I freaking love you all. The support for this story has been amazing and I really appreciate it. Here's the next one, the first grandchild.

Chapter 4: The Son of the Bat

The next morning

Thomas felt the light shining on his eye-lids so he slowly opened them, feeling the sleep crack away from his eyes.

At first he was confused when he saw what room he was in. He sat up as his brain tried to work why he was here.

But then the memories from last night came flooding back. He remembered he was in the manor on an alternate earth, he remembered the huge cave, and he remembered his son was still alive and Alfred was still here.

He looked at the digital clock next to the bed. Eight am. He usually slept for longer but this had been one of the best nights of rest he had for ages. So he got up and went to the bathroom to shower and shave.

Once cleaned up he pulled on some of the clothes that Bruce had let him. They were a bit tight on his larger frame but they would do for now.

He made his way to the kitchen, which he could find by following the aroma of an Alfred cooked breakfast. Entering the room he was met with something he only saw in dreams.

Bruce was sitting at the kitchen island, a cup of coffee in his left hand and a newspaper in his right. A half-finished breakfast was in front of him.

Alfred was at the stove, tending to pancakes, eggs and bacon, something he hadn't seen in many years.

Bruce and Alfred both looked at him and smiled. Yeah, Thomas was liking this.

"Hungry, Master Thomas?" Alfred asked as he flipped a pancake.

"For your cooking Alfred, always." Thomas replied, choosing a seat across from Bruce.

"I'm glad to see someone does." Alfred looked pointedly at Bruce as he set a mug of coffee in front of Thomas.

Bruce just shook his head lightly as Thomas raised an eyebrow.

"I need to head to Wayne tower. Investors are insistent on meeting both me and Lucius. I should be back in a few hours. Think you can hold on till then?"

"I'm not a child Bruce. I can take care of myself." Thomas said as Alfred placed a large plate of food in front of him. Bruce realised what he had said and immediately finished his coffee.

"Right, well I'll see you in a while." Bruce said, slightly flustered. He grabbed his briefcase and went to leave.

"Have a good day Master Bruce."

"See-you later son." Bruce didn't miss the smirks of amusement from Thomas and Alfred.

On his way to the garage Bruce had run into Cassandra, also heading out.

"Where are you off to?" Bruce asked his daughter.

"Meeting Steph and Tim for breakfast." She explained, zipping up her leather motorcycle jacket.

"OK. Do you want a lift?" Bruce asked as the pair entered the vast garage. Cassandra considered it, especially since she could see that Bruce wanted to talk to her about something.

"If it's not any trouble." She asked.

"None at all." Bruce said as he opened the door of the Mercedes-Benz for her. She nodded thanks as she got in. Bruce shut the door and went to get in the driver's seat.

As he started the engine Cass could see that he was anxious from the smallest of details. She waited patiently for him to speak up. When they reached the gate Bruce spoke up.

"So I need to talk to you about something that happened last night."

Back at the manor

Thomas and Alfred had fallen into small talk as Thomas ate and Alfred cooked. It was something they enjoyed doing long ago and they enjoyed it just as much now.

"So Bruce is running Wayne Enterprises now?" Thomas asked.

"No not entirely. He is the majority share-holder but he usually delegates the task of running the company to Mister Fox and Master Tim. Though that doesn't mean he is completely clueless when it comes to business."

"Mister Fox. Would that be Lucius Fox?"

"The one in the same. He has done a grand job in running the company and Master Tim has shown that he possesses the talent and ability to continue running it when he decides to retire." Alfred explained proudly as he prepared another plate of food.

Thomas was intrigued by the extra plate but didn't bring it up, instead staying on the subject.

"This Tim sounds like a good man." Alfred smiled as he thought of Tim.

"He is sir. And I'm sure you will meet him soon." Thomas nodded in understanding as he took a sip of his coffee.

"Morning Pennyworth." Thomas turned towards the new voice and nearly dropped the mug at what he saw.

It was Bruce as an eleven year old. He was sure of it.

"Morning Master Damian." Alfred said as he placed the plate of food on the table with a glass of orange juice at the seat where Bruce once sat. Damian took the seat and immediately dug into the food.

Thomas just kept staring at the boy named Damian. He now picked out details on him that were different from Bruce. His skin was darker and more tanned. His ears stuck out more than Bruce's did. And his hair was thicker and a slightly deeper shade of black.

Damian realised that he was being stared at and raised his eyes to meet Thomas' in a scowl.

"Stop staring Thomas. Unless you want to lose those eyes." He said in a dark tone.

"Master Damian!" Alfred scolded with his hands on his hips.

"TT, whatever." Damian was still scowling as he went back to eating.

"I'm sorry for staring. It's just that you look so much like Bruce when I…" Thomas trailed off, not wanting to dig up those memories this early in the morning.

"So everyone tells me." Damian muttered.

"You know who I am?" Thomas asked after realising that the boy had called him by his name.

"Yes. Father came to me last night and explained your situation to me."

"OK. So your Bruce's son."

"TT I am his only true son by blood, not adoption." He explained haughtily.

"Master Damian do not speak ill of your siblings."

"Siblings?" Thomas asked, curiosity finally getting the better of him.

"Four of them, all adopted and all useless, apart from Cain and Grayson." Damian sneered.

"I don't think anybody is useless." Thomas said, looking at Damian in wonderment at his attitude. He did not get that from Bruce.

"Well that's your opinion. And I do not value it. Nor do I believe your story." Damian was glaring daggers at Thomas, ignoring the look Alfred was giving him. "So here's the deal. You are not my Grandfather and you are not Batman. You are just a person close to my father who is staying here. And I will treat you as such until you find your way home. You may get a hello and goodbye but that is it. Understood? Good."

Damian abruptly stood up and left, leaving a shocked Thomas and Alfred behind.

After a few seconds Alfred sighed in frustration and went about cleaning the plates off the kitchen island.

"I do apologise for him. He has a hard time trusting those he does not know."

"It's understandable Alfred. My arrival was bound to cause a commotion." Thomas said, gloomily.

"I know. It's just his upbringing. His Mother raised him until a few years ago and her family is not the kindest of people."

"OK. Guess I'll just have to make an effort to change his opinion, wont I Alfred."

"Quite right Sir, after all he is your Grandson."

Thomas couldn't stop the feeling of pride from growing inside of his heart even if he wanted to.

To be continued…

A/N I know I'm evil. But Damian can be a little shit, and he is young and doesn't know this man. He has no reason to trust him apart from Alfred and Bruce's word. Don't worry though because they will make up and bond, it'll just take a while. The other's will be slightly more understanding. As for Bruce he is used to acting as a father, not a son so he's a bit green around the ears. Also my headcannon is that Cassandra moved into the manor when she returned to Gotham while Damian moved back in after Dick returned to being Nightwing.

If you like it please leave a comment and I'll see you next time.