Chapter Text
John stood on top of the Wayne building and waited. The gesture was perhaps a little brazen, but he was as ready as he was ever going to be. He had enough allies that if things didn’t go well John would be able to regroup. And the Batkids might even take his side just to be contrary.
There was no thump or whoosh to announce Batman’s arrival. But then again, there wouldn’t be. John didn’t need really need a noise, not when he’d been Bat-spotting for more years than the man had kids.
“You care for my son.”
“More than I thought myself capable,” John admitted. “I would do anything and everything for Nightwing.”
“My son is more than Nightwing.” The words were both an admission and a promise.
“He wasn’t Nightwing at all when I truly got to know him. Not really.” John tucked his hands in his pockets and let the presence of the Batsuit hang in a moment of silence. “For both of them, for all of him. For whatever mask he does or doesn’t wear, whatever name he does or doesn’t use.”
Batman didn’t move or let a sound, but something in the man appeared to relax regardless.
“You were there when I wasn’t. When none of us were.”
“The littlest Robin was there. So were the rest of you, as long as you could.”
“It’s not that simple when it’s your son,” Bruce said in the Batman’s voice, a small tick in his jaw. “And it wasn’t enough.”
John said nothing as he started to turn away because it hadn’t been enough. He also didn’t flinch when he saw Batman throw him a Batarang out of the corner of his eye. John caught the thing with the ease of a man who had caught many such weapons in the past. The metal was smooth and reflected no light.
“If you need anything, Constantine, please ask. Nightwing won’t, not always. I’m here. We’re here, this time. Neither of you have to do this alone.”
John took in a breath and turned back to look at Batman, before snorting at the empty rooftop. He looked down at the Batarang, fingers tracing over the smooth indent that disguised an emergency signal.
“Well, would’ya look at that,” he said softly.
Nightwing did make a noise when he swung up to the roof, but only because he was being courteous.
“I ain’t dead,” John told him.
“Good,” Nightwing smirked as he came over, tapping the Batarang still in John’s hand before settling on the edge of the roof, one leg kicked over and one resting under his head. “Would have been difficult to avenge you without undermining my own family.”
“But you would have done it, right?”
“Hm. Maybe.”
John tucked the Bartarang in one his pockets, letting Dick lean against his leg as they both started out over the city. They stayed like that for several long moments until Nightwing put his hand up to his ear and stood with sigh that didn’t hide his grin.
“Duty calls.”
“Always does,” John acknowledged.
“Get some damn sleep,” Nightwing said before kissing John’s cheek.
“Sure thing, luv. Call if you need me.”
“Always do,” Nightwing said as he jumped off the building with a backwards flip.
John snorted again. But he also settled on the rooftop to watch just a bit longer.
Batsibling Secret Chat
Dick: All clear.
Dick: I’m heading home.
Tim: Manor home or apartment home?
Dick: Apartment home.
Steph: Excellent!
Steph: Sleep over at Dick’s!
Dick: Really?
Barbara: You’re hardly opposed.
Dick: Not in the slightest.
Dick: Come one, come all.
Damian: Who will be picking me up?
Jason: I gotcha, Baby Bat.
Jason: I’m already dumping my gear in the manor.
Damian: I appreciate your assistance.
Damian: I will meet you in the cave.
Cass sent a photo: [A kettle sits on the counter, not steaming but with a faint cloud of runes around it that somehow convert a sense of warmth. The ingredients for hot chocolate and tea are just visible inside the frame, mostly hidden by the row of seven mugs lined up next to the kettle.]
Cass: John asleep.
Cass: Left gift.
Steph: Your boyfriend isn’t terrible.
Dick: Thank you for your kind words of support.
Jason: This doesn’t mean we approve.
Dick: Hm.
Dick: So I should dump your mug?
Jason: Don’t you dare!
Dick: Oh, good.
Dick: I’d hate for you to miss the Jane Austen quote on the one he got you.
Barbara: Mine has a snarky saying written in compute code.
Barbara: Dick’s has elephants. On a trapeze.
Cass sent a photo: [A large mug sends steam gently upwards. The angle doesn’t allow the liquid inside to be seen but rather focuses on the cartoon bats in their tutus.]
Jason: Damnit.
Tim: Yet.
Tim: We don’t approve yet.
Dick: :)
Dick was not having a fun time. Not in the slightest. Which was annoying because he often did enjoy galas, at least to an extent. Dick enjoyed dancing and talking to people and it was absolutely hilarious to watch his family run circles around Gotham’s elite.
Dick had years of games and challenges to catch his siblings up on and his dad had almost no foreknowledge of their shenanigans. It was great and made even better by the general confusion of how Bruce went from two children (one estranged) to five and two halves (because Steph and Babs were clinging with special ferocity) in a matter of months.
Distant amusement or engaged chaos were the furthest thing from his mind tonight, however. Not when it was taking all his focus not to jump out of his skin. Dick wanted everyone to stop touching him, to stop trailing their hands over his arms and shoulders as if they had a right to be there.
He’d even almost snapped at a young socialite earlier who’d just wanted to dance and felt immediately awful because she wasn’t awful, wasn’t one of the grasping, grey faces he’d been teaching his siblings to manage. Worse, Jay and Cass had definitely noticed.
They were the only other siblings here tonight, having drawn the short straws (literally). Jason didn’t like galas but he could handle them and was generally a good balance to Cass who also didn’t like them but was generally more sullen than violent. Unfortunately, both would break the arms of anyone who tried to hurt Dick unless he got his shit together.
Dick got his shit together only when spice and forests and magic wrapped around his shoulders the moment before strong arms wrapped around his waist. Dick leaned back a moment before turning around and burying his face in John’s coat, fingers latching onto the soft and not armoured fabric.
“What are you doing here?” Dick asked the cloth.
John hummed, arms tightening. “Littlest Hellion texted. Said you were acting off.”
“Traitor.” There wasn’t really any heat in the word. Dick had noticed his Baby Bat’s dark eyes following him as he left, not arguing about remaining behind but not happy about it either.
“He was right, though.” John rested his chin on Dick’s head.
“Brat usually is.”
“Want to skedaddle?”
Dick clenched his fingers tighter. “No.”
“Hm.” John didn’t call him out on the lie, which was one of the many reasons why Dick loved the man. “K. Come on then, let’s introduce the masses to your boyfriend.”
Dick whipped his head up, only to realize that there was something off about John’s face. It wasn’t obvious, but it was there. Dick tilted his head.
John tapped an earring with one scarred finger, his other hand not moving from Dick’s waist. “Nifty little thing Z and Rachel helped me whip up. No one who doesn’t already know me is going to connect me with well, John Constantine. Also won’t linger too long on my existence. They’ll remember you have a boyfriend who is very protective and devoted but won’t actually remember my face. Photos won’t come out that well either.”
Dick laughed, mostly at the smugness. He leaned up, one hand rising to cup John’s jaw and gave him a long kiss that settled Dick’s bones more firmly in his skin.
Bruce interrupted with a cough that was more amused than anything else. Bab’s voice followed shortly thereafter and was definitely more exasperated.
“Is nothing sacred?”
Dick blinked as he turned, careful not to leave John’s space. “We’ve been remarkably restrained in font of anyone.”
John huffed. “Easy to do when you lot are running me ragged everywhere that isn’t where Dick is.”
“Good,” smirked Jay from where he and Cass were flanked a resigned looking Bruce. “And don’t think we can’t rescind the Truce.”
“No,” said both Babs and Cass.
“Commissioner Gordon,” Bruce spoke over them all, “I’d like you to meet John, Dick’s partner.”
“We’ve already met,” Gordon said somewhat wryly. He did step forward to shake John’s hand.
“Cheers, mate.”
“Really?” Babs asked, eyeing her father.
“My understanding is that John has been very thorough.”
“I’ve had a lot of lunch meetings lately,” John said blithely. He then looked at Dick. “Unless you want to talk about why an old frenemy approached me and apologized, I don’t think you want to start this conversation in public.”
Dick close his mouth with a smirk.
He’d gotten more use out of his demon-slaying sword than he’d expected. It was very good at threatening a certain kind of people. And the entirety of Justice League Dark. Not that he’d threatened Justice League Dark. He’d just used his siblings’ chaos to hijack a meeting John wouldn’t be able to attend and let all the members say they weren’t going to fuss on John’s account, even as the meeting devolved into elaborate stories of the ruin they’d wreaked on the enemies that pissed them off. Subtly was not as much their strong point as they thought it was.
Dick had recorded the full thing to show John the next time the man was irritated at his teammates.
Cass crept forward even as Babs and Jason started snarking at each other, Bruce trying to placate and Gordon amused at the whole spectacle, which had been the man’s reaction to each new child that followed Bruce home.
“You are… worried, tense, unhappy?” Cass asked John.
“I don’t like people.” There were a lot of people here and John was apparently just as disinclined to let go of Dick as Dick was of John.
“Still here?” Cass tilted her head.
“I do like Dick.”
Cass stared for one long moment, dark eyes a whirlpool of attention. She nodded once and stepped forward to John’s other side, hooking her arm with his. “Okay.”
“Wait, really?” Jay asked incredulously.
“Brother-in-law.” Cass nodded.
“No.” Bruce looked very stern for all of a moment before the panic started to sneak in. “No, right?”
Dick laughed at his expression, the sound tugged from somewhere deep inside him that he hadn’t thought would be reachable tonight. “No. Promise, B. We haven’t eloped.”
Dick looked around John to raise an eyebrow at Cass and her shit-eating grin even as John tugged Dick forward.
“I need alcohol if this is going to be the conversation.”
Gordon waved them off in the direction of the nearest event staff, patting a pale yet relieved looking Bruce on the shoulder. The kids followed them, Babs and Cass linking elbows and Jay accepting a small black case from John with a frown.
“What’s this?”
“Minor curses. Bad luck, itching, and a persistent taste of soap, mostly.”
Jay’s lip twitched and his fingers tightened around the case. “Why?” He still asked suspiciously.
“Because I’m a petty bastard and have been here less than thirty minutes and already want to hex six people.”
“How many of them insulted me?” Dick asked. He knew he was charming but that never stopped him from always being the circus charity case to some of these people.
“Five.” John’s tone was flat.
Dick raised an eyebrow.
“This sixth insulted Damian,” John admitted.
Jay looked from John to Dick to the box to the girls, who were smirking faintly and expectantly.
“Fucking fine!” Jay shouted before storming off in the direction of a particularly grumpy old woman who’d once called Dick a Circus Freak, case clutched in his hands.
Babs and Cass both kissed Dick’s cheek before they went to follow. Cass even kissed John’s and Babs promised the both of them security footage of the chaos to come.
“So all I had to do to win their approval was come to a shitty party?”
“Nah,” Dick said, smile refusing to fall off his face as he searched for socialites he could boast about his hot English boyfriend to. “Their approval was earned at least two weeks ago. You just had to attend the shitty party to get them to admit it.”
The Batfamily
Tim: Who’s ready for the first Batfamily Alien Invasion?
Jason: Heck yeah!
Jason: I mean, that’s terrible.
Jason: But all of us, right?
Bruce: All hands are requested.
Bruce: Please convene at the cave and I’ll debrief before we head up to the Watchtower.
Tim: [Added John Constantine to the group.]
John: Um.
Jason: Shut it, Hell Sparkles.
Jason: Grab your fire and get going.
Dick: I’ll get Jay, Timmy, and Steph from school.
Dick: Ten minutes out, guys.
Dick: John, can you grab my extra gear from the apartment?
John: …
John: Sure.
John: Cass, Barbara, do you want me to portal you over from the library?
Cass: :)
Barbara: Yes please!
Barbara: Construction means traffic around the branch is a nightmare.
Damian: Father?
Bruce: You can help run coms and analysis, Damian.
Damian: Acceptable.
Steph: Dickie’s got us school birds.
Steph: We’re on our way.
Bruce: You’re all going to be careful and everyone is going to be partnered up.
Bruce: And stay partnered up.
Steph: Sir yes sir!
Steph: These alien interlopers won’t know what hit them!
Jason: Big Bird’s driving but he says, and I quote:
Jason: They sure fucking won’t.
Jason: And then he called us hellions.
John: Damn straight.
Dick’s head hurt. It wasn’t concussion level of hurt, Jay had checked that before letting him in the Zeta, but it still throbbed a lovely dance across his temple. He smiled through through the pain, though, and the smile wasn’t even a lie. He was happy. He wanted to get home and take stock of every single one of his family’s injuries, but he was happy.
And proud.
Robin and Batgirl had been intrinsic in stopping the alien robots. Hood and Spoiler had saved Wonder Woman from a concussion at best and a beheading at worst. Batman and Black Bat had literally made aliens turn around and flee to their ship after a series of flawless takedowns. Nightingale (and no, Dick hadn’t cried when Damian had selected that as his name in the time before Robin) had gotten a lot of odd looks when he’d first sat at the Watchtowers computer banks but had coordinated the Bats and the Titans with brutal efficiency.
They’d all done so good.
“You okay, Nightwing?” Robin asked.
Black Bat popped up at Dick’s elbow. “Big brother?”
Dick threw and arm around her shoulders, flashing a grin at Robin who just wasn’t quite tall enough for that kind of support yet. Black Bat wrapped her arm around his waist in an encouragement for more weight to be given to her.
“So good, Baby Bird. Very good, even.”
Robin smiled at him as Spoiler snorted and threw up her hands, walking backwards down the hall of the Watchtower so she could better interact. Her suit was singed and she had a bandage around one arm but she was laughing and animated.
“No kidding! You and Constantine were so cool! I can’t believe he fucking opened a portal in mid air and just dropped you on the head ship! Like what the fuck?! How perfect does your timing have to be for a move like that?”
“You’ll get there,” Dick told her, a smile on his lips as they entered the common area to regroup with their family and the other heroes. They arrived just in time to hear one of the new heroes clustered by the doors say the exact opposite of Spoiler.
The woman flipped her long hair and said, quite clearly, to her friend, “I certainly don’t think we were in enough trouble to need help from the likes of Constantine.”
Dick blinked, not entirely sure he’d heard correctly. He did almost have a concussion, after all. Then he looked to Superman, standing across the room with the other major Leaguers, head angled to the them and growing frown on his face. Batman was tensing at his side purely from his friend’s body language, too far away to hear anything. Beast Boy’s arm was also being held in a tight grip by Raven and Dick’s siblings were bristling to the point of going for weaponry.
So yes, she’d just said that.
While Dick tilted his head and let the words bounce around his brain, the rest of the conversation this peripheral group must have been having registered and he almost wanted to sigh. Or punch something. He’d expected the comments of course, about his looks and his notoriety and his reputation, both good and bad. Didn’t mean he had to put up with someone that managed to both imply that John wasn’t good enough for him and that Dick was just fucking around.
Dick stepped forward, shrugging off the reaching hands of his siblings.
“I’m sorry, what was that?” Dick asked, perfectly pleasant. He tilted his head. “I hope you’ll forgive me, but I seem to have missed your name.”
The woman stuttered through her own name, blush high oner cheeks even as the friends shifted nervously. They clearly had survival instincts.
Dick hummed through the introduction he didn’t need. He knew her name. Her knew her civilian identity. He knew how she died. He knew how many times she’d asked him out and how many rejections it took until she got bitter and mean. He knew that she would not be the only one to think they would be a better match for the pretty and perfect Nightwing, particularly when compared to his rough and tumble Constantine.
He knew how wrong they were.
“And I take it you think you can do better?”
“I, uh, what?” She asked, still blushing.
“Think you can do better than Constantine?”
She blinked, her back finally starting to tense as she took in his own battle-ready posture and maybe the Bats spread out behind him. Dick was glad John wasn’t back yet. The man had been up most of the week trying to deal with a curse in the south and did not need this shit.
“Do you think,” Dick spoke softly, “that you can do better than a man who has just saved an entire town from turning to stone and turned around on two hours sleep to crash more ships than you took down individual aliens? Do you think that you can do better than a man who set protection charms on as many underaged heroes as he possible could because he knew most of them hadn’t seen a fight of this scope before? Do you think you can do better than a man who stayed behind, after you decided you’d done enough and could fuck off might I add, in order to check for wounded to help heal?”
She took a step back, denials on her tongue, and Dick stepped after her. “John Constantine is my partner, my choice,” Dick’s anchor and guiding light, “and I will treat all threats accordingly.”
John chose that moment to swing through the door, shadows dark under his eyes and a slight lean to his steps. He surveyed the area with quick, sharp movements that swept over the gathered heroes and looming Bats.
“Hullo?” He said, deeply suspicious of Dick’s beaming grin as Dick immediately moved to stand by his side and wrap his arms around one of John’s.
“Hello. Magic marker?” Batgirl asked Constantine, gloved palm up. Constantine rummaged around in his pockets before handing over a permanent multi-surface marker frequently used for drawing rune circles in unsavoury places, raising an eyebrow but not actually asking the question.
Batgirl stepped to the side and proceeded to carefully draw a perfect Bat on the free shoulder of Constantine’s coat followed by the Nightwing emblem just below. She handed the marker back to Constantine directly after.
“Ours,” she told the entire watching room.
Nightingale actually growled in support, which was more terrifying than it should have been since he was sitting on a silently snarling Red Hood’s shoulders.
“Wait, you approve?” Someone asked. Dick didn’t see who, too focused on John’s arm, tense and confused under Dick’s hands. He thought it might have been Roy. He did, however, notice the woman who’d started everything use the moment to try and duck out of sight behind the milling heroes. It wouldn’t do her any good. He knew her face and so did the rest of the Bats.
“Dude,” Hood said, arms crossed and scowling gremlin on his shoulders. “The man dyed Batman’s cape pink.”
“He destroyed a cult that was targeting Nightwing,” Tim added, tone perfectly even.
“Broke time,” Damian said, because he would never forget.
“Brought pie, like so much pie.” Steph also crossed her arms. “And got me six kinds of waffle toppings after a bad day.”
“Decked out all our gear with magic protections,” Barbara said from her position beside a scowling Batman.
“Led us on a man-hunt through municipal building and still evaded capture.”
“Gave me magic books to read. I’m learning to hack magic.” Dick blinked and looked at an innocent-acting John. Dick had not known that John had gotten Timmy books on magic. That was adorable.
“Got me magic man-eating fish.” Damian was smirking and at least two heroes stepped away from him.
“They’re not - did they eat someone?” John turned to Dick.
“No one important,” Dick told him, a slight smile peeking out.
John paused but then shrugged. “I can live with that.”
“Survived a night out with the Sirens,” Barbara added.
“Survived tea with both Agent A and Wintergreen. Together,” Tim offered.
“Survived Bootcamp Hard Mode.” There was just a bit of awe in Jason’s voice.
“Lost my second favourite coat to that,” John muttered.
“I made it up to you,” Dick reminded him.
“Makes Nightwing happy.” Everyone was silent as Cass took Bruce’s hand and stared them all down. “Happy,” she repeated.
“We adore him,” Steph said, stepping out in front of them both.
“Oh,” said John.
Dick didn’t say anything, but he did wrap his arms tighter around John.
“He’s ours,” said Tim with a scowl.
“And you don’t mess with a Bat,” Barbara declared.
Batman nodded, though it was a small enough gesture that likely only his family, Diana, and Clark noticed.
“Really, what’s the worse that can happen?” That was another newbie, though not one of the initial group badmouthing John. The man took a step back when every Bat turned to look at him in a single moment. He should learn to mutter quieter if he didn’t want to be overheard.
And targeted.
The problem was that Dick had an answer to that. He knew what the worst that could happen was and it wasn’t the something the groaning Titans and the protesting Justice League could understand. The answer had nothing to do with the sharp grins of the Batfamily and the rapid hand gestures of heroes trying to explain the pranks and mayhem that would surely come if the Batfamily was challenged.
Dick felt that answer twine through his bones and seep to the soles of his feet, weighing him down and down and down. He looked up and met Damian’s eyes, the boy still sitting high on Jason’s shoulders, ignoring the occasional jostling to look back at Dick.
Damian stared for one long moment at him before tilting his head and loudly proclaiming the superiority of the Bats.
Dick loved his baby so much. He also loved how easily John followed Dick out of the room and back down the hallway he’d just come from, not even questioning the bruising grip Dick had on his wrist.
“Luv?” John finally asked, free fingers skating over Dick’s cheek when they stopped in a little-use alcove, stars and space and sky visible through the windows.
“Why did you take us back in time?” Dick asked. Only the fact that they stood so close allowed him to feel the way John was caught off guard.
John’s hand slipped to the back of Dick’s neck and settled there for several heartbeats of silence. The silence of battlefield won at a cost neither could live with again.
“Because neither of us were getting up again, otherwise.”
“But we’ll get up this time, right?” Dick asked, whispers of winds winding through his tone. “For our family?”
John looked at Dick. John looked at Dick as only John had ever been able to, truths worn to skeleton and soul under his gaze.
“Ours,” John agreed.
Their family came to get them, later, with Damian and Bruce in the lead while the other’s orbited around but never behind. They found John with his back to the glass and stars, Dick half-asleep and curled into his side. Gentle hands got them standing.
Gentle hands brought them home.
The Batfamily
Steph: So.
Steph: Plan Public Doom seems to have run it’s course.
Steph: Plan Wedding Bells next?
Tim: Babs and I already have the colour scheme down.
Tim: Alfred needed it for the spring planting in the garden.
Constantine: We aren’t engaged?
Bruce: Why was that a question?
Constantine: I’m showing confusion at your children’s antics.
Constantine: Not my relationship status.
Bruce: Good.
Jason: Why did Dad almost have a panic attack over that?
Jason: Like, I just watched him clutch his metaphorical pearls.
Barbara: He seems to think Dick and John are going to elope and tell no one.
Jason: …
Jason: Course they won’t.
Jason: Not when the Titans and the League both love a good wedding.
Jason: Right, John-John?
Private
Constantine: So we’re not telling anyone about that mission with the priest and the magic flowers and the blessing of that goddess of home and hearth, right?
Dick: Absolutely not.
Constantine: Good, good.
The Batfamily
Constantine: No idea where Batsy got that idea from.
Dick: We would never!
Bruce: Good.
Bruce: Don’t break Alfred’ s heart.
Alfred: Certainly not, sir.
Alfred: Barbara and Timothy do have a good eye for colour.
Constantine: Don’t you lot think you’re skipping a few steps?
Cass: No.
Steph: I don’t know. He might be right.
Steph: We should probably start with Plan Engagement.
Constantine: …
Tim: Dick deserves the best.
Tim: I have a few ideas, for when the time comes.
Jason: None of that cliched crap.
Constantine: Oh look.
Constantine: A mission that needs me to immediately head for Bermuda.
Constantine: Ta.
Steph: You should know by now that won’t stop us.
Barbara: There is no escape.
Dick: Stay safe!
Dick: Or safe-ish.
Dick: Safe-adjacent?
Dick: Bring me back something fun!
Private
Damian: I do not understand.
Dick: What’s up, Baby Bat?
Damian: Why are they all so certain Constantine will be the one to propose?
Dick: …
Dick: You went through my things.
Damian: The ring was not that hard to find.
Dick: I live with John.
Dick: He hasn’t found it.
Damian: That is a comment on his abilities and not my own.
Damian: Regardless, my question stands.
Dick: Let them have their fun.
Dick: I’m not asking anytime soon.
Damian: The ring says otherwise.
Dick: It’s a magic ring.
Dick: The trials to get it went much quicker than anticipated.
Damian: Does that not indicate that you are a superior suitor?
Dick: It indicates that I know what I want and I’m going to make sure I get it.
Dick: Eventually.
Dick: I’m not missing anything right now.
Dick: Our family is perfect and John’s part of it, ring or not.
Damian: I suppose that is accurate.
Dick: We don’t need to worry, baby.
Dick: We have time.