The manor doors opened with their usual weight and echo, swallowing you into the cool, quiet halls of Wayne Manor. Nothing about the day felt special. The sky had been gray on the walk home, the city loud and impatient around you.

Your backpack was full of homework and half-finished assignments shifting with every step.

Bruce was strict, but your teenage years had been a storm he wasn’t prepared for. Detentions, suspensions, teachers calling home with tight voices and exhausted tones. Every time it happened, Bruce reacted the only way he knew how .. grounding, restrictions, disappointment. And because your birthday always landed in the school year, it always ended the same way.

Grounded on your birthday. Grounded on Christmas. Every year. Eventually, you stopped expecting anything at all.

Jason ans Tim always told you to stop being a pain and maybe you'll have a normal Christmas or birthday someday. It's hard.

They call it teen crisis.

Today it's your birthday, you're 16. But you just thought about it between two classes.

"Hey bud" Jay picked you from school after that long day of studying. Maybe tonight Bruce would be nicer and let you more hours on your phone or watch TV. Who knows ?

When you entered on the kitchen you saw everyone seated reading newspapers, even Damian.

You grab a plate of food and left, but Bruce looked at you, then near the door a calendar..no marks in it..but he remember : your birthday is today.

Damian would scream if he dared forgot his birthday. But you didn't even mention it. Different education he said to himself.

Tim noticed his look and look at the calendar realising the same thing.

"It's been a long time since you got complains about him. Maybe he's out of the crisis ?" Ask Tim. Damian scoff "He's a demon. He won't change." Jason slap his head. "Shut it demon brat you're not an example."

"Enough" said Bruce before sighing, putting the newspaper down.