Ready Or Not Here I Come - A Damian Wayne Story

Chapter 1

Damian sat in the living room, reading The Art of War. He was just getting to his favorite part when his brothers and father entered. Damian looked up from his book, annoyed.

"Damian, get packed," his father told him. "We're going to Florida."

Damian frowned. "Why, Father? What is the point when we have things to do here?"

Bruce looked at him sharply. "We are going because I have a meeting in Orlando. I thought it would be nice if we traveled there as a family, to get away for awhile."

"He's basically saying we're coming with because we need a vacation from Gotham," Jason said bluntly.

Damian looked at them and frowned even more, looking at his father. "But what about patrol? Who will watch over Gotham while we're gone?"

"The girls will handle patrol until we get back, Damian. Until then -- "

"But how long will we be gone? If we let those imbeciles patrol Gotham by themselves, we'll come back too see the city in ruins!"

Bruce glared at him. "Damian, Gotham will be fine with the girls patrolling it. We will only be gone for a week, so even if the girls do mess up, it won't be that bad by the time we get back, and we'll be able to fix it."

Damian looked doubtful, but didn't argue. He crossed his arms angrily. "Fine. Are there any other reasons we are going on this ridiculous trip other than your meeting and a break from Gotham?"

"There has been suspicious activity happening in Orlando. People have been disappearing without a trace. The only thing that's left behind is a four-leaf clover," Dick informed Damian. "He has the code name Clover."

Damian stiffened a little. His brothers and father noticed.

"What's wrong, Damian? Do you recognize the symbol? Damian?" Dick asked, worried at his little brother's sudden behavior.

Damian looked at Dick like he had insulted him. "Of course not. What gave you that idiotic idea?"

The other boys and Bruce looked at each other. Damian was hiding something, but what?

Tim looked back at Damian. "Your posture gave it away, Damian. What does this symbol mean to you?"

Damian raised an eyebrow. "The same thing it means to everyone else, Drake. Good luck. What else would it mean?"

"It could mean a lot of things, Damian. It depends on where you're from. In America, it does mean good luck. But for other countries, such as Egypt, a four leaf clover could mean bad luck in the near future."

"Drake, I am Arabic. Not Egyptian. They are two very different cultures entirely. And the meaning of this useless plant is the same as the Americans to the Arab. So next time you want to prove something, make sure your facts are correct, Drake," Damian said, looking him in the eyes and glaring.

The scar over Damian's eye made his glare even scarier. But even without the scar, his glare would be as scary as the Batman's.

Jason had a sudden question. "Damian, how did you get your scar? The one across your eye?"

Damian looked at him, surprised that he would ask a question like that; he usually wasn't that nosy.

"Yeah, Damian, how did you get that scar?" Dick asked him. "I've always wondered about that. What happened, and how long have you had that scar, anyways?"

Damian looked at them all. They were all looking at him, wanting to know the answer. He took a step backward, feeling cornered.

"That -- that is none of your concern. You do not need to know how or when I got my scar," Damian stuttered.