Archive of Our Own ^beta

It starts as most things in Wayne Manor do- with a fight.

Tim and Damian are screaming at each other over privacy and sharing oddly enough. It still surprises Tim that Damian and he have these types of fights. No blood shed, no digging about their places in the family, and no attempted murder-- Just two siblings that don’t have a lot in common with one of them still learning the meaning of boundaries. Because, that’s what this current screaming match he and his little brother are having is about. Boundaries.

“What makes you think it’s okay to go through my stuff?!” Tim yells, waving an angry hand over the things piled onto his bed that weren’t there before.

“Do you have anything to hide, Drake?!” Damian shouts back, “Why is it such a great concern if there isn’t something you didn’t wish for me to find!”

“I don’t have anything to hide but it’s still my room and my stuff! If you wanted something or were curious about something you could have just damn well asked!” Tim runs his hands through his hair, tempted to pull at it so he doesn’t sock his baby brother in the mouth, “There’s also things in here that aren’t hidden or secrets but special and I don’t want them touched!”

“Do you think I’m foolish?! There are very clearly sentimental items that I would not touch- not that most could tell from this sty of a room!”

“If my room is such a ‘sty’ what could you have been doing in here?! How would you feel if I went in your room and started rifling through things?!”

Damian is silent for a moment, his face screwed up and turning a very funny puce. Tim crosses his arms and says, “Wouldn’t like it very much. I would ask you if I could borrow something or ask you about something instead of going through your damn things like you’re a criminal,”

“If I had asked would you have even said yes? Or answered me? I know very well how you feel about me, Drake,” Damian also crosses his arms, looking at a spot on the wall behind Tim’s head, “I am aware that you don’t trust me but…” Damian stops himself, looking away in a faux-irritated huff, “It’s no matter- I was simply curious,” Then Damian begins to leave the room.

Tim sighs quietly. He’s not sure if he’s being manipulated, but he’s got a feeling if he lets Damian leave now they’ll never get past this.

Damian is right in that Tim is wary, he’s got every reason to be, but the kid’s come along way and apologized in his own way. Tim would have liked to hear the words but he doesn’t think Damian’s pride would allow it just yet. He’s forgiven Jason, but why is Damian so much harder?

He’s glad no one but Dick, early on, had villainized him for disliking Damian.

They’re both just kids, aren’t they?

“I will,” Tim says before Damian is fully out of his room, “Answer you, I mean. You won’t always get a yes, but you should still ask. I’ll hear you out,”

Damian stares at him critically for a moment, “And what of your lack of trust? You can’t possibly trust me,”

“I’m wary of you, Damian. You did try and kill me, but you’ve come a long way. I had a lot of…behaviors… I had to unlearn when I first came to stay with Bruce, just like you, so I’m willing to give you a chance.” Tim shrugs, “You are my younger brother, after all,”

Damian keeps eying him, looking like he’s trying to physically see if Tim is tricking him or not, before his arms drop to his sides.

“I will not enter your room again without permission unless in an emergency situation,”

“Thank you,” Tim says, nodding his head, “I’ll try and always answer you, unless there are secrets not my own or I’m not comfortable talking about it. Sound fair?”

“Very well,” Damian says, lingering in Tim’s door.

Tim lets a sigh out through his nose, “Now what was it you wanted?”

Damian looks away from him, staring at the same wall as before and trying to look haughty instead of embarrassed, “I was merely wondering if perhaps there was anything we had in common is all. It’s very unlikely, mind you, but perhaps I let my Mother’s teachings blind me to any commonality between us. I decided to investigate for myself, if perhaps, to find more flaws in my upbringing,”

Tim tilts his head in confusion for a moment, before running what Damian has said through the Dick translator in his brain.

Damian doesn’t know Tim right now but wants to and is too proud to ask. Damian wants to find something they have in common to bond over like the other siblings have with Tim, but realizes his previous behavior would make it difficult for him to get close to Tim.

Tim takes a deep breath and says, “Well, let’s find out together, okay?” Tim gestures to his bed with stuff still piled on it, “I know we already have something in common even if the mediums are different,”

Damian moves cautiously to the bed and sits opposite from Tim on it.

“What, pray tell, could that be?”

“Art. I’m a photographer and you work in traditional mediums but it’s still art,”

They sit together in the bed, talking about lighting, composition, and framing for a while. Damian seems interested in what he has to say and even loses himself in his passion for a moment when they get on the subject of landscapes. It’s the longest conversation they’ve had without picking at each other ever.

Eventually the conversation transitions to animals, after talking about animal portraiture. Tim tells Damian he always wanted a cat as a child but his parents would have been very against it, and then when he moved here he was too afraid to ask for the longest time and when he did he got a no. Bruce still too lost in his grief over Jason and Alfred because he was worried about the furniture.

Damian states that he could most likely ask again- now that it’s been shown that it’s not too much of a hindrance for there to be animals in the manor. Tim suspects that Damian offers the suggestion more for himself than Tim but it’s progress.

Tim turns the conversation back to the things Damian has piled on his bed around hour three of the conversation, “Were you interested in these things in particular?”

The contents of the pile are strange for Damian to have chosen-- a bag of miniatures of old friend’s player characters, some discarded characters sheets, a photo book of New Zealand’s natural beauty, and a module book from three point five edition of Warlocks & Warriors.

Aside from the photo book and the module, everything had been pulled out from the tub under his bed where he stored the old stuff from when he played the game. He hasn’t played in a long time. He’ll sometimes think about his old group when he passes the core books and modules in his bookcase, but hadn’t asked anyone if they had wanted to play. It felt too frivolous or time wasting with everything that’s happened in the last few years.

But here Damian, of all people, is showing an interest.

“It’s a game I used to play with some friends. See, these minis are made to match with their characters to go on a battle map. These are the character sheets they fill out and put their stats on for when there’s encounters. It’s a roleplaying strategy game. The Game Master tells and story, plays the NPCs and enemies, and determines what happens as the player characters explore,” Tim explains getting off the bed and going for the bag he has shoved in a desk drawer, “These are the dice everyone uses. The twenty-sided die is the most important and determines if you succeed or fail. The rest are used for damage or modifier depending on the weapon or ability. It’s a game of pretend with random number generation, strategy, and math,”

“I see…” Damian appears to think for a moment, “And this game- what are its limits?”

“None, really. There are rules for balancing purposes and the dice rolls limit you but you can honestly try almost anything and it’s up to the dice if it works or not. Sometimes the GM will determine if it’s possible, but that changes depending on who the GM is. I used to GM my group,” Tim replied, scratching his chin, “It’s a fantasy game, usually taking place in some pseudo-medieval fantasy world with a large pantheon,”

“Do you think this game would be something I would enjoy?” Damian asks.

Tim thinks for a moment, “Yeah, actually. I think you would like it. You have to think on your feet a lot in the game and it can involve battle strategy depending on your setting and plot the GM gives you. Plus, you have to hand-paint the minis usually and I think you would find that fun,”

Damian opens his mouth then closes it, looking at war with himself before speaking, “Would you be interested in playing again?”

Oh. Oh.

Damian is asking him if he wants to play, but there’s a slight problem-

“We’d need more players than just you and me. Most of these adventures need a party of adventurers. It’s a social game,”

“How many?” Damian asks quickly.

Tim blinks at him, “I’ll GM for up to six people. If we do manage to play I want to try out the newest edition of the game and get new minis and stuff. If we did have players it wouldn’t be right away,”

“That’s fine. We can play if I manage to get at least two to five new players?”

“Sure,” Tim nods.

“Then I will procure more players for Warlock & Warriors. Now, what is your opinion Cheese Vikings?”

Tim laughs.

-------------🦇🎲------------

Tim forgets about the W&W thing for a bit. There’re cases to be solved and missions to complete so it leaves Tim’s brain for a bit. He doesn’t forget the rest of his conversation with Damian and they still argue like cats and dogs but that appears to be getting better- less full on screaming matches. They can discuss cases and hobbies without it leading to bloodshed.

He’s even shown Damian a few of his pictures, the talk getting him back into the old hobby so he has something to share with his little brother. He upgrades his Domino’s camera to take shots as he patrols or places he goes on missions and shares them with Damian.

It’s actually sort of nice.

When W&W gets brought up again, Tim’s knee deep in his periodic cleanup of his room.

There’s a knock on the frame of his bedroom door and he looks up to see Bruce smiling at him, “Making progress?”

Tim rolls his eyes, “Yeah,”

“If you need any help let anyone know but me,” Bruce says, leaning against the door frame.

“Thanks,” Tim snorts, putting books back in the case before Jason sees that he dared leave books strewn about, “Need anything?”

Bruce pauses for a moment, looking at Tim with that proud and affectionate smile, “Damian tells me you offered to teach him a game that needs more players,”

Tim freezes. What? What’s Bruce talking about? Tim doesn’t remember- oh right. W&W.

“Yeah, Warlocks & Warriors. Used to play it with some friends before I got so busy. Damian found some of my old stuff for it and got curious. Seemed interested when I explained it to him and asked if we could play. Told him we’d need more players and that I’d need to get some new stuff to play, but that we could if he could get players,” Tim explains, sitting on his bed facing Bruce.

“Thank you, Tim,” Bruce says, smiling still, “I know you’ve had very valid issues with your little brother, but I am proud of you for taking the time to hear him out and find common ground. None of us expected it of you, or would have forced you,” The unspoken except ‘Dick for a time’ when unspoken- mostly because the eldest son was trying to hold the family together, “But you’ve always been good at surprising me. All you kids have. I’m proud of you,”

Tim’s eyes prickle. Bruce doesn’t have to thank him. Shouldn’t thank him. He still doesn’t fully trust Damian yet, not enough to go on patrol alone with him when his life could be on the line. Sure they’ve progress but Tim remembers falling. Falling and seeing the death of the Grayson’s flash before his eyes as he fell. The way Bruce looks at him indicates he said that out loud.

“Tim, Sweetheart, it’s okay. Trust takes time and you’ve had more valid reasons than I’ve ever had about keeping people at arm’s length. I’m proud that you’re making the effort and the effort is paying off. Damian seems more sure footed now that he’s got common ground with you and a sure footed Damian means he won’t lash out at you for being you anymore,” Bruce sits next to him on the bed and puts an arm around him, “I know you got the worst of me in the beginning and that you give so much of yourself, Sweetheart, but I’m here now. I’ll lighten your load. I’m your father and I’ll always be proud of you,”

Tim just leans on Bruce for a while, basking in the warmth of his father’s embrace, “Did you mean to turn this into an emotional conversation?” Tim asks.

Bruce snorts, “Not at all. But I’ve been learning not to hold back when I’m feeling proud of you kids,”

Bruce shakes him a bit in the one-armed hug, “So about this game- Damian asked me to play with you both. What do we need to get started?”

Tim smiles so hard his cheeks hurt. He tells Bruce a whole list of things he’d like to have for the game. Things he’s always dreamed of having, if his parents would have let him. To them the game was a silly hobby, not at all respectable like his interest in photography, so he’d never got to build his dream gaming set-up. Bruce listens to it all, obviously making mental notes on what to purchase or order.

“Oh but some of the things we can’t get until everyone makes characters! I’ll order custom minis for them and I think Damian will like the painting part of it. It’s very delicate work. And everyone will have to pick out their own dice sets. I guess they can borrow mine but there’s some sort of curse in borrowing a GM’s dice because plays will always lose them. Doesn’t matter if they’re good about borrowing- GM borrowed dice will always get lost,” Tim says, very seriously. Tim has to get Bruce to understand that he would rather not have anyone borrowing his dice not even the cheap ones.

Bruce chuckles, ruffling Tim’s hair, “Alright, Tim. I think we can convert one of the den’s into a gaming room like you dream. It’s not like we can’t afford any of it. Especially the dice and minis,” Bruce smiles, “We might just turn this into a family event. Damian has been hounding your siblings,”

Tim is stunned, “I thought he’d ask Jon, Colin, and Maps,”

Bruce considers it, “You may be eventually teaching his friends how to play, but I get the feeling he wants to Game Master for his friends. The best way he can do that is by watching you,”

Oh jeeze, that’s pressure Tim hadn’t expected. And now it’s hitting him that he’s going to have to GM for his family. His crazy detective army family.

“There goes relying on children’s puzzles like I used to,” Tim says.

Bruce just blinks at him.

------------🦇🎲------------

Bruce, true to his word, allows one of the den’s to turn into a dream gaming room. Everything is coordinated by Tim who designs and builds a table with a screen, cup holders, charging stations for tablets and phones, and custom makes a GM screen for himself. He wires the room with speakers that connect to his electronic GM screen and orders chairs that fit the aesthetic he’s going for. He leaves the walls blank on purpose- Damian may wish to paint scenes from their adventures to decorate the room.

In the  cabinet bookcase, he places the brand new seven copies of the 5^th edition W&W Player’s Handbook. He also fills it with 5^th edition modules in case anyone else wants to try running something. He’s also ordered W&W art books for his family, mostly Damian, to look through. Tim debated on whether or not to order older edition’s books, but ultimately decides to modify creatures that don’t exist in the 5^th edition. He’s got every book for every edition of the game.

He builds in special cubbies in which his family can keep note books- which he’ll also custom order after they build their characters-, their minis, dice, and props in. Each one is special to each member of the family as well as a few spares for guests, like Damian’s friends or Steph and Babs. Even if his family doesn’t enjoy the game he can always ask his own friends over to play.

Tim also changes the lighting of the room to be changed with a tap of his finger for ambiance as well as fog machines that won’t harm the walls or furniture.

When the room is done, Tim gazes around, proud of his work and happy that he gets the dream game room he always wanted.

He calls for his father, sister, and brothers to come look at his finished product.

Everyone but Dick, who is in Blüdhaven until tomorrow, comes to see the room he’s built for them.

“Wow, holy shit, Timmers,” Jason exclaims, “This looks awesome!”

“Whoa cool! Look at this table!” Duke runs his hands over it, “This is nuts, dude,”

Cass doesn’t say anything, but kisses Tim on the cheek and claps her hands before running over to the cabinet bookcase and opening up everything.

Damian is quiet for a moment, “All this just because I had asked?” he says, eyes roving the room.

“Well, it’s my dream table top gaming room, but I did get to have it because you asked and it’s for everyone. So if you wanna bring friends to play I can show you how the setup works,” Tim admits.

“That would be acceptable,” Damian says, wondering off to explore the room with the rest of his siblings.

Bruce just grabs Tim and hugs him with one arm, watching the rest of his children explore the game room. He doesn’t need to say anything for Tim to understand that Bruce thinks it’s a wonderful room, “I’m sure Dick will like it too. And there’s plenty enough room in this Den to add more things later if we want,”

“The walls are bare? I figured you’d put all kinds of things up in here,” Duke says, looking over the walls.

“Oh yeah, I figured that as we play we’d put stuff up after big moments or Damian would paint stuff from the campaign and we could put it up in here,” Tim replies, ducking his head.

Damian is looking at him like he can’t quite figure him out. He wasn’t sure how Damian would react to finding out that’s the reason he’s left the walls bare. Would Damian see as Tim demanding her make art? Would he see it as lazy?

“You would really like my work in here?” Damian says, his voice giving nothing away. Tim blinks.

“Well yeah?” Tim furrows his brow at his little brother, “See, what I planned on was that everyone could contribute. We all have an artistic interest to some extent, but mine and yours tend to be the type that go on walls. Plus, your art is really good? Like really, really good,” Tim walks over to the bare wall where he will sit, “Your characters can look however you want. I figured that everyone could have their character portrait behind me with some interesting lighting illuminating them. And on this wall over here there could be art of in game moments that are really fun and important corresponding with photos I would take,” Tim moves to the wall nearest the door then over to the wall with the cabinet case, “And I figured if any of you were interested that anything you would make would go here,”

“That sounds awesome, Tim!” Dukes says, throwing his arm around his older brother.

“Very well,” Damian says, not looking at Tim but his ears are a bit pink. “It does seem like a sensible idea to have such things that are personal to the family rather than some generic dragon painting,”

“I’ll try and contribute as well, Tim,” Bruce says, squeezing his shoulder, “We need more things like this I think. Just… doing things as a family,”

“Yeah and we’re large enough now to do this kind of thing in particular,” Jason says, “What’s next? Family vacations?”

Bruce looks somewhat torn when Jason mentions family vacations. Like, he’d like to do that but would hate to leave Gotham for anything but a case. Tim bets he comes around to the idea though.

“Anyway- When Dickie gets home this weekend we’ll work on our characters together. We’ll look at our options in the meantime,” Bruce wanders over the bookcase, “Tim, Which one?”

“Red and Black Player’s Handbook, Crus’ Compendium of Creatures chapter 2 page 103, Xander’s Tour of Almost Everything chapter 1 and Chapter 3 page 147, and Natasha’s Stew of Nearly Everything Chapter 1,” Tim rattles off, already having read the entirety of 5^th editions books, “Player’s Handbook is base races and classes, Crus’ is more race options, Xander’s is more character options overall- same with Natasha’s,”

“Excellent,” Bruce smiles, “Thank you, Tim,”

Tim grins back.

------------🦇🎲------------

The weekend comes and Dick returns home.

When Dick sees the new game room he bounces on the balls of his feet with excitement- Barely, holding in the desire to tumble around the room in cartwheels from the looks of it. He loves his cubby and he’s so happy with the idea that Damian’s art will adorn the walls of their ‘dungeon’.

Dick tells him he did a bit of his own research online to get a better idea of what he’d like to play.

Saturday afternoon sees the whole family gather in their new gaming room, Tim sitting at the head of the table with a large binder and his tablet while the others sit lining the sides of the table, their own copies of the Player’s Handbook and tablets in front of them. He’s got them all his own custom made character sheet app with full compendium and has those apps connected to his. Everything is set up and perfect to start building their characters.

“So,” Tim claps his hands together, “Today we’re going to some base character selection and stat building today. I want you all to keep your backstories secrets from each other until play time. You can learn about each other’s characters through the roleplay of the game,”

Everyone nods, “Okay, you’ve all got apps I’ve designed that you can fill out your character sheets on. I’ve made it as intuitive as possible and it’s all connected to mine so I can see every item you have and every ability you have. I’ve made a list of races I’d prefer you not play for lore reasons. I’ve listed the reasons next to the race name. We’ll go a little more in depth one-on-one for your characters later, so I can get a better idea of your character and give you lore specific handouts for each of you, but for now we’re picking race, class, and background as well as rolling stats,”

His family looks over the books and starts filling in their character sheets. For today they’re using some relatively cheap single colored dice Tim bought in bulk to roll their characters, but he plans on everyone going to his favorite local game store to pick their own first sets.

He turns to his app, looking at Cass’ sheet first—she’s the only one among them besides him that’s played before. She’s currently fleshing out an Air Genasi Monk with a Hermit background. She’s pulling the correct abilities from the compendium and reading them over. She’s doing great- appears to be understanding all the words she’s reading so far. He’s so proud of his big sister and the progress she’s made with language.

He flips over to Bruce next- the one that might struggle the most with the concepts. Tim nearly bursts out laughing when he sees what Bruce has decided to use.

Bruce is building a human fighter with a Folk Hero background- the most basic and easy build in the game, “Bruce, are you playing variant human or standard?” Tim asks, trying to keep his voice even.

“Variant?” Bruce asks confused pouring over the book’s human build guide, “Oh, I see. I think I’ll read through the feats before deciding,”

“Sounds good,” Tim slides through his sheet, a little surprised to see Bruce has taken the Two-Weapon Fighting style for his Fighter but Bruce seems to get the overall concept for creating a character so far. He’s got the correct proficiencies selected and the correct abilities drug over. Bruce has decided on a Dex build fighter it seems- Having selected finesse weapons; a pair of shortswords.

Tim then moves on to Damian’s sheet- A Half-Elf Druid with a Noble background. Tim is unsurprised about his class and background choices considering the features they get. Tim decides to make Damian a helpful sheet for future Wild Shapes and Wild Companions. Damian’s breezing through his sheet with excitement- moving his abilities over and very carefully selecting his equipment.

“Timothy,” Tim nearly startles out of his skin when Damian refers to him by his first name, “What are my options for Druidic Focus?”

“A sprig of mistletoe, a yew wand, a wood staff, or a totem,” Tim says, “If there’s something in particular you want we can discuss it and see if it will work,”

“Acceptable,” Damian replies, going back to his sheet.

Tim is still marveling over apparently jumping up to first name basis with Damian when Jason asks for his attention, “Tim, what instruments are allowed? I’m not really vibing with the ones listed,”

Tim thinks for a moment, “Well, the instruments listed are base stuff, but if you have an idea for something that isn’t electric then you can use it. I’d suggest keeping it portable, however,”

“Thanks, Timbo,” Tim watches his app as Jason inputs a Lute into his inventory and proficiencies. He looks over the whole of Jay’s character sheet to see that Jason has chosen to play a Half-Orc Bard with Pirate background. Jason has also picked Concertina and the Hurdy Gurdy as his other instrument proficiencies- Tim snorts out loud when he sees which makes his brother grin.

So far the party is fairly balanced between Martial and Spellcasting, but both martial characters are the close range sort. If Dick or Duke pick a martial class with range then they’ll be a pretty efficient party.

He pulls up Dick’s sheet to see exactly that- a Rogue Halfling with an Entertainer background. Dick’s chosen to take a shortbow and quiver as his starting weapon and from his background he’s taken Bird-Pipes as his instrument. A perfect close and long ranged martial class that can easily play into the kinds of things Dick likes. Tim marks down in his binder plot and lore ideas for Dick’s character.

Last up is Duke, who is basically finished with his character sheet, except the numbers and spells.

Duke has decided to play a Tiefling Pyromancy Sorcerer with an Inheritor background. Duke had already asked him about playing this character when Duke had done outside research and found the sorcerous origin as part of the Sorcery: The Grouping crossover book. Tim had found the idea wonderful and interesting and OK’d Duke’s character concept. He expects that many of Duke’s chosen spells will be Evocation and Transmutation spells.

Once the family has got the bulk of their sheets filled, Tim passes out the dice to everyone, “So, how we’re going to be rolling this is 4D6 drop the lowest roll and add the other three together. That’s going to give you your stat number. If you’re rolling really poorly I’ll allow a few grace rolls. Sound good?”

Then the table is filled with the sound of dice clattering as they’re rolled, “Don’t forget to add any racial bonus you get to your main number. I’ve got the app set up so that it’ll auto-calculate your skills number based on your base stats so don’t worry about those. Oh! Dickie you should select Expertise by doing the drop down on your chosen skill,”

“Got it! Thanks, Timmy,” Dick throws up a thumbs-up

Bruce starts laughing, “I think I know where this really bad roll is going,” Tim looks down and sees his father put a sad little 7 in his Intelligence Stat.

“Oh? Where are you putting it, B?” Duke asks, standing up to look at the tablet and laughs when he sees, “Combat competent ‘Brucie’?”

“I guess he kind of is. It’ll be a type of character I’ve played before in life but this one has a high Wisdom so this one won’t be naïve or get lost easily. Just won’t know how to read,” Bruce laughs.

Tim smiles, “I love when characters have a stat under 10- makes for interesting roleplay scenarios,”

“Yeah, I have one of those but I’m putting it in my Strength stat. I am going to be a noodle sorcerer,” Duke proclaims, showing Tim his 9 in Strength.

“I too have a poor stat,” Damian says, “but I do not know where to place it,”

“You’re a Druid so noodle like Duke,” Cass pipes up, “I put my sad stat in Charisma. Not gonna talk to people much,”

“I don’t really have a super bad roll, but I put my lowest in Con because I get a racial bonus to it,” Jason turns his character sheet around to show Damian his now 11 in Constitution.

“I get a racial bonus to charisma, so I will make my poor stat Charisma like Cassandra,” Damian reports.

“I like Jay’s idea even if it affects hit points,” Dick says, “I like the other stats more for my character,”

“Valid,” Tim mumbles, making notes for topics to discuss with them one-on-one. They’ve all made good characters that can lead to compelling character plots and interesting roleplay, “Now that you’ve all got your stats and equipment, you all take your time with picking spells, coming up with backstory ideas, and describing how your characters look. I’ll have some handouts later for each of you to help with fleshing out your backstories,”

“I’m excited, guys!” Dick shouts, “What else do we have to do after we finish our characters?”

Tim smiles at his big brother, “Dice and Minis. Minis are more important though, so I need Character descriptions so I can get them made,”

“Sounds great! I’ll get it done before patrol,” Dick grins back.

 As they all clear out of the room the conversation begins to move toward cases. Can’t go too long in the house without turning into detectives.

------------🦇🎲------------

As promised, Dick gives him a character description before patrol begins on a piece of loose leaf notebook paper.

After dinner, before patrol, Tim sits Dick back down in the ‘Dungeon’. Tim sits beside him and opens up his laptop, opening the Warrior Forger custom mini-maker, and turning to face Dick a little more, “We’re going to make your mini on here. It’s got so many assets and pieces to make your character,”

“Awesome,” Dick cheers, “So I just build him?”

“Yup, I wanted you to get yours done first because you won’t be here during the week like everyone else,” Tim says watching Dick click through the options.

They sit in silence for a while- Dick just trying out clothing options for his mini. Dick has tried on literally every clothing option for his mini and settles on a tunic and vest combo and cuffed boots.

Dick finishes off his mini shortly after so Tim moves on to his next order of business- Dick’s backstory.

They talk it over for a while- Tim giving lore and ideas that would fit with Dick’s build and constructing a fleshed out backstory that Tim can work with for future character side-plots.

Davumo ‘Dav’ Nimblefinger grew up surrounded with family- A traveling troupe of performers that specialized in acrobatics and death defying stunts. Dav’s own specialty was that of an expert marksman. He would do dangerous acrobatics while firing crossbow bolts at moving targets and was adept at hiding from the crowd only to appear and shoot over their shoulders. One day, while his troupe had gathered an audience, he found the thrill of his usual performances quite lacking. Every trick he performed was boring, though it wowed the crowd, he felt like there was more out there he could be doing. More adventure he could be having, so in the night he set off- leaving his family a note- to search for grand adventure and treasure.

When they’ve finished Dick looks over his complete character sheet with a blinding smile, “I love it. Thanks, Timmy,”

“No need to thank me,” Tim says, gathering up his notes and things.

“No, Tim,” Dick’s voice is serious now, but warm, “Thank you for giving Damian another chance. Thank you for giving me another chance,”

Tim stands there stunned and confused, “I- Of course. You’re my brothers,”

“Doesn’t matter though, Tim,” Dick replies, taking hold of Tim’s shoulders, “I wasn’t in the right headspace to be making the calls I was. I should have asked for help and I should have explained everything much better. I should have heard you out. You’re my brother and even if everything was falling apart and I didn’t know how to handle it- I should have been your brother first, Batman second,”

“Dick-” Dick places a finger over Tim’s lip to keep him from interrupting.

“No, Tim. There was a lot, back then, I messed up on, and while I won’t apologize for giving Damian Robin, I do apologize for just springing that on you,” Dick smiles at him, “Anyway- thank you. You giving Damian a chance led to all this-- A family activity that doesn’t involve disguises or masks. We get to tell a story together. We get to enjoy each other’s company and have jokes that aren’t related to the mission. I know Dad’s been trying again- trying really hard- but we needed something that we all could share that wasn’t a costume. You’ve held this family together when I never thought it would make it, Tim, but we’re here now. We’re here and we’re together and we’re all going to try and hold this family together. You don’t have to do it alone anymore, Baby Bird,”

Tim is crying. He knows he’s crying.

He puts his things back on the table and covers his face with his hand, letting his tears fall silently, until he feels his big brother’s arms wrap around him. His heart is going to burst open. He knows it.  This is what he wanted back so badly but he thought that he’d never get to have again after that terrible year. He knows he played a part in the rift with Dick, but he’d also just lost his Dad and wanted his big brother to believe in him and he does again.

“Shhh,” Dick sooths, “It’s okay, Baby Bird, I’m here,”

“I-I’m sorry too, Dick,” Tim sniffs, “I know we had both just lost our dad and that you suddenly had so much responsibility thrust on you that you didn’t know how to handle,”

“But I was still the adult. I should have asked for help and I should have heard you out,” Dick ruffles his hair, “We’ll both be better for here on out. We’ll work on it,”

Tim nods, wiping his eyes with his over long hoodie sleeves. He feels so much lighter, if a bit wrung out, from this conversation. He’s noticed that everyone in the family was making a genuine effort to be a family again, rather than just a connected group of bat and bird themed vigilantes, but to hear it out loud that he wouldn’t be the only one to try and keep it from falling apart anymore was a relief. He didn’t think he’d minded before, but now that it was off his shoulders it was impossible not to notice the weight he’d been carrying.

But- He thinks he might be done with this conversation. He needed it but he’s wrung out.

“You know,” He says with a wet little chuckle, “Usually in W&W, player characters have tragic ass backstories of dead parents or being abandoned,”

Dick tilts his head, confused, “Really?”

“Yeah, it’s usually the call to adventure,” Tim replies, “I guess it’s just easier in fiction for characters to have no attachments and to give them something to angst over,”

“I don’t think anyone in our game will be going that route. If they do decide to be orphans it’ll probably be as babies with a found family kinda thing,”

“Yeah, I assume so. Kinda hard to feel like it’s fiction when it’s really happened to you,” Tim says, gathering his things again.

“Know what you mean, Tim,” Dick throws his arm around Tim’s shoulders, “What do you say, you patrol with me tonight?”

“Would Damian even be okay with that?” Tim asks warily.

“Y’know, I think he might be,” Dick grins.

------------🦇🎲-----------

The next day his family loads up into two separate cars and heads out of Bristol and into Gotham.

Tim had done countless research on which shop would be the best investment of time, energy, and money in Gotham. There were roughly 10 gaming and comic shops in Gotham but he wanted the perfect one. He’d immediately pushed away subsidiaries of larger stores or companies, then the ones that didn’t have a child friendly atmosphere (Damian and Duke were still children regardless of what either thought of it), and viciously filtered out the shops that had a reputation of gate-keeping- He didn’t want some neck-beard leering at or judging his sister even if she could protect herself.

That left one shop in all of Gotham- Critical Hits located in Burnside.

They took some of their more…inconspicuous... vehicles to do the shopping, but even then they still stood out in semi-luxury cars. People stare as the two cars park and the entire Wayne Family climbs out. They’ve not bothered with the usual ‘Disguises’ of celebrity sunglasses and ball caps, though all are dressed casually.

They head through the shop doors two-by-two.

Inside Critical Hits is a nerdy little wonderland. Two walls are entirely covered in comic books held in neat rows, there’s standalone shelves of graphic novels and books, A couple of clothing racks with graphic tees sporting logos from comics and games, and there’s standalone shelving with trading card packs and collectables stacked neatly. Even further into the shop is more merchandise and nerd paraphernalia, including their quarry- Dice and minis.

To the immediate left of them is an L shaped glass case counter with a register and a young person with pink hair staring at them in shock.

“Holy Shi- I mean- Welcome to Critical Hits: Nerd Sundry! I’m Marty,” They say with wide eyes.

Bruce puts on his most charming and friendly Brucie Wayne™ smile, “Hello Marty! My kids and I are here for some Warlocks & Warriors paraphernalia. Dice and minis and the like,” he looks brainlessly around the shop, “We’ll browse around but we’ll come to you if we need any help!”

Damian has already wondered off to browse the shelves of collectables when he’s spotted the Cheese Vikings and Monk-E-Monsters figurines.

“S-sure! Just lemme know if you need any advice or assistance,” Marty stutters- clearly flabbergasted.

Tim beelines for the collection of W&W minis, Bruce goes to browse with Damian, and the other three head straight for the dice.

Tim’s already picked out a large batch before he realizes he doesn’t have enough arms to carry his treasures. He calls out to Marty, asking if they have hand baskets for bulk buying. Quickly, the young clerk runs over with three baskets that Tim quickly fills. There’re some larger ones that nearly take up a whole basket on their own. Eventually Marty suggests that they take these baskets back to the counter and grab more if he needs them. Tim agrees that would probably be best, then returns with three more baskets ready to be filled. He fills the first two with minis, saving the third for other purchases.

He can hear Jason’s loud laugh over by the dice and accessories, now having been joined by Bruce and Damian, they all appear to be selecting multiple sets. Might be time to find a small business that makes dice accessories then.

Tim moves on from the minis over to the mini paints. He selects multiples of everything in his preferred brand, as well as several full sets of brushes.

As he’s putting his selection in the third basket, Tim feels rather than hears Damian come up behind him, “Timothy, you did not mention they had painting supplies,”

Tim turns around, still unused to Damian referring to him by name, and replies, “These are mini paints- specifically made to paint miniatures. See, how most of these are blank gray? Most GMs custom paint them to fit the NPCs and enemies their party will encounter,”

“I see,” Damian says imperiously, “I suppose we will be painting our character miniatures ourselves as well,”

“Yeah, though I’m not sure anyone but you or I would really enjoy it that much,” Tim says.

There’s a moment where Damian makes an aborted movement before steeling himself with a nod, “And what of the other miniatures? There are a great many that you’ve selected and you hardly have the time,”

Tim is slowly starting to understand Damian’s language at this point so he smiles and says, “Yeah, I could probably use a hand with some of the more generic NPCs and stuff. I’d prefer to paint a lot of the enemies and big NPCs myself but would you mind helping out with some of the basic animals and people?”

Damian nods, “Very well, I’ll assist you in painting some of these miniatures,”

“Thanks, Damian,” Tim looks over Damian’s head and sees Bruce smiling fondly with pride at them both making Tim duck his head.

Tim also selects two new sets of dice for himself after that.

By the time they all gather back at the counter, poor Marty looks overwhelmed. Tim feels a bit bad, but he’s enjoyed this shopping trip. Marty begins to ring up all of their things together, Bruce pulling out his card and nudging Tim out of the way before Tim can even manage to reach for his wallet. There’s more in their pile than gaming supplies, Tim notices. Some collectables, books, comics, different kinds of table top games, and a travel mug all sit with the dice, minis, and paints.

Okay, maybe they all got a little carried away which is a little embarrassing considering there’s a group of people in the shop taking photos of his family and their over a thousand dollar haul.

(Later that night, when Tim checks Tweeter, he’ll see #Waynes&Warriors trending for New Jersey. Some of the photos of their shopping trip have been turned into memes proclaiming, “It’s the Fucking Waynes”. Steph messages him several of the ones she’s finds the funniest. It’s a used format every time two or more of them go shopping together from there on out.)

It takes several trips to the cars to get everything they’ve purchased loaded up, and by the time they’re done, they’ve probably given Marty a mental breakdown.

“Thank you for your business,” Marty says with glassy eyes, “Please consider Critical Hits for all your future nerdy needs,”

“Thank you, Marty, for all your help,” Brucie says, as he puts away his card, “My kids and I get a bit carried away,”

“No problem, Mister Wayne,” Marty smiles, put at ease by Brucie’s chilled demeanor, “Maybe next time don’t go so wild, though?”

“I promise to try,” He replies and then laughs.

After exiting the shop, Cass stops Tim and holds out the travel mug that he saw in the pile, “Present,” she informs him.

He takes the mug and inspects it, laughing at the cheesy decal proclaiming him Game Master with a little cartoony beholder under it, “Thanks, Sis,” She kisses his cheek and hops into the car with Bruce and Duke.

-----------🦇🎲------------

As the week goes on, Tim works with the rest of his siblings and his father to create their minis and flesh out their backstories- Jason’s, unsurprisingly, is the most detailed and dramatic. Bruce, when he discovered you could add things to the base of the minis, found a way to add four birds to it- he would have added more if he could, for Cass and Duke, but he couldn’t.

None his friends ever believe him when he tells them Batman pouts.

By Thursday night all the backstories are finished and the minis ordered, including those made for major NPCs.

More additions are made to the ‘Dungeon’ and it seems the name for the game room has stuck. Even Bruce has referred to it by that, though it did freak out Hal Jordan who had no clue that he was referring to a game room- That might be why Bruce did it.

Tim’s just added a table that sits under the window of the Dungeon, that will display the character minis, when Damian comes up behind him, making just enough noise to be noticed. Tim turns to face his baby brother, who is eying the table covered in fake nonsense runes, with a curious look, but says nothing, “Hey Damian,” Tim speaks instead, “Need something?”

“I would like to inquire when would be the best time to help with the excess miniatures,” Damian says, keeping his voice carefully even.

“Oh,” Tim blinks, “I’ve got a case I need to finish up, but once it’s done I planned on starting the minis,”

“Do you require assistance on this case?”

Tim fights back a smile- he’s getting good at reading Damian now that they’re not actively trying to spill each other’s blood, “It’ll go faster with some help, if you don’t mind? I actually planned on finishing it tonight before Dick gets home tomorrow. Gotta collect evidence to keep the perp locked up, but other than that I’ve got it all solved,”

“Then I shall accompany you on patrol tonight to gather evidence,” Damian then turns on his heel and leaves the room and his smiling older brother.

Tim doesn’t think he’s had a patrol alone with Damian since back when his little brother was trying to kill him. He’ll probably be on edge but maybe a patrol alone with Damian is just what he needs to help their relationship along- he knows in his head Damian won’t try to kill him anymore but he can’t help the instinct to be wary. When Damian doesn’t wind up making an attempt on his life maybe he’ll start to relax a bit more around his kid brother.

He wipes down the freshly placed table with a soft rag and heads off to eat dinner then get ready for patrol.

------------🦇🎲------------

Bruce is surprised when Damian and Tim inform him they’ll be patrolling together tonight.

He eyes them both, his face flashing several emotions in quick succession, before nodding stiffly, pulling up his cowl, and then jumping into the Batmobile. Red Robin and Robin follow suit, mounting their bikes and following their father out of the cave. Who knows- maybe Batman will take a shift with Red Hood outside of a special occasion.

The Robins are speeding through the city when Red Robin gets a ballsy idea- a game with Robin. It’s one he’s played with the other siblings before but never Robin.

Swiftly, Red Robin speeds up to get even with Robin’s bike and gets his attention before tapping the open comms button on the handles, “Robin, want to play a game?”

“What sort of game?”

“Leap-Frog,” He’s hoping that someone else has played this with Robin, otherwise they’ll have to play it on the way home.

“Oh,” Robin replies, “I would be open to participating but the roads are too busy tonight,”

“Oh you’ve not played the version that gives Batman and Nightwing gray hairs,” Red Robin says, “It’s the one Hood and I play,”

“…Father will have a stroke,” Robin wheezes, “He’s always pale as a ghost when you and Hood do that,”

“That’s why there’s going to be a ‘Robins’ version, now,” Red Robin informs him, “The roads are less full than when Hood and I play, so it’s closer to the original Leap-Frog but we’ve gotta keep on our toes. So, you in?”

“Yes, but if Father has a meltdown then you’re taking the blame,”

“Hey, you’re getting better at the little brother thing,” Red Robin replies as he moves to stand on his motorcycle after locking it into gear and watching Robin do the same.

They then leap to each other’s bikes.

They’re mid-leap back to their own bikes when the Batmobile speeds along-side Red Robin’s bike. The hatch slides back as Red Robin lands and sits back probably on his motorcycle, “Red Robin! Robin! There is too much traffic to play leap-frog tonight!” Batman says, though his voice is all Dad and little Batman, “Please- I already have enough gray hair from you and Hood,”

“Sorry, Batman,” Red Robin replies, sounding as remorseful as possible while still keeping a smile on his face, “I’ve just never gotten to play with Robin before,”

Red Robin can hear Robin huff a laugh through the comms, “You have plenty of chances to play in the future, boys, when there’s less traffic,” Red Robin’s sure the three of them make a hilarious picture- having a ‘normal’ family talk while they speed and swerve through Gotham. Batman scolding his sons for playing a highly dangerous game on moving vehicles and the Robins swerving playfully along-side the Batmobile is probably going to go on some Instagram stories.

“But Daaaaad,” Red Robin does his best childish whine and Robin full on snorts.

“No leap-frog tonight,” Batman repeats sternly but Red Robin can just see the twitch of his lips in mirth in his mind’s eye, “Please,” he tacks on.

“Fine,” Red Robin huffs.

“TT- Very well, Father,”

The Batmobile speeds off, the hatch sliding forward once again, “Oracle will tell me if you start again,” Batman’s voice says in their ears.

Red Robin rides back up along-side Robin, “So much for that,” he sighs, “Sorry,”

“It is no fault of yours, Red Robin,” Robin replies, “Father is simply a worrier. Though- he’s never stopped you and Hood before,”

“Oh he’s certainly tried. He can’t ground Red Hood unless Red Hood feels like being grounded- usually when he agrees he’s done something wrong- and I never played like I do with Hood when I was as young as you are,” Red Robin says, “Though- he did ground me the first time. Didn’t work out for him. I actually stayed grounded but I drove him nuts the entire time,”

“TT” Robin scoffs, “I cannot believe for a moment that you obeyed,”

“Oh but I did,” RR grins, “I just decided to make it a lesson for him instead- Don’t raise highly skilled adrenaline junkie children,”

They’re coming up on their destination now, so they pull off into an alley and park. As they get off their bikes, they lock them down and hide them as per protocol before grappling to the roof tops.

This case was fairly simple over all. A scum bag killed his wife in a crime of passion and squirrelled himself away only to get caught by Red Robin. The guy’s alibi was pretty weak and he was already suspect number one in the murder but they just didn’t have enough evidence to hold and try him on. The Gordons team are scrambling- no murder weapon, no bloody clothes, and no witnesses.

Red Robin plans to find enough to lock this dirt bag up for a long time. He imagines if this wasn’t his case Hood would have done more than dislocate a shoulder.

Hood never did like people going after pregnant women.

“Okay, so, this is the suspect and victim’s home. She was murdered in the living room and the GCPD already went over it and found no murder weapon or bloody clothes. This was a crime of passion, so the suspect, while more clear-headed than most, wouldn’t have risked going too far covered in blood spatter and carrying and murder weapon when he’s got no disposal plan,” Red Robin says while picking the lock, “The dumpsters and public garbage cans within a 30 block radius have all been searched by me and by the GCPD. He bolted and hid but didn’t leave the city so that’s puzzling- he hid the murder weapon and himself but behaved like a suspect that was either proud of his crime or felt remorse for his crime by not leaving the city. I’ve not figured out which it could be. It could be the answer to finding the murder weapon,”

“You say he was not wearing bloody clothes when you caught him and no witnesses spoke of seeing the suspect wearing bloody clothing?” Robin asks and Red Robin nods, “How are we sure this is the right suspect?”

“The victim’s journal and friends indicated that the husband was jealous, violent, and abusive. The suspects friends also say that he was becoming more and more convinced the victim’s baby was not his and often said that he’d kill her for it,” He reports, “checking his cellphone records around the time of the murder indicates he was in the neighborhood at the time of the murder and was rapidly leaving it, trying to call friends, shortly after the murder took place,”

“I see,” Robin says, “Does the suspect have a vehicle?”

“Yes, searched and in police custody,” RR replies, “No bloodied clothes. There wasn’t even evidence of the car being cleaned after the murder so it’s a dead end,”

“The dumpsters, his car, and his house are clean but there’s no weapon and no bloody clothes…” Robin taps his chin, much like Batman does which is adorable. “Perhaps this was planned? Crimes of passion get lighter sentences usually- maybe it’s a ploy?”

“I had considered that, but the time-table doesn’t have room for it. He would have to have known she was home when he got off work early and looking into both of their message history doesn’t indicate either known the other would be home at the time. No cameras, no surveillance of any kind, and no messages tipping him off,” Red Robin paces, “Why would he run but not leave town? Because we wouldn’t be able to find evidence against him? Where could he have hidden the evidence without being spotted in such a short amount of time- unless- Robin,”

“What?”

“I’m going to need your help getting into a small smelly space,”

“Oh Joy,”

Red Robin runs outside, vaulting over the fire escape, and into the alley. He runs over to the nearby dumpster and begins to push on it to move it to the side, “I thought you said the dumpsters have been searched?” Robin asks when he’s landed besides his brother.

 “They have, but they’ve also not been moved yet. The Trash isn’t collected until tomorrow, but I just remembered something about this part of town,” Now that the dumpster is out of the way there’s a small opening, perfect to throw something down into and about the size of a child, “This! These are sewage and flooding drain-off points. When Gotham was being rebuilt, after the earth quake, there were made to keep the construction sites clear of water and sewage. They were mostly blocked off but there were so many that a lot were just…covered up. The suspect is a city construction worker. He would have known about these,”

“And you want me to climb down there and get the evidence?” Robin asks, deadpan.

“I mean- if you wouldn’t mind? I could find another way to get down there or get some tools, but that takes more time than I would like when they can’t hold him much longer. They’re going to have to release him in about two hours,”

“Very well, but I demand you take over my Cave cleaning chores for a day of my choosing,”

“You’re the best, little brother,” Red Robin cheers, helping Robin into the opening.

Once Robin has squeezed down and drops out of site, he prepares evidence bags for whatever Robin finds down there. He hears Robin cursing and muttering in Arabic as well as splashing sounds for a while before finally, “Red Robin, I have found blooding clothing that belong to a man and a heavy duty flashlight covered in blood, skin, and hair,”

“Alright! Pass it up and I’ll put it in bags, then help you out of there,” Tim shouts, reaching into the hole. Fabric is put in his hands first, and when he pulls it up its damp and reeks like hell. RR quickly puts it in the evidence bag while also reaching back in the flashlight. He pulls out the flashlight and bags it, not even taking a second to close it to help his little brother out of a surely stinky and cramped place.

Robin deftly shimmies out of the hole with the help of Red Robin, before dusting himself off, “I should have made a better deal for myself,” he says as RR seals the evidence bags.

“Thank you, Robin. Thanks so much. That poor woman and her baby will have justice thanks to you,” Red says, one arm hugging his stinky little brother. He tenses up when he realizes what he’s just done. Will Robin lash out? Attack him for the show of physical affection that only a small handful of people are allowed to give?

“Well, so long as you keep your end of the bargain, I suppose I have no complaints…except the stench,” Robin says, looking away from him. Feeling safer, Red Rob gives Robin one more squeeze before letting him go.

Red Robin grins, “I’m so buying you ice-cream after we turn this over to Gordon,”

------------🦇🎲------------

Tim keeps that promise and buys Damian an ice-cream on the way home. It’s a cheap thing from a 24 hour convenience store, the only place still open this late, but hell some ice cream before bed is the dream of any child.

When they pull into the cave, faces covered in chocolate and stinking to high heaven, Alfred tuts and sends them off to the showers.

They’re washing off the filth, Damian more so than Tim, when Bruce comes home. Their father is sporting a magnificent bruise on his chin, meaning it’s going to be make-up for Bruce Wayne for a while, “Thank you for listening to me about leap-frog, boys,” Bruce says over a shower wall, “And I heard from Gordon that you worked together to get the evidence needed for a homicide. I’m very proud of you,”

“Damian did the worst part of it,” Tim says as he rinses his hair, “I just had the information,”

“You both did well,” Bruce emphasizes, “Don’t discount yourself, Tim,”

“Okay…Thanks, B,” Tim replies softly.

“Okay- who smells like an outhouse?!” Jason hollers as he limps into the showers.

Tim bites his lips to keep from laughing.

------------🦇🎲------------

Three weeks pass quickly.

Damian and he have been painting minis together on and off, since the day after that smelly patrol. Damian enjoyed it so much that Tim barely had to paint any of the more common minis, leaving him to work on the surprise or important ones himself. Damian didn’t even complain about the divider Tim had set up on the dining room table to prevent him seeing the minis Tim was painting.

Between the painting, cases, missions, campaign prep, Wayne Ent. work, and one family evening at the ballet, the three weeks waiting for the minis to arrive pass by quickly.

Tim would have forgotten they were due to arrive if he had not checked his email that morning telling him they were out for delivery. He tells everyone at breakfast, which since its Saturday includes Dick, that the minis are due to arrive today.

Damian’s eyes are shining when he shares the news- He’s clearly excited to paint his very own mini.

Bruce seems to be in good spirits too, but he’s definitely hiding something. It’s probably a good thing considering his smug little smirk as he sips his morning tea.

He’s watering Dick’s flowers in Animal Crossing when the gate’s buzzer goes off informing them of the delivery driver later that afternoon, “I’ll get it!” Bruce calls just as Tim moves to get up, so Tim plops back down and finishes watering Dick’s flowers…also digging lots of holes which makes his older brother whine. Dick has him in a headlock by the time Bruce comes into the den carrying to packages under his arm and his texting the others with his free hand.

“Minis are here,” he says, putting the Warrior Forger box on the coffee table.

“Yes! I can’t wait to see how mine turned out,” Dick reaches for the box and gets his hand flicked by their father.

“Wait until everyone gets here, Dick,”

“What’s in the other box, B?” Tim inquires, eying the larger package.

Bruce winks, looking quite pleased with himself, “A surprise,”

Jason enters the room first, followed by Duke, and plops down beside Tim on the sofa. Duke has just relaxed into the loveseat when Cass glides into the room and claims one of the armchairs for herself. Damian enters the room last- purposefully stepping on Jason’s foot as he passes- and sits on the love seat with Duke. Now that they’re all gathered up, Bruce deposits the other box in his arms on his lap as he also sits in an armchair.

“Tim, go ahead and open the minis,” Bruce waves at the Warrior Forger package.

Tim does as instructed, peeling back the tap and opening the box flaps to see many smaller boxes inside. He finds the properly marked boxes and hands them out. His siblings and father open their boxes, pulling out the light gray plastic figurines. They’ve all arrived safely in one piece it, but Cass’ mini’s foot looks like it might need a little extra sanding. Tim assures her it’s an easy fix and will do it himself.

“Oh man they’re tiny,” Jason says, turning his around in his hands, “I figured they would be because ‘duh’, but detail painting is gonna be a bitch,”

“Language, Master Jason,” Alfred admonishes as he enters the den carrying a tray with coffee mugs and tea cups.

“Sorry Alfie,” Jason apologizes, “But seriously. You and Dames could probably paint these easy, but Dad and I have big hands,”

“Don’t worry, Jay,” Tim says, “You guys can just paint the base colors on your minis and I can do detailing and shading if you want me to. They don’t have to be perfectly stunning- they’re your first minis after all,”

“I think it’ll be fun,” Duke chimes in.

Damian’s been fairly quiet after opening his mini. Tim doesn’t see any repairs that need to be made to the plastic and Damian doesn’t look upset so Tim just assumes he’s thinking of the color pallet to use.

“What’s in the other package you have, Dad?” Cass asks, leaning closer to Bruce.

“A surprise for you all,” Bruce says, putting his mini down gingerly on the coffee table before opening the box he’d brought in. He sifts through the contents, counting and checking it over, and then tosses a lump of fabric at Tim, which Tim deftly catches.

Tim inspects the gift and cannot keep the smile from his face when he realizes what it is- A personalized extra-large dice bag with dividers. The one that was tossed at him is bright red fabric patterned with black outlined feathers and a gold drawstring. Bruce has had him name embroidered on the bag in metallic gold thread. It’s awesome- his old bag was tattered and faded from age and this one means more to him than one quick online purchase…or the crown royal bag Jason was using to store his new dice.

Tim looks up at Bruce, who is smiling warmly at all of them, and grins, “Thanks, Dad,”

“You’re welcome. I know that I’m…difficult… about showing affection, but this was something I could do. I am great at spending money,”

“You’re getting better, Dad,” Dick says, “I think therapy has done you good,”

Bruce snorts, “Thanks, Chum,”

Tim looks at the rest of the bags as his siblings hold them. Jason’s is also red, but darker than Tim’s, with brown book patterning and the drawstring as well as the embroidery is metallic gray too dark to be silver.

Dick’s is obviously blue with birds patterned all over the fabric. Dick’s embroidery and drawstring are a metallic bronze color that complements the blue of the bag.

Duke’s is yellow- naturally- and covered in little film reals. His drawstring and embroidery are a mix of metallic gold and black. He’s beaming from ear-to-ear as he holds it up to look at it.

Cass’ bag is black and covered in a food pattern. All the foods are cartoonishly illustrated junk foods in bright colors. Cass’ drawstring/embroidery is a soft yellow color that’s satiny to the touch. She’s rubbing it between her fingers- delighted.

Damian’s is covered in little black paw prints on green fabric with a metallic gold drawstring and his name is embroidered in Arabic script. He’s holding it loosely in his hands and just staring at Bruce.

“Something wrong, son?” Bruce asks, his eyes the only thing giving away that he’s nervous.

“Nothing, Father,” Damian replies, “I- I really appreciate the gift, but I am still…coming to terms… with you encouraging and participating in hobbies like this after-“

“After everything your mother led you to believe?” Bruce finishes.

“Yes,” Damian’s voice is steady as the grave, “I was lead to believe that your mission was all that mattered and that your adoptive children are only soldiers,”

Bruce looks pained, because he can’t exactly deny that the mission was all that was important for a long time. Bruce visibly mulls his words over in his head, trying to find the right phrasing without it being misinterpreted, “Before Dick it was and after Jason it was again,” Bruce says honestly, “But none of you were ever meant to be soldiers. Never once. If I had my way, none of you would have gone out there with me,”

“Yeah, but you picked and produced kids that have a tendency to do as you do and not as you say,” Jason snorts.

“Yes, and I’m proud of each and every one of you- even if you do increase my grays,” Bruce jokes, throwing Jason a mirthful look before turning serious eyes back to Damian, “Son, if you never wanted to step out onto the streets again I would still be proud of you. I let myself become about the mission too often and missed out on so many moments with you and your siblings- You all can be better than me. I want that for you. I want that for all of you, because that is what a parent strives for. I don’t want any of you to follow in my footsteps- I want all of you to find your own paths, whatever they may be,”

“I understand, Father,” Damian nods, his cheeks pink, “I will endeavor to make you proud,”

“You already do, Sweetheart,” The nickname makes Damian roll his eyes, but brings more color to his cheeks, “Now, it’s still early, why don’t we get started on painting these minis?”

Tim nods, standing up, “I’ll go get the supplies. Alfred- is it okay if we do it on the dining room table if I put a tarp and a sheet over it? We’ll get better light in there,”

“Of course, Master Tim,” Alfred nods, “I will prepare the dining table for your project but I expect you all to clear it away in time for dinner,”

“Yes, Alfie (Alfred),” Everyone says.

“Damian, please go help your brother with the supplies, Jason, why don’t you help Alfred set up?, Dick, put yours and Tim’s Switches away, Duke and Cass, please get enough drinks for everyone. I’ll be going to make sure the emergency alerts are on and put everyone’s new bags in their cubbies,”

“Hey, B,” Tim says, stopping just outside the den, “Did you not get yourself a bag?”

Bruce smiles and pulls out a dice bag from the box. Tim snorts.

It’s a light gray bag covered in dinosaurs with black drawstring and in green embroidery it reads ‘Dad’.

------------🦇🎲------------

Two weeks after the minis are painted and dry they finally get to play.

They would have done it the weekend before, but there was a Justice League crisis. The whole of the league did not expect all six of Batman’s children to come and assist with the ordeal- taking out their frustration on scientific plant constructs with a vicious fervor. Poor Booster Gold looked like he’d seen an army of demons rip apart actual people instead of mindless humanoid plant zombies.

But, finally, here they are- all sat in the dungeon, along the custom table, with dice and minis beside them. They’ve all got their character sheets loaded up onto their tablets, recycled leather notebooks on hand, and a veritable buffet of snacks and drinks. Tim cracks his knuckles with a grin, “We begin in the world of ‘Trendal’ on the continent of ‘Osia’- a beautiful and diverse continent that houses many states and sub-kingdoms. Every smaller, still, we go to a little town named Ravenfort- a small town that sits near a clifftop in the Waking Hills a week’s journey by horseback from the nearest city. Ravenfort is a quiet town made of up rugged lumber workers and trade-folk that gets the odd passerby through the Hills. Ravenfort is a town many travelers passes through but rarely ever stays for more than a night or two at it’s inn- The Sleeping Hills. The owners think the name is very amusing,”

Tim makes eye contact with his father and siblings as he narrates the start of the adventure. Bruce, Jason, and Damian are rapidly taking notes while Cass, Duke, and Dick are all listening to him, enthralled. Tim touches the screen on his GM screen and starts up the ambient sounds for a morning in the inn.

“Bruce,” Bruce looks up from his notebook to Tim, “You wake up feeling rested but sore from long travel in your room in The Sleeping Hills in. The rays of sun are peaking through the curtains of the room and you can hear life through the walls of the inn signaling the start of the day. Would you like to describe your character?”

Bruce puts his mini front and center and adopts a slow and deep voice as he describes his character; “A man in his 30s with light brown hair and a carefully trimmed mustache. He’s heavily muscled but lean and doesn’t look like much bothers him. He’s wearing beat-up leather armor and patched common clothes with a faded green tattered cloak,”

“You’re now awake- What would you like to do?”

“I’ll get out of bed and get dressed. Is there food in the inn?”

“There is,”

“After I’m dressed I’ll start to head out of my room for breakfast but quickly double back because I almost forget my swords,”

The rest of the table laughs, making Bruce grin, “As you double back for your weapons, you nearly bump into someone small- Dick, if you’d like to describe your character?”

“You see a small Halfling man with shoulder length dark hair, pulled halfway up, wearing a blue tunic and a leather vest. He’s got a crossbow on his back with a quiver of bolts on his hip. He’s slim but athletic with a short black cape pressed down by the crossbow. He’s smiling rakishly,”

Bruce puts back on his character voice, “’Scuse me!”

Dick makes his voice a bit higher and cocksure, “No problem, friend! Just on my way to get some breakfast. My name is Davumo Nimblefinger, but most call me ‘Dav’,”

“I’m Moss. Nice to meetcha,” Bruce holds out his hand for Dick to shake. Dick takes it.

“Moss is an interesting name,” ‘Dav’ says.

“My Da picked it out for me himself,” Bruce crosses his arms and nods proudly.

“Neat,” Dick laughs, “’Well, I’m sure I’ll see you at breakfast. I won’t keep you any longer,’ Then I walk away,”

“’Seems like a nice boy’ I say before I go get my swords,” Bruce says, writing down Dick’s character information.

“Dav, you go downstairs and see a few other travelers enjoying their breakfast. A pair of wandering traders and four other individuals sitting about the taproom,” Tim says, shifting through his notes, “The room is cozy and warm with a central burning hearth surrounded by benches and a bar along the back wall with a grizzled old man standing behind the bar, wiping a glass clean,”

“Is there any music?”

Jason chimes in, “Yeah, there’s a lute being played,”

“You notice a half-orc strumming at a lute in the corner near the bar next to a stool with an empty plate. Jason if you’d like to describe your character?” Tim narrates.

“You see a half-orc with dusty green skin and wearing a red bandana on his head. He’s wearing a black loose shirt and red sash belt around his waist. He’s tapping a high-heeled cuffed boot on the wooden floor to create a beat with his strumming. He’s got a cutlass on his hip and he’s pretty dang tall,” Jason says, showing off his mini.

Dick laughs- delighted, “Holy Shit, Little Wing, are you playing a bard?”

“You’ll have to see, won’t you?” Jason grins, “What are the other people in the room like?”

“Duke, would you like to describe your character and what he’s doing?” Tim gestures at his little brother.

“You see a Tiefling man with red skin and entirely yellow eyes. His horns are an ash gray color and his tail is waving lazily behind him. He’s got a nose ring and is dressed in dark traveling clothes but the hem of his coat is bright orange. His dark hair is pulled into a ponytail of dreadlocks and he’s got a gnarly looking staff laid across his lap as he sits near the fire- watching it,” Duke says, looking pretty pleased at the reactions to his character when he shows off his fully painted mini. Tim had been sure to make sure none of them saw the finished products.

“Cass, would you like to describe your character?” Tim’s got her description written down if she doesn’t feel like describing her character right now.

“Light blue skin. Wispy white hair that moves like a breeze. Wearing purple robes and black boots and bone ball necklace,” She says, showing off her mini, “I am meditating by fire on opposite side from Duke,”

“And Damian, if you would like to describe your character?”

Damian clears his throat, holding up his mini, “You see a thin half-elf man dressed in regal clothing of muted greens and browns. He’s holding a crescent shaped wooden staff while he drinks tea at the bar. His cloak is adorned with shed feathers of birds and he is wearing a brown braided cloth in a band around his head,”

“At this time- Moss enters the room, but we’ll move back to Dav for now,” Tim makes note of everyone’s positions, “What are you doing, Dav?”

“I wanna get some breakfast so I’m going to head to the bar,”

“You walk up to the bar and the grizzled human man looks at you-” Tim puts on his character voice. A gruff old man that is a little like Wild Cat, “What can I get for ya?”

“What do you have ready to serve up for breakfast, friend?”

“Got some porridge and sausage,” Tim replies as the NPC, “Got Milk and Coffee too,”

“Then, I’ll be having some porridge and bacon with some coffee,” Dick puts on his charming smile while looking at Tim- He’s invested in the roleplay.

“The old man serves you up your food and drink, asking you for 4 copper pieces in return,” Tim narrates.

“Okay so I only have gold,” Dick says out of character.

“It’s ten silver to a gold piece and ten copper to a silver,”

“Ooh, okay. I give him a gold piece and hold my hand out for my change,”

Tim smiles, “He gives you change nearly entirely in copper pieces- most common folk work in copper,”

“Good to know. I’ll eat my breakfast,” Dick leans back to let someone else have a go.

Bruce takes his turn ordering his breakfast- Moss counting his change wrong and thinking the innkeeper gave him too much back. Moss does a whole thing where he tries to give the innkeeper back some of the change but the innkeeper steadily refuses. Everyone gets a good laugh out of the NPC interaction Bruce has.

“Damian, what would you like to do?” Tim asks.

“I was mildly amused by the interaction this human commoner had with the innkeeper, but now that my tea is done I would like to approach the lute player. Perhaps he has interesting tales to tell,” Damian says turning to Jason, “That is some skill you have with that instrument. Do you only play music or are you a poet and storyteller as well?”

A shit eating grin crawls over Jason’s face. The second his brother opens his mouth a pirate voice comes out, “Aye! I know many a-tale,”

“Good god,” Duke mutters, “That’s got to be the best pirate I’ve ever seen,”

“So it would seem,” Dick quotes back.

“Would you care to regale me with one, Mister…?”

“William Shanks, at your service,” Jason drawls. Jason immediately gets called a nerd by Dick and Duke.

“Mister Shanks, then- Perhaps a shanty then?” Damian asks, clearly trying to tease Jason a bit. Jason only grins in reply and begins to sing a fantastic rendition of ‘Santiana’ like a proper theatre kid- changing the words to fit Tim’s setting.

Everyone claps when Jason finishes, even the pouting Damian, “’A marvelous tale’, then I give him a gold piece,”

“I take it and slip it in the pouch I carry at my side,” Jason says before slipping back into character voice, “Didn’ catcher name, Mate,”

“I am Alborin Past’ina of the ancient and noble house of Past'ina,” Damian says primly, “I am on a journey of discovery,”

“Most pleased to meetcha,” Jason replies.

Tim moves them on from the conversation at that point- wanting to give Duke and Cass a chance to roleplay, “Duke, you’re watching the fire. It’s warm and gentle on this chilly spring morning. Is there anything else you’d like to do?”

Duke thinks a moment, looking over his character sheet, then saying, “I use Thaumaturgy to make the fire flicker and change color to my whims for a minute,”

“I open my eyes from my meditation and see the fire,” Cass says, “I watch the fire with the horned man across from me, and say ‘Very pretty,’”

“Thank you, My Dear,” Duke says, putting on a faux-posh accent, “I do try. My name is Justice, and you are?”

“I am Whisper,”

The two spend a bit conversing over the fire and ‘Moss’ eats his breakfast. The part mills about each other, introducing themselves for a while before Tim moves the plot along, by tapping a sound effect on his GM screen. ‘Boom. Boom. Boom.’ Goes the sound of heavy falls and people screaming as Tim narrates what’s happening around then.

“The old man behind the bar ducks down as the footfalls get louder and townsfolk rush in through the inn’s doors,” Tim puts the old man’s voice back on, “Get in here and get down and quiet you lot. It’s back,”

“What’s back?” Moss asks loudly.

“Shhh!” Tim shushes keeping character.

“What’s back?” Moss asks again whispering this time.

“The footfalls are passing the door of the inn now and you hear a man scream before there’s a sickening crunch cutting it off,” Tim says, “When the crunching stops you hear a deafening roar and the footsteps resume,”

“Ominous,” Jason says.

“Ogres,” Tim puts back on the innkeeper, “We get one or two coming this way every year. Damn brutes eat anything they get their hands on, break things for fun, and kill for sport,” Tim changes his voice to a softer feminine one next, “It’s good they’re too stupid to find us when we hide inside, but there’s little warning when one shows up,”

“Do I know anything about Ogres?” Damian asks, grabbing his D20.

“Make a nature check,”

Damian rolls his new dice, then adding his modifier to the roll, “Fourteen?”

“As a half-elf raised among elven civilization you know Ogres love the meat of elves. They’re incredibly stupid but strong giant-kin that will eat anything. They’re easily tricked and distracted but have the shortest tempers. They’re big and clumsy targets too. Chaotic Evil, usually,”

“Relay this information to the rest of the party,” Damian says, “Should we attempt to defeat this creature?”

Jason- the master tactician he is- says, “If we’re smart about it, aye, we could take it down,”

“Do you have a plan?” Dick asks.

“Aye, I do indeed,” Jason informs them, “But we need a distraction,”

“My Da always says I’m real distracting and I’m good at taking hits,” Bruce says in his Moss voice.

“I will help Moss,” Cass says, “I am fast,”

The party hammers out a plan before making stealth checks as the exit the inn. They spot the Ogre at the main crossroads of town, making grabs at people as they try and flee. Will, Dav, Alborin, and Justice all get into position- Justice staying back the furthest as he has the fewest hit-points. They all take a surprise round on the Ogre and Tim pulls up the map to display on the table. Tim stands up and goes for his collection of minis and map pieces in the cabinets, coming back and placing the large Ogre mini in position. Then, he starts building the buildings around them and moving their minis into proper position followed by the NPC minis. Finally- Tim turns on the combat music.

“Oh damn,”

“It Chonky,”

“Is this why you were cackling like a maniac while we were painting, Timothy?!”

Tim grins devilishly, “We’re in surprise round. Who is taking the first move?”

“I will,” Bruce says, then whistles, “’Hey! Over here!’ I’ll shout, then, I’d like to use my full movement to run around the Ogre’s feet and take my first attack it’s legs as I move,”

“Roll me an attack,” Tim orders.

Bruce’s rolls and adds his modifier, “Seventeen to hit?”

“That hits. Roll me damage,”

“Five damage total,”

Tim marks it down on the ogre’s sheet, “How I run surprise rounds is everyone gets to use their movement and action, but not their bonus action before initiative is rolled. Sound fair?”

They all agree to these terms before Tim begins to narrate again, “All of you see Moss run up and take a swing at the monster’s leg as he runs. The Ogre roars in anger at the unexpected blow and blood runs down it’s leg,”

Bruce sits back after his turn, letting Cass go next, “I also use my movement to run around the ogre’s legs- getting it’s attention- and punching it in the knee,” Her dice clatter as she rolls, “Ooch. Ten to hit?”

“You bob and weave with deft speed as you assist Moss in distracting the Ogre. However, when you take your first strike, The Ogre moves just enough in it’s attempt to grab Moss that you miss,” Tim explains, “Next?”

“I’m hidden right?” Dick asks.

“Yes, you’re still stealthed and two of your party are distracting the Ogre,”

“Okay so I wanna take a shot with my crossbow at the Ogre from my hidden position,” Dick says, facing his mini to peak around the corner of the building and then rolling.

“Don’t forget you get advantage from being hidden,” Tim reminds him.

“Oh thank goodness,” Dick wheezes, “Because that first roll was a natural one,” Dick rolls again and cheers out loud, “Natural 20!”

“Critical success,” Tim smiles, “Roll me damage doubled and sneak attack doubled,”

“The sneak attack damage is doubled too?!”

“Yes, on a crit all your damage is doubled,” Tim laughs.

“Okay so…seventeen points of damage,” Dick says, excited.

“Good hit,” Tim notes it down for the Ogre, “From a hidden position a crossbow bolt comes sailing in with a whistle nailing the Ogre in the eye. The giant grabs his face- roaring. Next?”

“I would like to cast Frostbite at the Ogre. I raise my staff, speaking the incantation, and bring my staff down to send frosty air toward the beast,”

Tim counts the spaces from Damian’s position to the Ogres and he’s within range, “Okay a constitution saving throw for the Ogre,” Tim rolls, adding mods, “What’s your Spell save DC?”

“Fourteen,” Damian leans forward.

“A bare failure. You send your frigid spell toward the Ogre and see a layer of frost and ice crystals form over the Ogre’s skin- Roll me your damage,”

“Four cold damage and the creature has disadvantage on it’s next attack,” Damian informs him.

“Cool, next?”

“I cast Fire Bolt at the Ogre, speaking infernal words,” Dukes swirls his hands together before pushing them out, “And I fire it at the Ogre,” Duke then rolls his attack, “Eleven to hit?”

“A bolt of fire shoots out of your hand toward the Ogre, it nearly misses but you strike the shoulder of the creature- Roll me damage,”

“Woo! Max damage! Ten Fire damage,” Duke informs him with a grin, gesturing to his dice.

“You all smell the scent of burning flesh after Justice makes his attack. Now- Last up for surprise round is Will- what’re you doing?”

“I can’t use my bonus action, right?” Jason asks around a mouthful of cashews, Tim answers with a nod, “Okay- I’m going to cast Vicious Mockery at the Ogre. It’s gotta make a DC 13 Wisdom Saving throw,”

“How do you mock the Ogre?” Tim asks.

“Yer ass is big enough to sink a ship you flabby waste!”

Tim snorts and rolls the saving throw. Ogre’s aren’t very wise so it definitely fails it’s save, “You see the Ogre clutch the sides of it’s head in pain- roaring and stomping about. We’ll say it’s first two attacks have disadvantage die to the Frostbite and Vicious Mockery. Now it’s time to roll initiative after Will rolls his damage,”

“Three Psychic damage,” Jason says before reaching for his D20.

The room is filled with the sound of clattering dice for a moment as everyone rolls, “25 to 20? No one? 20 to 15?”

“Eighteen,” Cassandra chimes in.

“Fifteen,” Damian says.

Tim marks it down in his turn tracker, “15 to 10?”

“Thirteen,” Jason informs him, followed by Bruce with an eleven.

“10 to 5?” Tim asks looking at Duke and Dick. Dick must have rolled really poorly to get under 10 with his high Dexterity.

“Nine,” Dick replies morosely.

“Five,” Duke says.

“Okay- First up is Whisper,” Tim says, starting proper combat, “Alborin- you’re on deck,”

Time for there to be a real fight.

------------🦇🎲------------

Combat carries on from there.

They go through two rounds- Moss and Whisper provoking the Ogre while the others fire off at it. Bruce and Cass manage to land some good hits without being struck by the clumsy giant, but the monster eventually becomes furious enough to start kicking and swinging with abandon.

“Nineteen to hit?” Tim asks of his father.

“That hits me,” Bruce says, looking at his character sheet.

Tim rolls the damage for the strike, “You take ten points of bludgeoning damage as a massive angry fist enters your vision and collides with you,”

“I am very hurt,” Bruce says, “Moss is looking haggard and a giant walking bloody bruise,”

“Moss is hurt bad!” Cass cries in character, “Do any of you have anything to help?”

“I don’t have any healing spells prepared!” Damian frets, “Todd?”

“Meta-gaming, Damian- Alborin doesn’t know his party well enough yet to discern what spells they have,” Tim reminds him gently.

“Fine. I shout to Shanks asking if he has any healing spells,”

 “I’ve got one, but it’ll take my last spell slot. So we’ll have to hope it counts!”

The attack ends the Ogre’s turn and they move onto Duke’s. Duke has been pelting this thing with fire bolts for the last two rounds of combat, “I can hurt the thing a lot more but Moss and Whisper are keeping it off of us!” Duke tells the party, “How bad is this thing looking, Tim?”

“Very rough, between Moss, Whisper, Dav, and you it’s looking beat to hell,”

“Okay. So I’m going to shout for Moss and Whisper to get back and throw another Fire Bolt at it,” Duke rolls- “Natural 20! And the damage- Fourteen points of fire damage,”

“How do you want to do this?” Tim asks.

“Huh?”

“How do you want to defeat the Ogre. Do you want a cool and flashy flavorful way?”

“Oh! Yeah, I wanna focus all my magic into my hands- letting the heat build up- and send it hurtling into the Ogre’s ugly face!”

“You all watch as Justice mutters in infernal swirling his hands and creating a blazing flame in his hand before firing it directly at the Ogre’s face. The Ogre, laughing after having finally struck Moss, turns to see a blazing inferno heading for his face. The heat from Justice’s anger is so intense that parts of the face melt away and the Ogre falls to the ground with a great BOOM- dead,”

“Woo!” Jason cheers.

“Mister Shanks! Please heal Mister Moss,” Damian says, “He’s quite hurt,”

“Oh I’m okay!” Bruce then describes how Moss’ teeth are covered in blood, “It’s not that bad,”

“I got ‘em,” Jason says, “I walk over to Moss and touch him on the shoulder, casting Cure Wounds,” Jason then proceeds to sing ‘Lime in the Coconut’ as his healing song.

“Thanks, Buddy,” Moss cheers.

“You all hear clapping and cheering start around you. The townsfolk have gathered in the square are cheering for you, as you stand beside the body of a defeated Ogre,” Tim says, putting on a celebration sound effect, “You’ve succeeded in your first encounter. What other dangers will await your newly formed party of adventurers? That’s where we’ll end today’s session,”

“That was awesome, Tim!” Duke woops.

“It was quite enjoyable, Timothy,” Damian says.

“It was very fun. I really felt the danger,” Bruce smiles.

“I can’t wait until next session,”

“Yeah, Timbo, it was a lot of fun,”

“Play more soon,” Cass says very seriously.

Tim is beaming from ear-to-ear. He’s so glad his family liked the session, “Sorry it was a short one. I wanted to get some introductory stuff done before we got too deep into the meat of the early game and wound up playing all night. It felt like a good stopping point,”

“I agree. It’s good to leave off on a high-note for our first game,” Bruce grins, putting away his dice, “I’m glad I’m the one that got hit- I knew I could take a bit of damage but I fear one of the spellcasters might have died,”

“Oh they would have. Jay came up with a sound strategy for you all,” Tim says, writing the session notes down before it becomes hazy, “Oh you all gain 75 Experience Points from defeating the Ogre and an extra 25 for roleplay and strategy,”

Tim watches as they all input it in their character sheets, chattering amongst themselves about what could happen next session.

“How many do we need for level up?” Jason asks.

“Three Hundred,” Tim replies.

“Cool,”

They all begin to clean up from their game- disposing of snack wrappers and putting away their dice, books, and minis. Most everyone leaves the room for dinner, chattering amongst themselves about the session and what they could possibly encounter in the future. Tim hears Dick wonder if he’ll see an elephant. Unbeknownst to his big brother- There is a Loxodon NPC Tim has made just for him.

Tim’s wiping down the surface of the table screen, just like before, when he hears Damian come up behind him, “Hey, Dames, what can I do for you?”

“Thank you, Timothy,” He says, “I am…glad, that I went through your things that day- though I do apologize for doing so without your permission,”

Tim blinks, stunned. He’d nearly forgotten that this all started because Damian had been in his room nearly four months ago. Damian’s attitude toward him has improved by leaps and bounds since then. It seems like a life-time ago now- what with the run up to it being so hectic and exciting- but really it’s not been long at all. He’s still a little wary of the things he says around Damian and they still fight- but it’s more like an annoying little brother and his big know-it-all brother would, instead of two mortal enemies try to destroy the other and keep their place. Tim finds he’s glad too. He’s glad that the baby assassin is not all his little brother will ever be. He’s glad that he, himself, will not always be insecure of his place in the family.

He’s glad he’s gotten the two little brothers he’s always wanted.

“No need to thank me, Baby Bat,” Tim says, tensing for a blow that doesn’t come, “I enjoyed it just as much as you. I’m glad I heard you out,” I’m glad you’re my little brother.

Damian nods stiffly, his arms twitching. God this kid is such a baby bat.

“Hey,” Tim nudges Damian as they leave the room, “Are you interested in skateboarding?”

“Why?” Damian eyes him warily.

“Because I can teach you- If you want that is,” Tim says quickly, not looking at Damian.

Damian is quiet the rest of the way to the dining room and Tim doesn’t prod him. They’re just entering the dining room when Damian speaks- “I would like that, Timothy,”

Sometimes- Life is a Crit Success.