Warning: Signs of PTSD; please read at your own risk. Story Inspired by my Head Canon that Garfield suffers from PTSD later in his life.
"Come on Daddy! I want to see the fireworks!" A five year old girl with pale white skin, dark black hair and deep blue eyes hollered at her father as she yanked on his arm, pulling him in the direction of the bay.
"Hold on, Pup! We have to try and find your mother and brother first." Her father told her as he pulled her back towards him. His head began spinning around, scanning the large crowd for his extra normal looking wife and son. He too had white skin, but his was much more tanned than his daughters. His hair was a dirty blonde color and his eyes were a striking emerald. Thanks to his odd blonde hair and green eyed combination, he was easy to pick out of a crowd, but the same couldn't be said about his wife. With the hollo rings they were all wearing, his wife matched his daughter and son's appearance perfectly. All three of them having the same black hair and blue eyes.
"Daddy! Hurry up! I's wants to go see the fireworks!" The little girl whined, tugging at his arm once again.
"Now don't you start, Maria!" Her father scolded. "I told you we have to find Mama and Mark first, then we'll all go see the fireworks together.
Letting go of his arm with a huff, she crossed her arms and began to pout, but she didn't dare question her father further. She could tell he was beginning to get frustrated and knew if she pushed any further he would get mad at her, and her father's anger was not something she liked (especially towards her).
After calming his daughter down some, he began to look around again. They were standing in the middle of the make shift food court. Tents with people cooking every kind of meat and hungry customers waiting their turn to try the greasy or fried meals surrounded them. It took everything he had to keep himself from gaging at the smell. The hollo ring around his finger may have stunted his powers, but he could still smell the intoxicating sent of dead animal. It was sicken, so he tried his best to keep himself from thinking about it.
However, he was starting to wish he had his super animal senses to make finding his wife and other child easier. He reached into his Jean pocket and pulled out his communicator. He made sure to cover the Teen Titan logo so that no one would suspect anything. He check his messages for any sign of a text from his wife, updating him on her location. Unfortunately, the newest message was when she had told him to meet her by the food area. That had been almost 15 minutes ago. Just as his patience began to wane, he felt something bump into his leg. Looking down, he saw two tiny arms wrapped tightly around his leg.
"Daddy!" Mark cheered as he met his father's gaze, arms still wrapped securely around his father's leg.
"Hey there, Buddy!" The older man welcomed his son. He reached down and shook his hand in the little boy's hair, messing it up in the process.
"Mark...please release your father." The sound of his wife's monotone voice made the man look up from his son, only to find his wife walking up to them.
"Finally!" Maria moaned. "Can please go now, Daddy?" She begged.
"Sorry we took so long, Gar." His wife told him before he could reply to his daughter. "We were having trouble finding you in this terrible crowd." She sent a scowl to the mob of people around, but no one seemed to notice her irritation.
"It's alright Rae, we were having an even harder time trying to find you two." He said.
"Daddy! Fireworks!" Maria cried as she stomped her feet in frustration.
"Alright, alright, we'll go see the fireworks!" Gar finally gave in.
"Yay!" Maria cheered and grabbed Gar's hand and began dragging him again towards the park where the firework show would be held. Mark traded his father's leg for his hand and copied his twin sister. Raven let out a small laugh, practically a giggle, and quickly followed the three.
When they had finally arrived at their destination, the adults began their search for a spot to sit down and watch the show. The fireworks were due to start in about 10 minutes, so the area right off the bay was already packed with people in their chairs or on their blankets. As the adults looked around, Mark and Maria were able to locate a spot and the two of them made a dash for it, leaving their parents far behind. When Raven noticed them running off, she grabbed Garfield's bicep and pulled him with her as she ran after the two youngsters.
"Dang it, Raven! I swear if one more person drags me again I'm going to lose it!" Gar complained when they met their two children at the only vacant spot left. It wasn't the best spot due to how far back it was from the bay and how all the chairs in front would block a person's view of the bay entirely, but it was a spot none the less.
Raven took the large blanket she had tucked under her arm and unfolded it. Gently, she set it on the ground and the small family all sat down and made themselves as comfy as possible. Raven snuggled up to Gar and the twins sat in each parent's lap, Mark in Raven's and Maria in Gar's. Suddenly, a blast sounded followed by a burst of red, white, and blue colors lighting up the dark sky. At the sound of the blast Garfield visibly flinched. The sound matched the sound of gun shots perfectly, which was terrifying.
Instead of being able to enjoy the looks on his children's faces as they watched in wonder at their first firework show, Garfield was fighting a mental battle. With every blast of a rocket came an image of his most recent death defying fight. He had led a mission with his training team. It was supposed to be an easy mission, a simple robbery, but things turned south quickly when the police failed to mention the robbers were armed. Not wanting to let the young teens on his team get in the line of fire, Gar did most of the work on the front line. Gun shots rang in the air and the sound mixed with the powerful smell of gun powder overwhelmed the green hero and in his dazed state he became on easy target. If it weren't for his beast coming out and taking out all the gun men within five minutes, he very well could have been killed. Although he made it out alive, he most definitely didn't leave unscathed. He had been shot twice in his leg and once in his shoulder. He had spent a week in the hospital and he had to have two months of physical therapy with Cyborg. It would have been longer if it weren't for Raven constantly trying to heal him.
The whole ordeal had been over for about six months now, and he had thought everything would go back to normal. Yet here he was, trying to spend some quality family time and failing miserably at it. Gar grabbed his ears and tried to block out the sound of the booming fireworks, but it didn't work. All he could hear was shots being fired. His sight became clouded as the attack at the bank played over and over in his mind. Suddenly, he pushed Maria off his lap, scaring the little girl in the process. He turned so that he was on his hands and knees. He began to paw at the ground and his eyes became dialed. His breathing quickened, as did his heartbeat.
Raven was in shock at first when she watched her husband harshly shove their daughter off his lap, but when she saw him get in his hands and knees and witness his eyes dilating and his breathing quickening, she knew exactly what was happening. The people closest to them started given them odd and concerned looks. Afraid that her husband would soon lose control, Raven slipped off her hollo ring and before anyone could register who she was, she used her powers to teleport all four of them back to the tower they called home.
They landed on the floor and Garfield started grabbing his chest and letting out of mix of panting and growling. Terrified at what was happening, the twins quickly ran to their mother's side.
"Mama, what's wrong with Daddy?" Maria asked, her voice quivering.
Raven glanced down at her daughter than to her son. Mark's face showed he had the same question. "Daddy is...is..." Raven tried to think up of something quick that their young minds would be able to understand. "He's um...scared! Yes, he's scared of um fireworks!" She explained.
She then left their side to help Garfield who was now lying on his stomach, his hands over his head as he whined and whimpered like a scared dog.
"Gar...Garfield it's me. Whatever is going on in that head of yours, it's not real. It's not real ok? I'm real and your kids are real, and I...um...I need your help...I need your help...giving them...a bath. Can you do that for me Gar? Can you help me give them their baths?" Raven asked in a soothing, yet worried voice as she knelt down beside him and gently ran her hand through his hair. Gar froze at the touch, his eyes were squeezed shut and he was hands were gripping the sides of his head. His claws would have been out if he weren't still wearing his hollo ring. Raven watched helplessly as he fought the inward battle ragging on in his mind. It was only a few moments that had passed, but it felt like an entirety when he finally slowed is breathing. As his breathing and his heartbeat slowed down, his face gently relaxed. After lying still for a little longer, Garfield was able to slowly open his eyes. His gaze was met by the concerned, almost teary-eyed wife's. Seeing his wife in such a terrified state, he quickly released his head and bolted up right. Looking around, he took in his new surroundings.
"I'm in the common room. Raven must have brought us here. Wait us! The kids! Where are the- oh! There they are. Good. Good. Oh no. They're upset. And Raven, she's upset."
"Rae?" I choked out, my voice coming out raspy and confused.
"It's ok, Gar. I'm right here. We're safe, I promise." She comforted, getting closer to him and pulling his head into her chest, running her hands through his messing hair once again. It was that simply action that set him into a fit of tears. He was scared, confused, but most of all, he felt guilty for the pain he had put his kids and wife through.
The two of them sat there, on the ground, as she allowed him to sob into her chest and shoulder. As Garfield cried in her arms, he felt someone else's arms wrap around his middle from behind. Turning slightly away from the shelter of Raven's embrace, Garfield saw not just two, but four arms wrapped around him. The two children looked up at him with sad faces.
"Daddy, please don't be scared. The fireworks are all gone now." His daughter told him, hoping this simply fact would be enough to calm her father down.
Letting a small smile graze his face, Garfield turned completely around, forcing his kids to let go of him. They watched their father expectantly. Looking down upon his son and daughter, Gar's smile grew and he throw his strong arms around them both and pulled them in for a hug.
"I love you two so much. Don't worry, Daddy isn't scared anymore." He promised them. He let them both go and turned to his wife, who was watching lovingly at the exchange.
"So Rae, you said something about a bath?" He asked her. She nodded and called the twins over to her, leading them in the direction of the door that led to the bathroom. Garfield stood up and slipped off his hollo ring, revealing his dark green skin and hair. Carefully, he ran his fingers over his shoulder, then he bent down and did the same to his leg. Satisfied that he was indeed unharmed, he made his way out of the common room to catch up with his family.