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"Are you... sure about that? It's a major decision. What if he escapes? He could..."
"He won't," Bruce discarded in a low, tired tone of voice. "This is what he always wanted and more: living with me and working by my side."
Jim Gordon released a puff of grey smoke into the cool night air, wondering.
"You... know what he is, right?" The policeman checked, worried for his emo child of a vigilante. "Why would you... try to indulge the fantasies of a mentally ill sociopath who committed murders and flooded over a quarter of the town?! Believe me, I understand the willingness to help your pairs. But... for some people..."
"It's alright, Jim," Bruce reassured him in his soft, comforting tone. "I know what I am doing. Or I believe I do. And... I owe Edward Nashton, somehow. Even if it was unintended, I created him. I created the Riddler."
"You did not," his friend discarded severely, bringing out his 'controlling dad voice', the one he used with Barbara and Junior when they were kiddos and he expressly asked them to tidy each their bedroom. "You inspire people. You fight for the people. You couldn't predict one of your 'fans' will get your message so wrong he'd turn into a monster, and you are certainly not forced to take said monster under your custody!"
"Nashton is not a monster," the Knight refuted this analysis. "He is a sick, neglected young man who needs professional help to overcome his issues after he has been hurt his entire life by every single person he ever crossed paths with. That would... make anyone bitter. I am... well placed to relate, even if we all have different ways to react and cope with abuse. Take a puppy, starve him and hit him daily: as he grows up, don't be surprised he attacks and bites you once he is finally big enough to fight back. Edward is a wounded animal who felt cornered since forever before he found the courage to step in at last... when he started getting interested in me. I have a part of responsibility."
In his home at present Bruce sighed, chasing away the months-old memory of this conversation he had with his dear work partner before Riddler's trial.
If they were a standard family without the secret identities issues, he would now inform his ally of the new change: Edward and him live together, they get along so well they resemble a couple in a long-term relationship... and they non-officially adopted a baby.
Poor Gordon. Too much to catch up on.
Though let's face it, Jim would have been a great godfather for Stephanie.
Who knows, maybe they'll meet, in a few years when his baby girl will follow her dads on the job, wearing her own customized uniform?
Albeit lovely, this is not a possibility Bruce will conjure up right away: despite her situation being... anything but standard, both Alfred and Edward were on the same page to declare the child deserves to grow up in an, as much as possible, safe environment.
Watching his... boyfriend? and his father figure babyproof the whole manor house plus the equipment he takes out of the Batcave had been quite the sight. Bruce had stared at a babyproofed batarang for a long while last night, after he threw the widget at a thug about to escape, who... blinked at the feeling of the object that collided with his hand, which sported blunt tips that prevent the blade from cutting. Another amusing anecdote.
Tomorrow he will officialize a few things about their status. He was nervous.
Bruce smiled when he felt arms wrapping around his waist from behind and a soft cheek pressing against his left shoulder blade.
"Scared?"
"A little," the Bat responded, he interlaced his fingers with Edward's, both their hands resting flat on his firm stomach. "It's not every day billionaire Bruce Wayne fulfills an adoption procedure for a baby."
As for Ed living with him, they will... wait a bit more to unmask that side of the truth. For now, Nashton is only to be seen with Batman, and it's very recent that Bruce moved them to Wayne Manor: he hosted Stephanie Brown and him in one of his apartments in town for weeks before bringing his patched-up family addition to Alfred and him's home.
One step at a time, still they were running fast in these stairs.
"Do you trust me?"
"I thought you were smart," Eddie giggled after hearing such a ludicrous question. "I trust you with my life, Bruce. I assure you, you are making the right choice."
As it turned out the following day indeed, not once did Bruce regret walking further up that road into building his own nest for his little family.