It's Dick Grayson's birthday! What better way to celebrate than with a new chapter? Enjoy!

Robin's First Surprise Party

Dick was awoken when a sudden burst of light filled the room. Squinting, he peered at the clock next to his bed, disappointed to find that it was still only 10:00. Groaning, Dick rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillow. "It's too early," he moaned.

"Not today, Master Dick," Alfred said as he opened the second set of curtains in the room. Usually Alfred let him sleep in a bit longer after a late night if there wasn't anything that needed to be taken care of that morning. Dick went through his mental to-do list, trying to remember if there was some sort of Wayne Enterprises business that he needed to tend to, ultimately failing to come up with anything.

"But why?" he pouted, his voice still muffled by the soft fabric of his pillow.

"Have you forgotten your own birthday, Master Dick?"

Dick couldn't have sat up faster. "It's my birthday?"

Alfred quirked an eyebrow. "There must be something in that cowl you've been wearing. Master Bruce had a habit of forgetting his birthday as well." Remembering that it was, in fact, his birthday, Dick's lips slowly curled into a wide smile. "I wanted to make sure you had plenty of time to eat and digest your breakfast before your lunch date with Miss Barbara."

It was then that Dick realized that Alfred had a tray of food set up behind him. "You brought me breakfast?" He watched eagerly as Alfred turned around and picked up the tray. "It must be my birthday if I'm allowed to eat in bed," he teased.

"Don't get used to it." With a stern look, Alfred handed over the tray.

Dick looked over the tray. He had a decent-sized pile of chocolate chip pancakes, complete with berries on the side and a small pitcher of syrup. Along with the pancakes, there were a few pieces of crisp bacon and an array of chocolatey pastries. His meal was completed with a glass of orange juice. "Ooh, I even get all of the unhealthy stuff I'm not usually allowed to eat for breakfast," Dick said, grinning.

"There will be more in the kitchen if you're still hungry, provided Master Damian doesn't eat it all first," Alfred said, setting a coffee pot on Dick's nightstand, along with a mug, sugar, and cream.

"Thanks, Alfred," Dick said, picking up his fork and knife.

"You're quite welcome," Alfred said, offering Dick a smile. "Happy birthday."

He exited the room, leaving Dick alone with his breakfast. While he ate, Dick searched for his phone. He soon found it on the floor and, after several failed attempts to reach it without disturbing his breakfast, he finally set the tray aside to pick it up. He was pleased to see that he already had several birthday messages; he may have forgotten his birthday, but his friends sure didn't.

Happy birthday! I'll see you at family dinner tomorrow. In the meantime, have an amazing day! –Tim

Happy birthday, Boy Wonder. I'm picking you up at ONE. Don't forget and don't be late! –Barbara

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DICKIE! –Stephanie (who also sent a second message containing only birthday related emoticons)

Happy birthday. –Cassandra

Looks like you've survived another year. –Jason

Happy birthday, Dick. Have a wonderful day and take a break tonight. You definitely deserve one! –Clark

I bet you ten bucks I'm the first one to wish you happy birthday! –Wally (sent at midnight on the dot)

There were plenty others from members of the league and friends he'd made as a Titan. He read through them all while he finished his meal, feeling immensely blessed to have so many people in his life who cared about him. After clearing his plate of every last crumb, Dick climbed out of bed, got a quick shower, dressed, and then made his way to the kitchen where Damian was eating his own breakfast.

"Good morning, Damian," Dick said, cheerfully. He swiped a chocolate muffin and sat beside Damian, munching on his treat. Damian acknowledged his greeting with a terse grunt, but was otherwise silent. Dick stared at him expectantly. Sure Damian wasn't the most pleasant person, but he could at least wish his big brother a happy birthday, right?

Finally, Damian turned to him and narrowed his eyes. "Do you need something?" he barked.

"No," Dick said with a shrug.

"Then avert your gaze elsewhere."

"Sorry," Dick muttered, disappointed. Maybe Damian had just forgotten as well. He certainly couldn't fault the kid; if it weren't for Alfred, he may not have even remembered himself! Yeah, that must be it, Dick convinced himself. Damian just didn't remember. Surely, once he was reminded, he would offer his big brother birthday wishes. "Do you know what today is?"

"March 21st. The day after the spring equinox," Damian offered. "In fact, a few years ago, it was the first day of spring."

"Well, yeah," Dick said. He wasn't wrong, per se, but that wasn't the answer he'd been looking for. "That wasn't really what I was thinking of."

"If you don't plan on telling me, then I would appreciate it if you left me alone," Damian said.

"Alright, it's my birthday!" Dick announced. Damian stared at him, remaining as stoic as ever.

"Oh," he said, turning back to his breakfast. Dick's shoulders slumped. Not even a reminder earned him a birthday wish? Sighing, Dick stood from the table and went to the sink where Alfred was working on cleaning the dirty dishes.

"Hey, Alfred," Dick said quietly, "do you know if Damian got me anything for my birthday? A card, even?"

"I'm not sure. Why do you ask?" Alfred said.

"No reason. It's just-" Dick was interrupted when he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. Pulling it out, he grinned when he saw that it was Wally. "Hello?" he said into the phone.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DICK!" Wally shouted so loud that even Alfred could hear him. "Did you get my text?"

"Yeah, I did." Dick made his way out of the kitchen while he chatted with Wally. "And you were the first one so I guess I owe you ten bucks, huh?"

When he was gone, Alfred stopped his scrubbing and turned to Damian. "You could at least wish him a happy birthday, Master Damian."

"He can't suspect anything," Damian responded. "It's not my fault he's so sensitive. He'll get over it at the party."

When one o'clock rolled around, Dick was waiting outside on the sidewalk for Barbara to arrive. Just as promised, a black town car pulled up to the curb exactly at one. Barbara rolled down the backseat window and smiled at him. "Hey, Birthday Boy!"

"Hey!" She scooted over to the other side, making room for Dick to climb in. Once he was inside, she held out her arms for a hug.

"Happy birthday, Dick," she said.

"Thanks, Babs." When they pulled apart, he glanced around the car. "You know, we could have had Alfred drive us. I'm sure he wouldn't have minded."

"Oh, we don't need to bother him," she said. "He's probably busy baking you a cake or something. It's fine, I promise."

"So where are we going?" Dick asked eagerly.

"And ruin the surprise?" Barbara feigned offense. "I think not. You'll just have to wait and see."

Back upstairs in the penthouse, Damian and Alfred were waiting by the window, watching as the town car Dick had just disappeared into drove away. "Everything seems to be going according to plan," Damian said, turning to Alfred.

"Is he gone?" Wally West suddenly appeared in front of them, bringing with him a gust of air. He had been hiding in Damian's room all morning, waiting for Dick to leave so he could help with the surprise. It had been so boring just sitting and waiting and he almost couldn't take it. Even plenty of helpings of Alfred's delicious pancakes had almost not been enough to keep him content.

"Yes," Damian said.

"Woohoo! Let's get this party started!" Wally exclaimed. He was gone, then back in an instant carrying a large box of streamers and other party decorations.

Ignoring Wally's overexcitement, Damian continued. "If all goes well, we should have four hours to set everything up, prepare the food, and get all of the guests inside and hidden before they return."

"Good thing you have the Fastest Man Alive around to help you out," Wally said. Without waiting for further instruction, he began zipping around the penthouse, hanging up streamers and banners. Damian glanced at a clock hanging on the wall.

"Where is Drake?" Damian demanded. "He should have been here the instant Grayson was gone."

"He couldn't just walk in while Dick was waiting outside," Wally said. "He'll probably be here soon."

As if on cue, the elevator opened up and Tim stepped off, followed by Steph. "Drake, finally." He narrowed his eyes at the sight of Stephanie. "And you brought Brown," he groaned.

"Hey, Damian," she greeted, ignoring his obvious disapproval of her.

"She's here to help, Damian," Tim explained. "We could always use more people, don't you think?"

"Tt."

"I certainly won't turn away help," Alfred said. "Miss Stephanie, you may join Master Tim and me in the kitchen, if you like."

"Sure thing, Alfred," Stephanie said. Damian watched as the three of them disappeared into the kitchen to begin preparing the cake as well as a variety of other desserts and hors d'oeuvres. "I still can't believe Damian planned all of this," Stephanie was saying to Tim as they left.

Damian almost couldn't believe it himself. Since when did he plan parties? And for Grayson of all people. And yet here he was. He'd first gotten the idea nearly a month ago when Dick had been lamenting the fact that his birthday used to be the first day of spring, but was now just like everSy other day. Knowing that Dick would go all out to give the perfect gift, Damian had decided that it was his duty to make sure that he received the perfect gift. After wracking his brain for days trying to think of something, he finally realized that the perfect gift for Dick Grayson wasn't something material. Instead, he enjoyed the company of his friends and family.

And so, Damian spread the word, making sure to give everyone enough time to plan accordingly. He would not accept no-shows to this party. The first one he'd told had been Alfred, of course, who was delighted with Damian's plan. Almost immediately after, he'd paid a visit to Tim when he was in the Tower on Wayne Enterprises business.

"Drake," Damian said, catching his target off-guard in the hallway. "I require your presence at a gathering being held on the evening of March 21st in honor of Richard Grayson."

Tim stared at Damian with a ridiculously blank expression on his face that had made Damian want to punch him. "That's Dick's birthday," Tim finally said. "You mean you're throwing him a party?"

"Yes. And you will be there. Make sure you aren't busy."

"You want me to come to your party?" Tim asked, amused.

"It's Grayson's party," Damian corrected. "And he will want you there."

"Alright."

"Also, it is meant to be a surprise. If you spoil it, I will personally maim you." Hesitantly, he added, "I may also require your assistance in the preparations."

While Damian was not at all fond of Drake, he did know that things would be much easier with him on board as Damian had no idea what birthday parties were like, much less how to plan one. And so Damian had tolerated working with him. Tim's first task had been to enlist Barbara to their cause, knowing that she would be able to get Dick out of the penthouse for a few hours so they could decorate. Next came Wally because he was Dick's best friend and would want to be involved. It certainly helped that he could do several days of work in the span of only a few minutes.

Their next task had been the hardest: the guest list. Damian had voiced many objections to nearly every person that Tim insisted on inviting and had tried on more than one occasion to exclude several of Dick's closest friends simply because he thought said person was annoying. Ultimately, Tim won the battle over each of these individuals by reminding Damian that this was Dick's party, not his. With the guest list finalized, Damian then took on the task of personally delivering each invitation so that he could make certain that each individual knew that failing to attend was most definitely not an option and would not be accepted under any circumstances.

First had been Clark Kent. Dick had laughed when Damian said he had business in Metropolis, but Damian brushed him off, borrowing one of his father's jets and flying there without permission. He stalked into The Daily Planet, demanding to see Clark Kent without delay. The receptionist had adamantly refused to let him in, despite his authoritative tone.

"Do you know who I am?" Damian snarled. Crossing his arms over his chest, he shot a menacing glare at the receptionist. The receptionist merely blinked. "I am Damian Wayne. My father is Bruce Wayne. Now either let me through or bring him out here or I'll-"

"Damian!" Both the receptionist and Damian turned to see Clark giving Damian an odd look. "It's alright, Sara, I do know this boy."

"Finally!" Damian said, waving off Sara. "I have no further use for you." He approached the reporter and held out a small slip of paper. "Here, Kent."

Clark took the paper from Damian's hand, curious, and skimmed it. Finally, he chuckled. "You know, you could have just sent this in the mail, right?"

"This is top secret information, Kent. I can't have it floating around in the mail services where anyone can access it. I also came to inform you that failure to attend will result in dire consequences."

"Don't worry, Damian," Clark said with an amused gleam in his eyes. "I'll be there. How could I miss it?"

Clark had then asked if Damian needed any help delivering the rest of the invitations. Damian had answered negatively at first, but after some thought, decided that, to be as discreet as possible, he could use the man's help. After all, some of their invitees were on the other side of the country. Damian didn't want to be away too long so as not to arouse suspicion. And so, Clark helped Damian use the teleporters in the Watchtower and acted as a lookout, making sure Dick didn't show up unexpectedly while Damian was completely his mission.

With the help of the teleporters, delivering all of his invitations only took a few short hours. Soon, he was left with only one invitation and it was meant for Jason Todd. Tim and Damian had both been hesitant about inviting Jason, but had ultimately decided that Dick would want him there. Besides, if anyone was going to decide not to show up, it would be Jason and then they wouldn't have to worry about him while still feeling as if they'd done the right thing by inviting him in the first place.

Robin watched from above as Red Hood took out a small gang of would-be muggers, quickly and brutally dispatching each of them until, finally, he was the only one standing. "Alright, brat, you can come out now," Hood said as he wiped blood off of one of his favorite knives. Damian was momentarily shocked that he had figured out someone was watching him, but quickly pushed it out of his mind as he leapt from his hiding spot, landing in front of the helmeted vigilante.

"Todd," Damian greeted, snidely.

"What do you want?"

"To deliver this." Damian held out the last invitation. Jason took it from him and skimmed it before ripping it in half.

"Nope," he said, tearing the paper into even smaller pieces. "Not on your life, Twerp." He tossed the tiny pieces of the invitation into the air and Damian watched as they scattered to the ground. "I don't do parties. Especially parties with all of Goldie's goodie-two-shoes friends involved. Lemme guess. You've already invited Supes and the speedsters and nearly every single member of the Teen Titans since its formation?"

"Grayson would want you there," was all Damian said before he disappeared into the shadows.

Damian still had no idea if Todd would show, but he honestly didn't care. He had been far too busy worrying about other preparations to dwell too much on what the second oldest of his father's sons was going to do about this party. Besides, every other invitee had RSVP'd with yeses and that was good enough for Damian.

After successfully handing out every invitation, Damian had put the rest of his crew to work. Alfred was, of course, charged with food preparations while Wally volunteered to handle decorations and entertainment. All in all, Damian was satisfied with the work they'd done since then and the work they were doing now. Wally had already finished hanging his streamers and was now working on blowing up balloons. A wonderful smell had already wafted through the penthouse from the kitchen.

Yes, everything was turning out exactly as planned and Damian couldn't have been prouder.

Meanwhile, Dick and Barbara were enjoying a quiet lunch at one of Dick's favorite diners in Midtown Gotham. Dick was relaying what had happened earlier that morning with Damian. Although he was enjoying his time with Barbara, Damian's refusal to acknowledge his birthday had really upset him.

"And then when I finally told him that today is my birthday, he just stared at me," Dick said, exasperated. "I mean, I wasn't expecting much. I certainly didn't expect him to go all out with a card and a gift or anything, but it would have been nice for him to at least say 'happy birthday.'" Dick sighed. "I mean, I've been under the impression that we've really bonded these past few months. I was starting to think that he even liked me. At the very least, I thought that he tolerated me now."

Barbara reached across the table and took Dick's hand. It hurt her to see him this upset about Damian, but she knew that, if he could just hang on for a few short hours, he would realize that he was worrying over nothing. "You shouldn't let it bother you," she said. "You know how Damian is. I'm sure he wasn't trying to hurt you."

"I know," Dick said. "It's just that I've been trying so hard to earn his friendship. He's my brother and I want us to be just as close as I am with Tim."

"I'm sure you will be someday," Barbara said.

"Yeah I guess," Dick said, frowning. "I thought that about Jason too, though."

"Hey, it's your birthday," Barbara reminded him with a stern look, "and I want to see a smile on your face for the rest of the day. I don't care what Damian says or doesn't say. And if you even think about getting upset over him again, I'll just smack you." Dick couldn't stop the smile that spread across his lips.

"Alright," Dick said, "no more frowns."

After lunch, Barbara took Dick to the best arcade in Gotham, knowing that they would be able to kill plenty of time in there while the party was being set up back in the penthouse. The arcade seemed to do the trick in lifting Dick's spirits and the frown from lunch had all but vanished. Together, they played, challenging each other in racing games and shooting games and battling it out in skeeball and air hockey. Finally, at 4:30, Barbara received a text from Tim letting her know that they were ready when Dick was. They used up the last of their credits then exchanged their tickets for prizes before heading back to Wayne Tower.

"Mind if I come up?" Barbara asked when they arrived. "It's been a while since I've seen Alfred and if there is cake, I wouldn't mind snagging a piece of it."

"Sure," Dick said. While he was getting her wheelchair from the trunk, Barbara sent a quick text to Tim, alerting him that they were only minutes away. Once she was settled in her chair, Dick pushed her through the lobby to the elevator.

Up in the penthouse, nearly fifty heroes had gathered for Dick's party, chatting amongst each other as they waited for the guest of honor. The decorations were all done and the food was set out on long buffet-style tables. Alfred had even set up a mini bar for their guests to make use of. A large pile of gifts and cards was waiting to be opened in another room and Wally had the perfect party playlist set up.

Wally was on lookout duty. His face was pressed against the window, trying to see what was happening on the ground below. He watched as Dick helped Barbara into her chair and then they wheeled out of sight. "I can't see them anymore!" Wally announced loudly. "They're in the building! Places everyone!" The room was immediately quiet as the heroes scrambled to hide. Wally dashed to the light switch and, once everyone was out of sight, flicked the lights off. The room was completely silent until the ding of the elevator alerted everyone to Dick's arrival. In the silence, they could hear Dick and Barbara laughing as the doors slid open.

"Hey, I would have beaten you if I hadn't skidded off the-. Wait."

When the door was completely open, Wally flipped on the lights and everyone jumped out of their hiding spots. "SURPRISE!"

Dick was so shocked, that he jumped back, nearly falling over. "Holy-"

"Happy birthday!" Wally shouted, grabbing his arm before he completely toppled to the ground. His balance regained, Dick stood and looked around at all of the familiar faces in the room, all staring at him with happy smiles. Slowly, as he realized what this was, a wide grin spread across his face.

"You guys planned a surprise party?" he exclaimed, stepping further into the room. "Babs, you were in on this?"

"Of course!" she said, glad to see him so excited.

"Wow, thank you! I had no idea!" Dick could barely contain his excitement as he looked back to Wally who was still hovering nearby, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet. "Wally, was this your idea?" he asked.

"Nope," Wally said with a grin. Dick narrowed his eyes thoughtfully as he searched the room again, his eyes landing immediately on Tim who was also standing nearby.

"Timmy?"

"Wasn't me," Tim said.

Dick was utterly confused. "Alfred?" he asked uncertainly. Alfred merely shrugged, looking quite amused.

"The culprit is to your seven o-clock, Former Boy Wonder," Barbara finally said, nodding her head towards the corner just inside the room next to the elevator.

Dick turned, shocked to see Damian hiding in the corner. "Damian?" Dick gasped. "You did all of this?"

"Tt," Damian said, crossing his arms and turning his head away. "I can hardly take all of the credit."

"You might as well," Wally said. "All I did was hang some streamers and print the invitations."

Dick's eyes welled up with tears as he realized that Damian's attitude this morning had all been an act. He ran forward and wrapped his arms around the boy, holding him tightly against his chest. "Grayson, unhand me!" Damian protested with a growl. "Just because it's your birthday doesn't mean you can touch me however you like!"

"You don't hate me," Dick murmured as his guests snickered at the sight of Damian squirming in his arms.

"I will if you don't let go of me."

"Just ten more seconds," Dick said. "Then I promise I'll let go."

Damian stopped squirming. "Fine. Ten seconds. No Mississippi's."

"Yes Mississippi's." Damian waited as Dick counted out his ten seconds. Finally, after what was definitely far longer than ten seconds, Dick let go. "Thanks, Dami."

"Just go enjoy your party," Damian said, gesturing towards the crowd of heroes waiting to personally give him their well wishes.

Dick turned to them, again looking through the crowd. Damian had really gone above and beyond, gathering all of the people that he loved under one roof. The whole immediate family was there, which, surprisingly, included Jason Todd hiding in the back. He saw many of his friends from the Titans—Roy, Donna, Kory, Vic, etc.—as well as friends from the league like Clark, Diana, and Hal. It struck him once again just how many people there were in his life who cared for him and he was now sure that the list included Damian.

"Who wants to play pin the tail on the speedster?" Dick shouted, throwing up his hands.

"What?" Wally asked, suddenly terrified. "Dick, no!" But Dick was already running towards him, an evil grin on his face. With a very unmanly squeal, Wally started running, finding it hard to maneuver through the crowd, most of which knew this game very well and were more than willing to join in.

"It's my birthday, Wally!" Dick called as he chased after him into another room.

Back by the elevator, Alfred sighed. "I have a feeling this isn't going to end well."

"They don't have nearly as much space as they did in the Manor," Tim pointed out. A loud scream resounded from elsewhere in the penthouse, followed by a crash that sounded a lot like glass shattering.

"I'll retrieve the broom and the dust pan," Alfred said, turning to do just that.

Laughing, Barbara turned to Damian, who was still hiding out in the corner. "This is a great party, Damian," she said. "You have no idea how happy you've made him."

"Whatever," Damian said, shrugging it off, but Barbara could see his cheeks turning red as he turned away.

Damian waited until after the party, when everyone else had gone, to give Dick his gift. He didn't want Dick to make another scene in front of their guests. When it came time for him to open everyone's gifts, Damian found that he was thankful he did. By that point (after being repeatedly assured that his Batman duties would be taken care of by the rest of the family that night) Dick had had a few drinks and was a tad more emotional and touchy-feely than he'd been at the start of the party.

"Grayson," Damian called as Dick started towards his room later that night.

"What's up?" he asked, smiling at Damian.

"Here." He held out a package about the size of a laptop.

"Another present?" Dick took it and examined it.

"I believe that it is what is inside that you will be interested in," Damian said impatiently.

"I know that," Dick said. "I was just trying to see if I could guess what it is first." Seeing Damian's irritated glare, he decided to forgo his guessing and started tearing off the light blue paper, revealing a box. When he opened the box, a broad smile graced his face. Inside was a framed piece of Damian's artwork. Upon closer inspection, Dick realized that it was a painting of him. In the bottom corner, scrawled in Damian's elegant hand, were the words, "Happy birthday, Grayson" along with his signature. "It's wonderful, Dami," Dick said. He was always pleasantly surprised by how good of an artist Damian was. "I love it. I'm going to hang it up in my room."

"There is one more thing," Damian said. Dick looked back in the box, but didn't see anything.

"Oh no, did I drop it?" he asked, glancing to the floor. He was about to kneel down to search when he felt Damian wrap his arms around him.

"I don't hate you," Damian said. "I don't know where you got such a foolish idea in the first place."

Dick smiled and returned the hug. "Thank you, Damian," he said. "Because of you, this was the best birthday ever."