jacksparrowlovesme - I cannot wait for the next chapter in your story. I'm jonesing over here!
Well, JannaKalderash, you asked for it. So I give you...
Bruce Wayne Goes Christmas Shopping
Alfred offered to do the shopping, but Bruce actually wanted to try it himself this year.
There was an oddly strange lull in Gotham and he decided to go out and buy some gifts at Harrington's.
It was one of those beautiful winter days, the skies were blue and clear, the snow almost blindingly white to one just coming out of the dim yellow lighting of a manor.
Across the street, people bustled about smiling and wishing each other 'Happy Holidays' and Gotham almost felt like a small town for the season.
Of course, like Jekyll and Hyde, the town would grow dark and sinister with the dying of the Sun God, but for the moment, for just one happy moment, Gotham was a small town where everybody knew everybody else and peace and love actually reigned.
Inside Harrington's Department Store, parents lined up with their children to see Santa and grandparents wandered about, arms and carts full of toys.
Smiling at a young high school girl who was dressed as an elf, handing out coupons for Boxing Day, he stepped past the threshold into a winter wonderland created with lots of love and glittery lights.
Up on his dais, Santa let out a soulful belly laugh, causing a whirl of joy to flutter across the sea of his young admirers.
Stepping past the long, thick line of children waiting to see the jolly old elf, Bruce headed upstairs. He wasn't good at picking out gifts, but Alfred had taken the forethought to write down some suggestions for him.
A silk scarf for Barbara, some video games for Tim, a new leather wallet for Dick. Of course, Bruce was hoping to take the suggestions to the next level. He never cheaped out at Christmas and he wasn't about to begin this year.
A car for Tim perhaps, some fine jewellery for Barbara (although he knew she'd be just as happy with a bevy of books and some French perfume), and Dick. Dick would get whatever Bruce could find. He wasn't a hard man to buy for, everything seemed to please him.
As always, Alfred was the first on his list. The man was like a father and always came first for Bruce.
Alfred's old fedora was getting worn a little, so his first stop was the upstairs hat department.
Standing in front of the display of fine hats, he heard an infectious giggle, before he saw a small blur breeze past.
He took a step back to avoid having the little thing run right into his legs as the young boy tore down the aisle.
Behind the little man a tall, lanky father hurried, laughing as well.
Bruce immediately recognized the laugh. He had heard it on far darker days.
Pulling a hat off the display, he put it on and tugged it low, observing as Edward Nygma caught up with the boy.
"Caught you, you little devil!" He exclaimed.
The boy, obviously not distressed about being manhandled by the Riddler, laughed his infectious giggle and squirmed in Edward's arm.
He was a cute little boy of about four, with big blue eyes fringed with long, thick lashes. His pale cheeks were touched with pink and his hair was such a deep burgundy red, that it was almost black, and it was tousled and careless.
The child wasn't dressed like any other Bruce had ever seen. This boy wore a blue button up shirt under a green sweater vest and had dress pants on that were tucked into typical children's snowboots. He didn't seem to mind the dress clothes one bit, as though he wore them everyday.
"Your mother is going to rain down fury on both our heads if we don't meet up with her." Edward said.
Curious now, Bruce followed the two as they wandered off towards the children's clothing section of Harrington's upstairs. He knew Edward and Selina had stepped out of the underworld of Gotham, though he knew the Riddler and Catwoman still put in their mandatory appearances from time to time, but he didn't even know they had a child. Or had Edward gotten himself involved with another woman? Selina would never have children. She wasn't the type.
Every now and then, on their way through the store, the little boy in Edward's arms would point at something and his father would pause before it, allowing the child to soak it in with wide, curious eyes.
Bruce suddenly felt old as it sunk in that this wasn't some kidnapped child, but Edward Nygma's own flesh and blood. The man would allow his son to touch things that were soft or interesting, but there was more to it than that. Every now and then, the boy would lovingly lay his head against the Riddler's chest and he would press a kiss into the boy's hair with a strange, small smile.
He felt like a voyeur following the two, but Bruce had to see just who this 'mother' was. He knew it must have been Selina and yet he still felt like it couldn't be. She would have never agreed to be a mother, there was no way she could be domesticated.
But then again, whenever Catwoman and the Riddler turned up in Gotham's underworld, it was never because of a crime they were committing. Batman would cross paths with them now and then, just lingering about on rooftops, in seedy bars and still putting in face time in the underbelly, but they never bothered with him. Could it be they kept up the farce to distract people from what was actually happening in their lives? That, perhaps they had retired, but still showed up from time to time to keep people from wondering about it too much?
If Bruce had really paid attention, if they wouldn't have shown up while he was in the middle of something, he would have pondered it, he supposed. But their rouse must have worked, because he never once questioned their purpose.
Ahead of him Edward set the boy down on the ground as they stepped into the pet department and the little man, well behaved despite having a huge amount of energy, eyed the cages of the animals with a bright, familiar grin.
"Kitty!" He exclaimed, pointing at a fluffy white cat in a cage. "Daddy, kitty!"
"Don't you ever get tired of seeing cats, little prince?" Edward asked.
"No." The boy replied.
"He gets his good taste from his mom, thankfully."
Bruce ducked back behind a tower of fish tanks as Selina Kyle stepped into sight from where she had been around the corner.
It was a shock to see her out of her costume, black hair long and gently curled at the ends giving her a softer, more feminine look than her shortly cropped hair had. But what shocked him more was the sight of her stomach, distended, swollen with child.
Bruce felt his world tilt.
Edward took the basket she was carrying off her hands and gave her a peck on the top of her head.
"Sorry, kitten, we got distracted in bedding. Eli wanted to look at all the different colours and patterns."
The little boy, Eli, wrapped his arms around his mother's hips and hugged her, resting his head against her belly. "They had ladybugs!" He touched her gut gingerly and repeated to it, "ladybugs."
Bruce's heart broke a little as Selina touched a motherly hand to her son's hair and tried to make some order of it. She did it like it was such a natural thing to do for her, she did it like a woman who had done it since birth. He supposed Selina Kyle was the motherly type after all.
Proves how well you really knew her, Bruce. He thought.
"We saw'd some trains and dolls and there were these trees that weren't real trees because they were small and there was houses and then someone came by and pressed a button and they lit up!" The boy exclaimed. "The trains were fun!"
"Display window." Edward explained.
Selina took her son's hand. "That sounds pretty fun, will you show mom later?"
"Yes!"
"Do you want to go meet Santa?" She asked.
Bruce stepped back as the three of them began moving towards him down the aisle.
"Uncle," the boy began, hesitating because he was going too fast to keep up with his mouth, "Uncle Jon says Santa is a tire ant because he makes his elves work all year long."
"Tire ant?" Edward asked as they passed Bruce.
Watching as an old nemesis and girlfriend both walked off holding their son's hands, Bruce couldn't help but smile a little. At least little Eli kept them honest, he thought. Pulling out his pen, he opened his list and added another name at the bottom. Eli Nygma, toy train.
This entire one-shot is obviously dedicated to JannaKalderash who gave me the idea. I hope it made you happy, Janna.
If anyone else has any little one-shot ideas they'd like to see in future chapters, give me a heads up and I'll try my hand at them.
