The Eldest Al-Ghul Wayne

Chapter 1: To Recognize A Heart

Marinette was there when her baby brother was born. She had watched as her mother carefully removed the baby from the tube. While Talia did not love in any sense of the word, she still had enough love in her heart to care about her son. After all, it was this son who would one day become the league's leader. This left Ra's looking rather pleased with himself, finally having an heir secured.

Marinette watched as her baby brother started to fuss, no doubt displeased with the cool air hitting his skin. Her baby brother was wrapped in a blanket in an attempt trying to calm him. While this seemed to help, it appeared that the cool air wasn't the cause of his displeasure. The sound of the distressed child started to annoy Ra's. Talia quickly passed Damian over to Ra's in hopes that he would calm down. To everyone's annoyance, the moment he was in Ra's arms his cries only grew louder. Ra's passed him on to the guard near him, yet Damian continued screaming.

This created a cycle in which Damian was passed from one person's arms to another, but it did not put a deter to his cries. Finally, Damian was passed to the last pairs of arms in the room... Marinette's. The moment she held the child, his cries started to calm down to sniffles. He then looked up and his beautiful emerald green eyes met Marinette's bluebell ones. He nuzzled into Marinette's arms silently smiling in peace.

Marinette had a heart defect when she was born, so her heartbeat was different from the average human's heartbeat, it was therefore unique, but still soothing to listen to. And it seemed as if that was what her brother was listening to that made him feel so at peace. Marinette realized that this might be due to the many times she would simply lean against the glass talking to her baby brother as her heart was pressed against the cool glass allowing them to be heard by her brother.

Marinette looked up, she saw her mother staring at her with a furrow in her eyebrows, Ra's standing beside her clenching his jaw hard. The rest of the occupants of the room gaping at her in shock before they caught themselves, allowing no emotions to be present on their face in hopes that the demon head would not punish them. Ra's then stormed out of the room muttering about mistakes and corruptions.

The others present followed Ra's example and left the room. Letting out a sigh, Marinette cradles her baby brother closer to her chest, rocking him back and forth in a soothing motion. This caused the previously napping infant to wake at the movement. Although he was now awake, Damian did not start crying or screaming as he had done before.

Damian blinked slowly, before looking up at Marinette. He slightly tilted his head in wonder before waving his arms around attempting to grab her face. When Marinette smiled at his childish antics, he let out a joyful squeal. This made Marinette's heart swell with a light feeling, maybe this was what happiness felt like she couldn't help but wonder.

The light feeling in her chest made Marinette realize something. Her baby brother is real. He is real, breathing, making childish sounds, and able to move around just like any newborn could. He is a real person now, not just a being floating around in a tube. Damian is a living being just like herself. This realization just made her all the happier causing Damian to smile and coo brightly at her. She then continued to gently rock him and listen to his soft breaths as he listened to her heart. Marinette and Damian soon dozed off into a deep slumber, both of them content with being near each other for the time being.

It was now Damian's first birthday. Every single member of the League of Shadows was there celebrating. Usually, birthdays were not celebrated, not even Talia's or Marinette's, but as Damian was the heir and it was his first birthday, it was a significant day. Today was also the day that he would be receiving his first weapon, granted that he would not start proper training until he was five, but it was tradition. Although he won't be training with weapons, he will still be training a bit once he turns three because that was the usual age to start training. But Marinette has convinced Talia to prolong the age Damian would start training using the argument that while he should know how to fight he should also be knowledgeable and so his education should be his main focus from the ages of three to five.