Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Claire loves rocks, to the point where Alfred has put a limit on how many rocks she can bring into the manor each day. The once healthy coping method of collecting rocks became an unhealthy one when Dick and Claire came back to patrol and when she was emptying her pockets the family discovered that she had stashed over 100 of them throughout her suit. That was the moment that the rock limit for Claire was set. So Claire began to hide them on the other vigilantes each night, as a loophole for Bruce’s and Alfred's rules. Now the limit was 5 per person in the manor, per night. The compromise was a hard one to reach.

Now that she was spending her weekends with Dick in New York, while on his undercover assignment, the rock limit only applied to the manor, so most of Claire's precious crystals and stones have found homes in June's house or Neal's apartment.

Peter is endlessly confused by the amount of rocks he finds during each inspection. Each time he asks Neal he refuses to elaborate on the strange obsession. Dick tries in a true bat-Fashion to answer in the most comical and different way each time Peter asks. His favorites include…

“The Rocks keep the demons away.”
“I sometimes eat them as a treat”
“A genie tricked me”
“A penguin keeps trying to earn my love back.”

Peter questioned the Penguin statement. Neal shrugged and said “when in Gotham avoid the crime bosses” this obviously left Peter with more questions than answers. But the rock problem officially came to a boiling point when Peter had to pick up Neal on a weekend for a case that had gone into overtime.

The case in question took Peter away from his precious weekend of spending time with his lovely wife and watching the Baseball games on the DVR that were previously missed due to other long work days. That dream was abruptly ruined when the coffee kicked in and the crime scene in front of the pair came into their sight ahead on the road. The Met Cloisters museum had a break in that was stopped before anything could be taken, but the perpetrators had gotten away with chaos made with the distraction of a fake bomb.

Neal and Peter walked in-step up to the front entrance. As they passed an information table Dick swiped a brochure. He began to skim through the pamphlet when he saw something in his peripherals, turning to look, only to come up with an empty hallway to his right, and a hall full of the FBI to the left.

Peter, not noticing Neal pausing in the middle of his step, continued over to the police tape and began to duck under it. A city officer, in charge of securing the scene, stopped Peter. “Can I see some identification sir?”

Peter reached into his jacket pocket, only to come up empty handed. Digging further he discovered two round flat rocks in his badges place. “Neal…” Peter all but growled out. Dick popped up behind the agent. “Yes Peter?” Dick replied, Peter held up his hand and showed Neal the rocks. While the men began to bicker over the missing badge, the officer looked awkwardly between the Agent and CI. That made the Officer the only one to notice a young female, maybe 16 or 17 years old, sneak up from behind and pull out an FBI badge of one Peter Burke, and handed it over. The officer warily took it from her.

The officer raised his eyebrows at the teen, and she responded with a shrug.

Dick had known who stole his friend's badge, he knew from the moment he recognized who he saw in the corner of his eye what was going to happen. Dick did not know however why Claire came over early this weekend. But based on the two rocks in Agent Burke's pockets, he knew Claire approved of the man.

Finally Peter looked away from Neal and their short lived argument, and saw what the officer was holding, then he followed the other man's gaze over to a new person, who once Neal acknowledged the teen, she then stepped closer to the CI and thunked her head into Dicks arm, asking in her own way for a hug. Dick latched onto Claire and pulled her into an octopus hug.
“Neal, who is this? And where did she get my badge?” Peter's eyebrows were raised so high on his face, they were becoming a part of his fading hairline.
Claire Mimicked Peter's posture, and copied his wild gestures during his new interrogation. During this she took the opportunity to step closer to Peter, and a few more rocks found their way into his pants pockets.

“Well Peter! Didn’t I tell you that many of my amazing talents are found throughout the Caffrey family tree?”

Nothing could ever take Peter by surprise anymore. From this point forward, nothing that Neal ever did or says could top the fact that Caffrey has an unknown family, of an unknown size that all share their criminal ways.

Neal Had to be a part of a crime family. How has this never pinged the FBI radar?

While these thoughts were racing through Peter's head, the scene could be described in detail. But an easier way is to compare Peters reaction to the recent viral videos of Mitch McConnell freezing.

The officer spoke up and broke Peter from the shock. “Sir if this is your badge you are welcome to view the scene, but the museum requested that your CI not be allowed in.” the officer gulped, “and this young woman must stay out as well.”

Peter nodded, and motioned Neal to stay put. “You catch up with-”
“Claire” Dick provided
“-Claire, and you better give me a good reason for her presence here when I get back.” Peter pointed to the pair and signaled that he would be watching them. Only to pause before he crossed the room, sighed, felt his pockets and walked back to Claire.
He took multiple small stones out of his pockets, Claire held out her hand and Peter returned the stones. Then turned abruptly and left before they could be slid into another pocket of Peter’s.

“Damn Caffrey, he is going to be the death of me, and my career.”

Chapter Text

Now that Peter left Claire and Dick to view the crime scene, they could talk freely. “So Birdie, when did you start to follow us?” 

Dick studied the sight of the girl he began to see as his daughter. Claire simply shrugged as a response, instead preferring to pull out a handful of stones from her pants pockets. Claire then bee-lined towards a nearby table and began to line each of the rocks up, in order of size.  

Dick remembered when Claire first had come to live with the family at the manor. It was a battle to find civilian clothes that Claire would wear. Alfred made it his personal task to make Claire feel comfortable in the new freedoms of clothing she could wear. Soon Claire's picky habits were too much for one person, and Stephanie pledged her spare time to the former talons wardrobe. 

Because of Steph’s efforts, Claire had found practical use with wearing cargo pants. Steph first thought of the idea when she witnessed Claire utilizing the pockets on Jason’s clothing. She traded one of his many guns for rocks and stashed the weapon in a still unknown location. It was fine until Jason needed that gun while on patrol. When he found the rocks instead of the gun, he had to chuck them at Mr. Freeze to make a clean escape. An irritated Red Hood throwing rocks at villains made Stephine decide to order Claire her own wardrobe full of the magical pants.

These cargo pants couldn’t be separated from the girl now. Dick smiled fondly at the kid, he was standing in a way to both, keep an eye out for Peter and watch Claire closely. Once the rocks have been counted Claire organized them back into the respective pockets. Opening a previously unopened one, she pulled out a piece of paper and after a quick glance, threw it over her shoulder. Dick moved forward and knelt down to scoop it up. 

“Birdie, did you forget to give me something?”

Claire's eyes shifted and then her focus turned back to the stones. Dick unfolded the paper as Peter ducked back under the tape and marched over to Neal. 

“I've found three more of these- '' He scowled and motioned for Claire to take back the rocks. “In place of my car keys and phone.” Claire emptied her pocket that contained the stolen items. Car keys, phone, and his personal wallet were returned to the owner. Peter then directed his next words to Neal “Great, a mini version of you.”

“She learned that from having too many girl’s days with the Birds” 

“Birds?” Peter questioned.

“Birds of Prey, ya know, the all female vigilante group based in Gotham. One of my childhood friends hangs with them.” Dick stated, accidentally letting his Neal Caffery facade slip. Dick started walking to the exit while sliding Claires paper into his pocket. Peter trailed behind him, processing the many bombshells that Neal had just dropped. “Neal, your childhood friend, does she run in the same circles you did?” Peter questioned “Because I think I know what you are insinuating.”

As the trio exited the building they walked up to Agents Diana Berrigan and Clinton Jones. Their attention shifted to the shadow behind the usual sight of the unlikely partners. 

“What’s Neal insinuating?” Diana spoke up. 

Claire immediately took a liking to Diana. Her traits reminded Claire of Barbra. Smart, sly and brave. She stepped up and stood right behind Dick, peaking over his shoulder. 

“Peter thinks that I know Catwoman.” Neal replied using his charming voice to make the statement sound outlandish. Claire smirked, Peter observed the young girl. The similarities exhibited between the pair were not hard to see. They were clearly family. 

“I mean she does work with B often, and is basically Claire's godmother. But she is pretty much retired now.” Dick rambled. The shocked faces from his FBI friends made him stop. Peter was stunned. 

“Neal, before you say anything else that will incriminate you, it's the weekend and this case can wait until it's over.” 

Neal nodded, and Diana and Clinton both agreed to Peter's choice. 

“Lunch at my apartment? I was thinking about pizza, since one of the only shops where Claire can eat without getting sick is in my radius.” Neal suggested. 

“I have no other plans.” Diana shrugged and replied. Clinton also agreed to the offer. 

“El is away this weekend, and I need to know why Claire is even here. I guess I'll come along.” Peter headed towards his car.

Peter Burke loved the excitement of solving a mystery. Maybe it was all of the detective shows and movies watched as a child that carried the love for the chase and fueled Peter to rise through the ranks of the FBI. Claire was a new mystery. Who was she and how was she close enough to his CI to immediately break down all of the walls that Peter could see that separated Neal and his true self?

Clinton and Diana both drove to the museum in a separate vehicle, so they planned to pick up the lunch while Peter, Neal, and Claire first went back to the office to file the initial report about the robbery. 

Closing the car door, Peter walked in front of the hood and towards the building. Neal followed right behind. When Peter turned back to the car to lock the vehicle, Claire was nowhere to be seen. The young girl disappeared. 

“Neal Where did she go?” Peter questioned

Dick was not worried about Claire's habits of wandering. She could easily take care of herself. He would not be surprised if she wasn’t carrying at least three knives, two wing-dings and/or bat-arangs. The only worry he had was for anyone who dared mess with her. 

Shrugging Dick followed behind Peter, through the entryway and into the elevator. Peter looked up at the ceiling of the elevator, noticing that one of the lights was out. Pressing the button and sending the car upwards, Peter turned to Neal. 

“Can I ask how Claire is related to you?”

“I guess you can. Claire showing up at the museum, basically told me that I could trust each of you. You, Diana, and Clinton and let you in on some things. Peter was about to question the statement, but the elevator dinged with the arrival of the desired floor. Turning to the opening door, and ready to step out, Peter then came face to face with Claire. 

During the time Dick and Peter were in the elevator, Claire had climbed the many sets of stairs and had beat them up there. Peter just raised his eyebrows in shock and brushed past the girl, headed to his office. Neal patted Claire's shoulder and followed the agent.

Everyone in the bullpen watched the trio as they walked through the aisle of desks and up the short set of stairs to Peter’s office. When they passed Neal’s desk Peter watched as Claire stopped, and set down a larger black and blue rock onto the workspace. How many rocks did this teenager carry? Seemingly reading Peter's mind Neal began to speak. 

“She has dozens on her person, at home she has a limit. But when I am on Bird watching duty, she stays with me… And the limit doesn't really apply to my apartment.” They continued to walk.

“Bird watching duty?” Peter questioned

“Her nickname is Birdie, my friend O came up with it when they first met.” Neal explained. Peter nodded in understanding. 

“I just have to start a file on the new case. Then the weekend is ours again.”

Once Peter had wandered away Dick became lost in thought. 

Barbra Gordon, was the first bat-family member besides Dick that formed a bond with the young talon. Before the night where the owls sent almost every talon to a permanent release of the half dead state they were tortured in, by sending them to face up against the Bats of Gotham. Many of the Talons should have passed decades ago, their families all but bodies in the ground.

Claire was different. She was considered by the owls as a messed up experiment. The young girl’s biology, no matter how much the court tried, rejected the last dosing of the electrum. She could regenerate sure, and she was trained in the way of the assassins. But she continued to age while out of the cyro freeze. The Owls kept Claire frozen. They needed to use Claire to figure out the flaw with the electrum and guarantee that this mistake wouldn’t happen when the time for the prophesied Gray Son arrived. 

 The many talons that were sent to Wayne Manor had been disposed of by Batman and his many children. So they sent the reserves, the talons that were defective in one way or another. This included Claire. The court had sent the young woman to cut off the Bat's communication. The clocktower in Gotham housed Oracle. 

Once she was gone, the communication systems would fail. Oracle was not as helpless as the Court thought. Light was one of the weaknesses, and once the facemask was knocked off of Claire, the light momentarily stunned the girl. But also shocked Barbra. The talon standing in front of her was only about 14 years old. While the pair stood watching eachother, once the light had adjusted for Claire her eyes shifted from the yellow into a crystal blue. 

Claire, shaken out of the surprise, went to lunge forward. Nightwing thankfully appeared from behind and delivered a swift knock out. 

When Claire had woken up in a secure cell in the batcave, she was violent to every one of the batboys except Dick. Instead she followed Dicks instructions, and seemed to be warming up to him. After two weeks had passed, Bruce felt that she was no longer a danger to herself or the family. Once Tim had figured out her name from a blood test, and found her distant relation to Dick.

 Claire became more responsive as time passed, and began to make decisions on her own accord. She liked petting Damians dogs and watching him paint. Listening to Jason Read was a common sight. Steph and Cass would devote some time to a movie and popcorn with Claire. Catching her up on the classic films. Various other family members that had time would join. Duke and Tim would work on homework assignments or CEO paperwork, while Claire sat by and listened to the podcasts they put on as background noise.

But by far the thing she most enjoyed was spending time with Dick, learning how to fly. Before she was with the Court, she performed at Haley's circus, as did many of the others that were cursed to live in an endless station between life and death. 

When Tim had first run the blood test to find Claire’s identity, a match came back for a family relation between Dick and the young girl. Claire was Mary Grayson’s older sister, who had gone missing from the circus when she was ten years old, and when her sister just turned two. The failed bond with the electrum and the various times out of the cyro freeze had aged her body to be fourteen. But unfortunately her mental state did not age as well.

When she next met Barbra, the court's orders had no effect on Claire. Barbra was visiting the cave, using one of the machines that she herself had at the tower, but had been broken. While waiting on the downloaded results from a chemical test of the newest strain of fear-gas, Barbra had wheeled herself over to the training area. Dick was showing Claire a series of movements that when put together would flow continuously into a routine of flips and tumbles. Claire then attempted the move while Dick and Barbra watched. 

“So what is Birdie doing?” Barbra asked. 

Dick replied with his own question “Birdie? You mean Claire?”

Barbra made an Ahhh sound. “So we have found a name for her! I was Calling her Birdie in all of my files until that was found.” she answered. “Ya know, because she was a talon, but she is a kid, and deserves to have a cute nickname.” 

Dick smiled as Claire landed a flip. “She flies well too.” 

The memories of the Bird that was standing next to Dick ended when Peter’s voice snapped his back to reality. “Ready Neal?”

“Yeah Lets go peter”

Chapter Text

Eventually the group had made their way to lunch at Neal's apartment. Diana and Clintion were waiting in their vehicle for Peter and Neal to arrive. They observed a man pull up to a parking spot outside of Junes building. His motorcycle looked expensive, and custom built. Once he removed his red helmet they could see just how young the man looked. His hair said the opposite, Diana judged his choice of hairstyle. The white locks framing his face were definitely an odd one. The man must have known June as he greeted her at the door and she welcomed him in. As Peter and Dick pulled up to his home, Dick spotted a very bat looking motorcycle parked right out front. 

The group of FBI agents and Claire were waiting for Dick to unlock the door. Peter watched as Neal opened the door and ushered them in. The group stopped at the entrance in surprise. Claire rushed past the group and up to the person sitting on Neal's couch. 

It was a young man, and he was built like a tank. He turned his head and smiled in an almost malicious way. Neal just ignored the man and walked over to the cupboard and began to pull out glasses and plates. The strange man was here for Neal then, Not June. Claire now had launched herself onto the man and flopped down. Dick watched as Claire aggressively dove onto Jason and her elbow accidentally rammed into his ribs. Jason made weak attempts to shake the girl off. 

“Little help Dickface?” Jason mockingly pleaded. Jason wasn’t in a hurry to move her, these types of interactions were rare with Claire, and were major progress.

“You can handle it. As the temporary oldest sibling it's your job.” Neal fired back. “I believe in you Hood.” 

Peter was confused. Diana was baffled. Clinton was concerned about there being enough food. Neal hadn’t ever revealed much about his background until today. Nothing until he was 18 was known. 

“Wait, no. no. no. Not my job anymore boy wonder-” Jason began

“You wish everyone would forget that you wore those boots too. But I won't, ” Neal replied.

This interaction just continued to get more wild. Peter was lucky he had a good poker face. Claire had settled down on the man- Jason's lap. Not before she had wiggled around and cut off circulation to his leg. 

“What do you mean Hood? Are you quitting being in the family, like it's a job?” Neal snarked. 

“Why don’t you spit on my grave to make your words hurt more?” Jay retaliated. 

“If you die again I’ll just skip the funeral on purpose this time.” Neal said, tempting Jason into a verbal brawl. Being dramatic is part of being a Wayne. 

“Neal, care to introduce us?” Peter interrupted before another debate broke out. 

“Peter, Diana, Clinton. This is Hood, one of my younger brothers.” Neal dropped the bomb out of nowhere onto the unsuspecting FBI trio. 

Jason is here, clearly wearing his Red Hood costume, with his vest only covered by his jacket being zipped. Showing that it was time to burn Neal Caffrey. On the weekly call with B, Bruce had noted that Dick could let the three agents in on the Justice League case. Jason had come to give the final go ahead, and Neal was lucky none of Jason's guns were visible. That would make Dick have to explain some stuff very quickly. He was lucky June had a rule in her home about visible weapons of any kind. June was not a person you could hide things from, just like Alfred. The agents began to ask Dick questions all at once. 

“Why don’t we all get food then sit and talk?” Neal asked. 

Five months after the Night of Owls, Claire had started to patrol with Dick in Bludhaven on the weekends. Each Friday she would drive with Jason, or sometimes Tim they would all eat dinner then the bats would travel back to Gotham while Claire stayed with Dick. Dick and Bruce both hoped that eventually Claire could move into a bigger apartment with Dick and he could adopt her officially as his daughter. Tim just needed some time to get the forged documents in order. Then the Light organization decided to infiltrate the FBI, starting with the lesser risk departments. Like the New York White Collar Crimes. Dick was asked to go undercover as one of his cover identities, Neal Caffrey. 

Barbra and Claire had been building a relationship. Claire saw Barbra as a mother figure, and they became inseparable, as Barbra began to do simple school lessons with Claire, As well as life skills, and computer hacking. The other Ladies of Gotham keep Claire busy with their own forms of school classes. Aunty Harley, as Claire calls her, teaches fun normal teenager skills, such as nail painting, clothing, basic psychology. Mrs. Isley has science covered, chemistry, biology, and earth sciences being her specialty. Catma, a combination of Cat, and Grandma, describes Selina. She has taken the responsibility of being a grandma, even if not directly related, very seriously. In Selinas words, “The kitten is a natural at Grifting, thieving, Gymnastics, and has achieved something no one else but me has done. Befriended all of my stray cats!” Barbra would always be her favorite. They played chess, did puzzles, sat quietly next to each other, doing separate tasks, but enjoying the company. Dick and Claire had a discussion about the situation. Claire knew how important this mission was, and fortunately the parameters of the job allowed Claire to visit Dick every other weekend once one month had passed since the start of the operation. That allowed Dick to gain Peter's trust. So, during the week Claire opted to stay with Barbra in Gotham, then use the nearby zeta tube to the one located just a block away from Dicks new apartment. This mission would get Dick back into the field and allow Claire to be more independent if desired. 

Dick never thought he would like the job, and the people this much. It would be hard to leave when the time came.

Chapter Text

Now looking back it would have been easier for Dick to lay the whole thing out quick and simple for the agents, once they had walked in the door. It would have saved him the trouble that Jason was going to bring. Dick had just gotten everyone to be situated and settled down enough that he could dish food for Claire, and cut the pizza into smaller chunks for the teen. Jason rolled his eyes once he saw Claire's plate of food. 

“Ya know, Alfred disapproves of us cutting up her food. His dining room, his rules.” Jason directed towards Dick.

“And you know Hood that when you are anywhere else but the manor you do the same thing for Li- Speedy.” Dick snarked back, quickly fixing his mistake of almost calling Lian by her civilian name. Dick continued to serve his plate, only doing so, once Claire had plenty. 

“Touche. But then again, my kid is eight.” Jason said quickly to try to gain the upper hand in this spat. Jason claimed a spot at the table next to Diana, only leaving a chair between them. Claire, seeing the space sat between them. Dick set her plate down in front of her. Claire opted to ignore the food and began to take out her newest rocks to show Jason and her new friend Diana. 

“Ah, ah, aahat! Food first. Then you can arrange your rocks.” Dick scolded. 

Jason had eaten before arriving to Dick’s apartment, so he was just sitting at the table to be polite. But being polite doesn't mean that he couldn't cause chaos. And Jason had some pre planned, and some money to win from some bets. 

“First off, now that Hood is here, it means I have gotten permission to fully de classify some things.” The agents positioned around the table studied Neal's face. The con man was a dear friend to them. Now that they had worked countless cases together, they thought they knew Neal Caffrey well. But the countless amounts of information that he had revealed today had changed that perspective.

Peter looked from Neal, to his Brother Jason. Who nonchalantly just pulled a gun from a concealed holster and began to disassemble and clean it. At the dining room table. The agents all tensed.

 “Don’t shoot that idiot.” Neal quickly said. Then continued.

“My name isn't Neal Caffrey. Unfortunately I can’t tell you my real name yet, as it could compromise another two dozen or so people. But, because of my undercover work while I was a detective at the Bludhaven police department, I was selected by the Justice League to infiltrate the FBI White Collar division and find corrupt agents, as requested by the head of the FBI.” 

Peter’s jaw dropped. Everything that he thought he knew about his close friend was a lie. Yes he figured Neal was never the man's real name. But to find out he was a planted undercover agent was another ball park. Diana just nodded. 

“I had my suspicions. They were confirmed when I saw the Red Hood getting off of a motorcycle and greeting June like she was an old friend.” Clinton and Peter looked surprised. “The most wanted wall is in the office lobby for any agent to see.” Diana finished, and shrugged. 

Claire had scarfed her food down in record time, and had now begun to once again line up her rocks. One of Jason's gun parts was in her way. Claire opted to not move it, but rather continue her arrangement to include the part as a pedestal for a giant chunk of clear quartz. 

“How does this come into play?” Clinton asked and justured to Jason, as he was trying to negotiate the safe return of the essential part of his gun.  

“That is a good question. I was a civilian in the eyes of the justice league until I turned up on the justice league's radar because of that asshole.” Dick said and gestured to Jason. Jason shrugged and unzipped his leather jacket revealing his kevlar vest, and the red bat displayed on it. Peters hand itched for his gun. But Neal trusted the Red Hood and Peter trusted his opinion. Clinton and Diana were speechless. Dick continued his bat approved speech. 

“Now that my original mission has ended, at first the plan was for me to burn this identity and return home. But the Justice League and the FBI still would like to build better relationships between the two, so the mission is altered.” Peter nodded along. Not knowing when to respond. 

“Now I will be working beside you, still as Neal Caffrey. But not as Neal Caffrey the criminal informant. But Neal Caffrey the justice league liaison.” Dick hoped that the agents would understand. Peter shook his head almost in denial. But paused. “When does the job title change?” 

“As soon as I message B and he sends over the papers to Huges.” Dick responded. Dick 

could tell that the agents had many questions. 

“Alright Dickhead, I have to take off. The moral support has been given, and the kid has been dropped into your care. I have to go give someone who's a real Arse, some backup.” Jason stood, attempting to gather his part for the half put together weapon. He gave up quickly, once he had realized the part had become Claire's new favorite ‘trinket’. Dick rolled his eyes at the name drop, that to any outsiders just sounded like an insult. 

Getting your stolen Items back from the former talon was a tricky feat. Only achieved to this day by Alfred. Selina seldom regretted teaching Claire pickpocketing techniques as it was hilarious to see Bruce frequently  losing credit cards, cufflinks, and if he had any loose change it would also disappear. Then the terror spread. Fancy pens that Tim used for his paperwork vanished. Stephanie's stashes of candy dwindled. Claire didn’t steal them to eat, but instead because the wrappers were shiny. Alfred put a stop to it as soon as it started with him. His pristine white gloves had begun to lose their match. Alfred hearing the rest of the family's complaints knew the culprit. Alfred would simply return all of the other stolen goods to the rightful members each time she took a glove. When the gloves were back in the rightful hands Alfred would leave the stashes of hidden objects in the manor alone.

 Jason knew this, and was trying to make a clean get-away before he got caught up in the millions of questions the agents had brewing. Jason could always buy a replacement, obviously using the money from the latest credit card he stole from Bruce. With a sharp mocking salute he practically booked towards the door. The gun part was not worth his sanity.

Dick sighed. “Well then. I guess I can open the floor for questions?”

Chapter Text

“Back at the museum when you said that B worked with Catwoman. Is that B person Batman?” Diana asked. Dick was quite fond of Diana because she was very smart. Leave it up to her to connect the dots. Dick nodded. 

“I want to know the history between you and the Red Hood. You said he was your brother.” Clinton asked. Dick respected the man, always getting all of the information before forming an opinion. 

Dick prepared himself to give out the story behind the family, without exposing their identities. Claire was an exception, because legally she didn’t exist and couldnt be traced back to the Waynes. 

“I was a detective in Bludhaven, back when you began to hear the things surrounding the Red Hood, Gotham's newest crime lord. I believed my brother was dead. We buried his body, heck because of the circumstances of his death he even had an autopsy. A rogue sorcerer, I think they were part of a cult, chose to use Hood's body for his next scheme. The magic used brought him back, but his mind was twisted. I can’t go into all of the details, but Martian Manhunter fixed his brain. Batman struck him a deal. Hood would work with his colony, and he would receive a pardon for the magic corruption.” Peter looked saddened by Neal's words. Clinton looked like he was green in the face. Diana listened intensely.

“The Justice League gave him the go ahead to contact me as soon as the magic corruption was gone. Hood decided to wait a week, just to make sure me, and my newly adopted daughter were safe from any lingering effects.” Were these the correct sequence of events? Nope. But this was the story both Dick and Bruce agreed on. For now. 

Diana looked over to Clinton and signaled him. Both of them stood up and took their plates over to the sink. Clinton began to put on his coat. 

“Clinton and I better head out. We will leave you guys to talk. See you Monday” Diana was officially his favorite. She knew what Dick was wanting, some time to explain some things to only Peter.