Archive of Our Own ^beta

Hal’s hands were sweaty, his eyes darting from side to side, carefully scanning every shadow. He wanted to be in Gotham as much as Batman wanted him to be here, which was not at all. He cursed his boss under his breath every time he was startled by something moving in the shadows, even though it was just stray cats and the usual chubby, city raccoon or pigeon. Hal did note that despite Gotham being Gotham all the strays and other animals he spotted were healthy and well fed considering their homelessness. Even in Metropolis the strays didn’t look this healthy, somebody definitely took care of them.

He had been chosen to give a lecture on flight safety at Gotham Airport to a group of rookie pilots. He tried to get around it but he couldn’t and so he went there as early in the morning as he could, hoping that Batman and his children had gone to bed for the time being as they were Nocturnal vigilantes. They had to sleep at some point, right ?

They had to have some kind of sleep schedule, right ? Was Red Robin, and his habit of crashing in the weirdest spots, the exception or the rule ? Hal still wasn’t sure if the Bats were human or not. His bet was on not.

Hal wasn’t planning on staying within city limits long enough to find out though. He was planning to just grab a cup of coffee to replenish his energy for the flight back. His gaze was still nervously scanning his surroundings but he let himself relax just a little bit as he finally reached the coffee shop his phone’s navigation had let him to. The heavenly smell of coffee entered his nose and he let his eyes close for longer than a millisecond.

The shop looked friendly and warm, especially as it was in one of Gotham’s worse neighborhoods. Hal remembered it being called the Narrows. He distinctly recalls reading about staying as far away from this part and another in a tour guide for Gotham he had flipped through at the airport. The 'flyer' that almost rivaled a bible in thickness was more a survival guide than anything else. Instead of showing of the City's must-visit-spots it detailed the direct opposite. A long list of places to avoid and an even longer list of things and people to do the same. There had been ten whole pages on Joker and they basically summed up to: Pray and Run when you see him.

Not even an if you see him just a when. Hal still remembered the cold chill he had felt run down his back despite being a Superhero. He really didn't know how Batman does it. Or how the man can let his children fight people like this. Then again they were Gothamites. Everybody agrees that Gothamites were simply a different species of human.

Hal shook of his thoughts as he stepped through the doors into the cafe. There were a handful of people in the shop. Two people chatting calmly at a booth close to the counter, an older woman tucked into one of the booths in the far corner, reading a very thick book. Most notably though, in the booth closest to the door, two teens were seated. A blond girl, dressed in a fuzzy, purple pullover and a black haired boy, dressed in a black Wayne Enterprises hoodie. The boy was wrestling with the girl over the table for a coffee cup. A feeling of familiarity overcame Hal but he pointedly ignored it. Not wanting to be weird Hal moved to the counter to order, he still caught snippets of their conversation as the shop was quiet beside the low hum of music from a small speaker.

''You, sir, had enough caffeine to kill three elephants. No more, I'm cutting you off !''

''Come on !'', the boy pleaded, Hal could imagine the puppy dog eyes, ''I am tired ! I need that coffee or I'll die !'', the boy almost wailed.

Hal ordered a black coffee, the Barista looked him up and down pointedly and he caved and ordered a Caramel Macchiato instead.

''If you're tired you should sleep ! When was the last time you slept more than an hour ?'', the girl asked the boy pointedly, her eyes probably narrowed in judgement.

There was a beat of silence until the teen answered, almost too quiet for even Hal to hear, ''Tuesday,'', as an after thought the boy added an, ''I think.''

Hal couldn't help himself, he pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers.

''IT'S SATURDAY TIMOTHY!'' The blond exclaimed. No one in the small shop blamed her for her outburst. How was that kid still sitting upright, never mind talking and fighting for a coffee cup. ''I'm gonna call B, no even better I'll call Dick.'', She stated in a firm tone that left no room for protest.

''Do not call Dick! I'll go to sleep before I have to endure his mother-henning.''

Coffee in hand now, Hal gave the girl a sympathetic look as he left.

Leave it to Gotham to live up to it's reputation even in daylight, Hal had walked not even 300 feet before he had been dragged into an alley to be robbed. What did he expect ? This godless place didn't earn the title as city with the highest crime rate by holding tea parties and polite conversations.

Hal was slammed into the alleys brick wall, his coffee falling to the floor and spilling everywhere. Hal gave the golden liquid a sad look before his attention was drawn to the broad man in front of him. The man barked some slurred, heavily accented threats into his face that Hal could not understand in the slightest. The smell of alcohol thick in Hal's nose.

He was just about to figure out a way to get out of the situation without his ring when the meat mountain of a man in front of him suddenly fell to the ground unconscious, his threats cut off with a pained grunt.

As the wall of flesh made contact with the concrete floor, Hal was able to see bright yellow before him. A person clad in a bright yellow suit. And as expected, the lantern immediately clocks the big, white Bat insignia on the guys chest. The kid's chest.

Hal put his face in his hands, another Batbrat, was all he could think of.

''Another Bat... '' was the first thing he muttered, luckily he was able to swallow back the 'brat' part.

''You know, normally one would say thank you, but I guess 'You're welcome' Lantern.''

''Sorry, it's just that you mini Bats keep popping up. Seems like there is a new one of you every few weeks and it won't stop happening.''

The yellow Bat barked out a laugh at that. ''Honestly, yeah. Sometimes even I'm not sure how many siblings I have now.'', the, now that Hal looks closer, very well armored, yellow Bat is a breath of fresh air compared to the other Gotham vigilantes the green hero has met so far. Hal is pretty sure it's the first time he's heard one of them laugh so whole heartedly. This yellow Batling was already his favorite.

''So, may I know your name or do I have to wait for Spooky to introduce you to me ?'', Hal joked while extending his hand for a greeting.

''Spooky, ha that's a good one. But nah, I know my own name,'' the teen, because of course it's another teen vigilante, shook Hal's hand with a wide grin, ''They call me The Signal, Gotham's one and only day-shifter.'' Signal gave Hal a friendly two-finger salute.

Hal let out a low, impressed whistle, ''Thought crime went to sleep with the moon in Gotham but guess not.'' He sent a glance down to the guy that had tried to rob him just a few minutes ago. To his surprise, the man had woken up but he was just lying there, defeated. He didn't even struggle as Signal pulled out a pair of hand cuffs and cuffed him up, doing so with practiced ease. He then propped the man up against the alley wall and motioned for Hal to follow him as he grappled away.

Hal checked that the man wasn't looking in his direction as he slid on his ring and followed the newest Batling. He decidedly ignored the small sob he could hear from the man that had tried to rob him. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes, Hal speaks from experience on that one. The last time he came across one of spooky's children was still burned in his mind. He was glad he didn't run into the red helmeted man but instead ran into his yellow helmeted brother.

----------------

After following The Signal for a few minutes, they stopped on a rooftop at the edge of Gotham.

''So, what brought you into Gotham today ?'', Signal asked, his tone nonchalant, a smile on his face but a threat still as clear as day in his body language. It promptly reminded Hal that Signal too is a Bat. A Gotham vigilante and not someone that wants him strolling through his territory. For a brief second the Lantern wondered if paranoia and territoriality were genetic.

Hal was startled from his thoughts by the Sunlight-Bat pulling his stick weapons out behind his back. ''I'll repeat myself, what are you doing in Gotham ? I would really like to avoid a fight with someone on the same side as me but you know about B's rule. No outsider metas in Gotham, unless he approved it.''

The last statement confused Hal, he tilted his head to emphasize this, he put his hands up in a surrendering motion as he spoke, ''I was just here because of my Day job, was actually on the way back before I got pulled into an alley and almost robbed, thanks for the safe by the way.

''But what do you mean with no outsider metas in Gotham, first I've heard that word in that sentence.''

All he got was a mischievous grin from the teen. ''OK, great.'' Hal sighed. ''So you're not going to tell me, this does support my theory that y'all aren't human.''

That earned the Lantern another loud bark of laughter out of the teen. ''Most of us actually are human.'' And wow Hal had never heard a more vague and concerning statement before.

''Anyway if you're gonna leave right now I don't think I'll have tell Batman about you being here, though he'll know anyway. There are eyes everywhere in Gotham,'' Signal motioned to a close by CCTV camera that then moved from side to side as if to wave to Hal. ''Oracle sees everything.'' Another insanely vague statement.

Signal put away his weapons and gave Hal a friendly smile, ''Next time you need to enter the city for some reason, just send a message to the Batcave first. Then one of us can help you out. That goes for the whole original JL, You're B's friends after all.''

''If I'm that grumpy grumps friend he doesn't show it.'', Hal's gaze flicked to the side, he smiled a little pained as he said it.

''He's just emotionally constipated as fuck. If you weren't his friend you would never know any of us Bat-children existed.'' Hal looked at Signal and the teen gave him a warm smile as their eyes met.

''Now I do have to ask you to leave before B arrives because I know he will in about two minutes.''

'How do you- ?''; Hal started but he was cut off by Signal throwing a smoke bomb at the floor and promptly disappearing with it. Hal decided to take the warning he was given and he quickly left Gotham City.

---------------

The next time he saw his favorite Bat, was a week later as Batman introduced him to the JL officially, even though Hal's story had already spread like wild fire between the members. A friendly, seemingly emotionally available Bat was something brand new to everyone.

But everyone was quickly reminded that a Bat was still a Bat even with a seemingly genuine smile on their face. Hal had asked for a simple light spar after working out a little in the Watchtower's Gym, he had been interested in fighting one of the Batlings and this was the perfect opportunity.

But Hal forgot to account that the definition of a 'light spar' was very different for a Bat. And so Signal's friendly smile turned into a proper Batglare™ that like always translated perfectly despite the yellow domino mask the teen was wearing with his work out clothes. The switch in demeanor threw the Lantern off enough that Signal wiped the floor with him within seconds. At least he tells himself that it was because he was distracted.

''Like father, like son.'', He reminded himself quietly.

Shazam, Green Lantern and Flash were chatting comfortably in the common room. They had come back from a mission an hour ago and had decided to skip the debrief and eat dinner together instead. They had grabbed a heap of food from Big Belly Burger on their way back and were now eating, glad that Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman were all off world so nobody would mind them doing as they pleased for now.

Hal was eyeing Flash suspiciously as his fries had yet again depleted faster than they should. It was his second pack of fries but all together he had only eaten barely a handful of the greasy potato goodness. Barry just gave him a confused look that said 'What did I do now?'. Hal just shook his head, ''Stop stealing my fries, man.''

''Sorry Glowstick, it's just so easy.'', Hal jumped up from the couch, startled by Red Robin's amused voice right next to him. Barry and Shazam were in the same boat as they too were unaware of the Bats presence.

''SHIT ! FUCK ! Whyyy do you guys always have do this ??'', Barry whined from the other side of the room, which he had found himself in before he even realized why he had been startled.

The teen vigilante simply laughed at the heroes' grievance and continued working on his priced treasure, his laptop. Sprawled out in a position Hal was sure couldn’t be comfortable for anyone with bones.

''Fuck you.'', Hal plainly stated as Flash sat back down, Shazam let out a surprised laugh that quickly turned into amused giggles as Red Robin simply flipped Hal off in response. Hal scowled at the captain while sitting back down, now aware of the Bat next to him. He leaned forward to grab one of his burgers but was yet again interrupted. By yet another Bat.

The other Red Bat, Red Hood came half crashing into the room as he abruptly slid to a stop from his full sprint. He immediately zeroed in on his brother. His words carried an alarming sense of urgency with them,

''Replacement ! The baby bird got himself kidnapped.''

Hal took in a sharp breath and jumped to his feet, Barry and Shazam following suit. They were all very alarmed by the man's words and very confused by Red Robin's reaction to a baby having been kidnapped. His reaction being basically nonexistent as he kept typing on his computer and just raised one eyebrow as he spoke, ''He'll probably be fine. Why'd you come here, Cass is home right ?''

''He still has a broken leg, Cass is out with a friend and-'' Hood seemed to steel himself for his next words, ''N got wind of it.''

Red Robin froze. He slowly raised his eyes to meet Hood’s, pure terror on his face. Hal felt his blood go cold at seeing a Bat look afraid. ''Who is N ? Is he one of your villains ?'', he found himself asking.

His question earned him a snort from Hood and Red alike. ''He's about to be if we don't stop him.'', Hood seemed to turn his words over in his mind, ''Help him, there is no way we can stop Dickwing. His baby bird ‘s in ''danger'' after all.''

''True that.'', Red said as he jumped over the couch, laptop swiftly disappearing somewhere. He exited the room quickly, returning after just a heartbeat in his suit. Hal realized that this was the first time he had seen the teen in something other than sweat pants and t-shirts. He noted that the air around the teen Bat was just as intense as Batman's usually was before a very serious mission. The energy was mirrored by Hood. Hal and Barry shared a concerned look, ''We'll come too.'', he said with determination.

Determination that quickly died at the twin Batglares™ he received. “We could be useful ?”, Barry hesitantly added, though it was more of a question. Hal could feel the scrutinizing look they received from Red Hood even through the helmet. It lasted for a little longer than comfortable, not that it was comfortable for even a second, then Red Hood turned to look at his brother, then to Hal’s shock the ex crime lord started to chirp. Hal had to do a double take as he couldn’t believe his ears. It was possibly the most terrifying chirping the lantern had ever heard. Red Robin answered with a few bone chilling chirps of his own and Hal realized that they were talking with one another.

An image of Batman being taught bird langue by a small sparrow, though the caped crusader probably preferred ravens or bats.

“Fine.”, Hood drawled after a moment, “You can come with, but and I want you to actually listen to me, don’t do shit unless either one of us tells you to.” The young vigilante’s words left no room for compromises. “If I say jump, you say ?”, Hood asked them in a tone that brought Hal instantly back to his military days.

“How high ?”, Barry tried but just received a scoff from Red Robin.

“You don’t say shit, you move.”, Hood drawled in a warning tone. A shudder ran down Hal’s back. Who ever this N was, they were definitely not to be taken lightly. With a glance to the side Hal knew that Barry was about to faze through the floor with how much he was shaking. He gently placed a grounding hand on the speedster’s shoulder.

“Since that’s out of the way, let’s get moving.“, Red Robin stated with a tone a teen shouldn’t be allowed to use. He took a step forward before turning around with a confused look. “You not coming Captain ?”

Captain Marvel had silently floated to the common room’s exit. Hal hadn’t noticed but the man looked terrified, though he tried to hide it. “I- I don’t wanna get in your way, this seems pretty high stakes and I really should go and sleep and you know, all of us would probably be overkill and-“

“It’s fine cap,” Hood cut of the heroes rambling. Said hero quickly left before the Bat could change his mind. Everyone stood still for a moment as they tried to process Shazam’s unusual reaction. Hal guessed that the man might’ve just used up most of his energy already and didn’t want to embarrass himself in front of the Batbrats. As Hal and Barry followed close behind the Bats towards the Zeta he felt a brooding regret in the back of his mind at choosing to volunteer his help.

——————————

Hal felt very validated in his feelings of regret as the harsh, potentially (read: definitely) acidic rain of Gotham stabbed him with what felt like a million needles. Hal was pretty sure that 1) acid rain shouldn’t actually hurt and 2) Gotham’s acid rain was definitely not something he ever wanted to come in contact with ever again.

With a glance to the side he felt again validated, this time by Barry’s pained expression and narrowed eyes. The speedster was suffering just as much as he was. The two Bats though seemed completely unaffected. Hal yet again realized that Gothamites were a different breed of human. They just had to be.

He would’ve chalked it up to them being Bats but the few people that were outside, that Hal spotted as they ran across rooftops, were just as unbothered. Most of them weren’t even carrying an umbrella and had at most a hat or hood to ward off the rain. Hal shook his head in disbelief, he then almost got a bit too up close and personal with the floor as the two Reds came to an abrupt stop at the ledge of a warehouse’s rooftop.

Hal and Barry shared a glance before approaching the ledge as well. Hal then followed the gaze of the two young vigilantes and landed on a silhouette, crouching on the ledge of a rooftop a few roofs away. He held his breath as Hood motioned for the person to come over.

Said person stood up and just stared at them for a moment, Hal felt a shiver run down his spine and the urge to flee as if he was a pray animal that had been cornered. Red Robin just rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as the Person did an elaborate flip of the ledge and promptly disappeared.

With a screech from Barry they then reappeared behind them. Hal briefly wondered if he had ever heard of a hero or villain with the ability to teleport but his thoughts were cut short as Hood spoke, “Dickwing, you know why we’re here.”

Dickwing- or whatever his actual name was because Hal really hoped that it wasn’t that, answered Hood with a tone that could cut diamonds, “I know why you came, but why are they here ?” With the last words the man, clad from his neck down in black only interrupted by a blue bird insignia, gestured towards Hal and Barry. His gaze felt cold even through the dark blue domino mask he was wearing. This skill coupled with the black hair and air of familiarity between the Bats and the newcomer made something click in Hal’s mind. “No…”, he muttered under his breath and instantly all eyes were on him.

“No, what ?”, Hood drawled.

It then seemed to clicked for Barry too as he answered for Hal, “You’re one too.” Barry shook his head in disbelief.

“I’m a what ?”, asked the man in question, his tone unamused.

“Another Bat.”, Hal simply stated. A heartbeat and then both Red Robin and Red Hood barked in laughter. The newest discovered Bat, tried to keep his stoic expression but he too started to laugh at Hal’s and Barry’s incredulous expressions.

“I’m indeed another Bat. Name is Nightwing, but you should know that.” Nightwing paused before turning to the other two Bats, “Unless… he didn’t tell them, did he ?” His voice was icy and disappointed.

“Nope, we’ve been having fun just turning up out of nowhere and introducing ourselves that way. It’s been a wild few weeks.”, Red Robin explained while grinning a shit eating grin.

“B can be glad that I’ve been busy with the Titans the past few weeks then.” That statement made Hal pause. He knew about the Titans. But he had never heard of a Nightwing being part of them. And he said just that out loud without meaning too.

“A member? Honey I founded the Titans. I’m their Batman, though I’m much better than B. Way less emotionally constipated.”, Nightwing grinned cockily as he swung an arm around Hal’s shoulder.

“Now to much more important matters ! If we wait any second longer I promise you guys I will give in to my true nature and I’d rather not explain to Gordon why half of Gotham’s underworld has spontaneously cancelled their subscription to life.”, Nightwing might’ve smiled while saying those words and one could’ve mistaken his words as a joke but it was clear to Hal that he was completely serious by the way Hood and Red Robin quickly shifted to be combat ready. Hal decided that it would be best to put any questions on hold and with a look to Barry his friend seemed to agree.

There was no signal, or maybe the lantern just missed it, the three Bats just promptly dove of the roof together and with three quiet thwips, Hal recognized as grappling guns, swung towards a set destination. Barry and Hal scrambled to follow them and just barely made it in time to see the start of the fight. Or more like the non lethal carnage that the Bats left behind as they moved through the Warehouse. They had simply exploded right through the front doors.

The two non-Gotham heroes could only knock out a handful of leftover goons that had been lucky enough to escape the Bats and the few that had surrendered. Hal mused if health insurance was part of the standard Gotham-Goon-Contract as he watched the gruesome beat down happening before him. He watched as the Bats seamlessly danced around one another as they gifted bruises and broken bones to the way too brave goons. He watched as Red Robin and Nightwing seamlessly switched weapons, the bo-staff turning into escrima sticks and the sticks turning into a staff. They vaulted over one another and one could think they could actually fly. Hal was captivated by the ease with which Hood fired his guns (with rubber bullets of course) hitting knee caps and head shots with scary precision even without looking, all while avoiding landing any friendly fire.

Hal stood there stunned with Barry. Batman was already a force to be reckoned with but Hal was sure that if the Batlings wanted too they could easily take down any of the leaguers. They were, in simple words, absolutely terrifying. Especially the way they had existed for years even outside of Gotham with no one in the league knowing, besides the dark knight of course. Hal remembers Signal’s words, if he wasn’t Batman’s friend he wouldn’t know about any of them, Hal was glad to be in the know now. He was even more glad that they were on his side and not his enemies. He was not confident he could win. Not when their together, not with the way they fight as if they’re one. And Hal was sure they weren’t even giving 100% as the goons didn’t seem to belong to any of their big rogues.

Hal watched one body hit the floor after another in the brutal but non-lethal massacre. He couldn’t look away.

And then Hal saw him. A child. Tied to a chair with an expression that couldn’t be more annoyed and bored. Then their eyes met and Hal felt his heart skip a beat. 1) He was pretty sure the child was plotting his murder right then and there and 2) Hood’s words rung through his head ‘baby bird’, that must be said ‘baby’ bird. The kid was dressed in a bright suit, reminiscent of a traffic light, eyes covered by the expected domino mask, this time in dark green and the usual black hair. Hal was stunned, that child was maybe 10, 12 at best. How did they allow such a small human to run around in Gotham of all places. A child with a broken leg no less. Made very clear by the , of course, black cast around the kid’s limb. The lantern wondered how Batman could allow such a thing to happen but his thoughts promptly stopped as he felt the Batglare™ x 4 on him.

He had never felt more in danger as in that moment, he was infinitely glad that they dropped it shortly in favor of untying the child. Or rather, Hal corrected himself, in favor of stopping the kid from killing Hal. True to what Hal expected from even a baby bat, he had already freed himself. Red Robin had a stern hand on the small boys shoulder and Nightwing had wrapped his whole body around the child's small frame in an octopus hug.

“Tsk, Why are they here ?” The traffic-light-child hissed and Hal found himself asking the same question, in the end they hadn’t been needed at all.

“Honestly,” Red Robin said while keeping his hand firmly on the scowling kid's shoulder, “Thought it might be a good opportunity to introduce the rest of the family, at least the rest of us youngsters.”

“Did you call agent A old just now ?” Nightwing asked incredulously, while unwrapping himself from the child to clutch his pearls in mock shock.

The teen raised an eyebrow and gave him a look that said ‘Am I wrong ?’. “Agent A is immortal.”, Nightwing answered and Hal believed him despite the mischievous grin on the vigilante’s face.

Flash hesitantly joined the talk with a question that had been on Hal's mind as well, “Say, why were you this worried ?” Barry asked towards Red Robin and Red Hood, “I mean these guys seemed hardly like anything to be worried about.”, a certain tension spread over the room.

“Let’s just say I don’t like my baby brothers being kidnapped. The last time didn't end well for all parties involved.”, Nightwing’s voice was tight as he answered, the previous grin completely gone.

“I got better in the end, didn’t I ?”, Hood drawled while throwing his arm over Nightwing’s shoulder. A seriously worrisome statement that had Hal furrow his brow. His brow also furrowed for another reason though. But before he could voice the question on his lips, the Gothamites before him continued to bicker with one another.

Nightwing scoffed before elbowing his brother in the stomach, “And got way too tall and wide, you fridge. You used to be so small and cute.” Nightwing mused while raising his hand to his chest to indicate the height.

“Huh, so 15 year old Red Hood was taller than Red Robin ?”, the child chimed in and Hal couldn’t tell if he was just asking to confirm his thought or to poke fun at his brother.

“What did I ever do to you Robin ?!” Said brother exclaimed, offended by being called small.

“You ate my honeyed dates and I’m just stating facts. Another fact is that I expect to be taller than you by next year.”, Robin said, though this time Hal was sure he was teasing RR, based on the barely noticeably raised corners of his mouth. Hal was glad he had gotten used to reading some of Batman’s facial expressions, as rare as they were. Especially as this Batling was just a miniature Batman and had the exact same 'smile'.

Red Robin sputtered at his brother's teasing while Hood, in his duty as older brother, gleefully added salt to the wound, “That means you’ll be the smallest, even BB is taller than you.”

“Only by like, a centimeter!”, The teen exclaimed and threw his hands up in exasperation, a scowl evident on his face.

“Still counts.” Barry muttered and earned himself a Bo-staff straight to the shin. The speedster keeled over in pain and Hal couldn't stop the bark of laughter that escaped him.

Though he finally saw a chance to ask the question that had been on his mind since a minute ago, ''Wait a minute, who is the eldest of you Batlings ?''

''Who do you think it is ?'', Red Robin asked, his head tilted in question and anticipated amusement.

Hal hesitated and shared a glance with Barry who was now sitting on the floor, still rubbing his shin in pain. ''Red Hood.'' He answered after raising his eyes again, while worrying his lip between his teeth.

As soon as the words left his mouth Nightwing gasped loudly in played offense. ''Little Wing ?! The oldest ?!'' The vigilante shook his head in mock disappointment, ''I should've introduced myself first. I'm a good few years older then Hoodie here.''

The nickname promptly earned him a tackle from his 'kid' brother, and wow Hal couldn't believe that at all, the two scuffled for a few moments until Nightwing had his brother pinned down with an air around him only an older sibling could hold.

There was a break in conversation as Barry cleared his throat and brought everyone’s attention to himself, “So,” he drawled, stretching the word out, “I do have to ask if one of you has an idea why Shazam was so scared at the thought of coming along.”

“Shazam ?” Robin asked, his head tilted in a way that Hal had to admit almost looked adorable if he wasn’t looking at a brightly colored, miniature Batman.

“Yeah, Captain Marvel. Tall guy, like 6”2, bright red spandex suit, with a yellow lightning bolt on it, though not as cool as mine. Also doesn’t wear a mask, like Supes.”, Barry supplied, placing his hands on his hips at the self praise.

“Don’t toot your own horn too loud, one minute wonder.” Hood drawled in an amused tone. The speedster scowled at him and opened his mouth, probably to retaliate, when Robin spoke up,

“I have met him before I believe, he was in Gotham so I enforced father’s rule. I made sure he would not return.”, the mini Batman stated matter-of-factly, while proudly brandishing his- holy shit the child had a fucking Katana ! Hal really needed to talk to Spooky.

“I expected more from him but he ran with his tail between his legs before I even got serious, tsk.”, Children should not be allowed to be this terrifying Hal concluded, that and he really needs to go home, right about now. He had enough moments of terror for a full year in a couple of hours.

“By the way, why were you out tonight Rob ? B benched you last I checked. You know because of the leg.” Red Robin drawled while loosely gesturing at the cast on Robin’s leg. ‘Good to know Spooky doesn’t support this.’ Hal thought to himself.

“I was just went out to feed the strays. I have promised them food and I shall uphold my promises. Even if I’m apparently on bed rest, tsk.” Robin spat the last words at his cast as if he was personally offended that he wasn’t invulnerable. He probably was if Hal was being honest. He seemed like the type. ''This plaster shackle shall not be the reason one of the strays go hungry. I still do not think I need to wear-''

Robin had certainly wanted to keep talking but Nightwing smoothly stopped him from ranting about his self bestowed responsibilities by picking the boy up and disappearing via smoke bomb, along with all his brothers. Hal shared a look with Barry and they made their way home.

Really ‘like father like son.’ was a phrase that fit all of the Batchildren, maybe a little too well sometimes.

The Justice League dealt with overzealous, extraterrestrial enemies on an almost weekly basis. From gigantic hordes of small, slimy critters to towering behemoths. They’ve fought it all and by now they have a sort of routine to the battles.

But this fight was much different from their usual procedures. Instead of one broody bat there were nine. Tough one of those nine was still an enigma to the league as they had yet to meet face to face. So far they had only heard her voice.

The other eight had fallen into a terrifying routine. They moved from enemy to enemy with cold, quick efficiency while quipping and smiling. Batman was the only one of them that fought side by side with the league members like he usually did, the rest of the Batclan kept mostly to themselves and the other young heroes that had come to help. They did swoop in and save a league member every time it was needed though, courtesy of the ninth Bat, Oracle, who seemed to see everything happening on the battlefield. Her moniker truly fit her perfectly.

Billy settled down on a roof to take a breather and to see if they had gotten any closer to winning. He really hoped it was over soon, he liked Fawcett much better without swarms of aggressive aliens.

He was really thankful for all the heroes that had gathered to help keep his city save. He was admittedly especially excited that a bunch of young heroes had joined too. He sometimes really hated that his powers made him look so much older, he really wanted to get closer with the hero community that was closer to his actual age. He liked the other league members but they too often talked about stuff he just couldn’t relate to. Sometimes it was exhausting to fake that you paid taxes and did other adult stuff.

Billy observed the Battlefield and his gaze fell to the different members of the Batfam. Nightwing was fighting aliens alongside Red Robin, easily trusting his back to his brother. The man bend in ways Billy was sure shouldn’t be possible but Red Robin seemed to anticipate every move. Used to his seemingly boneless brother. The two switched their weapons between each other easily. Moving almost as one, they took out another handful of enemies and with a wide smile on Nightwing’s face and a calculating grin on Red Robin’s, they moved to another part of the battlefield. Leaving behind mountains of bodies. Billy was really glad that they’re on the good side.

He turned his head and spotted Red Hood, locked in a fist fight against one of the bigger aliens. Hood was cursing like a sailor and hitting the alien hard in places that really hurt, at least to a human. Billy winced when Hood landed another hard kick to the lower half of the bipedal alien. Said alien let out an enraged roar but promptly slumped down to the ground, Billy spotted a red arrow lodged in the back of the extraterrestrial being‘s head. The red helmeted vigilante gave Arsenal, or the building Arsenal was sniping from, a thankful salute, he then pulled his guns out of his holsters and planted a few bullets perfectly between the aliens four eyes and or their knee caps. He switched between four guns with trained ease despite being limited to two hands and reloaded with such speed that Billy almost missed it. His reserve of bullets seemed endless.

Black Bat was basically a deadly shadow, Billy had only seen her for a second at the start of the fight, since then he could only guess where she was based on the aliens that just seemed to randomly keel over dead. Billy felt a shudder run down his spine as he saw the terror on an aliens face as his comrades dropped like flies around him. Again Billy was really glad he was on the same side as the Bats.

Another blue-kangaroo-looking alien dropped dead next to Red Hood. Said vigilante wordlessly pulled a knife from somewhere beneath his leather jacket and threw it in the air. The knife promptly disappeared in the air as a shadow, Black Bat, caught it. At the same time a broken blade dropped on the floor next to Hood’s boot. Billy simply watched in awe as the path of dead aliens kept going after the weapon exchange. Hood also just kept going, downing a few aliens with targeted punches and ending them with a bullet each if his fists weren’t enough.

Signal was hard to watch, as he used his powers, he apparently had, to blind the enemies. He then easily took them out as if taking a walk in a park. Well, a park in Gotham, Billy didn’t think that any other place would have parks that were comparable to a battlefield. Signal‘s bright light lured a lot of Aliens in his direction, which would’ve definitely been a cause for concern, at least for a non-bat. Signal simply kept moving unbothered by the masses moving towards him, because barely any actually made it close enough to be dangerous to him. Before they could step into his range most were skillfully taken care of, either by decapitation via the, in Billy‘s personal opinion, scariest Bat, Robin or by a simple punch via the Batlings kryptonian counterpart, Jon.

Billy admittedly watched Robin and Jon the longest as they were closets to his age. He really wished to be friends with them. As terrifying as Robin was, Billy thought he was equally as amazing. And Jon seemed like he would be a lot of fun to hang around. His warm and inviting smile had given Billy the courage to try and befriend them. He had gone to Gotham as he knew he would have to start with Robin to have a chance to be accepted into their group but before he had the chance to transform back into his actual body he had run. Robin hadn’t even let him get a word in and the cold Batglare from the just a few years older vigilante had killed all of Billy’s gathered courage. But as Billy watched Robin and Superboy work together he found himself filled with determination to try again.

Mind made up to try to find hero friends his actual age again Billy’s thoughts got interrupted by a battle cry. His eyes snapped onto the source and he spotted Spoiler. She had teamed up with beast boy who had turned into a mighty steed. The purple vigilante was loudly cheering and whooping as she rode on the large, green horse's back into battle. Together beast boy and spoiler mowed down enemy after enemy. Any foe that survived their stampede was finished of by Kon, Wally or Bart who were loudly cheering them on. The cavalry moved over the battlefield quickly and deadly as Spoiler easily switched between the weapons she kept on her person and literally anything else she could get her hands on. Even alien body parts were used and Billy found himself cheering them on from his perch on the roof.

By the time that Billy managed to pull himself from watching the young heroes fight, he notice that the numbers of the enemy had dwindle to barely two dozens. They were trying to retreat, but they were unsuccessful, as the Bats made quick work of them. The biggest problem now was the giant portal still open in the center of Fawcett City. Definitely not something Billy wanted to keep around. It didn’t mash well with the city’s looks. The bright, glowing greens and purples clashed harshly with the city’s aesthetic. Billy also wasn’t a fan of a potential second attempt for world domination via an army of blue-Kangaroos.

He knew he could easily close it but Billy also knew that it would cost him the last of his energy and would reverse his transformation. Everyone would find out that he was actually little, homeless, ten year old Billy Batson. The thought terrified him and made him hesitate.

But the decision was taken from Billy by the last alien, it seemed to tried to call for reinforcements from the other side of the portal. Before Billy even fully realized what was happening his body was already moving. He used the last of his power to quickly close the gate as Green Arrow shot the offending extraterrestrial being.

With the strike of a lightning bolt and a loud crack of thunder Billy, in all his now again ten years old glory, found himself in a small crater on the street.

Of course, to his luck, right in front of the Caped Crusader himself. And of course, worlds-best-detective that he was, he immediately connected the dots,

“Captain Marvel.” A simple statement, really but it froze Billy in place, “Is this your true form ?”

‘Right to the point, huh ?’, Billy thought but he also knew that the Dark Knight, slowly joined by all the other heroes, was expecting an answer.

“Y- yeah. I- I can ex- expla-“, Billy started but was interrupted by the wave of Batman’s hand. The man had more questions and it was clear he wanted them answered.

''Your name.'' Batman wasn't quite glaring at Billy but the boy could feel the Bat's stare drill a hole into his soul. Yet the voice Batman used wasn't quite as scary as his usual Batman-voice. He didn't seem angry, which Billy had feared, he seemed more, curious ? Billy doubted that was the right word.

''B- Billy, Billy Bat- Batson,'' Billy stammered out. His eyes snapped onto the rest of the Batclan, that had gathered behind Batman, as they collectively sucked a harsh breath in.

''B, No !'', Nightwing chided.

''He probably has parents, B !'', Red Hood joined in.

''I- I don't...'', Billy muttered hesitantly but he bit his tongue as the Batkids all displayed various reactions at his words.

Red Robin had his head in his hands, Robin tsk-ed and shook his head as he crossed his arms defiantly, Signal looked a little excited actually, Black Bat whispered something that sounded a bit too much like 'little brother', Spoiler threw up her hands and walked away exasperated, Red Hood was crouched down with his head directed at the sky quietly whispering a string of curses under his breath and Nightwing looked, well just resigned.

'' Bat son ...'', The big Bat muttered, ''I mean...'' He angled his head to look at his colony of children and seemed to try to reason with them, about what, Billy did not know. In fact Billy was highly confused, he couldn’t think of what made half the Batclan look agitated and the other excited. He watched as Batman slowly reached for one of his utility belt pockets.

''Father, please tell me you are not reaching for what I think you're reaching for.'', Robin hissed, clearly already knowing the answer to his query as it came out as more of a warning then a question.

Batman suddenly moved very quickly and before Billy knew it a stack of papers was thrust into his hands, an annoyed groan escaping Red Robin and a tsk coming from Robin. Billy had to blink a few times before the words on the front page registered in his head. In bold letters it read:

ADOPTION PAPERS.

Billy sucked a breath in too fast and started coughing. Concerned eyes landed on him until he regained his ability to breath. Billy looked at the people gathered around him. The league members looked as confused as Billy, except for Martian Manhunter, his face carefully blank and Superman, who looked like he was trying not to laugh. The Titans present, old and new, were in a similar state to Superman, all trying their best to hold in a laugh. Though Billy also received an encouraging nod from both Superboys.

Billy opened his mouth to say something but before any words could leave him Red Hood cut in, ''I'm calling Agent-A, the kid is considering it. For fucks sake old man.'' Hood took of his helmet and pulled out a beaten up flip phone and very pointedly stared at Batman as he hit a speed dial button and spoke,

''Hey A, sorry to bother you while you're cookin’. B’s done it again.'', Hood drawled, he let out a deep sigh before he answered the person on the other end of the line, ''Yeah no, Black hair, blue eyes, orphan, maybe 9? or 10 ? Probably Homeless... His last name is Batson, there is no way we could've stopped him A.'' He then just grunted a confirmation before he harshly clapped the phone shut and put it into one of his many pockets. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed again. He must've spotted Billy's perturbed face as he gave him a surprisingly reassuring smile. He then turned towards Nightwing and with just a look relayed something to the older vigilante.

Understanding his brother’s wordless message easily, Nightwing turned to Kon and told him to go and pick up 'Agent-A', whoever that might be. Somebody with Zeta access apparently, as that’s were Nightwing told the Kryptonian to pick Agent-A up.

The questions in Billy's head only doubled as Kon returned just minutes later with a polished, well dressed, older man. A butler, Billy realized. Fully dressed in a butler uniform and with as simple black domino mask pasted over his eyes. The man carefully dusted of his clothes after the Kryptonian set him down before striding over to Batman. It was clear pretty fast why the man was called to Billy, as the Batkids all considerably relaxed but Batman tensed.

''My dear boy, what did I say about adopting every child you find ?'', The man lightly scolded the Dark Knight, his hands on his hips. Again, excluding Superman and Manhunter the JL members all tensed at the man’s words but the Titans looked just about ready to break out in loud laughter.

“Not to.” The bat grumbled, “But-“, Batman started while gesturing vaguely towards Billy but he was interrupted by the wave of Agent-A’s hand, just like the Bat had done to Billy just minutes before.

Billy was trying hard to keep a giggle down at the down trodden posture of the Bat but he almost choked on his fit of giggles as the butler addressed him with his smooth British accent, “Now, child I will not stop you from accepting Batman’s offer but know that you can refuse it.” The man bend down and pulled out a linen cloth, with it he gently wiped some grime off of Billy's face, only hesitating for a second to let Billy pull away if he didn't want to.

But Billy didn’t pull away and actually enjoyed the gentle touch and the feel of the soft linen. He felt himself relax as the butler continued speaking, “You may think about the offer as long as you'd like, but I do invite you to at least come to our home for a meal and a shower dear boy.'' Agent-A gave Billy a soft and warm smile that almost made the boy forget where he was. Almost, as Hal suddenly blurted out a question, unable to hold his tongue any longer as was typical for the man,

‘’I’m sorry but who the hell is this and what the fuck is happening right now ?! Someone please explain ?! I can’t be the only one that’s completely lost, right ?!'', the lantern exclaimed, desperately looking at the gathered crowd, begging for answers.

All eyes snapped onto the green hero, some of the JL members muttered that they also very much would like an explanation as Red Hood called out a ''Language Glowstick, there are children present.'', while slapping his hands over Robin’s ears, who ducked away while tsking offendedly. Then there was silence as Batman signed something with his hands and the Bats promptly turned towards each other and discussed something between themselves, evident by the quiet chirping the league now knew was actually the Batclan’s secret language.

After a moment and a seemingly quite heated discussion Batman was pushed forward by both Red Robin and Nightwing. He cleared his throat and then spoke in his usual, I-eat-gravel-for-fun, voice, ''Justice League, meet Agent-A. The man that raised me.'' Billy's jaw dropped at that and so did Hal's, Barry's and Green Arrow's. Wonder Woman looked exited at the prospect of meeting the person that raised the Bat, same as Dinah.

''Agent-A is the reason we haven't died yet with our level of self preservation.'' Nightwing declared with much affection and a fond and cheerful smile.

''The best of us all.'' Red Hood added, his tone surprisingly warm and loving.

''Oh you commend me too much my dear children,'' Agent-A said with a fond look in his eyes and small but very warm smile on his lips.

''Well that's great and it's very good to meet you sir,'' Hal said with a charming smile towards the Butler, that was apparently Batman's dad or at least something close to that (Billy's mind was still blown), ''But can we get one thing straight please ? Spooky you gotta have mercy on us non detectives.''

''Hnn.'' The Bat just grunted and gestured for Hal to continue.

The lantern stepped forward and next to Billy so he could have a better view of the Batfamily and everyone else that was present. ''First of, can we all acknowledge for a moment that our teammate that we all thought was an adult is actually a fu- freaking child ?!'' Hal exclaimed while pointing at Billy and looking at all the people present.

Billy felt his face heat up as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. He turned his eyes to the floor.

''Well yeah but that is hardly the weirdest thing to happen in our line of work.'' Arsenal chimed in, the red archer opened his arms and looked around asking for confirmation which he mostly got from the other young heroes present.

''Batson, has always struck me as the most agreeable of the Justice League besides Father. It makes much more sense now why he did.'', Robin stated and even if Billy doubted that that was true, his chest warmed at the other boys words. He met the boy's eyes and gave him an embarrassed but thankful smile, a hint of a smile hushed over Robin’s face before his usual scowl quickly returned.

Hal looked a bit offended but the green hero persevered, ''Okay, fine. Just for the record though I wanna say that a lot of things make much more sense now.'' Hal turned to address Billy, ''I gotta be honest with you, you're not a good liar, taxes are not a weekly thing you know ?'' The lantern smiled at Billy apologetically,

''But like, am I understanding this right ?'' Hal leaned down and tried to take the adoption papers from Billy, who hadn't realized that he was still holding them, though the lantern was unsuccessful as Billy kinda didn't want to let them go. Hal looked a bit sheepish before giving up and deciding to simply point at the stack of papers instead, ''Spooky is trying to adopt said teammate right know. Just like that ?''

''Well that's how he took most of us in, minus the demon brat, so yeah.'' Signal shrugged nonchalantly, he then seemed to think about something before he quickly added, ''And Oracle, he's kinda unofficially co-parenting with her dad which is a special can of worms and spoiler hasn't signed any papers'' He just shrugged as if he didn't just open up more questions than he answered.

''I- I'll just not ask,'' Hal sighed, ''so Spooky just collects kids ? God that sounds so wrong and weird.''

''It's a bad habit of his,'' Red Hood chided in the direction of his father.

''Calling it a bad habit is really an understatement,'' Robin muttered, ''And you cannot chide father, when you've basically taken to adopting all of Crime Alley's kids Hood.''

''Pshhh, haven't actually adopted any,'' The yet went unsaid, ''You do it too Demon brat, just with animals.'' Hood grinned triumphantly as Robin sputtered for a moment before he just did his signature tsk, Billy quietly noted that he didn't refute Hood's words.

''Now, now the man has more questions,'' Nightwing interrupted the banter, an amused smile on his lips.

Hal was silent for a moment before he sighed and carded his hand through his hair in a manner of exasperation. He opened his mouth a few times to ask a question but words seemed to avoid him as in the end he just shook his head and said, “I don’t know what to say, there’s too many questions in my brain and I’m pretty sure you, family of paranoia masters, won’t answer most, if any, of them anyway.”

Batman just grunted his usual “hnn” as confirmation. Billy was sure if Batman could he’d only speak in grunts.

Agent-A seemed to regard Billy for a moment before the man spoke, “We can discuss the offer of adoption over some food. I do insist though that even if you refuse, you’ll at least let us support you in any way possible child. Let me extend that offer to any of your close friend or family if you have any.”, the butler gave Billy a knowing look and the boy had to remind himself that this man had raised the Batman , worlds greatest detective, part of a family in which ‘Like father, like son’ was truer than anywhere else. Of course the man would know or realize that Billy had family even if he didn’t have parents anymore.

Billy had to swallow hard at that revelation as Red Hood walked over to him and offered him a hand to help him stand up. Billy hadn’t even realized that he was still sitting in the crater the lightning bolt created. He hesitantly took the man’s hand and was pulled to his feet with a strong tuck. And as Hood decided to simply pick up Billy, after the boy's legs gave out because of the exhaustion of using all his energy for the day and the shock of Batman offering to adopt him, Billy simply let him.

All Billy could think, as he was carried towards the closest Zeta, was ‘Man, Mary and Freddy will not believe me when I tell them about today.”

And they truly didn't until Billy showed them the adoption papers that he had kept. He did so because he didn't want to seem rude, at least that's the reason he told himself and anyone who asked. Yeah, that's definitely why he kept them. He was absolutely not considering anything.

Here is the (now a bit longer) teaser excerpt of Chapter 1 of the Sequel: 

Family is meant to grow; You're one of us.

A cold shudder ran down Billy’s back. For the past three or so weeks, ever since the day the League found out about his secret identity, Billy had felt like he was being watched. The feeling was constant. No matter what time of day it was, no matter where he went, they seemed to follow. Who ever they were, Billy didn’t think that they were dangerous to him. He couldn’t explain why but he felt quite the opposite, he actually felt safer with his stalker(s?) around. They unsettled him nonetheless.

His eyes searched the shadows around him as he walked. Billy was in the poorer part of Fawcett, no one here would look twice if they saw a child walk around this late at night.

Billy carefully peaked around the next corner as he heard a scuffle in the alley. He really hated that he couldn’t interfere in stuff like that, because right now he was just little Billy Batson. Becoming Shazam would be way too overboard for a normal street fight between drunks. He knew that he couldn’t do anything but he still watched the small group of men fight. He would step in if it got any worse. He grimaced with every hit that met flesh but he kept watching. Billy had seen how fast a situation like this could escalate.

Then Billy’s eyes went wide. He heard one of the men exclaiming a “What the fuck ?!” as he spotted the shadow as well. The ‘shadow’ that was definitely a person. A person Billy knew, he rubbed his eyes in disbelief but the guy easily subduing the drunken men was definitely and without a doubt, Nightwing.

As the last body hit the ground, Nightwing righted himself and Billy had to admit that he found himself admiring the man in front of him. The skin tight suit made no mystery about how well built the older hero was. It was night and day compared to himself. Nightwing stretched lazily as if he had just woken up. Then the blank, white lenses of his domino mask snapped to look at Billy. The boy flinched, it felt like he was prey, stared down by a predator. Unable to escape them and at the mercy of their next move. Neither of them moved for a long breath, Billy knew he wasn't in danger but he also couldn't help his body tensing and his instincts screaming at him to run for the hills. But all tension suddenly dissolved, as Nightwing’s face broke out into a wide and charming smile.

“Billy, it is great to see you !” the vigilante exclaimed in a warm tone as he crossed the distance between them. It was hard to tell but Billy was certain that, as he was approaching him, Nightwing was looking him up and down like he was checking him for injuries. Once the vigilante stood before Billy, strong and reassuring hands landed on the boy's shoulders as the older hero clasped them and then he was pulled into a hug that Billy could only describe as octopus like. Billy felt himself tense for a moment before he allowed himself to accept the embrace, as he did so all the exhaustion, stress and worries of the past few weeks seemed to simply melt out of his frame. His brain was blissfully quiet as he savored the hug, because wow, Nightwing was a really good hugger. For a brief moment, Billy wondered if the other Bats got these hugs all the time, Nightwing seemed like the type of guy who would hug you any chance he got. Billy quickly squashed down the tinge of jealousy he felt bubble up in his gut.

He tried not to but his mind wandered to the stack of papers that was now stored securely in a box under the bed in his foster ‘home’. The place he barely spend any time at as he just didn’t feel like he could, with the whole secretly being a super hero. And not just any, he was part of the Justice League. He at least assumed he was as he hadn’t actually been any where near the Watchtower or another hero in about three weeks, ever since the whole identity reveal fiasco. But could you blame him ? Everyone now knew that he was actually just a ten year old child, parading around as a much older hero. He couldn’t imagine seeing any of them would be anything less then extremely awkward, in either form. Then there was the whole thing about Batman offering to adopt him. Just right there, moments after the guy had found out about Billy’s actual identity. And there had not been a doubt in the man’s actions, he had meant the offer.

It’s just- well, Billy didn’t feel like he deserved it.

He was just scrawny little Billy or giant, too old to be adopted, Shazam. Billy just couldn’t picture it. He felt like in either form he would without a doubt stick out like a sore thumb in the Batclan. He wondered what the Batclan was like out of their suits. What where their civilians lives like ? Billy honestly wondered if they even had civilian identities. He just couldn't picture them in everyday life.

His mind went wandering as he imagined what Batman did as a day job, did he even work ? Maybe he was crazy rich ? He didn’t know why but Batman being filthy rich seemed kinda funny to him. Though, he supposed, it would make a lot of sense.

“Say, what are you doing out here so late ?”, Nightwing asked as he pulled away from the hug he had still enveloped Billy in while said boy had gotten lost in his imagination. Billy snapped back to reality and heard himself whimper a little at the loss of touch.

And here the Bonus Content ! Two drawings I did inspired by my own work. I hope you like them, please ignore my lack of a consistent art style ^^; I'm still trying to decide which is more fun to do. 

Sleeping Timbit

Billy and Nightwing

 Hope this was a worthy exchange for the announcement. 

Thank you for reading the first part of this story ❤️