Even if he was seeing it in front of him, Duke still had to pinch himself to see if he was dreaming or not. The young meta stood in the hallway looking through Damian's open door as he went about measuring, grumbling, and nailing things to his walls. Several sharp weapons were strewn about as the youngest Wayne was ensuring there were safety attachments to sheaths and much more. The cookie in Duke's hand was long forgotten. Lost for the fact that his little brother was putting safety foam to cover the sharp edges of his favorite katana. That way, it still could be on display, but if it fell from its stand, no danger would befall anyone who could be struck by it.
The whole situation was... astounding.
Duke couldn't look away.
Loud yawning broke the productive silence as Tim made his way out of his room. He noticed his meta brother staring at Damian's room a little further down the hall. "What's up? Y'know, if you keep staring into the abyss, the abyss will probably throw something sharp at you."
"Dude, you have to come see this...." Duke said without moving his eyes away from the impossibility before him. "I think... I think Damian might be broken."
Tim snorted a bit as he came up on Duke and peered into his little brother's room. "What gave it away? The fact that he grew up as an assassin or that he is a self-centered brat with a superiority complex?" As he spoke, he wrapped an arm around Duke's shoulders and took in the chaotic room before them. The only safe place was by the headboard of the bed. Sitting proudly on Damian's pillow, there was none other than the rock that Tim had seen last night. Only now, it rested snugly in a plush towel with every sharp implement several feet away from it. Damian had even taken down his favorite katanas that usually hung on the wall mounts above the bed. The boy sat at his desk, cutting several different foam shapes and fitting them onto an array of bladed weapons without sheaths. "Is he... is Damian safety-proofing his weapons...?" Tim asked incredulously.
"Yep."
"Willingly?"
"It appears so... wait, Tim!" Duke's eyes finally broke away from his little brother to the other black-haired teenager in the hallway. "Don't touch the doorframe-"
There was a startled cry as Tim was thrown away from the open door and smacked into the hallway wall on the opposite side. The wood where Tim's hand had touched crackled with electricity, and both boys heard the slight snicker Damian made from within.
"OKAY! What is up with that?!" Tim cried as he scrambled up from the floor. "He's safety-proofing his entire room, but the door frame is trapped!?"
"That's not the only part of the door that is dangerous," Duke said with a smirk while giving a cursory glance at the doorway as a whole. "Though you did manage to find the one that would hurt you the least, so good job...? Silver lining?"
Tim ignored his brother with a roll of his eyes and focused on what Damian was doing. "You think Alfred put him up to it? I remember he kept having his knives confiscated for attacking us all willy-nilly for a while."
"And Damian is just now listening to him about it?"
"Nah, you're right. Damian would hide them in better spots rather than put actual locks on his swords." They both fell silent and watched their brother in amazement for a few moments before Tim spoke up again. "So... how long has been doing this?"
Duke looked at the clock on his phone. "Well, at least an hour because I left my room about an hour ago but judging by that newly acquired glass cage on the wall... he's been doing this for a lot longer."
"I think you are correct, dude. Something broke, Damian... more so than he already was."
"Ha. Ha. You two sniveling idiots do realize that I can hear everything you say, right?" Damian growled out as he popped his head into view.
Tim smirked. "Absolutely."
"It's considered rude to talk about others when they aren't listening," Duke responded with a nod and a smile. Damian scoffed at his brothers and went back to work. "So, what has inspired you?" the meta asked while gesturing to the new safety features.
"Why would you care? I would think that out of everyone here; you two would be jumping for joy that my room is less of a hazard." Damian sneered as he stood up to put some of the weapons into their new safety cases. He paused for a moment to look over Danny's core and continued putting his room back together when he was satisfied the core was safe.
The two boys shared a look in the hallway when Damian had his back turned. Because of Damian's rather violent... first impression, Tim couldn't lie that seeing almost all of his little brother's weapons in proper safety cages or locked up relieved him a lot. The same could be said for Duke, who had also faced a rather violent first impression. However, the change was entirely out of the left field, and when Damian becomes determined about something... then there should be cause for worry. The boy has gotten better at being aggressive toward others, but he still has a long way to go. However, compared to what else he could be doing now, this was pretty chill for Damian.
Even if it was still weird.
"We were just wondering. You know that almost all of your weapons are not so easily on hand now... right?" Tim said as he looked around the room again before settling on the blue rock resting on Damian's pillow. "Are you doing this for someone or...?"
"No."
"Did someone ask you too-"
"No."
"Then why are you-" Duke began but was cut off by Damian.
"Look, I have a lot to do today, and you two are bothering me." the youngest Wayne walked up to his door and stared down at his two siblings. "So, if you don't mind?" When Damian gestured down the hall, and both boys' faces followed, he slammed the door closed. Leaving two distraught and concerned teenagers in the hallway, Damian began putting the rest of his stuff away. Anything dangerous was officially safe. "Now, once those two idiots are gone, I can head down to the Batcave to find a reinforced chain.... I can't believe it's already 11. I don't think I will make it to the library today."
The two black-haired teenagers lingered in front of Damian's doorway for about another ten minutes, then left. Their muffled words about his well-being descended into silence until they were out of range.
This was not how he had planned his day to go. Damian had vastly underestimated just how much dangerous stuff was in his possession when he started organizing it all at 7 am. It was all done now; it was time to head down to the Batcave. The young vigilante carefully put Danny's core in the pouch and headed down to the underground base without running into anyone else.
He then wandered over to where all the prototype and loose equipment was held and began to go through it. Surely, there was a perfect chain or rope that he could use that the links weren't as big as his fist. His father had reinvented just about everything. Anything that could be useful or give an edge during crime-fighting work was created, and even then... some things were developed and invented that had him wonder what Bruce was thinking. But planning was pretty much all the man knew, and if a bat fly swatter helped the man sleep at night, then Damian wasn't going to say anything about it.
You would think that Damian would have found something after about 2 hours of digging through old and new supplies. Nope. Nadda. Nothing. He found an old batshield and a chain that could drag a flying Superman down to earth but nothing that could be used as a necklace. "What is with all of this junk?!" Damian growled out of frustration and kicked the batshield so that it skittered out of sight.
"Master Damian? Mind telling me why you have decided to take it upon yourself to rearrange the armory?"
Damian fought down a surprised yelp and whirled around to see a rather unimpressed Alfred looking at him from the entrance. "Yes? Um- I mean, hello, Pennyworth. I was trying to find something, but I'm not having much luck."
"Something? Master Damian?"
His internal thoughts warred with each other as Damian debated whether he should show Alfred Danny's core. If he didn't, he would look suspicious, but if Damian showed the butler, then odds are he could assist in some way. Alfred always knew what everyone in the house needed and what to say when it needed to be said. His father may run the company, but this one man ran the entire family.
Damian squirmed for a moment while Alfred patiently waited for the boy to decide a course of action. He dug the pouch out of his pocket and showed Alfred without taking the core out. The shape was pretty obvious, and he let the butler make his own conclusion on what was in the pouch. "I'm trying to find a chain or something reliable to carry something fragile," Damian said while fumbling with the pouch a tiny bit. "Honestly, a good case would work, too, but I haven't been able to find something that works. This pouch helps carry but not protect."
"May I, Master Damian?" Alfred asked with his hand outstretched. The boy handed over the pouch with Danny's core, and Alfred hefted it a little in thought. However, he did not open the bag to see what was inside. "I agree, but I don't think we have a case small enough, at the moment, to house your treasure. As for a chain..." the elderly man dug into his pocket and pulled out his pocket watch.
"This is something Master Bruce has given me, and I have a few more, so do not worry," Alfred said as he unhooked the chain attached to the watch and replaced the pouch's drawstrings to turn it into a necklace. "The chain and clasps are made entirely out of tungsten. Not even Mr. Freeze's rays could shatter it, and Bane couldn't pull it apart no matter how much he tried. The leather pouch is the cause for concern at the moment." The butler handed the newly made necklace to Damian, who promptly put it on. The coolness of Danny's core permeates through the pouch with ease. "However, that can wait. I expect everything back in its proper place Master Damian and you up in the kitchen, post haste. You already missed lunch."
"Yes! I'll be up in a few minutes, Pennyworth... Thank you."
Alfred straightened up and gave Damian a wink before leaving the boy to clean up his mess.
The clean-up didn't take nearly as long as making the initial mess. Danny's core lightly bopped against Damian's chest occasionally, and it took some practice to move around without it swaying too much. But the practice was a must if he was going to get used to carrying it with him out on patrol, which he had to do tonight. So Damian tucked the necklace under his shirt and ran upstairs towards the kitchen.
Gotham's night crept up on the Wayne household. Soon it was time for bats and birds to take up their capes to begin their nightly protection of the populace. Three vigilantes sat atop a roof overlooking an abandoned warehouse below. Red Robin lowered his binoculars with a sigh as he hadn't seen any new movement since the three had arrived. Robin and Nightwing sat on the roof's edge on either side of him. The three were looking into a drug ring case that the Penguin was running, but it appeared their target hadn't shown up or moved locations.
"Should we go to the other side? Maybe we can get a better view of what's going on from there?...." Tim asked as he looked at his two brothers, only to stare at the youngest with a curious eye. "Robin, what are you doing?"
Damian held back a flinch and kept his eyes on the warehouse before them. His hand was idling, playing with the pocket on his utility belt that held the pouch with Danny's core. He needed to find a better way than the pocket for patrols, but for now, it was better than nothing. "Nothing. Just watching the warehouse."
"You brought it with you, didn't you?"
"Robin brought what now?" Nightwing asked. He used his height to peer over at the two teens next to him.
"Some stupid rock that he found out on patrol yesterday. Called it his egg." Tim muttered, making Nightwing snort. "You should have seen it, displayed so lovingly on his pillow this morning."
Damian bristled and stood up with a start. "Hey! It doesn't concern you! Why would it matter if I brought it with me anyway?"
"Awww, baby bat is being protective! Can I see it?"
"Hell, no!"
"Language."
"It's this perfect sphere that can fit in the palm of your hand. It's not stolen.-" Red Robin continued ignoring Damian's loud "HEY!". "I looked up the database for stolen gems and the like. It looks like nothing is missing that matches the rock's description. It's a pretty soft blue color-"
"...would you go so far as to say... that it's robin's egg blue?" Nightwing asked with a smirk.
"Y'know? I would say that would be perfect...." Tim started to nod his head, then sent the eldest a glare. "Oh hah hah. Hilarious, Dick."
The older hero was nearly doubled over on himself as snickers erupted from him. "Are you telling me that baby bat found a pretty rock that he is now carrying around with him? And he carried it with him all day too?"
"Yes."
"What of it?" Robin glowered at his siblings. "It's not like we haven't carried weirder stuff with us around."
"That's adorable!" Nightwing exclaimed as he pulled Robin into a tight one-armed hug. "So, what do you think will hatch from it? Oh! Will I get a niece or a nephew?"
Red Robin balked. "What are you going on about?! It's just a rock!"
"He said it was an egg, right? His egg?" Nightwing smiled while gesturing to Robin under his arm. "Then who is to say that it's not?"
"Because I saw it. There isn't anything special about-"
"Apparently, there is, or else he wouldn't have become attached to it." The taller vigilante released his little brother and knelt beside Red Robin's ear. "He's still an eleven-year-old kid. If he calls it an egg? It's an egg. Just roll with it. Let him have this." Nightwing whispered before standing to look at the warehouse again.
Tim grumbled to himself but didn't say anything further on the matter. Further ignoring Nightwing's comments on nieces and nephews when he catches sight of movement from the building. "GUYS, GET DOWN!" The three vigilantes drop flush with the roof as several bullets fly from the ground below.
Nightwing clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Well, this is rude. We were having such a nice family discussion too."
"For the love of God, could you please just focus." Red Robin grumbled as he crawled his way over to the opposite edge of the roof. "Can't you see we have something more important to deal with?"
"Something more important than finding out if I'm getting a niece or nephew? Not likely." the elder vigilante stated with authority before looking around to look for the youngest. "Uh... where is the other Robin?" Cries of outrage and pain sounded from below, and Nightwing peeked over the roof to see the youngest rinsing through the men on the ground with his katana. "Never mind, found 'im."
Red Robin groaned but went down with Nightwing to help his little brother take out the goons on the ground. Their stake-out mission was entirely up in the air now that they were exposed. "Bats isn't going to be happy about this." Together, the three vigilantes made their way through the warehouse with minimal injury... only to find out that the smuggling ring wasn't even in this building. "Great. We just wasted a lot of time for nothing."
"Nonsense! We cleaned up the streets a small bit. That has to be a win, right?" Nightwing stated with a smile while zip-tying the last man in place. "Yo, baby bat, how's my niece slash nephew doin?"
"Did you really just say 'slash' out loud?"
Robin rolled his eyes. "Do you think I am that incapable? No one touched me that entire fight." Still, when he didn't think the other two were looking, Damian peeked at Danny's core and nodded to himself when he saw it was fine.
"Well, Gotham police are on their way, but I doubt we will be able to locate the actual ring now that the cover has been blown so spectacularly." Red Robin said as he kicked a rock on the floor.
"Probably not, Red! But... all is not lost tonight." Nightwing pulled out a flash drive that one downed man had on them. "At least we have grounds for a possible new lead." The three made their way out of the warehouse as sirens began to close in. "So, baby bat, when do you think it will hatch?"
"I swear to all that is holy-" Red Robin stopped himself before he said something crass. "Y'know what? I need coffee."
"I have no idea," Robin said with a shrug, only to get a bark of incredulous laughter from Tim. "What?"
"Don't humor him! It'll only make it worse!"
Nightwing's grin grew impossibly wide. "No! Humor me! I want to know more about Robin's egg!"
"I swear, the first chance I get, that rock is going in the tra-OW!" Red Robin's head sailed forward, and he almost ate brick when Damian smacked the back of his head. "What was that for?"
"You aren't touching him," Robin growled at his adopted brother before sailing over to the next roof to start the trek home.
Nightwing patted Red Robin on the shoulder with a snicker. "As I said, T. Let him have this." Then the eldest sailed right after the youngest, calling, "Wait for me! So you think it will be a boy?"
Tim groaned loudly to himself.
He was going to get a coffee.