Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Ch.2 "We're Brothers, It's What We Do"
After breakfast, they each went to their respective rooms in order to change out of their pajamas. They came out of their room ready for whatever they had to do for the day. Stephanie was the last one to exit her room, and, wondering where the boys were, she began to look around.
Her eyes narrowed when she heard voices coming from the living room, and being taught by the best detective in the world, she deduced that her 'subjects', as she now labels them, were in that direction. Crouching low, she crept with all the stealth of being a protégé of Batman provided her.
Grinning, she spotted her quarry in the habitat known as the living room. Tentatively, she pressed down on the 'RECORD' button on her camera and began her observation. Zooming in, she captured Dick and Jason. They were both dressed in their normal attire, Dick wearing a blue collared shirt and old faded jeans, while Jason sported average dark jeans, black t-shirt, with his customary leather jacket.
At the moment, they were doing an admirable job of playing tug-a-war with the remote control to the television. Jason's expression was a mixture of petulant child wanting his favorite toy, and a killer debating if it would be worth it to spill some blood in order to get what he wanted, while Dick had the look of an entitled king enraged that a lowly commoner would dare take liberties with his royal scepter. Dick was also demonstrating his flexibility as he twisted his arm in what most would consider an alarming angle, and Jason reciprocated by forming a wrestling move.
Stephanie slowly turned her camera around the room and found Damian sitting on the floor, clutching a pencil in his hand, completely focused on drawing. As Jason and Dick got louder, Damian paused in his progress, turned his face to the two arguing brothers, and scowled. The last brother, Tim, was on a chair beside him, clicking away on his laptop, as usual, ignoring the fight ensuing between the two eldest.
Practically bursting in excitement Stephanie gave a goofy grin and said, "Guys! I'm filming so give me your best smile!"
Dick, not being one to deny a chance of a reflective surface to catch his shining image, immediately let go of the remote and looked up smiling. That left Jason, who was holding on to remote so tight that his knuckles turned white, with no other force to rival his, and thus lead to him flying backward, landing flat on his ass.
Still on the floor, Jason glared and exclaimed, "What the fuck, Dick!"
Dick was bent over in laughter. Wiping a fake tear from his eye, he said, "Oops. Sorry, Jaybird." Grinning, he teased, "At least you have the remote now, right?"
Jason's only reply was to lunge at him, teeth bared in an animal snarl. Dick's smile remained as they renewed the fight with more vigor.
Seeing all of this unfold, Stephanie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "The camera loves you two," she mumbled sarcastically. Knowing that Jason and Dick were going to be occupied for a while yet, she sat down next to Damian on the floor. Curious, she turned the camera towards Damian's drawing. "What ya drawing, Damian?"
Damian looked up at her and growled. He put one hand over the lens and his other hand over his drawing. "None of your business, Brown. And why the sudden interest in recording us?"
"I already saw it was a cat, grumpy pants." Giving up for now, she stopped recording. She brightened when she answered him, "Oh yeah, you weren't here when I explained. I'm filming all of your behaviors for my psychology project."
Damian crossed his arms over his chest. "I never agreed to any of this. I did not sign a contract to give you permission to record me doing my daily activities. I could sue you for a breach in privacy rights."
Steph's smile grew into one that could dangerously rival the Joker's. "Thought you might say that." She whipped out her cell phone, scrolled down her contact list, and pressed the one listed as "Papa Bat." After a quick conversation, Stephanie put her cell phone away, her smile oozing triumph. With all the dignity of a six year old she said, "The big man says you HAVE to help me with my project so ha!" She finished by sticking out her tongue at him.
Damian glared. "I think not." He pulled out his cell and called Bruce. At the beginning of the conversation his face had a determined moue, but rapidly as the conversation went on and the response, "But father!" came out of Damian's mouth more and more, Damian began to frown with his brows scrunched together. Finally, Damian hung up his phone, his face now transformed into a pout and his shoulders sagged in defeat. He mustered enough energy for a batglare and he grumbled, "Mark my words Brown, this is not over."
Steph rolled her eyes. "So what did Bruce say?" She knew the answer but she wanted to hear him say it out loud.
"I am to help you with your asinine project," he huffed.
"Good." Satisfied, and with more hope, she began to record again. "Now as I was saying-" she turned to give a glare of her own to Damian, "before Damian rudely shoved the camera away-"she turned her attention back to the camera, "He's ten. And if he acts like he normally does; you'll see how he earned his nickname, 'demon brat'."
"T.t," Damian's usual line was heard.
"Oh! And guys I'm going to film you altogether, but you're also all going to get your own close ups." Steph said to all of them. Sometime when Damian was on the phone with Bruce, Jason and Dick stopped fighting with minimum blood spilled. They were now both sitting on the couch watching television.
They all nodded back in response, even Tim, as much as he was occupied, nodded absently.
"Well then, go on about your lives, act like I'm not even here!" She dived behind the couch, and propped her camera up on the arm of it.
While Jason was distracted, Dick seized the opportunity and snatched the remote from him. Dick gave a victorious, "Aha!" and changed the channel.
Jason looked mildly before his face morphed into stark horror. "Grayson, we are not watching 'My Little Pony!'"
Dick rolled his eyes. "Oh like Pimp My Motorcycle is any better? Besides, I already saw that episode. Spoiler alert: the guy gets a shiny new bike." His index finger gave a twirl. "Woo-hoo. Big deal."
With the peril of having to face the terror that is My Little Pony, Jason had no choice but to fight as if his life depended on it as he lunged at Dick for the second time that day.
Tim gave a frustrated sigh and closed his laptop. Giving an apologetic look to Stephanie, who was still behind the couch, he said, "Sorry Steph, I can't concentrate when these two over there are bickering like children. I'm going to my room." He stood up and left.
"So much for filming them together." Stephanie turned off the camera and stood up herself. She faced Dick and Jason with one finger pointed accusingly at them. "You guys made Tim leave!"
"It's not like any one wanted him here anyway," Damian pointed out.
"I heard that!" Tim called from the hallway.
"Excellent. Now you know to leave more often now!" Damian yells back.
At that, Tim came storming back in and began to argue with Damian. At his last straw, Tim said, "Listen you little shit-" and thus a verbal war began from the two.
Dumbfounded, Stephanie looked at the chaos before her. She set her camera down. Putting two fingers to her mouth, she did a high pitch whistle noise to get their attention. Sure enough, she got it.
They all stopped and stared. Jason was frozen mid-punch to Dicks face, and Tim's pointed finger rested inert on Damian's shirt.
Placing both hands on her hips she yelled, "Will you all stop fighting for a second! How am I supposed to film you guys when all you do is, fight, fight and fight!" She ran both hands through her hair. "I can't work with this madness!"
The brothers in question glanced at one another in a long pause, and then returned their attention back to Steph.
Shrugging Jason replied, "We're brothers, it's just what we do."
"Besides, weren't you the one who said we're supposed to act like ourselves?" Tim piped up.
Steph blinked and stared.
She opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again and said, "But not like- that's not…you- ugh whatever."
She composed herself and said, "Fine. Keep fighting like you're animals at the zoo. No comment. However, I do need some footage of you altogether, so I'd appreciate it if you guys did something together…that doesn't involve fighting or trying to kill each other."
"Isn't being forced to live under the same roof enough bonding time for you?" Tim complained.
"No! You all keep going your own way anyway, so go do something together!" Steph demanded.
"What the hell do you expect us to do? Cuddle?" Jason said sarcastically.
She messaged her forehead. "Do I have to do all the work? Something like playing videogames, go to the movie theaters, or bowling, go to the beach, or how about an amusement park? I dunno just go do something together!" she huffed, out of breath.
They stood in awkward silence for a moment, until Damian broke it with, "What's an amusement park? Is it a park where people go to get amused or some such?"
"I know what we're bonding over!" Dick said.
"Yes that'll be great footage! You guys will look normal!" Steph added. She rubbed her hands together in anticipation.
"I vote six flags!" Jason exclaimed with an enthusiasm that wasn't usual for him.
"No way! We're going to the happiest place on earth!" Dick decided with a tilt of his chin.
"Oh great. Just no little kid rides and..." Tim trailed off.
"Am I the only one who doesn't know what the hell is going on?!"Damian yelled over their chatter.
They all stopped talking and answered him in unison with, "Yes," before they continued their babbling.
"If we leave now, and take one of Bruce's jets, we can be there in forty minutes tops," Tim said reasonably.
Steph pointed out, "Not if we let Jason be the pilot. I bet he'll get us there in 20 minutes. Tops."
Jason smirked and tipped his head in acknowledgment.
Dick looked appalled. "He'll get us dead, with his flying."
"Only you, Grayson. And only if I push you out the air lock when we're flying. I suppose I can resist that urge for this little "bonding experience," Jason replied, eyes glinting.
…
Next chapter Disneyland. Thanks for the reviews! Thanks to my beta!