Robin's Egg

Cr-Egg-tive Thinking

Duke watched as Tim sipped his coffee and peered over the rim to scrutinize Damian, who sat on the opposite side of the kitchen table. The youngest ignored the gaze while continuing to eat his breakfast, unfazed. Bruce had already been in to hastily grab his breakfast before making his way out for a day of endless meetings. Surprisingly, without Tim for once. Cass sat next to Duke and did the same thing by looking between her adopted brothers.

Damian finished his breakfast quickly, carried his dishes over to the sink for Alfred, and then made his way out without a word. Duke watched until he couldn't even see Damian's light anymore with his powers before he turned to address Tim with an eyebrow raised. "So... what was that about?"

Tim took another long sip of his coffee before turning to his two siblings. "You were right, Duke. Something is up with Damian, and honestly? It's beginning to weird me out more than normal."

"You mean besides the fact that he safety-proofed his room?"

The teen nodded in response. "I mean, that should have been a red flag from the get-go. Damian. Locking up his swords? Then there is the fact that other weird things are happening. Have you heard what happened when we took down Penguin two weeks ago?"

Duke and Cass couldn't help but snicker a bit. "You mean that the pool froze over with Damian still in it?" When Tim nodded, Duke continued. "Yes, we have heard about it. Honestly, I think the only one who doesn't know is Jason, and that is only a matter of time, and you know it."

'I thought you figured out why the pool froze over already?' Cass signed to the boys and then took a bite of her toast.

Tim's eye twitched, and he rubbed his shoulder in remembrance of getting smacked by Damian on the way home from the mission. "Yes, I think. I wouldn't put it past that because of how cold the room was, but something still feels off about the whole thing. Not to mention the other things I've noticed over the past couple of weeks."

"And those are...?" Duke asked with a raised eyebrow at his brother.

"Whenever we go out on patrol, Damian's coms become filled with static. Both Oracle and I have checked the lines and his equipment over a hundred times at this point. There is nothing wrong with them, but when we go out, they mess up without fail. It only started happening when he started carrying that rock around." The black-haired teen said as he took another swig of coffee before standing up to get another.

'Egg.' Cass signed to them when Tim sat back down.

Duke chuckled at Tim's groan. "Not you too." Cass smiled at them and gestured for her brother to continue, knowing he had more to say. "Well, the other day, I was heading to the library in the east wing to do some research, and I heard Damian talking. When I peeked around the bookcase, he was reading a book out loud. Guess what was sitting in the chair next to him, laying on a towel?"

"The egg?" Duke couldn't help but laugh at what Tim had just said. "He was reading to the egg? In its own chair?" Cass's grin grew at the news.

"YES!" The young CEO cried as he threw his hands up into the air. "Honestly? It was kind of cute. It was a sight I never thought I would see in a million years, but there he was. Reading to the rock. I think the book was for an assignment in Damian's English class, but I could be wrong."

Amusement shined in Cass's eyes. 'That's adorable.'

"You aren't wrong. But... it's Damian." Tim stated as he gestured to the air in front of him. "This is so far out of left field like... why is he just now getting an imagination? Something is going on with that rock. I just don't know what. It's odd that he carries that thing everywhere. Even that pouch is starting to show some wear on it."