the present. "Come on, open your first gift! This one's mine, the best gift you'll ever get all night."
Damian eagerly unwrapped the gift, curious to see what it was. He was starting to get excited, but as soon as he opened the lid, a huge scowl spread across his face. It was a stupid purple plastic toy gun for little children. Todd burst out laughing.
"See, it even has pretty sounds and shiny lights for you to play with!" Teased Jason, forcing Damian to pull the fake trigger, making the toy light up with colors and play ridiculous songs.
Damian glared daggers at him in response, which only made Jason laugh even more. He was about to freaking murder his brother when Stephanie stepped in to interrupt them.
"Forget Jason's dumb gift, open mine!" Brown handed him a medium-sized, square-shaped box, wrapped in Batman logo paper.
He ripped the wrapping paper, intrigued, and was surprised to see that Brown had given him a new sketchbook and two sets of pencils from his favorite brand. "Oh, Father already got me a newer sketchbook a few weeks ago..." Damian mentioned, without thinking much of it. Once he looked up from his gift, however, he noticed the blonde's disconcerted look on her face. She seemed so disappointed with herself. To remedy the situation, Damian quickly added, "But one won't be enough, I'm happy to have more! Thank you."
"Aww, you're welcome, little D!" Steph warmly replied as if nothing had happened, pulling Damian in for a hug.
Tim cut in. "Ok, now to the next one!''
Damian looked at the pile of gifts that was next to him and he chose the largest one of them, which put a huge stupid grin on Tim's face.
"Yeah! That's mine!" Obviously, Damian thought to himself.
Intrigued, he started opening his gift. The box was pretty long and was sealed very securely. After ripping off all the tapes and wrapping paper, Damian was taken aback by the reveal, furrowing his eyebrows in response. "A Katana?" The young boy took a moment to fully study the blade, paying careful attention to all the other details also. "It doesn’t have sharp enough edges. Do you even know anything about swords, Drake?"
"Quit being an ass and just take the gift, you brat!" Tim slapped his little brother on the head, while definitely noticing the quick smirk on the brat's face.
He went on for his next gift and chose one of the smallest packages this time. It was so perfectly wrapped that it could only come from Pennyworth himself. Such presumption ended up being correct as there was a little note indicating who it was from. He unwrapped it a little bit more gently this time and was delighted to see that it was a beautiful picture of the whole family together.
"Pennyworth, this is--"
"Very thoughtful. That’s a nice picture you got of the family, Alfred!" Finished Bruce, just in case his son said something insensitive accidentally, which was practically Damian’s second nature. Damian walked to Pennyworth and gave him a tight hug.
"So you never forget how much you are loved, Master Damian," Pennyworth whispered.
"Thank you." The boy whispered back, smiling. Words would never be enough to thank all that Alfred had done for him and his family.
The next item chosen came from Gordon, the gift was inside a blue and silver plastic bag with several wrapping papers to fill the bag and hide the present. As Damian eagerly threw all the decorative papers aside, a huge grin spread on his face.
"Toys for my pets!" Damian shouted enthusiastically, pulling out each one of the squeaky toys for Titus and Alfred, the cat. "Titus needed a new one after he destroyed his chewy ball! This is great, they'll love these!" Damian then turned to Titus, who was way hyper from having played so much that day. "Titus, catch!" Titus stopped what he was doing and excitedly jumped, catching his chewy ball in the air. He proceeded to chew his ball and run around the cave like crazy, clearly enjoying the new toy.
Barbara smiled proudly, while all the boys stared at her in disbelief. Stephanie and Cassandra, on the other hand, weren't as shocked, and they occupied themselves by tossing the chewy ball around for Titus to catch.
"How are you so good at this?" The boys asked. Outside of Alfred's sentimental gift, only Barbara was successful in making the boy have the happiest of smiles so far. She crossed her arms and shrugged, smirking at them. Babs was fully aware that she was just that good.
The next present was inside a smaller rectangular-shaped package. Judging from the size, it looked like it would be sunglasses or similar. The package had Cassandra's name on it. He opened it, and it was a beautifully thoughtful present from one ex-assassin to another.
"A pocket knife!"
"Initials engraved," Cassandra added, softly, with a reassuring smile on her face.
"Wow. Impressive!" Damian looked up at Cassandra, giving a genuine, heartwarming smile as a way to thank her, which she easily picked it up from her body language reading skills. Even though they shared so much in common with their past upbringings, they never grew to be very close and get to know each other. Cassandra was very reserved and usually spent time with Tim, Barbara, and Steph.
"Alright, my turn," Father said, eager to see his son's reaction.
Damian immediately got very excited; he couldn't wait to see what Father had gotten him. It was going to be good, it had to be. He gladly took the gift Father handed to him and unwrapped the box very quickly. Once he opened the box, he was met with an impeccably made Robin mask. He pulled out the mask to analyze it better, and it had added features with additional vision modes that he didn't have before, a digital camera to obtain pieces of evidence just like Father's cowl, and the best part of it all; An internal computer linked directly to the Batcave computer. Damian would finally be able to have access to people's IDs, medical records, building layouts, and so much more during patrol.
"Whoa! I didn't have any of these features before! This is astounding! I can access maps too?" Damian put on the mask, and it was incredibly comfortable. It was perfect.
Hm. Too perfect.
Damian pulled out the mask again to take a second look. He started twisting and turning the mask, then raising it high as if he was inspecting a hundred-dollar bill. He played around with the features, clicking on several options and tabs until he found what he was looking for...
"I knew it! You inserted a tracking device! I knew I couldn't trust you!" Bruce rolled his eyes while his youngest started giving him the biggest lecture, going on and on about how unacceptable that was and how the tracking device on his belt was more than enough. Bruce was not going to explain himself or even apologize for caring about his son's safety and well-being, but, thankfully, Dick came in and broke the little fight by placing his gift right at his brother's hands to switch his attention elsewhere.
"Last, but not least!" Grayson interrupted, happily.
Damian raised his eyebrow and opened the gift. It turned out to be one of the video games he had been wanting for weeks.
"The Night Warriors! Yes!" Damian shouted in excitement, to Dick's pleasure. He absolutely loved how happy the kid looked.
"Alright, let's all hop on the game on the Batcomputer!" Dick waved, directing everyone to the large computer in the cave.
"YEAH!" The whole family agreed in unison, much to Bruce's dismay.
"You all know the rules with gaming on the Batcomputer." Bruce lectured. "There's a game room upstairs perfectly suited for occasions such as these--"
"It's my birthday, Father. I get the final say, thus I shall announce: To the Batcomputer, everyone!"
"Attaboy!" Jason jumped in, never missing an opportunity to piss off Bruce more.
"I'm going to kick your asses!" Tim joined in on the crazy commotion, bringing the controllers as if they had all planned to game at the cave the whole time.
"In your dreams, honey, I'm the queen of fighting games." Steph retorted.
"I wanna see you try!" Damian replied, getting the game started.
Bruce stared at his family and sighed, tiredly. There was no winning with those kids. For someone who swore to work alone his whole life, he surely had a pretty big family. Alfred smiled and did not miss the chance to snap a quick picture of everyone getting together to play games. It was refreshing to see his grandkids act like normal people for once. He was also immensely proud of Bruce for resisting his urges to work incessantly and ignore what mattered the most. The man was changing. Too many losses and too much pain taught him that slowing down was necessary and that he needed to be present in the lives of his children if he wanted to make a difference. That's what made Batman strong. Batman was no longer defined by losses and death, but by the life and joy of his family.
Before the first gaming battle began, the doorbell rang, and Damian turned around to look up at his father. Was there anyone else they were supposed to be expecting? From Father's reaction, he didn't seem to know the answer to that either. Pennyworth and Father started going upstairs, so Damian handed his controller to Drake and quickly ran to the stairs to join them. There were too many players to play the game all at once, anyways. He could wait his turn to play.
Pennyworth opened the main gates to let the guests access the main entrance and once the two guests approached, he opened the door. It was none other than Clark Kent with his son, Jonathan, walking to the door, but they were caught in the middle of an argument with Jon looking visibly upset.
"I told you we'd be late!"
"I'm sorry, Jon, there was nothing we could--"
Jon turned his head and beamed at the sight of his friend standing by the front door. "Damian!" The boy shouted, using his speed to give his best friend the tightest hug.
"Oof--!" Damian could barely breathe from that super-speed hug.
"Sorry, we were late. We missed the whole party, didn't we?"
"I suppose--"
"See, dad? What did I tell you?" Jon immediately turned back to his dad to complain again.
"I know, I know, it was my fault. I shouldn't have talked to the cops for as long as I did."
"We shouldn't have lingered with any cops! At all!" Jon emphasized, then turned to his friend to explain himself. "Sorry. Mom was stuck at work, and dad and I were on our way, but of course Amazo had to show up and terrorize Metropolis again."
"I'm more disappointed I didn't get to kick Amazo's ass, to be honest," Damian admitted.
"Meh, he'll come back. We'll have our turn soon."
"Let's not hope for that," Clark added in a forceful tone, briefly squeezing his son's shoulder.
"Gentleman, let us come inside." Pennyworth greeted.
They walked inside the manor and Jon was chatting, excitedly.
"Did you like the surprise? Dick was telling me all about it this morning. I wish I was there to see the look on your face!"
"You knew?"
"Of course, dummy. It's a surprise party! Was this your first one?"
Damian paused, which pretty much answered Jon's question.
"Oh, right. Did they ever celebrate your birthday when you were in the League?
Damian wasn't sure how to respond to that. There were many memories of his birthdays, but the one he could remember with the most details was his eighth birthday when he was a week or two behind what Grandfather expected him to be. He had spent the whole day being drilled and practically punished for giving up. Birthdays to him really just meant new trials with new murders to come.
"Not quite. I mean, yes, my birthday was observed, but always accompanied by a challenge to be conquered."
Jon blinked, slightly regretful for asking. "Oh, gotcha. Um. Hey, I got you a gift!" He added, abruptly handing the gift to his friend.
Damian shot his friend a suspicious look before going back to his present. Jon looked so excited, he was almost giddy, just waiting to see what his best friend's reaction would be. From the weight and size, it was going to be a book. Damian unwrapped the paper and gasped at the sight of the beautifully preserved War and Peace book.
"The first edition of War and Peace?" He asked, in disbelief.
"Yep, in Russian and everything!" Jon added, happily. "I don't get why you're fascinated by these things, but I hope you like it... I know it's not as great as Art of War, I'm sorry. I would have to travel through time and search for bamboo slats for that book's first edition and there was no way I could--"
"How did you get a hold of this?"
"Well, my parents are quite the reporters, and my mom knows some people," Jon answered, proudly.
"Wow." Damian's eyes were shining in awe as he ran through the pages, appreciating the rarity he possessed in his hands. "Wow." He repeated, looking up at his friend with a genuine smile. "Thank you, Jon!"
"Any time, buddy." Jon was surprised to be met with a hug. There was no better gift than seeing his friend so happy.
"Alright, now let's get going so we can show everyone who's the true boss of Night Warriors!"
"No way, that game came out already?"
"Yep, and it's being played as we speak! Time to humiliate my family!"
Jon laughed. "Let's do it!"
Clark and Bruce watched as their sons raced to the Batcave.
"You're letting them play at the Batcave now?" Clark asked, curious.
"No." Bruce grunted irritably.
***
The evening was quite joyful, contrary to what Damian imagined it to be at first. Overall, it was a great birthday celebration, if not the best one he had ever had. Damian didn't even mind not going out at night with his father to go on patrol when the time came. No one joined Batman either, except for Superman, which of course made Father act all grumpy even though it was obvious he didn't mind the company.
After all the partying and gaming, everyone departed and went their separate ways. Damian was on his way to his bedroom, yawning when he met with his father in the hallway. Father was already dressed in his sleep attire.
"You came home earlier."
"Patrol wasn't too eventful this time, thankfully," Father replied, sounding reassuring. "Did you have fun?"
Damian wasn't sure if being honest would show too much of a weakness on his part, so he hesitated. "...Yes. Yes, I did."
"Good." Bruce kneeled to get to his son's level so he could look him in the eyes. "I don't tell you this enough, but I'm proud of you, Damian."
Bruce ruffled his son's hair and smiled at him tenderly. He stood up and started heading to his bedroom upstairs, but his son snapped his attention. "Father?"
"Yes?" He said, looking back at his son.
"Thank you."
Bruce knew his youngest wasn't referring to the earlier comment. There was something more his youngest wanted to say, but he wouldn't probably mention it unless asked. "What for?"
Damian paused. "For bringing me back. I'm happy to be here and... Have another year of life."
Bruce walked in closer and kneeled once more, placing his hands on his son's shoulders, tenderly, yet firmly. "With many, many more to come. Happy birthday, son."
The two hugged in silence before parting ways.
Damian resumed his way to his bedroom and started getting ready for bed. It started raining in the evening, and it was going to be quite relaxing to sleep at the sound of raindrops. Even though the warmth of the desert was at times nostalgic, it was also nice to simply hear the rain battering the roof and pelting the window as his thoughts washed away through sleep. He was eager to get a good rest after the busy day he had, but before he could go to bed, an interesting item placed on his desk caught his eye.
A box.
No label or name tag, nothing. Damian opened the lid and inside laid a dead robin bird with a letter attached to it, filled with blood.
You're only alive to celebrate your birthday because I allowed it. Come home. The time has come for you to fulfill your legacy.
Damian crumbled the letter in anger. Grandfather. He searched the room to see if there was anything else to be found, but there was nothing else. Of course, Grandfather had to ruin his evening, of course. No longer relaxed, Damian lay on his bed without bothering to cover himself with the blankets, feeling beyond irritated. Even though his eyes were fighting to stay open, the adrenaline and anger took the best of him, filling his body with hatred. It was hard enough to learn that his entire life's purpose was all a manipulation tactic from Grandfather and then forever have the struggle with his inner killing instincts, but now this?
Why couldn't he be allowed to just move on for once?
He just wanted the past to stay where it belonged instead of haunting him. Damian lay on his bed, awake, just staring at the ceiling while his mind went to a million places. He had grown so accustomed to witnessing so much death and massacres, but he was done with that life. After a few minutes had passed, he closed his eyes. Hopefully, sleeping would make things better, and he would know what to do the following day. He was finally starting to fall asleep when a strange sound came from the window. It wasn't the rain drumming on the windows, no, it was something else.
A person.
He immediately jumped from his bed, his heart racing. Damian grabbed the Katana that Drake gave him, which was left on the floor, next to all the other gifts that were neatly piled up by Pennyworth. The thirteen-year-old boy approached the window, ready to attack whoever decided to invade his home. With his sword at hand, he opened the curtains just to be surprised at the sight of his mother, dramatically standing by the window in the rain.
"Damian... Happy birthday, my son." Talia spoke softly. She was dressed in a cloak, the hoodie protecting her hair from the heavy rain.
"Mother?"
Talia came inside to step out of the rain.
"Thirteen years of age... You're a young man now." Talia walked closer to her son, letting go of her daughter of the Demon persona. She kneeled and hugged her sweet boy tightly. "I’m so happy to see you."
"I am happy to see you as well, mother. I've missed you."
"I missed you too, Habibi. We were both granted the chance to live again, and yet, something tells me that neither of us has been truly living." Talia paused, giving a good look at her son while she gently ran her fingers through his hair. “I should’ve visited you more often last year. I want you to know that no one will ever be more important to me than you, my son. I love you so much, Damian."
Damian felt somewhat ashamed of himself, he never got the chance to show how much he loved his mother before she died. "And I love you too, Mother. Forgive me for the times I didn't show it."
"You've done nothing wrong, Habibatan. I am the one with much to atone for. All I can hope for is to be forgiven by you, someday."
“You are not to blame, Mother. The League… It does things to people, and the Lazarus Pit corrupts the souls who touch it."
Talia gave a warm smile; she couldn't be prouder of her dear boy. She thanked him as she pulled her son for one more hug.
There was a peaceful silence in the room as the two cherished that intimate moment together. After pulling away from the hug, Damian noticed he was still holding his Katana. He smirked as he spotted another one of his swords hanging on his bedroom wall.
”Care for a birthday battle? For old sake’s time?” The ex-assassin asked as he reached for the second sword to hand it to his mother.
Talia thought for a second about what the appropriate answer would be, but she smiled in agreement. Both got ready to spar on the balcony the moment Damian tossed the sword at Talia.
“I take it you had a good day?” Talia asked as she blocked her son's movement with her sword. He was the first to attack.
“Yes. It's been quite adequate." Damian attempted to hit his mother again, but he kept getting blocked. "...But I have a feeling you are not here to talk about my day.
“...I wanted to see you. Today is a significant day, and I care about you."
"I know, mother, but there's more. Do tell. Please."
Talia gave a sad sigh. "Your grandfather said he sent you a gift?”
“Not a gift, a threat. A dead robin.”
“Damian..." They continued exchanging blows, parrying each other's attacks. "We can both heal old wounds together. You know my father would welcome you back to the League at any time." Talia spun and disarmed her son, which caught him off guard. She finished her last move by resting her sword on Damian's neck.
“Is that what you want?” The dark-haired boy asked, stoic, even though he had just lost his customary birthday duel.
Talia paused as she put the sword away in Damian's room. It didn’t matter who won. “Yes, that is what I want; to have you by my side, that is.” She moved closer to her boy, placing her hands on his shoulders while looking at him with true sorrow in her eyes. "Damian, I never had a say in my fate, and I don't desire the same for you. For so long, I thought surpassing my father would be the greatest honor one could have, the best gift I could give you as your mother... But I was wrong. You are your own person, and you must choose your path -- as my son, and the grandson of Ra's al Ghul... Or the son of Batman.
Damian still wasn't quite sure who he truly was, despite having chosen to be at his father's side. He stood by the curtains, next to the balcony, in silence as he uncomfortably stared at the floor, not knowing what to say.
"There's one more thing you must know." Damian looked up, intrigued. "As you may remember, thirteen marks the year of the Demon's Fist... And you are not the only one to celebrate your thirteenth year of birth. The ceremonial hunt will begin soon and--"
“Who chose me as a quarry, mother?” Damian immediately interrupted. He needed to know.
Talia hesitated for a moment. “...Mara.”
“HER? After everything Aunt Nyssa did to you? To me? I will not allow it! How could Grandfather tolerate this? How is Mara even allowed to be in the League?”
"A year ago, Tamir attempted to invade the Lazarus Pit. We killed all the assassins who came with them, but Tamir managed to get away. Mara, on the other hand, was left behind. My father was about to kill her... But her life was spared instead."
"What? Why? Grandfather doesn’t believe in second chances."
"Precisely why I insisted that my father grant her a chance to live."
Damian scowled in response. "Mother, why were they trying to get to the Lazarus Pit?"
"I-- I believe Tamir wants to revive Nyssa. He didn't take her body with him, however, so I am not quite sure what he was trying to do; perhaps he only needed an extract of the Pit... It would be impossible to bring her back at this rate, though. No one can be revived after staying dead for an entire year."
If Jason was able to be brought back to life, the same could be applied to Nyssa. Damian had seen enough in his life to know that anything could be possible. The boy curled his fists in anger, being forced to hold his tongue if he wanted everyone in his home to remain unaware of Talia's presence. He wished he could punch something; the mere thought of Aunt Nyssa being back made his blood boil.
Damian squinted his eyes in anger, asking with spite in his voice. "And yet you wished for Mara to live?!"
"She was not to blame for her mother's actions, Damian," Talia explained, sternly. "Nyssa was vicious, but her daughter remains guiltless. It's just saddening to see her being trapped in the League once more when she could've been free... My father would never allow her to leave and he has been even more ruthless with the poor girl ever since she was forced to obey him in exchange for her life."
"This is absurd, mother. I don't understand how you could ever feel this way toward her. Mara is as bad as her mother, and she should not be taken lightly!"
"Can't you see? My father is using Mara to lure you back to us, Damian. His arduous desire is for you to return to us."
“Tt. I’m going to show her there is no mercy.”
“Be wise with your actions, my son. Your revenge on Mara may be exactly what your grandfather wants from you. I tried to stop him, but you know how your grandfather is once his mind is made up. I can't stop Mara, but I can at least warn you so you are prepared."
Damian held his head in frustration. “I wish I could just erase her from my mind… Her and all the rest of my nightmarish childhood.”
Talia exchanged a sullen look, feeling deeply ashamed of herself. “If that’s how you feel… I’ll leave you. But first, I have something… A gift for this birthday…" Talia reached for her son's hand and placed in his palm a small, rounded ancient artifact that was made of old iron with an emerald gem inside. It also contained a few Arabic words and symbols in it, looking a lot similar to a Solomon talisman pendant or something.
"Is this a talisman--?"
"It belonged to your great-grandmother. This has been in the family for centuries; my father tested it before to see if it contained any magical abilities, but nothing was found. He gifted me with this on my birthday as a sentimental family gift, so I wanted to do the same for you. Keep the tradition alive."
Damian wrapped his hand around the talisman and looked up at his mother with a reassuring smile. He appreciated the thought and looked forward to doing the same when he had offspring of his own.
"Thank you, Mother."
Talia put on her hood before going back into the rain. She kissed her son on the forehead before leaving. "Be careful, my son. Don't forget the Demon's Fist will be watching your every move... The places you attend, the people you surround yourself with... Just be safe.”
"I will."
With that, Talia went to the balcony and left, her semblance disappearing with the heavy rain that refused to stop. Damian stared at the gloomy rainy sky with a determined look on his face.
He was going to put an end to all the torment his cousin could possibly bring him and his family.