Chapter Text
Tim Drake was perfectly happy with being a beta. Just like his parents Jake and Janet, something that was stable to say the least. While betas still had instincts the same as other dynamics, he wouldn’t be subjected to heats and ruts. He would also be more resistant to smells and whatnot. Overall he could just be less careful about things. While he did squabble with his siblings. Their alpha-fueled dominance stare downs or fights he didn’t really get, even Damian would sometimes get involved in them but he had alpha written all over him even if he was far from presenting.
Even Bruce got all territorial over the cave, the manor, all of Gotham. Bruce did pride himself on control over his instincts but he did slip every once and a while. But Tim and Alfred as betas were definitely the stable peace makers of the family.
Tim was up late nursing an energy drink that he definitely shouldn’t be drinking. But he was onto something, some small-time gang was growing fast, too fast and they were becoming more dangerous by the day. Tim had figured out that they were smuggling some new drug. The drug was being kept extremely quiet though and he was struggling to find out what the drug exactly did. There hadn’t been an uptake in unusual overdoses, or oddly over powered goons or any other of the usual symptoms.
Tim was staring at the screen of the batcomputer. One leg up and resting on the seat of the chair. Tim let out a yawn, momentarily breaking him from his focus, just in time to hear someone’s footsteps coming up to him. Bruce was all geared up, a look of seriousness masking his face.
“I thought you weren’t going out tonight?” Tim questioned turning the chair to look at him.
“I wasn’t planning on it, but I think your findings could be checked in on.”, this was Bruce talk for something bad is going to go down.
“I’m coming with” Tim said matter of factly.
Bruce stared him down before nodding towards him. Tim practically jumped at the opportunity it had been so long since it had been just the two of them on patrol. Tim yanked on his costume heading back out to Bruce adjusting his belt while doing so. Then pulling out one of his masks, securing it over his eyes.
Batman was already in the car waiting for him.Tim all of a sudden didn’t feel so tired anymore he was vibrating with excitement. And he could tell that Bruce knew it with the faint smile that he wore on his face before it disappeared. They shot off, not obeying traffic laws in the slightest and Tim was just soaking all the undivided, well not completed undivided attention that his pack alpha was giving him. For some reason lately Tim had been craving more attention from Bruce but he was also more anxious? Tim knew that Bruce was picking up on it. They probably just needed some extra bonding time as pack members needed every so often.
It was hard to get Bruce’s sole attention, with his work and other siblings. So when Tim got the opportunity to spend some one on one time with the Bat he would take it. It was also part of the reason that Tim had been working so hard on this case he wanted Bruce to be impressed. Well Tim always wanted Bruce to be proud of him but lately he craved the reassurance. The reassurance that Tim belonged and had a place in his pack.
They raced through the city, Batman debriefing him in the way. They were just going on a stake out and hopefully there would be no physical conflict. They still needed more information to find the source of the drug.
They came upon a more abandoned area of Gotham, pulling up behind a rundown building. They made their way up to the top floor of the building, settling into a room with a window that gave them a clear view of the neighborhood around them.
They sat there for hours, Tim beginning to become tired, so far they had seen their targets enter the building across the street but hadn't seen them exit yet. Then there was yelling and two of the big men came tumbling out of the front door. One of the guys was reaching forward on the floor reaching for something laying on the ground. Tim could tell Bruce had become agitated at that moment and handed over his binoculars. Tim could now see that the man was reaching for a syringe. The man was able to reach for it despite two more men coming out attempting to wrestle the man down. The man with the syringe plunged it into his side. The other men oddly backed off waiting as the other withered on the floor.
The man was screaming out before he got up to face the men and lunged at them. At that Batman stood calling out a let’s go and jumped out the window. Tim followed after him using his grappling hook and both of them landed in the middle of the street. They both sprinted over to try to break up the fight.
The man who injected himself was drooling and attempting to rip the throats out of the other men. He also stank, the pheromones coming off him were almost enough to throw Tim off his feet. The smell was screaming loud and enraged alpha. But once the men saw both of them running over they went to attack the two vigilantes as well. Tim and Batman flowed back together during fighting like they had before, when they were Batman and Robin. That's when the drugged up alpha as Tim could now tell managed to tackle Bruce to the ground, biting into his forearm that was luckily covered with armour.
Tim rushed over in an attempt to get him off but didn’t see the man he had just knocked to the ground get up, now sporting a knife in his hand. He lunged at Tim who went to protect his core but the man changed his aim, plunging the knife right into Tim’s thigh. Tim let out a frightened yelp, using his staff bow to hit the man over the head. Tim looked over to Batman who now injected the feral man with something else and threw him off of himself. Tim was surprised at how fast Bruce came to Tim’s side. The rest of the men were either unconscious or groaning on the ground.
Tim was scooped up in Bruce's arms as the batmobile pulled up right beside them. It was odd how concerned Bruce was acting, to even leave the men on the ground without restraining him. Tim couldn’t remember the last time Bruce carried him.
“B, we” Tim was quickly cut off.
“No it’s fine I've already alerted Gotham PD, lets get you home” he said as he placed Tim in the car.
Tim couldn’t help but whimper at the jostle of the car speeding off. What was wrong with him? He had never been this sensitive to injuries and Bruce had never acted this concerned on the field before. Bruce allowed the auto drive feature to drive them home while applying a tourniquet around Tim’s upper thigh. He whimpered at that too. Bruce paused checking over him with worried searching eyes.
“Sorry, sorry I'm fine” Tim squeaked out.
“It’s ok just put pressure on the wound”
Tim knew that, why hadn’t he had been doing that before. He grabbed some gauze from his belt and applied it to the wound, the knife still in his leg. He also felt gross, Tim could still smell that drooling rabid man from before as if the smell wouldn’t leave him. It was agitating, Tim wanted it off now. Smells didn’t usually bother him like this, but this one was unbearable.