Chapter Text
"What do you think, little one?"
Ellie glanced back at her uncle, took in his amused smirk. He was standing next to her as Danny's warriors bustled around them, checking their preparations for the last time. Turning her eyes back up at his subtle gesture, Ellie frowned. The birds above were flying pretty fast, faster than she'd expected them to. "We should move out quickly," she answered, "The magic's thickening."
"Hm…" Her uncle pointed at the birds she'd just looked at, one gloved finger circling the front of the v-formation they were flying in. "Look", he said, "The birds are speaking to you. Listen. What are they telling you?"
"They hurry," Ellie repeated again, lips turned down in confusion, "They stick together tightly, too. The next wave's coming, and there's not much time until it's here."
But Sojourn shook his head. "No, my little niece. They fly towards our home, and see the front of their formation? It is quite flat. They do not fly like that when they feel magic pressing down on them. No, everything is hurrying because there is a gap. The magic will stay quiet, for now."
"We must make haste still, then," Ellie sighed, "Since we don't want to miss our window. The magic always roars wilder after these moments."
Her uncle inclined his head as he straightened back up from where he'd leaned towards her. "The quiet before the storm," he agreed softly, "There always seems to be one. But speaking of…" He turned, tilting his head to quietly watch where the Waynes were saying their goodbyes. Firm hugs and teary smiles were being exchanged there. Sojourn let out a deep sigh. "Let them spend some more time together. The boy might need it."
That… Didn't sound like something Sojourn would usually say. Frowning, Ellie turned to him. "Did Clocky tell you something? You're being… weird."
Her uncle's lips pulled into a rueful smile where she could see them beneath his hood. "Let us just call it my personal intuition. Gifted to me by the blood I share with my dear mother, or maybe through too many years gaining the same experience in different varieties. Both can have me find myself caught in a strange sense of deja vu I would rather not trust, at times."
"You don't think they'll be happy?" Ellie couldn't help the scoff in her voice. If Sojourn had really thought that then there was no way he would've let the marriage happen, because even if Ellie was the favourite he still loved Danny a lot. Besides, Clocky would've never let it come to this, since Danny was his favourite. And also, Danny was way too stubborn not to find a way to be happy with his life, ever.
"I think it will be difficult for him," Sojourn seriously replied, "For both of them, even. I think that many unfavourable situations await our darling newlyweds." He tilted his head again. "Although every journey worth having does entail unlikely obstacles, I suppose. Twists and turns and pretty views, too. Like fun animals, some flowers…" He hummed again, eyes gliding across the gathered princes before snapping back to Ellie "Oh. Where was I?"
Animals? Flowers? Ellie glanced at the youngest prince, standing a bit off to the side with a frown.
A low chuckle from next to her drew Ellie's attention back to her uncle. "No need to look at them like that," Sojourn told her bemused, "My cousin foresaw this and encouraged it happening, yes? So I do figure it will be alright. Eventually."
Ellie sighed. Deeply. "Uncle?" she asked. Sojourn hummed, visibly pleased at being addressed like that verbally. He'd always had a weakness for being claimed as family. All of the Ancients had. And still: "You are terrible at comforting people. That's not reassuring at all, you know? The way you said it, I mean."
"It is not?" Her uncle tilted his head in confusion, then looked up in consideration. "Hm. Well, let me rephrase, then: There will be some obstacles, but then again, this family has always had to take the thorny path to happiness. That just makes it all the more worth it once we get there, though."
"Better," Ellie nodded, ignoring how obviously pleased with that assessment her uncle was. Casting her eyes back up to the birds above, Ellie bit her lip. "I just… I hope nobody has to die for it."
"Yes, but dying is what makes living so precious, is it not?"
Despite the somber tone of their conversation, Ellie couldn't help but snort at that. "Says the immortal."
"That is a good point. But have you considered, my dear niece, that could, too, could be immortal if you would just allow me to-"
"I'm not letting you adopt me," Ellie cut him off, glancing from her uncle to her brother, who watched the bags being loaded on with an unhappy frown. "Not until Danny agrees to Clocky's offer, at least. I'm not losing everyone again, not after how difficult it was to find my family."
"So never, then," Sojourn sighed, though he sounded petulant more than actually hurt, "How sad. Why does my nephew have to insist on staying human, I wonder? It would certainly make many things easier if he just agreed to become one of us."
Ellie shrugged. "Well, we're family either way. No matter what he says, that boy is Clocky's son."
"Yes," Sojourn agreed bemused, watching as Danny walked over to his newly taken husband. "He most certainly is."
"-let you send a letter, at least!"
"Who is letting who do what, now?" Danny smiled as he came up next to his husband, not able to resist drawing him close. They'd spend almost the entire day together, and somehow it still didn't feel nearly enough. Especially knowing that Danny had to leave for the subjugation soon, and that he would be stuck going through reports and appeals for a while after.
Fortunately, his heart didn't seem to mind. He looked at Danny in surprise, but he still leaned into the embrace. "Danny," his heart greeted him, "I see you there. Is it time to leave already?"
"Almost," Danny allowed, "but not yet. Something else came up. Actually, we were just going through the inventory to make sure nothing was forgotten about. And…" Danny turned to look at his brother-in-law, frowning as he considered how to best approach the topic. "Amongst your belongings, you've listed one sword?"
In his arms, his heart tensed. Good. At least one of the brothers could see how that was troubling. The older prince, though, narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, almost defiantly. "Yes? I'm officially Timmy's protection, and that's my favourite sword. What about it?"
"Jason…" Prince Richard looked between Danny and the second prince nervously, before finally turning to face Danny completely. "I'm sure he didn't mean any offence. If it makes you uncomfortable…"
"Uncomfortable, huh?" Danny smiled wryly. Of course it would make him uncomfortable! The thought of there being only one weapon, and for that weapon to be packed away somewhere it couldn't be reached… He almost laughed at the sheer absurdity of it all. Still, he shook his head. "That's not what I'm concerned about. Not mainly, at least. It's more about what that looks like."
"And what, pray tell, does it look like?" Prince Jason challenged again, ignoring the hand of Prince Richard on his shoulder. "Because I think it looks like me taking my sword with me so I can protect my brother. You can't honestly be telling me that's going to be an issue?"
"Jason."
"It's alright," Danny assured the king, though he wasn't sure why he looked that uncomfortable about his son's reaction. It made sense, after all, for him to to be aware how the Children of the Lands would react to finding out the prince had traveled and taken one sword with him. A few weeks ago, the king himself hadn't even known not to ask them to show up unarmed!
Turning back to the Prince Jason, Danny answered: "It's not an issue in and off itself. It's just… Well. You're a Prince of Gotham, and you're brining… your favourite weapon. That'll look a bit…"
Before Danny could find the right word for it - because he was pretty sure calling it pathetic wouldn't be a good idea - the youngest prince drew attention to himself with a considering hum. With a glint in his eye that Danny didn't really know how to interpret, Damian caught Danny's gaze. "So, what would you suggest, then? How many weapons would be appropriate?"
Relieved to be asked to question rather than having to find a tactful way to suggest it himself, Danny smiled. "Hm… Six?" He tilted his head this way and that as he weighed his options. He hadn't ever really thought about something like that, stupidly just assuming that a prince would surely know how many weapons to pack. "Depends on which weapons, really. If it's long range, it should be two different ones and a spare plus ammunition. If you'd prefer something easily hidden, you should have at least five so you can spread them out. If you'd like to stick to swords and such, you should still take four in total, at least. Also, I would suggest not hiding it somewhere in the luggage? It'd be better if you kept at least one on your person at all times. Like I said, being unarmed is… not very appropriate for my people."
Prince Jason blinked at him in surprise, posture shifting somehow. Leaning back, he considered Danny a bit more. "You want me to… add more weapons."
"Yes?" Confused on why this was such a shock to the prince, Danny shrugged. "You don't have to use them if you don't want to. But it'd be good to at least bring them."
"Right." The prince considered this for a second. "And what is the limit?"
Wincing, Danny sighed. "Like I said, four at least. Anything less that that would be a bit…" Pathetic still wasn't the word he should use. "…strange."
"No, I mean-" The prince lowered his arms, gesturing vaguely in the direction of the carriage. "How many at most?"
At most? Not it was Danny's turn to draw a blank. Stunned, he tilted his head. At most. Like, a limit on how many the prince could take with him at most? Was Danny supposed to restrict that? Why?
When the silence stretched too long to be comfortable, Danny finally opted for trying the diplomatic response, rather than questioning Gotham's sanity as a whole. At most…
"Your Highness," Danny began slowly, choosing his words carefully so as to not cause offence, "My people don't believe in restricting the amount of weaponry anyone can carry. Especially considering that you will be staying with us for a while. So… I suppose you can bering however many you own?"
"Huh." The prince considered that for a moment, then nodded. "Alright. I'll… go get a small arsenal to bring and be right back, then."
Glad that the prince had agreed, Danny smiled at him. "Yes," he breathed in relief, "Please do that. And while we're on the topic. My heart?"
"Hm?" The man in question looked up at Danny from where he'd been watching his brother consideringly, "I'm sorry, it would seem I've been lost in thought for a moment."
Yeah, Danny could relate to that. Especially right now, when his husband was blinking up at him in confusion like this. He liked his smart husband a lot, but this sight of him trying to catch up to what was happening was also nice. Cute, really. Danny would have loved to just get lost in thoughts about his husband right now. Well, he would have time for that later.
He also kind of wanted to ask his heart what he'd been thinking about. It was probably something smart and interesting again. But they didn't really have the time for that right now, even if Danny would have loved listening to his husband's little rants at any time of day.
Where were they, again? Ah, right.
"I noticed you didn't have any weapons listed either. I know you have your dagger, since it's attuned to you and will stay with you. But, I mean, you can always have more of your belongings send to you later. Still, since you're moving to the keep, you should probably take at least your favourites with you." He hesitated, realising with dread that if they restricted weapons here there might be a completely different issue, too. "You… do have favourite weapons, right? I mean, you own more than the dagger. Right?"
He must. Surely. There was no way he didn't have any. That'd be… It would be… Things couldn't be that different here.
Chuckling softly at Danny's sudden horror, his heart nodded. "I do own weapons, yes. I have my favourites, too. It's just that I wasn't sure you would be happy for me to bring them. In fact, I figured I'd just get supplied with what I'd need for everyday use in our new home? Since I don't intend to fight any big battles in the near future, I mean."
Relaxing again at the answer, Danny nodded. "It's brave to just take a single weapon, I guess. Still, you should bring whatever you need to feel comfortable. Even if you'd prefer magic weapons, it'd still be better for you to bring the ones you're used to. Familiarity with the weapon would help get acquainted with the magic - and besides, Gothamite weapons are much better forged than the average swords we have back home."
"Uh…" Slowly, his heart nodded. "Right, I remember you saying something like that. And that a certain quality was needed for a weapon to be enchanted safely."
Glad to hear his love remembered that, Danny nodded. "Exactly. So with that in mind, why don't you two go ahead and decide on which weapons to bring together?"
Before his heart or the second prince could answer to that, Ellie called through the crowd: "Hurry it up, everyone! We'll want to be on the road within the next fifteen minutes. Get a move on, or we might get caught up in the next magic wave."
Wincing, Danny smiled at the two of them apologetically. "You should probably hurry."
Nodding, his heart stepped out of Danny's heart. "We'll do that. Jason?"
With that, the two of them hurried across the courtyard towards the armoury. Danny's heart motioned for one of the knights to join them, too, so they would probably make sure everything would be carried to the carriages in time. Good.
Danny turned around to face his father-in-law. The conversation, strange as it had been, made Danny worry about something else, too. "Is that usual here?" he asked carefully, "Not carrying weapons? Or just one, for that matter?"
The king considered Danny for a moment, then cleared his throat. "We don't carry weapons we don't think we will use, no. Especially when traveling for… diplomatic matters like these, it can be seen as a sign of unwarranted aggression. So other than our knights, we don't usually bring many weapons with us. A sword for the road, maybe. Or a few more weapons if we think the journey might be dangerous."
Paling, Danny gaped at the king. Because that was… Wow. Groaning, he buried his face in his hands. "Which means the ambassadors wouldn't think to bring anything either," he surmised. Taking a deep breath, he gathered himself. "Well, that's good to know. I'll have to tell the Guard to adjust accordingly."
Protecting them would be a nightmare. Which was an issue Danny would be all too glad to push onto Fright Knight rather than dealing with it himself. Good thing Danny had retainers.
"I could," the king offered, voice uncharacteristically unsure, "tell them they should come to the Lands armed?"
"Really?!" Whirling back around to the king, Danny was overtaken by gratitude. They would take it a lot better coming from their own king, after all. Danny was so glad to have King Bruce as his father-in-law right now. "Thank you, that would be amazing. Honestly, I've never even considered how to protect someone who doesn't carry a weapon. That must be incredibly stressful for your knights."
It really must be. Danny shuddered at the thought. Suddenly, he found himself with a new respect for the warriors of the South.
"…I'll tell the other kingdoms as well," King Bruce decided, "And the merchants who will visit under the trade agreement."
Immediately, Danny nodded. "Please do that."
The king considered Danny for a moment, then inclined his head. "Hrm."
"If you don't mind me asking, your Majesty?" Prince Duke took half a step forward, to which Danny inclined his head. "We were wondering about the matter of our brother being permitted to-"
"How dare you?!"
Turning around, Danny easily found the source of the enraged outcry. Rain, because of course it was Rain, was glaring at Vine again. Who, of course, had her hand on her blade. Enraged, Danny hissed like a snake at them. Control yourselves. They immediately stepped away from each other again, but Danny didn't trust it.
"Excuse me," he muttered over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off of the two Warriors, "I'd best go deal with that."
He didn't wait for a response before he stalked over to the two Guards, lips already set in a snarl. "I don't know what this is about now," he glowered at them before he'd even reached them, "But I swear to the Ancients, if you don't stop squabbling at every chance I'm going to feed the two of you to the sirens. We just talked about this two days ago! Keep your political differences where they don't interfere with your duties, damnit."
"Not everything is about you," Vine scoffed. She looked chastised at least, though. Clearing her throat, she considered Rain for a moment. "Well, whatever. It's not worth getting angry over."
As she stalked off, Danny turned to Rain. The boy winced guiltily, bowing his head in apology. "I'm sorry, High Chief. We didn't mean to let it get out of hand," he muttered, "Like she said, it was a personal matter."
Danny hummed, considering Rain. He'd looked pretty angry just now. And, sure, he was emotional in general. But he didn't usually get into arguments over nothing. "What kind of personal matters?"
Rain winced. "She said I should trust… your brother more, and then made a comment about what happened to mine. So I said something about her wife and- It was stupid. And it won't happen again."
"You're right," Danny sighed, "That was stupid. I'll talk to her, though. She had no right to talk badly about River, he's one of the best Warriors I know."
Offering a smile, Rain shook his head. "No need. Thank you, though. I appreciate it."
"I'm not sure we should be doing something like this…"
Dan sighed, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "It's our job to make sure everything is here," he told Iver as he closed the bag again, "And for that we have to look and see whether everything is here. Ergo, we absolutely should be doing this."
"Yes, but still. Rummaging through the High Lord's things is just…"
"Look," Dan sighed, turning around to look at the young Warrior, "We're opening the bags and checking then against a list. It's not like we're going through every single item. Nor are we rummaging, for that matter. We have a list of what should be here. We're just making sure nothing gets left behind. I get why you'd feel uncomfortable with it, but we're not infringing on his privacy. It's just… Two bags of winter clothes, one chest of summer clothes, box with shoes, box with books, chest full of writing utensils - for some reason - and chest with tea sets, all there." Pointing at the corresponding luggage as he listed it, Dan shrugged.
Iver winced again. "It still feels rude, though."
"Well, Rain, I'm not sure what to tell you. It's just…" Turning around, Dan was surprised to see a small person push back behind a tree. Badly, mind you. The dress was still sticking out, and since it was bright pink it didn't really blend into the greenery of the court yard. Huh. Dan knew that tiny human.
"Vine?" Hearing the woman approach him at his call, Dan passed his list to her. "Here. Make sure the rest is also here, will you? I'll go over there for a bit."
He didn't wait for her to finish her agreement before he took off. Behind him, he could hear Vine scoff at Rain. "You really shouldn't question him so much, you know? He is the Head of the Army."
"Wha- I wasn't! I was just…"
Not bothering on that conversation, Dan wrapped his knuckles to knock against the tree, then crouched down to be at eye hight with the girl hiding there. Shyly, the black-haired princess bowed around the tree to look at him. After a moment or two, she came out to look at Dan properly.
"Hello there, Princess," Dan smiled at her, heart swelling at the grin he got in reply. "What're you doing here?" Looking around, Dan couldn't find Prince Roy anywhere. Strange. "Shouldn't you be with your father?"
"No," she grinned, "I'm supposed to be having a nap because I said I was all tired from the dancing yesterday. But I snuck out to come see you instead. Shh!"
Laughing at the way she pressed a finger against his lip, Dan nodded. He tried to look serious, but he wasn't sure whether he managed at all. "No tattling, go it."
It was worth it for the way she beamed at him. Cute. Was this how Danny felt when he looked at Ellie? Because it would make complete sense why he was such a sucker for her then. How was anyone supposed to say no to that? That just wasn't fair. Would Danny's children be just as adorable? Dan hoped not. He had a strong feeling he would be on babysitting duty whenever Danny decided he needed time alone with his husband to be all sappy, and he didn't want his babysitting privileges revoked for being unable to deny the little tyke anything. That'd be just embarrassing.
Absolutely possible, though, with how cute children apparently were.
"Why did you come see us, though?" Dan tilted his head, glancing back at the carriage. "It's all boring adult stuff here. Counting boxes and things like that."
The girl hummed, swaying back and forth on her feet nervously. "Daddy said you're leaving now," she mumbled, "And that you're taking uncle Jay and Prince Timmy with you. Are you?"
Ah. Wincing, Dan glanced back towards his siblings. He probably wasn't the best person to be having this conversation. But Danny seemed a bit preoccupied with the in-laws at the-
"How dare you?!"
-same moment as with their idiot Warriors, apparently. And Ellie was in charge of everything, so she didn't really have time right now, either. Which meant, he had to do his best. But, hey, his conversation with King Oliver had gone well! He wasn't as bad at this as he used to be anymore. So… There was that. Right?
"We are," Dan agreed, turning back to face the wide, brown eyes in front of him, "But Jason will come back after a bit. He'll just come and learn a few things from us, and then he'll be back before you know it."
"Not Prince Timmy, though?"
Oh no. She seemed sad now. How did you deal with a child being sad? Not ask them to fight you, probably. Uhm… Give them things?
Panicking, Dan grabbed the first thing he could reach in his pouch and shoved it towards the child. "Here!"
Seemingly confused, she took it. It was a few petals of a moon flower, apparently. Huh. He hadn't even known he'd still had those in there.
Clearing his throat, Dan nodded his chin towards the small pendant. "It's made from my favourite flower. It can't really do anything, but it glows in the dark. And when you punch someone in the face with it hard enough, they go to sleep."
The child blinked. "Daddy says anyone goes to sleep if you punch them hard enough with anything in the face."
What? What was Prince Roy teaching his daughter? She was, what, three? Four? Two? Dan had honestly no idea how old children that size were. But still, that seemed awfully early for combat training.
Seeing his confusion, the girl shrugged. "Daddy is a mech-sen-ah-ry. He makes a lot of bad people go to sleep. I can't always come with, though. I have to stay with grandpa."
"A mercenary? I thought he was a crown prince?" Wait, not the point. Shaking his head to get back on track, Dan smiled at the child. "Anyways, you don't have to be sad, alright? You can come visit us all the time. Your father can take you."
"Mh. Danny said that, too." Princess Lian considered him for a while. "Daddy says it's dangerous. Because Danny doesn't like grandpa much. Why not?"
Okay, children were insanely adorable and also incredibly skilled at asking uncomfortable questions. Noted for future babysitting duties.
Sighing, Dan leaned back on his heels. How could he answer this without harming her image of her grandfather? Because even if Dan thought Danny could stand to be a bit more angry at the man, Dan also didn't think the king deserved that. He didn't want to lie, though.
The truth, though… Dan winced. It wasn't a pretty story. Not the kind you would tell to a child.
They weren't his own memories, just the echoes of Danny's buried somewhere in his mind at the moment he sprung into existence. But they were there, a part of Dan as much as his heart or his arm. So Dan did remember that week spend in front of the city gates, remembered calling out Oliver's name. Screaming and begging to be at least heard out. It'd been the rainy season just after the summer heat wave, and the townsfolk had been rallied against Danny so there'd been things thrown at him, too. But Dan remembered how Danny had sat there, still yelling and begging for Oliver because he'd believed his cousin would come and help him. Tell him what to do.
Oliver had never shown his face. Instead, he'd only send a cold message to tell Danny that he wasn't part of the family anymore and that Oliver had no intention of ever seeing him again. Dan vividly remembered the betrayal Danny had felt, the shock and grief when even Oliver had turned away from him.
They used to be so close. Oliver used to tell Danny and Jazz things he wouldn't admit to anyone else, and he used to cheer Danny up whenever things seemed bleak. It had made the betrayal all the more agonising for Danny when it had come.
"Your grandpa and Danny are family," Dan finally answered, "Cousins. Or, well, they used to be. The loved each other a lot, you know? Played together and had sleepovers, all that fun stuff. But then Danny got hurt and he asked your grandpa for help. And your grandpa said no."
The frown on the princess' face was confused more than anything else. "Why not? Grandpa helps lots when you ask him. Even people he doesn't know much. Why didn't he help Danny?"
If anything happens, Dan remembered Oliver telling Danny, just survive. I'll come safe you, okay? So I don't care how you do it, just survive until I get there.
He hadn't come when Danny had been kidnapped into the Cursed Lands. But Danny had still hung on to that promise desperately, even after his mother and the former king had cursed him out and banned him from the town. Right up until Oliver had told him to give up. And he hadn't even bothered to do it himself.
Now, all Dan could do was smile sadly and offer a helpless shrug.
"I guess he didn't know how," Dan offered, "Or maybe Danny did something to make him very angry." Because a blessing couldn't be undone, and because apparently having one meant Danny wasn't human anymore. Shaking those thoughts from his head, Dan smiled at the innocent little girl.
"Maybe he didn't hear him?" Princess Lian guessed, looking honestly puzzled, "Because there's no way grandpa didn't help his family. Not on purpose."
Right. There had been a time when Danny had been sure of that, too. And look where that had gotten him.
"Maybe," Dan still said, not intending to get between King Oliver and his family, "Anyways, that was a really long time ago. Your grandpa probably doesn't even remember it. And who knows? Maybe he would help Danny now, if something like that happened again."
"He will!" Princess Lian looked so sure of it that it broke Dan's heart a bit. "And maybe Danny and grandpa can make up again. They can talk with each other. Grandpa can say sorry and give Danny lots of hugs to make it better."
Danny might just actually kill a man for one more hug from Oliver, Dan thought bitterly. Dan didn't intend to get involved in what was going on between Danny and the king, but he also thought the man didn't deserve the loyalty Danny still had for him. Even on the days he was angry about it, Danny would light up hearing just one rumour that he was doing well.
No matter how many times he denied both, Dan knew that Danny was neither over it nor had he ever stoped considering Oliver family. And while Dan thought the whole thing should stay in the past where it didn't matter anymore, it hurt to see Danny suffer like that.
"Well, one day perhaps," he finally mused, though he doubted that it would ever happen, "Maybe if he reaches out and makes it up to Danny." The kid's smile broke Dan's heart all over again. "Now, how about we get you back to your father, hm? I'm sure he's worried about you."
Jason and Tim were quick in getting any weapons they thought might come in handy. In the end, each one of them had one crate to be loaded onto the carriage and their usuals spread across their bodies. It'd been a surprise to hear Danny's issue with Jason bringing his sword had been that it was too little. For a moment, he'd actually thought he would have to stop a fight between his husband and brother right there in the court yard.
Danny's reactions hadn't given him quite that much of an adrenaline boost in a while now.
In the end, though, they had managed to get everything in order. And even within the time limit Elle had given them. Which was good, because while Tim had no idea what being caught up in a magic wave would entail, he was sure he did not want that. At all. Especially not if it was avoidable.
With the weapons stored away, Tim and Jason returned to their family one last time before their departure.
"Take care of yourselves," Bruce whispered, hugging both of them close, "Don't make them angry, learn what you can, and if it becomes too much then don't worry about us or Gotham and just run."
"And ask him about the letters," Dick added as he gave his own farewell hugs. "Duke was interrupted earlier, so we couldn't."
Surprised, Tim looked over at his newest brother. Duke just shrugged. "I thought he would probably be less likely to get angry if I asked. Since we could've just blamed my lacking etiquette lessons. It's not like I've had a lot of those yet, and he doesn't seem like the type to get angry over mistakes. Not if you didn't know better."
Tim could tell by the way Bruce winced that he, too, was thinking about the incident about unarmed meetings in the Watchtower. He'd thought the same as Duke then, tentative hope budding somewhere in the back of his mind. Now, he knew it for sure, a steadying kind of security he could cling onto.
"He's not," Tim confirmed outwardly, "And besides, he has claimed all of us as his clan, remember? With the potential of being claimed as family, even. Even if he has not stated it outright, you know he assured us that we are under his protection now. So I highly doubt he would allow something to happen to us. Even if he does get angry."
"Kind to his people and merciless to his enemies," Bruce mused with a wry smile upon his lips, "I do hope that keeps proving true. Still, just to be safe, remember that we will help if you need it."
"You have a duty to Gotham, Bruce," Tim reminded him, not unkindly but still firm, "You cannot prioritise the two of us over the entire kingdom. But for what it's worth, I do believe you won't have to chose."
Not now, when Danny had claimed them through Tim being his husband, and High Chief Phantom had his assurance of their compliance by way of a prince bound to him. Because that was all Danny had wanted when he'd proposed the marriage, after all: Assurance.
Tim could tell that his family didn't quite believe him. Except for Damian, who watched Tim carefully before offering a nod. "I will see you within the next year, Timothy," he decided, "If you do not wish for me to traverse the Infinite Lands, then you should best find a way to visit Gotham again."
Snorting, Jason ruffled Damian's hair. Much to the kid's chagrin. "Yeah, yeah. Love ya, too, kid."
"I-"
"Is everyone ready?" Ellie looked around, getting nods of confirmation from the Warriors and her brothers. Sojourn was perched on the carriage with their luggage, looking as comfortable as though he were lounging on a sofa. Canopy didn't answer, just swung herself onto one of the horses, vines growing from her hands into a harness.
When Tim looked back from them to Bruce, his father had a sudden look of panic on his face. It was obvious that he was not ready at all, that there were still many things to say.
Tim didn't mind that his father couldn't find the words again. In leu of some pretty parting words, he threw his arms around Bruce in a tight hug. "I love you, Dad, and we'll see each other again."
With that, Tim nodded at his sister-in-law as well, climbing into the carriage. He could see Jason hugging their family as well, though he couldn't make out what they were saying.
As soon as Jason had closed the door of the carriage, Danny let out three short thrills. As one, their group started to move. The guards opened the heavy gates onto the street, where Gothamites had gathered to see their two princes off.
Tim left the capital of Gotham accompanied by cheers and banners, hundreds of their citizens yelling their well-wishes and how they would never forget him. Phantom, he noticed, wasn't even being looked at. As though the Gothamites had agreed on a silent protest of some sort. Still, Danny didn't seem bothered by it, and so Tim leaned out of the window to wave at his people, happy to know he would be missed.
Once the city gates passed them by, he leaned back into his seat to close his eyes. One chapter of his life was over now, probably forever. But it wasn't as bleak as he'd imagined it would be at first. After all, a new one was just beginning.
"Are you leaving for the Keep?"
Doing her best not to snarl at the slimy voice, Dorothea turned around to face the source of it. Unfortunately, the one who had made the unpleasant noise was even less pleasant. "Plasmius. Didn't Danny command you to stay in your region?"
The man only smiled at her, arms opening wide. "Oh, but I am. See? Not one foot across the border."
Looking down, he was unfortunately right. It really was a curse to be in charge of the region right next to that man's small one. But technically, the newly established Amity region did only begin with the road Dorothea was currently traveling on.
Unable to actually prove he was doing something wrong again, she sighed. Tersely, she asked: "Are you here just to be irritating? Or did you actually want something? Other than being a general pest, I mean."
"Now, now," Plasmius chuckled, one hand going up to stroke his pointy beard, "There's no need for that tone. I admit that Phantom and I have had our differences-" He ignored her scoff entirely. "-but one thing you cannot deny is that I have always been loyal to these Lands."
"You are loyal to yourself," Dorothea scoffed, "You betrayed your home to follow Pariah Dark around like a lost puppy, and once he was of no use to you anymore you dropped him like he was a hot piece of coal. Don't tell lies like that, it's unbecoming of a Chief."
Sighing as though he was disappointed but with a bemused smirk still on his very punchable face, Plasmius raised his hands. "Alright. I won't try to persuade you of my good intentions any more. I was just going to ask you to give the new High Lord my best, and to offer him my clan sigil. Since I'm not able to pay him my respects myself."
Raising an eyebrow when the man did offer her his sigil, Dorothea hoped she conveyed exactly what she was thinking. Plasmius only laughed at her, though, and pressed it into her hand against her will.
"Now, my dear. Prince Timothy is a good man. I quite like him. And I think the rest of the council might, too." He shrugged, almost nonchalant but not quite. "He will be good for the Lands, I'm sure."
"Your manipulation is not working on me," she flatly informed him, even as she pocketed the item. To her surprise, Plasmius looked honestly confused for a split moment. It was so quick, she was sure he had tried to hide the emotion.
"Ah. I see why you would think that. But no, not this time. He is a good man. Honestly. And while I admit to having my own…" He tilted his head, a smirk blooming on his lips. "Let's call them hopes, shall we? Still, I do believe he will be a good High Lord. Better than his husband is, at least. Though I would love to see the waves he will create with my own eyes…"
He chuckled into his hand as though the whole situation was amusing. Dorothea made a show of turning the small drake she was riding on back around and restarting the journey Plasmius had so rudely interrupted. He called something after he, some outraged words about how she was being rude to just cut him off. She didn't care at all.
Seriously. What had Plasmius even tried to accomplish with that? It was obviously some type of provocation. Had he meant to make Dorothea question Danny's decision? She doubted it. Something to make trouble for Danny, at least.
Then again, it was strange that he was talking so fondly about the new High Lord. After all, Plasmius only took care of himself. If something or someone wasn't of use to him, he didn't like them. As a rule of thumb, if Plasmius was for something you should probably be against it. And now that man was not only taking the new High Lord's side but even to the point of officially aligning himself with him? After everything he had done to avoid joining Danny's faction?
The sigil seemed to burn a hole through her pocket, a direct opposite to the one she wore as a pendant around her neck. Not even she had given her clan sigil to anyone, even though she was one of Danny's earliest and more loyal supporters. And wasn't Plasmius a noble from somewhere in the South originaly?
No. No, this was exactly what Plasmius wanted. This doubt would only benefit him.
His clan sigil, though? That was a serious matter. Not even that man would trifle with something like that, he was way too cunning for such a recklessly stupid move.
…Maybe she should be a bit weary of the new High Lord, after all. Only a bit. Just in case.
She would consult with the other Chiefs once she arrived in the Keep.