Fic: Happy Birthday
Title: Happy Birthday
Fandom: DC
Characters: Lian Harper, Dick Grayson, Roy Harper, Tim Drake, Milagro Reyes, various Titans
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None
Word Count: 1, 831
Author's Notes: Yet more future!fic, not associated with the other future!fics I recently wrote. This has been floating around in my brain for months now, so I will finally get it out. I pretty much included any superhero I wanted to, but I tried to stick mainly with Titans and family.
Lian woke to the smell of something burning and the sound of someone banging around in the kitchen. Her first thought was to panic and grab the escrima sticks she kept under her bed, but then logical kicked in and she realised it was probably just her Dad attempting to make breakfast. She smiled to herself and got out of bed. If the smell was any indication, Dad was going to need some serious help.
"Good morning Dad," Lian greeted him when she entered the kitchen.
"Lian! You weren't supposed to wake up so early, I was going to bring you breakfast in bed," Roy smiled down at her and waved a spatula in the air for dramatic effect.
"Dad, did you burn the pancakes?" Lian asked with a smile.
"Maybe," Roy answered sheepishly.
Lian shook her head and was about to walk over to inspect the pancakes when arms wrapped around her waist and lifted her into the air.
"Put me down papa!" Lian squealed at Dick.
"Oh right, you're a big girl now," Dick mocked.
"Isn't anyone going to wish me a happy birthday?" Lian pouted.
Roy grinned and gave her a hug, Dick joined in and in two seconds they were a squirming mass on the floor as Roy stared tickling Lian.
"Happy birthday Squirt," Roy ruffled her hair as he stood up.
"Yup, sweet sixteen and never been kissed," Dick added.
"It's cute how deluded you are," Lian smirked at Dick.
Dick merely gaped at her in shock as she moved over to the stove in an attempt to rescue some edible breakfast.
"Oh don't act surprised, I am merely a product of my environment," Lian explained as she scraped burnt pancake off the pan.
"We are going to have to talk about your attitude miss," Roy said evenly.
Dick kept a straight face for all of a second before he burst into laughter. Roy followed behind quickly and Lian shot them both an 'are you serious?' look.
"Anyway, don't you want your present?" Dick asked as he stopped laughing.
"I thought I got all my presents last night?" Lian replied, still focused on saving breakfast.
She had her birthday party last night, with all of her friends from school and her dads had given her a bunch of cool stuff, mostly clothes and stuff for her room. She didn't expect anything more.
"It's nothing big," Roy assured her as he handed her a small jewellery box.
She opened it to find a bracelet made of plaited leather with beads intertwined in what Lian recognised as a Navajo pattern. It was designed like a charm bracelet, it had tiny gold loops at various intervals along the leather and near the clasp one charm was already attached. It was a small, old coin and Lian peered at it curiously.
"It's a family heirloom," Dick explained, "it's one of the few things I still have from my mother."
Lian looked at her father as he smiled in that sad way that meant he was missing his family. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight.
"Thank you papa, I promise I'll keep it safe," Lian kissed his cheek, "and thanks for the bracelet dad, I love you guys."
"Love you too," they replied in unison.
"Now, we better get ready, the entire Caped community is going to be here soon," Roy reminded her.
"Um, I think the pancakes are past saving," Lian told them, dejectedly poking the sticky, burnt mass of batter with the spatula.
"You go get dressed and ready, I'll run down the road and grab us some breakfast burritos, I know Milagro has gotten you addicted to those," Dick said, flashing her a knowing grin.
Lian smiled back shyly and went to get dressed.
~
By the time everyone had arrived at their apartment Lian was running around trying to find more plates. They had expected a lot of people but not this many. Her dad had just run down the store to get more pizza and everyone was getting ready to eat and give Lian her presents.
"Hello Lian," a voice came from behind her and she nearly jumped out of her skin.
She turned around to see her Uncle Tim grinning at her.
"I didn't see you come in!" she grinned as she hugged him, "wait, did you come in through the window?"
Tim's only reply was a smirk and she whacked him on the arm.
"You are such a Bat. Come on, help me with these plates so we can get lunch over and done with," Lian commanded.
Tim held up the bag he had been holding and showed Lian the contents. It contained at least twelve plates neatly stacked.
"Alfred?" she asked.
"Alfred," was his answer.
~
Once lunch had been devoured and the mess was mostly cleaned away everyone crowded into the living room for present opening.
Uncle Tim gave her a present first, a little jewellery box that she opened to find a tiny robin pendant. She guessed that her dads had told him they were giving her a charm bracelet. He had also told her that a new motorcycle was waiting at the Bat Cave for her, courtesy of Bruce.
Uncle Ollie, not to be outdone, had given her a set of car keys and told her a sports car was waiting out front. She had run eagerly to the window and squealed in delight at the dark green car parked in their driveway. Connor and Mia had given her an arrow pendant for her bracelet as well as a new bow and quiver.
Aunty Babs had given her a small palm pilot, Lian assumed it was going to be pretty advanced because Ted Kord had helped her build it. She had also gotten a pendant shaped like the Oracle mask.
"It will send out an emergency signal if you speak an activation code," Babs had told her.
Aunty Dinah's present consisted of a bird pendant, a canary obviously, as well as Dinah's first leather jacket. Lian tried it on and it fit perfectly, she refused to take it off.
Donna, Diana and Cassie gave her a star pendant for her bracelet and a metal cuff bracelet.
"It's made from the same thing my bracelets are," Diana told her, "it will protect you."
Lian had grinned and hugged her tightly.
Kara, Kon and Clark added an S-shield pendant to her bracelet. And they gave her a cape made from Kryptonian material, in the same fashion as Diana's present, it would protect her from almost anything, it was stronger than any Earth material. Lian noticed the grateful smile her dads gave the Super family.
Jaime gave her a pair of earrings to match a beetle shaped pendant.
"The scarab made them, I'm not sure what exactly they do, but I have a feeling you will find out when you need to," Jaime had told her.
Raven's present was a simple black stone set in a gold circle.
"What's it do?" Lian had asked, knowing that Raven would understand she didn't mean that inconsiderately, merely that she knew Raven wouldn't give her something useless.
"Hope and strength," Raven had replied cryptically, "use it in times of need."
When Lian touched her fingers to the stone she felt suffused with warmth. She had hugged Raven and after a moment of stiffness the older woman had hugged her back.
Vic had just returned from his car with a medium sized box with holes in the lid. When he gave Lian the box she opened it and a puppy leapt out and licked her face excitedly.
"YOU AREN'T HAVING A PUPPY!" Roy shouted.
Lian held the dog up to Roy and it took him a moment to realise it was green.
"Gar," he scolded.
The puppy leapt from Lian's arms and changed back into Gar. Vic smiled and handed her a wrapped box. She opened it to find a cell phone.
"It's connected directly to the JLA watch tower and will dial anywhere in this solar system," Vic explained as he handed her a manual the size of a phone book.
The Flashes that had attended the party simply gave her a lightning bolt shaped pendant to attach to her bracelet.
"It's imbued with the Speed Force," Wally told her, "if you focus you can tap into it briefly, long enough to travel the world once or to vibrate your molecules for five seconds."
"Which is practically forever!" Bart cut in.
"Thanks guys," Lian had smiled and gotten herself three quick speedster hugs from Bart, Wally and Jai, as well as one long hug from little Iris.
Garth had given her a fish pendant and a bottle of clear liquid.
"When you drink a tiny amount you will be able to breathe underwater for an hour," Garth said as he gave her a hug.
"Whoa, that's so cool, thanks Fish Sticks," Lian teased.
Garth turned to glare at Roy, but Roy and Dick were already doubled over in laughter.
Milagro was the last to give Lian a present; it was a plain gold 'L' to attach to her bracelet, the only thing that was special about it was the faint green glow it emitted.
"It's made from the same stuff as my ring, and it has enough power in it to create and maintain a force field for half an hour, whenever it runs out I can recharge it for you," Milagro told her.
Lian grinned and hugged Milagro tightly.
"I'll give you the rest of your present later," Milagro whispered into her ear.
Lian blushed at the tone and looked around the room to see the Super family blushing too.
~
Milagro and Lian were curled up together on the couch watching a movie one of Lian's school friends had given her. Everyone else had gone home and her dads had gone to bed. Milagro was playing with Lian's hair as Lian gently held each of the charms on her bracelet. She sighed softly.
"Is something wrong baby?" Milagro asked, pressing a kiss to Lian's temple.
"I'm just thinking," Lian said softly and Milagro poked her when she didn't continue, "I wonder how long it is before one of these charms is a painful reminder of a lost loved one."
"Hey, hey no, don't think like that," Milagro shushed her, trailing soft kisses across Lian's cheek and throat.
"I can't help it," Lian frowned and pulled Milagro tighter.
Milagro moved to capture Lian's mouth with hers, letting her hands find their way under Lian's shirt to trace absent patterns on her skin.
"Are you trying to dis-TRA-ct me," Lian gasped as Milagro brushed a finger over her nipple.
"Is it working?" Milagro whispered into Lian's ear as she moved to bite her neck gently.
"Oh! Mmm-yeah," Lian breathed out heavily.
Milagro's only reply was a wicked grin.