Archive of Our Own

When Edward was just a small child, he understood something very important that shall follow him his whole life from then: nobody will ever love someone like him.

People don't like curious kids who want to discover the world by constantly asking questions, they don't appreciate autistic children who feel the need to keep their surroundings in check and organize their day time via a neat, precise schedule, they don't have the patience to handle little boys who are dying to prove their worth and to be acknowledged at last.

His mother never wanted that kind of child. She couldn't have made it clearer: without a warning, she left the house with no coming back when he barely turned four, after countless disputes with his father. Disputes regarding him, because apparently, the exclusive reason his parents would lose time talking about him was to blame one another for his birth.

As if he wanted any of this.

Sometimes, kiddo Eddie wished his mother didn't give birth to him at all. He wished the Nashtons were more careful, drank less and refrained themselves that night he was conceived. He wondered if every other unwanted child feels that way. He wondered if there are many little boys and girls his age who know they were a mistake and suffer from it.

He is no more than an error made along the way. An accident. Something that should have never happened, someone who should have never existed.

Neither Mother nor Father minded him at home, other than to yell at each other about something he did or rather... something he hasn't done yet could somehow be accountable for.

Eddie prefers when they forget about him. When they suddenly remember his presence, when Mother speaks to him, it was always way worse than when she acted indifferent. She asked him why he reads encyclopedias borrowed at the library filled with sophisticated vocabulary someone his generation shouldn't master. She asked him why he 'harasses' the adults in kindergarten with unrelated questions. She asked him why she regularly receives calls from his teacher at school, who suggests he skips grades asap and enters elementary school sooner as he already knows how to read, write, do maths and solve problems while his comrades stay at an extremely rudimentary state of development. She asked him why she had to defuse registrations from the school nurse and his general practitioner who wanted him to pass I.Q. tests then to make a diagnosis featuring his position on the Autism Spectrum.

Edward discovered the correct term much later, when making his own researches: Aspergers Syndrome with genius-level intellect. He wondered why his parents didn't allow the tests.

Mother called him a cheater every time he answered that's... what he does, he does not 'fake' being intelligent, he genuinely loves to learn and wishes more people answered his questions.

Cheater. Chea-ter. CHEATER.

That dreadful word morphed into a slur of the worst kind in his mind, an horrific mantra that made him shiver, a threat that rooted deep within his insecurities. Being considered as such for the sole reason he is different and smarter than the norm became a highly triggering ground as he grew up.

His mother started it. Afterwards she abandoned him, Eddie never knew where she went or what she does since then. He never heard of her again.

His father continued it. Things went smooth the first weeks the man ended up alone in their slum of a house with a 'weird child'. He forgot about Eddie completely, unwilling to do anything for and / or with him. This was perfectly fine in the boy's humble opinion. And then... well. Things evolved far from the best: his father lost his job offering a meagre salary at the local factory, the drinking intensified, the violence paired with his new life habits.

Little Edward Nashton didn't know yet he will keep the scars of this era branded onto his body and his psyche forever.

"It's alright, sweetie," Sister June reassured him, bringing him back to the present context. "Shhh, it's over..."

Eddie wiped off the tears. He had a breakdown again, he realized: he curled up on the stone steps of the small stairs leading to the chapel, in the mostly dead garden surrounding the orphanage. A fellow comrade surely noticed him and warned one of the Sisters.

It was probably Vic Sage, this boy is the only... not 'friendly' but at least not mean child who sleeps in Edward's dorm. Sage narrates terrifying monster stories over the evenings, what entertains Ed's bullies and makes him curl up on his too thin bed, pull the blankets above his head and try his best not to pay attention to the tales if he didn't want his mind to be plagued by nightmares over the night.

Edward doesn't talk to him; Vic doesn't participate when the other boys distract themselves at his expense, always making Eddie cry as they 'play' with him. Once, Vic Sage handed over to him his broken glasses after he's been beaten. He didn't punch him, he didn't stop the stronger boys either. He just... gave him back his glasses, then escorted him to the infirmary and left without a word, avoiding to cross Ed's gaze.

Vic truly is a bizarre fellow, who relies on a questionable line of conduct.

Eddie let Sister June comfort him, sniffing back more tears. He was thinking about his parents, about his depressing life before his mother left then before a neighbor contacted child services after a particularly bad night when he heard his father yelling, glass bottles smashing and the eight years old boy screaming... a bone-deep, chilling scream, unlike anything his lungs released previously.

He had been driven to the hospital in an ambulance with broken ribs and a broken arm to treat in emergency. A quick, efficient procedure had been launched the instant nurses from Gotham General took a look at the state of his skin underneath his clothing and immediately associated his broken bones with a recurrent pattern of child abuse instead of a domestic accident. The scars and bruises all over his body didn't lie.

Eddie didn't speak much over the weeks that followed. He supposed ending up at Wayne Orphanage after his father was declared unable to raise a child in court was the best thing that could happen to him... at least it couldn't be worse.

Indeed, it was not 'worse'.

It was nothing near much better.

Nobody wanted him here either. Whereas Sister June was nice, that was strictly a matter of personality: she belongs to that type of persons who want to see the good in everyone... even if she does nothing for him or for the young residents. She never punished his bullies, just addressed him a supportive smile when seeing him with a split lip on the morning. She never argued against Sister Giles who encourages corporal punishment, just helped him bandage his wounds when he entered the infirmary. She never obtained an efficacious intervention (too expensive...) to restore the heaters, just shed a tear every time a baby didn't pass the night due to the frigging cold in winter. She never paid workers to get rid of the rats that infest the caves, just provided antiseptics every once in a while when seeing the bleeding teeth and claw marks on kids' forearms, hands, calves and feet. What could she do anyway? It's not like anyone cared about the grim orphanage and its inhabitants.

Nobody gave a damn about them.

Nobody gave a damn about him.

And then... there's that other boy.

Bruce Wayne.

Ten years old Eddie doesn't like him. He doesn't like him at all.

First it's jealousy when seeing the rich kid with his wealthy parents, who lives in his castle like the Prince he is.

Second it's curiosity, when he hears the nuns talk about Renewal and about how Thomas and Martha Wayne were apparently determined to help financially the deprived orphanage.

Third it's sympathy, when barely two weeks later, the couple is shot dead in an alley. While Eddie doesn't know Bruce and while they never belonged to the same world, the dark-haired boy is merely two years older than him, Ed could relate to the pain he must feel upon becoming an orphan.

Fourth it's hatred whenever he hears about the Wayne name and how the whole town seems to mourn the loss of the couple... and to pity twelve years old Bruce. What is there to pity in his situation? Eddie would get people say a simple "sorry for your loss" and grant him a smile, he would do so too if he were faced with the Wayne heir. But he would not... write teary articles starring the kid, talk non-stop about "poor little Bruce Wayne", show him off like a victim or a martyr everyone must weep...

Everyone knows about Bruce Wayne.

No one will ever know about Edward Nashton.

~♧~

When Edward was a young man, he understood something else very important that followed him for a while after this: people who show interest in what he does don't really care, and even less love, someone like him.

He grew attached to some of his followers after he has been introduced to the equivalent of a 'discord in the dark web' and started creating... his own content.

He inspired some, his free spirit seduced others.

Eddie gloated every time he saw a new pseud joining the chat. Some subscribers became regulars and donators, like those 'Cluemaster', 'Clock King', 'Baffler', 'Viper'... and so on and so forth. He felt... close to them, in a way he had never been to anyone.

He felt close to him.

The Batman. His new role model, the unique figure he looks up to. The sole subject he loves to think about, talk about and theorize upon. His whole life revolves around the Bat from the instant he heard about him.

For months, Edward lived the dream.

He was loved by an odd family who supports him from behind their screens and he engaged in an intense parasocial relationship with a gothic man dressed like a giant bat. Fairytale romance at its finest.

He lived the dream until he woke up.

Until everything shattered around him.

Until there was nothing to dream about anymore.

Nobody wants you, Eddie, a traitorous voice sneered in his head. Nobody needs you, nobody cares about you. Nobody loves you. You will die alone, just like he said. Alone and forgotten, locked in a dark cell inside an asylum. No one is coming for you.

He had been such a fool to think people would do anything for him. To think he'd be freed, to think he'd receive visits, to think he'd be missed.

It hurt so much to realize that nothing changed from the era he was a scared, abused little boy from a broken home desperate for attention and for the love no one would ever provide him.

He felt so alone. He felt so weak. He felt so... cold...

Alone until he was not.

Until he was offered a hand, a real hand, from the very first person who really cares about him.

"What do you... want?" He articulated feebly, not believing this could be an authentic demand.

"Your help," the vigilante repeated patiently. "On an affair."

For as happy as Edward was to see the Bat again, it also felt like they... lost what they shared.

Things were no longer the same between them. Things will never be the same again.

He couldn't help find him beautiful, though. The man who sat across from him in the room where he was led to speak to a visitor hadn't changed from what he remembered... at the difference Batman was inside with him, sitting at the table placed there, instead of getting angry from behind a glass and watching Ed as if he was a peculiar fish making bubbles inside an aquarium.

If anything, Vengeance appeared more... severe, more adult, as if his personality took a strict turn since last time they met one another.

He seemed more menacing.

More menacing yet he has been... so gentle with him, this time. He told him he didn't forget how Edward cancelled his plans by notifying him how to defuse the bombs stored in vans located at strategical positions along Gotham's pier. He told him he would have visited sooner if it wasn't for Bella Réal's death, shot by his followers who went on with the scheme on election day, not knowing Riddler switched to the Bat's side when Bruce asked him to cooperate and promised him to take interest in his case if he did so.

He told him about a copycat who imitates his style and appears determined not solely to take a revenge on him for 'letting the group down' but on Gotham herself for not going through the purge they intended to provoke, the flood that should have punctuated their grand final.

"What is there in it for me if I help you track down my copycat?" Eddie inquired, sitting on the uncomfortable metal chair and looking to his lap, his fingers twitching nervously, gripping the rough fabric of his Arkham uniform. "I don't care about being moved to a... slightly bigger cell or earning a longer recreation time in that ugly grey yard."

"I figured out," Vengeance acknowledged quietly, his face blank of emotions albeit his tone tinted with an audible fondness buried behind the calm words. "Maybe you would care about... seeing the outside again. The real outside, I mean. Not a time out in the courtyard once a week. I'd be in charge of you. Entirely."

It looked so official.

It looked almost... normal. Batman obtained to be responsible for him and take him out of the asylum to solve this nasty copycat case. Did he pay the guards who signed these documents? Did he blackmail Jeremiah Arkham for him to let go of one of his patients so easily?

Not that the Riddler was a person of interest here. Jeremiah, the director of the institution for the criminally insane, was curious about him at first. Nevertheless, he didn't push past what he called an 'honest conversation' over which Edward couldn't even justify why he engaged in such a complex scheme... only to cancel everything at the last second when Batman asked him to have faith in him and do the right choice.

Nothing else happened. Jonathan Crane may be a relatively interesting dude, the exchanges with this psychiatrist who worked as an university professor until last year were nothing as thrilling as Edward imagined discussions with his Batman would be like.

He missed Batman even though they don't... know anything about each other.

And now he was in for a road trip with the Knight becoming his babysitter. Riddlesitter. 

"Nice car," Eddie whispered, of a soft, admirative voice when sitting on the passenger seat. "I love how you carry on your thing for the whole 'goth vampire aesthetic' up to the inside of your vehicle."

"... Don't touch anything."

Vengeance didn't sound angry, he merely warned. Does Batboy have issues sharing his shiny toys?

"I thought you gave up on me."

Still driving, the Bat took the time to look at him, wondering, after Edward whispered this mildly depressing assumption.

"I would have never. I simply needed time to clean up the mess behind you. The moment I did, I would have returned. New case or not."

"... Why?"

"Because that's what I do."

While it didn't show on his lips, the ghost of a smile could be heard in his tone.

"I realized I need to be more than just Vengeance."

"... What else would Batman need to represent?" Edward queried, genuinely curious.

"Hope. For Gotham, for me, for you. For us. For everyone."

"... Seems far too ambitious of a goal. And it makes you sound like an... ordinary hero. I preferred Vengeance."

Eddie huffed like an upset cat. He resolutely gazed at the window after this, feeling the Knight's puzzled glance on him a few seconds before he focused on the road again.

The fire is not here, a troubled Bruce took note internally when watching the worn out, exhausted man slouched next to him. This sparkle in his eyes, this blinding light he radiated by being brilliant. It's... gone. It's all gone.

The only thing Batman hoped now, is to be enough to ignite that fire again.

He wanted to be... enough for him.

<♢>

The weeks at Arkham were so dull and repetitive.

The days under Batman's watch were... another deal.

Edward went from a cell to another, from the dirty shoebox he was assigned at Arkham to somewhere in the... Batcave, is that how these Headquarters should be named? The place where he was kept didn't look like a prison cell, more like an underground hotel room with its attached bathroom. No razors, scissors or anything that could be used as weapons, no electronical devices at his disposal, cameras that spy on him, no windows and no other access to this suite than the heavy metal door Batman locked behind him when leaving him alone.

As ironic as it may seem, this golden cage is the most comfy place Ed ever lived in.

The Bat took him out to work on the computers in the sort of main room there, Edward tagged along with him in his fancy car as the investigation pursued.

Vengeance is a strange company. He is quiet for the most part, only speaks about the case when he walks Edward out of his cell. This being said, he relaxes every now and then. Once when bringing Edward dinner, he sat with him at the table placed in the cave instead of letting his captive eat alone then remove the plate and plastic cutlery once he was done with the food.

This time, he brought trays for the two of them and launched a random conversation as if this was... habitual. As if they were old friends sharing a meal when taking a break from work.

Batman told him he loves documentaries about fauna and flora from diverse places across the world. He watches wildlife reportings every time he feels stressed, preferably documentaries with no more than a scientist's voice as background noise. He doesn't like to see humans, just to watch pretty, cute animals and colorful plants.

Eddie politely asked him what kind of animals he prefers, aside from bats obviously. He learned a lot about marine fauna that evening, the Bat has a thing for fishes. Vengeance seemed almost... shy, in an adorable fashion, like he couldn't believe Ed was genuinely curious and didn't tell him to shut up or call him a weirdo.

"Why a bat-symbol, by the way?"

"... I used to be afraid of bats," he answered, finishing the slice of blueberry cheesecake he brought for dessert. "When I was six years old, a bat entered in my bedroom over a warm summer night I left the curtains and windows open. I turned on the lamp on my bedside table to spot it; I was both scared of it and scared it would hurt its wings if it bumped into the furnitures of the room. I stood, opened the bay window leading to the terrace outside my bedroom and more or less tried to attract the bat there... then I startled when it flew right in my direction. I lost my balance above the railing and fell from the balcony to the garden one story lower."

"Did you hurt yourself?"

"Kinda. I broke my ankle. What really hurt however was... my father calling me a sissy and an idiot when he had to pick me up and call an ambulance while I cried and whined like a baby. I blamed bats for that night."

"... My father called me an idiot all the time," Eddie mirrored, intrigued by the parallel.

Could Vengeance and him have more in common than meets the eye?

"You remember him?" The Knight cocked his head to the side, like a bird who tries to pierce a freshly unmasked mystery. "Since you grew up in an orphanage and don't have known relatives, I... assumed you don't know where you are from."

"Well I do. Not that it's... a blessing to remember. Quite the opposite."

Despite the heavy topic, the ambient atmosphere didn't slide to sadness. Edward actually smiled, a lot, that night, especially when the Knight meticulously listed every specie of bats across the world then showed him pictures and talked of their habits plus particularities.

He overcame his fear of bats as a teen, he even turned his phobia into a passion for the creatures he studied. He was apparently very fond of frugivore species like Pteropodinae, Harpionycterinae, Nyctimeninae or Bruce's favorite, the Rousettinae. These fruit bats resemble adorable, flying ginger foxes.

"Do you purr, too?" Eddie teased when they discussed this priceless bat-characteristic.

"Do you?" Vengeance retorted, amused. "You radiate such cat energy."

They had both smiled.

Again, it almost felt like they were friends.

Almost like they could build something with one another.

Maybe, just maybe, there is hope for them yet.

▪♤▪

There is something about Stephanie Brown.

Something... fresh, and bright, yet something tragically relatable.

When Edward crossed her Caribbean blue gaze at the Brown household, after Batman and him arrested that scumbag of a copycat who stole his gimmicks, he immediately identified to her as... someone he understands.

Her father was a crazy cultist who, going by 'Cluemaster' for his villain coming out, actively followed the Riddler's website, gave tips on how to craft a detonator for the bombs, was a tad too charmed by the planned attack and the anarchy that should have ensued...

It was only a matter of time before Arthur Brown tried to shine on his own, pretexting he walks in the Riddler's footsteps and federates what was left of his extreme subscribers. At the difference that, according to him, he won't 'betray what they believed in' and will 'succeed where Edward Nashton stepped back'.

What an arrogant idiot, Eddie was more than happy Batman and him arrested Arthur before he went farther.

Batman and him. They formed an unique, entertaining dynamic duo.

A duo that morphed into an unlikely trio after tonight.

Even if legally, Ed should not be allowed the liberty to wander on his own, Batman bent the rules to his own convenience. Bruce kept a tracer on him and he... somehow trusted him. In a way.

He trusted him enough to let him handle the visit at the Brown household after they arrested Cluemaster once they figured out his identity, he let Edward take a look first at evidences that could tie other former followers of his to Arthur's plans. Instead of blueprints, phone numbers or an index filled with names and aliases, Edward stumbled upon... a little girl, who watched him with rapt attention from the top of the stairs since he entered the soiled place.

"... Don't be scared," is the initial demand he conjured up to reassure the child who stared at him with curiosity.

"I am not scared," the blonde kid replied right away, showing an adorable determination and tilting her head to the side... exactly like Batman does on a regular basis. "I know who you are."

"Do you?"

"Hu-hu," she nodded, smiling as if she was... relieved to see him.

Such an unusual feeling. Even more unusual was the way she considered him:

"You are my guardian angel," she murmured softly. "You sent daddy away and thanks to you, mommy leaves me alone too."

Visibly not enough according to the large purple bruise around her left eye she kept almost swollen shut.

The house is a mess: dirty, stained, reeking of neglect. Given the state of the too big shirt and tiny shorts with holes in the shredded fabric she wears, this skinny kid has been left alone in the middle of this chaotic environment for a while.

"... Where is your mom?"

Edward tried to ignore the lump forming in his throat. He advanced in the cramped living room and stopped at a reasonable distance from the child perched on top of the moldy wooden stairs like a bird.

The girl shrugged, one of her too thin shoulders peaking through the collar of her blue shirt on which is printed a faded red and yellow 'S'.

"With her friends. Daddy told her to stop bringing her bottles and needles home, so she keeps them outside to do 'her thing' in the company of other people. Been days since she returned, this time."

Thus... her father is a crook and her mother a junkie. In all likelihood, before setting up his attack to 'carry on the Riddler's legacy', Arthur found the time to punch his daughter on the side of the head. That black eye doesn't lie, neither do older discernible bruises on her legs and upper arms.

So... relatable, indeed. Edward felt like he gazed through the looking glass to be faced with a younger version of himself. A wave of intense warmth of an unknown kind invaded his chest. He urgently felt the need to reach out to her, to... protect her, keep her safe...

"What's yours but others use more than you do?" He whispered, gaze locked with the blonde kid's.

"Your name. It's an easy riddle."

"Correct," he approved. "Mine is Edward. Would you make me the honor to tell me yours?"

"Maybe. Though... it depends on what you are willing to do for me now. What will you do after this? Will you try to find mommy? Or to... send me to an orphanage, perhaps?"

For a roughly five years old, this child has a sharp, clever spirit.

As if Edward needed another proof attesting he converses with a reflection of himself at this age.

"I won't," he swore, his voice strangely husky. "I am not letting you in this... depressing slum with your mother, and I won't send you to one of these cursed places. No one deserves to grow up in a public orphanage in Gotham. You called me your... guardian angel... I swear I will get involved from now on."

"Daddy leaves me alone since you appeared. Or... more than before," she specified, playing abstractedly with a corner of her shirt she twined around her fingers. "Since he follows you on his computer, he practically forgot about me. He is always talking about you, first like he was in love, second like he felt betrayed. He gets angry at me a lot less since you became so important to him. Thank you for this."

"That's not enough," Ed forced himself not to point out the not-so-ancient bruises marbling her limbs. "That's even... very far from enough. Let me do... much more for you."

"More like what?"

Edward took a deep breath. Don't make her promises you won't be able to keep, the voice of reason hammered under his skull.

"Like what Vengeance is doing for me," he didn't listen to that voice of reason. "He shows me I don't have to be... scared anymore, that with a bit of help, I could overcome the fear and become... a much better version of myself. I could be way more than what I am."

"Not everything has to be about vengeance or fear," the child corrected with gentleness, as if she knew much more than she lets on. "There's room in Batman's line of work for hope, too."

Hope.

What his Knight longed to make him feel.

That was the ultimate trigger: no way Ed lets this kid to the merciless claws of Gotham's deficient child services. He will rather take everything in her house: identification papers, eventual photographs, certificates with her name on it and health booklet, bring it all to the Bat then force him to find the best solution for a pleasant future for her.

How odd would it be that Bruce Wayne adopts little Stephanie Brown?

°♡°

"No Bruce, I am not dressing up our daughter like a tiny Batman for Halloween."

Stephanie Wayne laughed, of this adorable, cheerful sound that constantly emplishes the corridors of Wayne Tower over the nearly full year the kid lives between here and Wayne Manor with them.

"Can I be Robin Hood instead?" The six-year-old giggled, prior jumping on the wooden low table via a fluid movement (what made Bat-dad proud, his girl will do a killing when he officially starts training her). "I love Robin Hood!"

That seemed a hint more acceptable.

Finding matching costumes for Alfred, Bruce and Edward risked to be quite the challenge from then... A luck they have nearly two weeks left before the 31 of October.

Figuring out Batman's identity arrived so naturally once he started living with him and sharing his daily routine, Edward couldn't believe he didn't connect the dots sooner. Such a fool he had been.

After the Cluemaster case was closed, Batman himself organized a trial for Riddler. He made his voice matter to the point the sentence was practically his to pronounce, with hardly a few remaining arrangements in court, like the electronical bracelet around his ankle Eddie wears to this day and for again a year and a half, which forbids him from leaving Gotham. Plus the obligatory therapy appointements twice a week with the psychiatrist Joan Leland, who follows his file and provides his treatment.

For the rest, Batman coaxed a gullible jury that Bruce Wayne and him work together since he saved the billionaire's life, and that Wayne owes the Bat enough to participate to the new rehabilitation program he paid for Arkham patients. A personal dimension counted in Riddler's case: over the trial, Bruce in his civilian mask declared he feels guilty on the behalf of his parents for the way life treated Edward Nashton. Instead of going on with the new assistance program for this inmate, he wanted to... get more implicated.

Surprisingly enough, it convinced everyone.

Stephanie bursted out laughing at home when getting how easy it is to fool citizens of Gotham. The boys didn't tell her anything of course, nevertheless she figured out, on her own from nearly the instant she met Bruce Wayne, that he is Batman. It makes the connection between him and Edward evident.

This girl is a smart little genius ahead of her age with excellent detective skills and an outpouring energy, she couldn't have been adopted by better parents.

Officially, only Bruce is her legal guardian. Notwithstanding this, Ed lives with them full-time, the boys and Alfred dedicated every fiber of their beings to the wonderful mission of raising her and caring for her.

She refers with pride to Bruce and Edward as her fathers, and to Alfred as an adapted grandfather figure.

"I already planned our trick-or-treating tour!" Steph announced smugly later that evening, showing her dads a map of Gotham she complemented with Alfred earlier by highlighting a trajectory across the lanes. "Estimated time: eight hours, we start in the middle of the afternoon with typical childish activities in the pretty neighborhoods and at the fair in the West garden park. Over the evening, we go to this Waffle House restaurant for dinner cuz they fully decorated their place for Halloween! It will be great!" She pointed excitedly to the location she circled in purple. "Once we ate, we jump inside the Batmobile to race across the streets and arrest the bad guys who will come out at dusk to mix with the crowd in costume! Do not worry, I will be wearing a badass mask and a cool hat, nobody will recognize me!"

Bruce ruffled her blond hair with affection.

"Sounds like a perfect plan, Sunshine," he approved with glee, hyper proud of his little girl.

"Even the last part?" Ed jeered, then sighed when the Bat responded an assertive 'of course'.

Good for Steph Eddie is there to play protective mother bird of prey who watches over her hatchling, otherwise no doubt Bruce would have wrapped their daughter in a customized sidekick costume and would have taken her out for patrol with him already.

That will be... for later, perhaps.

For now since they evoked vigilantism, Edward scooped up the ceramic lamp nearby and quickly brought it to safety in the next room when Stephie imitated wide karate moves and Bruce immediately jumped on the occasion to teach her a new combat sports routine.

Eddie took note: they should enroll their daughter in a dance club, that would be a fine solution for her to invest her overflowing dynamism in... something else than wanting to become Batman's little acolyte.

The former rogue smiled. Right here right now, he felt like life couldn't be any better.

[□]

"What are you doing...? Wait!"

Eddie hadn't planned to run after a child he caught... busy with a spark plug wrench, trying to steal the Batmobile's tires in a dead-end alley.

It's rare Bruce allows him or anyone else alone in his cherished vehicle, yet he had to leave the town and the country for a week of important business meetings to which Wayne Enterprises was invited.

Albeit getting involved in his company is what Bruce appreciates the less about his range of obligations, he made the effort to get interested in at least the major projects voted by the Council. Every now and then, he defends the point of view of the company... or his own when he disagrees, before signing for a new alliance or on the contrary, cancelling an obsolete one.

The Bat returns in two days; to give the illusion he hadn't left at all he asked his partner to perform the habitual routine patrols around the blocks.

Bruce will kill him if someone harms his beloved car, even if said someone is a tiny boy dressed in rags.

"Ya aren't Batman," the child let out bluntly, in a cocky tone of voice.

"Clever observation. What betrayed me?"

The kid frowned. Even though he hadn't meant to let Edward catch him after he ran away, the Batmobile was parked in a dead-end dirty lane and when he attempted a gesture to jump and grab the nearest rusty fire escape, a pained whine escaped him.

He miserably clutched his side and took a few steps back, cursing under his breath for his lack of savvy.

Ed watched him from a precautionary distance not to scare him; he didn't step too close when the dark-haired boy sat on the muddy ground and looked up to him.

"My name is Oracle," Eddie introduced quietly. "I work with Batman."

"... Oh, yeah. You're da guy he talks to in his comms. I heard 'bout you."

"Glad my reputation precedes me! I am up to fieldwork as well, even if most often, I'm fine with being his eyes and ears behind a screen. Does it hurt?"

Still not walking closer, Edward knelt at the kid's level.

"The injury you have on your flank," he indicated, his alert gaze trying to deduce given the kid's posture whether or not the damages include broken ribs.

"... A little bit. Why d'you ask?"

"Because you were stealing the tires of my dear acolyte's car. Even if you didn't finish the task you undertook, such a bold gesture deserves a reward. Like... a warm meal and a doctor's opinion on your wounds."

"Who's da doctor ya have in mind? I can't go to... ordinary places. I know how it works, I have street friends who were trapped dat way: I have no identification papers, they'd send me to an orphanage. I... I don't want to go there."

"I can understand that," Edward addressed him a faint smile. "I patch the Dark Knight up and I treat my own injuries for as long as I can remember. May I... take a look at yours? I am with Batman," he restated in order to reassure him. "You can trust me."

"... I never trust adults. I just... don't think I have a better option right now."

Ed let him all the time he needed to make up his mind. He is aware tires and other pieces of vehicules, especially robbed from fancy cars, get sold easily in the black market. Poor kid hoped for a good price out of the tires, to pay a clandestine doctor clinic's services after he had a run-in with a dealer who pushed him to the side... and broke two of his ribs in the process. In sordid illegal clinics with more or less outdated medical products, numerous so-called 'doctors' treat homeless people, smugglers or citizens who can't afford the expensive Gothamite health system.

The mere idea this lost child goes to one of these depressing locations in hope someone bandages his wounds made Edward's skin crawl with repulsion.

What other choice did he have but bring him home, make him pass a x-ray in one of the medical chambers at the Wayne household, craft him a consequent plaster, clean the other bruises on his skin, cook him a warm meal and let him sleep the night?

Alfred didn't criticize, he rather smiled knowingly. Ed will introduce Jason to Stephanie tomorrow morning, then to Bruce the following day.

The Knight returned from his business trip the next morning, only to find Edward making breakfast for two children: their eight years old daughter and... an unknown dark-haired boy.

"Last time you brought a stray home, it was a kitten," he joked about the origins of their cat, as Stephie was not exactly a 'stray' herself when they met.

To Eddie's defense, it's Steph who heard the cry one Wednesday afternoon he picked her up after her dance lessons. He hadn't recovered all his civic rights yet, including the fact he couldn't vote, couldn't contract an insurance and couldn't pass his driving license anew. He was fine with using public transports every now and then.

The dance school was close enough to Wayne Tower and this month of May was sunny, Ed gladly walked his daughter home. Moreover, they have a cute tradition to stop at the nice public square close to the art conservatory and order a waffle there for their afternoon snack, whilst Steph tells him excitedly about the new moves she learned today.

It's a privileged bonding moment they are both very fond of.

That day after the traditional waffle break when heading back home, Stephie isolated a weak plea from a bin in an adjacent small lane. 

When Bruce returned home, he was faced with a freshly washed, painfully thin kitten female not weaned yet, that had been either thrown in the trash or separated from her litter.

On top of firmly refusing to find another home for the baby, Stephanie argued it's her eighth birthday in two weeks and she already found a name for the black cat, coming from her favorite catchphrase and the fact the newborn alerted them of her presence in this sorry state.

By now, Spoiler is a happy, healthy and spoiled five months old black cat treated like a diva.

And now...

Bruce scratched Spoiler's fluffy ears when the lady purred after she perched on the couch's armrest to look up to him with her amber eyes.

There's this child Eddie brought home, who was eating breakfast with Stephanie. He was apparently there since yesterday, and already got along with their daughter like those two were long-term pals.

Knowing that boy was a street kid, bold enough to try to steal the Batmobile's tires? Clearly, Ed intended to keep him around.

And, smiling, Bruce realized he enjoys this prospect. He loves everything about having a daughter... surely he'd be a good dad for a son too.

~♧~

"Robin, watch out!"

Jason was laughing.

"This is the best day of my life!" He chuckled, so happy to be a part of the fight.

Batman and Robin arrested the Scarecrow that night, whilst Oracle and Stephanie investigated together on the latest smuggling ring affair they unearthed.

Despite wanting to go on the field too, they deemed her too young for the time being... and Steph ended up complying. She helped from the inside whenever she wanted to and her position as Batman's sidekick was practically reserved already, she concurred to stick to this sort of 'status quo' for now.

Once or twice over the incoming years, she played the non-official Robin too, until the day Jason handed over his role.

After being saved in extremis by Oracle and Batman when the Joker was about to blow him up in an abandoned warehouse, Jay felt the need to step aside from vigilantism for a bit.

Stephanie would have made her coming out with her own name over the same year anyway, nonetheless when her brother took a break she rather carried on his legacy... except not his aesthetic.

Because frankly, the scaly panties and pixie boots he wore at first, before switching to plain red pants, were not fashionable articles.

Twelve years old Stephie fully stepped in the game with an upgraded version of the Robin uniform.

Not wanting to cut himself from their world still, sixteen years old Jason ensured the 'behind the screens' position during that time, much more than he did previously.

While Edward switched between this role and his detective duties on the field, Jay integrally established himself as the Oracle who could be their eyes and ears thorough important missions.

"I am so proud of you," Eddie whispered, putting a small kiss on the top of Jaybird's head one evening he returned earlier, whilst his son guided Batman and Robin to the museum robbery he noticed on his screens.

"... Thank you."

There is not much more to say. Ed brought mugs of hot chocolate for the two of them and kept his boy company until he practically forced him to go to sleep, he takes up the watcher position from then.

Predictably, the teenager refused to walk upstairs... thus he fell asleep in his comfy armchair inside the Batcave, Edward wrapped his green jacket over him as an improvised blanket and stroked his jet black hair with fondness. It's been months since his traumatizing near-death experience, but Jason needs to feel surrounded, protected and supported more than ever.

It's alright. Edward learned how to be a good mother hen.

<♢>

"When I said I wanted to be Robin too, this is not what I had in mind."

"It's alright, Sweetheart," Stephanie reassured her little sister. "I need to take a break anyway, and when I'll be available to return on the field I think I will... create my own alias. It'll be about time."

Steph leaned against Ed's shoulder while Bruce addressed her a warm, protective smile.

In this like the rest, she could count on the most comprehensive and supportive fathers.

She is aware not all parents react positively to their daughter getting pregnant at fifteen from someone she was nothing near in love with and wanting to keep the child.

Dean didn't deserve to know about the baby, her dads never required Steph's lover takes a role in the picture. Jason proposed to 'pay him a visit and beat him to a pulp', what Stephie declined, laughing, by reminding Dean is not more responsible than she is. Even though they were two to accidentally conceive that baby, she didn't want her ex to get involved.

She reached her third month when she handed over her Robin uniform. Edward insisted she steps aside from vigilantism and after a particularly bad night, she eventually complied. Steph will let her outfit in the closet the time she carries a life then at least a few weeks post-delivery. For her safety and her unborn child's.

"I am ready," Charlotte Gage-Radcliffe, another orphan living in the streets brought home by Batman this time, agreed to take up the mantle.

The eleven years old's chest puffed with pride.

"I will try my best to be worthy of the name!"

"You are already worthy," Bruce put a hand on the redhead's shoulder.

Stephie complemented alongside a complicit wink:

"You will be a fantastic Robin, Sweetheart."

Time for a third face to take up the sidekick role and keep this major side of the Dynamic Duo's legacy alive.

▪♤▪

"Things worked well for you," Batman acknowledged with an appreciative nod.

"I return you the compliment."

The old friends shared a tranquil gaze.

Bruce and Selina Kyle see each other every now and then, mostly since the past year. Catwoman and her former sidekick Catlad are allies of the bats, established in Blüdhaven for a long while. The Batkids call Lina 'that cool aunt who visits sometimes' and Dick their 'beloved estranged cousin', both Bruce and Ed will always consider their duo dear acquaintances even if the bats-and-birds and the cat burglars don't team-up very often.

Her first protégé Dick Grayson switched from the cat outfit to an official job, he freshly entered the police force last year... and moved to Gotham's GCPD in place of the Blüdhaven justice Headquarters to work with the woman he's been dating for the past roughly five years since they met online. New recruit Dick and the detective Barbara Gordon, daughter of the Commissioner of the Gotham police, are already one Hell of a duo together. As a result, Selina could have taken time for herself if it wasn't for her meeting with a distant relative: the daughter of a Falcone she... more or less kidnapped from her house after finding out little Kitrina was abused by her uncle Mario Falcone.

Kitrina made herself a 'Catgirl' mantle from then and she got along a little too well with the third Robin. Bruce and Selina renewed all the more since their daughters became best of friends; the cats are regularly to be seen at Gotham lately. As it is the case tonight: Charlotte and Kitrina in her Robin and Catgirl uniforms decided to more or less ditch their mentors to patrol together.

Edward stays home with Stephanie who reaches the end of her pregnancy, she is almost in due week at present and her daddy refuses to leave her side even for missions since the past month. Bruce finds Ed's dedication adorable, and despite making fun of Oracle's lioness mom reflexes, Batman is super protective of their child too. Stephie will always be Bruce and Eddie's little girl, even though she will soon give birth to her own daughter.

Jason is outside with the recent addition to the nest: Lonnie Machin, the Joker's biological son who decided to spoil his father's latest plans when he found out about the clown's new villainous conspiration. Jay ran into the child before Joker found him and had to save that reckless apprentice vigilante who tried to warn the bats by leaving clues to reveal what he figured out in the Joker's forthcoming scheme. Red Knight was practically forced to take the kid under his wing... and to bring him home when the eleven years old confessed, in tears, that the reason why he discovered the truth behind his origins is because the Prince of Crime murdered his adoptive parents to reclaim him as a sort of... trophy he intended to brainwash and turn into a 'Joker Junior'.

It may not be official for the time being, Lonnie is the new candidate on the list to become a permanent Wayne Manor resident. Furthermore, it had been 'brotherly bonding at first sight' when Stephanie met the boy whose made-up vigilante alias is Spoiler.

His father figure Alfred, the love of his life Edward and their children Stephanie, Jason, Charlotte and Lonnie. Plus Selina and her protégés Dick and Kitrina, alongside Jim Gordon and his daughter Barbara who frequently join forces with the bats-and-birds over complex investigations.

Bruce is very proud, of all of them. His heart entirely belongs to them.

Things work out, indeed.

They even work... too well not to finally take that jump with his long-time partner.

"I will ask Edward to marry me."

Selina smirked at Batman's straightforward claim uttered in an assertive intonation. The two of them were standing on top of a flat rooftop whilst their kids and partners fulfill their own duties in the night or stay home for a well-deserved cozy evening.

"At last! I believed you'd never cross the line," Catwoman teased him knowingly then saluted the rejoicing news with a tender: "I am so proud of you, Dark Knight."

They hugged, pulling each other close and sharing a sweet, friendly moment under the moon, as to seal a new step in both their lives: while they don't walk the road together, they will always conserve a massive soft spot for one another. Selina was sincerely, thoroughly happy for him and Edward.

The way Bruce sees it, the proposal won't be for tomorrow. Stephanie will have her baby first, they will get accustomed to life with a newborn at home... and in roughly a year, maybe, he will introduce his lover to the idea. Maybe in even longer, Bruce will tell Eddie he bought an engagement ring for him the first year they started working together and became little Stephie's parents... over ten years ago.

No one in the family will want a big wedding. Even if Ed and Steph have a natural affinity for drama and being absolute showmen when they are interviewed by journalists, they prefer when celebrations stay private. Just family and friends, reunited together for joyous slices of life.

Notwithstanding the Gothamite gossip will seize the marriage event, it's better if not too many journalists know about the date and reserved place... otherwise the extended Batfamily will suffer the unwanted presence of vultures taking pictures during the ceremony.

Bats, birds, cats and a close circle of friends will attend Edward and him's wedding.

°♡°

"What does it feel like, to be... indispensable to someone? Or in your case, indispensable to many persons who admire and respect you? Surely it must be a wonderful feeling."

The bitterness in the girl's tone was not directly aimed at him, it was merely... a downside of her sharp perception and unfair way to see herself.

"You are indispensable to us, Cassandra Cain," Edward pledged in his best reassuring voice.

She was not exactly a kid as she is eighteen, however to Bruce and him it's the same old refrain: a lost child in need, who seeks for vengeance after life treated her so wrong she doesn't know how to adjust and has no idea how to find her place in the world. So much déjà vu in this setting.

Cassandra doesn't want the bats' help or assistance.

She doesn't want to be affiliated with them.

And then... she realized that maybe, just maybe, they... weren't so bad.

Eddie felt like he contemplated a younger version of Bruce: a feral, autistic, touch-starved young adult who analyzes her surroundings and understands everything about body language yet is clueless as for how to properly communicate. Edward was propelled back to the distant era he looked up to the newly-appeared Shadow of Gotham.

Cassandra is as skilled as Bruce, more even, since she's been trained since birth by deadly assassins who turned her into a weapon. Her parents taught her how to kill but not once did they teach her how to love or did they show her they cared about her.

"The way they look at you..." Cass went on, her throat tightening with odd, unknown emotions she never experienced before. "I... I don't... I don't understand..."

She watched them from afar, especially since Bruce and her teamed-up once and Batman told her she could become a true ally. Last night, she caught Oracle, Sphinx and Red Knight aka Edward, Stephanie and Jason fulfilling a mission together, they succeeded in arresting Mad Hatter and freeing Jervis Tetch's hostages. They appeared to be such a... complementary trio. Their night out evolved into a family trip as they were joined by Batman, Robin and Spoiler aka Bruce, Charlotte and Lonnie later on.

Sphinx waved at the lone black and yellow silhouette who discreetly spied on them as to... invite her to step closer. Cassandra wanted to, a handful of seconds she sincerely considered jumping to their roof. And then... she turned around and left.

She was not ready to befriend them yet.

Tonight she met Oracle who worked on a case alone, for once. It's easier to reach out to a bat when it's on its own, instead of when they gather together like a... flock.

Ed investigated a missing child affair, he collected clues in the home of Mariah Shelley, a single mother robbed and murdered in her apartment whose corpse had been discovered this morning wearing trademark signs of a new killer going by Onomatopoeia, who makes victims since the beginning of the month. Mariah's eight years old daughter was nowhere to be seen, Oracle took the case he will solve via the official way. Edward has a double status that mainly Jason shares with him: they work in the detective agency they opened in town, in which clients can require their help for affairs and remain the Batfamily's main informers plus on-the-field agents as well.

Cassandra silently perched on the windowsill of the Shelleys' flat, gazing inside the living room where Eddie looked for evidences.

"We are not just work colleagues, allies or friends," Edward clarified regarding the Batfamily's relationships.

This teen is convinced love doesn't exist or if it does, will never be directed at her. She doesn't get the nature of the bond that unites their patched-up team.

"We are family," he complemented patiently, and felt a pinch in the heart when seeing the sadness instantly painted onto the girl's features.

"It... it seems beautiful."

"It is. And it took me a long while too, to realize there are people who truly care for me that way."

Edward extended a hand in her direction, like an offering to step closer.

"I spent so many years believing I was unworthy or... unloveable," he confessed feebly. "I know what it's like. I know how hard it is to change your mind once you are convinced to be an outcast. But believe me, anyone can overcome the feeling. Please Cassandra, let me show you. Let us prove you we care about you."

She cried when he hugged her and snuggled against his chest, as to... catch up on the lost time.

Ed felt in her trembling gestures that it's the first time someone hugs her. It's alright. His first hug was Stephanie, and his first memorable embrace was with Steph and Bruce: their daughter being a very tactile child, she introduced those two touch-starved boys to the loving warmth hugs provide.

"I want to... help you," Cassandra parted eventually from the embrace, a luminous expression on her face.

As if she didn't quite trust his sincerity but wanted to believe this was real.

"Can I... do something?"

"You can," Eddie nodded, a content smile on his lips. "I am looking for clues to solve a missing person affair, I intend to find this girl safe and sound."

He showed her a picture of Alina Shelley.

"How about you work with me on that case and... come home after this?"

She didn't 'come home' to them just yet, although she definitely grew closer to the bats since that day. Even more because Edward and her saved Alina who from then, saw the black and yellow-cladded figure as a sort of guardian angel who rescued her.

Cassandra made her own mantle in accordance: she called herself Black Bat, to Bruce and Edward's greatest pride. Even if she was never adopted, she somehow became their 'honorary daughter', whom they love like their owns and deeply care about.

[□]

Edward wakes up surrounded.

He remembers being gassed with fear toxin over his latest investigation with Sphinx and urgently pushing Stephanie to the side when a part of the building, trapped with explosives, started to collapse... then everything went dark. Nightmarish visions plagued his mind while pain erupted on his left leg and his flanks as he fell backwards in the middle of the rubbles.

Looks like the cavalry arrived on time: Eddie's vision stabilized on the cast around his left leg, and he felt bandages circling his torso under his shirt. Broken leg and wounds on his left side, plus one or two superficial burns. He makes it out in relatively good shape.

Ed lied on his back on the oversized bed in Bruce and him's shared parental suite. As whenever one of them is knocked out during patrol, it's not uncommon to open your eyes to a group of bats-and-birds snuggled close or sitting on the side of the mattress.

Today was no exception to the rule.

Stephanie nested next to him on top of the blankets, her left arm curled around her daughter's sleeping form, who hugged tightly her purple dragon plush toy. Jason slouched on an armchair, snorting mildly. Sixteen years old Charlotte, who freshly made herself a Batgirl alias, sat on the small couch in the overequipped bedroom with fifteen years old Lonnie, who nicknames himself 'Starling' since the beginning of the year, he wears a purple and white costume inspired from a bird: the violet-backed starling. Sister and brother slept cuddled like two kittens on the mellow pillows of the sofa, Spoiler curled up next to Charlotte. Definitely, Charlie attracts kitties.

Eddie watched the kids with fondness, not wanting to move not to disturb the peaceful picture. It's Bruce who gave him an excuse to shift on the bed when he entered the room, holding hands with little Alina they adopted too, who turned ten last month and makes her first bird steps as the fourth Robin.

"You're awake!" The child yelled, ran to the bed, jumped on the mattress and hugged Edward right away, what provoked enough agitation to wake up the other birdies.

He returned Alina's embrace; luckily a prudent Bruce warned the others about the plaster around his leg and the bandages on his wounds, otherwise Ed would have drowned under a merciless attack of cuddles.

Stephanie teased him about 'playing hero' in the warehouse and focusing on her only in place of his own safety, Jason ruffled his hair and told him he should stop being so reckless when on the field, Charlie and Lonnie said they were relieved to see him in mostly one piece and four years old Claire put her plush dragon on Edward's lap. She announced her toy Amethyst worried, what earned the little girl a kiss on the top of her head because she is just too cute. Spoiler leaped on the bed, the black cat nuzzled the tip of the white cast with curiosity, wondering about the purpose of this thing that will hamper Ed's movements over the entire needed recovery time.

Bruce and him shared a smile.

Batman stood close to the bed, he allowed the kids harass his husband for a bit before reminding them Eddie could use some space.

"How about you guys give a hand to Alfred and prepare a great big breakfast for everyone?"

"At four on the morning?" Jason scoffed, he glanced at the clock on the wall.

"Fine by me!" Charlie took her big brother's hand to drag Red Knight with her. "It's summer, nobody has classes to attend today!"

"If you two wanted alone time for B to express how happy he is to see you alive," Lonnie smirked knowingly, "you could have just asked."

This made Steph, Jason and Charlotte laugh, Alina arch an eyebrow and Claire frown (what was adorable).

"You scared us," Stephie concluded whilst Jason gathered the younger ones to make them leave the bedroom. "Never let us think you'd die again, especially not after saving me. I'd feel far too guilty."

Whereas Sphinx spoke on the joking tone, as ever, Ed isolated the apprehension she likely felt when finding her father bleeding and unconscious. She put a kiss on his cheek before stepping aside from the mattress and offering Batman and Oracle a trademark Cheshire cat grin.

"Now boys, I suggest you don't lose too much time if you want a piece of that breakfast! You know how we are with Alfred's chocolate croissants."

She winked at them, laughing, then exited the bedroom and bounced cheerfully in the corridor like she does since she is a little child. Spoiler jumped from the mattress, stretched her paws lazily then hurried after Steph.

Smiling, Eddie hugged Amethyst ('Amy' for short), the dragon plush toy Claire left "to keep an eye on him". He'll bring the cuddly animal to the dining room when he figures out how to cooperate the crutches Bruce leaned against the wall nearby.

When did the Wayne household become a foster home for so many kids, again? Jason is twenty-four and Stephanie twenty so Red Knight and Sphinx are not 'kids' anymore, but... they are Ed and Bruce's first children. They'll forever remain their little ones.

Their kiddos plus friends form a solid unit.

Bruce took his hand.

Eddie smiled at him.

"You know what I saw this time, when dear old Jonathan fear-gassed me?" He whispered, a knot in his throat.

The Bat sat close to him, he pushed a soft strand of hair behind Ed's right ear.

"What did you see?"

His tone was so gentle. So... caring. What did Edward do to deserve to be the life companion of someone so perfect?

"Me."

His chin trembled from the vivid, unpleasant memory.

"Me like what I used to be. Me alone, frightened, bullied, abused and forgotten from the whole world. I was standing, surrounded by the whole family, but when I looked at the mirror in front of me, I could only see... my reflection. The one of sad, scared little Ed nobody wants around, nobody talks to, nobody loves, nobody remembers. I contested, I yelled at my old self this is not who I am anymore, I evolved, I got... better, but he couldn't hear me. And when I turned around, I realized no one else was in the room. You, Stephanie, Jason, Lonnie, Charlotte, Alina, Claire, Alfred, Cassandra, Selina, Dick, Kitrina and Barbara disappeared. I looked down to my left hand, the engagement ring was gone too. I stared at my reflection, my child self who lived in Wayne Orphanage. He smiled, then he delivered a low, heartbreaking 'See? In the end, it's just you and me'. I've been subjected to Scarecrow's products before, but that scene was a... real nightmare."

Mindful of his injuries, Bruce hugged him tenderly.

"It's no more than that," the Bat comforted him. "No more than a nightmare. Nightmares vanish when dawn rises. No one here will ever abandon or forget you, Eddie. You are the reason I became this optimized version of myself. You are the reason we adopted our children. You are the reason we are a... family. I owe you my life in every sense of the term, I will never stop loving everything about you. Everybody loves you."

Bruce kissed him, framing his face to bring him closer. Edward melted into the delicate embrace.

He feels... loved. More than ever. Protected. Surrounded.

"If you want, I can carry you bridal style to the kitchen," Bruce rounded off after he quickly but efficiently summarized the recent damages: his left tibia is broken, the location of the break is neat, he should recover without lingering side effects.

It's not the first time one of them gets broken bones over an intervention, they know how to treat any type of injury and how to perform excellent rehab programs to fully recover once casts are removed.

"If you do that, the kids will take pictures and humor us forever about this," Eddie replied seriously whilst Bruce helped him standing with the crutches.

"They already make fun of... eveything about us, that won't be worse than the rest."

"... Fair."

It wasn't Steph or Lonnie, usually the most sassy birds of the family, who jested first, but Alfred.

"Dear Lord," the butler put a hand on his heart, a fake shocked expression on his wrinkled face. "I am so sorry to announce that master Edward, but... you're still the same. I'm afraid we couldn't fix anything."

Bruce laughed along with Steph, Jason and Lonnie whilst Edward rolled his eyes and Alina shook her head in an adorable disapproving manner. Charlie took out a chair to invite her dad to take a seat when Bruce finally put him back on the ground and Claire hugged Amy Eddie handed over to her, before giving her granddad a side hug. Claire is the cutest, moreover she looks so much like her mother physically speaking and in matter of general personality... except she relies on a softer temper, while Stephie was a little volcano when she was a child.

They were all just so precious.

"I insist Master Lonnie, no flour fight this morning," Alfred scooped up the bag of flour Starling stole while they served cookies, pastries, glasses of fruit juices and hot beverages for the nine residents.

Spoiler jumped to the marble countertop and meowed to attract someone's attention. Charlie pet her soft head then fed her butter before joining around the table.

"I love you all," Eddie whispered, lost in thoughts, his fingers entangled with Bruce's who sat next to him, Claire babbling on Batman's knees, his other hand clutching the handle of his cup of hot cocoat. "I love you all so, so much..."

Steph teased him about being a softie, Alfred put a track of flour on Lonnie's nose before confiscating the bag, what made Charlie chuckle, Jason discreetly stole a pumpkin cookie from Alina's breakfast plate...

The family atmosphere was so chaotic. It was so lovely.

His flock of bird-kids close, his bat-love next to him... is it what happiness looks like?

If so, then it really is a wonderful feeling. One Edward feels truly blessed to experience.

For once, he was happy to be wrong: little Edward Nashton assumed nobody will ever love him. Edward Wayne wakes up surrounded by his husband and children, his family who cares, loves and protects him every day and every night.

Bruce put a kiss on his temple.

"We love you, Eddie. All of us. Always."

"I know..."

He knows, and it is beautiful.

He knows, and the thought alone brings tears to his eyes.

He knows, and no one can rip that knowledge away from him.

Edward loves and is loved, by the best family one could ever dream to have.