Archive of Our Own ^beta

It was just a normal mission. Until it wasn’t.

I sighed, looking around.

Me, Zatanna, and John Constatine had been battling Klarion the Witchboy on a mission for Justice League Dark. when he’d opened up a portal and sent me here. Wherever here was.

And of course the place I landed just had to be right in front of Wayne Manor. Just my luck that I was soon to meet my alternate universe counterpart.

I wasn’t super worried about being stuck. I knew Zatanna. Zatanna would use a spell to force him to reveal what earth he’d sent me to, before opening a portal to get me back. God, that girl is powerful.

However I know nothing about this new world nor of who I was here. I could be in a world where I died instead of my parents, one where I was a killer myself, or even one where Wayne Manor didn’t belong to the Waynes.

The front seemed familiar enough though. With gray walls, a tall brown door with small windows at the top and the slanting of the roof at the very front.

That said it wasn’t as though it was identical to my own. For one the chips in the bricks were far more noticeable. Another was how the steps that led up were brown, not the light gray I’d always walked up. There were two railing too, rather than one.

“Tallant,” I heard a voice behind me, “You’re back early!”

I turned to see another man behind me. He had white hair, light wrinkled skin, and blue eyes. He wore a black turtleneck and gray pants.

I weighed my options. On one hand I could withhold the fact that I was from another world from him, keep it a secret. On the other I could just tell him now, after all what was the harm in that? What was the worst that could happen, he’d think I’m crazy?

“There’s something off about you, son.” He said. It was at that moment, my choice was clear.

“I’m… not Tallant.” I told him, “I don’t even know who Tallant is. I know this might be a shock, but I’m Batman and I’m from another dimension.”

The man cracked a smile. “Even in my retirement things like dimension travel still seem to come to me. Tell me, lad what’s your name? And I mean your real name?”

I faltered a bit, but replied “I guess it won’t do me much harm. My teammates will probably be coming soon. One of them can cross dimensions at will, you see.” And with that I lifted my cowl, “My name is Bruce Wayne. In my universe I'm Batman, protector of Gotham.”

His small smile became a grin. “Well, it’s nice to see that there’s a world where my hair hasn’t all gone white.” He held out his hand. “I’m Bruce Wayne too, it’s nice to meet you.”

I wish I could say that at that moment I felt shocked, but I wasn’t. I just accepted the handshake.

“It might be some time until they come to pick you up.” He said, “Why don’t you come in with some coffee in the meantime. The Manor’s empty right now.”

I nodded, and followed him, somehow trusting my other self completely.

He got out some coffee and scones and with that we sat down at the table to talk.

“So…” He began, “I’m curious. How are things going in your world? Not to try to change the course, but it’s not like this is time travel. And even then I don’t think you’re the one who’d need to hide from me.”

I replied, “Well the most recent big thing that happened is that I took in this boy named Duke as his foster father. He’s an amazing kid.”

“Aw, Duke!” My other self responded, “That was a wonderful time. I’m surprised at how well he reacted to the news that we were all heroes though. Especially regarding Talia’s time as an assassin.”

I grimaced. “He hasn’t met Talia yet. I doubt he will anytime soon, we haven’t been in touch lately.” And I’m scared she’s finally moved on, I mentally added.

He gave me an odd look, “How can he have not met his foster mother?”

“What do you mean foster mother?” I asked, “I mean I know I love her, but it’s not like we’re married or anything.” I’m not even sure if she’d take me back after everything. “I mean… I guess we were for a little bit there, but after the miscarriage…”

“Oh…” He responded, “That must be the big difference.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I mean in our worlds.” He said, “in yours there was a miscarriage, which from the sounds of it broke you and Talia apart. In mine the baby was born and the two of us have been married for decades.”

My eyes widened. “The baby…”

“I’m sorry.” He apologized, “I shouldn’t have brought back such painful-”

“No no.” I interrupted. “It’s fine. In fact, if you wouldn’t mind telling me everything about how things turned out in this world… this world where the child was born… then I’d be thankful.”

The other man bit his lip. “I can tell you really want me to do this… but stop me if you change your mind.”

I nodded, as he began his tale.

‘I’m sure you know how this tale starts. Ra’s and I partnered to stop the man who murdered his wife and Talia’s mother, during which me and Talia were officially married.

‘Qayin was defeated fairly quickly, and not long afterwards the two of us returned to the Manor. It was quite an… odd experience, breaking the news to Alfred and Dick.

‘ “What do you mean you’re married to Talia?!” Dick exclaimed, furiously. “You are aware that she’s an assassin, right? And that her father is the leader of a whole league of them?!”

‘ “Dick, calm down!” I said, “Things will be fine. Me and Ra’s have, for the most part, settled out our differences. The League is no longer lethal.”

‘ “I do have to agree with Master Dick.” Alfred replied, “Ra’s Al Ghul is not one to be trusted, and until she completely rejects him, neither is Talia.”

‘I sighed, “Look, it doesn’t matter how you feel about it. We’re married and I’m sticking by her. She’s outside and I already told her she could move in as my wife. And…” I hesitated, “She’s pregnant with my child.”

‘ “She’s…” Dick began, “Fine, I understand now. Playing the long game, huh?” He smirked, “Well, I’ve already moved in with Kori, but tell me when the baby’s born and you’ve found a way to get her out, ok?”

‘ “I’m not-” I started, but Dick walked off.

‘ “Congratulations Master Bruce!” Alfred said, “I may not be the fondest of Mrs. Talia, but I am delighted to hear that you will be the father to another child.

‘ “And again, about Talia… while I may not like her, I respect your choice to marry her. I just hope it really does turn out well.”

‘I smiled back, “Thank Alfred. It means a lot.”

‘Time flew by. During the next months a kid, Tim Drake, convinced me to let him be the next Robin. I eventually caved, although I still didn’t let him out on missions for a long time. Not before Damian’s birth at least.

‘Damian’s birth had to be one of the happiest moments of my life though.

‘The doctor walked in holding the child, “Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Wayne, you just gave birth to a healthy baby boy!”

‘Talia sat up, “May I hold him?”

‘The doctor just handed him to her in response.

‘I leaned to see him too, his eyes were closed and he was wrapped up in a green blanket.

‘ “Isn’t he precious?” Talia said.

‘I smiled back, “He’ll be the happiest baby in the world.”

‘Damian quickly turned into our pride and joy. While neither of us were the most prepared regarding babies, we were quick learners. And having Alfred about made sliding into the roles far easier.

‘In the meantime Tim fully took up the role of Robin.

‘However Dick had some news for us.

‘ “Me and Kori,” He announced, holding her hand, “We’re getting married.”

‘The woman beside him had orange skin, pupiless green eyes, and long curly pink hair. She was wearing a short red dress and heeled black ankle boots. Her name was Koriand’r, or Starfire when fighting crime. She and Dick had been dating for almost two years now, but had been enamoured with one another from when they met, so the news was no surprise.

‘ “Congratulations!” Talia replied.

‘ “I was telling Alfred and Bruce.” Dick sneered. “You’re not invited. Just because you married my father doesn’t make you my mother or clean the blood on your hands.”

‘ “Dick, be nice.” His fiancee told him.

‘ “That’s great, you two!” I said. “Congrats!”

‘ “I agree, Master Dick.” Alfred said, “Congratulations.”

‘ “Thanks!” Dick smiled, although I felt bad for Talia and wasn’t the fondest of Kori, I couldn’t help but find myself smiling too.

‘Time passed by, Dick and Kori were wedded, and a new vigilante came to Gotham named Spoiler or Stephanie Brown and her and to the surprise of no one her and Tim fell in love and started dating, although he refrained from revealing his identity from her.

‘Despite me and Talia’s initial reservations, eventually we both grew to accept that she was here to stay.

‘And young Damian… well lets just say his first word, to the surprise of us all was Bat.

‘Both of us, though, were in for a far bigger one.

‘ "What do you mean Jason’s alive?” I asked her.

‘ “My agents reported it. A man recognized an amnesiac boy as the second Robin, and the word passed.” Talia explained. “I have things arranged so we will have him in our custody in only a couple days.

‘I gawked, “Talia, I saw the explosion, I held his lifeless body in my arms, I buried him myself, and you expect me to just believe this is Jason?”

‘ “Well… yes?”

‘ “Even if I check his DNA, this might just be a clone.”

‘ “Beloved, it wasn’t his looks that gave it away, it was his fighting style.” She said, “Please just give it a chance.”

‘I sighed, “Fine.”

‘I looked at the teenage boy in front of us.

‘ “I thought you said amnesiac, not…” My voice trailed off.

‘ “Just give it some time.” Talia replied, “I’m sure it’s just the after-effects of coming back from the dead.”

‘ “Well, everything checks out.” I admitted, “He shares Jason’s DNA, fighting style, and seems only a tiny bit older than Jason was when he died.”

‘ “I told you to give it a chance!”

‘I looked at Jason again, “I guess you’re right.” I embraced him in a small hug, “Welcome home, Jason.”

‘We quickly set on helping Jason, although it was clear that he was only alive physically and mentally all that remained were his instincts. Talia continued to insist that it was only temporary, although I wasn’t nearly as optimistic.

'Not long after though we had another move in.

‘ “I just…” Tim started, “I still can’t believe it. Mom’s dead and Dad… well he’ll wake up, right?”

‘Alfred put his hand on Tim’s shoulder. “I can’t promise you that Master Tim, but I do know that they love you, and give you my word that no matter what happens you have a home here in Wayne Manor.”

‘Tim turned to face the older man. “It’s not fair! They didn’t deserve to be kidnapped by the Obeah Man! They didn’t deserve this!” He paused, “I did though. I became Robin knowing that they tend to be cursed for their family to die. Maybe… I brought this onto them.”

‘ “You’re a smart boy, Master Timothy.” Alfred replied, “You should know that there’s no curse, and that what happened had nothing to do with you.”

‘Tim just stared up for a moment, before embracing Alfred, “It’s not fair!” He cried, “It’s just not fair!”

‘Alfred silently hugged back, and stroked the boy’s hair in silence.

‘I knew after what happened Tim had started resenting Talia for her past. After facing something like this head on, it was easy to see why he was no longer as forgiving towards her for killing. I just ignored it though, since if I was completely honest there was no defense I could think of nor was he nearly as open about his disdain as Dick.

‘When it came down to her relationship to the second Robin though… well if it was possible for him to accept her despite being brain dead, then I can’t help but guess that he would. A year had passed since we found him, and despite the fact that all his progress had been physically, and mentally it all seemed like a lost cause to have him rely on anything but instincts, she was persistent that he would come around.

‘ “Ma’am, there’s been no sign of him getting better in sight. I doubt-”

‘ “You’re wrong.” Talia responded, “He doesn’t only rely on instincts as you’re saying.”

‘ “Talia, it’s the tr-” I began only to get cut off by her glare.

‘ “I’ll prove it!” She replied, Rushing into the training room he’s been in. That was a good part about being allies with the league. Their spaces and access to professionals were better when it came to helping Jason.

‘The woman went over to him, and to the shock of everyone else in the room, slapped him.

‘ “See!” Talia yelled, “If his fighting skills are nothing but instinct, -if he is nothing but instinct- then why doesn't he react when I attack him?! Explain that!”

‘Everyone else in the room was silent.

‘A few weeks later we were all in for a big shock.

‘I was in the study, reading a book on sealife, when Talia entered.

‘ “Beloved, I have amazing news!”

‘I looked up, “What is it, dear?”

‘ “Jason… well I told you he’d get better and he did.” She announced, glowing.

‘That’s when Jason entered, leaning on the doorway. “Hey.”

‘ “Jason… you’re…” I looked from Talia to Jason, and from Jason to Talia. “You used the pit, did you?”

‘ “Not a word to my father.”

‘ “Of course,” I said, running over to Jason, and hugging him.

‘ “I can’t believe you’re back.” I whispered.

‘ “I can’t either.” My son replied, slowly returning the hug.

‘Ra’s suspected Talia had done something, but couldn’t quite prove it. And none of us who could were about to tell on her.

‘I soon found myself having to catch Jason up to speed on everything that had happened while he was dead. Unfortunately not everything he exactly approved of.

‘Shadowbat hopped next to him, and the roof and gargoyle he was sitting next to.

‘ “Hey…” She began, “You’ve been pretty quiet lately. Everything ok?”

‘ “Everything ok? Everything ok?!” He yelled, “I die, and I come back to learn that Bruce didn’t care enough to kill the man who did it, that not long after he crippled Barbara, one of my closest friends, and neither time did anything change! I learn that some kid replaced me as Robin! He probably never cared about me! But now I have to pretend that I don’t care, until I’m old enough to move as far away from him as possible!” He paused, “Maybe I should just run away now…”

‘She put her hand on his shoulders, in order to stop his flailing hand, “Jason, calm down.”

‘ “You’re right… I’m sorry.” He said, “Thank you, for using the pit on me. And for never giving up on me. And for finding me when I was on the streets braindead. And for everything honestly.

‘ “The one real good development that happened while I was gone, was probably you becoming my step-mom, -although you completely and utterly deserve better than him- and Damian. He’s precious.”

‘She smiled, “Thank you, Jason it means a lot.

‘ “Oh yeah… and please don’t run away.”

‘ “Fine,” He huffed, “For you.”

‘The two continued to grow closer, and Jason became more bitter towards me. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t jealous of how close the two were.

‘I refused to let him go back to heroics, which I don’t think helped matters much but he respected begrudgingly.

‘Of course, as the bitterness grew, it was only a matter of time until he broke his word to Talia, and despite his respect for her, ran away.

‘ “Master Jason, it’s time for-” Alfred opened the door, only to find the room empty. However, a piece of paper lay on the bed.

‘The butler walked in, to see that it was addressed to him and Talia.

‘ “Master Bruce, Mistress Talia, I think you should see this!” He called to us.

‘We rushed in. “What is it, Alfred?” Talia asked.

‘ “This letter…” He solemnly replied, “It’s from Master Jason… and he ran away.”

‘ “Let me see that,” I took it from his hands before reading it aloud to the others.

‘To Alfred and Talia

‘I’m sorry for running off like this. I needed to though. Bruce… Well, I can’t stand living with him. I can’t look at him without being reminded of every psycho he insists on giving another chance. About all the people suffering out there because of him, and more than that how powerless I am to help them.

‘I’m sorry to Alfred for leaving so soon after we were reunited.

‘I’m sorry to Talia for running away even though you’ve done so much for me and staying was all you asked in return.

‘Yours, Jason

‘P.S. Say bye and sorry to Damian for me, please. I’m not sure he’s old enough to comprehend any of this, but he’s a great kid

'Half a year passed and me and Talia were starting to give up in our search. It was clear that if our son didn’t want to be found, he wouldn’t be.

‘It was during one of our final nights that she just broke down into tears.

‘ “Talia?” I said, “What’s wrong?”

‘ “This is all my fault!” She sobbed, “I knew he was considering running away, but I didn’t take the necessary precautions, only asked him not to. I failed him.”

‘I took her hand, “You didn’t fail him…” I reassured her, “If anything I did. I’m the entire reason he left.”

‘ “Do you… do you wonder if there was a way we could have stopped him?”

‘ “Everyday.”

‘With that we both started holding each other, and I’d be lying if I said there

‘While this was going on, Damian was growing older. And me and Talia weren’t the only ones who noticed.

‘Me and Ra’s were playing chess, although to be honest I was only half paying attention to the board. What I was really focused on was the little bundle of joy that was playing on the floor of the same room.

‘Damian was holding his stuffed animals, enacting a scene of sorts with the plushies.

‘ “Yes, Mister Hippo, I am the one in charge of this party.” He said, holding the Cow.

‘ “Well then, Batcow, may I ask what Trixie is doing here?” The Hippo replied.

‘ “I invited her. They’re a close friend of mine.”

‘ “Detective, it’s your turn.” Ra’s said, snapping me away from Damian.

‘ “Of course.” I responded, moving my queen a few spaces.

Ra’s took it with his rook, putting my king in it’s range. “Checkmate, Detective, You’re slipping.” He raised an eyebrow, “Or distracted by your son.”

‘ “I…”

‘ “On the topic of Damian… it’s high time the boy traded in those toys for a sword.” Ra’s continued. “As my heir-”

‘ “If you’re suggesting he starts training now, then I need to remind you that he’s barely three.” I interrupted. “And I want him to choose whether to be your heir. Or for that matter if he wants to be involved in this kind of thing in general. It’s his life, not ours.”

‘Ra’s nodded, “...Of course, Detective… Of course.”

‘Not long after that incident Ra’s had some big news to share.

‘ “Daughter… Detective… I want you to meet my newly wedded wife, Evelyn.”

‘A woman walked in with light skin, white hair, and blue eyes. She was wearing purple and blue. I instantly recognized her along with the fact that Ra’s had let her use his pit.

' “Your… wife?” Talia turned to him, “Father, you didn’t tell me you were getting married!”

‘ “We only met very recently, while you two were still in Gotham.” Ra’s explained, “during which time we were extremely busy.”

‘ “Too busy to invite your own daughter to your wedding!”

‘ “Talia…” He hesitated, “We didn’t really have a wedding. More like eloped.”

‘She scoffed, and walked out. Evelyn stayed silent, with uncomfort written all over her.

‘ “She has a point Ra’s.” I said, “I believe you that you two eloped, but why didn’t you tell her you meant to marry Evelyn Grayce! Surely you must have been hoping to be with her before you met.”

‘ “You recognize her despite my treatment, admirable.” Ra’s replied, “but I assure you, her fame and our love are two completely unrelated things.”

‘I was about to respond, but upon looking at her again, I changed my words. “Congratulations to both of you.”

‘ “Thank you, Batman” Evelyn finally spoke up, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

‘A few days passed after, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel as if something was off with the League.

‘No matter how hard I tried to shake it, I couldn’t. First he and Evelyn married, then I noticed just how many scientists he had recently recruited, and of course there was also the fact that he was going to Antarctica.

‘While my senses tingled Talia slowly warmed up to her step-mother.

‘Eventually though Ra's told us all to meet him at his base at Antarctica that I just mentioned. And my suspicion was to be rewarded.

‘We all met him inside, and he greeted his wife with a kiss on the cheek before turning to us. “Talia, Detective… you may have noticed a shift in my league. I already explained it to my darling wife here, but I have found out a solution to the current ecological crisis. In fact I plan on enacting it today!”

‘I raised an eyebrow, as Talia asked “What is it?”

‘ “You see, recently the Ozone Layer has been being destroyed.” Ra’s began, “I decided that something must be done about it. So I decided to create this…” He led us to the room where all of the scientists appeared to be working on a circular machine with keyboards on the side that they could use and tubes connecting to the walls, “A self-generating Ozone gas, which I plan to release into the atmosphere. It will turn ordinary Oxygen into itself, and while it may take time, eventually the old Ozone levels will return!”

‘ “But Ozone will, in due time, make its way into the lower atmosphere!” I interrupted him, “And in the lower atmosphere it will become a greenhouse gas!”

‘ “You are correct, Detective,” He calmly continued, “This action will increase the greenhouse effect and lead to temperatures worldwide rising. Farmland will no longer be able to produce, and Ice Caps will melt, do not think this step does not pain me, in fact it is such hesitance that has led me to keep it a secret from you two for so long.”

‘We just stared, horrified. “Father… why?”

‘ “I had to choose which to help correct.” The Man explained, “I choose the greater evil.”

‘ “You do know the casualties that will come of this, right Ra’s?” I asked, “The Ozone is toxic and explosive, millions may die!”

‘ “I am aware of that too, Detective” He responded, “But our family will remain safe here, and if I die then the son that me and Evelyn are hoping for will carry on for me.”

‘I turned to his wife, “And you approve of this?”

‘She just calmly smiled, “Of course. Why would I not?”

‘ “Ra’s, you can’t expect me to go along with this.”

‘ “Detective, I was worried about that.” He answered, “but you must understand that I will go ahead no matter what you say. If you choose not to betray me though, then I have room for my son in law and step-grandchildren inside here. However if you decide to betray me then I will be forced to kill you for your treachery.”

‘I braced myself for a fight, “You already know my response, Ra’s. And I am not betraying you right now, you are betraying the earth by doing this.”

‘ “Your choice, Detective.” Ra’s said, “Daughter, I am sorry I chose this brute to be your husband. If you end up remarrying after his death, I swear I shall choose better.”

‘ “I am sorry Father, but I agree with my beloved husband.” Talia replied, “I cannot allow you to do this.”

‘Ra’s al Ghul’s face twisted in anger, “You dare to turn against your own father?! I was expecting Batman to oppose me, but you? You dare to betray me, your own flesh and blood, for the sake of a man who has scorned you so many times?!”

‘ “It isn’t just about him!” She responded, “I do not think you understand just how drastic your plan is. Are there not better ways to go about this?”

‘ “Do not lie to your father, girl!” He scowled, “I know that you are doing this for him and him only.”

‘Talia sighed, “I suppose that there is no reasoning with you right now.”

‘ “It pains me to do this, Daughter, but I can no longer allow you to continue with this constant disloyalty.” He said, “Guards, take them to the cell!”

‘We instantly started fighting back with everything we had. With both of our skills combined it was an easy victory, and soon the only others standing were the Demon’s head and his wife.

‘ “You’re going to have to get better assassins, Ra-” Before I could finish, Evelyn hit us both in the head with a chair, knocking us out.

‘ “Well done, My…” were the last things I heard before the world went black. 

‘We both woke up trapped in a small locked gray room.

‘ “Beloved…” Talia started, when the Ozone started seeping in.

‘ “Your father’s efficient.” I told her, “Using the gas to kill us, unfortunately for them that’s a plan I won’t let happen.”

‘ “Your belt is-”

‘ “Still on. I know. He already emptied it out though, so it’s not all that useful.”

‘ “Well then, what’s your plan?”

‘ “Just sit and breathe.” She gave me a look, and I added, “Look I’ll be getting us out very soon, just don’t die in the few minutes it’ll take.”

‘She sighed, and we both crossed our legs and took deep breaths. In a few minutes I flipped on to my hands and flipped to break the glass ceiling with a kick from feet.

‘The two of us quickly climbed up, avoiding the explosions that followed, thanks to the explosive Ozone. It was cold, especially for poor Talia who was wearing nothing more than a long sleeved green dress and matching flats, leaving her face, palms, and legs bare and vulnerable to the cold. Even more vulnerable than the rest which only had normal cloth to protect it. However we managed to reach one of their power supplies. I quickly rewired it to explode. During the commotion we hijacked one of the jets and flew off, watching it explode.

‘ “God, am I glad we left Damian at home for this visit to his grandpa.” I told Talia.

‘ “As am I,” She agreed. “But, my father… I did not see him boarding any of the jets.”

‘My face softened, “I’m so sorry for your loss, Talia.”

‘ “It’s ok.” She quietly replied, “He never seems to stay dead. Evelyn though… well despite everything she was my step-mother, and I do not know if she is alive.”

‘And with that our flight turned to silence and guilt.

‘Only a few weeks later Ra’s showed up again. And in the cave of all places.

‘ “Father! You’re alive!” Talia exclaimed, “Thank goodness!”

‘ “Hello Daughter.” He responded, solemnly.

‘ “Did… did Evelyn survive too?”

‘ “Yes, but she still suffered a miscarriage thanks to the explosions.” He added, with a glare, “Explosions you caused.

‘ “However, Daughter, I have a proposition,” Ra’s continued, “I will forgive you for this if you renounce this man as your husband and beloved once and for all. Then and only then may you and Damian return to the league as my daughter and grandson.”

‘ “Father, you cannot expect me to leave my beloved husband and father of my children who I hold so dear, especially after all that has happened.” She said.

‘ “Children?” Me and Ra’s asked in unison.

‘ “Oh yes, I was planning on telling you at dinner, Beloved, but I am pregnant with a second child.”

‘I glowed, “Talia, that’s amazing!”

‘ “Ahem” We both turned back to Ra’s, “As you” he pointed to Talia, “have chosen the Detective and,” His finger moved to point at me, “you have stolen my daughter, I must warn you in advance that this treachery means war and as I walk out unless you change your mind and follow, you are no longer my daughter.”

‘His steps were slow, and I almost pitied his hesitance to accept her decision, but in the end he left, breaking off everything with Talia.

‘Things weren’t exactly bad though. We still had some great news to share with our 2 year-old son.

‘ “I’m going to be a big brother?” Damian asked.

‘ “Yes, Habibi,” Talia answered.

‘ “And… I have a little sibling who is growing inside my mom?”

‘ “Yes.”

‘ “Gross!” He exclaimed, “Was I in your stomach too?”

‘ “Yes, Damian.”

‘The toddler left, apparently more affected by the information of how babies are born than the fact that we would soon have a new edition.

‘I chuckled, “I’m sure he’ll be a fine brother.”

‘She smiled, “I sure hope so.”

‘Despite being pregnant, Talia still tried her best to make up for all her misdeeds with the League. While her activities as Shadowbat had to be put on hold, she still started volunteering at different charities.

‘When I asked her about the increase in social services, she simply answered that it was the least she could do after all the lives she’d taken for her father.

‘In the meantime Tim’s father woke up. And it became harder for Tim to continue his activities as Robin. Apparently it took something like this to actually get Jack Drake to get involved in his son’s life. Tim managed though and it wasn’t like there was much the rest of us could do to help.

‘We also found a young girl, Cassandra. She had been raised by the assassin David Cain. Her first language was body language and while that made her an incredibly talented fighter she could hardly speak, let alone read or write.

‘From what we’d put together she’d run away at some point, and spent some time on the streets before we found her. Oracle had taken her in and given her the mantle of Batgirl. While Barbara was Cass’s prime caretaker, I still had a fair amount of responsibility for her, and I knew Talia was trying to grow closer to the teenage girl too.

‘One evening, Me, Oracle, and Batgirl were training as usual. More specifically right now me and Cass were sparing while Babs watched. After all the older woman had plenty of time with Cass, it was my turn to spar with her.

‘I felt some blood coming out of my mouth, when Talia came in. “Alfred made everyone dinner!” She announced.

‘I turned to Cass, “Training’s done for tonight, come up and join us for supper.”

‘A huge grin spread across her face, “...Thank...you…” She sputtered.

‘As she started to go up, Talia leaned to put her arm on her shoulder. “Good job-”

‘Before she could finish, Cass pushed her arm away. “No touch”

‘As Batgirl left, I walked towards my wife, confused. “She’s never had a problem with being touched before.”

‘ “Yes, and… something about her is strangely familiar…” Talia replied.

‘ “Well I sure hope that this was a one time thing, hating the wife of her mentors.” Barbara joked. “Me and Dinah are still engaged, and they haven’t met each other yet.”

‘Talia smiled, “Yes, I hope it is.”

‘It wasn’t though. I mean while Cassandra was fine with Barbara’s relationship with Dinah, she never did seem to warm up to Talia.

‘On a better note though, the months passed and we were blessed with a little boy named Tallant.

‘After a couple months we arranged a playdate with Lois and Clark’s son, Jon. At 2 years old Jon was in between our son’s age. Him and Damian had already met a couple times before, and befriended one another but we wanted him to meet Tallant too.

‘ “Jon, remember, I’m your best friend. Not Tallant.” Damian proudly proclaimed.

‘ “Your brother is so cute!” Jon cooed. “And so small!”

‘ “You’re two,” His dad pointed out.

‘ “Well he’s smaller than me.”

‘Clark chuckled. I bit my lip, wondering how my best friend would react if he knew about my wife’s past. But he didn’t need to know. None of the Justice League had to know.

‘Not long after our son was born, we started to learn more about Cassandra. Including some of her darker secrets.

‘ “She didn’t do it.” I stated.

‘ “We’ve had the tapes for months.” Barbara responded, “And everything -her constant need to save others, intense training to do so without a break, and refusal to have a life outside of it- it points to her having so much guilt.”

‘ “She feels guilty about being trained to be an assassin.”

‘ “Maybe. Or maybe there’s more to it. What makes you so sure those tapes were faked?”

‘ “...Because she understands.” I sighed, “I never had to explain why we do this to her. Before we met her she already shared my morals and goals. She already understood the importance of life and how fragile it is. How could a killer understand that?”

‘ “You’re married to an ex-assassin,” Babs pointed out.

‘ “Yes, I know that.” I replied, “and I love Talia. That doesn’t mean I always feel like she understands my mission though. Not truly. And certainly not the way Cassandra does.”

‘The two of us continued our bickering, unaware that Talia had been eavesdropping on everything we said.

‘Batgirl silently watched as the police arrived to take the goons she had just apprehended in.

‘ “Batgirl?” She turned to see Shadowbat behind her. The girl’s body went tense.

‘ “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you,” Talia said. “I just want to talk.”

‘Cass nodded. “About what?”

‘ “You killed a man didn’t you?” Talia asked, “That’s why you ran away.”

‘Batgirl stiffen, “How did you-”

‘ “Cain gave Batman and Oracle a tape of the incident.” Talia explained, “Beloved refuses to believe it’s real, Barbara is less certain.”

‘Talia continued, “They won’t hold it against you, you know. They understand that you were only a child.” The girl remained silent.

‘ “Batgirl… just like you I had a father who got me to kill,” Shadowbat confessed. “He was the leader of a league of assassins. Unlike you though, it took me far too much time to see that what I was doing was wrong. There was always something amoral about it, but I continued, sometimes without remorse. Even now my beloved husband doesn’t entirely trust that I’ve learned to stop. I don’t think I’ll ever really be able to call myself a hero without it being a lie.

‘ “You though? You realized at such a young age what you’d done. And you instantly stopped, and started putting human life above everything else, including your own. You’re a far better person than you’ll ever understand.”

‘ Batgirl paused before finally saying, “You… Daughter of the Demon?”

‘Talia just quietly nodded.

‘ “You wrong about not being a hero,” Cass said, “You changed. Now you save. You hero.”

‘Talia smiled, “Thank you… it means a lot.”

‘After that, all the drama with Tim and Stephanie seemed to blur. His father finding out and forcing him to quit, Stephanie becoming Robin, Her disobedience leading to me firing her, Black Mask torturing her to get to me and killing her, Tim returning to his role, and Jack’s death.

‘At the end though, all I really knew was my grief at the deaths of Stephanie and Jack.

‘Steph… well she didn’t deserve it. She was such a sweet girl, I can’t imagine why anyone would do it to her. Worse throughout our time together, despite my original distrust, to some extent, I’d grown to view her as a bit of a daughter-figure. I put a memorial of her next to Jason’s

‘And Jack? I may have never liked him much while he was alive due to his tendency to neglect his son, but he was still a person who deserved to live, along with Tim’s father, and it was horrible to watch Tim go through more of the same pain so many of his predecessors had.

‘His stepmother, Dana Winters-Drake, had never officially adopted him and went into shock after everything that happened, leading to her being treated in a clinic in Bludhaven, so Talia and I decided to adopt him.

‘Tim still visited her almost everyday though.

‘After a few months, I think Talia started to realize that she was just as much Tim’s adoptive parent as I was, and tried to take the role more seriously.

‘She walked into his room, “Timothy, would you like to go to the movies tomorrow together? I realize I haven’t been the best mother-”

‘He snorted, “So that’s why you’ve been treating me so weird lately? You want to be my mom?”

‘Talia shifted her stance, “Well technically I am your adoptive mom. I just want to actually take that type of role in your life-”

‘ “Shut up!” He suddenly bursted, “Bruce adopted me, you just happen to be his wife! And guess what? Dana’s still alive. She might have been my step-mother, but she still loved me, and is more of a mother to me than you’ll ever be! Stop trying to take her place! It’s not even like she isn’t still around, she just no longer has any form of custody!”

‘ “I wasn’t trying to take her place…” Talia muttered, “You can have multiple mother-figures in you life-”

‘ “And news flash!” He continued, seemingly having not heard her, “You’ll never be a mother to me in any way, shape, or form! You’re a killer! Just like the people who murdered my parents, Stephanie, Conner, Bart…” He trailed off.

‘ “I uh,… I don’t usually tend to get that angry,” Tim said, sheepishly.

‘ “It’s fine,” Talia reassured him. “You… have a point, I shouldn’t be trying to force you to view me as your mother. I’m sorry.”

‘Giving a sad smile, she continued, “You’ve been through a lot recently, and I just want you to know, if you ever need some support, I’m here.”

‘With that she left his room.

‘While we’d had many losses recently, but soon new life started to enter our lives.

‘ “What do you think they’re doing?”

‘ “Probably having a Pregnant Ladies Night Out. You know, like they said they were.”

‘Dick slumped back on the chair, “Still can’t believe Kori is willing to have a night out with Talia for no other reason than to have fun.”

‘ “Hey, she’s pregnant. Of course she wants to spend time with someone who’s already gone through it.”

‘ “Linda carried twins and is married to my best friend.”

‘ “Well Talia still understands it better. She’s given birth twice and is currently carrying twins.” I reminded him, “Besides Talia’s amazing company. You’d know that if you weren’t so hellbent on hating her.”

‘He just scoffed in response.

‘Two months later, I had my first grandchild.

‘Dick smiled proudly as he held her for our family to see.

‘ “Everyone meet Mar’i!” He said.

‘We all crowded around to coo at the baby.

‘ “It’s nice to meet you, Mistress Mar’i,” Alfred greeted.

‘ “Hi Mari, I’m your Uncle Tim!” Tim introduced himself.

‘ “You’re so precious!” I told her.

‘ “-TT- I’m glad you’re here with us,” Damian approved.

‘ “May I hold her?” Talia requested.

‘Dick tightened his hold around his daughter, “No.”

‘ “ Don’t take it personally. He’s just being protective of her,” Kori explained.

‘Tallant started reaching his arms out towards the baby, “See! See! See!” He cried.

‘I chuckled and lifted him up. “Meet your new niece, Tallant,” I said. He continued to reach towards the newborn, while making the normal incoherent noise a baby makes.

‘Another couple months and Me and Talia’s twins were born.

‘ “How about a story before bed?” I asked.

‘Talia and I sat in the nursery with our newborns, a Boy named Thomas and a Girl named Melisande. They both lay in their cribs, while we sat on matching white rocking chairs. On top of said cribs were matching bat-themed Mobiles. The walls were blue, and drawers and shelves white. A family portrait hung on the walls. In one corner sat a changing table and in another a tall lamp. In the walk-in closet we’d put away all the toys we hoped they’d use when they were older than three days. There was no response to my question, as expected.

‘ “I’ll just take that as a yes,” I said, opening Goodnight Moon. “In the great green room…”

‘Only a week later, tragedy struck.

‘ “Did You find anything?” I asked.

‘Shadowbat shook her head, “I assume you didn’t either?”

‘I nodded, solemnly, before speaking into my comm, “Robin, Batgirl, any luck?”

‘ “Sorry Batman, I can’t seem to find anything,” Tim replied.

‘ “No,” Cassandra stated simply.

‘ “Alfred, how have the police been doing?”

‘ “As well as expected, Master Bruce,” The Butler answered, sadly.

‘I stiffened, before switching to Dick, “Nightwing, have you seen any sign of them in Bludhaven?”

‘ “No, nothing,” He responded.

‘Switching again, I asked, “Wonder Woman, Superman, have you found anything?”

‘ “I’m sorry Bruce, I have not,” Diana said.

‘ “I’m sorry too. Haven’t found the slightest clue.” Clark continued, “Don’t blame yourself. Whoever did this is extremely powerful and smart. Even the best parent in the world probably wouldn’t be able to stop them from taking their kid.”

‘ “Thanks,” I coldly replied, before turning off my mic and turning to Talia, “There’s no sign.”

‘Talia started crying and I quietly followed, “I can’t believe we let Melisande and Thomas get kidnapped!” She sobbed.

‘ “We’ll find them, Talia,” I reassured her, hiding my own doubt in my words, “We already failed to find Jason, but this time? We’ll find our children. No matter what it takes.”

‘A year passed and we still had no clue of their whereabouts.

‘One night, when we were searching as usual, Clark came to us.

‘ “Bruce, Talia, I need to talk to you both,” Clark started.

‘ “What?” I glared.

‘ “Look… I hate being brutally honest but I’m going to be blunt this once,” He said, “You need to try and accept what happened, you can’t just spend every minute trying to find the twins.”

‘ “You expect us to… stop trying to find our children?!” Talia screamed, “You can’t be serious!”

‘ “I know it may sound crazy, but hear me out.” Clark interjected, “It would be perfectly fine if you were in a different situation, where they were your only children who hadn’t grown up, but they aren’t. Tim, Cass, Damian, Tallant… they all need their parents right now more than ever.”

‘I sighed, “We’ll tone it down,” I begrudgingly agreed.

‘ “But Sundays are dedicated to looking for our lost children!” Shadowbat chimed in.

‘He nodded in response, “That’s all I’m asking.”

‘After that we started to try to be there for the others more, but there was almost always an air of sadness throughout the manor.

‘Things started to get better when Stephanie returned to our lives. Apparently Leslie had faked her death, and she’d been healing in Africa.

‘Not long afterwards we took in a boy named Duke Thomas. As I told you before, he reacted well to his strange new family, quickly becoming close to many of his siblings.

‘He took on the name Signal, and became a hero like the rest of us. It turned out that he had the ability to manipulate light. I started to train him to be more of a daylight vigilante, although I think Talia had mixed feelings on it.

‘As a cherry on top, Dick and Kori had their second child, a little boy named Jake.

‘Of course Damian, being Damian and growing older, became jealous of Tim’s position as Robin.

‘ “I should be Robin!” Damian whined, “Or at least your sidekick in some capacity. My tenth birthday is coming up soon, and I’ve been training since I was six, and as your son I think I deserve to fight alongside you!”

‘ “Damian, Tim is your Father’s son too, and you're far too young.” Talia replied, “Perhaps when you’re older.”

‘ “No fair!” He protested, “I’m old enough! Remember, Richard was my age when he first put this costume on!

‘ “And it’s about time Timothy passed the title down. Cassandra gave the mantle of Batgirl to Stephanie almost a year ago!”

‘ “The answer is still no,” his mother told him. Damian continued to grumble as he stormed off to his room.

‘However on his tenth birthday he had a big surprise in store.

‘ “Why is everyone so insistent that I open Timothy’s last?” Damian asked.

‘ “You’ll see,” I said.

‘He moved the stencils aside, and put it in his lap. “It feels… like clothes?” He commented, whilst shaking and feeling the box. “It better not just be clothes…” the birthday boy murmured.

‘He started tearing open the wrapping, his eyes widened in shock by what was inside.

‘Damian lifted the uniform up for us all to see. It consisted of a yellow and black cloak, green gloves and boots, black leggings, a yellow utility belt, and a red shirt with black sleeves with an R embroidered into the right side.

‘ “I’m… the new Robin?” He said.

‘ “That’s right!” I told him, “Your mother here was reluctant to let you have it, but I convinced her that as long as you followed orders you’d be fine.”

‘ “You better be happy,” Tim said with a voice full of annoyance. “I really like being Robin, you know.”

‘A large grin filled Damian's face. “Thank you Timothy! Thank you Father! Thank you so much!”

‘ “And give a thanks to Alfred,” Duke chimed in, “He’s the one who made your costume.”

‘ “I assume you will be more cooperative next time I tell you that I need to take your measurements for tailoring?” Alfred said.

‘ “Of course,” Damian quickly responded, continuing to jump up and down holding the costume, “I can’t believe it! I’m really Robin!”

‘ “Needless to say, you’ll still need to do some extra training before going on actual patrol and stuff like that,” I added, “But yes, you’re Robin now.”

‘Damian was thrilled by his new role, meanwhile Tim started calling himself Red Robin, to the amusement of his friends and family.

‘One seemingly normal night though, I swooped to the Batsignal, to report to the commissioner, unaware of everything that was about to go down.

‘ “Commissioner, what’s the crime today?” I walked out from the shadows.

‘Gordon took a moment to catch his breath, before responding “Someone broke into Arkham, grabbed Joker, and left. Presumably one of his goons, though most likely Harley Quinn. Of course if it was her then you’d think she’s free Poison Ivy too…”

‘ “Or maybe they weren’t there to get him out,” I narrowed my eyes, “Joker’s made a lot of enemies over the years. It’s possible that someone wants revenge on him. Likely through killing, and maybe torture too.”

‘He nodded, “I suppose that’s also on the table-” The other man turned to see that I’d disappeared, “I need to talk to him about that…”

‘Meanwhile I left for Arkham to put the clues together.

‘I walked into the abandoned apartment building. Everything had led me here.

‘The walls were a drab gray, and had all sorts of cracks. Some pipes were even exposed. Most of the windows were boarded shut with wood slats. Empty boxes lay on the floor. The further I went in though, the more signs there were that it wasn’t as empty as it was supposed to be.

‘Some of the cardboard boxes appeared to have food items in them, even more ones that weren’t expired. A bruised up shelf that had been dusted with a working clock and a few books on it along with a cellphone. In fact the dust in general really just was not as bad as it should be. I saw a wall racked with swords, guns, and other weapons.

‘I’d been here before. Jason had been living here when the two of us first met. That had been a long time ago though, and I’d given jobs at Wayne Enterprises to the other couple residents. And the place most certainly hadn’t had a wall of weapons.

‘ “So, Bruce, you found me.” I turned to see a younger man, who couldn't be older than 25. He had black hair with a white streak and light skin. His outfit consisted of a black eye mask, brown jacket, gray shirt and pants, along with a utility belt and boots.

‘ “Jason… is that you?” I asked him.

‘ “Yes it’s me! Who else!” Jason yelled.

‘ “Where’s Joker?”

‘ “Currently rotting in hell.”

‘I grimaced, “You killed him?”

‘ “No, I didn’t. He just fell down a staircase into hell,” he sassed, “Of course I killed him! Here’s the freaking body for proof if that’s what you need!”

‘Jason kicked open a closet door to reveal Joker’s dead body. As always his skin was pure white and hair green. Even in death a giant grin was plastered across his face. He was still wearing the orange uniform all Arkham inmates were required to wear. However the torture and death were obvious, due to the many wounds across his body, most alarming one of all being the giant stab wound near his heart.

‘I gawked at the sight, before finally pulling together and saying, “He was killed by a sword. Your belt has multiple guns on it and places for plenty of gadgets, but nowhere for a sword.”

‘He paused for a moment, beforing ignoring my words, “I just want you to know that you better thank Talia, since she’s the only reason I didn’t decide to do something elaborate involving you too!”

‘I just sighed, and answered “Jason, please stop all of this and come home. It’s not too late.”

‘ “It’S nOt tOO LAtE” He mimicked, “Of course in your eyes I’ve fallen from grace! All for killing a monster like Joker! For saving millions-”

‘Jason rambled on, while I left to go get Shadowbat in the hope that she could reason with him.

‘However when we returned he was gone, along with most of his belongings. And I was kicking myself for ever assuming that Jason would still be here.

‘Around 9 years later, when Mar’i was ten and Jake was seven, the Graysons were faced with a terrible tragedy.

‘During a mission with the Titans to stop some terrorists, Princess Koriand’r was killed in an explosion.

‘Her funeral was held on Tamaran, and unfortunately Talia and I were unable to attend due to its location.

‘ A few days after Dick and his family got back from Tamaran, I called him up.

‘ “Uh, hi…” He awkwardly began.

‘ “Dick, I just wanted to say I’m sorry about Kori,” I said, “If there’s anything I can do to either ease the pain or help you in the task of being a single father now, then just let me know.”

‘ “Thank you,” He responded, “And I may need you to baby-sit the kids sometimes, since while I have a steady income, I still need someone to take care of Mar’i and Jake while I’m at work.”

‘ “Of course!” I agreed.

‘Her death hurt everyone, and to some extent it made us remember how short life is.

‘It’s possible it may have affected Tim’s decision to take his relationship with Stephanie to the next level.

‘The two of them were atop the roof of Wayne Enterprises, looking at the stars. They were both wearing their hero costumes, only without the masks.

‘ “Do you remember when we used to stargaze at my house?” Steph asked, “Well not really stargaze per se as much as look at the night sky while talking about everything.”

‘Tim smiled, “Of course, we ended up having to make sure it wasn’t on school days though so neither of us lost more sleep than we already did due to our heroics, after you flunked your English test.”

‘ “And thank god I didn’t flunk any more!” The woman replied, “...Well much more. I still blame my double life as Spoiler for that though. Not that it matters since I’m going to be graduating college next month with a major in computer science.”

‘ “Stephanie, we’ve gone through a lot together,” Tim started, while getting down on one knee, “Our relationship has gone through it’s rough patches as we both changed throughout the years. But in the end we always had each other’s backs. And if there’s someone I want to spend forever with, it’s you.

‘ “I guess what I’m saying is… Stephanie Brown, will you marry me?” He opened a small box to reveal a silver ring inside.

‘ “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…” Steph started rambling “Of course I will, Tim!”

‘The two then embraced each other in a kiss.

‘The wedding went down without a hitch, and in the following years the couple had two children: A son named Matthew and a daughter called Beth.

‘Things didn’t get much better for the Graysons though, as Mar’i stopped visiting Wayne Manor unless required and spent almost all of her time with the new Teen Titans, which she had formed with her best friend Lian -also known as Red Hood- and Titans Tower.

‘There were changes happening around our house too. After seven years of being Robin Damian gave the mantle over to his younger brother -Tallant- and took on the name Red Bird. However in just another year he quit being a superhero in favor of going to college.

‘Around 15 years since we’d last seen Jason Todd, we at long last managed to locate him again.

‘I knocked on the door of the house. It was only one story tall, and had brick walls, a white door, and had a white porch. The home was located in a forest and one could hear the animals who lived nearby.

‘A girl with Light skin, White hair, and one blue eye opened it. She wore a black eyepatch, jeans, a leather jacket, black boots, and white shirt.

‘ “Why, exactly, is billionaire Bruce Wayne and his wife, Talia, stopping by my house?” She asked me, with an annoyed tone.

‘ “You know why, Rose.”

‘ “You have proof that I know why?”

‘ “Don’t play dumb.”

‘ “Don’t stop by then”

‘ “Fine, I need to talk to Jason Todd.”

‘ “I’m sorry, but Jason Todd doesn’t live here.”

‘ “Well then I have to talk to your husband.”

‘ “You mean Jason Miles-Wilson?” Rose replied, “I thought you were looking for Jason Todd.”

‘I sighed, “Please just get him.”

‘She slowly left, and after some talking that I could hear the words of, but not make out what they were, Jason came to the door.

‘He had white skin, black hair, and blue eyes. He was wearing a gray hoodie, black pants, and sneakers.

‘ “You said you wanted to talk?”

‘ “We both know why we came,” Talia spoke up, “Jason, Please don’t play dumb.”

‘ He sighed, “Fine, but we’re having this conversation out here.” Jason said, walking out to the porch and closing the door behind him.

‘ “Jason… I just want to start by saying I’m happy you seem to be at peace now,” I began, “That said both me and Talia want you to return to the family. You don’t need to move out of Thailand, just visit more often and keep in touch.”

‘He just gave a chuckle and said, “You say you’re happy I got peace, but now that me and the love of my life have settled down and I’ve retired from any and all vigilante activities you’re trying to have more of a relationship with me? How am I supposed to lead a more normal life with Batman as my adoptive father?”

‘ “Your wife never retired,” I reminded him.

‘Jason paused, defeated, before responding, “Fine I’ll keep in touch with Damian and Talia. Maybe meet some of the newer members of the family. However, I'm not interacting with Bruce!” He glared at me.

‘ “I assume you want to talk to Athanasia now?”

‘ “Of course we’d like to meet our grandchild!” Talia exclaimed, “You and Rose adopted her a year ago, right?”

‘He stopped for a moment, before responding, “You two don’t know do you?... Athanasia… She’s your long lost daughter.”

‘We both stared, before Talia broke the silence by yelling, “Why did you not tell us that you had found Melisande?! ...Or I suppose her name is Athanasia now.”

‘ “When we met her, we had enough trouble prying her away from Ra's Al Ghul’s control. Whenever we mentioned you two, she was always insistent on never meeting you, and we just decided to comply with her wishes,” He turned to face her, “I’m so sorry, Talia…”

‘She sighed, “Please just take us to her.”

‘Our daughter was scowling at us. She had green eyes and black hair that was pulled back in a ponytail. She was wearing a red shirt and black jeans. We were in her room, which was painted red.

‘ “What do you want?” Athanasia asked us.

‘ “We want to see our daughter again,” Talia replied, going in for a hug, only for the teenager to recoil.

‘ “I don’t want anything to do with you two!” Athanasia hissed, “You abandoned me.”

‘ “Honey, we didn’t abandon you…” I told her, “We tried to find you everyday after you were kidnapped.”

‘She scoffed, “The world’s greatest detective couldn’t find his children? Likely story.”

‘ “Daughter, please…” Talia said, “All we want is to be your parents. The ones we should have been for all those years after you were taken.”

‘We didn’t get to be her parents. Not really. But we did get custody of her during the summer. As much as he hated me, Jason loved Talia like a mother and did want Athanasia to spend time with her.

‘Her first summer there, however, horrible news was in store.

‘Her and Damian -who had come to visit from College- were fighting in the next room. We could hear their shouts in the entrance.

‘Before we could go see what the fuss was about, Alfred walked in with the mail. “To the surprise of likely everyone here, there’s a package here for Athanasia, along with Mrs. Talia.”

‘ “Athanasia! There’s a package here for you and your mom!” I called, she came running in.

‘ “It doesn’t seem to be from Jason or Rose,” Talia commented, “So who is it from?”

‘After checking to make sure there wasn’t a bomb inside or anything of that sort, we opened it, to find something terrible inside.

‘In it was a skull, with a note which read:

‘Daughter and Granddaughter,

‘This is the skull of your Son/Brother. He attempted to leave me, inspired by tales of your departure. So I was forced to kill him. I want you to look at the price of your disobedience.

‘Yours,

‘Ra’s Al Ghul

‘Tears formed in everyone’s eyes.

‘ “Me and Ibn were never close,” Athanasia admitted, “We hardly interacted and when we did we usually argued. But he was still my brother…”

‘ “Your grandfather renamed him Ibn?”

‘ “Yes…” She replied, “I doubt he knew the names you told me you named us, so he just chose out his own. I was Athanasia Al Ghul and he was Ibn Al Xu'ffasch. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to be alone.” The girl left, desperately trying to conceal her tears.

‘ “I can’t believe… my father has done something like this,” Talia whispered.

‘I embraced her, “I didn’t have much respect for Ra’s, -well besides the short time we were allies- but I never thought he was this far gone… I could accept that maybe the pit and time made him kidnap his grandchildren but this…”

‘I didn’t continue, and we both just sat down on the couch, crying.

‘In the next year so much yet so little seemed to happen.

‘On her eighteenth birthday Mar’i moved out and stopped interacting with the family, besides her father, and even then it seemed more like an obligation than anything else.

‘She was far looser regarding the no-killing rule too.

‘In fact, once her father actually confronted her about it.

‘It was a sunny day, however where he found her wasn’t exactly cheery. Mar’i was wearing her new costume, a long-sleeved purple and silver leotard. Dick snuck up behind her.

‘ “Mar'i,” He said, “What did you do?” At her feet lay a dead body, which the man was staring at.

‘ “Dad, please don’t lecture me,” She replied, “times have changed.”

‘ “Yeah, we don’t have a medieval moral code anymore!” Nightwing said, “I love you, Starshine, but do you have any idea what you just did?”

‘ “I’m leaning towards my Tamaranian side,” Nightstar answered, “That man was a serial killer. No one will miss him.”

‘He sighed, “Is that your first kill?”

‘ “...yes.”

‘ “You really shouldn’t be doing this. If not because of the morally dubiousness of it all, then for yourself,” He told his daughter.

‘ “Did holding back help mom?” Mar’i asked.

‘ “Is this what this is about? Because then-”

‘ “Yes, this is what it’s about!” The young woman had started yelling now. “Mom’s dead because she held back for you, and the terrorists killed her. Now I’m killing the criminals in advance so they won’t hurt my loved ones, and you’re lecturing me about it?!” With that, she flew off angrily into the sky.

‘While Clark managed to keep the newer generation of heroes under control, it was clear that many like Nightstar were far looser regarding the no killing rule.

‘The next time he saw her it would be a year later to invite her to his second marriage, this time to Joseph Wilson.

‘ “I still can’t believe Dad’s remarrying,” Jake said. He was on the roof of Titans Tower with his sister. At 16 he had recently started his hero career with the name Flamebird, which Bette Kane had passed down to him, as she’d retired almost a decade ago it only made sense for her to give it to another, and despite said retirement she still remained in contact with the hero world due to remaining close with us and being married to Changeling.

‘Jake had black hair, green eyes, and bronze skin. His suit consisted of red, with yellow boots and gloves along with a bird-like yellow shadow which spanned across his chest. He had recently joined the Titans, and had been trying to reconnect with his sister, although ever since her mother’s death Mar’i had become estranged from her family, and after she killed it had only got worse.

‘ “I’m not sure I’m even attending.” She admitted.

‘ “Mom would have wanted Dad to be happy,”

‘ “That’s not the only reason I’m not going.”

‘ “Well what are the others?

‘ “...They’re complicated…”

‘ “Whatever you say, sis,” He murmured, before going back into the building.

‘Mar’i did end up coming and though she was rather quiet during the event, the wedding still went as planned.

‘A few years passed, during which Damian graduated and became a professional artist, along with marrying his childhood friend and college boyfriend Jonathan Kent.

‘Athanasia started to warm up to her mother and Alfred, although she still seemed rather antagonistic towards me and, to everyone’s surprise, Ace. She had gotten a job of being a flight attendant, and though she lived in Thailand, when she was in town she tended to go out for lunch with one of the two (Alfred and/or Talia).

‘One evening me and Talia were in the sitting room, watching the fire in the fireplace flicker, when she started, “Beloved, there is something I must tell you.”

‘ “What is it?” I asked.

‘ “From my contacts I have heard… that my father is dead. Betrayed and killed by someone in the league. Another has taken his place as leader.” She told me, “From the sounds of it, I doubt they are just rumors.”

‘ “That might explain the recent shift in activity by the League to more benevolent things… I just assumed it was a cover,” I muttered.

‘ “Who do you think took over?”

‘ “Chances are Ra’s and Evelyn finally had that child they were hoping for,” I responded, and she nodded.

‘After that quiet filled the room, as she laid her head on my shoulder and we both tried to block out all of our questions.

‘More years went by, and despite our attempts to look into the League, it remained elusive. All we managed to find out was that the new leader was a male descent -likely son, as we suspected- and the one who had killed his own father and taken over, though there seemed to be implications he was using the league for far more charitable purposes.

‘Surprisingly enough though, it wasn’t me who met him and figured out his full story, but Dick. And all while trying to reconnect with his daughter.

‘It was at a Charity Gala, and both were attending. Dick was wearing a white suit, and talking to a man named Bob, while Joseph was at an auction. Bob had hazel eyes, brown hair, and tan skin.

‘ “Look over there,” Bob said, pointing to the dance floor where Mar’i was waltzing with a man who Dick had never seen. She was wearing a red full-length gown, while her partner had black hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a tuxedo.

‘ “That’s my daughter…”

‘ “If I were you, I’d do something about her love life, the way those two are looking at each other? I doubt they’re just partners for this one dance.” When Dick looked at him in confusion, Bob continued, “You haven’t heard have you? That man is Ibn Karim. Or at least that’s what he says, everyone knows he’s actually Ibn Al Xu'ffasch, the grandson of Ra’s Al Ghul who killed his own grandfather and is now the leader of the league. There’s a lot of speculation about why his name means Son of the Bat too, especially about if his father is Batman, although I doubt that’s true. As I was saying though, I’d suggest having a talk with her about her love-life.”

‘Dick nodded.

‘ “Absolutely not. No way, None.”

‘Dick and Mar’i were in a dressing room. She was wearing a periwinkle robe, while hanging up the dress she had been wearing all night. Ibn being the subject of the conversation. “Don’t you think I’m a little old for this, Dad?” The young woman asked.

‘ “Don’t think I’m stupid, Mar’i. Ra’s lied about killing Bruce and Talia’s third son, didn’t he? And now Ibn’s leading the League isn’t he?” Dick disputed, “And you’re still my daughter, which means you cannot date Bruce Wayne’s son!”

‘ “Said the Capulet about the Montague. It’s hardly incest, Dad. Bruce hasn’t seen Ibn since he was a baby, she replied, “If this is about the leader of the League thing then you should just say that.”

‘ “He was brought up by Ra’s Al Ghul and the League of Shadows, which he now runs. Forgive me for not trusting him!”

‘ “If you did any research, you would understand that he detests Ra’s along with all of his grandfather’s kind and is now using the League for good. I’d never date a terrorist, you know that.”

‘ “Doesn’t matter, Mar’i, I still forbid you to see him!” Dick ordered.

‘Of course Mar’i was never one to follow her father’s orders, especially now that she was an adult. Her and Ibn continued their romance, despite Nightwing’s protests.

‘Unfortunately around a year later he had some terrible news.

‘Dick had already told everyone else, when he traveled to visit her.

‘ “What are you doing here?” Mar’i inquired, while shooting her bolts at Captain Cold. “I’m talking to both of you here. One of you should be in Central City and the other in Bludhaven.”

‘ “Can’t a guy just do one crime outside of his home city without everyone interrogating him!” Cold said, exasperated. “Just one bank robbery, and suddenly I have some huge plan to take over Manhattan. One.”

‘Dick, who was busy throwing one of his Baton’s, replied, “I just wanted to talk to my daughter. What’s the shame in that?”

‘ “I don’t know why I asked. I already know. It’s about the… sickness isn’t it?”

‘ “Wh- how did you know?”

‘ “You told my best friend’s dad. Did you really think I wouldn’t learn?” She asked, “The real question is why did you tell everyone before me?”

‘ “Starshine, I…” He faltered, “After your mother’s death…”

‘ “You told Jake.”

‘ “He lives in Bludhaven. In fact we’re both in the same apartment complex.”

‘ “...How long do you have left?”

‘ “The doctors say around a couple years,” He informed her, “you should come back to Bludhaven for a bit. I’d like to have you with me in my last moments. I know this is probably scary-”

‘ “You’re trying to trick me into admitting it? That I’m scared?” Mar’i interrupted, “Of course I’m scared. And you know why? Because that night, when I was eight, when I told you how terrified I was that you and Mom would die, just like your parents? And you promised that you wouldn’t? Well I’m scared because on that night you lied!

‘ “Mom, died anyways, and after that I’ve been trying my darndest to make sure that I’d never end up saying goodbye to anyone I loved again. Why do you think I pushed you and Jake away? Why do you think I started killing the types who murdered Mom? But it doesn’t matter, none of it matters, since you’ll be dying from Macgregor’s syndrome soon anyways! You said that neither of you would die, period, but even when I try to make sure you won’t, you still manage to end up in a situation so that now you’re going to die! You lied!” At this point the Tamaranian was shooting starbolts at her father, who was gracefully dodging. “You promised you wouldn’t die! No one can keep a promise like that!”

‘As the bolts stopped -although not her glaring- he responded, “Mar’i, I know! I’m sorry! I never should have… I swear to you, Mar’i, I thought that we’d die of old age, and by that time you’d have forgotten all about that night! I know you don’t want to say goodbye, and you don’t need to yet, but you do have to lay your fears to rest so when it does happen you’ll be ready. It’s time.”

‘He reached his hand out to her, and she slowly took it, before hugging her father. “How do you feel, Starshine?” He asked.

‘Nightstar looked up, tears streaming down her face but she still had a weak smile. “...free”

‘When they finally looked back to Captain Cold, they found that he had inevitably scrammed, but the bag of money which he had stolen from the bank still lay full on the ground.

‘ “Thank you so much,” Dick said to me.

‘ “I’m a billionaire, do you really think I wouldn’t find a cure to Macgregors for when you were early enough along that you were still fighting crime?” I responded.

‘ “...well the point is that I’m extremely grateful.”

‘ “And again, it’s no big deal.”

‘ “It is a big deal to me and all of the loved ones I told that I was going to die,” He insisted, “I really do feel bad about scaring them all, especially Mar’i…”

‘ “Of course, from the sounds of it this all did wonders for her mental and emotional health along with your relationship,” I pointed out.

‘ “That shouldn’t mean it didn’t scare her…” He replied, “but yes, she’s now reconciling with the family.”

‘I smiled, “That’s good. I hear you’re thinking about retiring?”

‘ “After this experience, yeah. Jake’s taking over Bludhaven as Nightwing with Joey’s help. I’ll still be doing charity work and all, but I just want to stop with the heroics.”

‘ “Well… good for you?” I awkwardly replied.

‘Dick, true to his word, managed to quit with Barbara’s help. Jake took to his new title naturally, although I doubt it would have gone nearly so smoothly without his stepfather’s help.

‘Around a year afterwards, Mar’i and Ibn threw an engagement party, and we were invited.

‘Since he was kidnapped, we’d only seen him one or two times again, before now. There had always been a fume of awkwardness in the air, this time though we were determined to actually talk to him.

‘ “...So you and Mar’i are getting married?” Talia started.

‘ “Yes, I’m really glad that Dick has more or less accepted the fact that we’re not breaking up anytime soon, although I don’t know your opinion on the matter.” He replied.

‘ “And Ibn, about the whole kidnapping…” I hesitated.

‘ “What?”

‘ “Your mother and I just want you to know that we are so sorry,” I told him. “I know you must hate us, it’s no wonder you avoided contacting us for so many years-”

‘ “Hate you? He interrupted, “I don’t hate you. Maybe don’t have the most amazing thoughts of you, but the main reason I held off contacting you was because… well because I have no idea how I feel…”

‘ “Well then I hope we can try to… help you figure out how you feel. Sort it all out” I responded.

‘And with that we all gave a solemn hug.

‘A decade later, and I was starting to grow old. Everyone kept on telling me to retire. And eventually I caved.

‘ “Tallant, I want you to be the new Batman,” I announced.

‘ “Really, father, I-” Tallant stuttered, “I don’t know what to say.”

‘ “Just say you’ll take good care of Gotham.”

‘ “I… I will.”

‘ “That’s my boy.”

‘ “A lot happened around then. Some of which before I quit and some after. I want to run them down without mentioning whether they were before or after, since that would be tiresome.

‘For a beginning, I gave Wayne Enterprises to Tim, who has since been doing amazing at running it.

‘I also got more grandchildren. Damian and Jon adopted a boy named Cole and asked Jon’s friend Kathy to be the surrogate mother to their daughter Anya. Tallant, similarly, adopted a little girl named Ceili with his boyfriend Raze.

‘And we have now lived long enough for something most people only dream of: living long enough to meet your great grandchildren.

‘First Jake married a nice woman named Almira and they had a son who they named Richard Grayson jr, after the child’s grandfather. Then Mar’i and Ibn had two children: first a girl, Naomi, and then a boy, Mohsin. Most recently Beth gave birth to an intersex child who she named Kendall.

‘For that matter, many changes regarding which heroes operate here have happened, and I’m not just talking about my retirement.

‘Kate retired, and passed down the Batwoman mantle to Stephanie Brown, who eagerly accepted. Afterwards she gave the title of Batgirl to Tiffany Fox, Lucius Fox’s youngest daughter. Somewhere along the lines Athanasia took over as Red Hood. Beth became Spoiler, and her brother was Robin, although he ended up retiring at 20 and deciding not to return to the hero life. However not long after he became Batman, Tallant made his daughter the newest Robin.

“Where’s Talia?” I asked, suddenly interrupting his vivid retelling. “Did she…”

He chuckled, “You’re being paranoid, friend. Nothing’s happened to her. In fact she only retired a month ago. Right now she’s just visiting her father’s “grave”... if a heart in a trophy case can be called that. Even after everything, he was still her father, and she still loves him.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, when suddenly we both heard a loud boom. We turned to see a light blue portal had been opened, and stepping out were John Constantine, who had blond hair, blue eyes, and light skin. He wore his trademark brown trench coat and white blouse with a tie. Besides him was Zatanna, who had evidently opened it. Her hair was black and eyes were blue. She was wearing black boots, white gloves, a short black jacket, and a magicians hat. In one hand was a wand and in the other she was towing along a captured Klarion the witch boy. The villain had blue skin and black hair that curled into a horn-like shape. He wore a black suit, and had blue chains that held him. The boy grumbled.

“Bruce!” Zatanna said, “I hope you weren’t stuck here too long!”

“I was fine,” I answered, “I knew you’d find me with ease and luckily I ended up in a rather good universe, rather than say, in Earth-3.”

“Um, if you wouldn’t mind, this portal isn’t going to hold itself open…” She said.

“I turned to my elseworld counterpart, “Thank you for your hospitality.”

“Anytime.”

And with that, I was off.

I was in the Batcave, looking through my files, when Constantine interrupted “You okay?” You’ve been awfully quiet, mate.”

“Me being quiet isn’t something new,” I told him.

“Fine then, that’s not it. However you still seem off.” He lit a cigarette, “I can’t blame you if you’re feeling weirded out after that. One time, in bed, Zatanna told me about a universe where I’d died in her arms after she was mind controlled to kill me. Took a week to process and sort of killed the mood to be honest.”

“I don’t need to know about your sex life,” I glared at him, “And stop smoking in my cave. For that matter, get out of the Batcave.”

“Can’t. Zatanna got me in here and I’m not as powerful as to transport at will, and apparently through her or a blindfolded ride in the Batmobile are the only ways you’ll let me into or out of this cave.”

I sighed, before throwing some knock out gas, “If it’s the only way to get you out… I’ll be driving.”

“What the-” He exclaimed while falling to the floor, “Bloody hell!”

I grabbed him, and placed him into the car, buckled him in, and started driving out.

Upon return I sighed in relief, and took off my mask before going up to the Manor and into my bedroom.

On the nightstand sat a framed photograph of me and Talia. I was unmasked, and in a black turtleneck with gray jeans. She was beside me and wearing a black V-neck crop top, black skirt with a belt, and sunglasses. In the background was the Eiffel Tower in all its glory.

Memories of our romance and short-lived marriage start flashing through my mind, along with every word of the life the otherworld me told me.

“We could have had it all…”