Archive of Our Own ^beta

Sitting in his office at Wayne Enterprises, Bruce has been staring at the same report for almost three hours now. He needs to read through it, finalise a few statements, double check the numbers and stats and finally sign it off. It’s a report that he could have whipped through within an hour. For whatever reason, he’s been staring at it for over three as his mind wonders and he distantly wishes to be elsewhere.

He has a lot to do, as he always does. It’s the start of December so all the Christmas are happening, as if they didn’t start back in November. What are the Christmas hours? How is the business doing this winter? What does the new year look like going forward? What holiday is staff taking? Who’s working when? What day are people getting paid?

All valid questions and all of which Bruce needs to sit down with his management teams and figure out. But not today. He’s too distracted.

Sighing in defeat he moves the report to the side of his desk to be looked at another day when he can give it his full attention. He logs onto his computer which had gone to sleep in the time his mind had been wondering and shifts through his emails, looking and praying for something easy to do which doesn’t require much brain power.

He finds one or two and trudges through the tasks, responding to the recipient easily enough, and it’s as he’s about to reply to a third when commotion outside his office gets his attention.

At first it was a bang, followed by swearing, followed by another voice that developed into arguing.

Be careful what you wish for, lest it come true, as they say.

Bruce groans and rubs a hand across his face. He had wanted a distraction but he did not mean in the form of his sons crashing his work day. And all of them by the sounds of it. The girls may be here too but they tend to be much quieter than the boys. There’s another bout of cursing happening, another bang and then a round of laughter.

Getting to his feet Bruce moves to go and investigate what his sons are up to. Nothing good by the sounds of it. He swings his office door open and stops. There in the middle of the hallway is a large tree being dragged by Dick, Jason and Duke. Jason’s currently on top of the thing seeming to be caught in between the branches and was cursing as he tugged his sleeve free. Behind them, Tim, Damian and Cass are carrying large boxes while watching Jason with amusement. Steph is beside them carrying a large drink holder filled with take-away cups.

“What are you doing?” Bruce asks. At this point he could very much make an educated guess but it doesn’t hurt to get the exact answer.

All their heads spin to look over at him. Predictably Dick beams at him, the eldest taking charge like usual. “Bruce! Lucius said you refused to decorate your office. We’re here to rectify that.”

“I see…” Bruce drawls. Really, he should have seen this coming. They’ve already taken over the Manor with decorations – with Alfred’s supervision – and then the bottom floor of Wanye Enterprises, so really his office wasn't a far stretch.

“How on earth did you get a tree up here?” They were near the top floor, and it certainly wouldn’t have fit in the elevator.

“The stairs,” Jason grunts, finally freeing himself. He glares at the tree before fixing his jacket and looking at Bruce, “we carried the damn thing all the way up here so you better appreciate our efforts, old man.”

Steph steps forward holding out carrier in her hand. “Don’t worry, we brough refreshments too! Drinks and treats while we work to get this place looking festive!”

Bruce pinches the bridge of his nose. He sighs before straightening and holds open his office door wider. “Fine. Have at it. I can’t be bothered to fight you all on this.”

As a team the lot of them drag the tree in, set down the boxes of what Bruce now knows are decorations and lights for both the tree and his office, and immediately get started on decorating his office.

Settling back down at his desk and taking the drink Stephanie holds out to him, Bruce watches with both interest and amusement as his kids bicker about who gets to do what, and then as they had further arguments about what order to do things in. And then even more arguments about where the placements of things are going.

“Tt, this is tedious and a waste of the day. I did not agree to this father.”

At the sound of his youngest, Bruce looks to his side and spots Damian next to him, nursing his own drink and he watches his siblings embellish the Christmas tree and his office ceiling with ornaments and decorations.

“Yet, you’re here. You could have stayed home with Alfred,” he comments to the boy. He’s grown a lot in the years since he’s been with Bruce but there’s still an element to him where he doesn’t let himself be young and enjoy what he deems as ‘childish’. Christmas and the excitement of the holiday is one of those things. Bruce hopes this eases within the next few years.

Damian scowls. “Richard insisted we all be here.”

Of course Dick did. This time of year always hits Dick hard, as it does for most of his kids in fact, and his eldest tries his hardest to get the family all together to celebrate or even to do all the little things together that come with the winter holiday.

Instead of responding Bruce observes how the tree is almost completed and decides to get Damian involved since he seemed to have excluded himself. The others had noticed his actions but allowed it for now, probably because Damian had been talking to him. Getting up from the desk Bruce goes over to where the star for the top of the tree had been put aside and grabs it. He wanders back over to the desk and holds it out to his son. Damian stares at it with a scowl.

“Why don’t you put the star on top of the tree?” Bruce suggests. No matter what age anyone is, everyone always wants to be the one to put the star on top of the tree.

Damian tuts and crosses his arms over his chest. “I am not a child father. I do not wish to take part in such childish acts.”

Bruce doesn’t point out how everyone single person in this room is older than him and has taken part in ‘childish acts’. He gently forces Damian to unwind him arms and puts the star into one of his hands.

“Do it for me then.” Perhaps if he has a reason – other than because he wants to – to put the star on the tree Damian may do it. “I want you to put the star on top of the tree.”

Jason surprisingly lumbers over and crouches down in front of Damian, giving the youngest his back. “Climb on, baby bat.”

Before Damian could protest Bruce nudges him forward until he’s practically on top of Jason. Having no other choice, and certainly making his displeasure known, Damian climbs onto his brother’s back. Bruce smiles when he sees Damian clinging onto Jason as his second oldest stands up, easily giving Damian twice amount of height than he’s familiar with.

The others move out of the way as Jason approaches the tree and Jason hikes Damian further up his back, holding his legs tightly so he wouldn’t fall. “Now all you gotta do is grab the top branch and slide the star onto it.”

“Quiet Todd,” Damian hisses at his brother, he then whacks the top of Jason’s head with the ornament, “I do not need your input, otherwise I’ll show you where else this ridiculous ornament can go.”

Tim barks out a laugh. “Talk about where the sun don’t shine!”

Stephanie pulls a face. “But it’s a star. Not the sun.”

Tim’s laughter quickly dies and he frowns at Stephanie. “The sun is a star you dumbass,” he then rolls his eyes, “I’m wasted potential here.”

“That’s not possible. You would need potential to begin with.”

Stephanie’s comeback causes a round of laughter, and even Bruce uses a hand to cover his mouth to stop Tim from seeing him laughing. Tim huffs and glares at everyone as he sips his coffee.

“I hate you all.”

“Oh Timmy! Don’t be like that.” Dick immediately encompasses Tim in a hug and reassures him quietly. On the other side of the room Damian is now smarting at Duke who has his hands up and is stepping away from Jason.

“Damian. Just put the star on the tree. How fucking hard is it?”

Damian mutters something under his breath but finally puts the ornament in it’s place at the top of the tree where it shines brightly. Jason steps back before lowering him to the ground. “Finally. Are we all done?”

Duke, Jason and Dick quickly get sucked into a debate about using the rest of the ornaments around Bruce’s office. The girls are taking photos on their phones while Tim sulks next to them, Damian however wonders back to Bruce’s side and presses in close. He doesn’t hug him, but Bruce knows this is Damian’s equivalent.

“I think it looks great. Do you agree?” He asks his son. Damian’s gaze moves from the tree to Bruce and back again. His arms crossed over his chest once again and his eyes narrowed. “It’s adequate I suppose.”

Despite his apparent lack of interest there’s a quirk to his lips and he’s eyeing the tree with vigour. Damian can pretend all he wants but Bruce knows he’s happy to have been part of this shenanigan and to have put the star on top. He pulls his son in and quickly presses a kiss to the top of his head before letting him go again. To give Damian any form of intimacy he needs to be quick and sneaky about it.

Knowing he’s done for the day, after all this there’s no way he’s going to be able to get back to work. He stands up and grabs the room’s attention.

“Why don’t we go home and see if Alfred would be willing to mix up a batch of his eggnog for us?”

Everyone voices their pleasure with the idea. The reports can wait, quality time with his family cannot.

Shuffling through all the plastic bags he has on the floor, Jason crosses out each item from his list as he makes sure he’s gotten everything on it. It’s been a bit of a scramble as he’s left everything to the last minute and he has no one to blame but himself for that.

Cass, check. Steph, check. Babs, yup. Alfred, yes. Demon Spawn, tick. Dickhead, yeah. Bruce, nope. Replacement, not yet. Duke, nein.

Fuck.

He had thought he covered everyone but apparently not. Three left isn’t too bad though. It’s heading into late afternoon now of Christmas eve, meaning shops will be shutting soon if they haven’t already. He needs to get three more presents within the next hour or so before everything closes.

This is what he gets for leaving it all to the last minute. Now the question is what the fuck does he get them? Replacement is easy enough. Tim’s been raging about a new fantasy game or some shit he wants, Jason will go and pick that up for him knowing no one else has. Duke he can take a guess, he’s interested in English literature, especially poetry – although he’d never admit it – so Jason can pick up some books around that, maybe some super nice notepads too.

But what the fuck does he get Bruce? A man who can literally get himself anything he could ever want.

“Mista Hood?”

Jason jumps. He instinctively draws his gun up and levels it at the speaker behind him. He pauses and immediately lowers the weapon when he finds one of his kids before him. “Cricket. We’ve talked about this. You can’t go sneaking up on me like that.”

“I called ya name several times.” The kid deadpans. “You ought to be more aware of your surroundings Mista Hood. Who knows what kind of creatures lurk around the corners.”

“Ha ha, very funny Mr. Wise guy.” Jason holsters his gun and eyes up the kid. He’s short for his age, scruffy ginger hair sits on his head, freckles cover his nose and cheeks, he’s wearing his usual oversized clothes. “What’re you doin’ here? Why aren’t you in the warehouse?”

The warehouse is where a group of street kids Jason’s unofficially adopted live. He’s refurbished it on the inside, giving kids access to a warm bed, medical supplies, stashes of food, clean water, variety of clothes, if they wish to use it. On the outside it’s looks like an old rundown warehouse, it’s unappealing look easily keeps strangers away from it. Those who sit more in the dark of Gotham’s streets know not to go anywhere near it. It’s under his protection, they wouldn’t fuck with him on that.

“You were distracted earlier, I wanna know what’s goin’ on.” Cricket replies unabashedly.

Right. Earlier he had been with the kids, celebrating an early Christmas with them today as tomorrow he’s with the family and wouldn’t be around for the kids. Not wanting them to miss out he made it a big event today for them. All different types of food, presents, even a tree they got to decorate.

This is also one of the reasons why he’s been scrambling to sort his presents out for the family after the party. He’s come back to the warehouse, just to store the stuff until he’s got everything he needs to take it all back to his apartment to wrap them.  

“Just a lot on my mind, kid.” He says shrugging, he shoos Cricket away. “Now get. Make sure you get inside, it’s supposed to be storming tonight.”

Cricket ignores him. Honestly, the balls on this kid, it’s no wonder why he’s survived his first 11 years on the streets with the stubborn streak he has. “Do ya need help? Is this for Mista Batman and ya siblings?”

Jason sighs, he doesn’t really need to get into his present situation with this kid. “Yes this is for them. I still need to get a few more items then I’ll be done. I was just checking my list.”

“Can I help wrap them?” Cricket turns his big green eyes up at him and Jason feels his resolve crack. So not fair. He’s Red Hood and he can’t handle Bambi eyes from an eleven year old.

On the other side, it would save him a good amount of time if the kid wrapped them up. Hopefully he’s good at it. Jason guesses that’s a time will tell thing.

“Think you’ll be able to handle it?”

Cricket puffs up his tiny chest and crosses his arms. “Course I fuckin’ can. Lemme do this and you can finish ya shoppin’.”

“Language.” Jason mutters. He makes his decision. “Fine, you can wrap them, lets go inside the warehouse and I’ll show you what to wrap with what.”

He spends the next twenty minutes making sure Cricket knows what he’s doing before heading out to do the last of his shopping, although he still has no ideas for Bruce.

Would putting a bow on his head and announcing himself as the present be enough? Him being alive is the best present he could give Bruce. No. No. That's too far. As tempting as it may be… no, he’s not going to do that. He’ll figure out something else.

He returns to the warehouse about three quarters of an hour later. He’s pleasantly surprised to find Cricket having nearly completed all the wrapping and seeing it well done. He’s really taken care in making sure everything is neat and pretty. He goes over and ruffles the kid’s hair.

“Great job. Thanks for doing that, you’ve really helped me out.”

An adorable blush appears on Cricket’s cheeks. Jason doesn’t comment on it as the kid ducks his head and shrugs. “Not like it’s hard Mista Hood.”

“You have my thanks anyway.” Verbal praise and appreciation goes a long way with kids like Cricket.

“Did ya get what ya needed?”

Jason places the wrapped presents carefully into plastic bags. He does his best to not ruin Cricket’s work. “All but one. That can be left now though I think. I’ll work something out.”

He can fake a story saying something like it’s still in the post and hadn’t arrived on time, it’s plausible enough until he works something out. He’s sure Bruce won’t cry about not getting a gift from him.

He spends the next hour hanging out with Cricket and some of the other kids who were still around after their little Christmas party from earlier in the day. He soon bids them a farewell and heads for his apartment. It isn’t until the next morning that he’s due to go to the Manor. That gives him plenty of time to come up with a reason why he doesn’t have a gift for Bruce.

He spends most of the evening out patrolling his neighbourhoods and find it surprisingly quiet. Maybe even the criminals and mobs are having a night off seeing as it’s Christmas tomorrow? Well, he’s not going to complain. After a few hours of nothing happening he calls it a night and heads back to his apartment.

It’s as he’s coming out of the shower when his phone vibrates with a message. At first he thought he may be getting called back out however he’s pleased to find it’s a non-urgent message from Alfred with an image attached.

It’s a photo within a black frame containing an image of him, Dick, Tim and Damian. Jason groans upon seeing it. It’s so embarrassing! They were roped into doing a men’s photoshoot for  Louis Vuitton, the four of them showcasing the new men’s line, or whatever. Admittedly they look good. All matching colours but different styles to suit their characters.

This photo in particular, however, is one that was not shared to the public. It’s one where they ended up goofing off, Damian had made a biting comment to Tim, who naturally retaliated. Jason caught Tim in a head lock, while Dick ended up wrapping his arms around Jason’s shoulders and Damian’s waist, pulling them all close in together. It’s both stupid and sums up their relationship to a tee.

How the fuck Alfred had managed to get this photo Jason does not know.

Alfred had messaged alongside the image. As you have been busy, I took liberty of framing this photo as a gift you can give to Bruce. I have it wrapped and ready for you for tomorrow.

Jason sighs in relief and grins. He messages his grandfather back. Alfred you absolute legend. Thank you so much.

Looks like he’s been able to get everyone sorted for gifts after all. He would like to promise it wouldn’t happen again, leaving everything to the last minute, but he would be lying. It will totally happen again. That’s next year’s problem though, for now he's complete and he can get ready for a rather manic and draining day at the Manor tomorrow.

Dick:

Stood in nothing but his sweatpants, Tim rifles through his wardrobe looking for a top to wear. He’s in a mood for something particular but isn’t entirely sure what for until he sees it. He’s wants something large and comfy, something that’ll keep him warm without over heating him.

After several searches through of the clothing available in his wardrobe Tim comes across one item in particular that grabs his attention. He considers it for a moment before taking it off the hanger to get a better look at it.

It’s a well-worn navy hoddie. The BPD logo, now faded, covers the front while the rest is plain. It’s Dick’s old hoddie, one from when he first joined the Bludhaven Police Department. By now Tim’s worn it several times over the last few years, although how it first ended up in his wardrobe he has no idea.

Deciding this is the one, Tim puts it on before making his way out of his bedroom and heads for the kitchen. Now showered, in comfortable clothing, he’s ready for some caffeine. As he reaches the kitchen he could hear a couple of voices having a conversation and once he’s past the threshold he sees the owners of the voices are Dick and Wally.

The two men are leaning against the Kitchen island. Empty plates in front of them and half full mugs beside them.

Dick is the first to notice his arrival. “Morning Timmy!”

Wally greets him politely. “Morning Tim.”

“Morning.” Tim grumbles back. Caffeine. He needs caffeine. 

On a mission, Tim ignores the bodies in the kitchen as he prepares his mug and as he takes his first few sips of the rich liquid. He turns around and turns his focus to the men in the kitchen. Dick’s presence makes sense, although Tim could have sworn he’d be in Bludhaven this week. Wally, however, not a clue. Obviously it’s because Dick’s here right now, which pegs the questions of why they’re both here.

When there’s a lull in the men’s conversation Tim pipes up. “How are you Wally? Heard you lost a fight to a garbage can the other day.”

Bart had been buzzing when he shared the story on their group chat with Kon and Cassie. While there was no evidence of Wally running full speed into the garbage can, it’s still hilarious to think about. That, and also because it’s not the first time it’s happened.

Wally groans, his pale complexion showing his blush easily. “Ugh, don’t even start. Bart needs to learn to keep his mouth shut.”

“The day that happens is the day hell freezes over.”

“Hey Timmy,” Dick speaks up getting his attention, something which Wally probably appreciates,  “is that my jumper?”

As he eyes Tim up suspiciously, Tim looks down at himself and the hoddie he’s chosen to wear. He shrugs and sips his coffee. “It was your jumper.”

Dick huffs and crosses his arms over his chest. “I had wondered where that one had ended up. For years I never knew what had happened to it. You little thief.”

Tim puts a hand up defensively. “I have no idea how I ended up with it. It’s warm and comfortable though.” He narrows his eyes at his brother. “It wouldn’t fit you now anyway, you don’t need it back.”

Wally pokes Dick in the side. “You probably let him borrow it one time and never got it back.”

Dick rolls his eyes and shoves Wally aside. “Great job detective. Maybe you can cover as Batman next time Bruce is out of town.”

Wally shivers and Dick sniggers. “Absolutely not, man. No way in hell. Nope. Nuh-uh.”

As the two men start to playfully bicker with one another, Tim leaves the kitchen with his coffee and decides to avoid them for the rest of the day. He’s going to go get comfortable on his bed, in his jumper and stay there undisturbed.

Jason:

By now he doesn’t have much of a choice. If he tries to get any further on his own, he’ll end up passing out somewhere less than ideal and be left vulnerable to who knows what.

His leg is pulsing with pain, blood trickles down his calf where the rain instantly washes it away as soon as it appears. His head is pounding with a ramping headache. His body is both numb and hyper sensitive due to the cold of the wind and rain battering against him in every direction.

From the roof he drags his body over to the edge and over down onto the fire escape, where he starts to slowly and painfully work his way towards a particular window. Groaning as he reaches up, he smacks his fist against the glass several times before letting his body go limp. He’s here, he just has to hope he gets the help he really needs right now.

Feeling exhausted, Tim fights off the desire to sleep. It’s so very tempting but he needs to make sure he’ll be safe before passing out.

Soon enough the window he had hit opens up and a familiar, scowling, face appears before him.

“Red? What the fuck?”

Jason pulls his body through the window and stands beside him, his hands fluttering across his body as he takes in Tim’s beaten form.

“Hey,” Tim whispers, not having the strength to speak up more clearly. “Rough patrol. Fell onto something sharp. My thigh is fucked. Or my calf. My leg rather. Is fucked. Can I stay here for the night, I don’t think I’ll make it home.”

Jason seems to pause as he listens and then he pulls a face, like what Tim just said is unbelievable. “Really baby bird? Jesus Christ. Yes that's fine. I’ll patch you up and deliver you to Alfred in the morning.”

That’s all the confirmation Tim needed. Blackness took over his vision and he let himself sink into it, passing out just as Jason begins to pick him up from the fire escape floor.

----

“Here.”

Jason thrusts something into Tim’s hands. Having unexpected the move Tim fumbles for a moment before catching himself. He looks at the item in his hands to find it being a hoodie.

“What?” He asks surprised, his brain not having caught up with the moment. A second later something soft hits the side of the face and falls to his lap.

Jason huffs and rolls his eyes. “I can hear you shivering. Put that on and get under the blanket. Christ, baby bird. Did you whack your head as well tonight? Imma go heat up some soup.”

Right. By the time Tim had woken up, Jason had stripped him out of his uniform, cleaned him up and had also treated his leg wound. After getting dressed into loose clothing and left to rest on the couch, Tim couldn’t stop shivering. It was like the rain and cold wind had settled into his body making it difficult to heat back up.

As Jason disappears into his kitchen, Tim puts the hoddie on and adjusts the blanket around him. The hoddie smells like Jason, it’s big and comfortable and has a fleece lining making it warm as well. Putting the hood up he snuggles into it’s warmth and settles into the corner of the couch.

Jason soon returns carrying two bowls of steaming soup and pieces of bread on the side. He hands one to Tim, who immediately soaks up the warmth through his hands, and settles on the couch beside him as he turns the TV on. There’s some type of action film playing on the screen which Tim ignores in favour for focusing on the soup and the warmth it provides.

This is comfortable, he’s now warming up, the soup, blanket and hoodie doing it’s job. He wants to keep this feeling for as long as possible. He glances over at Jason who had his eyes locked onto the TV.

“You aren’t getting this jumper back by the way.” He comments out loud. Jason blinks and turns to him, raising an eyebrow. Tim shakes his head. “Nope. It’s mine now. I’m half tempted to steal the blanket too.”

“Don’t you dare.” His brother threatens, narrowing his eyes at him.

Tim snorts. They’ll see. He’ll have to work out a way to get all this out of Jason’s apartment without him noticing. Once his leg is better of course, meaning he’ll have to come back in the future to grab it all.

“Thanks for tonight.” Tim says with a small sincere smile.

Jason nods once and looks away. “Not a problem baby bird. Although I’ll still be dropping you off at the Manor first thing tomorrow morning.”

“That’s fine.” The two of them fall into silence again as they finish eating and both get absorbed into the film playing before them.

The moment Bruce walked into the kitchen, he immediately wanted to walk back out again. He stares at the carnage happening in his own kitchen with wide eyes and feeling unsure on how to proceed. All he wanted was a cup of coffee.

Tim and Damian were arguing over something between them. Both boys gesturing frantically and shouting into one another’s faces. That at least was familiar.

Cass and Duke were next to them, both ignoring the commotion going on between the two youngest. They each had what looked like a piping bag and were concentrating on the cookies they were decorating. One would pause and receive a comment or opinion from the other before resuming with the task.

Stephanie was on the other side of the kitchen next to Dick, where the two of them seemed to be mixing ingredients together in a large plastic bowl. Bruce just happened to time it perfectly where he witnessed a bag of flour explode all over Dick’s front. Stephanie cracks up laughing while Dick cough and splutters as he unsuccessfully wipes flour off his face and clothes.

Jason was on his own in another part of the kitchen. From the side Bruce could see neatly decorated cookies in front of his second eldest, he could see the concentration on his face as he completes the icing and decorating of each one.

His attention diverges from his kids as Alfred steps up beside him. The older man looking impeccable as usual and doesn’t seem at all fazed by anything going on in the kitchen. A particular place he’s banned most of the current occupants from.

“Good afternoon Master Bruce.” He says politely, his British accent coming through despite all the years he’s lived in America now.

“Alfred.” He greets back. He eyes the man and the chaos happening in front of him. “What’s going on?”

“They are making cookies sir.”

Bruce rolls his eyes at the deadpan response. “I can see they’re making cookies Alfred. I was asking about how and why you’ve let them in the kitchen of all places.”

“I am more than happy to have some of them in the kitchen, sir, but as I am here to supervise the entire time I figured it would be okay.” Alfred explains, his eyes continuously bounce between each of the kids as he keeps an eye on them. His gaze especially lingers on Tim and Damian.

“I believe they have a bet going on between them. Who can make and decorate the best Christmas cookies. I believe they wanted you to judge when they’ve finished.”

“Ah.”

Now it makes more sense. It’s hard to imagine they would all share the space without some sort of ulterior motive going on.

“I suppose it can’t hurt.” Bruce comments.

“Not at all sir. They’ve all been rather civil if I do say so myself. Apart from Master Tim and Master Damian, that is. Those boys really need to learn to work past their differences.”

Bruce sighs and watches the boys in question. Their arguing increases and soon enough they’re getting physical with one another. Finally acknowledging what’s going on beside them, Cass and Duke step in and separate the two youngest, calming them both down as they do so.

“I would have thought they’d grow out of it by now but apparently not. They may never change or they will.” He shrugs, there’s only so much Bruce can do. Granted they’re better than what they were when they first met each other, but it’s not been a massive improvement. He can try and force them to get along but ultimately they need to do it themselves.

“Is it safe to grab a cup of coffee? I’ll disappear back to my office and come back when I’m needed.”

Alfred nods once and starts to move away from him. “That’s not a problem sir. Allow me.” He bravely enters the fray and comes back minutes later unscathed and hands Bruce a mug of coffee. “Here you are.”

Bruce takes it gratefully and sips the hot liquid. “Thanks Alfred. You know where I’ll be if you need me.”

Bruce watches the scenes before him for a moment longer, enjoying the view of his kids – happy and healthy – all in one place. It’s rare nowadays and Bruce has learnt to appreciate little moments like this. He soon leaves the kitchen though and returns to his office as he said he would. He now awaits to be summoned to be the judge of their cookie competition and he’s secretly looking forward to it.

Results:

Cass in first place with an adorable robin wearing a Christmas hat design. Jason is second with a detailed ginger bread house. Steph comes third with a quirky Christmas tree for show.

Kon blinks at him in confusion. It’s as if Tim had been speaking another language. “Wait. Let me get this straight. You want to go to Europe, to go to a Christmas market?”

“That's what I said. Yes.”

“Why?”

Huffing, Tim shoves Kon’s shoulder. “Does there need to be a reason? Jesus Kon, I just thought you may be interested.” He crosses his arms and turns away from his boyfriend, starting to feel embarrassed from the rejection.

Arms quickly appear around him and Tim’s drawn back until he hits a hard chest. Kon wraps himself all around Tim as much as was physically possible and – despite being mad at him - Tim soaks in the warmth coming from his boyfriend.

“I didn’t say I wasn't interested,” he says calmly, “I was just asking why because this is rather out the blue. Do we even have the time to go to Europe? Christmas is around the corner and we both need to be on guard.”

“The idea came to me after speaking with Bruce. He told me I need time away, said I’ve been running on steam recently.”

Kon presses a kiss to his temple. “I could have told you that. Hell I have told you that. Several times in fact.”

Tim huffs again and pulls away from Kon’s hold. Turning around he takes his boyfriend’s hands in his and holds them in the space between their bodies. Kon’s expression is in between one of annoyance and fondness.

“Anyway,” Tim drawls carrying on the conversation. “I thought I still need to get some Christmas presents for people, something I want to get Alfred comes from Austria, may as well go there and get it straight from the source. There’s something else I want to get both Alfred and Jason from Germany, I can then visit different markets there. Europe is very well connected by their train system y’know.”

Kon looks thoughtful for a moment and nods slowly. “You’ve put a lot of thought into this.”

Tim squeezes his hands. “I have and I figured I’d ask you. It’d be a great way to spend time together. They can always contact us if they need us, or Bart can meet us within seconds.”

“Never thought I’d see the day you make a sensible decision regarding time off or away from vigilantism.”

Tim drops Kon’s hand and smacks him in the chest for that comment. Although, to be fair, he’s not entirely wrong. Kon laughs and grabs his wrists and drags him in close. Before Tim could say anything Kon is capturing his lips in a searing kiss. He dominates Tim’s mouth, pressing hard against his lips and sucking his tongue like it’ll be his last time. Tim moans and presses back, letting his boyfriend lead as it fires him up on the inside. When they break apart they’re both breathless and Kon is looking at him with so much heat Tim wonders if he’s about to use his heat-vision.

Kon’s hand comes up and rests against his cheek. His thumb brushes over his skin and over his bottom lip.

“Yes,” he whispers, “we can go to Europe and go to as many Christmas markets as you want.”

Tim sucks in a breath and presses his lips against Kon’s again. Keeping it short this time he pulls back and grins. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Despite what Tim had originally thought, Kon was all for the idea of going to European Christmas markets as soon as he brought it up. He immediately loved the idea of getting explore quirky markets, classic grottos and European culture in the winter.

After a round of fantastic sex, they got down to planning their trip. 10 days across three different countries in multiple cities. Kon had done a little bit of research but he mostly left it all to be a mystery, something to discover and experience himself when he arrives at each place.

Tim had been right. It is a lot of fun. He can’t remember the last time they got to do something like this together. Holding hands, walking through crowds of people who have absolutely no idea who they were nor did they care. Kon could kiss Tim in the middle of the street after looking particularly cute and excitable and no one paid them any mind.

If Kon was anything other than Kryptonian who had an extremely active lifestyle, he’d be worried about how much weight he'd be gaining on this short trip. They’ve tried so many different drinks, food and sweet treats. It’s hard to keep up.

Now as they walk hand-in-hand through an old German town, which Kon cannot remember the name of, he watches as Tim looks around excitably. There’s a large care-free smile on his face, his nose and cheeks and tinted pink from the slight wind in the air and his eyes are wide and sparkling as he takes it all in. Gods, he’s fucking perfect.

“I had a feeling that after a couple markets we’d be sick of it, or how it would be all the same things. I’m glad to be proven wrong, every market in each of the different cities have been unique. It’s hard to not be intrigued by each one.”

Kon couldn’t stop himself. He pulls Tim to his body, grabs his chin and points his face up as he descends to capture Tim’s lips in a kiss. Tim makes a surprised noise but quickly melts into the embrace. Before it could get to hot and heavy they separate.

Kon pecks him one more time for good measure before letting him go. “So, last one of the trip. Are we after anything in particular or just browsing?”

A particular store selling sweets in large quantities catches his attention. That’s something he could look at getting Bart. Not that they haven’t gotten their friend anything yet, if anything they’ve gotten him too much but it’s the thought that counts right. Trying out all types of candy around the world is something Bart would 100% be interested in.

“I want to find something for Steph. I know she’d love a little knick-knack from a place like this. I’ll know when I find it. You?” Tim starts walking forward and Kon quickly follows. He grabs his hand and they walk side by side, dodging others left and right as they explore different stalls.

“I have nothing in mind. Something else for Ma and Pa wouldn’t hurt.” Maybe he can try and see if there’s a way to store some of the German mulled wine? He has no idea how he’d go about it but it’s an idea. Kon knows Ma would love to try some.

Hours later they were still working their way around the market. They’ve acquired a few things within that time although most of their purchases had been either food or drink. By this point Kon was ready to call it quits. As lovely as the market is, it gets old pretty quick after having been around most of the stalls by now.

Just as he thinks about suggesting to Tim about leaving a stall captures his attention. With Tim ahead of him, head buried in a bright and shiny stall, Kon takes the moment to examine what’s caught his eye. He’s now looking a shelves full of wooden ornaments. Most are decorated to be Christmassy while there’s several which were normal.

On the shelve at eye level, there’s a small selection of robins. The ornament is just big enough to fit in his palm, the detail was incredible, from the eyes to the feathers within the wings, to the tucked in legs and the beak. It’s painted brown and white with an orange belly. There’s just something about it that calls to Kon and he knows instantly he needs to buy it.

After a quick exchange with the stall host, Kon buys the robin, tucks it away into one of his bags and hurries to go find Tim, that not he needed to worry because his boyfriend hadn’t moved the stall Kon had saw him looking at moments earlier.

He grabs Tim’s hand and drags him away from the stall, not that Tim was going to buy anything there, and he starts to steer him towards the exit of the market.

“You okay?” Tim asks squeezing his hand and looking up at him with a questioning gaze.

Kon grins and presses a kiss to his temple. “Yup.” He pops the ‘p’ rather dramatically. “I think we should head back now, don’t you? We’ve seen everything and have gotten what we wanted.”

Tim smiles unsurely. “Uh, I guess. What are you up to?”

“Me? Nothing!” He sends Tim his best innocent look which immediately fails when he couldn’t help but grin.

Tim scrutinizes him for a moment before laughing lightly and shaking his head. “Y’know what, I’m not going to ask. But yeah, let’s head back to the hotel.”

“Great!” Kon beams and leans in close until his mouth is near Tim’s ear and so his boyfriend could feel his breath ghosting over his skin. “Great, because I have something I want to show you and it isn’t for public viewing.”

Tim goes red instantly and Kon is all here for it. He refuses to give Tim any answers to the questions he peppers him with. Kon isn’t lying, there was something he had for Tim that would bring more excitement to their time in the bedroom but in reality he wants to gift Tim the little robin in private without any on lookers. He doesn’t know why he wants to, it just feels special and it deserves all the attention. That, plus, it may end up with them falling in bed together. Either way he’ll be happy.

In and out. Quick and easy. The task at hand is something Jason’s done hundreds of times by now so in hindsight it shouldn’t have been a problem. Of course that’s when things do in fact go wrong and Jason gets caught in the act.

Someone must have been on his side however, because he was caught after he had completed his task.

“What the hell are you doing?” Jason freezes and then flinches as the overhead light comes on and illuminates the room. “Jason, what the fuck?”

Turning around Jason plasters an easy grin on his face, hiding any uncomfortable sensations he’s feeling as he faces a member of the household.

“Replacement. Fancy seeing you here. What are you up too at 4 in the morning?”

Tim scowls at him and crosses his arms over his chest. The kid looks tired, with visible bruises under his eyes, he’s wearing large clothing as pyjamas which makes him appear younger than he actually is.

“I asked you first.” Replacements snarks.

“I asked you second.” Jason responds just to be difficult. That, and because he sure as hell wasn’t about to tell him what his actual reason for randomly being in the manor was.

Jason glances down at the presents surrounding the base of the tree, examining where he had hidden his own presents within all the others. He’s happy they’re hidden enough to not be found until the presents start being handed out to the manor’s occupants.

While Jason may not be currently on the best of terms with most of the family at the moment – cough-Bruce-cough -  that doesn’t mean he’s not going to buy them presents. As he didn’t want to make a big deal out of it he decided to sneak in with the gifts, leave them under the tree and skedaddle back out before anyone saw him.

Replacement here, has screwed that up for him by being a nosy bastard.

Tim huffs and eyes the Christmas tree behind him. “Y’know, disguising  bombs as presents is really tacky, and also not that creative.”

Jason rolls his eyes. “As if I’d do that. If I was planting a bomb I’d make sure it was obvious.”

“If it’s not that, then what are you doing? Impersonating the Grinch? Planning to steal our presents?”

Jason blinks at him. “I only understood half of that sentence Replacement. But no, I’m not stealing presents or whatever.”

For some unknown reason Tim drops his arms and looks at Jason scandalised. There’s a pregnant pause before he explodes. “What!”

“Shhhh….” Jason hisses at the kid and winces, praying he hadn’t woken up anyone else in the household.

Tim ignores his shushing. “Have you never not seen the Grinch? How do you not know about that?”

“Replacement, shut the fuck up,” Jason snaps lowly. “I know of the Grinch, I’ve just never seen the film. Christ, you’re acting like I’ve broken the law with this.”

“You have.” Tim deadpans. He’s suddenly looking much more awake than he had when they first started talking. He puts his hands on his hips. “We’re changing that. We’re going to go and watch the Grinch, I don’t care. We’re doing it.”

“It’s 4am.”

“It’s I don’t give a shit time. You need to watch the Grinch and pronto.”

“Absolutely not.” Jason protests. How the fuck did he end up in this position? All he wanted to do was sneak in, drop off some presents and leave again before anyone noticed. 

Footsteps sound from the hallway behind them and Jason curses. Tim’s screeching has clearly woken someone else up. So much for this whole thing being discrete.

“Master Tim, what are you doing up at this hour?”

Oh thank god it’s only Alfred.

Tim turns and looks over his shoulder as the elderly man makes an appearance. Dressed immaculately as always, Alfred appears in the door observing the scene. His eyes widen slightly when he spots Jason hovering awkwardly by the Christmas tree but otherwise doesn’t react.

“Jason’s stealing presents and now I’m going to go make him watch the Grinch because it’s a crime he hasn’t seen it yet.”

“I’m not stealing presents!” Jason exclaims. “I was doing the opposite actually. I was giving presents, not stealing them.”

There’s a pause in the room as both Alfred and Tim stare at him and he stares back absolutely frustrated at himself for letting that slip. Goddammit.

Before Replacement could comment on it, Alfred intervenes. “Master Tim, it’s late – or rather early now – you need to go to bed and get some sleep.”

“But Alfred-”

Alfred shuts down any of Tim’s protests with a stern look. “No Master Tim. Bed.”

Jason couldn’t help but smirk. “Night night Timmy. Don’t let the bed bugs bite.”

Tim’s face scrunches up in anger and as he goes to retaliate, Alfred smoothly buts in and pins Jason with his own stern glare. It makes him feel like he twelve years old again getting told off.

“Now, tomorrow, or rather later today, Master Jason will return to the manor where you can have your chance to show him the film.”

“But Alfred-“

“Now, now, Master Jason, it’s Christmas after all. We want you here, you do not need to sneak in and out. If certain people do not agree to this, they can discuss the matter with me.”

Jason doesn’t know what to say to that. Instinctively he still wants to protest, to refuse to spend time here, refuse to even dare to watch a film with replacement, but the words die on his tongue and he stays silent. Eventually he nods, accepting he’s lost this battle.

“Very well. Now, you boys go off to bed and get some rest. We’ll be seeing one another this afternoon for a festive movie marathon.”

Jason knew better than to argue at this point. As Tim disappears from the room Jason soon follows, as he moves past Alfred, the older man stops him with a gentle hand on his arm.

“Thank you Master Jason for the gifts. Please do not feel like you cannot use the front door. You are always welcome no matter what.”

Jason swallows the lump that’s formed in his throat at the unexpected words and gentleness from the man. “Thanks Alf.”

With one pat to the arm Alfred lets him go and heads for the kitchen leaving Jason to see himself out of the manor.

What the just happened?