AN: I'm terribly sorry guys about the earlier chapter post. I must have clicked something wrong. Here's the correct chapter.

"I can't believe he's doing this."

Jason raised an eyebrow at Dick, whose face was pressed against his arms that were resting on the wooden railing of the landing that overlooked the foyer. As if every muscle in his skinny body decided to turn off, Dick practically melted to the floor as he groaned in frustration. Jason really didn't react to him since after eight months of living with the guy he knew that Dick could really be dramatic when he wanted to. Instead, he just stepped to the side so that Tim could move over so that Dick wouldn't flop completely on top of him.

In his over-dramatic, drama queen way, Dick said, "This is so embarrassing."

Snorting, Jason replied, "No shit."

Leaning over the railing, Jason rested his chin on top of his crossed arms. A small frown tugged at his lips as he blew a small piece of his hair from his eyes. It flew upwards for only a moment, before resting right back in place, blocking part of his glaring view. When he did that at dinner, he'd seen the way Alfred had paused from lifting a plate, which meant that Jason had a very small window of opportunity to convince Alfred to take him to a barber instead of letting the butler cut it himself. Alfred was good at a lot of things, but Jason preferred to not have the bowl cut like Timmy was having to sport of the next few months.

That could wait though. Right now, they had a bigger problem. One that would be arriving in the next ten minutes or so.

"I mean, I can do it. I'm almost thirteen, and I have training! I could watch you guys for a few hours." Lifting his face up, Dick scrunched up his nose and said, "We don't need a babysitter."

A babysitter. Bruce had gotten them a babysitter. Jason sneered at the thought.

For as far back as Jason could remember, he'd practically been raising himself. Yeah, his mom was there, but not really at the same time. Not in the that really counted. He was the one that got up in the morning and made sure they had something to eat. He was the one that made sure there was a little food in the cabinets, even if it was nothing else than a jar a peanut butter and maybe some crackers that he swiped from Mr. Chan's store down the street. He did all the stuff that needed to be done and hadn't needed anyone watch him do it. Did Bruce really think his living in the manor the past few months made him forget how?

Maybe if it was just Timmy and Damian, he could see it. God knows they needed adult supervision, and Dick wouldn't near be about enough to make sure that Damian didn't try and kill Tim, or that Tim didn't disappear somewhere in the house for six hours to be alone again.

But Jason himself? If he didn't one when three in Crime Alley, he didn't need one now that he in a Wayne Manor.

Dick was right. It was embarrassing.

There was a little bit of a frown on Tim's face as he looked up at them and said, "Maybe it won't be so bad. Babysitters can be fun."

"This is Bruce we're talking about, Tim," Dick sighed. "I promise you, whoever it is, fun isn't high on their list of priorities."

Jason pulled a face at the thought.

Whoever it was, was going to have to be someone that Bruce trusted to keep them safe. That narrowed the list down a lot because B was paranoid. There were only like a handful of people that Jason could think of that might be that list.

It wasn't a member of the Justice League, he knew that. If it was, Bruce would have just said that they were coming over to watch them while he and Alfred went to that stupid fundraiser tonight. (It was some kind of 'save the whatever' that Jason wasn't 100% sure was an actually animal but knew for sure that, if one had somehow got into one of those snobs house, they'd call an exterminator.) So, no JL members, which made the list even shorter.

Visions of former prison wardens and ex-special agents danced through Jason's head when the doorbell finally rang.

Dick snapped to attention, and Tim jumped up as well. Jason himself just merely raised his head as Alfred made his way to the front door. Bruce followed, and Damian toddled behind both. Bruce was already dressed for the evening and ready to leave once he was satisfied that this was the babysitter he'd hired and not some crazed lunatic who was trying to replace them. A part of Jason wondered at the other part of him that found that not only perfectly normal idea, but also something that they'd probably need to plan for. Knowing Bruce, he already did: Strategy 127 Alpha or some shit like that.

As he buttoned his tux's coat, Bruce glanced up at them and pinned them with a look that ordered them to behave.

Jason snorted. Yeah, like that was going to happen.

A cold wind kicked in some early spring rain as two figures stood before Alfred. Between the dull, rainy sunset light and the large umbrella the taller of the two figures held over them, Jason couldn't get a good view of either one of them. One was a lot shorter than the other, but other the bright pair of rain boots, there was nothing about them that stood out.

"Good evening, Commissioner," Alfred said as he stepped aside and let the pair enter.

Jim Gordon was a tall man with graying hair who screamed 'cop' even while he was dressed like a civilian. Too straight shoulders, too observant eyes, too clean – a two-year-old in Jason's old neighborhood would have picked him out the moment their pudgy little face turned his way. Even if he wanted too, there was no hiding what James Gordon was. Jason figured he didn't even try anymore.

"Hello, Alfred," Gordon replied as he placed the umbrella next to the door. He shook his overcoat a bit to get rid of any rain that the umbrella hadn't protect him from and then turned to B. "Bruce."

"Jim," Bruce replied in his best Brucie voice. He shook Gordon's hand and then said, "I'm sorry you had to come out in such bad weather."

"It's fine," Gordon said with a grin and wave of his hand. "It wouldn't be Gotham without the downpours, right?"

While Gordon and Bruce talked, Alfred helped the person with yellow boots with their coat, which blocked Jason's view. Dick, however, must have seen who it was because his face paled but his eyes widened. His lips were doing a weird thing where they tittered between a grin and grimaces every few seconds. He couldn't seem to decide whether Bruce had just made him incredibly happy or horrified beyond the telling of it.

Drawing his eyebrows together, Jason asked, "What's wrong with you?"

Surprise flashed across Dick's face, like it should be perfectly obvious. Jason had seen that look before, especially back when he had first moved into the Manor last summer. He would ask where something was or how to do something, and Dick would stare at him like Jason should know all this already. Then he'd blink, and it was like it never happened. The first few times it'd happen, Jason had flushed bright red; from anger (because no matter what Dickhead thought, Jason wasn't stupid) and embarrassment. It seemed kind of crappy of him to think Jason should just know things like where the kitchen was or why the clock entrance to the cave was set to 10:48. Now, whenever Jason saw that look, he'd just glare at Dick for the next few hours and bite his head off if he asked him anything.

Dick didn't seem concerned about that tonight, though. His eyes were solely fastened on the group in foyer. Swallowing hard, he said, "It's...um..."

Bruce's voice echoed up to them. "It's nice to see you again, Barbra."

A teenage girl a few years older than Dick pushed a loose strain of her bright red hair that had fallen from her ponytail behind her ear as a smile pulled on her lips and shook hands with Bruce. There was only a little bit of shine to her lips, and it looked to be the only makeup she wore. She had on a pair of black tights and shorts, but everything was mostly covered up by a massive Gotham Academy sweatshirt.

No wonder Dick went all pale. She went to his school. Bruce hired a babysitter from Dick's school.

This was going to be fun.

For Jason, anyway.

"Hi, Mr. Wayne," Barbra replied. Her braces caused her to have a little bit of a lisp, but she didn't embarrassed by it. She just adjusted her bag and said, "I hope you don't mind that I brought some homework to do."

"No, that's fine. And please, call me Bruce," he said.

She nodded.

"Once Damian's down, there won't be a lot for you to do. Speaking of which." Bruce turned to usher the up until the suspicious toddler forward. "Say hello, Damian."

Barbra crouched down to Damian's level and smiled. "Hi, Damian. I'm Barbra."

Damian looked at her. Then he looked at Bruce. Then at Barbra again before crossing his arms. "No. Go 'way."

"Damian," Bruce said in that special tone that was usually reserved for Jason. It was kind of nice to not be the one on the receiving end for once.

Laughing, Barbra said, "Don't worry about it, Mr. Wayne – um, Bruce. He's not the first toddler to me."

"And, hey, I'll be here to help you," Dick said loudly and cheerily.

Before Tim and Jason knew what was happening, Dick all but run down the stairs. He was about halfway down when he seem to decide that maybe charging forward like an overeager puppy might not be the best approach, and switched to a more steady – but still fast – pace. Jason figured he was trying to go for casual, but it came across more as a marching duck to him.

Squishing nose and drawing his eyebrows tight together, Tim tilted his head at Jason, who only shrugged a shoulder in response. That was just Dick being weird, which wasn't unusual.

Barbra herself had a confused smirk on her face as Dick approached. She didn't know what was wrong with him any more than they did, apparently.

"Damian loves me," Dick said as he scooped the brat off the floor.

Angry cats didn't fight being held as much as Damian was. Tiny, chubby arms pushed and stubby little legs kicked, and the whole thing would have been hilarious if it wasn't for the screeching to release part. When a well-placed kick to the stomach nearly caused Dick to double over, he finally put the little demon down, who then hurried over to stand on the other side of Bruce. He crossed his arms, and Jason half-expected him to start snarling.

Dick was as red as Barbra's hair.

Well, Jason's night was getting better by the minute.