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Summer time.
The temperatures have been climbing steadily since mid-May, but the day after Gotham’s Pride event in the first week of June the temperature skyrockets to record breaking highs, leaving the city suffocatingly humid. The strain on the city’s power grid due to all the cooling of homes and businesses is astronomical and the heat is sending the city into a crime wave as tempers flare and inhibitions loosen due to the stress. Emergency services have become stretched thin because of it- Heat strokes, dehydrations, and injuries flood Gotham’s hospitals with the poor and elderly and electrical fires are at an absurd high caused by the power surges causing fans and other appliances to short out leaving Gotham’s Fire Department constantly scrambling.
Blüdhaven isn’t any better off and their neighbor city only has poor and exhausted Nightwing to keep their heat induced crime and emergency wave at bay.
The Colony in Gotham is constantly moving in the city for six days- some of the usually nocturnal vigilantes taking day shifts with the overwhelmed Signal when Gotham’s at its hottest- but eventually, the temperature falls back to a sufferable level once again. It’s still muggy and sweltering, but it’s tolerable- both Gotham and Blüdhaven breath sighs of relief.
In the Wayne household there’s a Saint by the name of Alfred Pennyworth, who, seeing his son and grandchildren suffer in heavy, dark, protective uniforms for days, had called in a team of pool cleaners to get the Manor’s pool in usable shape.
Damian, even after nearly four years of living in Gotham, can still never get used to the insane humidity of Gotham summers. He’s aware that there are places much more humid in the states and he’s grateful his family doesn’t live in those places- he would lose his mind if his family resided in Florida or a similarly humid place all year round.
Once the temperature breaks, Damian and his family are given a chance to relax and enjoy the summer before another severe heatwave strikes.
Richard returns home on Friday, exhausted and drained. Damian’s favorite older brother nearly collapses into their Father’s arms the second he steps foot in the door, having run himself ragged during the six day heatwave all alone in Blüdhaven. Damian watches as Father fusses and babies his eldest, using his stern paternal voice insisting Richard take time off to stay home and rest which makes Richard irritable. Damian is well aware the all of his brothers do not appreciate it when Father tells them what to do- even when he’s right.
“Chum,” Father fusses, as Damian hands his brother a cool glass of water, “I am well aware you’re a capable adult, but I’m your father and it’s my job to worry. You’re by yourself in Blüdhaven and I’d feel better if you took some time off to rest after this mess. Please, Sweetheart,”
“I can handle it!” Richard snaps, “Is anyone else staying home from patrol and resting? Why should I have to just because I’ve got my own city?”
Damian rolls his eyes- all of his brothers are just the same, really, “Richard, all of us are. Father and Pennyworth have been very insistent that we remain home to recover. Jason nearly passed out from heatstroke- the idiot- and that’s with backup,”
Richard sighs, leaning back into the chair, “Fine,” he throws Father a wry look, “Sorry I snapped at you, Dad,”
“I understand, Chum. I get wanting to do everything yourself- to be independent- but you don’t have to all the time. I don’t want you turning into me,” Father pinches Richard’s cheek gently, “And all of us miss you- Damian most of all,”
Damian aims a kick at his Father’s shins, embarrassed, but his Father only laughs, dodging the weak strike. Richard grins, reaching for Damian just as he goes to tackle their laughing Father. Damian does not let out a squawk when Richard pulls him into a sweltering embrace- He very calmly objects in a dignified manner, thank you very much.
“I missed you too, Little D,” Richard says, squeezing him, “Hey, now that its summer and you’re out of school, maybe you can stay with me in Blüd for a few days?”
That sounds wonderful to Damian, who nods stiffly, “That would be enjoyable, Richard,”
“And,” Father says, ruffling their hair like they’re children, “The pool’s been cleaned. So, while you’re home, why don’t we have a bit of a pool day this weekend?”
“Oh man, that sounds great,” Richard breaths, “A dip in clean pool water sounds awesome. I was half tempted to dive into a harbor several times this week,”
Damian snorts derisively, “Thomas nearly made the attempt- if I were not with him he would have been happily splashing around in Gotham’s foul harbor just to escape the heat. I cannot comprehend why people assume he’s the ‘good’ child,”
Father chuckles, “He’s the newest- that or the rest of you have created quite the chaotic reputation for yourselves that any wild things he does haven’t registered yet, but they’ll learn eventually,”
Richard laughs, releasing Damian at last, and sipping his water. The three of them relax in the sitting room- Richard telling them everything that happened in Blüdhaven during the week- for about an hour, before Cassandra makes her appearance.
Seeing Richard, their only sister flings herself at him; the two of them wrapping around each other like overly affectionate octopuses- Damian stays clear of the tangle of sibling limbs, lest he be smothered.
Once their hug ends, Cassandra –who is having a non-speaking day today- sits up and signs ‘Welcome home’ to their eldest sibling.
“Thanks, Sis,” Richard smiles, booping her nose, “Good to be home,”
‘Staying? Rest?’ she signs, her face stern which makes Father choke on a laugh.
Richard rolls his eyes, pinching their sister’s sides, “Yes, I’m staying to rest, you brat,”
She squeezes his nose, shaking his head from side-to-side, wearing a triumphant smile. There’s a comfortable silence following the sibling teasing (a skill Damian still hasn’t mastered, if he’s being honest) that his brother and sister partake in, but eventually Richard begins to doze with his exhaustion catching up with him. Damian can see his eldest brother trying to stay awake- most likely to greet the other three- but Father puts a stop to that, “Get to bed, Chum,” Father says softly, running his fingers through Richard’s hair, “Your siblings will still be here in the morning,”
“Fiiiiine,”
------------🦇 ☀️------------
The next day, while most of the family, except Richard and Timothy, are sitting at the table eating breakfast, Timothy stumbles in like a zombie- reaching lethargically for coffee that Alfred provides him. It’s incredible to Damian that someone with such a brilliant mind and skill set like Timothy would just run himself into the ground as he often does- even on nights they are all supposed to be resting. Though, looking at Timothy now, as he drinks his coffee, it doesn’t seem like he was up all night- at least not with case work- He would look a lot more haggard if that were the case.
“Tim,” Father says, grabbing Timothy’s attention once half his coffee is gone, “You better not have been working on cases last night, Son,”
Timothy looks blankly at Father like he’s trying to register his words- causing Jason to snort- before speaking, “No, I promise I wasn’t. I was playing video games online with Kon,” Timothy then yawns so hard his jaw pops.
Damian wonders for the millionth time why he was cursed with being the youngest. Clearly his so called ‘Older Siblings’ need constant care since they don’t take care of themselves properly- yet they have the gall to attempt to baby him.
Father sighs, clearly wanting to scold his middle son, “I appreciate that you stayed in for the night and didn’t strain yourself working on cases, but I wish you’d get more sleep,”
“I learned it from watching you,” Timothy smirks into his coffee, which sends Damian’s other brothers into hysterics- Damian himself finds it a little amusing that their Father, of all people, has the nerve to say that; Even to Timothy- the one with the worst sleeping pattern.
Father just lays his head in his hand with a beleaguered sigh, “You’re killing me, Timmy,” Father sighs, “You’re killing your father,”
Timothy looks blankly at their father, sipping loudly on his coffee, before saying, “Then perish,”
Jason loses himself in wheezing laughter, “Calm down there, ‘memelord69’,”
“Stephanie Brown is a damn rat and I cannot believe she sold me out like this,” Timothy groans. Damian is definitely missing something here, but it’s probably imbecilic so he’ll choose to ignore it; there are more pressing matters to attend to.
“Father,” Damian says, with the dignity and grace his brothers lack.
“Yes, Damian?” Father replies with hope in his eyes.
“You mentioned last night that the pool has been made ready for use,” he says, “I was wondering if perhaps I may have a companion over-”
“Good Lord, Dames, just ask if your friend can come over for a pool party,” Jason huffs- Damian is sorely tempted to throw his scrambled eggs at his older brother, but he’s much more composed than that, “It’s not like you’ll get a ‘no’ outta Pops unless they’re dangerous or there’s a chance they’ll find us out. It’s gonna be Jon- who knows anyway,”
“Silence,” Damian hisses, “I do, in fact, socialize with others besides Jonathan,”
“Boys,” Father says sternly, “Don’t start. Damian, if you want Jon over to spend some time in the pool that’s fine with me. Maybe we can have all the Kent’s over- if Conner is here then maybe your brother won’t stay up all night on ‘rest days’ playing games with him,” Father sends a critical eye over to Timothy who only grins back.
“Oh, man it’s been ages since I’ve gotten to see Biz,”
“Steph comes too,” Cassandra says, she clearly will not hear otherwise from anyone else- not even Timothy who is still stinging from Brown’s apparent ‘betrayal’.
“We discussing a Wayne/Kent pool party in here?” Richard yawns as he walks into the dining room as they’re discussing the best day of the weekend to have such a gathering. Once Richard is seated, filling his plate with the sweetest things set out on the table (only taking savory and healthy things when Pennyworth gives him a look), the family begins to mingle again- everyone seated together at last.
“Yes,” Father says, after swallowing his own bite of eggs, “Like I mentioned last night; the pool is cleaned and ready for summer use, so your brother wanted to invite Jon over. I thought it’d be good to have the Kent’s over with him,”
“So we’ll be having a proper pool party,” Richard grins.
“I need a new swim suit,” Cassandra says looking at Father. Both Damian and Father know exactly what’s about to happen- shopping therapy. Father is very indulgent with purchases Damian and his siblings make, if only because he feels or knows they’ve gone without for most of their lives.
Jason and Cassandra worried about food, shelter, and survival- having been impoverished or willfully deprived by others- so there was little room for fun or new clothes in their early childhoods. Duke was similar, though his parents were good people who did the best they could for him and he had a two income household before his bounces around foster care- so he had a bit more room for silly purchases than Jason’s parents, who were an addict and a criminal respectively, or Cassandra’s Father, who willfully deprived Cassandra of basic needs often. Timothy and Damian never much worried about food, shelter, or clothing but they were both sorely lacking in healthy fun and affection and the ability to choose- so Father spoils them just the same. Richard’s parents were also not well off but Damian doesn’t think he worried much about food or shelter- his toys were probably a little more well-loved and patched, but he likely had them.
Honestly, the limits Father puts on their purchases is minuscule in comparison. Damian’s not allowed hyper-violent video games (for some reason Damian doesn’t understand- he’s actually killed people.) They’re also only allowed to use their trust funds sparingly or for major purchases since their trusts are larger than their typical pocket money or earned funds. Their trusts also have charity allocations to only be used to donate or fund charitable causes.
Most of his siblings rarely use their trust anyway- Damian and Timothy are the only two of the six of them that have always had a disposable income, even if they weren’t allowed to use it how they wished, so the others are frugal in their typical spending, but on these sorts of occasions his family turns into rich kids for whatever reason- perhaps because it’s a family activity.
“We could get water balloons and pool toys too! It’s been ages since the pool’s seen use- Tim used to use it as a skate bowl- might as well make the whole thing a water day,” Richard says.
“And Pops could actually do some cooking without us worrying about being poisoned, because like a typical white suburban dad, he can grill,” Jason says sharing a grin with Richard.
“Wait wait wait,” Timothy says- Father winces- with so much disbelief in his voice, “Are you telling me that, during that time Alfred was gone, I could have been eating well and not fearing for my life or eating takeout?”
“Oh my god, Dad, really?” Jason and Richard say at the same time.
“In my defense- We didn’t have a grill at the time and I was still...getting back to myself,” Father says cautiously.
“So we need a new grill? Add that to the list,” Jason says diplomatically, avoiding Father’s gaze.
“New bathing suits, pool toys, water balloons, a grill- what else?” Timothy asks, already making notes in his phone.
“Sprinkler,” Richard pipes up, “Or a Splash-n’-Glide,”
“If you are doing the shopping today, might I ask Master Jason to do some grocery shopping while you’re out?” Alfred inquires.
They spend the rest of breakfast listening off potential purchases for the pool day, Father smiling indulgently at them all. Eventually, Damian must feed his animals and walk Titus, so he’s the first up from the table.
He’s playing fetch with Titus in the back garden when he sees father out of the corner of his eye. Father isn’t coming closer, or speaking to him, only watching with a fond smile on his face as Ace sits regally next to him.
Damian knows his Father isn’t watching to find imperfections, the way Mother and Grandfather had, but he still gets the uneasy feeling when Father does so. The uncontrollable urge to be absolutely perfect lest he be sent away follows Damian like a cloud that he has to fan away before it chokes him.
The next time Damian looks at his father from the corner of his eye, Father is frowning in that deeply concerned way he has- Damian wonders if his body language gave his discomfort away, “Damian,” Father calls, walking close with Ace, “I’ve called Clark and he’ll be bringing his family over tomorrow, so we’ll be doing the shopping today,”
Damian tilts his head, “Thank you for informing me, Father,”
Father reaches up, brushing some loose hair out of Damian’s face with a soft smile- his eyes are distant and misty, “Father?”
“Sorry,” Father says, clearing his throat, “Seeing you playing with your dog in the sunshine makes me…happy because you are happy. You are happy, right?”
Damian resists the urge to huff and roll his eyes. He had assumed that it was obvious to the ‘World’s Greatest Detective’ that he is the most content he’s ever been, “Yes, Father, I am quite content,”
Father ruffles his hair, “Let’s walk Ace and Titus together before we get ready to leave. It’s going to be a long day of shopping,” Damian smiles in return to his father’s suggestion and whistles for Titus to come, walking alongside his father.
------------🦇 ☀️-----------
An hour later, the dogs having been walked and the family dressed, they pile into two of the larger civilian vehicles, one of which is one of Jason’s cars. Damian, having spent an extremely pleasant morning with his father, chooses to ride with him- along with Duke and Timothy, leaving the elder three siblings on their own in the other vehicle.
The plan is to purchase his sister’s and brothers’ desired new bathing suits to start- the rest most likely getting their own new bathing suits as well. Damian knows the one he currently has barely fits him anymore as he’s started into his first major growth spurt; he’s still shorter than Timothy and Duke, but he projects himself to be either barely smaller or larger than Jason when he’s fully grown- Certainly on par with his Father’s size and height like his brother is.
Keeping contact between the cars using Richard’s and Timothy’s phones is simple as they decide which boutique will be best for privacy and quality swimwear. If they’d had the time, they would have ordered bathing suits with custom sizing as well as most of the other things they are shopping out for today, but seeing that this spontaneous get together is tomorrow, they’ve not got the time.
They’ve selected a higher-end boutique in the Diamond District to shop at, not anything incredibly exclusive, but something with enough privacy for their family of minor celebrity.
Boutique Sol is a trendy modern building with a large show window featuring fashionable summer clothing and swimwear.
As usual, the staff and other patrons of the shop stare at them as they enter- Damian scoffs- and a member of the staff practically scrambles over to Father. Father quickly puts on his public persona as he talks to the staff, explaining that they need some new bathing suits.
Cassandra and Richard have already begun to browse the selections of their sizes, Damian follows suit.
Hoping to avoid spending a lot of time in the shop, he quickly selects a pair of high quality pair of square-cut swim shorts in black with a dark green waistband and no pattern. These should last him at least a year so he moves over to stand with Father, Timothy, and Jason who also made quick and practical preferred selections. Father has also chosen square-cut shorts in simple black with a designer logo, Timothy chose gray soft orange marble patterned swim shorts and a gray swim tank, and Jason selected deep red basic mid-thigh board shorts.
Duke, Richard, and Cassandra are much more particular in their taste of swimwear than the rest of them.
Jason groans, “C’mon, Dickhead,” (“Language,” Father says and is ignored.) “Just pick one already,”
“Don’t rush me, Asshole,” Richard replies with a smile. (“Language,” Father sighs, once again ignored.)
Damian looks over the bathing suits his eldest brother has selected and finds them all to be absolutely hideous. He loves his brother, Richard is his favorite after all, but Damian is well aware that the brothers with the best sense of fashion, besides himself naturally, are most likely Jason and Duke. Timothy knows how to dress presentably but prefers comfort and ease but he cannot be as wildly dressed as Richard is. Richard was thrilled when tacky 80s and 90s fashions came back into style- the bright colors and ludicrous patterns were something Richard adored.
His brother eventually decides on the most horrendous jammers of his selection- One solid bright yellow leg with the other leg and mid-section being a horrific messy pattern of blues, oranges, and yellows that reminds Damian of ugly modern art.
Duke, the clearly more fashionable brother, has gone with a simple three block color set of swim trunks- The three colored stripes being a salmon, muted orange, and a grayish blue.
Cassandra is the last one to pick, and seeing as women’s clothing in this boutique has a larger selection and variety (due to some kind of stupid western culture of contradictions of both purity and objectification), his dear sister is spoiled for choice.
Cassandra, however, is also relatively practical even if she does enjoy fashion and shopping on occasion. She doesn’t agonize over which would suit her best or what’s more in style- she picks what she likes and if it lines up with trend then all the better. She’s gone with a yellow and white horizontal striped halter one-piece that comes up to her neck, as well as a white cover-up to protect her more delicate skin, and a sun hat.
They all pick out a pair of sunglasses before checking out, finally freeing Damian from the entire clothing shopping expedition. He’s never been fond of shopping for clothing.
As usual on these sorts of trips, Father pays before anyone can pull out their own cards- despite the fact all of them have their own money.
“Okay, we’re going to Wolls to get a grill and anything else you kids need- Jaylad was asked by Alfred to pick up some groceries, so while he does that I want everyone to pick out snacks and drinks for tomorrow,” Father says before they pile back into their vehicles, “Keep your phones and trackers on you,”
After entering the super shopping center they split up, Damian opting to follow most of his siblings to the sports and outdoors section while Jason decides to follow Father to select a grill.
There’s a massive selection of oddly shaped pool floats that greets them when they enter the area. Father has not given them any limits on amount or size, but a limit of one selection each seems fair enough to Damian.
Looking over the pictures on the boxes to find his desired float is much harder than selecting a new bathing suit had been- there’s so many shapes and styles when he’s not limited by making sure it fits his body.
Timothy already has his picked out and on the cart- the box is absolutely massive in comparison to many of the others- and Duke seems to be swinging back and forth between two inflatables.
“Tim,” Richard says, “Yours is giant,”
“Everyone can use it! It’s not like I’ll be hoarding it for myself. And its super handy and relaxing,”
“It does seem like something B would also like to use,” Duke replies, while Damian moves over to look at Timothy’s pick. It’s an extra-large inflatable canopy float- the woman modeling the float is relaxing on it with a book and drink in a cup-holder as well as a miniature cooling bad for ice and drinks. It does seem a practical float if you want to spend time on the water relaxing.
“I agree,” Damian says, “How will it hold up to large pets?”
Timothy grimaces, “It’s not recommended for anything with large or sharp claws- so, no Titus or Alfred the Cat on this float,”
Disappointing, “Very well,” Then he goes back to looking over the pool floats to make his selection. None of the cartoonish shapes appeal to him overly much, but there is a corgi shaped tube lounge that he’ll select just to have something to float on. Judging by the way Richard is smiling he doesn’t believe for a second that it was a haphazard choice on Damian’s part.
“Would Jay want one?” Duke asks, holding a box containing- based on the image on the box- an inflatable arm-rested pool lounge in orange and yellow.
“I’ll text him,” Timothy replies as he leans on the handle of their flatbed cart which now holds Damian’s, Duke’s, and Timothy’s float selections. Richard plops a donut designed inner tube onto the cart while Timothy waits for a reply- Cassandra does the same, dropping her own inner tube with a purple mermaid scale pattern and upright tail. Father will likely most enjoy Timothy’s choice, as it’s made for multiple people to lounge on it, and will likely opt to share.
“Jay says get him an inner tube,” Timothy says, looking at his phone, “Also says to get a large cooler while we’re over here,”
“Ah, the standard Wayne Family Shopping Trip™,” Richard says, “Spending thousands of dollars at once so we don’t have to make smaller trips later like the ‘hermits’ we are,”
“We’re gonna be trending again, man,” Duke sighs, still unused to such extravagant spending. Cassandra offers his a commiserating pat on the back, because while she does enjoy some of the finer things (mostly food and occasionally clothing- things she was denied outside of keeping her alive) she too tends to get overwhelmed with the way their family spends money, much like Jason does as well.
Richard picks Jason’s inner tube- going for a shark with outstretched fins; it’s cartoonish and ridiculous looking, which means Jason will either adore it or be annoyed by it- Damian suspects the former.
They quickly pick a cooler, based on reviews Timothy quickly reads, before grabbing Richard’s requested Splash-n’-Glide and a few other pool objects, such as water guns, water balloons, dive sticks, and a beach ball, before meeting up with Father and Jason closer to the grocery section.
Carefully, Father and Jason move the grill onto the bed of their cart with the pool things and Jason rushes to exchange it with a buggy for groceries.
“Are we going to have enough room?” Duke asks, as they begin to shop for Alfred’s grocery list as well as snacks and drinks for the gathering tomorrow.
“We should,” Jason replies, “Some people might be bunched up with grocery bags though,”
Damian is already tired of all this shopping and now that they’re in the final stretch he intends to be very quick with his snack and drink selections as well as rushing his family along. Damian much prefers Pennyworth’s home prepared drinks and water to mass produced beverages but he supposes that something quick and refreshing would be nice and selects two cases of sports drinks in flavors that he and Jonathan will prefer.
“No coffee or energy drinks, Tim,” Father says from behind, obviously Timothy was going for the overly caffeinated drinks.
After a total of thirty minutes, they finally make it to checkout. They’re being stared at by other patrons as two separate clerks ring them out at two separate registers as not to overwhelm them. Ten more minutes later- and so many not-quiet whispers- and they’re finally getting to load up their shopping into the back of the cars; the groceries in Jason’s car and the pool items in Father’s.
At least they stop for ice cream on the way home.
(They do, indeed, trend on Tweeter again that afternoon. There’s several pictures of them and their pool float haul along with the tag #WaterWaynes and the usual memes about their familial shopping exploits. The entirety of Damian’s civilian timeline is covered memes about his family- he finds it rather obnoxious.)
------------🦇 ☀️------------
The following day, the Wayne household is somewhat busy.
Jason has left the house to fetch ice for the coolers, Timothy and Duke are setting up Bluetooth speakers at optimal points around the pool area, Richard is blowing up the pool floats with an electric pump, Father is setting up the grill for use later, Pennyworth has begun making his infamous lemonade, while Cassandra and Damian have been put in charge of getting out and cleaning the rest of the patio furniture.
Cassandra spends more time spraying Damian and the rest of the boys with the hose than the patio furniture, but they do eventually get it done with enough time to dry out in the summer sun after Damian gets fed up with her shenanigans and pinches the hose as she turns it onto him.
Once that list of tasks was done, and Jason retuned with ice, they set about the next handful of tasks- Some assigned to filling the coolers and others were assisting the ‘kitchen crew’.
This is perhaps the first time since Damian has living with his Father that the man has been part of the ‘kitchen crew’ in regards to a gathering, but there Father is, standing next to Jason and Alfred preparing the food that will be cooked on the new grill. Richard is also in the kitchen, setting out their selected snack assortment from yesterday.
Cassandra, Timothy, Duke, and Damian are storing the spare bags of ice in the deep freeze when the main gate buzzes.
“I got it!” Duke calls, running over to the gate feed to see who has arrived, “Its Steph! I’m lettin’ her in!” He calls back.
Shortly after, Brown comes into the kitchen dressed in a purple bikini with white lace cover-up and a bag over her shoulder, “Hello Wayne family! Thanks for the invite,” Brown says directly to Cassandra, wrapping his sister in a one-armed hug, “Babs not coming?”
“She had to work today, but I imagine she’ll be over sometime this summer and Cullen and Harper would rather use the new public pool Jay had built,” Richard says after greeting her.
“Plus those two aren’t fully in the know about all secret identities and the Kent’s are coming over- so it works out,” Timothy interjects.
Brown eventually turns his direction, her face spreading into a grin that fills Damian with dread, and approaches him, “Hey, Brat,” She ruffles his hair and pokes him all over the face. He can’t even defend himself from her irritating assault with violence but he can hurl insults at her, “Get off me, Flatgirl,” He’s got the brains to no longer call her fat, but making fun her lack of breast fat is fair-game since she tends to go for his height as the youngest.
“Aw, look at you evolving in your derogatory nicknames,” She pinches his cheek so he snaps at her with his teeth, “Piranha boy,”
“You’re a menace, Brown,”
The gate buzzes again as Brown opens her menacing mouth. Damian knows exactly who the new arrival is and must restrain himself from making a fool of himself in front of his family- especially Brown (Who would no doubt tease him about becoming a ‘real boy’)- by rushing toward the gate feed to buzz in the Kent’s. He does make sure it is the Kent Family instead of automatically buzzing them in, his family is often targets after all, but when he does see that it is indeed Clark Kent’s in the driver’s side car window shown through the camera he buzzes them in.
In no time at all, Damian is opening the front door to an arm full of Kryptonian. Jon has embraced him, which Damian minimally returns as Jon swings him around mid-air, before Damian hisses to let him down- he will not be subjected to more of Brown’s teasing. Besides, if they play their cards right, perhaps Jon can spend the night.
“Hello, Jon,” Damian says, tucking his hands behind his back.
“Hey, Dami!” Jon cheers, “Thanks for having us over,”
The rest of the Kent family enters the door soon after their greetings, Clark Kent carrying another large cooler with one hand and a cardboard box with the other, greeting Damian and then heading to presumably to ask where to place the cooler. Lois Lane-Kent is carrying a pool lounge under her arm, the Clones- Conner and Bizarro- following behind their mother.
“C’mon, Krypto!” Conner Kent calls, Krypto bounds through the door sniffing around for his play companions, Ace and Titus, then barking once and bounding off in the direction of their scents and the responding barks.
“Hello, Damian,” Lois greets, handing her pool lounge over to Conner, who offers a nod in greeting to Damian as he passes, “How’re you?”
“I am well,” He replies primly, “And yourself?”
“I’m very well, thanks Damian,” She replies and then continues onward to the kitchen to greet Father and Pennyworth.
Damian turns his attention back to Jon, who is grinning expectantly at him, “What?”
“We gonna try and convince our parents I can spend the night right?” Jon whispers. This is why he’s Damian’s best friend- Jon may have different methods, but they’re usually working toward the same goals, “Of course. I’ve already got a plan, in fact, but we shouldn’t discuss it further lest your father hear us”
Jon nods, and they head out the backdoor to the yard to visit Bat-Cow together.
------------bat ☀️------------
They’re leaving Bat-Cow’s paddock when they come upon Richard, Jason and Bizarro crouched around three tubs of water and the hose faucet. Bizarro is watching the other two as they fill and tie off multi-colored balloons filled with water and deposit them into the tubs. There are also several water guns stacked near the three already full, many of them with large water tanks on them. Looking off to the side, Richard’s also got the ‘Splash-n-Glide’ he purchased yesterday rolled out and ready to be connected to the hose once they’re done.
“Blue Pup! Red Him and Blue Him am show Bizarro to fill balloon,” Bizarro says to Jon excitedly, who grins back at his clone ‘brother’, “Cool!” Jon replies.
“Damian!” Damian hears his father call, “Come get your sunscreen on, Son,”
Damian rolls his eyes, but week before last he learned that his Father enjoys…well, being a Father, so Damian resigns himself to his fate and strides over to his father, leaving Jon to the other three.
His father’s clearly just finished with applying sunscreen to Timothy, who is moving away from Father toward the patio table where the other Clone is already sat drinking some sweet iced tea his family brought with them. Pennyworth looks unimpressed with the choice of tea; Damian agrees.
Father quickly helps him apply his first coat of sunscreen for the day before sending him of to take part in whichever activity he wishes until lunch.
Taking stock of what his friend and siblings are doing, he sees that Richard is now attaching the Splash-n-Glide to the garden hose, Duke is sunning on one of the lounge chairs, Jason is moving about the plastic tubs filled with water balloons at various about around the yard with the help of his Clone friend, Cassandra and Stephanie are dancing together in the sunshine near the speakers his brothers had set up this morning, and Timothy continues to chat with the Clone.
“Dami,” Jon says, striding up to him, “Biz and your brother said that they’re setting up for a full on water battle,” That does seem the most enjoyable activity for now, Damian surmises. There is the question of if they’ll be splitting into teams or if it’ll be a free for all combat- better to ask Richard and Jason the plan than be disqualified for breaking rules; he’ll be in it to win it.
He explains as much to Jon, who huffs at him good naturedly- though Damian does not appreciate the sass- and follows him over to Richard who has just finished connecting the hose to the slide.
“Richard,” Damian says alerting his eldest sibling to his presence, “For the water battle will we be divided into teams or will it be a free for all?”
Richard pauses, thinking a moment, “Three teams with a Kent each,”
“That sounds acceptable,” Damian nods but then pauses, “The teams will be uneven- unless father and one Jon’s parents are participating and then one team will have two Kryptonians if Kent participates,”
“Yeah, one team will have one more person on it, but it’ll be fine. It’s not like we’re competing for anything just everyone’s gonna get wet,” Richard replies then his grin turns teasing, “The geriatrics can’t participate,” he whispers conspiratorially. Jon laughs heartily while the joke pulls an inelegant snort from Damian.
“All set up, Big Bird,” Jason says, coming up behind the three. He’s got his shirt thrown over his shoulder and a fresh coat of sunscreen and oddly so does Bizarro, who has no need for sunscreen, “Blue Pup am need cream too?” Bizarro asks.
Jon smiles, patting his brother on the arm, “I’m okay, Biz- no need for sunscreen for me,” Jon replies. Bizarro had clearly seen Jason get sunscreen and while he didn’t need any requested Kent to put some on him too, as he could soak up that same paternal affection Jason was getting from Bruce.
“Okay,” Bizarro says easily, followed by Jason whistling loudly at the rest of the party to gain their attention- even Father, Pennyworth, and Jon’s parents look in Jason’s direction, “Water War’s gonna start! Time to pick teams!” he shouts. The parents seem uninterested in their team selection process- perhaps because it’ll be fairly straightforward for this group- and go back to chatting over the drinks and grill.
The three Kryptonians line up after Richard asks them to. Conner Kent rolls his eyes, and for once Damian agrees with him- this is hardly necessary, as they all know each of their preferred Wayne’s.
“Okay okay, so we’re not shaking it up to much- I get it,” Richard huffs. Jason, Timothy, and Damian step up to their respective friends and now the real selection follows. The team division is simple after that, with everyone else picking the team they wish to join either based on closeness or strategy. Damian’s heart is warmed when his favorite brother chooses his and Jon’s team. Richard ruffles his hair when he stands with them. Brown also chooses to stand with their clearly superior team- which also pleases Damian greatly, not that he’ll ever say it.
Duke chooses to join Jason and Bizarro’s team and Cassandra with Timothy and Conner. Teams now divided up, Jason and Richard explain the rules- Jason hands out the filled water guns and they’re assigned to a tub color to pull their water balloon ammunition from, explaining that if they run out of ammunition in their buckets or guns they’re out of the battle until they replenish their water.
“Could one of you count us down?” Richard hollers toward the chatting adults and Lois steps up, lemonade glass in her hand and smiling. She raises her arm and shouts, “One three! One, two, three- GO!” and lowers her arm with a laugh and all of them bolt.
Damian springs toward his team’s green bucket with the rest of his teammates. The game is on so Damian quickly finds a target that he has the best option of striking without over exposing himself to attack. He finds himself a spot in the trees, hoping is smaller body will be shielded by the branches from balloon attacks; though he could never be safe from Cassandra who has already gotten a hit on Bizarro.
Just below him, Jason has clearly spotted him but Damian has the high ground and is more than willing to drop a balloon on his brother’s head and does so with glee. However, Damian also finds himself wet as Jason’s larger frame and position was merely a distraction from Duke’s stealthy approach and attack.
The battle carries on, everyone getting soaking wet and a few water gun tanks are refilled before they’re being called for lunch- which smells delicious.
Father has prepared, with the help of Pennyworth and Kent, quite the selection of foods. Grilled meats and vegetables with plenty of flavor, a summer salad, a few refreshing deserts, and Pennyworth’s infamous lemonade fill their bellies. The Kryptonians eat the most, but Jason and Cassandra also pack a great amount of food away in their stomachs.
After lunch, there’s a divide- some join Richard on his slide and others move to the pool.
Damian opts to join in the slide with Jon and Richard and they’re joined by Brown and Bizarro.
It’s…fun. It being a three lane slide, they race across it on their bellies a few turns before the tricks start up. Richard is obviously the more skilled at tricks on the slide, because of his natural dexterity, but Damian does his best to give him a run for it. However, the appeal of the slide does not last long for Bizarro, who eventually makes him way over to the rest of the group in the pool.
Even Richard and Jon who are having the most fun with the slide grow bored of it when Cassandra shrieks gleefully in the pool followed by a splash and laughter. Richard turns off the garden hose connected to the slide and ushers the rest over to the pool.
Father is in a shallower end of the pool, next to Kent, and tossing Damian’s lighter siblings from the shallow end to the deeper end while Kent does the same with the heavier members of the party. Duke flies, laughing, toward the deep end, toward Damian and the rest, when Father hurls him into the water with a splash. There’s a laugh and Richard jumps into the pool swimming up between Kent and Father.
Damian is quick to join his siblings in the pool, wanting to partake in the tossing.
Lois is relaxing on her pool lounge out of the splash zone with a fresh glass of lemonade, watching the younger generations get tossed around by their fathers behind a pair of highly fashionable sunglasses, and Pennyworth is sitting at the patio table under the umbrella watching the rest splash around in the pool.
Father and Kent toss each of them for a handful of turns before Father declares he’ll no longer be throwing them and climbs out of the pool to get onto the large float Timothy picked. Kent and a few of Damian’s siblings follow Father’s lead, getting on their own floats and inner tubes, and leaving the rest to swim about in the large pool as they wish.
There isn’t much point in attempting to race Jon as he normally would attempt with his siblings, so they opt to swim in small laps for a while before Damian gets a devious idea. He submerges himself in the water, creeping up under the various floats his siblings and their friends are floating on. His target is the oblong shark inner-tube that Jason is relaxing in- Damian can see his overly large rear sat in the middle from under the water.
He swims under his brother’s inner-tube cautiously, avoiding everyone currently swimming in the pool as well as avoiding bumping any of the lounges or floats as he passes.
He’s under his target now- he’s only got one shot at this- so he surges upward on one side of the tube with all his strength. The balance of the tube is off, teetering over and sending his brother, and his brother’s beer, splashing into the water with a shout.
Now, Damian is confident that he’s skilled in combat, however, not once has he beaten Jason Peter Wayne in a fair fight. While Jason flounders in the water, Damian is quick to begin swimming away before the man surfaces and sees the face of his toppler.
The youngest Wayne child does not get far before his angle is grabbed by a large and calloused hand jerked backward into the waiting arms of an infuriated older brother, “So,” Jason’s voice is decidedly not terrifying, “Thought you could get away from me, eh Baby Brother?” Had Damian gone too far with his prank? He’s still trying to understand what’s acceptable play and jokes with a family as traumatized as theirs is.
“And what do you intend to do about it, Todd?” Damian’s voice is as level as possible in this moment, looking up at Jason as he’s crushed against his brother’s broad chest.
Jason grins, but Damian’s tension eases. His brother’s smile isn’t crazed or malicious, not overly so anyway, which puts Damian at ease, “Hold your breath, Brat,” Jason says before hoisting Damian over his shoulder, suplexing them backwards into the water with a large splash. Jason doesn’t hold onto him, allowing him to get free and swim upwards for air quickly enough. The only punishment Damian suffers from toppling Jason into the drink is a stinging back due to the force of crashing into the water.
Jason is laughing while Damian sputters water out of his face and looks around.
Everyone appears amused, but more so than that, Damian’s whole family looks so…happy.
Jason’s face is so loose and carefree, if a little devious, and Richard looks beyond thrilled even as he comes up behind Jason and leaps onto his back sending them both under the water. Timothy is smiling as he eggs their eldest brothers on, not an ounce of tiredness in his face, and Cassandra is doing much the same as he mermaid tube rocks from the waves of the battle. Duke has begun splashing at the two eldest soaking them even when their heads are above water.
But it’s Father that Damian’s focused on.
Father’s laughing as he gets further soaked from the splashing of the many children in his pool, but his eyes are alight with joy and contentment while watching all of them make a ruckus.
Pennyworth and the Kent’s also look happy.
Damian is happy.
He didn’t think he needed ‘normalcy’ in his life until just this moment- he didn’t think it was something he was built for, but here he is, playing with his siblings and best friend as his Father looks on with fondness.
Damian can remember everything about living in the league, from its rules to its expectations, but he can’t see himself ever returning again. While he knew he would never have to, according to his father and siblings, he thought that perhaps if he had to, for whatever reason, that he could manage. But now, in this moment, it’s something he knows he would never be able to do. There would be too much out here that he’d miss- he’s too different now.
He’s known real happiness and real heartbreak.
Damian doesn’t realize that he’s been just standing there, in the shallow end of the pool, until Jon swims up and touches his shoulder, “You okay?” Jon asks quietly.
“Yes, Jon,” Damian replies, turning his eyes back to the chaos with a small smile, “I truly am,”