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English
Series:
Part 1 of First Impressions
Collections:
Batfam Week 2023, Bookaroo's Bookshelves
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Published:
2023-03-26
Words:
1,752
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1/1
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87
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1,513
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146
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Special Delivery

Summary:

Bruce and 8-year old Dick are at a fancy party and Janet Drake goes into labor. Bruce and Dick have to deliver baby Tim.

or:
Me: I just want to play a little in the canon sandbox
Reality: *immediately starts throwing sand everywhere in a wild frenzy*

This is the first story for Batfamily week and each story will be about the first time Tim Drake meets a member of the Batfamily, a Bat-friend, or a Bat-villian. This is the first time Tim meets Bruce and Dick. I'm uploading a story each day for all seven days of Batfamily week.

Batfamily week Day 1:
Family 101
Accidental Baby Acquisition| Parenthood | “I wanted to be like you…”

Notes:

I'm so excited about this AU! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! This story was inspired by my sister saying "You keep making Tim younger and younger each story. Soon Tim's going to meet the Batfmily as a fetus." Challenge accepted ;)
No trigger warning. Janet gives birth but everything is from Dick's childlike perspective so there's nothing gross. I promise.

(See the end of the work for more notes and other works inspired by this one.)

Work Text:

“C’mon, Bruuuce! I don’t wanna go to this stupid party. I wanna punch the Joker.”

Eight-year-old Dick holds up his fists and starts punching the air, rocking from left to right, like he’s dodging an attack. He continues sparing with his imaginary enemy, until Bruce holds up his palm to give Dick a real target to focus on.

Dick throws a few practice punches at Bruce’s hand, and Bruce sighs.

“The valet is parking the car. The time to go home has passed.” He lowers his voice, even though no one is around, and uses his Batman tone. “Gotham needs us as her soldiers most nights, but tonight she needs us to be Bruce and Dick. The suits we are wearing tonight are just as important as our other suits.”

Dick freezes mid punch and tilts his head to think. After a moment, his eyebrows scrunch together.

“That’s dumb. The real reason I’m going to this party is because you said so.”

“The reason we’re going to this party is because Alfred said so,” Bruce says with a chuckle.

Dick takes Bruce’s hand as they walk inside.

“Well, next time tell Alfie he needs to come with us. When he sees how horrible it is, he’ll never make us go to any more parties ever again.” He squeezes Bruce’s hand and whispers, “The only good thing about the party is that you’re here.”

“Thanks, Chum.”

After an hour, Dick’s opinion has slightly changed. Bruce is still the best part of the party, but the mini potato puffs are a close second. The lady that comes by with the tray is really nice too. She lets Dick take a handful off the tray each time she comes by, and she smiles at him when he tells her they taste yummy.

Dick is chewing on his tenth mini potato puff and telling Bruce about the differences between clay and slime when a man shouts from across the ballroom.

“I need help. My wife is going into labor. Is there a doctor here?”

Dick tugs on Bruce’s jacket sleeve.

“B, that’s our neighbor Mr. Drake, right?”

Bruce grunts an affirmative “Hn,” but he’s already striding across the room. Dick has to run to keep pace with Bruce’s speedwalking.

When Bruce and Dick reach Jack Drake, Bruce is bordering on his Batman voice.

“Where’s your wife, Jack?” he asks.

Jack points at the woman’s restroom. Bruce nods and continues, but he switches to his Brucie Wayne voice.

“I’m not a doctor, but I went to Med school for a time when I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps. I dropped out before I graduated, but I know enough to help before the ambulance arrives. I need you to tell the kitchen staff to bring towels and a pot of hot water.”

Jack Drake nods nervously and jogs toward the kitchen.

Bruce turns to Dick and kneels down.

“I need you to help me with this Dick. This party is in an extremely remote location. I’d estimate the quickest time help could arrive is approximately an hour and twenty-three minutes, and that estimated time frame is quite generous. We may have to deliver this baby right here in the restroom.”

“Yay!” Dick says.

“Not quite what I was thinking, Chum.” Bruce stands back up. “C’mon, let’s assess the situation. We treat this just like any other mission.”

“Yes sir. Do you think Mrs. Drake will let me name the baby?”

“Focus,” Bruce says with a tone stern enough to stop Dick’s next question.

When they enter the restroom the first area is the powder room, furnished with giant mirrors, plush chairs, and a couch. There’s a door that separates this first room from the actual room with the toilets. Dick is hit with the smell of roses and the wall-to-wall soft pink glow.

Dick spins on his heel to face Bruce and he whisper shouts, “The girls have couches in here! Did you know that? We don’t have couches and it doesn’t smell like flowers. Our restrooms smell like—.”

Bruce gives Dick a Bat-glare and Dick bites his lip. Bruce told him to focus, but it’s hard. There are so many things to look at. There are pictures on the wall and a pile of scented soaps and lotions by the mirror. There’s a vase with real roses, but the diffuser next to the roses is most likely the real source of the pleasant rose scented aroma.

Dick takes a deep breath and taps his thumbs and forefingers together until he can manage to block out the distractions. Bruce taught him to do this when there’s too many things to focus on. It only takes a few seconds and a few deep breaths, but in that time, Bruce has cleared out the room and is kneeling on the floor next to Janet Drake.

He’s holding her hand and telling her something that Dick can’t hear.

Dick shakes his head until the words around him are sharp again and catches the end of Bruce’s sentence.

“—oing to be fine. I have enough medical training to get us both through this.”

Janet grits her teeth, “Medical training? Give me a break. Gotham U is a party school. I would know. I went there too!” She cuts herself off as she cries out in pain. When the pain lets up, she groans, “Let’s hope your father’s medical skills are genetic. If my baby comes out with three heads, I’m suing you.”

Dick kneels down next to Bruce.

“Hi, Miss Janet.”

“Who’s this?” Janet asks, eying Dick.

“I’m your nurse,” Dick says with a smile.

Bruce clears his throat, “Just relax, Janet. I need to see how far you’re dilated. I need to take off your underwear.”

“You’re a professional at that step, Playboy,” Janet mumbles.

Bruce points for Dick to scoot over next to Janet. Dick is more than happy to have an angle where he doesn’t need to see where babies pop out of.

Dick holds Janet’s hand and helps her with what Bruce calls ‘Lamaze breathing.’ When the contraction come, she almost breaks Dick’s hand a few times, but he puts on his Robin game face and smiles, reassuring her everything is going to be okay.

During a brief moment when Janet isn’t yelling in pain or complaining, Dick asks, “Whatcha gonna name your baby?”

“Timothy,” Janet sighs. “Timothy Jackson Drake. That’s the strong name of a future CEO. A titan of business. He’ll run the family business one day.”

After that predication, she goes back to squeezing Dick’s hand and yelling.

Dick wipes her forehead off with a towel when she gets sweaty, and he fans her with a menu when she complains that she’s too hot.

Bruce finally announces that the baby is starting to come out and Dick tries not to say ew out loud. Janet is screaming loud enough to hurt Dick’s ears because he’s right there, but his hands are too busy being crushed to be available for covering his ears.

“One more push, Janet,” Bruce coaches.

“You can do it Miss Janet,” Dick says.

Her final scream is the loudest and Dick’s ears are ringing so loudly he can barely hear the new baby crying.

Dick’s ears clear just in time to hear Bruce say wistfully, “Hello, Timmy. Welcome to the world, little man.”

Janet is holding onto Dick’s hand so he’s the first to notice when things go wrong. Her vice grip suddenly loosens to no-grip and her body goes as limp as her hand.

“Miss Janet?”

Her limp body starts to move but instead of consciousness, she starts seizing.

“Dad!” Dick yells.

Dick is grateful that Bruce had cleared out the restroom right at the start of the birth. It’s a lot easier for Dick to get into Batman and Robin mode when it’s just the two of them. Well, the two of them plus a one-minute old baby and the baby’s seizing mother.

“Get her in the recovery position!”

Dick can almost hear the silent Robin at the end of that sentence.

He eases Mrs. Drake onto her side and arranges her in the recovery position, but she’s still shaking. Dick is shaking at this point too.

“It’s alright, Dick,” Bruce says. “I need to take care of Janet. Hold the baby for me. Timothy needs skin to skin contact so open your shirt and put him against your chest.”

Dick is glad that he doesn’t wear his Robin suit under his clothes like Superman does.

Dick cuddles the baby and Timmy’s still kind of gooey, but he’s also really cute. Dick takes everything back about wanting a puppy. He wants a Timmy.

Timmy coos as he squirms against Dick’s chest and Dick wraps a towel around the baby’s back to keep him warm.

He whispers in Timmy’s ear, “That’s Batman and I’m Robin. Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Dick holds onto baby Timmy until Janet regains consciousness. He’s about to hand the baby back, but Bruce shakes his head, “I’m not done.”

“There’s another baby in there?” Dick asks. That would be so cool. Unless Timmy’s mom has another seizure. That would definitely not be cool.

Bruce clears his throat, “Um, no. I need to… she has to deliver the um, the afterbirth.”

Dick can tell by the look on Bruce’s face that he doesn’t want to know what that is.

Dick looks down at Timmy and let’s Janet and Bruce do whatever they have to do without him. Timmy makes a gurgling sound and Dick moves him away from his chest so he can see why the baby has decided now is an appropriate time to blow bubbles. When Timmy is at arm’s length (Dick makes sure to keep one hand supporting the baby’s head) he can see the baby’s creepy pale blue eyes looking back at him.

“You’re a weird baby,” Dick says.

Timmy predictably does not answer.

“But I still love you,” Dick adds with a grin. “When you grow up, we’re gonna have so much fun together. Bruce delivered you so I think that makes you my little brother.”

“That’s not how it works, Chum,” Bruce says.

“So then how does it work? How do you become a daddy and how are babies made, B?” Dick asks with a mischievous smile.

“Ask Alfred when we get home,” Bruce grunts, and goes back to being a Bat-doctor.

Dick looks at little Timmy and whispers, “Don’t listen to Grumpy. I’m your big brother. We’re family now.”

 

 

Notes:

Young Dick is adorable. I kept picturing little Dick from the Wayne Family Adventures comic when he kept poking Poision Ivy's flower! Tomorrow Tim meets Robin (Jason) on his tenth birthday.
Thank you so much for reading and please let me know what you thought about the story. I love comments! (comments on spelling errors are always appreciated)
One quick note: I know that I've seen a tumblr post or there was a line in a story or something that had a head cannon that Dick and Bruce were there when Tim was born. I looked EVERYWHERE for it and can't find it. If anyone knows please let me know and if I just imagined it please disregard this note lol.
**Edit** The story I was thinking of was Under a Parent’s Wing by IzzyMRDB. Thank you so much to everyone that commented that. You guys are the best!

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