Part one of three
Bruce sighed as he laid down beside Selina for the night. Light from the table side lamp cast shadows across the rooms outlining each of their figures. The thin sheets covering them were enough to keep the chill off of them without making their shadows lumpy. The kids were in bed, patrol was over, and Bruce and Selina could finally have a little time to themselves. Jason and Dick weren't fighting, Timothy and Cass weren't getting into mischief that three years are seduced into finding, and Damian wasn't crying they could just talk to each other and be themselves. Selina ran her fingers through Bruce's thick black hair that was still damp from the post-patrol shower, as he stared into her tired, yet bright eyes.
"Do you want to make a baby?" Selina asked in a husky, sexy voice that Bruce never would tire of as long as he lived.
"Do you have to ask?" Bruce replied dryly as he reached to get a condom. They were halfway undressed when a rather loud knock interrupted them. Bruce had to throw on a pair of pants and Selina tied a robe around herself before she opened it, both of them were silently fuming at their foreplay ending so abruptly. Selina silently hoped that whatever it was could be solved easily, so she and Bruce could, ahem, resume.
Dick was only in his favorite Batman pajamas with his onyx hair mussed, "I think Timmy's sick. He woke me up because he was puking so loud."
"Oh, I'll be right there," Selina promised. "Stay, Bruce actually get some sleep," she told Bruce as he went to get up too.
"It's not fair for me to get sleep and you not," Bruce said as he put on a shirt. "Why don't you go back to bed, Dick. You have school in the morning. We'll take care Tim," Bruce put his hand on Dick's shoulder. Dick yawned before scampering off to bed knowing his brother would be taken care off. Dick loved all of his siblings, but he didn't want to be near any bodily fluids that didn't belong to him. Selina and Bruce found out that Dick was a sympathetic puker when Jason had got the flu shortly after they had adopted him.
Selina and Bruce found Tim laying miserably beside the toilet. He was burning up with a fever, Selina realized as she felt his small forehead. Tim moaned a little and his eyes slowly opened to his guardians. He leaned into the touch finding her cold hands comforting. "Let's get you cleaned up, Tim. Bruce, can you get some Tylenol for his fever?" Selina instructed as she went to the sink to get Tim some mouthwash and a cool washcloth.
Bruce left for the kitchen where the Tylenol was kept. Even with only a few hours of sleep Bruce couldn't help, but think that Damian might be the only one with his and Selina's DNA, but they all were theirs. He found himself thinking back to the day when Alfred bought him a circus ticket as a joke. That day had become the start of him finding hois family, he surprised Alfred by insisting that he had to adopt a three-year-old from the circus. Bruce remembered that day almost as clearly as the day he had been brutally stripped of his parents.
****Five Years ago Gotham*******
Bruce had been wondering around the circus grounds for only a few minutes when he saw an acrobat couple and their small child that had been posing for pictures. The man and woman had been dressed in bright greens and reds. Smiling at everyone and beaming when asked about there child. He saw the Drake couple as they posed for a picture. Bruce remembered that they had recently been married. The newspapers had heralded it as a match that would last forever. Alfred had raised an eyebrow after reading it, and stated, "Time will tell."
Dick was a cheeky little thing, Bruce hadn't seen the point in getting a picture of himself and the acrobats, but the toddler had smiled and winked at him. A three-year-old shouldn't be able to wink, but a three-year-old raised in the circus that knew how to win hearts of people all over the world. He smiled and talked lively about the show inside, "My parents are the best! They can fly!" He had an accent that made his words seem more adorable.
Bruce had a picture made with the acrobats and their small son. He wasn't a sucker for kids. Tiny adults that's all that they were in Bruce's opinion they were cute... but he had no clue how to interact with them. Dick was different from the other children he had come in contact with, it could be his show roots Bruce concluded.
Bruce remember sitting amongst the Gothamites and watching the show unfold. He didn't mind that Alfred practically forced him to go out and see the people of Gotham that he protected by night. Bruce saw the children and their parents that smiled and laughed. He sometimes forgot that Gotham wasn't all darkness and the harsh realities of crime.
It was when John and Mary Grayson fell that Bruce was brought back to being the scared eight-year-old that was helpless to save his parents. The bright and so young, too young baby acrobat struggled out of the tight walker's arms. Dick ran to them and tried to get them to "wake up". The whole crowd watched in horror as Dick Grayson became the last of the Flying Graysons. He hunched over their still warm, broken, and lifeless bodies.
Bruce got up and ran to pick up the toddler, "Don't look, don't remember them this way, don't look at them," Bruce shushed him. He was thankful that he had sat in the front seat that made it easy for him to jump over the divider. Dick fought beating his hands and feat against Bruce, crying and screaming for his dead parents. His black hair went everywhere as he his body trembled with sobs and unintelligent screams.
The tight rope walker came over as tears leaked out of her eyes, "I can take him back. He needs to be around familiar people." She reached out her arms and took. Bruce watched helplessly as Dick was taken away from him. He couldn't help, but feel like part of him was taken away. It was ridiculous, Bruce didn't even know the child until a few hours ago. As young as he was, Bruce knew that the child wouldn't remember his parents. He only had a few precious memories of his mom and dad, a scent of vanilla perfume, and the smell of antiseptic from long days at the hospital. How his mother would always read to him before he fell asleep, or the time he ate a whole coconut cake and got sick and his dad gave him medicine to help him feel better. That Night they died seemed to overshadow all the other days. He was eight when his parents died and Dick was only four, Dick would hardly remember them.
The circus hard to be leaving soon. The star act had died. Pop Haley was struggling to find an act that would be comparable to the Flying Graysons. Zucco was still at large. Bruce couldn't help but wonder what would happen to Dick. He was actively hunting down Zucco, but it didn't seem like enough. Bruce remembered what it felt like to be the kid without a mom or dad, as much as Alfred was a father to him, it wasn't the same.
Bruce was appalled when he saw the hacked record that showed Dick in a juvenile detention center.
"Alfred! I'm going out. There is a mistake I need to fix!" Bruce yelled as he ran out the door of the manor. Bruce chose a quick car that took him to Gotham city's Social Services. The office was brimming with phone calls and Bruce heard a babies cry a few rooms over. The whole office gave off a vibe of Gotham's saddest stories. Bruce waited in line to talk to the receptionist the woman in front of him angrily cussed out the receptionist.
Bruce was about to step in when the lady finally stormed off. "Sorry about that. What can I help you with?" the receptionist asked. Her name tag said her name was Olivier, so Bruce decided to turn on his patented charm.
"I was at the circus when Dick Grayson's parents were killed. I was wondering if he was staying with the circus of if he was going to be placed in a home here in Gotham? I was simply concerned, Miss Olivier," Bruce said.
"Have you seen the foster system? It's full. Orphanages haven't existed since the 1970's and we haven't had the time to source the kids in other cities. The circus can't keep him. That isn't an option," Olivier stated in a way that showed just how long she had been working at the Social Services office.
"I could take him in," Bruce said without thinking.
"A single man, who is well known in Gotham for taking young ladies home, but never any of them lasting for than a week? I don't like your chances in court. You may be rich, but money can't buy everything. Kids aren't for sale," Olivier said as she didn't even look up from her paperwork.
"What if I was to get married?" Bruce asked surprising himself.
"Come back and see me then married people have a higher chance of adopting kids," Olivier told him in a dismissive way that conveyed how little she was impressed by Bruce and his wealth.
Bruce walked out wracking his brain trying to figure out how he was going to get married, or to who. It couldn't be a short marriage that ends in divorce. He went through women he knew and most of them were shallow or gold diggers. The more Bruce thought about the small heartbroken child the more he knew that he had to get married. The walk to the car was interrupted when Selina Kyle literally ran into him.
"Bruce! what are doing here? Anyway, do be a dear and keep talking to me," Selina said as she kept up with Bruce's long strides.
"What have you gotten into this time?" Bruce asked with a smile.
"I went on a date and the man was creepy and tried to follow me," Selina said as she patted Bruce's arm and laughed like he had just told a joke as they walked toward the underground parking lot.
"You took his wallet, didn't you?" Bruce asked in a voice that belied the humor he found in the whole situation. Only Selina would pickpocket a man on a date, well her and half of Gotham.
"Bruce, I'm appalled at you. I took his Rolex and his wallet. It was so easy he practically handed them over," Selina said. "I have to hone all of my skills, house's are boring lately, you're never home. Anyway, I've told you what I'm doing, what are you up to B-man," Selina winked.
"Doing something crazy. You know the circus and the 'accident' that happened?" Bruce asked.
"Yeah, you aren't going to buy the circus are you?" Selina joked.
"No, the trapeze artist's son doesn't have any relatives, and he's only a toddler in the juvie detention center. I just came from the social service office to see about making him my ward or adopting him. It turns out that I don't have the best reputation to adopt children with, even with the overflow of children in the system, did you know that neighboring cities take in most of the kids? It's ridiculous," Bruce huffed, "Apparently my chances of adopting him would be better if I was married."
"Kid mean that much to you, Bruce?" Selina asked after listening to his spiel on how the foster care system in Gotham was just as poorly ran as the police department.
"You should have seen his face when he saw his parent's fall. I don't want him to grow up alone," Bruce said as they entered the garage.
Selina looked at Bruce the fluorescent lights flickered above them outlining just how broad Bruce was. "I'm sure it will work out. You've never seen a problem you can't solve," Selina said as she caressed Bruce's cheek her soft hands against his freshly shaven face.
"I'll talk to you later tonight. Rooftop on third street? I have some information on the people who caused the accident." Bruce said. They had a strange relationship she still robbed mansions but tagged along with Bruce as he patrolled the city. Selina was Catwoman and he was Batman they worked in the dark for some reason it just worked for them.
"Yeah, I'll be there. You be careful Bruce, don't do something crazy that you'll regret later," Selina told him.
"When have I ever done that?" Bruce asked as he winked at her.
I have a chronological list. Later, Bruce." Selina waved as she got into her car thinking about Bruce's offhanded remark about adopting a kid and getting married. It didn't take a genius to figure out that said wife wouldn't know about Batman and the kid would take up a lot of time. All of her fun at nights would end.
Selina would deny it until the day she died but she made up her mind before seeing the juvie center. She saw the angry kids that would later be in prison, Dick didn't fit into that crowd. He was small and kept his head down, which seemed unnatural for the child. Selina knew what that environment did to a person's soul. He was so small, and she understood why Bruce would want to get married just to adopt him. He was a healthy tanned child with huge anime worthy blue eyes that seemed to hide the fact that he was Romani.
She talked to him and found that he was polite and so sad and cheerful at the same time. She was forming a plan in her mind that was either perfect or perfectly terrible. She wasn't the mothering type and how did she know that between her issues and Bruce's issues they wouldn't mess him up? She didn't even know if Bruce would want to marry her.
But she would find out.
After the Zucco gang was handed over to the police and they were going to patrol the rest of the city. Bruce asked her to marry him. Bruce was blushing and stammered through it, but Selina didn't laugh.
"Would it a name only, or everything that comes with being married?" Selina asked while Bruce stayed on one knee on the rooftop of the second tallest building in Gotham.
"I would like it if it was everything that came with being married, I can't promise that you'll always be happy with me, but I can promise that I wouldn't stop trying to make you happy. I would understand if you would want it in name only," Bruce said in a voice neither of them was used to hearing in uniform.
"I think I always knew you were the only man I'd ever marry. So, yes, Bruce, I will marry you. We'll get married and adopt a child from the circus. This is what every normal couple does," Selina said as Bruce pulled her into a hug.
The newspapers in Gotham for the next week were filled with stories about Selina Kyle, Bruce Wayne, and Richard Grayson. Alfred kept the stories that had them in a favorable light. Bruce remembered how rough the first few weeks were for all of them. Alfred had to learn how to cook meals that Bruce, Selina, Dick, and himself would agree on eating. Dick could speak English well, but he was used to his mother fixing more tradition Romini meals, which Alfred with all of his experience didn't know how to. Selina found that Romani meals weren't her favorite. Bruce just smiled in a fake way and ate anything that Alfred made.
Selina memorized the floor plan to Wayne Manor long before she had married Bruce, but Dick Grayson-Wayne was four and a half years old. Bruce and Selina would turn around for a second and he would scatter. It became a game of sorts, Dick would hide and Bruce and Selina would run around the manor to find him. Hide and seek on, Manor Edition.
They also had to keep him off the banisters. He would scoot a chair to the top of the stairs and climb on the banister and slide down. Scaring Bruce and Selina senseless.
Weeks turned into months and they fell into a routine, at night they both would tuck him in he would tell them about his favorite parts of the day. On his fifth birthday he didn't tell them about his day instead he asked them a question, "Do you think that Mama and Papa would mind if I called you Mom and Dad?" He started to play with the sheets on his bed. Not seeing the looks that Selina and Bruce were exchanging between each other. The language of glares they had come up with for patrolling at night came in handy when they were married with a child who was perceptive.
"Do you think they would be mad?" Selina asked tentatively she didn't want to take anyone's place even if Dick was theirs now.
"You told me that I'm adopted. That means that I am yours, I am your kid now. Mama and Papa are still my parents, but you two are too now my parents. I don't think they would be mad. You are a lot nicer than the people where I was last. Mama always said that she said that I was her Robin. Now I guess I'm your Robin," Dick said as he hugged them.
"Do you think we deserve to be called to be called 'mom and dad'?" Bruce had asked Selina as they had suited up for patrol. Dick had fallen asleep and Alfred would monitor him from the cave in case he woke up to find his parents and Alfred gone. Dick didn't know about the camera that could be remotely turned on in the hallway across his bedroom, he just thought that Alfred was magic at finding him when he had a nightmare.
She had finished zipping up the skin-tight leather before answering him with a smile, "I don't know many people who would get married to each other to adopt a kid. Bruce, like he said he's ours now, you're a Daddy now. I still can't believe I'm married to you."
"Well, Mrs. Wayne I can't believe you said, 'yes'," Bruce said as he leaned in to kiss Selina.
"Do you think we should have more kids so he won't be lonely?" Bruce asked parenting wasn't as easy as Alfred made it look.
"Could you imagine another kid like Dick? One kid is enough; I love him and you. We have a perfect little family, Bruce" Selina told him as they walked to the Batmobile to patrol over Gotham. It was an ordinary night the last few months had been quiet except for the Joker. He had gone on a rampage when he finally figured out that Catwoman and Batman were together. The other villains were recovering from all the damage that they had sustained. It had ruined the honeymoon that Bruce and Selina planned on.
******Present Day Wayne Manor******
Bruce pulled himself out of his reverie as he got the Tylenol and cold water for Tim. He walked back to Tim and Cass's bedroom to see Tim still looking hot and miserable, but much cleaner than he had been. "How are you feeling, buddy?" Bruce asked as Selina read the instructions on the children's Tylenol bottle.
"It's not bad. I'll be fine soon," Tim coughed and then looked up at Bruce with a smile as Bruce helped him sip the cool water. He still looked pale, but Bruce and Selina had discovered that kids get sick anywhere from four to six times a year. Cass was watching them her blankets bunched at the end of her bed. Her eyes were wide flicking back and forth from Bruce to Tim as if she wasn't sure what was going to happen next. Bruce knew that if he hurt Tim in anyway she would attack. She loved and trusted her brother and still didn't fully trust Bruce and Selina. It was a work in progress still.
Selina handed Tim two small tablets, "Let these dissolve in your mouth. It should make you feel better soon," Selina instructed him.
"Thank you, I'm sorry I woke you up," Tim told them sheepishly before carefully placing the tablets in his mouth.
"It's okay, buddy. Do you feel up to getting back in bed?" Bruce asked as he placed a wastebasket beside his bed and arranged the blankets.
Tim looked to Bruce and Selina before his eyes settled on Cass, "I think I'll be ok. Cass is here in case I get worse," Tim replied always tying to stay out of the way and be a 'good child'.
It only took a few minutes for the medicine to kick in. Soon after Tim was tucked in bed he was able to fall into a peaceful sleep. Cass still hovering on her bed watching them until Selina tucked her in too. It didn't take long before Cassandra fell asleep too, leaving the adults free to got to back to their room.
Selina and Bruce got back into bed this time with less foreplay and sleep being the only thing left on their minds. Selina laid her head on Bruce's chest with her arm over him, it didn't take long for her breathing to even out. Bruce found that sleep for him wasn't going to be so easily attained. He kept thinking back to the night that he and Selina found Jason. Well, Jason had found them really.
AN
I should be able to write the next chapter a little sooner than the month and a half this one took me, real life and college has kept me busy. After midterms I'll try to write the next chapter. I have it outlined of how each of them come in to the Batfamily, I'm excited to see how all of you like it.
I wanted Bruce and Selina to get together because of Dick otherwise they would have beat around the bush for a decade that's why I wanted the social service office to tell Bruce no. I really hope this chapter doesn't seem as rushed as I think it does.
Review!