[BATMAN] unexpected
Unexpected
dick & damian
Batman and Robin
a/n: Thank you so much to tealgeezus for being my fabulous beta. Best in the world I swear!
It's a wonderful idea, really, so of course it's Alfred's idea and not his own. Never mind how simple it could have been for him to come up with or how smart and even ingenious it is, Dick Grayson had no claim on it.
Dick knew he needed to bond a bit more with his youngest brother, who incidentally sometimes felt more like an adopted son or even a ward rather than the family they were supposed to be but that was neither here nor there right at this current moment. They were working better as partners recently, and Dick was sure he could trust him a lot more than those first few times when he'd been introduced to Bruce Wayne's son- the loud mouthed aristocrat with a bad attitude problem.
His first nickname for the boy had been very fitting at the time. 'Prince.'
Lately though, it wasn't as apparent. There was more trust there. The kid wasn't crawling into his bed at night or sharing his favorite bedtime story (though really, Dick was sure he'd scream bloody murder and grab for his first bat gadget nearby for fear of an invasion of the body snatchers, should that actually happen; but Dick could almost see the difference in them.)
He was still 'Grayson' rather than 'Dick' to the boy, but Dick was starting to understand that it wasn't an insult, but rather, just Damian's way.
So when Alfred had broached the idea of, perhaps, attempting to bond with the boy, Dick had been at a loss on where to begin.
"It's not like I could take him to a mall and chat it up," Dick had said, running hands through his hair in frustration.
"No, I do not believe Master Damian would at all find that interesting," Alfred had agreed, a tray with a cup and pot of tea at the ready. "However. I was looking through this morning's paper and saw a rather fascinating ad that might interest you."
The ad in question had been for a new exhibit at the Museum, one featuring the art of weaponry throughout the ages. They even boasted over their collection from the darker ages, all graciously donated of course. "Alfie, this is brilliant!" If this didn't get the kid interested then he was a lost cause; it was right up his alley.
Now Dick wasn't expecting Damian to jump for joy when he asked, no actually he was assuming he'd get a barely interested glance with a few insults and then maybe that sound he liked to make through his teeth. Which was all his own and then come along with only minor complaint.
What he had expected, however, was that Damian might give him a heads-up or a farewell or something when he left the damn house. Dick honestly had no idea when the kid had even left, which probably says more about their relationship than he’d like to dwell over.
Dick was pretty sure he always had told Bruce where he was going, or at least Alfred, on those occasions that Bruce and Dick were having one of their many 'disagreements'.
Standing in the middle of Damian's room, Dick ran a hand through his hair and shook his head, a smile crossing his lips haphazardly. Ah well, he thought. He tried.
The kid doesn't have enough personality in his room, Dick thought after a cursory glance around. Sure he had some new games scattered around the various gaming systems that Dick was pretty sure hadn't come with the room - a few Dick actually wanted to try. Overall though, the room didn't give any indication to Damian's personality.
It was nothing like what Dick's room had looked like when he'd been younger; which had had a knack of always getting messy no matter how hard Alfred tried to keep it tidy and orderly. Dicks walls had been nearly wallpapered with college teams he liked or the next new band- it still was in areas. When Bruce had 'died' and he'd taken over the cowl, some of the posters had come down for family pictures put in there place.
Unlike Tim's room. Now his room was exactly as the boy had left it- minus the few things he'd taken with him.
Slipping his hands in his pockets, Dick nudged a book left on the floor.
Tim had been the easiest to prank, Jason being the hardest (even if Dick had, had such a short time at it). For Tim, all he had to do was mess with his books. Dick remembered one of the only failed attempts to get an early April Fool's Day joke in. Dick had tried to sneak into the others room in the wee hours of the morning with a thing of water and ice. Tim was never one to leave his room trashed (unlike Jason who'd left everything, including but not limited to, his Robin gear and weaponry on the floor like a mini obstacle course) so it went to say that of course when Dick was sneaking in like the best ninja with evil intentions Tim decided to leave a jacket and his school bag on the floor for Dick to get tangled up in.
Dick was sure Tim still had the resulting Polaroid he'd snapped of Dick on the floor soaked and laughing.
Smiling, Dick shook his head, there'd be none of that with Damian. Especially now that he noticed the boys assassins sword leaning almost demurely against the bed. Had Bruce really given that back? Dick didn't think so but he wasn't about to try and take it from the boy. Dick hadn't yet learned how to get that terrifying damn near growl Bruce could produce when he was well beyond cordial.
"Well, nothing to be done about it." Dick said with a shrug, turning to leave when a sound caught his attention.
Was that a mew?
Pausing with his hand on the door handle, Dick waited. Sure enough there it was again. There was a kitten in here! But Damian didn't own a cat, Alfred would have mentioned it to Dick at some point.
Curiosity now rising, Dick turned back toward the room following the sound until it lead him to the bed. On his knees, Dick lifted the comforter and sheets, exposing the underside of the bed and the small brown box from which the mewing was coming from.
Damian was hiding a cat. That was so unexpectedly cute it almost threw Dick for a loop. Almost.
Pulling the box from under the bed, Dick's smile widened into a true grin; the kitten who was mewing was a solid black in a sea of gray and white. All the other kittens in the box were all curled into a comfortable ball and were very much asleep.
"Bored of the box?" Dick asked the kitten, it's blue eyes watching his every move.
The kitten mewed as if answering him, a paw reaching up to bat at Dick's finger on the box edge, a claw catching a thin strip of skin at the cuticle.
Picking the kitten up, Dick carefully removed it's claw from his finger, "Watch him have named you Killer." Dick said, petting the kitten in long strokes as it explored his lap.
So Damian had a thing for kittens, abandoned ones at that. The side of the box said 'Free to a good home' in handwriting he was sure Damian would be outraged if anyone assumed as his. "You've surely found a good home. Alfie feeds the bats better then I got in Bludhaven on most nights." Dick teased, smiling as blue eyes found his own.
It didn't surprise him that much that Damian had a thing for strays. No matter how well Damian had hide the evidence, Dick had noticed the small fortune that had been spent on items that weren't for either Batman or Robin.
Which was probably where he was right now, out with Colin- the boys name he'd found out on his own because Damian had no intention of answering any of Dick's questions. No matter how many times he'd asked.
Time passed quicker then Dick had expected, soon he had all the kittens crawling around his lap and the floor around him. Some playing with the ends of his shirt, others fighting with their box mates.
Eventually the door to the room opened, Damian standing there with a vaguely irritated look on his face, his mouth open to say something probably amazingly snarky.
"I think Killer likes me!" Dick announced with a bright smile, the black kitten in question laying asleep on his lap.
"You have the worst choice in names, Grayson." Damian retorted with that sound made through his teeth. He had come into the room now, dropping a bag of what looked like pet supplies on the floor near the gaming chair. "What are you doing in my room?"
Ignoring the question, Dick stood up after making sure the black kitten was placed safely on the ground, "What's it's name then?" He asked, steam rolling over the subject of him being in Damian's room without any sort of permission expressly given. "Where'd you get them?"
"Somewhere," Damian replied, brushing off the first question which Dick took to mean he hadn't come up with a name either. "Grayson-"
Resisting the urge to ruffle hair like he would with Tim, Dick pointed to the stuff on the floor. "If you need more. I know a great pet store," he started, "If you're interested, I'll take us there."
Damian didn't jump at the invitation, but he didn't turn Dick down either, which to Dick was a start at something.
dick & damian
Batman and Robin
a/n: Thank you so much to tealgeezus for being my fabulous beta. Best in the world I swear!
It's a wonderful idea, really, so of course it's Alfred's idea and not his own. Never mind how simple it could have been for him to come up with or how smart and even ingenious it is, Dick Grayson had no claim on it.
Dick knew he needed to bond a bit more with his youngest brother, who incidentally sometimes felt more like an adopted son or even a ward rather than the family they were supposed to be but that was neither here nor there right at this current moment. They were working better as partners recently, and Dick was sure he could trust him a lot more than those first few times when he'd been introduced to Bruce Wayne's son- the loud mouthed aristocrat with a bad attitude problem.
His first nickname for the boy had been very fitting at the time. 'Prince.'
Lately though, it wasn't as apparent. There was more trust there. The kid wasn't crawling into his bed at night or sharing his favorite bedtime story (though really, Dick was sure he'd scream bloody murder and grab for his first bat gadget nearby for fear of an invasion of the body snatchers, should that actually happen; but Dick could almost see the difference in them.)
He was still 'Grayson' rather than 'Dick' to the boy, but Dick was starting to understand that it wasn't an insult, but rather, just Damian's way.
So when Alfred had broached the idea of, perhaps, attempting to bond with the boy, Dick had been at a loss on where to begin.
"It's not like I could take him to a mall and chat it up," Dick had said, running hands through his hair in frustration.
"No, I do not believe Master Damian would at all find that interesting," Alfred had agreed, a tray with a cup and pot of tea at the ready. "However. I was looking through this morning's paper and saw a rather fascinating ad that might interest you."
The ad in question had been for a new exhibit at the Museum, one featuring the art of weaponry throughout the ages. They even boasted over their collection from the darker ages, all graciously donated of course. "Alfie, this is brilliant!" If this didn't get the kid interested then he was a lost cause; it was right up his alley.
Now Dick wasn't expecting Damian to jump for joy when he asked, no actually he was assuming he'd get a barely interested glance with a few insults and then maybe that sound he liked to make through his teeth. Which was all his own and then come along with only minor complaint.
What he had expected, however, was that Damian might give him a heads-up or a farewell or something when he left the damn house. Dick honestly had no idea when the kid had even left, which probably says more about their relationship than he’d like to dwell over.
Dick was pretty sure he always had told Bruce where he was going, or at least Alfred, on those occasions that Bruce and Dick were having one of their many 'disagreements'.
Standing in the middle of Damian's room, Dick ran a hand through his hair and shook his head, a smile crossing his lips haphazardly. Ah well, he thought. He tried.
The kid doesn't have enough personality in his room, Dick thought after a cursory glance around. Sure he had some new games scattered around the various gaming systems that Dick was pretty sure hadn't come with the room - a few Dick actually wanted to try. Overall though, the room didn't give any indication to Damian's personality.
It was nothing like what Dick's room had looked like when he'd been younger; which had had a knack of always getting messy no matter how hard Alfred tried to keep it tidy and orderly. Dicks walls had been nearly wallpapered with college teams he liked or the next new band- it still was in areas. When Bruce had 'died' and he'd taken over the cowl, some of the posters had come down for family pictures put in there place.
Unlike Tim's room. Now his room was exactly as the boy had left it- minus the few things he'd taken with him.
Slipping his hands in his pockets, Dick nudged a book left on the floor.
Tim had been the easiest to prank, Jason being the hardest (even if Dick had, had such a short time at it). For Tim, all he had to do was mess with his books. Dick remembered one of the only failed attempts to get an early April Fool's Day joke in. Dick had tried to sneak into the others room in the wee hours of the morning with a thing of water and ice. Tim was never one to leave his room trashed (unlike Jason who'd left everything, including but not limited to, his Robin gear and weaponry on the floor like a mini obstacle course) so it went to say that of course when Dick was sneaking in like the best ninja with evil intentions Tim decided to leave a jacket and his school bag on the floor for Dick to get tangled up in.
Dick was sure Tim still had the resulting Polaroid he'd snapped of Dick on the floor soaked and laughing.
Smiling, Dick shook his head, there'd be none of that with Damian. Especially now that he noticed the boys assassins sword leaning almost demurely against the bed. Had Bruce really given that back? Dick didn't think so but he wasn't about to try and take it from the boy. Dick hadn't yet learned how to get that terrifying damn near growl Bruce could produce when he was well beyond cordial.
"Well, nothing to be done about it." Dick said with a shrug, turning to leave when a sound caught his attention.
Was that a mew?
Pausing with his hand on the door handle, Dick waited. Sure enough there it was again. There was a kitten in here! But Damian didn't own a cat, Alfred would have mentioned it to Dick at some point.
Curiosity now rising, Dick turned back toward the room following the sound until it lead him to the bed. On his knees, Dick lifted the comforter and sheets, exposing the underside of the bed and the small brown box from which the mewing was coming from.
Damian was hiding a cat. That was so unexpectedly cute it almost threw Dick for a loop. Almost.
Pulling the box from under the bed, Dick's smile widened into a true grin; the kitten who was mewing was a solid black in a sea of gray and white. All the other kittens in the box were all curled into a comfortable ball and were very much asleep.
"Bored of the box?" Dick asked the kitten, it's blue eyes watching his every move.
The kitten mewed as if answering him, a paw reaching up to bat at Dick's finger on the box edge, a claw catching a thin strip of skin at the cuticle.
Picking the kitten up, Dick carefully removed it's claw from his finger, "Watch him have named you Killer." Dick said, petting the kitten in long strokes as it explored his lap.
So Damian had a thing for kittens, abandoned ones at that. The side of the box said 'Free to a good home' in handwriting he was sure Damian would be outraged if anyone assumed as his. "You've surely found a good home. Alfie feeds the bats better then I got in Bludhaven on most nights." Dick teased, smiling as blue eyes found his own.
It didn't surprise him that much that Damian had a thing for strays. No matter how well Damian had hide the evidence, Dick had noticed the small fortune that had been spent on items that weren't for either Batman or Robin.
Which was probably where he was right now, out with Colin- the boys name he'd found out on his own because Damian had no intention of answering any of Dick's questions. No matter how many times he'd asked.
Time passed quicker then Dick had expected, soon he had all the kittens crawling around his lap and the floor around him. Some playing with the ends of his shirt, others fighting with their box mates.
Eventually the door to the room opened, Damian standing there with a vaguely irritated look on his face, his mouth open to say something probably amazingly snarky.
"I think Killer likes me!" Dick announced with a bright smile, the black kitten in question laying asleep on his lap.
"You have the worst choice in names, Grayson." Damian retorted with that sound made through his teeth. He had come into the room now, dropping a bag of what looked like pet supplies on the floor near the gaming chair. "What are you doing in my room?"
Ignoring the question, Dick stood up after making sure the black kitten was placed safely on the ground, "What's it's name then?" He asked, steam rolling over the subject of him being in Damian's room without any sort of permission expressly given. "Where'd you get them?"
"Somewhere," Damian replied, brushing off the first question which Dick took to mean he hadn't come up with a name either. "Grayson-"
Resisting the urge to ruffle hair like he would with Tim, Dick pointed to the stuff on the floor. "If you need more. I know a great pet store," he started, "If you're interested, I'll take us there."
Damian didn't jump at the invitation, but he didn't turn Dick down either, which to Dick was a start at something.