Chapter 7: Friends for the Weekend part 2
Almost immediately after the trio of boys were brought back inside they were promptly wrapped in blankets, Dick wrapped in two since he was smaller and colder, and given a cup of hot chocolate. They were also sat on the couch and Bruce put on a movie for them, a favorite of the three called Treasure Planet.
The boys watched in awe as the ship Jim was sailing flew through space, wishing they could do that. Though they did get an experience a little close to it whenever they flew to the Watchtower, it just wasn't as adventurous. Nonetheless the boys watched the movie enthralled by its take if action and adventure. Not to mention they also had a plethora of snacks to pre-occupy them, provided by Alfred of course, from homemade cookies to warm nachos it was a little boys dream.
For over an hour the boys enjoyed the movie, warmed up, and ate to their heart's content. This particularly applied to Wally, whose insatiable Flash appetite caused him to consume more than Dick and Roy combined. Eventually the movie came to an end which left the boys with pent up energy fueled by restless little boy energy and sugar.
"Daddy! Wes gonna go play up stairs ok!" Dickdeclared, as he escaped his blanket cocoon, and got back on his little feet.
"Alright have fun you three, I'll call you down when dinner is ready." Bruce responded happily.
"Ok!" All three shouted at the same time as they then ran up the stairs, their blankets flying behind them like capes.
Bruce smiled, happy to know his son had friends who loved and cared for him as well as related to him. For all three had gone through more tragedy than any small child should have been allowed to. Poor little Wally lost his parents in a terrible car crash a year and a half ago when he was barely six years old. Then Roy grew up on the streets from the time he was born, his parents killed by thugs when he was only five years old. From then until he was about six and a half he grew up in his own till Oliver found him and took him in.
Though each suffered a different tragedy at different points in their lives together they got through it. Together they healed and comforted one another, each knowing exactly how the other felt. For while in many ways they were all so innocent, some of them more than others, they also collectively had a piece of their innocence stolen from them. But together they trained and fought through their grief to become protectors of the world instead of going down the path of revenge, as their mentors had unfortunately gone through before. Comforted by this thought Bruce sat down in his great big arm chair by the fireplace and read his newspaper, unaware of the adventures being had up stairs.
The Play Room
Once the boys had reached the play room they immediately got to work on a game of pirates, inspired by what they saw in treasure planet. From around the massive and well stocked play room the boys grabbed toy swords, pirate props, pillows, and other items to give the room a pirate atmosphere. They then got into character, tying bandannas on their heads in a pirate fashion and splitting the pirate props between the three of them.
Dick took the pirate blouse, since he was the only one it fit on, the fake beard and the hand hook. Wally put on the eye patch and the fake peg leg, making him look like he lost half of his body. Then lastly Roy took the pirate hat and the fake parrot that clipped to your shoulder, making it so they were all ready to play.
"Alright ye scallywags! Give me yur gold or walk the plank!" Roy demanded in a pirate voice as he pointed his toy sword at his two younger brothers.
"No way Captain Arrow! Ye won't get our booty!" Wally responded back in a pirate voice as he paired his toy sword with Roy's.
"Yeah our booty!" Dick squealed out in his attempt at a pirate voice raising his sword at Roy.
"Then it be war between us!" Roy cried out as he got to his "ship", aka the barricade of bean bags in front of the large Dutch windows with the curtains tied like sails.
"War!" Dick and Wally yelled out together as they boarded their ship, the other side of the room with another bean bag barricade.
"Man the cannons Bird Beard!" Wally commanded as he fake turned their "wheel", aka a frisbee from Dicks toy chest.
"Aye yea Captain Lighnin Speed!" Dick cried out adorably as he gathered great big pillows.
Within seconds Dick had gather great amounts of pillows for their cannonballs and was ready to throw them.
"Cannonballs ready Captain!" Dick announced proudly.
"Alright then ready, aim, fire!" Wally yelled excitedly.
On que Dick with all the strength his little body could muster sent pillows flying at Roy's "ship". He actually was pretty accurate and got them quite far, hitting the ship several times, even nearly hitting Roy himself with a "cannonball".
"Aye ye missed me you salty sea dogs! Now it be my turn!" Roy laughed out cockily.
He immediately bent down and picked a rope that he tied a noose on. Then he threw it and got it to grab onto the light fixture above and in between the two ships. Roy then hopped onto a bean bag and immediately swung across the "ocean" between them and landed right into Wally and Dicks ship.
"Prepare to be plundered!" Roy roared as he pulled out his sword.
"Oh no you don't!" Wally responded as he pulled his own sword out.
Dick followed suit and both boys charged at Roy with all their might. For several minutes the boys parried and swung their swords at each other, unaware that they were being watched the entire time. For behind a cracked door watched Alfred, with a small camera he always kept in his pocket for emergencies filming the boys pirate game. He had previously come up to tell the boys dinner was ready but saw the boys little game they were playing and couldn't resist, he had to have something to show the Justice League every once in a while. Anyways the boys continued to fight till at last Roy made a hit on Wally with his sword.
"Aye shiver me timber's, I've been hit!" Wally cried out dramatically as he fell to the floor with an over the top dead face.
"Captain!" Dick called out mournfully but then went on to attack Roy.
"Ye think ye can take me on Bird Beard!" Roy bellowed evilly.
"I'll avenge Captain Lighnin Speed!" Dick cried out as he charged for Roy with his sword.
Once again the two parried and fought off each other's swords with greater skill then any other children their age. Roy was even impressed, but not truly surprised, seeing that the little boy's father was Batman. Anyways this went on for a long time till at last Roy was at last disarmed and pinned into a corner.
"No! Have mercy on my Bird Beard, I won't take your treasure, just spare me!" Roy weeped over dramatically.
"For the Captain!" Dick responded as he plunged his sword into the crevice of Roy's armpit.
Roy then made very over dramatic dying sounds, choking and wailing with pain as if he were in excruciating pain. Then he hit the back wall and lost his balance causing him to fall over into the "ocean".
"Noooooooo!" Roy cried out as he fell and drowned.
At the sand time his fancy pirate hat fell in the ground and was picked up by Dick.
"I win!" Dick squealed triumphantly as he held his sword up in the air.
"Good job Dick, should've guessed you'd win!" Roy said quite genuinely as he pulled himself back up over the wall of bean bags.
"Yeah the way you threw those pillows and fought off Roy was awesome!" Wally said as he ran up and hugged Dick.
As he was cheered for, Dick blushed a little, always a bit bashful when he received such great amounts of praise. But that didn't matter to his older pseudo brothers who loved to hype and praise him endlessly. To them he was the best baby brother you could ask for and everything he did was amazing, though this was the general opinion of Dick by everyone. Anyways as the little boys talked they didn't notice Alfred slipping into the playroom.
"Excuse me young sirs it is time for dinner." Alfred said happily, knowing his young charges were going to enjoy his meal.
"Food!" Wally squealed as he flashed out of the room to the dining room table in the literal blink of an eye.
Meanwhile the other three were left behind neither of them having flash speed like the little speedster.
"Hey Dick you wanna piggy back ride to dinner?" Roy asked as he got in position to have the boy hop on his back.
"Yeah let's go!" Dick replied joyfully as he sprung up onto Roy's arched back.
Immediately Roy latched onto the little birds tiny legs and held him securely in place.
"Give the order Captain Birdy Beard!" Roy requested in his previous pirate voice.
"Onward to dinner!" Dick cried out excitedly as he was speedily escorted to the dining room.
As the pair left Alfred watched with a content smile happy to see his pseudo grandson have so many friends his own age that cared so deeply for him. He only wished Bruce could have had the same when he was younger, then maybe he would never have felt the need to become Batman and put himself in so much danger. Then again then he probably would have never met Dick then and not have the friends and family he did from the Justice League.
Alfred knew Bruce would never admit it, but despite his cold attitude as Batman, he truly cared for the members of the Justice League. He still had his trust issues, especially when it came to trusting Dick in the care of anyone else, but the league helped him heal a bit more from his pain. They gave him the friendship he didn't think he needed, but in reality needed it more than he knew.
Content with his thoughts and the state of the Wayne Manor Alfred followed behind his charges and returned back to the dining room. When he did Alfred was met with the sound of little boys running around and laughing. He watched as Dick, still riding on Roy's back, and Roy chased Wally around as he sped around the room at his top speed.
"Now young sirs no running in the dining room!" Alfred tried to politely request.
But the boys unfortunately couldn't hear him being much too preoccupied with their new game. Alfred knew it would be futile so he decided to get Bruce knowing his very authoritative presence and manor always got the three trouble makers to behave better than any other leaguer or person alive could. So he quietly left the dining room and popped over to the fireplace where Bruce was reading a Charles Dickens Novel.
"Excuse me sir, I've come to tell you dinner is ready. And I was wondering if you could assist me in getting the young sirs to settle down a bit?"
"Of course Alfred, those boys sure seem to have endless amounts of energy don't they?" Bruce said as he put down his book and got up from his chair.
" I'm afraid nearly all children do, but it seems to be even more extreme for those who are protégés as well."
Bruce chuckled at Alfred's comment and walked over to the dining room to see the same sight his manservant had earlier.
"Boys!" Bruce called out authoritatively.
Almost immediately the boys stopped in their tracks all knowing that when Bruce spoke they had better listen. He was a very kind man but even innocent children knew he meant business when it was time to be serious.
"It's time to settle down now, so sit at the table." Bruce said in a firm but kind way.
Immediately the boys went over to the table to their previous seats they had at lunch. Only in Wally's place was a little black booster seat causing the said speedster to grimace slightly.
"Uncle Bruce you said I didn't have to use a booster seat. I'm a big boy now not a little kid!" Wally whined.
"I said it was fine for just lunch, but dinner's a little bit more formal Wally. It's Alfred's rule that we use proper manners which means no kneeling at the table, so we need to respect that ok?" Bruce explained politely as he kneeled down to Wally's level.
Wally pouted a little, not wanting to be treated like a little kid, but he remembered he promised his Uncle Barry he'd behave.
"Ok." Wally relented with a slight defeated look on his face.
"Good boy, and hey on the bright side you can now eat more comfortably at the table." Bruce said as he then helped Wally into his seat.
"I guess." Wally said, still not liking it all that much.
From there the rest of the group found their seats and dinner was served and boy did it look delicious. Alfred walked in with a silver cart and served out a steaming tray of beef stroganoff, a warm bowl of mashed potatoes, and garlic sautéed green beans. All those who sat at the table had eyes as big as saucers and were salivating at the thought of eating the feast before them, but Bruce required one thing first.
"Alright boys what do we say first before we eat?" Bruce asked testing the little boys manners.
"Thank you for dinner Alfred!" All three boys cried out to the butler.
"You are very welcome Master Roy, Master Wallace, and Master Dick." Alfred said with a humble smile as he laid down his plate and sat alongside his charges.
"Very good boys now dig in!" Bruce praised as he started to eat as well.
Without even a second thought all three boys ate the meal ravenously, working quite the appetite with their day's activities. Within minutes and, at least 12 servings shared between Dick and Wally, the meal was finished and everyone was full and the youngest two at the table were also quite a mess. Both Dick and Wally had faces covered in food, though Wally was so bad as to even have it in his hair.
"Well I believe my meal was thoroughly enjoyed particularly by two little ones at this table." Alfred chuckled as he patted his lips clean.
"I' was yummy Alfred!" Dick declared with messy little hands in the air.
"Yeah you always cook the best!" Wally said happily with a food filled smile.
"Thank you Master Dick and Master Wallace, but I hope you aren't too full. There is still a delicious dessert after all."
"Dessert!" Wally and Dick squealed excitedly.
"Oh well that's cool, I'm sure it'll be good too. Like this….food." Roy said trying to play it cool, but doing awfully at it and truthfully full of excitement for dessert.
"That's what I thought, I shall return in a moment!" Alfred said with a smug smile as he gracefully rose from his seat and left for the kitchen.
As they waited Bruce went to work at cleaning Wally and Dick off, which was quite a job. Both boys were quite ticklish, but he named to get them mostly clean leaving the rest for their bath later. Then without warning Alfred came back with a covered silver tray, gently set it down on the table, and took off the cover to reveal a beautiful chocolate cake. It was three tiers with a Ganesh like chocolate frosting on the outside and delicate little chocolate roles all over the top.
"Chocolate Cake!" Dick squealed excitedly as he bounced in his seat.
Chocolate cake was his absolute favorite dessert and no one made it better than Alfred. It was the most moist and rich chocolate cake one could ask for, but he only made it on special occasions due to the amount of work and time it took. Apparently Dick's little slumber party counted as one of them.
"I thought you all might enjoy it, now who wants the first slice?" Alfred asked with a light smile.
"Me!" All three boys cried out at the same time.
It was then all three looked at each other now not sure who should get the first slice.
"Actually yous can gib it to Wally an Roy first, their our guests." Dick started off politely.
"What! No obviously it's Dicks favorite and he's the youngest at the table, so he should get it!" Roy made clear.
"Yeah I think so too!" Wally agreed quickly.
"Well I guess I'll just have to cut four slices at once so you all can have the first slice." Alfred comprised, internationally aweing at the three little boys sweetness.
With great speed and accuracy Alfred sliced the chocolate cake four times making three smaller slices for the boys and a larger one for Bruce. He then served the cake and immediately the entire table began to dig in just as they had at dinner. Within minutes they all finished their cake and felt quite content with the delicious meal in their bellies.
"That was yummy Alfred! Thank yous for makin dinner for us!" Dick said in his usual adorable tone.
"Thank you Alfred!" Roy and Wally chimed as well.
"You are very welcome young masters!" Alfred said with a gracious bow.
"Yes that was truly delicious, but I think it's bath and bedtime for three certain little boys who have had a very exciting day." Bruce said as he got up from the table.
"Bu daddy we're not tireds!" Dick pleaded as he showed off his baby blue eyes to his father.
"Now Dick you know…" Bruce started to say before he was then faced with an onslaught of puppy dog eyes.
"Please Uncle Bruce can we stay up a little bit longer!" Wally and Roy joined in, Roy even working his remaining little boy charms.
Faced with a wave of adorableness and cuteness Bruce tried to resist the mischievous little boys, but it proved too much for him. It was a weekend he figured and it couldn't hurt to let them get their last bit of sugar energy out from dessert.
"Huh...alright you can stay up past bedtime for one movie!" Bruce comprised.
"Yay!" All three little boys cheered.
"But… you still need to have your bath and get your jammies on. Now get up stairs you little rascals before I… tickle you to death!" Bruce said endearingly as he shooed the three away playfully.
Immediately the boys started running away as Bruce began to chase them with wiggling fingers. As they giggled and squealed up to the stairs Alfred smirked at his oldest charge.
"They have you wrapped around their little fingers." Alfred said quietly as he cleaned off the dinner table and resumed his usual work.
Upstairs Master Bathroom
Since it was the largest bathroom in the house Bruce decided to give the three a bath in his absolutely enormous tub. This would help prevent a tidal wave of water from flooding the carpet attached to any of the other bathrooms. The boys were already rambunctious enough but add water to the situation, based on past experience from a pool trip Diana took them to once, and you could fill four oceans worth of water with how much they splashed and played.
To start Bruce had the boys strip down while he filled the tub with warm and bubble filled water. But as he did so Roy came up to him with bright red cheeks.
"Uncle Bruce, do I have to bath with Dick and Wally, I'm much older than them and I can wash myself just fine you know." Roy said rather embarrassed at the thought of getting naked in front of the dark knight himself.
"I know you are Roy but I know Dick and Wally would be really sad if you didn't join them. And don't worry not a soul in the league will hear about this." Bruce promised knowing this was slightly embarrassing but that he would do anything for his brothers.
It was then that Wally and Dick came running in butt naked and practically dived into the bathtub. Immediately they splashed each other with all the water their little hands could pick up, full on belly laughing with great joy the entire time.
"Roy come on get in, it'll be funner!" Wally called out as Dick then splashed in right in the face.
"Yeah come on it's fun!" Dick squealed.
"Alright alright hold your horses I'm coming." Roy said as he then shucked his clothes off, all the while closing his eyes so he didn't have to see Bruce looking at him.
Roy then got in the tub and that's when the real splash war began turning the bathtub into a raging sea. As Bruce tried to bath Dick and Wally, letting Roy bath himself at least, he himself was victim to much of the after splash of the boys water war. He swore by the time they were nearing the end of the bath that he was wearing half of their bath on his now practically soaked clothes.
However within half an hour all three of the little protégés were scrubbed squeaky clean and were ready to get out of their nearly non existent bath water. So Bruce got out three large fluffy soft white towels and gave one to Roy, knowing he could easily get himself out and dried off as well as to put an end to him being embarrassed. He then lifted Dick out of the tub and wrapped him snuggly in the towel and proceeded to do the same for Wally. Once sure both younger boys were warmly wrapped up he picked both of them up, one in each arm, and carried them to Dicks room with Roy following behind him.
As soon as they got in the room Bruce went to work at helping Dick and Wally get dressed in their pajamas. This was mostly because they both had footie pajamas and so they needed a little help stepping into them. As he did so Roy easily got dressed in a set of red Pokémon pj's with a bunch of different Pokémon faces on the long pants and a huge Pokéball on the shirt. Meanwhile both Dick and Wally just had two solid colored footie pajamas, Wally's being yellow with a flash sign and Dick's being plain red.
"Alright, let's go watch our movie boys!" Bruce said as he quickly scooped up Dick and led the other two down the stairs.
Quickly they made their way to the couch only to be greeted with lots of fluffy blankets and pillows as well as a large bowl of popcorn on the coffee table. Immediately all three boys ran to the couch and cuddled up in the blankets, including Dick whom Bruce set down so he could pick a movie. As went through their collection he heard the boys giggling and acting silly throughout the entire search, it was quite adorable. But eventually Bruce came upon the perfect movie for the boys to watch, one that came out when he was growing up, a classic.
"How about we watch ET boys?
"Whas that about daddy?" Dick asked curiously.
"It's about an alien who becomes friends with a kid and the cool stuff they do together. Oliver showed it to me last year around Halloween, it's a good one." Roy explained excitedly, being a fan himself.
"Wow, les watch it daddy, it sounds cool!" Dick squealed.
"Alright then, is ET ok with you Wally?" Bruce asked politely.
"Yeah it sounds awesome!" Wally said excitedly as well.
"Ok I guess we're all in agreement, then everyone settle down and get comfy while I start it up."
Within seconds Bruce had the movie set up and went to join the boys on the couch, only to have them all immediately snuggle up to him. Dick got on his lap and cuddled into his chest, while Roy and Wally took opposite sides of Bruce and curled up to his warm body.
Despite his cold Batman exterior, Bruce was actually a very warm and caring person but no one saw this more than the three boys. It was always him in times of emergency and distress that thought immediately of the boys first, making sure they were safe. This caused all of them to feel the most comfortable and safe around Bruce, Clark coming in a very close second.
Anyways Bruce took the adorable scene in, a smile unknowingly spreading across his face, and enjoyed the movie. Together they watched as the oddly cute little brown alien maneuvered through the movie and all the antics that ensued. All three boys were absolutely entranced by the movie, as so many other kids their age were. They laughed when ET was dressed like a doll, were in awe at his strange powers, and teared up as he got sick. But luckily Bruce was there to comfort them through that and held the boys tightly to assure them it was going to be ok.
Eventually as the credits rolled all three little protégés were fast asleep on Bruce's body providing a small dilemma for getting them to bed. However that was when Alfred came in taking Roy into his arms as Bruce carried both Wally and Dickin his. Gingerly and silently they made their way up the stairs till they at last reached Dick's bedroom. From there they placed all three boys in Dick's short but very large bed and watched as the adorably latched onto each other, both Wally and Roy forming a protective cocoon around Dick.
Unable to resist Bruce snapped a picture to add to the boys sleepover album he totally planned on making. Once sure all three little ones were sound asleep and comfy, Bruce and Alfred made their way out of the room. As they did so both had large smiles on their faces, happy to know that the Grayson-Wayne baby had true friends that would love and protect him forever.