Beneath The Mask

Chapter 7: Imposter

"Wake up, man."

Damian felt hands shaking his shoulders gently and reluctantly opened his eyes. He was instantly showered with dull pain in his shoulder and the bruises from the previous night. Ouch. He swatted Dick's hands away and sat up, rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hands. "What, Grayson?"

"Time to get ready," Dick said. He studied Damian for a bit, seeing his blank expression. "Y'know, the big thing tonight?"

Oh yeah. That thing. Great. More family drama. But at least he would be able to kick some ninjas. Well, he hoped. He checked the time, and, seeing that it was five o'clock, slumped back down on his bed. "It's not even eight yet."

"Yeah, but Bruce said that he wants us all down for dinner tonight," Dick said. He nudged his little brother playfully. "You just can't escape it, can ya?"

Damian groaned. "Guess not." He got up out of bed and shoved Dick out. The man looked like he was about to argue when Damian slammed the door in his face. "I'll be there." He heard his brother's footsteps retreating, and he quickly changed into...well, I think we all know what. Black, black, and...black. You guessed it. He slipped on his hoodie and exited his room, closing his door quietly behind him after Titus exited too. He quietly went down the stairs, and was disappointed to see that everyone was already sitting at the table, but no food was yet placed there. But whatever Alfred was making...let's just say, it smelled like heaven. Damian walked over reluctantly and took a spare seat beside Dick and, unfortunately, Jason. Titus squeezed through, sitting next to his master on Jason's side. The older man occasionally glared daggers at the dog, not forgetting what had happened the first time the two had met, a couple days ago.

Alfred walked over to the table and set the plates down, and set various other plates down filled with dishes you could grab whenever. There was also garlic bread, which filled the whole room with its incredible smell. Alfred poured drinks for each of them, somehow knowing what each would want. Well, he's been this family's butler for how long? He should know. Damian looked down at his plate, and was satisfied to see that Alfred had remembered not to give him any meat. He looked up again as Alfred took his place at the table, and Father cleared his throat.

"It's great to have everyone here tonight," he started. "Unfortunately we couldn't all get together the other night, but now that we're all here, I hope we can catch up for old times sake. And not to mention, I think Steph has something she'd like to share."

Stephanie's eyes lit up and she pulled up a small bag from the ground and began rummaging through it. "Well, I've had plenty of free time recently, so I decided I'd make these for each of you." She smiled brightly and held up a handful of necklaces. "I know that you boys probably won't want to wear necklaces, so you can just hang them somewhere I guess. But they've got cool stuff on them, and if you open them, they've got a small message inside." She began to pass them around, and soon everyone had theirs, as well as Father's from before. Jason passed down Damian's, and Damian halfheartedly took it from him. He sighed silently and looked down at it. It was a metal chained necklace with a small metal R hanging from it. Damian sighed out loud this time and opened the R, pulling pit the tiny note that was hidden inside. Before he got the chance to read it, Father spoke.

"How about we take turns going around to read ours out loud?" he suggested. Everyone agreed, except Damian. "I'll go first. Mine says, 'A bat may seem lonely, as it is small and craves the dark. But don't forget its family, a strong foundation.'" Father looked up at Stephanie, smiling. "Thank you, Steph. That's beautiful."

Stephanie's eyes glowed, then she turned her attention to the next person. It was Tim's turn. He opened his paper and began to read, 'With all the knowledge in the world, one cannot stop the unstoppable. But stop what they can, and be satisfied with what one has.' Sweet, Steph. Thanks."