Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story. They belong to DC Comics. And also, if you are too young to read this, leave... please. Or if this type of thing is illegal where you live then also leave...please. This is a story involving homosexual, or rather gay, sex and love. So if this offends or freaks you out, leave... please. This is purely fiction, it doesn't imply anything about the character's mentioned sexuality.
This story is a work of FICTION. The events described are my own invention. Any similarities to actual events or persons are strictly coincidental. The author retains the copyright, and any other rights, to this original story. You may not publish it or any part of it without my explicit authorization.
About the "gay" stuff, some readers asked me if this actually was a gay story because nothing "gay" happened in the first episode, give it time.
Comments are always welcome at: hailcaesar2011@hotmail.com
Gotham Prep Episode 2: Fight for Dear Old Gotham Prep.
Damian wasn't having the best first week of school. His roommate snored, the food was several steps below Alfred's and he'd already been kicked off the football team. Three days into his first week and he found himself sitting in detention, fuming at the coach and wondering what in the hell the boy next to him was staring at.
"What?" Damian finally asked.
"Hi, I'm Robbie, Robbie Matthews," said the cheerful blond.
"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" asked Damian.
"Oh, well, no, I just thought you might remember me, I took a picture of you and your family the other day," said Robbie.
"Right, sorry, I'm Damian Wayne."
"Cool, I thought I recognized your dad, my dad works for Wayne Enterprises, in research and development," said Robbie.
"Great," said Damian, with a complete lack of enthusiasm.
"I didn't know your dad had three sons," said Robbie.
"He doesn't, he has one son, me, he bought Drake and Greyson," said Damian, disdainfully.
"You mean adopted?" asked Robbie.
"As you like it," Damian quipped.
"Right, so what are you in for?" asked Robbie.
"Fighting," Damian sighed, "You?"
"Hacked the school's network," Robbie smiled.
"Why did you do that?" asked Damian.
"Because I could," Robbie beamed, "who did you get into a fight with?"
"The football team," said Damian, flatly.
"The football team, as in the whole football team?"
"Well, not all of them," said Damian, fidgeting in his seat.
"Ok, I gotta hear this story," said Robbie.
Damian had only gone out for the football team because his father had encouraged him. He loved sports and he loved a challenge, he'd never played football and truth be told, he was a little small for it, but his dad thought it would be a good use of his athletic abilities, so he gave it a shot. The problem was that Damian was a little arrogant, he knew it and was working on it, but his competitive nature got the better of him. He'd only been to two practices but Damian was sure he was a better football player then the quarterback and when the center hiked the ball, Damian intercepted it and made the pass on his own. The quarterback was naturally upset and made the mistake of getting in Damian's face about it.
"What do you think you're doing Wayne, you can't just intercept the ball like that, that's not in the play book," Terry shouted.
"Well, I just thought you might benefit from seeing someone actually make the pass, instead of getting sacked," said Damian.
"Fuck you," said Terry, as he shoved Damian's shoulder.
Damian was still learning to respond with appropriate force, he reached out and pinched Terry's neck, the quarterback gave him a dazed look and then passed out on the grass. One of the blockers came up behind Damian, just to see what had happened to the quarterback, and ended up getting thrown over the little freshman's shoulder, for his trouble.
"Damn it Wayne, you can't treat my players like that, get off my field," Coach McCoy shouted.
"Your field," said Damian, haughtily, "It says Wayne Stadium on the scoreboard, not Ancient Minimum Wage Football Coach."
"That's it smart guy, you're off my team and you've got detention," said Coach McCoy, turning red in the face.
"You actually said that?" Robbie laughed, back in detention.
"Well, it's true, isn't it?" asked Damian.
"Yeah, I guess so, but you can't talk to teachers like that, they'll kick you out," said Robbie.
"We'll see about that," Damian grumped.
"So what are you going to do now, I imagine you'll have a lot of free time without football practice," said Robbie.
"Actually, some girls asked me if I could do a back flip and when I said yes, they asked me to be the Gotham Prep Panther" said Damian, "it comes with a costume and they said I'll be helping to lead the school to victory over our enemies."
Robbie couldn't help himself, he burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?" asked Damian, growing annoyed, he didn't like being laughed at.
"These girls, were they wearing matching purple and black uniforms, carrying pompoms?" asked Robbie.
"Yes, what of it?" asked Damian.
"DW, those were cheerleaders and they asked you to be the school mascot," Robbie laughed, "you wear the panther costume at games and help the cheerleaders rally the crowd and entertain kids."
"I see," said Damian, getting to his feet.
"Now where are you going?" asked Robbie.
"To liquidate the one they call, The Head Cheerleader," said Damian.
"Sit down Mr. Wayne," said Mrs. Cardoza, she was in charge of detention, "I don't mind you talking or sleeping, but I don't want you out of your seat until the hour is up."
Damian, gave her a dirty look and was surprised when she shot one back. He crossed his arms over his chest and sat down in a huff.
"It's not so bad, I think it would be fun," said Robbie, "you should give it a try."
"Maybe, we'll see," said Damian, he really didn't have much of a choice, he'd already invited his father and brothers to Friday's game, he had to show them something.
"So we're allowed to sleep in here?" asked Damian.
"Yeah, they don't care what we do as long as we're quiet," said Robbie.
"Thank god, I haven't slept since I got here," said Damian, stretching out in his seat and putting his hands behind his head.
"Why not?" asked Robbie.
"My roommate snores worse than my Great Dane," said Damian.
"Why don't you just transfer?"
"I tried, they haven't said anything yet," Damian yawned.
Robbie let Damian take a nap after that. He pulled out his laptop and after a few simple clicks; he was back into the schools administrative network. He looked at Damian, studied his handsome face, his short black hair and cute little nose, then he turned back to his computer and fixed Damian's roommate problem. When detention was over, Robbie smiled and waved at Damian, then went on his way. Damian surprised himself by smiling back; he'd started off annoyed at Robbie, and his questions, but ended up enjoying his company. When Damian walked into his dorm room, he found a surprise waiting for him.
"This came while you were gone," said his roommate, handing him a folded piece of paper.
"It's a transfer," said Damian, gleefully.
"You're moving?" asked his roommate, as Damian happily packed his bags.
"Immediately," said Damian, "and if you're wondering, yes it's because of you."
Damian's roommate shot him a dirty look then went back to his homework. He'd shared a room with Damian for three whole days and he'd learned enough about him to know that he wasn't going to miss him much. Damian got his second surprise of the evening, when he got to his new room with his luggage.
"You!" Damian exclaimed, when he saw Robbie.
"Hi," Robbie waved and smiled.
"You hacked the network and got me a transfer?" asked Damian.
"Well, the way you fell asleep in detention, I figured you needed the rest," Robbie explained, "Make yourself at home."
Damian sat his things on the bed and then took a look around, his side of the room was in pristine condition, Robbie's on the other hand, looked like a bomb had gone off. There were socks and underwear strewn all over the floor, most of his luggage was still packed, there were candy and snack wrappers everywhere and a pyramid made out of Red Bull cans. Damian put his things neatly in their place, then gave Robbie's side of the room a second look.
"You know, they say you can tell a lot about someone by the way they live," said Damian.
"Yeah, so?" said Robbie.
"So I can tell you must be a genuinely dirty person," said Damian.
"Whatever, I'm still settling in," said Robbie, "Come on, it's 6:30, let's go to the dining hall, I'm starving."
"If you can call that food," said Damian, as he followed Robbie out the door.
"Do you complain about everything?" asked Robbie.
"No," Damian retorted, "not everything."
The next day was Friday and though he hadn't had any practice, Damian donned the Gotham Prep Panther costume, a purple panther in a football jersey. The cheerleaders told him that for this game, all he really had to do was dance around and wave, he'd learn more before the next game. He called his father and told him what he was doing and when he spotted his family in the bleachers, Bruce waved and Tim pointed and laughed hysterically. Damian crossed his fluffy arms across his chest and pouted under his panther head.
At halftime, when everyone's eyes were on him and the cheerleaders, Damian stood there with his arms folded, looking at the cheerleaders like they were morons. The crowd ate it up, they thought it was part of the act and eventually Damian loosened up a bit and wiggled his little butt to the rhythm of the music. The panther suit was very heavy and it was hot inside, when the game resumed, Damian sat on the bench and took off the head, shaking the sweat out of his black hair.
"Wayne, put the head back on, you wanna scar some kid for life?" said the Cheerleading Coach, Ms. Hill, "the head stays on until you go back to the locker room."
Damian wanted to argue but he found Ms. Hill to be a bit intimidating. She was taller than his dad, built like a truck and looked like she wouldn't take any shit from a 14 year old, trained assassin or not. Damian sighed and put the panther head miserably back on his own.
When the game was over, Damian followed the football team back to the locker room. The locker room was directly across from the concession stand and when Robbie saw Damian, he raced over to his roommate, with an arm full of junk food.
"Hey DW, you were great, did you have fun?" asked Robbie.
"No, it's hot in here," said Damian, his voice muffled by the panther head.
Just then, a little boy raced up to them and threw his arms around Damian's waist.
"I love you Gotham Panther," gushed the little boy.
"See, the kids love you," smiled Robbie.
Damian looked at his roommate, looked at the little boy, then pushed him away, accidently knocking the tyke to the ground.
"Damian!" scolded one of the cheerleaders, as she bent down to help the child, "don't mind the mean old panther."
"Nice touch," laughed Robbie.
Robbie's laughter was broken by the sound of shouting coming from the concession stand.
"Come on, gimme the money!"
Two gunmen in ski masks, guns drawn, where holding up the concession stand. The frightened volunteers who worked the stand, mostly the mother's and fathers of the football players and cheerleaders, did their best to empty the registers as the gunmen waved their pistols in their faces. All around them, people dropped to the floor, Robbie dove for the dirt and the cheerleader pushed the little boy back to the ground. Damian sprung into action.
He ran to the concession stand, closing the distance rapidly despite the heavy costume. He launched himself into a flying side kick, expecting to take the first gunman in the back, but taking him in the knee instead, thanks to the cumbersome suit. Damian grabbed his gun and yanked it from his unsuspecting hand, then threw it over his shoulder, where the suspect couldn't retrieve it.
The second gunman turned on Damian but before he could pull the trigger, Damian grabbed the barrel of his weapon and jerked it forward. This gunman had a better grip and went flying, with his weapon, over Damian's shoulder. Damian spun around and before the gunman could take aim, the boy kicked the gun out of his hand. The two gunmen circled the Gotham Panther and when they charged him, Damian leapt into the air and spread his legs, kicking them both in the chest.
To Damian's dismay, they kept getting up. He tried kicks and punches and was rewarded when his enemies fell but he couldn't keep them down. It's the damn suit, Damian realized, his hands and feet were to fluffy to do any damage. By this time the gunmen had decided that they didn't want any more to do with this kitty and ran for the gate. Damian started to give chase but ended up tripping over his own tail. When he got up, they were gone.
"Whoa, that was amazing DW," Robbie exclaimed, when Damian took off his panther head.
"Oh, you were so brave," said the cheerleader who had scolded him earlier, just before she kissed his cheek.
"Damian, are you alright?" said Bruce, as he ran up with Dick and Tim, "we saw what was happening and came as fast as we could."
Bruce had parked by the main gate and had planned to meet Damian there once he'd changed; he was spending the weekend at home. While they were waiting, Tim started complaining about how long Damian was taking, when he got out of the car to fetch his little brother, he spotted the fight and raced to the scene with his father and Dick.
"Yeah I'm ok, those guys should be sprawled out in the dirt, they're lucky they got away," said Damian.
"What happened, why wouldn't they stay down?" asked Dick.
"It's this stupid suit, I was connecting but all the stupid foam dulled my strikes," said Damian.
"Yeah, love the suit Damian," Tim giggled, "I had no idea you could be so cuddly."
"Whatever Drake, I'm sure this is the first pussy you've seen, like, ever!" Damian exclaimed.
"Ouch, kitty has claws," Tim retorted.
"That's enough boys," said Bruce, "Damian why don't you go change while I settle this with the police."
Damian was exhausted, the panther suit easily weighed as much as he did, it was made of some horrible poly-cotton blend that left him drenched in sweat and he was tired from his tussle at the concession stand. Robbie followed him into the locker room, talking ninety miles a minute. Damian ignored his roommate and stripped out of the heavy suit, he wanted to shower but decided to just change and shower at home.
"Alright Robbie, I'll see you when I get back Sunday night," said Damian, when he'd finished changing and his roommate walked him to the main gate.
"Ok, and hey, that was really cool, what you did," Robbie smiled.
While Damian had been changing, Bruce took care of the cops and Damian found his family waiting in the car. Bruce and Dick where in front so Damian slipped into the back, next to Tim.
"Man Damian, you stink," said Tim.
"They say you don't know a man until you've walked a mile in his shoes, Drake," said Damian.
"Yeah, so?" Tim replied.
"So, I guess now I know how bad it really sucks to be you," said Damian.
"And zing," Dick chuckled, from the front.
That was the last thing Damian heard that night. He fell asleep before they pulled out of the parking lot and he didn't wake when they got home, not even when his dad carried him up to bed and dressed him in his pajamas. When he woke the next morning, it was to a familiar pawing at his chest.
"Hi Titus," Damian chirped as the Great Dane licked his face, "did you miss me boy?"
The dog's only answer was to keep licking and nuzzling his boy, but the boy had certainly missed the dog. Prior to meeting Robbie, Titus had been Damian's only friend, except for maybe Alfred and his brothers, but to Damian's way of thinking, family didn't count. Titus nuzzled Damian's armpit, causing the boy to burst into a fit of giggles, but then the pup pulled away with a disgruntled snort.
"Yeah, pretty rank," said Damian, as he sniffed his pit, "I'm going to jump in the shower."
Damian went into his bathroom and ran the hot water while he stripped out of his pajamas. He climbed under the shower head and let the water wash away the grime he'd built up the day before. Showered and dressed, Damian walked back into his room, where Titus sniffed at him and gave his approval by nudging the boys hand so that Damian would pet him. After that, the boy and the dog wandered down to the dining room, lured by the smell of breakfast.
"Check it out, beauty and the beast," Tim quipped.
"Uh, thanks?" said Damian, giving him a questioning look.
"I was talking about Titus," Tim giggled, "come here boy, you're so pretty."
"Told you he likes me better," said Tim, as he stroked the dog's ears.
"He doesn't like you better, he likes bacon better," said Damian, and as if on cue, Titus snatched the bacon Tim had in his other hand.
"Good morning Master Damian, are you hungry? I've made your favorite waffles," said Alfred.
"Awesome, I'm starved," said Damian, sitting down and digging into his plate.
Bruce and Dick talked about the morning's paper and Tim told Alfred all about Damian's performance as the Gotham Panther. Tim particularly enjoyed reliving the part where Damian had tripped over his tail. Throughout the conversation Damian continued to shovel food into his mouth, he'd only been gone a week but Alfred was an excellent chef and Damian missed the wonderful meals he'd grown accustomed to over the summer. When Damian stuck his fork into the last waffle, so did Dick, which earned him a displeased growl from his little brother.
"Bad Damian, bad," laughed Tim, as he reached over and smacked his brother with a rolled up newspaper.
"Sorry Greyson, you can have it," said Damian, withdrawing his fork, "as for you Drake, if you ever do that again I'll..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, you'll kill me, tough guy," said Tim.
"Good, we have an understanding," Damian smirked.
"Hey Greyson, you wanna go for a walk with me?" asked Damian, when breakfast was finished.
"Sure kiddo," Dick smiled affably.
"So, what's her name?" asked Dick, as they ambled around the grounds.
"What? Who?" asked Damian.
"This isn't about girls?" asked Dick.
"No, where did you get that idea?" asked Damian.
"Well, I saw that girl kiss you last night, I thought you might have questions," Dick explained.
"That? Oh no, she was just overcome by how awesome I was, it happens sometimes," Damian smirked.
"Right," said Dick, rolling his eyes, "so what's on your mind?"
"Well it is about last night, those two guys, has that ever happened to you before?"
"What do you mean?" asked Dick, unsure of what Damian was getting at.
"They got away," Damian grumped.
"Oh, yeah that happens sometimes, you can only do so much, you can't win them all," said Dick.
"Really, I thought you and father and ugh, even Drake, I thought the good guys always won?" said Damian.
"You've seen too many movies little brother, real life is different, sometimes the bad guys get lucky," Dick explained.
"No one's ever gotten away from me before," Damian sulked.
"I seem to recall a story about a certain boy and a mugger," Dick grinned.
"That didn't count," Damian retorted, "if father hadn't jumped me, that scumbag would be taking a dirt nap in a pauper's grave."
"See, sometimes they get lucky," Dick smiled, "don't dwell on it, so they got away, you had a pretty good night, you stopped a robbery, no one got hurt and a pretty girl kissed you. You should ask her out."
"Get serious," Damian laughed.
"Why not, you're a cute kid and she was clearly impressed," Dick winked.
"I don't know," Damian blushed.
"Come on, the girls are going to love those baby blues," Dick teased, pinching Damian's cheek.
"Thanks for the pep-talk," said Damian.
"Sure thing kiddo," said Dick, as they continued their walk.
Damian wanted to let it go but it was to contrary to his nature. It was in the back of his mind the rest of the weekend, like a loose thread in a sweater, he kept pulling at it. When he returned to school, Sunday night, he didn't say much to Robbie, he turned in early, hoping his roommate would as well, Damian had a plan. Unfortunately, Damian underestimated Robbie's ability to stay up drinking Red Bull and playing World of Warcraft, it was well after midnight when he finally turned the lights out. Damian waited another hour after that, just to make sure Robbie was asleep, then he got out of bed.
Damian dressed in a charcoal grey t-shirt, dark blue jeans, his black converse sneakers and a black hoodie. He would have preferred his black yoroi but that, and most of his weapons, had been taken away after he'd copped to the incident in the alley, with the would-be rapists. At least he had one of his trusty butterfly knives, he had so many of them, he was sure that his father wouldn't miss a few. He also had a couple of special items, standard issue for the League of Shadows, that he'd secreted away. Damian slipped his knife into his back pocket, then climbed out the window.
Damian and Robbie's room was on the third floor of Tucker Hall, he couldn't drop to the ground like he did from his window at home, he'd have to climb, the only problem was, he'd misjudged the distance between the window frame and the ledge. Damian held on to the sill, but his feet couldn't find anything to latch on to. He made considerably more noise then he'd planned to and before he knew it, he'd woken Robbie, who turned on his bedside lamp and looked right at him.
"Damian, what are you doing out there?" Robbie yawned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"You haven't seen this Robbie, go back to bed," said Damian.
"Whatever," Robbie scoffed, "what are you doing?"
Damian reached into his pocket and felt around, until he found the tiny capsule. He crushed it in his hand and when Robbie stepped to the window sill, Damian blew the fine blue powder into his face.
"What the..."Robbie began, then fell to the floor.
"Sorry buddy," said Damian, but he had his own problems.
In letting go of the window sill, to crush the capsule and blow the powder into his friends face, he'd put too much weight on his fingers and when they let go, he tumbled into the bushes below.
"Ouch," Damian groaned, as he lay in the bushes.
After a moment, he picked himself up, dusted off his clothes, pulled a few twigs from his raven hair, then pulled his hood up around his head. Damian's plan was simple, he'd go out in to the city, he knew criminals talked, all he had to do was find some and listen to what they had to say. He wasn't a fool, he knew the odds of finding the guys he was looking for were slim, but he also knew that a robbery being foiled by a kid in a cat suit was the kind of story crooks would tell each other. If he listened to the right conversations, asked the right questions, maybe he'd get a lead.
An hour into his walk through Gotham's underbelly, he was completely disheartened by his plan. The city was huge, one of the largest in the country, and it's criminal community was just as closed to strangers as any other. He got close to a few nefarious types but they all clamed up when they spotted him. By 3:00am he was tired and ready to go home, the only problem was, he'd planned to scale the wall of the dorm and slip back into his room. Damian's leg wasn't cooperating with him, he'd hurt himself worse then he thought when he fell into the bushes, and while nothing was broken, he couldn't climb the wall without some kind of help. As if on cue, a nylon rope fell from his window, the last of it pooling at his feet.
Damian tugged on the rope, making sure it was firmly secured on the other end. When he was sure it would take his weight, he quickly climbed to the third floor, where Robbie helped him inside, then pulled up the rope.
"You knocked me out!" Robbie exclaimed, while Damian unzipped his hoodie.
"What are you doing with a rope?" asked Damian.
"I've always got a rope," said Robbie.
"Why?" asked Damian, he knew plenty of reasons why he would have a rope, but not Robbie.
"Well, it's like in the movies, you saw Indiana Jones, right?" said Robbie.
"Yes," Damian replied.
"Well, there you go," said Robbie.
"But that was a whip," said Damian.
"Whatever, he's got a whip, I've got a rope, you knocked me out!" Robbie exclaimed.
"I'm sorry, it just seemed easier then explaining everything while I was hanging out of the window," said Damian.
"So you just knock me out? How did you do that, why would you have something to knock me out with, Damian?" Robbie exclaimed.
"Well, I..." Damian stuttered.
"You know what.........forget it, I don't care anymore, I tried being nice because you seemed cool but if this is what I get for my trouble, I'm done," Robbie continued.
"Look I'm sorry, ok? Before I met you, the only friend I had was my dog, I'm used to being alone and doing what I want, I don't know how to treat friends," Damian admitted.
"What are you into, Damian?" asked Robbie, more calmly.
"I don't know what you're talking about?" said Damian.
"I saw what you did to those guys at the football game, you told me about your fight with the team, now you're sneaking out, dressed like, well, that," said Robbie, gesturing at Damian's clothes, "there's something you're not telling me, who are you?"
"Listen, you hacked the school network, is that the extent of your skills?" asked Damian.
"Hell no, that was nothing, I did that just for fun, governments don't have secrets from me, I can get into anything I want," said Robbie, "but what's this have to do with..."
"Have you ever heard of the League of Shadows?" asked Damian.
"It sounds familiar, on the CIA server, or maybe it was NSA," said Robbie, scratching his head.
"Look them up and see what you can find out about a woman named Talia al Ghul, wake me up when you find something interesting, I'm tired," said Damian.
Robbie watched his roommate kick off his sneakers, take off his hoodie, then get into bed. He hadn't gotten the answer he wanted but Damian had given him something else, a puzzle that intrigued him. Robbie popped the top on a can of Red Bull, fired up his laptop and clacked away at the keys; it was almost 7:00am when he woke Damian.
"DW, wake up, wake up," said Robbie, shaking Damian violently.
"Find something?" Damian yawned.
"Jesus, what did you get me into? I'm getting query spikes, IP traces, ddos attacks, if I hadn't been using the dozen proxies I normally use, we'd be in a LOT of trouble right now. This isn't law enforcement, or government, it's too good," said Robbie.
"Well, first off, did you find anything?" asked Damian.
"Not a lot, but if this Talia is connected to the League of Shadows, she's one scary bitch, they're world class assassin's!" Robbie ranted.
"Watch your mouth, that's my mommy," said Damian.
"Uh, sorry, I didn't mean to, I uh..." Robbie stuttered.
"It's alright, she can be a little scary," Damian smiled.
"So let me get this straight, you're dad's the richest man in Gotham and your mom is like, I don't know, the Anti-Wonder Woman?" asked Robbie.
"That's one way of putting it," said Damian.
"Is there another way to put it?" asked Robbie.
"Ok, that was a perfect way of putting it, happy?" Damian retorted.
"Look, she's the head of the League of Shadows, my grandfather founded it, she hooked up with my father on some kind of business trip and nine months later, well, surprise, it's a boy," Damian explained.
"So based on your moves, I'm going to go out on a limb and say she raised you?" said Robbie.
"The League raised me. Mommy, well, she supervised," said Damian.
"That explains a lot," said Robbie.
"Robbie, you can't tell anyone, you'd be in danger..." said Damian.
"No, I won't say anything, I mean, who would I tell?" said Robbie, "so, where were you going last night, oh, did she send you out to, you know, ice someone?"
"Robbie, I haven't spoken to her since she left me unconscious, with a broken collar bone, at the airport. No, I was trying to track down those assholes who held up the concession stand," Damian explained.
"She, she just left you, hurt, at an airport?" asked Robbie, sympathetically.
"Leading a vast clandestine empire doesn't leave her a lot of time to kiss boo-boo's," Damian explained, he had a lot of conflicting feelings about his mother.
"Right, ok, so the guys from the robbery, what do you care about those guys anyways? You think they're gonna come back? They got their asses handed to them by the damn mascot, can you imagine what they think our football team is like?" said Robbie.
"You sound like Greyson, but I can't help it, no one gets away from me," said Damian.
"This Greyson sounds like a smart guy. Let it go, you have bigger fish to fry, like that stupid history quiz tomorrow," said Robbie.
"I know it sounds that simple to you, but it's not to me, I can't explain it, but do you think I would go climbing out windows on the third floor and knocking people out if I could just let it go?" said Damian.
"Ok, you're right, sorry. I'm probably going to regret this but, well, how can I help?" said Robbie.
"What, no, I mean, well, you know your way around Gotham City, right?"
"I've only lived here all my life," said Robbie.
"Where do the criminal classes hang out, what's the worst dive bar?" asked Damian.
"You're 14, you're not getting into a bar," said Robbie.
"Let me worry about that," Damian smirked.
"Ok, well, I guess it would have to be the Ten Bells, in the narrows," Robbie explained, "why?"
"I'll tell you tonight," said Damian, a wicked grin on his face.
After that, the boys dressed in their school uniforms and headed out to class, many of which they had together. Throughout the day, Robbie flashed Damian knowing smiles. For his part, Damian wasn't sure why he told Robbie about his mother but he was glad he did. Something about Robbie made Damian trust him, he didn't know what exactly, maybe it was just his desire to have a friend. After all, it's pretty pathetic when you're 14 and your best friend gets a monthly flea bath and ditches you for a piece of bacon.
"Ok, so what's the plan?" asked Robbie, back in their room that night.
Robbie listened patiently while Damian explained, and changed into jeans and a hoodie.
"So we're just going to walk into a bar and sit there unnoticed?" said Robbie.
"Look, do you think a place like that cares that we're underage? No," said Damian, "we're going to walk in, sit at a table and keep our heads down, if we hear anyone talking about the robbery, we'll go from there."
"It's dangerous though, we could get hurt," said Robbie.
Damian just looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Ok, I could get hurt," Robbie corrected.
"Relax, I won't let anything happen to you," said Damian, "I need you with me, I think two of us would stand out less then just one."
"Alright, I'll go," Robbie agreed, reluctantly.
Ten minutes later, Robbie was dressed like Damian, they'd used his rope to climb out the window, and were headed towards the main gate.
"How far is this place anyway?" asked Damian.
"Uh, a few miles," said Robbie.
"Well, I can run that, what about you?" said Damian.
"Hmmm, no, um, I've got my bike," Robbie offered.
After a brief stop at the bike rack, they were once again on their way.
"This sucks Damian, making me ride on the handlebars on my own bike," Robbie complained.
"Well, I'm taller, now quit moving around or I'm going to lose my balance," Damian admonished.
When they arrived at the Ten Bells, Damian and Robbie pulled their hoods over their heads and hid the bike in the alley, behind some garbage cans. The bar was packed with people, some at the bar, others at tables, some playing pool and some dancing to the crappy rock music coming from the juke box. The boys staked out a table in a back corner and to Robbie's surprise, everyone left them alone. After an hour, Robbie started to get antsy, he fidgeted with the strings on his hoodie, played with the salt shaker and had to be told to shut up three times.
"Can't we just go, this isn't getting us anywhere," said Robbie.
"A few more minutes, then we'll go," said Damian.
"Yeah but..." Robbie began.
"Shhh, listen," said Damian.
"...So then Francisco get's up and the kid in the cat costume hit him again," said a large, tattooed man with scruffy hair and a dirty moustache.
"You saw it?" asked his bald counterpart.
"Nah man, but Cardoza told me about it, I wish I could've have seen it, that's the first time they ever ran into any trouble," said scruffy.
"Damian, they're talking about the game," Robbie whispered, "kid in a cat suit, that's you in the panther."
Damian nodded then stood and walked to the table where scruffy and baldy were sitting. Damian had traveled the world with his mother, he'd been in bars before, he'd tracked targets in them as part of his training, but what he didn't understand was that even in the worst dives in America, kids were still taboo, bar's had enough problems without kids to deal with. He and Robbie had been left alone because no one had taken notice of them, that was about to change.
"Hey guys, how's it going?" asked Damian.
Scruffy and Baldy just stared at him.
"I heard you talking about the football game the other night, what a game, huh?" said Damian.
Scruffy and Baldy continued to stare at him. This was one area where Damian's training had been lacking, he was used to people telling him what he wanted to know, partly because he was a spoiled brat and partly because the people he dealt with were, usually, afraid of him. These guys had no clue who he was and didn't care to find out.
"Hey Leroy, get this kid outta here man," said Scruffy, waving the bouncer over.
"I beg your pardon?" said Damian, indignantly.
"Come on kid, time to go," said Leroy, in a deep voice, as he stood behind the boy.
Damian turned and found himself staring at Leroy's chest, the man was at least two feet taller than the boy and was built like a brick wall. Damian decided that a diplomatic approach would be best.
"I'm sorry, Leroy was it? I was just talking to my friends here, you don't mind, do you?" said Damian, pulling out his wallet and holding a fifty dollar bill out to the bouncer.
"Thanks kid," said Leroy, taking the money.
Damian turned back to Scruffy and Baldy but Leroy hooked his finger around one of Damian's belt loops and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. Leroy led the boy to the door while the patrons laughed hysterically.
"But, but I gave you fifty bucks," Damian sputtered.
"Yeah, and I took it, now get out," said Leroy, as he threw Damian out the door and into the street.
Back in the bar, the crowd had grown quiet as Leroy walked up to Robbie.
"So uh, he was my ride and all, I guess I'll just get going now," said Robbie.
"Smart move kid..." Leroy began.
Leroy was taken short when Damian walked right back in behind him, grabbed the big man by the ear and threw him through the large plate glass window.
"Holy shit DW!" shouted Robbie.
"Get behind me," said Damian. He pulled Robbie by his sweatshirt and got in front of him, just as some of Leroy's friends advanced on the boys.
The bar thugs moved slowly, Damian didn't. He struck the first man, kicking him right in the balls, then moved to the next, delivering a kick to the stomach followed by a punch to the face. The third man put his hands up and took a step back but Damian was on a roll, he jammed his fingers up the man's nose, then slammed his head down on the table, knocking him unconscious. By then, more bar scum had encircled the boys, one of them made the mistake of spinning Robbie around and grabbing him by the collar.
"Damian help," Robbie yelped.
Damian spun around, grabbed the man's wrist then shook his head, no. The man grinned and drew back his fist, but before he could punch the blond boy, Damian grabbed a broken pool cue from the nearby table and used it to fracture his radius. While he screamed in pain, Damian stashed Robbie behind the bar.
"Are you alright?" asked Damian.
"Yeah, yeah, you broke that guys arm," Robbie stuttered.
"Stay here," Damian smiled.
"You're enjoying this?" Robbie exclaimed.
Damian just giggled and leapt over the counter. It was like something from a cartoon, Damian was surrounded by a medley of bar rats, kicks and punches flew in every direction but they did more damage to themselves then to the boy. They were also reluctant to hurt a child, Damian had no such qualms and inflicted as much damage as possible. When it was over, groaning bodies were strewn all over the floor and hanging over tables. Damian held his stance and surveyed the carnage, waiting for one of them to make a move, when he heard a booming, yet familiar, voice.
"DAMIAN WAYNE!"
"Fa-uh-Batman," Damian exclaimed; when he spun around and saw his father and brother.
"What the hell are you doing?" said Batman.
"Um, I was thirsty?" Damian shrugged, "they called you out for this?"
"No, we were already out on patrol when we intercepted a 911 call on the police radio, what was it the caller said?" Batman asked Robin.
"Something about a kung fu midget starting a riot at the Bells," Robin snorted.
"Oh, uh," said Damian, nervously looking at his feet.
"Are you alone?" asked Batman.
"Well, no," said Damian, "Robbie, you can come out now."
"HA!" Robbie exclaimed, as he jumped over the bar, he'd fashioned a metal mixing bowl he'd found behind the bar, into a helmet and was ready to fight, "oh, hi."
"Both of you, outside, now!" Batman ordered.
The boys followed Robin out of the bar, Robbie buoyantly, Damian like a puppy with his tail between his legs.
"Do you have any idea what could have happened to you in there, do you know how dangerous this place is?" said Batman, shaking Damian's shoulder.
"I'm sorry, but they started it, we were just checking things out," said Damian, he couldn't admit the real reason for the visit, he knew his father would blow a gasket.
"You could have been killed, both of you," said Batman.
"For what it's worth, Mr. Batman, I think they were more scared of Damian," said Robbie.
Batman just shot him a dirty look.
"Right, sorry," said Robbie, looking down at his feet.
"Do you need a ride back to school?" said Batman.
"No, we have my bike," said Robbie.
Robin snickered and Damian blushed a deep red.
"Fine, we'll follow you then," said Batman.
Damian and Robbie mounted the bike, and the Batmobile followed them back to campus.
"This is so cool," said Robbie.
"Oh, shut up," Damian grumped.
Inside the bar, Damian's name hadn't gone unnoticed. When Scruffy pulled himself back to his feet, he reached into his pocket and extracted his cell phone.
"Hey, Francisco, it's Ritchie," said Scruffy, "guess who showed up at the Bells tonight?"
"Fuck if I know," said Francisco.
"Damian Wayne," said Ritchie.
"And I care who that is?" said Francisco, sarcastically.
"You should care, that's the kid that ruined your score the other night," said Ritchie, "you know who the kids daddy is?"
"No," said Francisco, growing annoyed.
"You tried to rob that rich kid school, Gotham Prep, a kid name Damian Wayne stops you, it's gotta be Bruce Wayne's kid," said Ritchie.
"Bruce Wayne? The King of Gotham, that Bruce Wayne?" said Francisco.
"Yeah, one in the same," said Ritchie, "get the guys together and meet me at the warehouse, I got a plan."
When they reached the main gate, Damian and Robbie hopped off the bike.
"Damian, this is the last time I want to catch you away from school like this," said Batman, "if it happens again I'll..."
"You'll what, tell my father? Spank me?" Damian pouted.
"If I have to," said Batman.
Damian turned in a huff and started up the driveway, towards school. He was annoyed, not just at being caught but that his father and brother had come to his aide. He didn't need them, he had everything under control, at least that's how he saw it. Robbie waved a happy good bye at Batman and Robin, then raced to catch up with Damian.
"So how do you know Batman?" asked Robbie.
"Shut up Robbie," Damian pouted.
The boys didn't speak again until they were back in their room, changed into their pajamas and under the covers. Damian was starting to realize that having a conscience could be an annoying thing, as he felt bad for yelling at Robbie.
"Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you, I was just annoyed," said Damian.
"It's ok," said Robbie.
"And I'm sorry about tonight, I shouldn't have made you come," Damian admitted.
"Are you kidding? This is the greatest night of my life!" Robbie exclaimed.
"Seriously?" said Damian.
"Dude, you know what I'm normally like with my video games and stuff, but tonight, I went to a bar and we, well, you, got in a fight and we got rescued by Batman and Robin, how cool is that?" Robbie ranted.
"I guess I see your point, I just think about that guy grabbing you and it makes me shudder," Damian admitted.
"That's what happens when you have friends, DW, you protect them, and by the way, I think you broke that dudes arm so we're even," said Robbie, as both boys burst into a fit of giggles.
"Do you still want to get these guys?" asked Robbie, when they'd stopped laughing.
"I'd like to but I'm not sure what else to do," Damian admitted.
"Well, we tried things your way, let's try them mine," said Robbie.
"What do you have in mind?" asked Damian.
"Nothing yet, I have to think about it, but I'll come up with something," said Robbie, "good night Damian.
"Night, Robbie."
The next day, Robbie was deep in thought. He was sure that he could use his extensive computer knowledge to help Damian narrow down the search for the two perpetrators they were looking for, he just wasn't sure how. He was in study hall when the idea hit, so he quietly packed up his things and went to share it with his roommate. He found Damian in his art class, sitting at an easel, applying paint to canvas.
"Robbie, what are you doing here, you're not in this class," Damian whispered, when his roommate walked up to him.
"I was just in study hell when I got this idea and...what the hell is that?" said Robbie, gesturing at Damian's painting.
"We're working on self-portraits," Damian explained.
"And that's you?" asked Robbie.
"Well, me, and a cat," said Damian.
Robbie snorted so loud, he had to cover his mouth.
"It looks like a potato with two heads and a tail," Robbie giggled.
"You know, there are five things in reach that I can kill you with, not to mention my bare hands," Damian grumped.
"It's a good painting, it has a real abstract quality, I bet you everyone will be painting boys and cats like that, next year," said Robbie.
"Whatever, you said you had an idea," said Damian.
Robbie sat next to Damian and ducked behind the easel so Mrs. Harris, the art teacher, wouldn't see him, then he laid out his plan.
"You can do all that with a computer?" asked Damian.
"I can do anything with a computer," Robbie smirked.
That was when Mrs. Harris took notice of Damian's visitor.
"Mr. Matthews, are you in this class?" said Mrs. Harris.
"Uh, well, no," Robbie squirmed.
"Then would you care to explain what you are doing here?"
"Um, looking for the men's room?" said Robbie, earning the laughter of the class.
"Out, Mr. Matthews."
"Right, I'll meet you back at our room after class," said Robbie.
Damian nodded and went back to his two-headed potato, with tail.
Damian was late getting back to his room, after art class he had mascot practice with the cheerleaders and discovered two things. One, he still couldn't dance to save his life and two, he'd become quite popular with the cheerleaders, thanks to his Friday night heroics. Four of the girls had baked him cookies and all of them were fawning over him, tickling him behind the ear and playing with his hair. It was very confusing for the boy, he didn't know if he was supposed to strike or purr.
The dancing was more of a problem but it was actually one of the cheerleaders who came up with an idea. It was the girl who had witnessed Damian's fight with the would-be robbers, she thought he could use his kung fu moves and maybe a little acrobatics to wow the crowd. Damian ran through some of his kung fu forms, threw in a few back flips and even Coach Hill seemed impressed. At least she hadn't yelled at him that day, which was good, Damian still felt a little intimidated by the hulking woman.
When Damian did finally get back to his room, he threw the cookies on a pile of trash and started to strip out of his sweaty gym clothes.
"What's all that?" asked Robbie.
"The cheerleaders are trying to kill me," Damian exclaimed, as he bent down to untie his shoes.
"Kill you, these are cookies," said Robbie, picking up one of the plates, "good ones too."
"Don't eat that, I threw it in the garbage," Damian replied.
"That's not garbage, that's my duffle bag," said Robbie, removing a few layers to reveal the bag beneath.
"Whatever, you can have them then," said Damian, making a disgusted face.
"Don't you ever eat junk food?" asked Robbie.
"Mommy says it's bad for you," said Damian.
"Mommy," Robbie snickered, earning a dirty look from his roomy, "right, well, I've been doing some research while you were at practice."
"Yeah, I'm excited to hear your idea," said Damian, standing there in his underwear.
"Um, don't you want to get dressed?" said Robbie, who couldn't help but stare at his friends lean and toned body.
"No, I need to go shower," said Damian.
"Ok, well, I broke into the police network and I found out that in the last six years there has been a rash of concession stand robberies all around Gotham City," Robbie explained, showing Damian a map on his computer screen.
"Any kind of pattern?" asked Damian.
"None that I can figure out, but, Gotham Prep had never been hit until last Friday, the only other school in the area that hasn't been hit is St. Mary's and guess what," said Robbie.
"I don't know, what?"
"We're playing them this Friday, and I bet that they're next on the list to get it from these guys," Robbie explained.
"Good job Robbie; that makes total sense, now all we have to do is set up surveillance and wait for them to walk into the trap," said Damian, "but wait, I'll have to be on the field."
"I thought about that already," Robbie smiled and handed Damian a pair of walkie-talkies, "I'll take one with me and watch the concession stand, we'll rig yours with a headset and you'll be able to wear it under the panther head."
"Brilliant," Damian smiled, "you spot them, I'll come take out the trash, just brilliant."
"Well, all in a day's work," Robbie smiled.
"Alright, I'm going to hit the shower then we can go down to the dining hall, you know, for food that isn't covered in chocolate or preservatives," Damian smiled.
"Whatever, I'm going to get you to try some of this stuff one day," Robbie retorted.
"Good luck," said Damian, as he shucked off his briefs and tossed them at Robbie, "There, for your collection."
"Gross, don't throw your undies at me," Robbie giggled, as Damian's briefs joined the collection of socks and underwear on his side of the room.
Damian wrapped a towel around his waist and headed down the hall to the communal shower. When Robbie was sure that Damian was gone, he picked up his briefs and sniffed them for a moment. When he realized what he was doing, he laughed at himself then threw them in Damian's hamper. When Damian came back, Robbie watched him dress and then the friends went downstairs to have dinner and talk about their plans.
Four days later, they were ready. Robbie took up a position outside the concession stand, to the casual observer, he was surrounded by junk food with his nose in his iPad. Damian wore gym shorts and a t-shirt under the panther costume, he had a walkie-talkie clipped to his waistband with a wire running up his back to the headset that hung off his ear. When Damian walked out of the locker room, he spotted Robbie and they nodded their readiness.
"Robbie to DW, radio check, over."
"Yeah, I can here you," Damian replied.
There was dead air.
"Robbie, hello?" said Damian.
Still, nothing there.
"Robbie, damn it," Damian swore.
"For someone with all of your training you would think you would know that you're supposed to say over," said Robbie.
"Well, I can hear you fine, OVER" said Damian, rolling his eyes under the panther head.
"Great, I'm in position, what should I say when I see them, over?" asked Robbie.
"I don't know, how about, Damian the robbers are here, over," said Damian.
"Nah, to conventional, I'll just call code red, ok? When you hear code red, come running, over," said Robbie.
"Fine, fine, code red, I got it, over," Damian replied.
This game was different then the last, Damian was excited at the prospect of catching the concession stand robbers but he was also excited about performing as the Gotham Prep Panther. Practice had continued to go well and though he refused to admit it, he was actually having fun. When he took his place, he saw his father and brothers in the crowd and rather then cross his arms over his chest, he waved at them enthusiastically. Damian enjoyed watching the game, though he had to continually remind Robbie to shut up, his roommate had a tendency to hum when he was board and it made the headset squeal in Damian's ear.
At halftime, Damian got up to perform with the cheerleaders and was taken by surprise when the St. Mary's Tiger, crossed the field and gave him a playful shove. Damian didn't really understand the concept of playful violence so he engaged the Tiger as though it was his mortal enemy. Fortunately, for the Tiger, Damian's kicks and punches had little effect, thanks to the padding the two of them wore, but the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
While Damian was sparring with the Tiger, Robbie got up to use the restroom. He'd been drinking Mountain Dew for the entire first half but only left his post when he realized he was doing the pee-pee dance. Robbie relieved himself and felt much better, until he came out of the restroom and spotted the robber's he'd been waiting for, holding up the concession stand. His hand dove for his jacket pocket and he started screaming into the radio as soon as he pulled it free.
"Damian, code red, code red, hurry!"
"What?" said Damian, just as the Tiger knocked him on his plush butt.
"They're here!" Robbie shouted.
"I'm on my way," said Damian, as he ditched the Tiger and started to shed the panther costume.
Damian knew that he couldn't afford to have the same problem he'd had last Friday, the panther gloves and feet were the first to go, followed by the head. By the time he reached the concession stand, he was in his shorts and t-shirt, struggling to kick the rest of the costume off his feet. He saw the two ski-masked gunmen and they saw him.
"Shit man, it's that kid again, let's go," said the first gunman.
The two thieves ran for the main gate. Damian finally shed the last of his costume and chased after them. Damian was fast but they had a head start, he felt his legs pumping as fast as they could then he noticed something behind him.
"What are you doing?" Damian panted.
"Helping you," Robbie wheezed.
"You're not trained for this," said Damian.
"Can't, can't let you go it alone," said Robbie.
"Alright, stand up straight and breath or you'll pass out, and when I catch these guys, find something solid and hide behind it," said Damian.
The boys saw the gunmen run down an alley up ahead. Damian turned with Robbie on his heels but came up short when there was nothing there but trash cans and garbage.
"W-where did they go?" asked Robbie.
"I don't know," said Damian, cautiously looking around the alley.
Damian never knew what hit him, something struck him on the back of the head and he fell to his knees. His head was swimming, he couldn't focus, it was like being underwater. Robbie dropped down next to his friend and tried to help him but Damian saw a fuzzy image grab him and throw him into the back of a van. Damian tried to stand but fell on his face, he felt someone pick him up and throw him into the van next to Robbie, then everything went black. When he woke up, he felt himself sitting in a chair, his hands and feet bound to the arms and legs, he sensed Robbie was in the chair behind him, similarly bound.
"Robbie?" Damian called out.
"I'm here."
"Where are we?" asked Damian.
"I'm not sure, I think it's an abandoned warehouse," Robbie whispered.
"What happened?" asked Damian, he had a splitting headache.
"They were waiting for us, one of them jumped on you from the fire escape, next thing I knew we were in the back of that van and then they were tying us to these chairs, are you ok?" said Robbie.
"I've been better, look, don't be scared, we're going to be ok," said Damian.
"I can't help it," Robbie whimpered.
"Trust me, it's going to be alright," said Damian.
Damian had wanted to do this on his own. He wanted to bring the robbers to justice, to show his father that he was strong and capable and that he could control his urges, but he hadn't counted on this situation. He'd never expected there to be a chase, or for the roles of hunter and hunted to be flipped on their heads, and he'd never expected Robbie to be here. He was responsible for Robbie, he couldn't let anything happen to his friend and so, Damian put aside his competitive nature and pressed one of the buttons on his watch, against the frame of the chair.
"How can you be so sure?" asked Robbie, his voice trembling.
Damian smiled in the darkness, remembering the morning he moved into his dorm, remembered his father sitting on his bed that morning, just before breakfast.
"Damian, I want you to take this with you," said Bruce.
"What is it?" asked Damian, taking the box in his hand.
"Open it and see," said Bruce.
Damian opened the box and pulled out a rather nice sports watch. It had an analog display, not some digital piece of junk, it had a steel face with a black resin band, a stop watch feature and it was waterproof to 330 feet.
"Thanks, it's nice," said Damian, unsure of the significance of the gift.
"I know you like to run and swim and I thought the watch would be useful if you went out for track or the swim team," said Bruce.
"Thank you father, I really like it, it was very thoughtful," Damian replied.
"There is also one other feature," said Bruce, "if you're ever in danger, if you ever need me, just press this button and I'll find you."
"GPS tracker?" asked Damian.
"Yes but only for emergencies, I'm going to trust you, I'm not going to track your every move, but we got lucky with the Sensei and we can't always rely on luck, you understand?" said Bruce.
"I get it, and thanks, I'm glad you want to keep me," Damian smiled.
"Just trust me, we'll be ok," said Damian, as his memory faded, "and stop squirming."
"Now what are you doing?" asked Robbie.
"Mommy used to tie me up like this..." Damian began.
"Seriously?" Robbie interrupted.
"In anticipation of situations like this, so I'd be able to get out of them," Damian explained.
"Dude, your family..." Robbie started.
"Yeah, I know," Damian agreed, "We're not exactly an episode of Modern Family."
"Shhh, someone's coming," said Robbie.
Damian heard it too, footsteps coming towards them, then the squeak of an old door and finally, four men in ski masks filed into the room.
"Welcome Mr. Wayne," said the man in the black mask.
"Who are you and how do you know my name?" said Damian.
"Who we are isn't important, as for how we know your name, the next time you go sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, tell your big friend not to use your name when he comes to get you," said the man in the black mask.
"What are you talking about?" said Robbie.
"The night at the Ten Bells, Batman called me by name," said Damian.
"That's right," said the man in the black mask, "we don't take kindly to brats getting in the way of our work, then coming to our bar and stirring up trouble."
"Look, let Robbie go and I'll do whatever you want," said Damian.
"Damian, no way," said Robbie.
"That's sweet of you," the man in black mocked, "but we know who you are, and we need your little friend here to keep you in line until your daddy pays up."
"What does my father have to do with any of this?" Damian demanded.
"What do you think we are, stupid?" said the man in the green mask, speaking for the first time.
"You're Bruce Wayne's little boy, if he ever wants to see you again, he'll pay up or we'll ship you home in pieces," said the man in black.
"Oh I'm so scared," said Damian, rolling his eyes.
"You should be," said the main in black, as he waved a knife in front of Damian's face.
"Please, I've seen sharper pencils," said Damian.
"Yeah, what about your friend?" said the man in black, showing the knife to Robbie.
"Please, just please, don't hurt us," Robbie whimpered.
"Leave him alone," Damian ordered, as he strained against his bonds.
"Ohhh check it out, little rich boy don't like it when you mess with his buddy, do you rich boy?" said the man in green, sticking his face right in front of Damian's.
Damian leaned back then head butted the man in green, he was rewarded with a crack and knew that if it wasn't broken, his nose was at least fractured.
"OH FUCK, HE BROKE MY FUCKIN NOSE!" shouted the man in green, while he writhed on the floor, blood gushing from his nostrils.
"That's enough god damn it, I warned you to stay away from that kid, you forget what he did to us at the ball game last week?" said the man in black.
The man in the blue mask and the man in the red mask, helped the man in green get to his feet and clean up his face. The man in black turned his attention back to Damian.
"That was cute, real cute, but you do that again and I'll take this knife and cut your buddies nose off, got it?"
"Yeah, I got it, I told you, just leave my friend alone and I'll cooperate," said Damian.
"Good boy, let's start with your phone number, I'm gonna give your daddy our demands and we can wrap this up nice and civil like," said the man in black.
While the man in black was talking, Damian saw a shadow move through the skylight above. Help was almost there, he just had to stall a minute longer.
"I can give you the number but no one's home, they were all at the game," said Damian.
"Gimme his cell phone number then," the man in black demanded.
"Doesn't carry one," Damian grinned.
"You tellin me that Bruce Wayne don't have a cell, he makes them for Christ sake," said the man in black.
"He's terribly old fashioned, what can I tell you?" said Damian.
"Alright kid, you're starting to piss me off, how do I get a hold of your old man?"
"You could always wait for him to drop in," said Damian.
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
Just as quickly as the words left his mouth, Batman and Robin came crashing through the skylight on a zip line. The man in black turned just as Batman rammed his fist into the center of his face. The men in the blue and red masks charged at Robin who dispatched them with a roundhouse kick that caught them both across the jaw. The man in green didn't even bother to get up, he was still nursing his broken nose, he knew he was no match for Batman and Robin and didn't want to make his injuries worse.
The man in black stumbled over the boys when Batman hit him, thinking he was down for the count, Batman moved in to untie Damian. When Batman and Damian turned their attention to Robbie, they found the man in black holding the blond boy, a knife at his throat.
"Back off, back off!" shouted the man in black, "you back the fuck off or I'm gonna cut this brat."
"You take your hands off of him!" Damian shouted.
"Damian, get back," said Batman, pulling the boy behind him and holding his hands up, "just don't hurt the boy."
"I wanna get outta here," shouted the man in Black, "I'm taking him with me."
"Please don't let him," Robbie cried.
"I'm sorry buddy, I'll let you leave but you're not taking that boy," said Batman.
"The fuck I'm not, the minute I let him go you're gonna jump me," said the man in black.
"We won't, I give you my word," said Batman.
"You think I'm stupid or something?" the man in black challenged, his knife making a small cut into Robbie's skin.
"Oh screw this," said Damian.
With lightening quick reflexes, Damian whipped out the butterfly knife he had tucked into the waistband of his shorts and couldn't reach before. He flicked the knife open and threw it at the man in black, the razor sharp blade cutting through his sky mask and shearing off half his earlobe.
"AAAAAWWWWW FUCK," screamed the man in black, as he released Robbie and grabbed for what was left of his ear.
Batman grabbed Robbie and pushed him towards Damian, Damian held onto his friend while Batman grabbed the knife from the man in black. The man in black was too concerned with his ear to put up a fight and soon joined his buddies sprawled on the floor. While Robin bound the men with zip-ties, Batman turned his attention to the boys.
"Are you ok?" asked Batman.
"I'm fine, Robbie?" said Damian.
"Y-yeah I'm ok now," he spluttered, trying to dry his eyes and get his composure back.
"What the hell were you doing?" Batman demanded, "I thought I told you not to leave school again?"
"It wasn't like that, they were there to rob the concession stand again but it was a trap, someone used my real name at the bar and they were going to hold me and Robbie for ransom," Damian explained.
"Hold that thought, who are these guys?" said Batman, turning to Robin who was searching their wallets.
"We've got Paul Francisco, Rudy Cardoza, Richard Long and Bob Howard," said Robin, "I checked the van, got a bag of cash from the St. Mary's concession stand."
"See?" said Damian, "so do we kill them now or what?"
"No, we don't kill them," said Batman, "We've got them tied up, we'll call the police and tell them where they can pick them up."
"Fine," said Damian with a roll of his eyes.
"Outside, let's go," said Batman, as he and Robin led the boys to safety.
"Hey that's not the Batmobile," said Robbie, gesturing at the black BMW four door, parked outside the warehouse.
"It uh, it's..." Robin stumbled.
"It's in the shop," said Batman.
"Right, cause you'd take a car like that to the dealer for a tune up," Robbie scoffed, "come on Mr. Wayne, you have to do better than that or someone's going to figure you out."
"Wait, what did you just call him?" asked Robin.
"Oops," said Robbie.
"Damian, what did you tell him?" Batman demanded.
"Nothing, honest, Robbie, what are you talking about?"
"Come on, it all makes sense," said Robbie, "after what you told me about your mom, I got to thinking, how would Bruce Wayne know a woman like that, then I thought about how they rescued us from that bar, how would you know Batman?"
"That's pretty thin," said Damian, "I could have given you any number of reasons."
"True, but then there's also your watch, it's got a GPS tracker right?" said Robbie.
"How did you know that?" asked Damian.
"You asked me to hand it to you once, I noticed it was kind of heavy and that there were some buttons that didn't belong, so I checked it out later," Robbie explained.
"God you're nosey," said Damian.
"Yeah well, I could only come up with one reason as to why an analog watch would have a digital circuit with a Wayne Enterprises logo on it; you know my dad designed that right?" Robbie smiled.
"See, it wasn't my fault?" said Damian.
Batman rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Robbie.
"Robbie, you understand that you can't share this information with anyone, it would be very dangerous for our family if anyone found out," said Batman.
"It's cool, I'll keep my mouth shut, you just saved our lives, I'd be kind of a dick if I ratted you out," said Robbie, "besides, who am I going to tell?"
"That's true, he's about as popular at school as I am," said Damian.
"As for you young man," said Batman, turning to Damian, "look at all the trouble you've caused, what am I going to do with you?"
"I'm sorry," Damian pouted, looking at his feet.
"You said if he did anything like this again, you'd spank him," Robin smirked.
"I did, didn't I?" Batman grinned.
"But you wouldn't, right?" said Damian.
"Come here Damian, I think it's time we had a little chat," said Batman as he advanced on the boy.
"But, but, I don't wanna come there," Damian whined.
"Gotcha," said Batman, as he pounced and grabbed Damian by the waist.
He hoisted the boy onto his lap and bent him over his knee.
"Father, don't, let me go," said Damian, as he struggled.
"Sorry son, you've been a very bad boy," said Batman, as he swatted Damian on the butt.
"Hey, that hurt," Damian exclaimed.
"Trust me, it hurts me more then it hurts you," said Batman, delivering another swat.
Robbie and Robin howled with laughter as Damian took his spanking. Damian's pride was hurt more than anything, and when Batman let him up, he stood there, red in the face, rubbing his butt.
"That wasn't funny," Damian whined, causing more laughter from his brother and his friend.
"Just try and be a good boy, please?" Batman pleaded, then hugged Damian.
"Ok, I'll try," Damian sighed.
"Good, let's get going," said Batman.
"Your dad spanked you," Robbie giggled, as they climbed into the back seat.
"Robbie, I swear to god, if you tell anyone..." Damian began.
"Hey, you said it yourself, who would I tell?" Robbie retorted.
That night, The Wayne's dropped Robbie off at home. He'd been planning to go home after the game that night, but after everything he'd been through, he was doubly glad for that decision. Damian couldn't help but feel a small twinge of jealousy as he watched Robbie's dad hug him in greeting. When they dropped Robbie off, Robin called the police from his cell phone and told them where they could pick up the robbers, the evidence they left in the van would be more than enough to convict them for their string of crimes.
The weekend passed quickly and before he knew it, Damian found himself in bed on Sunday night, with nothing but the next day of school to worry about. It was after midnight when Damian woke and saw a light in the sky.
"Robbie, hey Robbie, wake up," said Damian.
"What is it?" Robbie yawned.
"Look," said Damian, pointing out the window.
"It's the Bat Signal, so?" said Robbie.
"Yeah," said Damian, "father and Drake are going out to protect Gotham."
"Yeah, that's cool and all but I've got that math test in the morning," said Robbie.
"Robbie, just listen for a sec, I've been thinking about something," said Damian.
"Ok, ok, what is it?" said Robbie, sitting up in bed.
"Well, it's the Bat Signal, right now my father and brother are standing in harms way to protect Gotham City. Out there it's their time, but in here, it's just us, who is going to protect the school?"
"Protect the school from what?" said Robbie.
"I don't know, I mean we took down those robbers, who knows what else might happen? I'm just saying, we make a good team, what would you say to being partners?" said Damian.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm in," Robbie smiled in the darkness.
"Shake on it?" said Damian, extending his hand.
"You got it, partner," Robbie smiled and shook his hand.
"Of course, you know we're going to need code names, right? Something that strikes fear into the hearts of our enemies," said Robbie.
"Right, how about I'll be me and you, I don't know, you can be Gadget Boy," said Damian.
"There is no way I am fighting crime as Gadget Boy," Robbie scoffed.
"Yeah, we'll have to work on that one," Damian smiled.
They two friends bantered back and forth for a few more minutes, but their partnership was set, Damian Wayne and Robbie Mathews would be the dark protectors of Gotham Prep.