Bayview Institute

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"You seriously can't make me go to a boarding school." Damian said, looking at his father. Bruce didn't look up from the newspaper.

"You're going."

"I bet Kent set you up with this. He's sending Jon so you're sticking me with him."

Bruce set down the newspaper. "What are you so afraid of?"

Damian thought for a second. "I'm not scared of anything. Nothing."

"Well then pack your bags. You start Monday."

---

Monday came. Damian walked down the stairs of the Manor with his suitcase and held onto Titus's collar. He had a red vest on that read "Service Dog: Do Not Pet."

Alfred opened the front door and Damian stepped out onto the marble steps of the estate. Dick was leaning against the car.

Dick opened the car door for Damian. Damian put a hand on the door.

"You're not leaving without hugging me are you?"

Damian frowned. "I don't hug."

Dick ignored his and wrapped his youngest brother in a hug. "I promise I'll come and visit. Remember, you're only 15 minutes away from the Bludhaven Community Center. I can stop by on the weekends and really anytime you get lonely. I'm stopping by Saturday."

"I'll have Jon to worry about." Damian said. "But thank you, Richard."

Damian had finally stopped calling him by his last name only a week ago.

"See you Saturday." Dick said.

Damian let Titus in the backseat. He sat down on the seats and Damian stepped in, taking the seat by the window. Dick closed the door.

Alfred turned around. "Are you quite ready, Master Damian?"

Damian nodded. "I think so."

It was a 40 minute drive. Bayview was closer to Smallville than Gotham. Damian listened to his music on his phone and stared out the windows the whole ride. Finally the road felt unpaved and tall pine trees, covered in snow grew as they descended into the forest.

They came up to a white-stone building. Damian located Jon standing with his parents. Damian didn't wait for Alfred to come around and open his door. He got out on his own and called Titus out. He adjusted the vest on his dog and took a deep breath. It was cold. It had snowed the day before.

Jon was talking with his mother and she knelt down and kissed his forehead.

"We'll visit on the weekends." She assured.

Jon smiled. "Okay." He looked over. "D! You made it."

Damian said nothing, he just held onto Titus' collar. Alfred brought Damian's suitcase. He had forgotten it in the car.

"Nervous?" He asked.

"Never." Damian said, glaring at the flight of pure white stone.

The group walked up the stairs and  pressed the buzzer. Alfred held the wide oak door open for them before walking in behind Damian. It was warm inside.

They were greeted with a staff member. "Welcome to Bayview." She greeted.

"Hi." Jon said.

She looked at Titus and then at Damian. "You must be Damian Wayne."

"I am." He replied, flatly.

She led the group to the main office. The boys gave their suitcases over which were going to be brought to their room. They received student handbooks and schedules and were presented with their uniforms. Damian and Jon took the cloth bags and looked in at their freshly-pressed brand new uniforms. Damian's was a size small, which he took offense to.

After an hour, the boys said goodbye to their families and followed an older student up to their room. Titus stayed by Damian's side.

Their room had a large window, looking out into the forest, with a small courtyard outside. It was snowing now.

Jon picked the bed closer to their bathroom. Damian hung his clothes up in the closet and Jon put his away in a dresser. Titus waited, patiently, spread out on Damian's twin-sized bed. 

A knock sounded on the door. Jon and Damian looked at each other.

"Come in?" Jon asked, unsure of what to say.

It was the older student who walked them to their room.

"Lunch is being served in the dining hall downstairs."

"Oh." Jon said. "We'll be right down, thank you."

The student closed the door.

"I'm not hungry." Damian said, stomach full of nerves. He sat down and Titus placed a paw on his lap. Damian pet him. "You're right, Titus. Let's go."

The boys hadn't changed into their uniforms. They stood out in the dining hall. Everyone looked at them. Damian could feel the stares at Titus. Titus leaned against him in comfort and Damian affectionately rubbed the top of his head. They made their way in and found a table with two seats open. They sat down.

"Titus, under." Damian ordered, sending the dog under the table, sitting on his feet.

"Hi, I'm Jon." Jon greeted. He looked at Damian. "This is Damian." He pointed under the table. "And that's Titus."

"I'm Spencer." The boy replied. "This is Mark and that's Peter."

"How old are you?" Jon asked. "I'll be 11 in February."

"I'm 15." Spencer replied. The boys shared their ages: Mark was 14 and Peter was 9."

"What does Titus do?" Peter, the youngest, asked.

"Peter, you can't just ask that. It's rude." Mark said.

"It's okay." Damian replied. "He helps with trauma related stress."

"PTSD." Jon answered.

"Cool." Peter smiled.

Peter reminded Damian of Jon way too much.

They had roast beef and mashed potatoes among other things but Damian was vegetarian so he ate everything other than meat. Jon talked happily with everyone at the table.

"What school are you transferring from?" Mark asked.

"Smallville Elementary School." Jon replied. They looked at Damian.

"I was home schooled." Damian lied.

"This is a weird time to transfer." Spencer said. "Christmas Break is in 2 weeks."

Jon shrugged. "We're kind of weird, so that works."

After lunch, the boys went up to their room. They didn't start classes until tomorrow morning.

"So when do we sneak out?" Jon asked. "To fight crime." He looked at Damain who was laying down.

"The closest place is Metropolis." Damian said, staring at his phone, one arm tucked behind his head.

"We can't go there." Jon said.

"Why's that?" Damian asked, still scrolling.

"That's my dad's territory. We'd get found out immediately."

Damian set his phone down. "Then Bludhaven it is."

"Won't Dick mind?" Jon asked. "We can't just take over his city."

Damain rolled onto his side, facing Jon.

"Sure we can. He doesn't need to patrol the whole city. We can take care of some stuff."

"Well when do we go?"

Damian rolled back onto his back. "Tonight."

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