AN: Ok so abciluvpie says to stop summarizing, here's the thing since this is YJ s1 I didn't want to interfere with the missions or the plot of it because it was a good plot and I was building the family, I was more interested in building up their relationships. I now have five years to spin my own stuff and I'm disregarding season 2, it was a good season but I'm changing a lot of their relationships and stuff so it won't be very accurate anymore.
Also I kind of forgot how far along Dinah is supposed to be in her pregnancy so I'm assuming that by now she's about 8 months. Its now February.
As for Jason's new suit, similar to Nightwing's but in red. It's a mash up of Danny's and Nightwing.
Chapter twelve
Jason stared at the suit in front of him, it was black with a red bird on the chest and red stripes on the thighs and red boots similar to Danny's with red gloves. Danny had created a weapon for him, wrist rays he called them. Danny told him of the weapons his parents had once made to hunt ghosts and since he couldn't see Jason use anything other than a gun and Batman might have a heart attack if he used a gun, he adapted the wrists rays for him.
They were powered by ectoplasm which meant that they were non-lethal however they were blended with electricity which would render a normal human unconscious. If he kept hitting someone with it then they would die however none of the bats killed and he was a bat. He may not be the son of Bruce Wayne however it had become well-known that he was the ward of Danny and that caused it its own shit storm.
Danny was technically only sixteen years old and to ensure that he could take care of Jason, Bruce had emancipated Danny. He trusted the older boy and since he had made so much money he at the time assumed that he wanted to be emancipated to ensure that no one could control him even though he still allowed himself to be adopted. It was kind of like an adult getting adopted, not such a big deal however the press had been curious to everything that happened.
Bruce had been shocked that Danny had gotten emancipated so that he could adopt a kid of his own however Danny made it clear to the public that Jason was his brother and he was his legal guardian. Bruce had happy to open his home to another child but Jason was his which meant that by default Jason was Danny's heir. While he partnered with Wayne enterprises, Danny got a huge pay out for the energy source that he created which made him a self-made millionaire, while Bruce got a piece of the profits as well.
Danny was thinking of opening his own company however it would take too much work, he was happy to play mad scientist and give Bruce some patents to bring in cash, either way neither one of them cared where the profits went since Danny just contributed to everything that Bruce did but the patents did ensure that for as long as the designs were being used he would get a share of the profits, which meant that Jason also got share even though he hadn't really wanted it.
The press had a field day with the news that Jason was an heir to his own fortune while Timothy Drake the heir to Drake industries and Dick Grayson-Wayne since technically he was first in line to inherit the Wayne fortune since Bruce had adopted him first were friends. The press had dubbed them the 'millionaires heirs' and Tim pouted to Jason about bullies being mean because of all the publicity. Jason beat them up again before telling Danny and ordering the older boy to make sure that Tim got transferred to Gotham academy.
Jason was a protective person by nature and he saw Tim as his little brother. He hated the fact that Tim was left alone all the time and that his parents didn't care about how he was treated. Bruce was doing a good job of pretending that his home situation wasn't bothering him but he couldn't in good conscience just leave Tim with Janet Drake. He could provide basic care since the woman was never around but if something happened to the kid he technically had no say in anything that happened because he had no legal grounds to get involved.
Janet Drake just gave Danny an even bigger headache because they had to dealing with that woman was terrifying, he dealt with ghosts, dragons, and all the flavors of crazy that came out of Gotham however he still believed that a dragon is tamer than that woman. She had a cold dead look in her eyes. He still couldn't shake the feeling that she had stripped him bare and saw into his bloody soul before they somehow made a business deal even though he wasn't even there to talk business.
Basically she had returned to Gotham to attend some gala and Danny ambushed her since she came home to an empty house and they installed cameras there in case someone tried to kidnap the Drake heir. They were alerted to the fact that people were in the house and Danny went up and rang the doorbell explaining how his little brother had befriended the boy next door and since he was alone, he had been staying at the Wayne Manor.
He also told Janet that his adoptive father wanted her to sign some papers that would ensure that if something happened while she was away he could make some legal decisions for her son like enrolling him in a school where he would have friends and would be bullied.
Janet agreed to give Bruce power over her son while they were travelling and allow him to stay in the manor in return Danny would do some business with her company as well. He refused to do so and instead offered to partner Wayne Enterprises and Drake Industries something that Bruce had always wanted to do since they were the two most profitable companies in Gotham and a partnership between them would bring in a lot of money however Janet refuse to become an ally, she enjoyed being a competitor.
Janet agreed to let Lucius Fox run both companies as long as she saw a profit from the numerous technologies that he had been creating and she picked someone else to run her side projects and Danny agreed. Basically she had sold majority of the company of Wayne Enterprises and ensured that she still got a piece of the profits because the combined income ended up being more than her company made in three years.
In the end the partnership only made Bruce more money and the man actually told him to stop making so much money because it was bringing in way too much of attention and it was making more work for him and Lucius was now running a business twice the size of Wayne Enterprises and the man was cursing him since it was so much.
Danny blinked at the man, "I wasn't trying to do a business deal. I went because Tim gets bullied and Jason keeps beating up kids to make them stop and demanded that Tim goes to Gotham Academy to ensure that they can keep an eye on him and to do that I need Janet to agree to let you make decisions for him while she's away and she would only agree if I worked with her and somehow we came to that agreement. I don't know how we did it either."
Dinah was eating pickles and peanut butter (pregnancy hormones, just do not ask, she had eaten some weird stuff since the cravings started), Dick was staring at him with both of his eyebrows raised, Jason was smothering his laugher and Tim was looking at him like a deer in headlights while Danny tried to explain how he ended up doing some sort of business deal with the Devil herself.
Tim blinked and grabbed a cookie, "You do know that you got played right?"
As one, every person turned to the youngest in the room with questioning looks and Tim sighed, "Mother knows everything. It doesn't matter where she is but when it comes to business she knows everything especially newcomers with potential. She knew you were a genius, she knew that it was your patent that raised B's status and she knew that you wanted to help me and she wanted a bigger profit. She played you."
Bruce actually looked shocked, "Janet always refused to partner with me and I hated her CEO."
Tim nodded, "Because at the time, the two companies were more or less tied until you brought in a new asset that raised your status to a level that she knew she cannot beat. You won and she would never admit defeat instead she cut her losses. If mother cannot win then she will milk the situation for all its worth. She has what she wanted, a larger profit that elevated her status from multi-millionaire to billionaire and while it doesn't trump your status it's the best she can get."
Bruce narrowed his eyes, "But what about you?"
Tim shrugged, "Mother has never wanted a child, not really. She needed an heir, a vessel an asset but not a child, not someone to nurture and care for. I am merely another asset to her, one that you have agreed to take full responsibility of while she is away until I am older and can inherit the company. Now she doesn't have to come back until I am 18 years old. She never cared about what happened to me. She was just waiting until I was old enough to be utilized as an asset."
Dinah dropped her pickle and tears gathered in her eyes, she couldn't believe that this tiny, amazing child had been so unloved. They had sessions but he had always told her that he understood what he meant to his parents she hadn't known it was this bad.
"That's' all kinds of fucked up." said Jason breaking the silence and Bruce didn't even tell him to mind his language as he was too shocked.
"You know that's not how we think of you right Timmy?" asked Dinah and Tim beamed at them and nodded his head.
"I know, that's just how they are and that's okay. Not everyone is meant to be a parent. You guys were meant for it. Can I take the placement test in Gotham Academy now?" asked Tim.
Bruce merely nodded his head trying to find the strength not to put on his suit and scare the crap out of the Drakes. His father just went along with whatever his mother wanted and it was just sad. He was glad that Danny found the kid and that they were here for him now. He was a special kid and he was determined to make sure that he knew that.
Tim had done something amazing, he had accepted the fact that his parents weren't ever going to be there for him and it wasn't their fault. Dinah assumed that since he was so intelligent that he was able to understand but that didn't mean that sometimes he didn't feel unloved or blame himself for his parents not loving him. She decided to ensure that he was able to remember at all times that it wasn't his fault his parents were too stupid to appreciate the precious gift that he is but other than that all they could do was ensure that he felt loved, safe and happy.
Tim knew that he still had a long way to go before he could go out as Robin, Dick and Bruce were insisting that he be properly trained and Tim knew that eight months was not enough time training, not even on the bat-schedule that he was training but that didn't mean he didn't feel a little jealous when Jason was presented with his suit. It was largely based of Danny's with the boots and gloves, however he had a utility belt in red around his waist unlike Danny who didn't really carry one.
After presenting the suit to him Danny smiled at Jason, "Do you have a name picked out yet?"
Everyone was there, in the bat-cave to show their support of him taking up his own mantle and he nodded yes. If his voice had been a bit strained and his eyes a little brighter than usual then no one mentioned it but he managed to mutter out, "JayHawk."
Bruce smiled at the whole bird theme, he had given up hope that anyone would stop associating him with birds so he just accepted it. Robin was a bird even if no one knew that the name came from something else, something that tied Dick to his past and his parents so it was only fair that the rest of the family have bird themed names.
Dick on the other hand narrowed his eyes at Danny, "Your hero name isn't bird related Danny."
Danny chuckled, "Nope, but Phantom does wear the bat symbol."
Dick dropped the subject at the time because it was time for patrol and it was JayHawk's first time in the field. Bruce and Dick were off doing the dynamic duo thing while Dinah and Tim stayed at the computer to send them instructions. Danny patrolled with Jason, letting him fly out and see for himself what he could and couldn't handle. He hovered for a while but Jason stuck to muggings, car thieves and kidnappings. He didn't try taking on too many at the same time which was a good thing, he was able to get his feet wet without getting in over his head.
A month later, JayHawk finally made the news, there had been rumors about a new hero running on the rooftops however JayHawk ended up in the paper after stopping a bank robbery by the Riddler. Danny had been present but he hadn't seen anything too dangerous so he let the kid handle it and he did well. Bruce told Jason that he was proud of him and his progress but reminded him to be careful in the field and call if he needs help.
A week later Dinah went into labor and the couple had already decided that they were going to do a home birth and they had everything all set up with Alfred and Artemis on call for when this happened. Bruce still fainted, Dick took pictures and Danny held Dinah's hand. Jason blocked Tim's ears as Dinah swore, cursed and promised Bruce death for doing this to her. Several hours later and one exhausted woman later, a screaming baby had been introduced to the world, they named him Damian Wayne.
Artemis had snuck into Danny's room and was currently cuddled up on his bed. It had been a couple hours since the birth of their son and Bruce and Dinah were still in awe of their newborn so Dick had taken Jason and Tim out of the house for some ice-cream trying to give them some time and space to process and also wanting to get out of the house after witnessing the birth of a child. It was a little terrifying to three boys.
Danny showered and entered his room wearing sweatpants and toweling his hair dry, "You look deep in thought. Care to share?"
Artemis stared at Danny, he wasn't overly tall or broad, but he was lean a lot like swimmer and very well developed. All his muscles were well defined and he was scarred. Artemis wore a mask as well and she knew that you can't do the things that they did and not have scars but Danny didn't have many, but there were quite a bit. He told her about them when she traced the one over his shoulder.
Sam (His ex-girlfriend had been possessed by a plant creature and hit him with a vine), he told her the stories of how he got all the others and she couldn't help but wonder, "Do you think you could ever give it up? The life?"
Danny caressed her cheek, "I'm not like you guys Artemis. Dick, Jason, Tim, Bruce, Dinah and many of your friends chose this life and the people on the team, they could maybe one day give it up but not me. I'm part ghost Artemis and we have an obsession if left unfulfilled I could be driven insane, I've seen it happen to other ghosts in my world. I have to protect people and Gotham is my haunt now. I have to protect it. Its why I didn't join any teams, teams are mobile, they work globally, I only care for Gotham."
Artemis knew that Danny wasn't fully human and she could fully admit that when they started dating she wasn't really thinking long term. She sort of had feelings for Wally, there was this connection between them but he was acting so immature and childish and he couldn't admit to what she wanted so when Danny asked her out and he knew what he wanted, it was nice to be seen and wanted so she agreed to one date but she never expected that it would grow the way it had.
Danny was good to her but he was also kind, funny, smart and attentive. They challenged each other well and their relationship had only grown in the time they spent together. Neither of them expected it so it was only fair that they talked, really talked about the future and that meant understanding each other and what they thought their future could be together. They weren't promising to marry each other or anything like that but a basic idea of what they both wanted, needed to be said aloud.
"I know that you won't ever stop, I understand that but other than the hero life what do you want?" asked Artemis and Danny merely shrugged.
"To be happy Artemis, if you're asking about kids, then yes it would be nice but I don't mind not having them either. I wouldn't ask you to give up the hero life either but I also wouldn't stop you if that's what you wanted." Replied Danny.
Artemis bit her lip, she didn't want to give up the life but she had to admit, she wanted kids. She always had ever since she had been a child, she dreamed about being her mom and her mom for all her mistakes had been a pretty awesome mom.
"I don't know if I want to give it up but I would like kids, not now, just someday. I don't think I would want to be on the team forever." She said and Danny smiled at her.
"Bruce and Dinah can have a family and still be heroes, Iris and Barry are married, Superman and Lois, having a family will not change who we are and if you want to retire after having then that's alright too, just know that nearly everyone in this family will wear a mask at some point so expect the baby to be a ninja. I almost feel sorry for Damian because I know Dick is planning to get that kid on a trapeze as soon as he can crawl."
Artemis laughed, and Danny continued, "You can retire from the team if you want but why?"
Artemis shrugged, "The team takes a lot of time and effort, patrolling in Star City isn't that hard, day to day patrols but on the team the stakes are higher. I don't think I want to take those chances forever you know?"
Danny nodded his head, the team was a big responsibility and it was time consuming. Patrolling was done at night, and it was easier when all you were doing was one thing at a time.
"You could always retire from the team. You joined to prove how trustworthy you are and you did that so you can continue for as long as you like and then give it up when you're ready. Maybe you could move in with me and we could patrol together."
Artemis smiled and kissed him, she had the answers that she needed. Danny wouldn't force her to change who she was unless she made the choice herself. She didn't know if she could give up the mask, fighting had been part of her life for too long, she didn't know who she was without it and she was happy knowing that Danny wasn't making any concrete plans yet. They could make their decisions as they moved forward but for now the idea of what the future could be was enough for them.