As Robin put back his mask and looked out on the open sky with a relieved sigh, his first thought was his mother’s words. The illusion of victory is fleeting.
One of his clones stepped back to him quietly, startling him. The six feet tall man waved his big hands bashfully and pointed to the central building, then back at him. The clone’s vocal chords weren’t developed enough to form words or sentences, however Damian understood he wanted to show him something.
“I follow you.” he nodded.
His clo… No, his brother headed for the central building where he lived once. He was not even here two or three hours ago after freeing the clones from Aqueman’s guarding, but the strong nostalgic feelings started to attack him again.
What did the man want to show him there?
They walked through rooms, gyms, chambers until the clo… his brother stopped in front of a metal door. It was one of his… their mother’s rooms. Damian himself never was in there, and he never felt any curiosity about it. Mother was sure to teach him that.
“What is it?” he asked absently as he sidestepped the man.
There was a lockpanel with fingerprints and eye scanner. And even if he could bypass those, to open it he needed a code too.
How fortunate he got superpowers now!
With a swift kick the door was nothing just shreds. His brother clapped in excitement as they stepped in the room, which in the past was clearly a labor. There were a lot of empty vials and a big computer screen with healthy vitals on it beeping quietly. It seems this room has its own generator.
After a few moments the clone grabbed him and pulled them over where the room was separated by a black curtain. It was velvet and with the embroidered Al Ghul crest.
Damian didn’t want to know what was beyond the black fabric, but his brother smiled at it and gestured to him to look. He was hesitant. After the death by his own clone and his… their mother’s own betrayer… With a big breath he pulled back the curtain.
It was the same as his own birth. It was all over again.
“Who is he?” he whispered when he touched the womb’s glass.
01.01. 20XX.
The two embryos are successfully pulled out of the Mistress’s womb. They reacted positively to the Lazarus Pit’s water…
~
01.02.20XX.
…one of the embryo's (II) development is significantly better than the other (I). Gender is unknown yet.
~
01.03.20XX
Embryo I. - Athanasia
Embryo II. - Damian
Damian pulled his mask down in his shock. He wanted to see with his own eyes. Her.
He had a twin sister and he didn’t even know about her. His mother… His fucking mother!
09.08.20XX.
→ Damian (Embryo II.) is pulled out from the artificial womb. Mistress deems him adequate to start the next level.
→ Athanasia (Embryo I.) is deemed to stay in the womb. The growth needs to slow down. Her new code is (Emergency I.).
Damian didn’t know what… What did he have to do? Tell father? Pennyworth? Let her… No. He won’t let her alone. Here…
He looked back at his little sister as she floated in the Pit’s water. She wasn’t as little as an embryo. He estimated her age to be around two or three years old. They really slowed down her growing process and after… After the base emptied out, they let her here. Alone.
“We will go home, sister, where you can meet Father and our other siblings,” he said.
He stepped back a little, took a big breath then started his work. If he wants to pull his little sister out from that artificial womb as healthy as she is then at first he needs to understand the system. Of course he could break the womb, however in contrast to the other clones she was natural…
She wasn’t made. She was his… his other half.
He swallowed down his feelings. He needed a cool head. He would break down when his twin would sleep in a warm bed at the manor. He didn’t have the luxury to feel now.
No, he needed to concentrate.
After some minutes he was quite sure how to turn off the system without hurting his sister. His other brothers stood aside as he worked through the different settings. Beeping started to get louder and faster when he finally started the process to pull her out.
The green liquid’s level decreased minute by minute. The vitals looked standard to someone who slept.
And that was the moment when it really hit him.
His little sister… Athanasia… it’s her birth.
He watched mesmerized as the last drop of water left the artificial womb. As she slept at the bottom of the empty tank. He reached out with shaking hands to open the womb and… it was magical how soft his little sister was. A little wet but warm and soft. She grimaced in his embrace and Damian wasn’t able to look away.
Her long black hair soaked his Robin suit, but he was only able to understand that his little sister was in his arms. He could hug his little sister.
He knew - somewhere back in his mind - that he needed to concentrate, to go home and talk with his… their father and Pennyworth. He knew it wasn’t his moment and right to cry there and now. But he couldn’t help himself. The tears just came and streamed down his cheeks unstoppable.
His other brothers smiled at him knowingly as he just hugged their little sister and cried. He felt their quiet support. He cried for her. Cried for himself. Cried for the lost childhood. Their childhood. For the time that they could have spent together.
And still… Still, he was also grateful. His little, tiny, softest sister didn’t have to grow up in the League. She didn’t have to fight for her own life to survive any training. She was safe. She was saved. And she will be safe with him from now on.
“I will protect you, sister,” he murmured with a low hum and held her closer to enjoy the moment and the freedom to feel freely.
He did everything to soften the flight back to Gotham. Their brothers helped him to wash their little sister up and dress her up in some fabric so she couldn’t get ill. They also searched for some oxygen masks.
That was the moment when Ravi, his old servant, came in.
“Lord Damian” he greeted him with a bow.
Damian stared at the blind man for a long moment. “How long have you known about her?” he asked with a passive tone.
The servant stepped a little closer and put the oxygen mask down. “Since Lord Damian and Mistress Athanasia were conceived.”
He froze at dressing his sister. “I see,” he said as he started up his work. “I wish you a better life.” he murmured lastly when he finally put the child in her hastily made carrier and put the oxygen mask on.
He quietly nodded at his brother as a farewell and with a swift move they were already flying to Gotham.
When Damian finally touched the ground in front of the Wayne manor he was more and more unsure about what he was going to do. After all, his father didn’t have the most stable personality. He, himself, was only a spoiled eleven years old. And he didn’t even start on the other sides of the incompetent group.
Pennyworth was the only one who could bring up a child, but… his hands were full with all the family and their problems already.
“Ughm…” his little sister stirred in her carrier. Maybe he could…
He looked down and decided against it. He never let her live a life without himself. Damian knew he was selfish and felt ashamed, but he couldn’t bear the thought that this small girl would grow up somewhere without knowing him and their family. Like himself…
“Only a few minutes Ukhti, and you could sleep in peace” he murmured softly and opened the door of the main hall.
There was no one. Naturally at this hour his father was always in the cave getting ready to patrol and working on some ongoing cases, while Pennyworth was making pre-patrol snacks and starting the next day’s dinner preparations.
So nobody knew about their arrival through the main hall. It was only a little movement to him when he pressed the emergency button on the Robin suit, but it was a big regret, when everybody from the family who lived in the manor crashed from various sides within five minutes.
“Damian?” His name was grunted by his… their father as he also came out of the corner’s shadow. “Explain!”
Damian stared at the man’s face for a moment too long then started to get the little girl out of her covers and mask. “Father.” The acknowledgement was softer than any other time. “I… She is your daughter.”
“Soo…” Grayson blinked at him curiously after the improvised introduction. Father was holding his sister now with a quiet awe in his eyes and posture. The Batman didn’t want to believe him at first then the documentation convinced everyone.
Damian slowly turned away from his twin and gazed up at his adoptive brother. The excitement was visible on his face and he didn’t stop smiling since it was confirmed that the little girl was staying with them. “What is it?”
The question was understandable and Damian himself wandered a small amount of time before he pulled papers in front of him.
“I didn’t read all of these but if I can estimate an age it would be two or three years old.” He stopped at one of the pages. “Here…” He pointed at a paragraph. “Mother instructed that her growth needed to slow down. And here are some progress milestones about it. She, in a natural environment for children, would have more or less already learned to walk and speak.”
Damian felt as his father stepped closer to them while rocking Athanasia lightly. It was kind of out of ordinary to see the man that soft.
“So a toddler.” came the statement from Todd who tried to position himself far away from his sister.
“Presumably.” Damian agreed.
Grayson and Drake nodded thoughtfully then the last one opened his mouth. “And what was her name again?”
Damian wanted to answer but he faltered. She was already named… But she was named by mother. He looked back at their father who clearly was stunned still and softly gazed down at the little girl. Maybe some correction is due.
“Her middle name is Athanasia.”
“Middle?” Drake’s voice was confused.
“Yes, middle.” Damian sighed as he decided. “Father will choose a more acceptable one for her first name.”
The silence that followed was more puzzling than disturbed. All the men stared at him waiting for some explanation. And Damian couldn’t help himself to grimace.
“Mother named myself without Father knowing even my existence. I think it’s only fair if Father chooses a suitable name for my little sister.”
The astonished silence prolonged more than quiet steps broke it. Alfred arrived back with some ‘toddler’ friendly food to provide.
“I think it’s an excellent idea, Master Damian.” He carefully adjusted the little girl in father’s arm. “This way the small Miss can create her own legacy.” The old butler was softer than usual as Damian watched his lightly shaking hands. Of course he knew that Alfred loved them with his everything, all of them. But it showed how this surprise swayed the butler’s character a little bit.
Grayson and Drake simultaneously hummed as they turned back to the documents. Todd decided to sit down so he didn’t scare his sister with his towering figure, or Damian supposedly thought. The second Robin was really quiet since the first introduction happened and he looked at the child with such confused and concentrated eyes that was unusual from him.
“Martha?” came the first name from his - or their father.
Damian unintentionally grimaced. And his reaction was noticed by the man.
“It’s your grandmother's name.” The accusation was clear.
He nodded. “Tt, I know,” he paused to search for the right words. “But maybe something without actual emotional baggage would be better.” It was still an unfortunate wording as he saw how his father closed his body off even more. “Not because it’s a bad name, Father,” he added. “But because of what that name means to you.” He sighed tiredly as he really needed to spell out the traumatic hindrance of that name. “Grandmother was a respectable and outstanding woman naturally, but I… I wouldn’t want to impose those great ambitions on my twin sister.”
It’s enough to bear it for them.
Damian looked around in the cave. “This place is ours. Yours and ours. We are the night. We are Batman and Robin and the sidekicks,” he waved loosely at the others. “However she doesn’t need any expectation on her shoulders yet as we all had on our arriving here. You can choose something similar, but I am vetoing Grandmother’s name. It’s hers, not my twin’s.”
That awkward silence came back again. Then Grayson broke it jumping at him without a warning with his whole bodyslamming skills. The hug was nice… but even then Damian would grumble about it and never acknowledge the feeling. He needs to maintain a certain image of himself.
“I am so proud of you, Little D.” came the crying voice somewhere above his head.
He groaned and tried even harder to get himself free from those octopus arms. When he finally succeeded, he found himself in front of four gentle smiles. Even Drake smiled at him. Gross…
“You are right, son.” His father looked down at the sleepy little girl with that warm smile. “Something similar…” he murmured thoughtfully.
Then came hell. Except Alfred and Todd, the four of them debated and vetoed each other - sometimes without hearing out the other’s ideas. Then finally after some brainstorming where Grayson and Drake were more competitive than ever with various Mary, Marie and others, Todd was the one who ended the debate with a quiet cough.
“Todd?” They all turned to his way.
The man looked a little uncomfortable sitting there, but he eventually opened his mouth. “You found her on that island, right?” For his terse nod Todd continued. “It’s in the Atlantic ocean if I remember correctly. And I… I read a book sometime from a French writer… And there was a name with a meaning ‘of the sea’ and it’s kinda similar to Martha and… in a way to all of the other ideas too.”
Now everybody looked at Todd with various expressions.
“Which was?” Father asked with a serene voice.
