Bat Brothers: Schooldays

Back to School

Damian adjusted his tie and sat down at his spot, next to Tim. They used to sit across from each other but Damian kicked him under the table and hit Jason one time too many times and now was forced to sit next to Tim.

Bruce entered the dining room with a newspaper under his arm.

"Good morning, boys."

Tim, Jason, and Damian said. "Good morning." back and continued to eat in silence as Tim and Jason scrolled on their phones. Damian wasn't allowed to get a phone until he was 14 and for that reason, became very bitter when his brother spent their time mindlessly scrolling and texting. Damian sighed and unhappily ate oatmeal. He didn't want to go back to school. Maybe he could bribe his father. Hm. Something clever.

"Father, all of my peers are stupid."

Jason chocked on his coffee. "What?"

Bruce frowned in confusion. "What?"

"I don't want to go to school." Damian muttered, stirring around his oatmeal.

Bruce's face softened. "No one said that this would be easy. This is what adjusting to 'normal' looks like."

Damian rested his head on his hand. "I know but I'm not 'normal' why do I have to pretend to be."

Tim felt bad for Damian. "You'll live a much better life if you can just learn to let people in."

Damian didn't respond to that- probably because Tim was right.

"Okay. I'm going to get my backpack."

Alfred cleared the table and then unlocked the door so that Damian could get settled before the long drive to school. Damian remembered to pack a pen and used it to do his homework in the car. Alfred turned down the newscast that was playing on the radio.

"So, Master Damian, are you looking forward to another day at school?"

Damian stuffed his folder back into his backpack. "No." He frowned. "I don't want to go."

"How are the other students?" Alfred asked.

"Awful." Damian replied. "But not all of them."

Alfred looked in the rear view mirror and raised an eyebrow. Did Damian just say something positive?

Damian stared out of the window until they passed through the wrought iron gates of school and then he began to feel sick and was sweating a bit. He loosened his tie. Was this anxiety? It was new to him.

Damian met with Jon outside at the fountain and Alfred wished him a good day, saying that he would pick him up as soon as school finished. Damian gripped his lunch box and looked at Jon.

"I don't think I can do this."

Jon looked surprised. "It's just school."

Damian sighed. "What a practical answer."

Jon frowned in confusion but shrugged it off. "If you want, we can have lunch at the fountain again."

Damian didn't want to sound desperate or anything so he just nodded. "Okay."

The day began and Damian took notes in American history- the only subject that he didn't know. He was raised in the Middle East and then dropped off suddenly with his father in Gotham. American history never seemed important.

When his morning classes ended, Jon met Damian at the fountain.

"How was your day?" Damian asked, taking out a bag of sliced apples.

Jon smiled. "Pretty good- I made a lot of new friends."

Damian felt pain in his stomach. Did this mean that Jon would no longer sit with him at the fountain for lunch?

Jon seemed to notice his anxiety and switched topics. "Are you excited for gym? You're probably the best student in the whole group. You are, after all, a superhero.

"No." Damian corrected. "I'm a vigilante. I don't have powers. You are a superhero. You have powers."

Jon shrugged. "So how do you hide your scars?"

Damian sighed. "I wear a sweater."

"Hm." Jon thought. "What about when it gets hot?"

Damian ate another apple slice. "I don't know yet. I still don't want to be here."

Jon looked sympathetic. 

Damian continued. "My shoulder got slashed last night and I got stitches from my father. I can't let people see that."

Jon looked sad. "Are you okay?"

"Well I got slashed by a criminal and lost a lot of blood but I guess "okay" is a decent answer." He ate another apple slice and looked at Jon. He talked with his mouth full. "Don't think I'm weak for getting injured on the job. I am a perfect fighter. Trained and conditioned to kill."

Jon shrugged. "Mistakes happen."

Damian sighed. Now that was something that he didn't want to admit.

The day passed slowly. Damian tried his best to be likable but he seemed to be turning people away from him. Don't be a show-off . Tim said. Damian reluctantly kept his mouth shut and waited for the day to be over. Tomorrow would be a better day.

Alfred picked the boys up. Jon was spending the night at the Wayne Manor again. It saved the commute for his parents and Jon seemed to enjoy time spent with Damian... somehow.

"Hello Mr. Pennyworth." Jon beamed, buckling his seat belt. Damian slid in beside him and closed the door. He put his backpack on the floor between his feet and fastened his seat belt, too.

"Hello, Pennyworth." Damian greeted.

Alfred drove the boys back to the Manor. They went to do homework in the library.

"What's 4 x 7?" Jon asked, trying to count on his fingers.

"28." Damian muttered, flipping through the American History textbook that he borrowed from the school library. He looked up. "Why do their have to be so many white men to keep track of. They all look the same." Damian frowned, presenting the picture of the Continental Congress in his book.

Jon shrugged. "They were all pretty different people."

Damian rested his head back on his hand. "I can't tell white people apart."

Jon laughed. "Well you know me so that's all that matters."

"Great." Damian muttered.