Original idea: Quasy 52/pre52 Batfam, post dami's death, meets Avengers. Just an idea a lot of people have, but rarely do a good job on.

Avenging Bats

1

Tony did not want to be there. Yes, it was a party. Yes, it was for a good cause. Yes, there were expensive toys everywhere. Yes, there were hot, available women in the crowd. Yes, booze was available. All of that was what kept him there (plus Pepper insisted). There were just a few, tiny things he didn't like that was there.

One, he was in Gotham. The place sucked.

Two, Captain Boy Scout of America was making him come.

And three, Wayne was there.

"And why is that so repulsive?" Pepper Pots hung on his arm, dragging him up the steps to Gotham Kane Art Museum to make nice with potential business partners and look good for the camera. Cap-sicle had Natasha on his arm, bringing up the rear to make sure he didn't rabbit on them. Right then Tony envied Bruce Banner's excuse to stay out of the limelight, and the party scene, which was saying a lot at that moment. His girlfriend was less than amused at his reluctance. "Bruce Wayne's a well-respected business man whose company specializes in defensive military contracts, not guns or missiles. Then there's their medical division, their aerospace division, and their computer sciences. He's all about helping people."

"Wayne's an entitled, know-it-all brat." The genius internally groaned as they passed through the doors, not looking forward to any of it. "Has been since boarding school. And he was only there for like two years! And the next time we met, he had every other girl's number! Little rat bas-"

"There are other people here Tony," his best girl reminded him. "Important people who want to thank you guys for saving the world."

"Hm. Fun."

"Possible investors and partners too."

"If they want business, they can talk to you. Back home. In your office."

"Or we can make nice with people here and see where that goes later."

"I thought you liked parties," Steve pointed out, smirking to himself. He didn't like them either, but this was for a good cause. The money donated tonight would go to the families and businesses that were damaged in the Battle of New York. The Wayne Foundation was heading it and he had only heard good things about that organization: all above board, no questionable ties, and they specialized in helping victims of crimes, particularly orphans. If it weren't for all the good that was going to happen by them coming (Wayne promised to match the overall donations if the Avengers appeared) he wouldn't have come. If only they could have the charity happen without the party. "You sure have a reputation of being a party boy."

"That was before I got serious. Ooo! Tequila!" Without a second thought, Tony grabbed a shot off of a tray and took a swig. There was no way he was taking this sober. As soon as champagne crossed his path, he took two and handed one to Pepper. "And the bubbly for the lovely lady."

"Why thank you." Pepper smiled sweetly as she took it. "You still have to say hi to Mr. Wayne."

"No I don't."

"He's right over there." She pointed to one spotlighted area of the room. Two charming young men, one of them clearly underage, followed a tall and muscular one, each wearing tailored made suits of similar style. All three had black hair of varying shades and different intensities of blue for eyes. They even had different body types: big and buff, tall and lean, small and spry. It was only because they held themselves in a similar manner and dressed alike that anyone could tell they were together.

Well, that and the mishmash family was on the brochure. Same difference.

"So he is." Tony cringed at the sight, knowing the whole arrangement had to be for show. That first adoption made a notorious playboy look like a saint, and so did his second one (who sadly 'died'. He wasn't convinced it wasn't a set up out of convenience. Sneaky bastard was probably sick of the street punk). The third one, well, that was clearly a business arrangement, everyone knew it. There were rumors of a fourth, apparently female one, but he never saw her. The real kicker was when Wayne acknowledged a bastard son to the public. Speaking of which, "Where's the kid?"

"You can't expect him to bring an eleven year old a party like this, can you?"

"Frankly I don't think a teenager should be here either," Steve piped in, shaking his head at all the alcohol. "Either way, we really need to introduce ourselves."

"You can introduce yourselves all you want," the millionaire insisted. "I'm going to liberate some more tequila."

"No," Pepper insisted, pinching his arm. "You're going to go over there, play nice for the press, guarantee a check, then you can make a fool of yourself. But just yourself."

"How about we just skip to the last part and go home? Hm?" He really did not want to talk to Wayne. Last time they met, the man nearly crushed his hand! Guy sure could hold onto a grudge.

"Tony-"

"It's going to happen anyway."

"Why don't you like Bruce Wayne anyway?" Natasha asked what was in all their minds. Why all the resistance? It was rather odd, especially for him.

Looking away, he told them in the simplest way possible. "We went to the same boarding school for a few years. We were not friends. And he's holding a grudge for some pretty childish pranks."

"Are we talking dye in his shampoo or replacing his shaving cream with cheese aerosol?"

Nearly all of them jumped at the new person's voice, shocked and amazed that someone had caught them off guard at all, let alone by this guy. They all knew who he was, and mere minutes ago he was under a spotlight; Richard Grayson-Wayne was giving them a hundred watt smile as he watched their faces. "'Cause I've done both and then some. Never got anything worse than washing every vehicle he owns as retaliation. Course he did prank me back a time or two."

"Really!" Steve couldn't help but smile back at this cheerful young man, ready and eager to meet them.

"Yep!"

"Sounds like the two of you had some fun together."

"Oh I bet," Tony mumbled in a small voice. Pepper gave him a sharp jab in the ribs along with a quick glare. He'd be paying for that later.

"Sure do!" Dick admitted, nearly glowing. "Course our pranks aren't near as bad as what Tim rolls out. Man that kid can be vicious."

"Say any more and I'll show Babs some of those pictures I took." They almost leapt as high as when Dick interrupted them. This new comer was the younger 'Wayne kid', Timothy Drake-Wayne. He had taken an active role in the company shortly after dropping out of high school, but the teen took enough tests to earn his GED and an associate's degree, proving he was a responsible young man. The age and wisdom in his eyes gained him respect quite quickly.

Tony had a feeling he may like this kid. Steve already liked Dick. Too bad Daddy Warbucks was an ass.

The older boy eyed the teen with some misgivings. "Which pictures are you talking about?"

"You know the ones," Tim teased, smirking a bit.

His brother glared a bit. "Refresh my memory stalker boy."

"June 7th. Metropolis."

Dick seemed to think about it for a moment before his eyes grew wide and a blush came to his face. "Thanks for the memories."

"Not a problem." He turned politely to the foursome and smiled pleasantly, offering his hand. "Allow us to introduce ourselves. I'm Tim Wayne, and this is my brother, Dick Grayson."

"Don't let the name fool you," Dick joked as he took Steve's hand for a good shake. Tony took Tim's and then Pepper. Natasha had the older boy's hand second, and he lingered flirtatiously. "I'm actually a pretty decent guy."

"I bet," the superspy answered, automatically flirting back.

"And who may you be, lovely lady?" They could hear Tim sigh in frustration as he finished handshakes around the circle without him. "An angel sent from above?"

"Natasha Romanov. Information specialist."

"Really!" Dick grinned at the wording, then started to tease. "So you're a master at interrogation?"

"Something like that."

"Maybe you'd like to interrogate me later."

"Anyway!" Tim returned the conversation to more important matters, exchanging looks between himself and his brother. One could almost hear the younger telling him to knock it off, while the other called him a killjoy. "It's really nice to meet you Ms. Romanov. You're the only one we didn't know by name. You're of course Steve Rogers," the teen started, looking over to the man with a smile. "The famous Captain America."

"Why yes I am." Steve kind of liked the other kid too. He seemed focused and honest, though he did seem to have a dark side.

The teen smiled a bit more honestly as he spoke next. "My dad used to tell me stories of you from World War II. He really would have liked to meet you."

"And who is this lovely lady being neglected Mr. Stark?" It was a clear joke, but it still hurt a bit when Dick passed him by for Pepper.

"Pepper Pots," she answered as she gave the young man her hand. "Acting CEO of Stark Industries."

"Oh! The brilliant mind of the company's business ventures!" This time he wasn't flirting as he continued to talk. "Have you met Lucius Fox? I think you two would get along really well."

"Not yet," she noted, smirking slightly, "but I plan on it. Is he really the one behind all of this?"

"Bruce is a pretty face and can do some of the work," Dick admitted, with Tim backing him up with nods, "but we'd be sunk without Lucius. He makes the dreams possible. Timbo here's been learning all he can from the man, so that when both of them retire, he can do the work and I can be the face."

"And a scary face at that," Tim teased, clearly not liking the nickname. Everyone choked on a laugh while the man faked offence.

"Why Timmy! How can you say such a thing! I have a perfectly lovely face! Isn't that right ladies?"

"Better than this lug," Pepper joked, nodding her head towards her boyfriend before taking a sip of her drink. Natasha nodded while Steve laughed a little.

"Hey!" They all laughed a little at his expense, only stopped when he pouted with some wit. "I think my face is very pretty. People even base their looks off mine."

"And if you dyed your hair bright green and wore a tutu they'd love you?" The jabbing joke from Steve nearly made Pepper spray out her drink. That was quite an image. Where did the Captain get it?

"That'd be a laugh," Tim stated, keeping his composure. He offered his hand once more to Tony, smiling politely. "It's nice to meet you Mr. Stark. I've wanted to ask you a few questions about energy distribution in your armor."

"Oh it's a trade secret," Tony insisted, though a little impressed by the question. "Next time you're in New York unsupervised, I'll show you the finer points."

"That won't be happening for a while." This voice interrupted him from starting their tech talk, and had an authoritative ring to it, demanding everyone's attention. Bruce Wayne himself joined them, a polite yet firm look upon the group, particularly Tim and Tony. "Not after last time."

"Last time?" Dick looked over to his brother who cringed at a memory. Everyone else was completely lost. "Did I miss something?"

"My apartment there blew up." The Avengers there's eyes grew as the Waynes became exasperated.

"And you didn't tell me?" Dick sighed heavily, almost comically, before propping his fists on his hips. "What were you doing this time? Cooking or trying to find the cure for cancer?"

"Failed assassination attempt with a stinger missile."

"So cooking."

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Which is why you're not going anywhere for a while." Bruce folded his arms, glaring slightly at the two. "You need to take the threats on your life seriously. Both of you."

In perfect unison, his boys gave him an identical look, which onlookers could only interpret as annoyance. The oldest spoke up first. "You're one to talk. Am I in lockdown too?"

"Debating it." His answer made the two roll their eyes as he turned towards their honored guests. He offered a hand first to Pepper. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you Miss Pots. I've only read good things about you."

"The same can be said about you and Wayne Enterprises." She smiled pleasantly at him, impressed at how polite he was being. Tong though wasn't, giving a grim smile between the two of them before downing his drink. "Though I can't say the same for your social life."

"Well not everyone is as fortunate to have a constant companion like Anthony here." A similar grim smile went on the richer man's face as he offered his hand to the man in question. "You're a lucky man Stark."

"Hm. Don't I know it." Ignoring the stretched out hand and grabbed another glass, exchanging it with the empty glass. Five minutes in and he was on his third drink. "Nice to see you too Brucie."

Wayne seemed to brush off the dismissal with a small grimace and turning towards Natasha, keeping his cool while those around them gave confused or reproving looks between the two men. "And you would be the mystery woman of the Avengers. Should I ask for your name or will it take away from your allure?"

"Bruce..." Dick gave the man a small whine, making everyone wonder how old he really was.

And that's where I stopped

Honestly it was fun for a bit, but I lost interest for one reason or another. Can't remember. Anyway, to give away the plot, Red Hood falls in the middle of the party with bullet holes while Tim is out trying to find Steph, his date. They get kidnapped by... Crap, can't remember their names at the moment. the beehive guys in the Marvel universe! they're using steph as leverage to get Tim to use his intellect to help them beat the League. That doesn't turn out so well for them but they do manage to keep Tim with them for a good long time. Shield wants to keep Jason in their custody, but Bruce intervenes on his behalf, saying Hood's saved his family a time or two. The Waynes are under house arrest until they sort out Jason and get Tim back, which makes Tony grin a bit and Cap worried. Dick keeps trying to sneak out to be nightwing and Bruce and Alfred do everything they can to keep the out of the cave. Tony ends up helping Dick sneak out, and he gets Roy and Kory to save Jason before getting their help to find Tim and steph. Cap ends up figuring everything out and saves Bats' ID from Shield (Civil war anyone?). Tony realizes he was a bully to Bruce in boarding school and apologizes. Everyone goes home happy.

Yeah, didn't think it all the way through. AIM! That was the name I was forgetting. So this guy's up for grabs, but please please please! Try to get the characters right and the writing good. I've seen too many good concepts spoiled by bad performance. 3X