Four vigilantes walk into a carnival...
Away from Batman and their duties, Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, and Damian Wayne can just be themselves. They can just be brothers, without the heavy burdens of Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, and Robin.
Stealing Dick away from his girlfriend for a while, the brothers have a boys day; heading to the boardwalk carnival outside of Gotham. The four of them haven't spent this much time with each other outside of Batman's command, and they might just learn things about them that they didn't know.
"I'm not taking that thing." Damian snapped, his arms crossed. Dick frowned a bit where he stood, holding a stuffed cat that was nearly two thirds Damian's size.
"But I won it for you."
"Regardless, I will not be seen with it, Richard."
"Why! It's cute!"
"It's repulsive."
"Take it." Dick shoved it at him. Damian stepped back.
"No!"
Jason let out a loud groan. "Take the damn thing so Grayson'll shut up about it, Damian!" he cried. Damian reluctantly snatched the stuffed animal away from Dick, who grinned broadly. There was no way that the boy could hold it without wrapping his arms completely around it and carrying it in front of him. He glared up at Dick.
"I hate you."
Dick smiled and turned to Tim. "Where to next?" he asked, pulling off a pinch of Tim's cotton candy.
"I'm gonna kick all of your guys' asses at the shooting gallery," Jason said, pointing. Dick frowned.
"Well that's not fair! You've had more practice. I'll do it as long as we get to do the baseball toss after it," Dick grinned wickedly. "I'll take you down."
"I feel like that was a slight on my moral character," Jason said with mock innocence.
"Let's go!" Dick grabbed Jason's coat sleeve and dragged him toward the shooting gallery, leaving Tim and Damian standing beside each other. Damian glared up at Tim and ripped the ear off of the stuffed cat.
"Good luck explaining that to Dick," Tim said before going after Jason and Dick.
"Lets do this, partner," Dick said, picking up a gun. "I am a cop you know. Got trained for this kind of stuff," he grinned. Damian shuffled up to them, dragging the cat in the dirt by its tail.
"Please," Jason scoffed, flicking the trigger out on the BB gun. "I know my way around a gun better than you know your way around Lee."
"I highly doubt that," Dick smirked, raising his gun. Tim and Damian picked up guns just as the man running the game started the duck targets in motion. The four of them let fire at once. There was the steady plink as targets fell. Jason ran out of ammo first, with perfect aim, as Dick missed his last shot.
"I think we know who scored more," Jason told him.
"This game is ridiculous." Damian tossed his gun back onto the counter. Dick grinned and Jason picked a prize, while Dick looked around. Jason handed the teddy bear he picked out to a little girl walking by.
"There! Let's go!" Dick pointed, and dragged Tim past a concession stand to the baseball game. Dingy bottles were lined up in pyramids on a board, with dirty baseballs littered across the ground below it.
"Three tries for a buck," the carnie yawned, and Dick handed him four dollars. Damian dragged his cat over to them and tossed it against the counter, picking up a baseball.
"I was never very good at throwing," Tim muttered.
"You were never very good at anything," Jason snorted.
"Thus your uselessness in your position," Damian sneered. Tim ignored them both and threw a baseball. It knocked over the first pyramid, and Jason golf-clapped. Tim frowned irritably and threw the second one. Another golf-clap as the bottles clinked and toppled over. As Tim swung his arm to throw the third, Damian shoved him and he cried out, the baseball glancing past it and missing the pyramid entirely.
"Damian!" Tim shouted, whirling on him. Damian stuck his nose in the air and pulled some fluff out of the cat's missing ear-hole. Jason shoved Tim out of the way.
"Ok, my turn," he grabbed a baseball and threw it. His first throw toppled a pyramid, but his second glanced off of the top bottle.
"You aimed too high," Damian sneered.
"Shut up, you snob," Jason snapped, firing the third baseball into a pyramid. Dick shook his hands out.
"Okay boys, y'all are disappointing," he laughed, and then fired all three baseballs in quick succession. Each one smashed clean through a different pyramid, breaking the bottles. Dick held up a finger-gun and blew out the imaginary smoke. "You need practice. Damian, your turn." he grinned, dropping a baseball in Damian's hand. Damian looked at it, the giant cat hanging from his other hand, and then he looked up at Dick.
"I'm not playing this stupid game." He snapped. Dick rolled his eyes.
"Just throw the baseballs, Damian."
Damian stared at him for a moment, and then launched it full force at Tim. It nailed him in the stomach and he doubled over, coughing; the second baseball hit Jason in the groin, and the third met its mark when it smacked Dick in the forehead. Jason fell to his knees, and Dick clutched his face as Damian stormed off, dragging the stuffed cat behind him.
Jason groaned, "He's so much like his father it hurts."
Dick tried to regain his balance as the carnie handed him his dollar back. "That kid's a handful, boy." The man muttered.
"We know," Tim wheezed as they all followed Damian, who had thrown himself down on a picnic table near the concession stand.
"Don't have too much fun kid," Jason said, sliding onto the bench beside him. "Someone might see." Damian stared at him in disgust, ignoring Tim sitting down opposite him. Dick had disappeared to the concession stand to buy something to eat.
"It makes me almost sorry for you that this is your idea of fun." Damian snapped, tugging at the cast on his arm.
"And what's your idea of fun?" Jason asked him. "Ritual sacrifice?"
"I would enjoy myself immensely if I was slitting your throats for the benefit of some imaginary deity," Damian hissed, glaring at Tim as Dick walked over cheerily with their food. He put a caramel apple in front of Tim, a bottle of water in front of Damian, and a pretzel with cheese in front of Jason. As he sat down, all three of them couldn't help but notice that they hadn't told Dick what they'd wanted, yet he'd come back with exactly what they would have ordered. He nibbled happily on his funnel cake, heaped with strawberry topping.
"Tim, I think it's your turn to choose," Dick said, glancing at him.
"Um," he mumbled, trying to unstick some caramel from his teeth. He glanced around. "Bumper cars," he decided when he spotted the ride.
"Sounds good," Dick smiled at them all proudly. "I'm glad we're all getting along, for the most part."
"Speak for yourself," Jason said. He sprinkled some of his pretzel salt on Damian before running away. Damian growled and brushed the salt off of his suit jacket.
"Immature, selfish, bumbling son of a..." he muttered. Tim raced after Jason toward the bumper cars, and Dick ruffled Damian's hair to get some of the salt out.
"He's just fooling around," Dick said gently, putting a hand on Damian's shoulder. Damian shrugged him away and stalked after Tim and Jason, the dirty stuffed cat dragging behind him. Dick sighed before following. Tim and Jason were chatting in line while Damian stood off to the side with the cat leaning against his legs.
"Damian what have you done to Dick Jr?" Jason called out.
"It's name is not Dick Jr.!" Damian snapped.
"So you did name it! I knew you liked it!"
"I never said I named it, Todd," Damian shouted at him, kicking the cat forward into the dirt.
"No! Dick Jr!" Jason fell forward to his knees.
"You're such a drama queen," Dick laughed, stepping up to give the carnie his ticket. Tim quickly followed with Damian shuffling in behind them, after giving the cat to the carnie to hold for him. Jason leaped into a car.
"Let's do this!" Jason called. The other people in their bumper cars glanced back at him.
Dick ran to a car in a corner. "I call blue!"
Tim raced past two girls in a car to a green one in the middle. "I say we tag team the most annoying brother!" he called. He and Dick looked at each other.
"Jason!" they yelled simultaneously.
"What!?" Jason demanded angrily. "It's clearly Damian! Come on Tim, he's tried to kill you a hundred times."
Damian dropped down into a dusty gold car, looking bored and irritated. A girl in the car in front of him smiled and waved. Damian ignored her.
"I don't care what the rest of you do," Damian told them. "Drake is dead."
"And the cars are live!" the carine yelled as music kicked up over the speakers. The half dozen cars simultaneously sprung into motion. Dick and Tim swerved for Jason, who was chasing a brunette in a pink car when Damian slammed into the side of Tim's car, knocking it violently into Dick's.
"Damian!" Tim shouted angrily, and then he burst into hysterics as the blonde that Damian had ignored slammed into his car. Damian jerked and looked at her, surprised. Dick raced after Jason. Jason bumped the girl he had been following just as Dick spun him off course.
"Hey!" he complained as Dick sped off.
"Why bother? There's no way you'll hit that!" he cackled over his shoulder. Damian was pinning Tim's car into a corner when the same girl knocked him away. Damian cried out and glared at her, finally abandoning Tim in the corner to get revenge on the girl. Dick stopped his car when he saw only to have Jason run into the back of him.
"No way," Jason complained when he noticed. Damian's bumper car slammed into the blonde's, and a devious smile flashed across his lips before his face resumed its natural scowl. The girl laughed. "I hate you all," Jason whined as the brunette ran into Tim.
"You are the girlfriendless Wayne," Dick concluded, before speeding off. Jason accelerated after him, only to be T-boned by Tim. Damian raced in from the other side and sandwiched Jason in. Jason furiously tried to get free, but his car stopped working.
"Ride's over!" the carnie called. Damian jumped lithely out of his car and was met face to face with the blonde girl. He recoiled in surprise and stared at her like she was some foreign thing invading his perfect universe.
"Hi," she smiled.
"Hello," Damian muttered, looking her up and down. "Can I help you?"
"I'm June," she giggled sweetly. Damian stared at her confusedly.
"Damian Wayne al Ghul," he replied as he straightened his shoulders, shaking her hand curtly and walking away. He was met by Dick, Jason, and Tim.
"Turn around right now," Dick ordered. "And go talk to that girl."
"Why on earth would I do that?" Damian hissed, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Because deep, deep inside you are human," Jason told him. Damian thrust his nose in the air but reluctantly turned on his heel to talk to June where she stood with her sister, the brunette. He stopped in front of her.
"Hello."
"Hello Damian Wayne al Ghul," she replied happily. Damian glanced over his shoulder at the other three, giving them an I-will-kill-you-later glare. He turned back to June and smiled a bit forcedly.
"May I have your cellphone number?" he asked politely. She smiled a little wider.
"Sure!" As Damian pulled out his cell phone she snatched it from him and quickly entered her number. Damian genuinely smiled, and then glanced over his shoulder at his brothers again to make sure they hadn't seen. He turned back to her.
"June, would you and your sister like to accompany me and my brothers for the rest of the day?" Damian asked hesitantly, and then looked up at the brunette. "I'm sure my brother would love to have you," he said smoothly. Jason waved from where he stood several yards away. The brunette smiled.
"Sure, kid. Come on, June," she laughed as they joined the group.
"Where to now?" Dick asked.
"I believe it is my turn to pick the activity," Damian said. Dick smiled, glad to see he was one step closer to enjoying himself. The brunette, who'd introduced herself as May, stood next to Jason.
"Then pick one, Damian," Dick grinned. Damian looked around the carnival thoughtfully. The sun was nearing the horizon. Damian pointed.
"I want to do the strength tester." He smirked at Jason. "We can all do it."
"Why did you pick something you know you're going to lose?" Jason asked.
"It's a strength tester, Jason. You'll obviously do great," Damian smiled sweetly, a devilish gleam in his eye. "Everyone wins then, don't they?" He strode past Jason toward the game. "Drake, you first."
Tim pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation as Dick pressed the hammer into his hand. He'd already paid for them all to go. Tim swung the hammer up and brought it down on the pressure pad; the bell clanged loudly and he smiled proudly. Dick clapped him on the shoulder.
"That was cute," Jason told him, taking the hammer. He hefted it over his shoulder and swung it down onto the pad. The bell rang. May laughed and clapped, grabbing his arm and pulling him back as Dick stepped up, taking a wider stance; he used more momentum than muscle to bring the hammer down. Again the bell rang, and Dick put the hammer down. Damian stepped forward and the carnie laughed.
"How old are you, kid?"
"I am ten," Damian snapped, snatching the hammer. He brought it up over his shoulder, narrowly missing Tim's head, and swung it as hard as he could down onto the pad. Jason's jaw dropped as the bell dinged loudly once more. Damian smirked, dropping the hammer on Tim's foot. "How impressive is a man's strength when a ten year old can match it?" Damian smirked, crossing his hands behind his back and tilting his nose in the air, glaring Jason down.
"I'm going to choose to believe I broke it."
"You can choose to believe that," Damian waved a hand dismissively and glanced at Tim, who was still rubbing his foot that had been smashed by the hammer. "But keep in mind, I could always do that to your face."
"Or we can go back and I can kick you ass at all the other things we did today again," Jason told him. Damian shrugged.
"I'm still the smart one."
"Well I'm the good looking one," Jason retorted. Tim walked up between them.
"And yet, miraculously, both of you are still single."
"We ought to be going, actually," Dick said, looking around the carnival. The lights on the rides were turning on, and he suddenly remembered his promise to Lee that he'd be there when she got home; more importantly, his car with his Nightwing suit still sat unlocked in her driveway.
"But I didn't get any," Jason said before adding, "cotton candy" when May glanced curiously at him. Damian rolled his eyes. They had all strolled to the Carnival's front entrance, and Damian turned to June.
"Good night, June." He nodded curtly, and then kissed her hand before turning on his heel and walking to Tim's car, where he jumped the door and slid into the backseat. Dick muttered a goodbye as well and followed, with Tim trailing behind.
"It was nice to meet you, May," Jason said. "I hope we can meet under more private conditions at some point." He winked and jogged back to the car.
Tim started the car and drove off. They rode in silence for a while, until when they'd gone nearly a mile and a half, Damian sat up suddenly, a momentary look of panic on his face, before it crumbled into anger again.
"What, Damian?" Dick turned to look at him.
"Where is Richard Jr.!?" Damian demanded.
"That cat? You don't have it? I thought you picked it up after the bumper cars." Jason yawned.
"I forgot to get it," Damian said hotly. "Turn the car around this instant, Drake."
"Damian, we can't go back. I thought you hated the thing, anyway," Jason said. Damian stared at him like he was trying to decide whether or not to break his neck on the spot.
"Sorry, Damian. We can come back tomorrow," Dick said gently. Damian turned on him.
"I don't care!" he spat. "I don't need your apologies. I didn't want the damn thing anyway." Damian sat back in his seat, pulling his jacket tighter around his shoulders. Jason rolled his eyes and leaned his head back against the headrest, dozing off.
"You ought to drive me back to Lee's," Dick said quietly. Tim nodded, the wind blowing his hair through the open window.
"You and her are pretty serious, huh?" he asked, putting an arm out the window. Dick sighed.
"I really like her. I mean… I really like her, Tim."
"Good. It's nice to see you with someone who cares for you."
"Yeah," Dick fell silent thoughtfully. After a few minutes of quiet, he glanced over his shoulder where Damian was falling asleep in his seat. "You and Cassie are good together. Everything in the Titans running smoothly?" Dick hadn't be surprised when Tim had told him that he and Wonder Girl had started dating. Tim had recruited her into the Titans, and they'd always worked well together. Once both of them had gotten over past relationships, they had clicked.
"Yeah," Tim smiled a little to himself. "And yeah. The Titans are good. Everything is pretty good, Dick."
They fell silent once more and drove for a few more miles. When Dick looked into the backseat again, Damian had slipped across and his head rested on Jason's shoulder as they both snored softly. Dick smiled. "This really was a good idea. Batman gets so overbearing sometimes… he forgets that Damian is a kid." As they drove into Lee's driveway, he added "Get them home safe."
"I will, Dick," Tim smiled, and waved as he pulled out. Dick walked all the way to Lee's apartment and knocked on the door, putting his hands on his hips and waiting. After a few seconds, he heard the latch slide. Lee cracked the door open. A smile lit up her face when she saw Dick.
"You're here," she cried as she flung her arms around his neck. Dick grinned and hugged her back.
"Well hi." He laughed, stroking her hair. "My car keys are still up here. Tim dragged me on a family day today."
"I hope you had fun," she said, looking up at him.
"I did. Surprisingly." Dick smiled and kissed her nose. "I'll get my keys and go," he said, picking them up from where they laid on the coffee table. Lee crossed her arms across her chest as she watched him.
"Okay," she muttered, the corners of her mouth turning down. Dick raised an eyebrow and looked at her, a smile playing at his lips.
"...unless you want me to stay." He grinned despite his hesitant tone, and slipped his arms around her waist.
"You know I want you to," she said with a smile. She wrapped her arms around his neck and ran her fingers through his hair. Dick closed his eyes and smiled.
"And you know I'd do anything you want," he whispered. "Before I forget! Bruce is hosting this charity gala in a couple of days. Will you be my plus-one?"
"How fancy are we talking?" she asked.
"Black tie," Dick replied, pressing his lips to her forehead.
"I suppose I could manage to look decent."
Dick looked at her seriously. "You always look beautiful, Lee. You'll be fine. It'll be fun. Now lets go to bed. I'm tired." He grinned. The smiles on both of their faces fell as his phone rang, and he looked down at the screen.
Bruce.
