-Part requested by Honeyboo_02 -
-I put so much effort into this lol-
"Hey Conner." Dick approached his new big/little brother at the breakfast table, pouring a bowl of Cheerios.
He was thrilled to no longer be the newest brother. I mean, he was still the youngest. kind of. I mean Conner was technically less than a year old, hence 'big/little brother', but regardless, he now got the satisfaction of being more experienced than one of his brothers
He still couldn't imagine doing to Conner what Jason had done to him: vaseline on his pillowcase, tabasco sauce on his fingertips while he slept, locking him in the bathroom all night... all of the bat bros were experts at psychological torture.
Conner glanced up from his placemat with no indication of how thrilled he was to be addressed by another bipedal creature. "Hey."
"Super-child." Jason said, entering from the kitchen and almost swatting the back of Conner's head, but deciding at the last minute that it may be dangerous. "We need a new hero name for you, pal."
"Why?"
"Uh, cause you're a bat now!" Jason said, like it was obvious. "You need a bat-name. Or at least a bird-name. Besides, do you really want to go around being called 'Superboy?' Your whole life?"
"I don't know." Conner replied, continuing his pattern of milk-toast replies. He really didn't want to fuck it up in this new family he'd been gifted with.
"Well don't worry, besides, you don't need to worry so much about renouncing your super-title anymore since Clark decided to pull his head out of his ass." Dick said, reassuringly, as he walked into the kitchen. "Alfred! Jason finished the milk again!"
"Ha! Suck a dick." Jason told him.
Conner wasn't sure about what Robin had said, he was still on board to resign from his position as Superman's clone, and apply for a position as Batman's newest kid. Though he doubted Dick would give up his title as Robin willingly. Maybe he could take it by force.
"How about Superbat? or SUPERROBIN?" Dick suggested. "Hey maybe we could we feed an AI a bunch of Bat and Super things and generate a new name?"
"I don't know." Conner replied, although he assumed that they could.
"We probably can after school, but-" Dick burst out from the kitchen in a fury, slapping Jason with a palmful of barbeque sauce. "Quit drinking all the milk, fuckface."
"ALFRED! DICK'S BULLYING ME!"
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School was an awkward situation, Conner still attended Happy Harbor High, Dick attended Gotham Academy, and Jason just stopped attending Gotham Academy.
"Hey! How was baby school?"
"Jason, you only graduated last week."
"But I'm not in high school anymore." Jason boasted. "I'm out of the kennel, puppy, and you're still in there!"
"Don't call me puppy." Dick hit the whoa in despair. "Cause that's weird."
"You still have to get up early and do homework, and you still need to ask adults just to take a piss!" Jason gloated, almost crashing the car a few times. "Now I've graduated! Now I only ask to piss because I like to!"
Dick snorted. Jason knew exactly how to make his little brother laugh. He liked to pepper in making him laugh occasionally amongst all the teasing, prodding, and wrestling.
Honestly, Jason 's grad HAD been sick, because for the most part all the teens/adults just got drunk and had a good time celebrating Jason for accomplishing something.
"Jason's weird, right Conner?"
"What?" Conner, who they'd just picked up from the zetabeam in mid-Gotham, looked up from his phone in the back seat. "Yeah. I guess."
"See, Conner knows."
"Because he understands normalcy?" Jason asked, scoffing sarcasm. "He- I'll give my opinion on Conner's normalcy when we get home."
"Why?" Conner asked, stiffly.
"I don't want to crash the car or get my ass kicked while driving. but I'll explain how 'normal' you are when we get there."
"Just tell me now." Conner growled.
"Jay's just being an asshole to get under your skin." Dick told him. It's all fine for Jason to poke fun at them, they'd been brothers forever! But they'd been brothers with Conner for, like, a month! They were not yet close enough for that shit.
They were in that awkward middle-phase that tends to happen when your dad adopts one of your friends to be your brother, and you don't know how to interact.
It was a little too early to start bullying him, but a little too late to be addressing him by his first name. It was awkward, he didn't participate too much in family stuff, but still lived there, so it was pretty damn weird.
Conner would leave early to go to the mountain so he and Dick wouldn't enter together. The team knew that Bats had forcefully adopted him, but no one was really saying anything about it. Not in front of the too of them, at least.
"Alright, out." Jason parked the car and unbuckled.
"Did you get snacks for game night?" Dick asked.
Jason heaved a groan. "I'll get 'em."
"Game night?" Conner asked unsurely.
"We have them on the last Friday of every month. It's usually tough to arrange meet-ups nowadays, so we all schedule a night off, and Damian and Tim come over and stuff."
"Oh."
"What snacks do you guys want?" Jason asked.
"Ketchup chips?" Dick asked.
"NO. Alfred will lynch me."
"Alright, uh, Sour Patch Kids and, like, I dunno. Chocolate? What do you want, Con?"
"I don't know."
Jason nodded and started to back out. "WAIT!" He rolled down his window. "YOU'RE WEIRD." He rolled up the window and peeled off.
"Come on! Let's ask Alfred for a snack!" Dick said quietly, watching Con crunch his fists closed. He hurried inside. Conner had yet to rampage in the manor, only a few short yelling fits and a couple shattered dishware and vases. Dick was dreading the moment when Conner would inevitably snap. Even if the people survived, the sure manor wouldn't, and Alfred and Clark could have their 'I told you so' moment. Which sucked. It would suck for Conner to go back to living alone with no family, plus it would be super awkward on the team...
"Is your game night like team game night?"
"Kind of. Except there is no escape from the adult chaperones." Dick explained. "Also, less strip-Uno." He laughed, kicking off his shoes and leading the way to the kitchen. "Hey Alfred. Can we have a snack?"
"Certainly, master Dick. Do you want the same, Mster Conner."
"It's just Conner."
Ah yes, the two had been in a 'Master Conner' vs. 'It's just Conner!' battle for the whole month. Alfred could outlast, though, he'd had this same battle with Jason and it lasted, like, a year. That was when Jason was in forth grade, and Jason just graduated. Yes, it said 'Master Jason' on his card.
One of his cards, at least, since half of the League went to his grad, as did Roy, Wally, Selina and the other Sirens (That was fun), The Riddler (still fun, but also weird), and his family.
"Has Master Jason gotten food for your night?"
"He's doing that now." Dick replied.
Conner kneeled on the tile. "WOLF!" He whistled, and waited. In about twenty seconds, the HUGE dog, galloped around the corner, Ace and Titus on his heels, panting and barking at Conner. The beast knocked him down and drowned him. "You want a treat, boy?"
The creature barked and began nosing the pocket Conner always had Milkbones in. The other dogs had caught onto this too, because the three of them were always swarming him.
"Your pet has been eating off the counters." Alfred told him sternly. It was hard enough to stop Titus, Ace and Jason from eating off the tables, let alone a feral wolf who was 6"5 on all fours.
"Wolf's a good boy!" Conner insisted sharply, holding the Dog's head in a protective bear hug. He kept getting worried they'd try to make him leave Wolf at the mountain.
Dick took his plate of snacks from Alfred. "When are the others coming over?"
"I believe Master Damian and Master Tim are arriving shortly before dinner, and I heard Master Clark will be here later during the night."
"He's coming?" Conner asked stiffly, pausing from his chore of feeding/talking to the dogs like a Disney princess.
"He has been for about half a year." Dick explained quickly. "We can... tell him not to come, if you want?"
They really hadn't thought through how this would go. Things were tense between Conner and Clark to say the least. Clark just kept saying that he 'needed time to think'. I mean, Conner had been around for like, ten months, so they were all getting a bit fed up. To quote Damian: 'HOW MUCH TIME DOES HE NEED TO THINK? IT'S A CHILD!'
That quote was greeted with one of Tim's: 'He won't think until Bruce confirms that he doesn't need to pay Superboy child-support'.
At the time Dick had scoffed, because Conner was about a month old at that point and they all thought it'd get better. I mean, it kind of had gotten better, but in a very specific, skewed, way.
"I don't know." Conner said in that same monotone voice that he always said it. He did seem weirdly intimidated by the family of bats he was being dragged into. He gave Titus the last biscuit and gave Wolf a complimentary ear-ruffle.
"We were gonna do something today, we were gonna...."
"Feed hero names to Artificial Intelligence."
"THAT WAS IT!" The thirteen-year-old perked up. "Hey Alfred, we're gonna make Conner a new hero name. You know, to fit the gothic theming!"
"Is this to say that Master Bruce has finally agreed to let you escort your friend on Patrol?"
"No... but I bet he will soon!" Dick tried to keep positive. "C'mon, Con! Start thinking up names and We'll slap 'em into a computer..."
"That would better not be the batcomputer you boys are talking about."
"....no." Dick replied. "Come On!" He took off, leaving Superboy to trail after him like a lost puppy. Conner wasn't exactly allowed in the batcave, but Dick wasn't exactly allowed on the roof, and he was up there all the time!
Plus, if he was going to be a member of the family, he had to visit the batcave.
"Can Wolf go to the batcave?"
"I'm, uh, not sure he can fit in the elevator." Dick replied. "But hell yeah, let's try!"
The boys pushed themselves to the side and whistled. It was a tight squeeze through the clock-frame, but Wolf could fit inside so long as he sat in the center. Dick promised to send the lift up for Titus and Ace, and they went down, Wolf bowing his head to poke the teens with his big wet nose.
Luckily, the cave was devoid of bats, at least, the man variety. There were still plently of non-human bats for the dogs to chase. Wolf barked and sprinted after one, toppling some gear.
"Wolf!"
"Careful boy!" Dick called, laze fare, jaunting over to the batcomputer. "So, what heroes are we modeling you after?"
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The boys hadn't had much success, they filled the AI with names like those of the batfam, random krypton-esque words, Black Canary (Because she was still his idol), as well as the names of various birds, and some gothic-sounding words.
All this and the only thing they got was yelled at for letting Conner and Wolf into the cave. Bruce didn't seem thrilled about white wolf-hair all over the cave.
Bruce and Clark had a fight after he chose to adopt Conner, and even tough they'd reconciled it was still a little rocky for him to find Clark's literal clone breaking the rules.
"So, Sour Patch Kids, Twix bites, Twizzlers, Pepsi, and Flamin' hot Cheetos." Jason rattled off. "Do you think that's enough?"
"Too much." Damian replied, setting things up around the living room. He acted standoffish, but living adult life without his army of little brothers made these moments very worth it. Even if they were the worst, and even if his father just adopted a new one, he loved the hell out of them.
"TIM!" Dick jumped up as the doorbell rang. He raced into the foyer and tore the door open. "Hi! C'mon, we're gonna start a game!"
"-hold on! Let me see my little brother!" Tim stepped in, kicking off his shoes. "How's school? How's Wally? is Conner settling in well? How did your exam go?"
"Tim, I saw you last week at Jay's grad!" Dick rolled his eyes. "But: School's fine, Wally is flirty but still fine, Conner is settling fine, and the exam went fine. Come on!"
Tim snorted, being guided to the drawing room. "What game?"
"Same as always." Dick grinned, settling in his spot by the Monopoly board. The game was made for them, not only were they literally rich, but they were also dysfunctional and the game was perfect for fighting siblings.
Bruce always won when they were little, so the boys would had to team-up, but Damian was getting better, so he was a threat now, too.
"Hi Bruce!"
"Tim."
"Is... you know, he coming?" Tim tried not to say Clark's name since Superboy was there and he didn't want to make him uncomfortable.
"Yes, Clark is coming." Bruce said.
"Okay." Tim sat down. "Dibs on the Thimble." He took the playing piece.
Dick grabbed the boot piece. He always used the boot. It looked like one of the good old pixie boots. Damian reached out for the dog piece. Dick shook his head at the oldest brother "I uh, think Conner wanted the dog piece."
Conner stayed cross-legged on the floor, staring into the carpet. He would rather mope in silent contempt than get the piece he wanted from Nightwing.
Damian tossed the piece back and silently grabbed the little silver car. Relying on Dogs for emotional support was his brand long before this Superboy was even 'born'. But Damian was a big brother to four, six if you counted the batgirls, and he had learned to handle new brothers taking his things.
Bruce grabbed the top hat. That was his piece. He always used the top hat from the moment he first taught Damian how unfair capitalism is. Damian was like eight at the time, and Bruce was pretty sure his son was still holding a grudge because of that game.
"Well put these ones aside for Clark to pick..." Tim set the remaining pieces aside. "Shall we start?"
"Youngest goes first!" Dick announced.
"That's Conner now!" Jason shoved Cheetos in his mouth. "He's a baby."
"Well I'm physically the youngest."
"Before we start monopoly, how about a little debate to warm up?" Jason cracked his knuckles. "Cause I WILL fight you on this. I'm a high school graduate and you're a freshmen, so good luck!"
"Jason, those are some bold words considering that you're in a room with a College student." Tim pointed at himself. "A college graduate, a collage graduate with a master's degree- WHO IS BATMAN, and a kid with an encyclopedia programmed into his brain."
"Conner doesn't know shit!" Jason protested. "C'mon Dickie, debate me!"
"I should go first because I'm your brother."
"Well Conner's your brother now too."
"Because I always go first." Dick justified. "Sorry Conner."
"I want Robin to go first." Conner said. The truth was he'd never played Monopoly, but they seemed really into it. He would let Dick go first, and just copy him.
Dick rolled the dice, got an eight, and moved his piece eight spaces. He decided not to buy. Conner took the dice that were thrust at him, rolled a five, and moved his piece eight spaces.
"No Con, you only rolled a five, so you move five spaces." Dick explained. Pushing Conner's icon back a few squares. "You wanna buy?"
"No." He replied. He didn't know why he was being offered fictional property, or being given fictional money, but he did know that if you roll eight, you go forwards eight squares, and if you roll a five, you go forward five squares. Honestly, that was overwhelming enough as far as information went. He stroked Wolf's head on his lap.
The next round, he and Dick moved their pieces forwards four places, but Dick insisted Conner move forwards another eight because he rolled a twelve. Conner was pretty sure he was getting the hang of it, but kept watching Dick. This time Dick said he'd buy, so Conner did the same, exchanging fake money for a property card with no inherent value.
They made a couple rounds, with the others getting more and more furious, Conner getting more and more confused and distressed, and Bruce getting more and more cocky about surpassing his sons in fictional money.
By the time Clark arrived, it was utter chaos: Tim and Dick were wrestling as Jason heckled them. Damian glared his father down, telling the old man he was about to meet his maker. Conner was staring at the carpet, breathing hard, and refusing to interact outside of moving game pieces.
"You should find another family game."
"We always play monopoly, it teaches the boys a good lesson."
"It'll be teaching you a lesson tonight." Damian told him.
"Damian, I've been making over six figures a year since you were in diapers."
"From a business you inherited."
"Everyone started this this game with some money, but I've tripled mine, and Jason's broke, what does that tell you?"
"That you're an unethical business owner who exploits their employees?"
"Isn't this a family game night?" Clark asked.
"FUCK HIM UP, DICK!" Jason cheered. "Just like that training simulation fucked you up!"
"TIM SHOULDN'T BE THE BANKER!"
"YOU SHOULD? I DON'T THINK YOU CAN EVEN COUNT YET!"
"OOH! GIT IT TIM!"
"SHUT UP! SHUP UP! SHUT UP!" Conner stomped off the floor, hands over his ears. Shouting loud enough to pop his own eardrums. "SHut Up." He stormed out, accidently stepping through the glass-topped coffee table, shattering it.
The bats, and the very confused Clark, exchanged looks. Conner had been very quiet for most of the game, for such an easily riled up kid, he sure stayed quiet as everyone else got riled up. What made him explode? They didn't even address him.
"That's not good." Tim remarked, no longer fighting his darling little brother.
Dick got up too. "Do you think this is it? the BIG Break?"
"That's some sharp glass to mix into cereal." Jason added.
Bruce stood up. "We should stop Conner before he runs into Alfred and the poor kid gets hurt."
"What do we do?" Tim asked.
"Conner?" Dick squirmed out from under his brother on the carpet and wandered out, Wolf picking himself up at the bird's side. The house was too quiet. Unsettlingly quiet, all things considered. Dick hugged Wolf, she was a good foot taller than him. "Where'd he go boy?"
Wolf tentatively lead the way to the stairs, Dick and a couple others heeling obediently at his side. Wolf sniffed and listened, and sniffed some more, leading them eventually, to Conner's room. More specifically, to his closed, dark, closet.
"Is that it?" Jason asked.
"Shh!" Tim mouthed 'Superhearing'.
Dick rested his fingers on the closet door. "Conner? you in there?" He whispered
Wolf let out a little whimper, and jammed his nose at the crack under the door. He knew Conner was in there.
"Boys. Go back downstairs." Bruce told them, joining them in the doorway.
"But-"
"I gave Clark my role, so you can play with him. I'll handle it up here."
The brothers glanced at each other. "I- I guess." Dick relented. He hoped Bruce wouldn't hurt Conner. He was the new brother, and Dick had already gotten him in trouble today. "Talk quiet."
"I know." Bruce stepped aside and watched the boys file out. Wolf didn't leave, loyal as the beast was, so Bruce just closed the door after him and crept over to the closet door. He employed the same technique that always worked when Dick was still very little.
"Conner, I'm going to stay here and keep Wolf company until you're ready to talk."
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The game had gotten more peaceful than any game with the bats ever got. Alfred was surprised the shattered table was on accident, and not one of the boys (Jason) acting on rage, he cleaned up promptly since Dick was barefoot.
Clark could play games without getting competitive, which was pleasant, and after Conner's meltdown, they'd decided to retire the screaming for a couple hours.
They were sure that the Superboy and Bruce had left for the evening, so imagine their bemusement when the two- and Wolf, returned. Their father had a hand on Conner's shoulder, he sat the boy next to Dick and Jason, and rejoined Clark.
"How did you do that?"
"He's not impossible. I am a father of four-five." Bruce corrected.
Across the table, Dick blew the rest of his money on a property card. "Hey! what about Canaryboy?"
"Are you kidding? Red Krypton sounds SICK." Jason corrected.
"Let's play." Conner croaked, slowly getting reassured by the dog's chin resting on his head, and the soft, joking voices of his new family.