Disclaimer: I do not own Batman or any of the characters.
So this is my first Batman fanfiction. I watched Young Justice got hooked on Dick Grayson so I watched other shows and read a few comics.
By the way I change some things. I know that they live in Wayne Towers but in my stories they live in the mansion. Dick and Alfred names change depending if it's from Damian's POV or not. Hope you enjoy, criticism is welcome.
The spacious room was completely dark within; windows covered and lights turned off as the youngest child of the Wayne family slept. That is until someone threw open the drapes and lit up the room. Damian growled as sunlight brightened the room, waking him from a deep sleep. He opened his eyes, squinting through the light to see the figure standing at the foot of his bed.
"Go away Pennyworth." Damian muttered sleepily as he pulled the covers over his head.
"I am afraid I cannot do that Master Damian," Alfred said as he walked around the bed towards the door, "Master Richard sent me to wake you for school."
At this Damian pulled the cover back revealing his blank expression. The ex-assassin was confused, though he didn't show it. Grayson always woke him up on school days, usually by slamming open Damian's door and yelling good morning with that stupid smile of his. Pennyworth only woke him on weekends.
'Grayson probably had to go into the office early because he's been slacking again.' Damian scoffed mentally as he got out of bed and began to get ready.
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Damian sat down at the table to wait for breakfast and quickly read through the storybook that was supposed to be his classes reading homework for the week. Fourth grade was just too easy, it was child's play; Damian was no child. The sound of a chair being pulled out roused Damian from his mental grumbling.
He felt his eyes unconsciously widen as Grayson sat down for breakfast. Grayson never just sat down. He would always chat with Pennyworth, try and steal a bite of something before it was served, and he always said good morning to everyone when he entered the kitchen. This morning he'd done none of the above.
Not that Damian was complaining. Grayson's friendly social tendencies were extremely annoying…but they had become a morning routine for Damian. Suddenly having Grayson quiet was unsettling to say the least. Damian turned to face him determined to know the reason for his change.
"What's wrong Grayson? Did one of your girlfriends stand you up?" Damian tried to make his words sound spiteful but anyone who knew the young boy well enough would hear the underlying concern.
Dick looked up blankly from the table he'd been staring at. "Nothing's wrong Damian," He said as Alfred approached with breakfast, Grayson grimaced at the food before saying, "None for me Alfred I…have to go." He waved the butler off before getting up and leaving.
To say Damian was shocked would be an understatement; he was dumbstruck. Grayson didn't smile, he didn't say goodbye, and he had refused food. Something was very wrong with him and Damian had no idea what. His face must have showed his internal distress because as Pennyworth put his breakfast down he said,
"You are no doubt wondering whatever the matter with Master Richard is." As Damian composed his face and nodded Alfred sighed, "Today is anniversary of Master Richard's parent's deaths," Seeing Damian looking a little baffled he went on, "His parents John and Mary Grayson were killed in front of him when he was a bit younger then you. He was very close to them, and to this day their deaths cause him immeasurable grief."
As Damian ate he mulled this new information over. Grief was a believable answer for Grayson's behavior since he was such a bleeding heart. But if his parents had died so long ago, could he really still be grieving? Did it really hurt you so much to lose a loved one? Damian wondered while being driven to school. He wouldn't know. He'd never loved someone. He'd respected his father but he barely knew him. Grayson's situation confused Damian and although he quickly dismissed the thought, he couldn't help but wonder if it would hurt him when Grayson died.
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The drive home from school was silent. Alfred drove while Damian planned his conversation with Dick, whose grieving had led Damian to question some things that he'd learned as an assassin. By the time they'd arrived back at the mansion Damian knew everything that he would as Dick.
Damian wandered through the manor making sure to check every room, including the Batcave, but he found no sign of Grayson. He became a little… worried as he continued to search for his brother. Damian knew Grayson was home and emotionally unstable. He may have done something foolish because of his fragile state. Finally deciding that his search was going nowhere, Damian went to ask Alfred about Dick's whereabouts.
"Pennyworth," Damian said as he spotted the butler dusting a picture frame, "where is Grayson?" The boy's demeanor making it clear that he was demanding an answer.
Alfred turned towards the boy, eyebrows raised, and announced, "Master Richard, to the best of my knowledge, is currently visiting Wayne Manor's cemetery." Alfred then went to resume dusting as Damian went to find Dick.
Damian walked quickly over the grounds of Wayne Manor. He knew where the cemetery was. He'd gone there once himself to see his grandparent's graves. Looking back now he did remember seeing two other graves but he had dismissed them as unimportant. Now he made his way into the clearing that was the graveyard and froze.
There, crouched beside the graves that now numbered five, was Grayson. He had his hand on one of them and he was shaking. No…not shaking, he was sobbing! Damian felt his mouth drop open. Dick Grayson, the first robin, the current batman, the smiling big brother, was on the ground sobbing! A Batman shedding tears went against everything Damian had ever learned about the Dark Knight and Dick Grayson crying just seemed wrong. Was losing a loved one so painful that it could cause a happy person like Grayson to cry?
Damian knew he should do something; leave or offer some form of comfort. But Damian had never seen someone close to him cry; he had no idea how to approach this. So he just stood there and watched as Grayson's shoulders shook with silent sobs. Slowly Grayson's sobs began to fade and the tears stopped flowing. It was then that he noticed Damian.
"Damian, come here." Dick didn't look up from the graves as he spoke. Although Dick's voice was soft Damian was still hesitant as he approached, not sure if Dick was angry with him.
When Damian joins him beside the graves Dick looks up and offers him a weak smile. "Damian, meet my parents." Dick took a breath to collect himself before continuing, "Mom. Dad. This is my youngest brother, Damian. I'm sort of looking after him now so I thought you should meet him." Dick gave the confused boy another weak smile.
Damian looks at the two graves for a moment before returning his eyes to Dick's, his brow furrowed in confusion. "Why are you introducing me to the graves of your dead parents?" Damian asked, noting with a twinge of guilt how Dick flinched slightly when Damian referred to his parents as dead.
Dick looks away and sighs before returning his gaze to hold Damian's. "People you love who die…they're…never really gone." Seeing Damian confused once more, Dick tries to find a better explanation.
"Sometimes, when you're lonely, you'll suddenly feel like you're not alone. When you do something great you can almost feel their hand on your shoulder; you can almost hear their voice whisper in your ear, filled with pride. The people we love and the people who love us, they're always watching over us Damian." Dick finished his speech, looking over at the newest grave in the cemetery.
Damian followed Dick's eyes to where they rested on Bruce's grave. Damian stared at his father's grave for a long time, trying to understand Dick's words. The concept of the dead still watching over the living wasn't one Damian had heard in the league of assassins. Finally he stirred, turning from the grave and looking at the ground he quietly asked,
"Do you think that father is still with us, watching over us?" A small red flush appeared on the boy's cheeks, embarrassed to have voiced his thoughts out loud.
Dick however smiles at the question; his first real smile of the day. He gets up, still smiling, and pulls his little brother against his side with one arm. The younger Wayne began to struggle but stopped when Dick spoke.
"Yeah, Bruce is still with us." Dick squeezes Damian's shoulder as his grin widens. "In fact, I think I see a bit of him right here," tapping Damian on the chest before tapping himself on the chest, "and right here."
Damian flushed once more but instead of turning away or twisting out of Dick's embrace he allowed the arm to stay around his shoulders as he turned his face into Dick's chest. The two brothers stood together until the sun began to set, then they slowly made their way back to the mansion; Dick's arm still circled around his little brother's shoulders.