Work Text:
Giving Back
“Oh, hey, you’re awake. I’m surprised you’re up so early.”
Tim clapped a hand on Damian’s shoulder as he walked past the teen, to the coffee pot on the other side of the kitchen.
Damian looked up from his own cup of coffee, “I couldn’t sleep. Too much energy last night, I guess. Not going on patrol last night didn’t give me a chance to work some of it off. I guess the school counselor’s guess of hyperactivity is closer to the truth than I thought.”
Tim took a long sip before staring at his little brother. “School counselor? What’s going on?”
Damian rolled his eyes. “It was my guidance counselor’s idea. She wants to make sure I’m not cracking up under the pressure of finishing school early.”
Tim shrugged, “Are you?”
The teen shook his head, “Tt. Of course not, but they seem to think this haircut was my idea. They kept talking about some girl named Britney, and wanted to know if you guys shaving my head was actually a cry for help.”
Tim smirked, “Britney?”
Damian looked around the kitchen, like he was trying to find something, “Yeah, some girl named Britney…Britney…Spears, I think? She must have been another student; I never met her. Once I convinced them that this was a result of your April Fool’s prank, they decided I’m not as crazy as they thought.”
“How did you go from that to hyperactivity?”
“The counselor said I couldn’t sit still in the meeting. I just wanted to get back to class, instead of wasting time. Apparently, to keep them from recommending that Father medicate me, I have to join a P.E. class now, to burn off some energy during the day.” Damian shook his head, “Such a waste of time.”
Tim looked at Damian carefully, “Are you sure that medication is such a distasteful option? It might help with some of your…other…issues. Wouldn’t it be nice to not be angry all the time?”
“I’m not angry all the time,” Damian said, before averting his eyes to the countertop, “At least, not anymore. I’m able to control it much better now. Anyway, that’s something Talia used to do to me. Of course, I couldn’t tell them that, so I had to take the other option.”
Right. Of course Talia used to drug him up to control him. God forbid she try actually being a parent. She could have at least done something to help him out. After all, he is the way he is because of what she did to him. Deciding to turn away from his current train of thought, Tim instead asked, “Which class are you going to join?”
Damian looked back up, hiding the fact that he was exceedingly grateful that Tim didn’t ask for further details. “They have a weight training class. I might as well do something useful with my time, if I’m going to be forced into wasting it.”
Tim gave Damian a calculating gaze before asking, “How would you like to do something useful with your time today?”
Damian’s eyes narrowed in confusion, “I am planning on doing something useful with my time today. I’ve got my eye on three work packets that I can finish today. Then, I want to look into getting some Rogaine.”
Tim walked around the kitchen island and rubbed Damian’s head, which after two weeks was starting to sprout a bit of stubbly, dark fuzz. “You don’t need Rogaine. Your hair is growing back just fine. Give it a couple more weeks and you’ll be able to comb it again. Hey, I know you had your hair longer because Robin liked it. What did she think of your new look?”
Damian blushed slightly, “I told her that the webcam on my laptop stopped working. I couldn’t stand the look she would give me if she saw me bald.”
It was Tim’s turn to look at Damian in confusion, “You didn’t tell her? I thought you didn’t like lying to her?”
Damian took another sip of coffee, “I don’t, but this is embarrassing.”
“…And she won’t care. She loves you, no matter how much hair you have. Anyway, she’s four thousand miles away. It’s not like she can run her fingers through it from Alaska.”
Damian sighed, “It’s a good thing she came out last month, instead of this month. Robin has always told me she likes rubbing my chest, because I don’t have chest hair yet…”
“I’m sure that does nothing for you,” Tim interrupted sarcastically
Damian rolled his eyes, but his smile betrayed his true feelings. “…I’ve grown used to having longer hair. I like it. I would hate it if she saw my head like this and decided she liked this look better.”
Tim shook his head, “Getting back on topic, you have all day tomorrow to do your work packets. Why don’t you come with me today?”
Damian stared up at Tim and asked, “What do you have in mind? You said you are doing something worthwhile?”
Tim was surprised at that response, “You’re really interested?”
Damian shrugged, “Sure, why not? I can at least hear you out. I’m getting tired of work packets.”
I don’t think I’ll ever get used to him not sniping at me anymore. “As part of the Foundation’s philanthropy efforts, we got HR to approve and start a volunteer time effort. We found a way to get W.E. employees to volunteer some of their time to worthy causes. The thing is, I only got a couple people to come on board for today’s event. I could use some extra help.”
“What’s the event?”
Tim smiled, “We’re going to help spruce up the South Gotham Senior Center. Nothing too in-depth. We are just doing some cleaning, some small repairs, and maybe some painting. It’s just a way to give back to the community.”
Damian stared up at Tim, nonplussed, “Let me get this straight. Manual labor?”
“Yes.”
“With old people?”
“Yes.”
“For the benefit of older people?”
Tim tried not to sigh, “I should be really offended that you just called me old, but yes.”
“And, the only thing we’re getting out of this is the warm feeling of helping someone?”
Now, Tim sighed, his eyes narrowing. “If you don’t want to do it, you don’t have to. I just thought you might want to get out of the house for a bit.”
Frustrated, Tim walked quickly out of the kitchen and up to his room to change. He was frustrated, but not really surprised, by Damian’s reaction to his Saturday plans. I thought he was getting better. He’s more willing to be social with the family. He’s okay with League members…most of the time. There are the occasional people here and there that he’s okay with. Dick says Damian likes being helpful and feeling needed. I thought he would have a better reaction to doing a little charity work. Maybe he’s starting to lean closer to Bruce’s attitudes as he ages. I know there’s no way I could get Bruce out to do some volunteer work. He told me as much when I ran the volunteer time idea past him.
Distracted and frustrated, Tim threw on his clothes for the day, quickly losing his interest in the upcoming activities. As he sat on his bed, tying his shoes, a throat was cleared from just outside his door.
“You know, Grayson would have kept pushing until I said yes.”
Tim looked up to find Damian leaning against his door jamb, changed from the pajamas he had been wearing in the kitchen, into a t-shirt and jeans. “As you point out at least daily, I’m not Dick.”
Damian nodded slowly, “That’s a good thing. More than one of him would cause spontaneous rainbows to cover the planet. There is another reason he would have continued until he got the answer he wanted.”
Tim stood and asked, “What is that reason?”
Damian took a step into the room, considering the fact that he was about to reveal another hidden fact about himself that only Dick had uncovered so far. “The first word out of my mouth wasn’t ‘no’.”
Tim smirked, realizing that Damian was choosing to share something personal with him. Strangely, he felt that he understood his little brother just a little bit better than he did a few seconds ago. “If the first word isn’t ‘no’, does that mean that the last word is ‘yes’? Does that mean you actually want to do this, and I didn’t drag it out of you?”
Damian took another step closer to Tim and said, “I would like to be old one day. It would be nice to have a nice place to go when I get old.”
Tim grabbed a t-shirt off of his bed and threw it at the teen. “Put that on. Given what we do, I doubt any of us will be given the chance to grow old. You, however, have more to live for that the rest of us.”
Damian blushed, “You’ll find someone you love someday, Drake. If you’re lucky, they might even like you back.”
Tim gave a smile as Damian looked at the shirt, “Is that concern for my future I hear?”
“Sure, why not,” Damian said distractedly, “Where did you get these shirts? I haven’t seen this one before.”
Tim approached as Damian quickly pulled off the shirt he was wearing and replaced it with the new one. It was two sizes too big, but that couldn’t be helped at this point.
“You like it? We had them made up for the employees who join in on the volunteering. That way, we look like a unified group. I’m sorry, I thought I grabbed a smaller size for you.”
Damian looked up at his brother critically, “You grabbed a shirt for me before you even asked if I wanted to join you?” Tim opened his mouth to answer, but Damian answered for him. “You didn’t know Grayson was going to be spending the weekend with West, did you? That’s why this shirt is so big.”
Tim tried to hide the uncomfortable look that threatened to break out on his face as Damian guessed correctly. “Does the answer to that question really matter?”
Damian thought for a second before saying, “No, I guess it doesn’t. Should we go?”
Across town, Tim pulled the car into the parking lot of a small building. Had they not been looking for it, Damian might not have even seen it as they drove past. Four people in shirts matching Tim’s and Damian’s were milling about the parking lot as Tim pulled into a spot.
“Is that all you were able to get to come out today?” Damian asked.
Tim shrugged, “The email went out company-wide at the last minute. Any attendance at all is a good thing. Unfortunately, it looks like everyone here today is from the Foundation staff.”
They exited the car and approached the small group. Tim smiled at them and said, “Good morning, everyone. Thanks for coming to Wayne Enterprises inaugural volunteer day. I hope to be able to set up several of these days throughout the year. I want our company to be seen as a beacon light in the city, and what better way to do that than to get involved? Now, don’t feel daunted by only having a few of us show up today. We aren’t here to build a whole new building, just to make a few improvements to the inside of this one.”
Tim looked around at the gathered employees, before his eyes stopped on Damian. “I believe you all know each other, but there is a new face in our midst. Everyone, this is my brother, Damian. Damian, this is Michael, Carla, Felix, and Linda.”
Damian nodded to the workers, who gave their own nods and waves. Damian then turned to Tim, and asked with a smirk, “…And, who are you, again?”
A small laugh rose from the group. Tim smiled, “When has my name ever mattered to you? You’re just going to call me whatever you want, based on your mood.”
Damian shrugged, “True.”
Tim shook his head, “Okay, our contact with the center today is a woman named Marsha. I’ve been told that they have all of the supplies we will need for today inside. Now remember, the Senior Center is going to be open for business while we’re working, so there will more than likely be people inside, trying to use the facility. It’s okay to talk to them, tell them who we are and what we’re doing. It might make the work go a little easier, and you might just make the day of some lonely senior. If there are no questions, we can go in and see where they would like us to start.”
The group turned to the building, but they didn’t have to enter the structure to know that this wasn’t to be an ordinary day. Damian had tapped Tim’s arm and pointed to the door, but the warning hadn’t been necessary for Tim to see that the glass front door had been shattered. They stepped carefully into the building and found a wreck before them.
A harried-looking woman rushed by, and Tim just barely caught her attention before she disappeared. “Excuse me. Are you Marsha?”
The middle-aged, graying woman stopped and stared at the small group. “Yes, I’m Marsha. Can I help you?”
Tim smiled at the woman. “I’m Tim Drake. We’re here for the volunteer day from Wayne Enterprises.”
Recognition flared on the woman’s face. “Oh…right. I totally forgot about that, what with all the happenings today. I’m sorry, but I think we’re going to have to reschedule.”
Tim looked concerned, “If I can ask, what’s going on?”
Marsha sighed, “We were robbed last night. Whoever it was tore the place up and ransacked the offices. The police just left, but they didn’t sound too hopeful when I asked if they would be able to catch the person or people who did this. On top of that, the center just doesn’t have the funds to fix the damage they caused. I’m afraid we’ll have to close until we can get this taken care of.”
Tim looked confused for a second. “Well, we came to work. We can help you get this cleaned up.”
Marsha gasped, looking hopeful, “You’d do that?”
“It’s why we’re here.”
Marsha’s look fell again. “I don’t know what good it will do. The front doors are smashed. We’ll just get robbed again tonight.”
Felix spoke up, “I have a truck. I can run over to the hardware store and pick up a couple sheets of plywood. It won’t be much protection, but it will be better than nothing, until you can get the door fixed.”
Marsha sighed, “Our budget for repairs won’t even cover that. We won’t have one spare penny after getting the doors replaced.”
Felix winked at the woman, “I think I can afford a couple sheets of plywood.”
The man turned to walk out of the senior center, but Tim stopped him. “Wait up, Felix. Let’s see what else they need first.”
Marsha looked dumbfounded, “I can’t ask you to do that.”
Tim turned to the woman with a smirk, “You don’t have to ask.”
The group toured the building, to get the lay of the land and to check out the damage. Felix made a list of things that needed to be repaired, that could reasonably be accomplished in the time they had. Before Felix left to get the supplies, Tim slipped him his corporate credit card to cover the expenses. After that, Carla and Linda left to work on the kitchen. That had been one of their original projects for the day. Michael went to tackle another project, fixing the plumbing in one of the restrooms. Tim started to walk off, to go to the offices with Marsha, when he stopped and threw a broom to Damian.
The teen caught it easily as Tim said, “Why don’t you take care of the broken glass while I see if there is anything I can do about their computer, Damian? I’m sure there is plenty of other places to clean in here, once you’ve done that.”
Damian nodded and set to work. He could overhear Marsha talking as she led Tim into the Administrative office, to see if the computer expert could salvage the smashed computer.
“He looks a little young to be working for Wayne Enterprises,” she said.
Tim replied, “He doesn’t. Not yet, at least. That’s my brother. I kind of kidnapped him to help out today.”
An involuntary smile crossed Damian’s face as he swept up the marbled safety glass.
Later…
“What did you do with the glass,” came suddenly from very close behind Damian, half an hour after he had begun sweeping. Tim had done everything he could to fix the center’s main computer, but it was just no use. All the computer programming knowledge in the world couldn’t fix what a baseball bat could destroy. After helping to straighten up the office, Tim went to find his younger brother, who Tim felt had been too quiet over the last half hour.
“I swept it up, separated it into four equal piles, and put one each under your tires.”
Tim hesitated for a second before saying, “I know you’re kidding, but…you are kidding, right?”
Damian hitched his thumb over his shoulder, “I found the janitor cart. It had a dust pan and a trash can.”
Tim nodded, “Did you sweep the rest of the hallway?”
“Tt. Of course.”
“Good. Let’s go.”
Damian looked up, surprised, as he stowed the broom back on the janitor cart. “Go? I thought we were here to fix stuff? We’ve barely done anything.”
There was a smile on Tim’s face as he led Damian into an activity room. “You’re right, we’re not done yet. This is our project for the day. You and I are going to turn this room into a calming reading room.”
Damian looked around at the medium-sized room before asking, “How?”
Tim took the same look at the room, noticing the provided supplies stacked in the corner. “First, we pull all the furniture into the center of the room, then we paint the walls. While the paint dries, we can work on cleaning up the furniture. Once the paint is dry and we move the furniture back, we can organize the books and games. Then, we’ll be done.”
Damian looked around again, evaluating their task, “That doesn’t seem too bad, but…”
“But what?” Tim asked.
Damian looked down sheepishly and said quietly, “I’ve never painted before.”
Tim looked at Damian like he had grown a third arm, “Are you serious? I thought you were an artist?”
“I’ve never done the type of painting you’re talking about. I doubt working with watercolors will prepare me for this. I didn’t actually go to Art School, remember?”
Tim sighed with a smile, “Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, it’s easy. Just make sure you get more paint on the walls than on the floor, and you should be okay. A roller will be much easier to work with than a watercolor brush. We’re looking for an even coat, not a special design. Let’s start with the furniture.”
Tim dragged a heavier than expected arm chair into the center of the room, then looked over to see Damian leave a pile of books in the same area. “Damian, this will go faster if you bring over the whole bookcase.”
Damian took a deep breath, “No, it won’t.”
“Sure it will.”
“It will not be faster if I try to drag that whole thing over and it tips. You said we have to organize them anyway. This way, after we move the furniture back, everything will be laid out for us to organize.”
Tim shrugged, “I guess so. Just be careful moving the furniture, its heavier than it looks.”
Another few minutes of work found a wide path surrounding the outer edge of the room. Tim set Damian to taping off the baseboards and door moldings, which were to remain white. He also spread out plastic sheeting, to protect the carpet, while Tim cracked open the cans and stirred the paint.
“Green?” was asked from over Tim’s shoulder.
“Yep. This was the color they chose. It’s supposed to be soothing.”
Damian looked skeptical as Tim poured out two trays of paint. “Looks kind of dark. There isn’t a lot of natural light in this room. It’s probably not going to look like the nice forest color they are hoping for.”
Tim stood and smirked at his brother, “Didn’t you just say that you didn’t go to Art School?”
Damian rolled his eyes, “I may not have gone to a specialized Art School, but I was trained in artistic principals. That is a dark paint, going in a room with small windows and southeastern exposure. From about noon on, this is going to be a very dark room.”
“It’s what we have, Damian. Just work with it. Tell you what, I’ll take these two walls,” Tim pointed to the closer of the two walls, one short and one long, in the rectangular room, “And you take those two walls.”
Damian looked at the two surfaces assigned to him, then back at Tim, “That is acceptable.”
Tim handed Damian a roller with a smile. Damian took it a bit gingerly. Tim watched the boy for a second before asking, “You have no idea how to use that, do you?”
Damian instantly scowled, which is exactly what Tim was expecting. “Of course I…no, not a clue.”
Tim smiled as he patted Damian’s shoulder, “That’s okay. You can’t be expected to know how to do everything. Learning is all part of growing up.”
Damian gave a small, warm smile, and said softly, “Thanks.”
“No problem. Just watch what I do.” Tim narrated the steps as he did them, Damian paying close attention. “Take your roller and roll it in the paint tray. Then, you roll it on the wall. Simple, right?”
Damian looked at the line of dark green Tim left on the wall and said, “Well, if you can do it, I shouldn’t have a problem.”
Damian tried to follow the steps as he had seen Tim do them, secretly hoping that it wasn’t something that only looked simple, and that there wasn’t a hidden trick that Tim had forgotten to mention.
As he put the roller to the wall, Tim said, “Don’t go too fast, otherwise the paint…”
It was too late for the warning. Damian ran the tool up the wall quickly, only to stop suddenly and nearly drop the roller. A line of paint had sprayed off of the end of the quickly spinning tool. Damian turned, and Tim couldn’t stop himself from laughing at the line of green that ran up Damian’s shirt, neck, and cheek.
“Drake? A little advance warning next time?”
At least he isn’t accusing me of purposely not telling him what might happen if he rushes. “You’re taking Physics in school. I thought centrifugal force would have occurred to you.”
Damian gave a deep sigh before turning back to the wall. He made another line of paint, slower this time. Tim clapped a hand on Damian’s shoulder as he looked at the second, much neater line. “See? You can do this.”
Damian painted another line before asking, “Why are you so patient with me?”
“Just trying to help you out. You deserve it.”
Damian smirked, trying to hide how the honest statement made him feel. “You just want me to act more like you than Grayson.”
Tim just returned the smirk and turned back to his own wall. Damian turned back to continue painting, but said, “That really isn’t such a bad thing.”
Tim didn’t turn, but he smiled at the statement.
“Um, Drake? I’ve hit a…logistical issue.”
Tim looked over to see a large, square section of the wall had been meticulously painted green. That section stopped two feet short of the ceiling. Tim, a sneaky yet unseen smile on his face, walked over and gripped Damian’s shoulder. “Yeah, I wondered if that would be a problem. Fortunately, we have a solution for that.”
Tim reached up and patted Damian’s cheek before walking back to their painting supplies. Damian turned to watch him, and when Tim turned around again, he had a hard time not laughing. Unknown to Damian, Tim had painted two of his fingers before walking over to his brother. There were now two green fingermarks on Damian’s shoulder, and two streaks on his cheek. Tim walked back with an extension stick and screwed it into the bottom of Damian’s roller.
“Try that, but be careful when you get close to the ceiling. We are trying to keep that white.”
Damian turned back to the wall, and found that he could reach the rest of the space he was still too short to reach on his own, without the extension. “Thank you, Drake. That helps.”
Tim patted Damian’s back, leaving another paint streak on the back of the boy’s shirt.
Tim moved from his short wall to his longer wall before taking a second to look back at Damian. The teen was concentrating intently on the work in front of him. Tim gave a soft smile and thought to himself, he’s in a good mood today. I wonder how far I can push his good mood. He seems to be ignoring the paint that he sprayed on himself, and I don’t think he noticed the new streaks on his face. I wonder how much more paint I can cover him with, without him noticing? If he does notice, I’ll just call it payback for the paint balloon in the warehouse a couple weeks ago.
Two and a half hours later, the room was now a dark forest green, and Damian was sporting several matching streaks of green. Tim had managed to run his roller down the back of Damian’s loose shirt without him noticing. He had also managed to add a couple streaks to Damian’s other cheek when he pointed to a couple places on the boy’s assigned walls that needed a touch-up. Now, Damian’s cheeks had markings that vaguely resembled green cat whiskers. Figuring he would be caught any second, Tim went for broke. He painted his whole hand and came up behind the teen. Trying not to laugh, Tim grabbed the top of Damian’s nearly-bald head tightly, and turned the younger teen’s face to meet his own.
“Hey, you hungry yet?” Tim asked, “It’s just about lunch time.”
Damian nodded with a small smile, “Yeah, I’m pretty hungry.”
Tim had to bite his lip hard to not laugh at the green hand print he had left on his brother’s scalp. “Let’s go get cleaned up in the kitchen. I think Michael is still working on the restrooms.”
Damian nodded and they left the room to head for the kitchen. Tim had purposely directed them away from the restrooms, into a space that was less likely to have a mirror for Damian to see his emerald makeover. Damian preceded Tim into the kitchen, where Carla and Linda had finished cleaning and organizing the space, and were preparing lunch for the seniors. They both looked over as Tim and Damian walked in, and Tim sent pleading looks at the women, his hands folded in supplication. He shook his head and mouthed ‘don’t say anything, please don’t say anything’.
Damian turned on the sink as Linda approached Tim and whispered, “He doesn’t know?”
Tim smiled and whispered back, “No. He hasn’t said anything about it, at least. I did my best not to let on that anything had been done to him.”
Carla smiled and whispered, “You mean, anything that you had done to him?” Tim just smiled as Carla looked back at the boy and said, “We won’t say anything. It’s cute.”
Tim was able to clean the paint off of his palm without Damian noticing. They ate a couple of the sandwiches that were held aside by the ladies as Felix came into the room and grabbed a sandwich. He took a big bite before saying, “I got the door boarded up, Tim. It ought to hold until they can get the door replaced. How’s the painting going?”
Damian didn’t seem to notice the snicker in the man’s voice as he went back for another sandwich. Tim replied, “We’re almost done. Don’t worry, we got more on the walls than on us.”
There were several green blotches on both of their shirts, enough that Damian didn’t try to look for any further marks.
“I hope so,” Felix replied.
Tim nodded, “What’s left on your list?”
Felix grabbed a second sandwich before saying, “Just some small repairs that Michael and I are going to tackle. We should be done in another hour or two.”
“Good,” Tim turned to the women, “Ladies? Anything left on your lists?”
“Just one last round of cleaning through the dining room after lunch is done.”
Tim smiled, “Great. We’ve finished painting. We just need to put the room back in order. Everyone, I want to thank you for coming out today. I think, in some small ways, we’ve really made a difference here. There will be more of these events scheduled throughout the year, if you’re interested. I hope you all got something out of today. Spread the word, and maybe we can get more volunteers next time. Also, if you know of any charities or local establishments looking for some volunteer help, let me know and the Foundation will look into adding them to the calendar.”
Carla smiled over at Damian and asked Tim, “Are you going to bring your little helper next time?”
Damian answered as Tim was opening his mouth, “Well, he really hasn’t been all that helpful; so, we’ll see.”
The gathered employees laughed as Tim said, “That will all depend on when the next event is and what we end up doing.”
Following their lunch, the volunteers returned to their tasks. Tim and Damian cleaned up their painting supplies before moving the furniture back into its original positions. Sitting, Damian volunteered Tim to examine the games to make sure all of the pieces were present and accounted for. As he wasn’t known for playing games, Damian and Tim thought it was best that Damian didn’t guess at what he was doing. Damian took the stacks of books and magazines, and soon lost himself in devising an organization system that might only have made sense to him. After his third stack of books fell over before he could get them back onto the shelves, Damian changed his mind and sorted them by author and title, putting them away as he went, instead of trying to organize them all into stacks before shelving them.
Within two hours, the room was back to a usable condition, and Tim felt they could finally say they were done. The other volunteers had all finished their tasks and left in ones and twos. When they were the last two left, Tim went to find Marsha.
“Hey, Marsha. I just wanted to let you know that we finished your requested chore list.”
“Thank you so much,” Marsha said with a smile. “Please, sit down for a second. Where’s the little, green one?”
Tim smiled as he took a seat, “He’ll be here in a minute. He’s putting the left over paint and supplies in the janitor closet.”
Marsha nodded, “Good. I have to tell you, Tim. I just got off the phone with our executive director. She would have come in today, but she’s home with the flu. We were minutes from closing down this morning, before you showed up. With you and your people’s hard work, we were able to stay open to serve our clients. I got a lot of comments from the seniors this morning, happy to see some improvements being made. I wish there was more we could do to thank you.”
Tim’s smile broadened, “You just did. Thank you for allowing us to come in today and do what we could to help out.”
Marsha stood and shook Tim’s hand. “No, thank you, and your volunteers. Our director will be sending a thank you letter to Mr. Wayne, letting him know how grateful we are for your efforts today.”
Tim winked at the woman, “I’ll let him know to expect it. Oh, you should expect a couple boxes from Wayne Enterprises in a couple days. It’s just some supplies to get the center back on its feet after the robbery.”
Marsha’s jaw dropped in shock, “You shouldn’t do that.”
“It’s already done. It’s just a couple things to help out a worthy cause.”
Marsha walked out of the office with Tim, and found Damian waiting in the hall. “You know,” Marsha said, “I was a little surprised that there wasn’t a press conference this morning about your volunteering efforts.”
“I didn’t think your clients would like that,” Tim said. “And anyway, why toot your own horn when no one wants to hear it? Today wasn’t some ‘look at me’ stunt, it was to try to make life a little better for some of the city’s residents.”
Marsha shook Tim’s hand again, “I think you did that. Thank you again.”
The car ride home was mostly silent. Tim thought Damian was just tired. He knew the boy was adept at domestic labor, but this was a little different than he knew Damian had done before.
“Drake?” Damian started quietly.
“Yeah?”
Damian continued to stare out of the side window, “You really like doing things like this? Helping people? Making a difference, as you put it?”
Tim didn’t have to think about his answer, “Yeah, I do. Someone told me something once, and it stuck with me.”
“What was that,” Damian asked.
“’For those who have been given much, much is required’. I know that is only a paraphrase of the real quote, but that is how it was told to me. I’ve always taken that to mean that, because I was given a lot, I should give back at least an equal amount. Bruce taking me in was a huge gift for a lost kid. He made my life so much better, so it is my responsibility to try to make life better for others.”
Damian thought about what his brother had said for several minutes before saying, “So, you’re not going to send the press release that Marsha asked about?”
Tim chuckled, “No. I know you’ve heard Bruce’s stance on charity work. You don’t need to be seen doing the good works, you just have to do them.”
Damian nodded, “Yeah, I’ve heard that one a few times.”
Tim reached over and patted Damian’s forearm. “You didn’t just hear it. Today, you lived it.”
Damian cocked his head in thought. Huh, I guess I did. It wasn’t even that bad. I might even consent to doing this again. “Drake? Are you planning on doing things like this again?”
“I am. Are you planning on letting me kidnap you again to come with?”
Damian smirked, “Maybe. Is this going to be a long-term company project?”
Tim nodded, “I think so. I’m going to try to grow the project. Why do you ask?”
Damian looked down at his lap, “When I take over the company, there are many changes that I plan on implementing. I don’t know what all of them will be yet, but you should expect that they will come. However, I think I can assure you that this volunteering program will not be one of the cuts made when I take over. I think Marsha was right. I think you did some good today.”
Tim and Damian walked into the manor, a little surprised to not run into anyone as they removed their shoes.
A voice caught their attention as they walked towards the kitchen. “Hey. There you are.”
Bruce walked into the hallway and hid his hesitation at the sight of his sons. “You two have been gone all day. You could have at least left a note.”
Tim smiled at the way Bruce kept glancing at Damian. “I told you I was going to see if Damian wanted to join me in volunteering.”
Bruce’s eyes widened, “Was that this weekend?”
Tim rolled his eyes, “Bruce we talked about this last night. I know you didn’t forget.”
“I honestly didn’t think you’d be able to talk him into it, Tim.”
Damian huffed softly, “Give me some credit, Father. School packets are driving me crazy.”
“Well, it’s nice to see you throw yourself into a worthy cause,” Bruce said, again hiding a snicker.
They walked back towards the stairs and found Alfred inspecting the condition of their shoes. Tim and Damian both started to feel bad at the splashes of green that marred their surface, knowing that the butler would work diligently to return the footwear to its original condition.
Alfred turned as the group approached, and did a double-take upon seeing Damian. “Good lord. You certainly did get into your work today.”
Damian was starting to get suspicious that something more was going on than he knew. He combined memories of his coworkers for the day with the way his Father, and now Alfred, were glancing at him. He turned to Tim to confront his older brother for the truth when Jason walked down the stairs, smirking.
“Hey, there’s the community service crowd.”
Tim rolled his eyes and shook his head, “It wasn’t community service; it was volunteer work.”
Jason ignored Tim and walked up behind Damian. “High five, short stuff,” Jason said, slapping the green handprint on Damian’s scalp.
“OW! What the hell, Todd?” Damian asked. It was too much for the rest of the family. Alfred was biting his cheek to keep from laughing. Bruce was covering his mouth and turning red from the strain.
Damian turned and stared daggers at Tim. “What did you do, Drake?”
When no answer was forthcoming, Damian ran upstairs.
“Thanks a lot, Jason. I wanted to see how long he would be able to go without noticing.” Tim tried to sound angry, but that is hard to do when you’re laughing.
Bruce was impressed, “You mean, he didn’t know he was covered in green paint?”
Tim shook his head with a smile. Bruce returned the smile with an appreciative nod and said, “So, we have several options available for escape routes. Car, plane, boat. I can book you tickets on a plane or train. What do you think you’ll need?”
Before Tim could respond to the only partially serious joke, Damian’s voice echoed throughout the house.
“DRAAAAAAAAAAKE!”
Tim smiled, glancing at the top of the stairs, “Zeta Tube.”
Bruce shrugged, “That can be arranged. On-planet or off?”
Tim looked back up the stairs as Damian yelled his name again, “I’ll let you know.”
Tim started to climb the stairs when Bruce grabbed his hand. “You’re not going up there, are you?”
Tim nodded with a smile, “He’s not angry, Bruce. If he was looking to kill me, he wouldn’t have yelled from his room. He would have yelled from the top of the stairs, and he would have only done it to get my attention, so the throwing knives would hit me in the chest, instead of the back.”
Bruce looked up at the empty second floor landing as Tim continued up the stairs. “You’re a better man than I, Gunga-Tim.”
Tim smirked from the top of the stairs. “Isn’t that one of Dick’s jokes?”
Tim stood in the doorway to Damian’s bedroom. The teen could be seen in the attached bathroom, examining his face and head in the mirror. Tim cleared his throat, catching Damian’s attention. They both walked into the bedroom, and Damian threw the mostly green t-shirt he had discarded in disbelief at Tim.
“How did you do all of this?” Damian asked softly.
Tim was taken aback at the lack of malice in the question. He cocked his head at his brother, “No death threats? No sworn oaths of revenge? Just a civil request for information?”
Damian looked at the floor, “It’s obvious I missed something, to be as…covered…as I am. I-I wish to learn.”
Tim walked slowly up to the boy, surprised at what he was hearing. “The simple fact of the matter is you’ve grown to trust me. I took advantage of that trust today, but it wasn’t done in an effort to embarrass you.”
Damian glanced up, “I recognize that, which is why I wish to know how it was done, instead of how to kill you.”
Wow, he really is growing. I like this Damian better than the one from three years ago. “Like I said, I took advantage of your trust, mostly because you didn’t expect something like this from me. There was no reason you should have; we’ve never had that kind of relationship.”
Damian smirked, “You mean, we’ve never played with each other.”
“Have you ever played with anyone?”
Damian shrugged, “That depends on your definition of playing.”
Tim gave a soft smile, “Right. It was fun, though, seeing what I could get away with before you noticed.”
Damian rolled his eyes, “You’re not going to tell me how you did it, are you?”
Tim’s smile grew, “No. I’m going to show you.”
Tim patted Damian’s cheek, over the paint streaks, “See, you can do it.” His other hand then came up and forced Damian to turn his head, “You missed a spot over there.” A hand landed on Damian’s shoulder firmly, “Good job, little brother.” Finally, Tim stood behind Damian and grabbed the top of his head, “You ready for lunch?”
Damian grabbed Tim’s hand and inspected it closely. Remains of green paint could be found on the young man’s hand. Damian dropped the hand, his eyes migrating to the floor again. Tim was concerned about this unnatural posture in the boy. It was almost as if Damian was…showing respect to him.
“Damian?”
Damian spoke quietly, still staring resolutely at the floor, “I am a master of stealth and subterfuge. I was trained by the best masters the League of Assassins could find, so I was trained by the best in the world. My training was continued under Father. I excelled in my lessons, and was named a top level master after years of study and discipline. I’ve been able to sneak into and out of places that most of the world doesn’t even know exist. I can steal the glasses off of someone’s face, without them noticing that they are gone. This morning, you showed me that I still have a lot to learn.”
Damian looked up, and surprised Tim with the reverent look on his face. “Where I was raised, you were only able to become a master of a discipline after you had defeated a recognized master. You have bested a master today, and in that tradition, I name you a master of the stealth arts, Timothy Drake.”
Damian bowed his head again in Tim’s direction for a handful of seconds. Tim’s eyes were wide as he said, “That might be the strangest, and nicest, thing you’ve ever said to me. I really thought you’d be angry about this.”
“You can’t be angry at a master for giving you an education. I got more than one today.”
“Thank you, Damian,” Tim said softly.
Damian nodded, “Just promise me that we will have a chance to study together in the future.”
Tim smiled as he gripped the boy’s shoulder again, “I’d like that. A lot, actually. Why don’t you take a shower, before that paint decided to stick around.”
Tim walked towards the door, to leave the room, but looked back in time to see Damian checking his shoulder for new marks.
“Glad to see you learned something new today,” Tim said with a grin as he exited the bedroom.
A/N: Just a little drabble that came to mind while at work a few months ago. My job actually offers VTO, volunteer time off. You are given a certain number of hours a year where the company actually pays you your normal salary for volunteering at sanctioned events. It is an effort to get employees involved in the community, and get our company name out there as a company that is actively trying to make things better for people. At the time I got the idea for this story, the company was pushing several VTO opportunities, and I thought that it sounded like something the Wayne Foundation would offer.
This is set to take place after Fools, which is why Damian is still mostly bald. I know I promised School Spirit as my next story, but this one was closer to being finished, and it doesn’t really reveal any plot points from School Spirit, so I think it is fairly safe to let this one go first.
Thanks for playing along.