They waited till Bruce's car was no longer in the driveway then set out to explore their new living space. Jason decided they should start top to bottom, hoping that they'd find something creepy in either the attic or the cellar. He was always in need of a good scary story to freak Tim out at night and one based off the place they were living in was sure to get a good scare. 

Past their bedrooms were a few more guest rooms and a study. Finding nothing special, they tried the other way and eventually found a locked door. 

"That must lead to the attic, why else would he lock it?" Tim theorized. 

"Alright, let's just bust it down," Jason stated, beginning his run-up. However, the eldest of the trio stopped him.

"Yeah because a busted down door isn't going to raise any suspicions. We just need a card."

"Debit or credit?" Jason joked, receiving an eye-roll. "No need to be uptight." He ran off and then returned with a gift card. 

"Where did you get that?" Tim inquired as Dick took it. 

"Found it," he stated. After some fiddling, the door swung open and Dick returned the card to the younger.

Inside the room was pitch black. They could make out the first few stairs thanks to the light from the hallway but that was it. Admittedly, it was slightly terrifying to stare into the inky blackness of the unknown and Jason was hesitant to return to the leadership role he took on earlier. 

"Do you think it's haunted?" he muttered.

"Ghosts aren't real, right Dick?" Tim responded though he felt extremely uncomfortable at the sight of the stairwell. Dick shrugged and took a few steps forward, finding a light switch and then flipping it to light up the room. 

"If there were any ghosts, they wouldn't be able to sneak up on us now," he said before ascending the stairs. The younger pair followed, keeping behind him just in case something happened. The attic itself wasn't anything special since it mostly consisted of dusty old furniture. 

"Well this is a lot more boring than I thought it would be," Jason complained. They split up and had a look around before the sound of cooing made them all pause. They looked up to the rafters, finding an owl perching itself on the wood. Dick's eyes glanced off to the side, finding the top of what looked like another set of stairs. He liked high places so he instantly began his search for the bottom of the stairs.

Whilst he did, Jason began pestering the owl to come to get Tim. The younger became both irritated and scared by the threat and began slapping him to make him stop. That did little for the situation as Jason took it as a chance to fight him. 

"Dick, Jason is being mean!" Tim shouted. They paused their fight when there was no warning from the older to knock it off. 

"Where's he got to?" Jason questioned. There was no fun in fighting if there wasn't someone there to tell him off. He liked the risk of pissing someone off. Without it, sure beating someone up was still some fun, but it just wasn't worth the trouble. 

They looked around to find that Dick had perched himself on the same rafter as the owl. The pair exchanged a look before the owl took flight. Tim shrieked, thinking Jason's orders were finally being followed through and hid in a cupboard close by. Dick watched the owl carefully whilst Jason only intensified his orders about getting Tim. The bird rightly didn't listen to the boy and continued to fly around. Dick was sensible enough to know that it wasn't coming to devour a boy that was twice its size but trying to find a way out. He looked around and spied a window that looked big enough for it to fit through. 

"Jay, how much did it hurt when you broke your arm?" he asked after eyeing the sizeable gap between the window ledge and the floor. 

"On a scale of one to ten? Probably an eight. Why?" Dick stood up on the rafter, somehow staying balanced on it the entire time. Jason stopped taunting the poor owl to watch him. He couldn't help but be impressed that the older hadn't fallen off of it. 

"I'm letting the owl out," Dick replied. He walked on a thinner piece of wood that connected to the wall with the window. It was just as wide as his foot but without a good sense of balance, it would be easy to fall off. 

"Alright but I hope you've got money saved up for the hospital fee," Jason responded. He continued to watch the older carefully get to the window and open it before retreating back to the thicker and more stable rafter. The owl noticed the new exit and happily flew through it. "Seems like a lot of faff for some bird," Jason commented as Dick made himself comfortable. The height would be dizzying for anyone else but to him, it felt sort of comforting. 

"Tim would be cooped up in the cupboard all night if I didn't do something," he reasoned. "You can come out now." 

Cautiously, Tim left the safety of his hiding place and looked around to confirm there was no owl ready to pluck him off the floor and carry him away. Admittedly, he wasn't quite sure what an owl ate and may have overestimated how strong it was but that didn't stop him from being scared of it. 

"How did you get up there?" he asked once he was sure there was no bird threat. 

"Found the stairs. You want to join me?" They both shook their heads, happy to pass up on the offer to sit on a small piece of wood way too high off the floor. "Suit yourself."

"Imagine if there's a dead body up here. Maybe three other kids that Batman brought here?" Jason thought aloud. 

"It would smell awful up here if there were," Dick said, shooting the idea down quickly before Tim got nightmares about it. He sent Jason a glare to knock it off since he'd regret it later when none of them could sleep because Tim was too scared to sleep. 

"You know, I've been thinking about this whole situation," Tim announced. He wanted to change the topic before Jason tried to scare him any further. 

"Oh?" Dick replied.

"Well he could've gone to any orphanage but he didn't. Batman just mentioned us and he decided he wanted to take us in. Don't you think that's a bit odd?" he continued. 

"Street rats get more sympathy than those kids in an orphanage I suppose," Jason suggested.

"Maybe. I just think it's weird."

"What are you suggesting? That Bruce and Batman are the same person or something?" Dick inquired, now intrigued by what the younger was putting forward. If they were the same person then that would explain some things but it sounded rather fanciful. A billionaire businessman by day and a vigilante by night? You could only laugh at the idea. 

"I mean maybe," Tim replied shyly. He realized how stupid it sounded. 

"Did your parents only show you too many of those alien conspiracy shows as a kid?" Jason scoffed. 

"Play nice Jay. We don't bring parents into things," Dick reminded him.

"All I'm saying is that it sounds like one of those stupid theories you hear those people out on 44th street shout about," the younger defended. Tim muttered something under his breath, pouting to himself about being made fun of. The older pair shared a glance and decided it best to leave the attic for now. 

"How about we look through that book room? You like books right?" Dick suggested, getting up from his spot and walking back to the stairs that led him up there. He'd keep this place in mind when he wanted some alone time. It was quiet although a bit dusty. 

"Yeah! It's been a while since I read a book," Tim reminisced.

"What about that book I stole for you a few months back?"

"That was a travel guide that was written in Chinese."

"Didn't know you were so picky."

Tim was the only one who seemed to enjoy rooting through the books and flipping through the pages. Dick and Jason tried to make their own entertainment as the youngest of the trio had a field day. Neither of them could read very well. They could read street signs and knew how to spell different types of drugs but that was about it. Books to them were mocking somehow. They were meant for people who had what they didn't and surprisingly they didn't like it. Jason had stopped learning out of principle whilst Dick lacked the motivation. They knew what they had to and that was enough. 

Tim, on the other hand, craved to develop his reading skills and often complained about their lack of enthusiasm about the topic. Books were his best friends. They took him on adventures wherever he wanted to go and taught him so much about the places he'd probably never visit. It was rather jarring to have two people in his life that didn't feel the same but he dealt with it. 

"We've been in here for ages!" Jason complained. 

"It's only been an hour. I've not even looked through all these books yet," Tim replied. He was currently holding a red leather-bound book that had its title written in gold on the front. They couldn't quite make out what it said since it was written in cursive and there was no way they could read that without exerting more energy than they cared to. 

"An avid reader I see," Alfred stated from the doorway. He caught all their attention and Tim quickly slotted the book back onto the shelf. They hadn't asked permission to touch things and he'd rather not get them kicked out from touching something important. "Master Bruce was quite the same as a youngster. His favourites were the likes of Charles Dickens and Lewis Carroll," the butler continued. He strode to the bookcase and searched the spines of the books for a particular book. 

"I've never read them before. I would like to though," Tim said in passing. 

"Who the hell are they?" Jason asked.

"They were awesome authors. Their stuff is still talked about today," Tim replied.

"Then how come we haven't heard of them?" Dick asked. It was hard to take his question seriously when he was sitting upside down on the couch but Tim tried his best to.

"Because we didn't grow up like him," Jason interjected before the younger got the chance to answer. 

"Here we are. Alice in Wonderland. I'm sure you'll enjoy this, though the wording might be a little difficult I'm sure you'll figure it out," Alfred announced, handing the book to Tim with a soft smile. 

"Thank you!" The pair on the couch rolled their eyes. 

"Let's go check out the back and leave the book nerds to book stuff," Jason suggested, standing up. Dick stretched so his hands were on the ground and did a handstand, landing on his feet gracefully. 

"That's the smartest thing you've said all day."

Bruce returned from work to hear Jason chanting "Go!" from the back garden. He smiled upon noticing how cheerful the boy sounded. They had settled in better than expected. He entered the house, announcing he was home and heard Alfred say they were in the kitchen. He joined them and found Tim sitting silently on the countertop with one of his childhood books in his hands. 

"I see you found my book collection," he commented, looking over Tim's shoulder to see what he was reading. 

"Yeah, it's amazing that you have so many books!" Tim mused. "The others are not so enthusiastic though."

"Where are the boys?" Bruce asked out of interest, noticing their lack of presence.

"They're outside in the garden. Though, I should really call them in. They've been out there nearly all day," Alfred answered. He was stirring a pot of wonderful-smelling soup which he'd been tending to all day. He was silently grateful that the group of boys occupied themselves and didn't make too much of a nuisance of themselves. He didn't know if he could take on three hyperactive children all day at his age. It would probably give him a heart attack or at the very least wipe him out for a few days. 

"I'll get them," Bruce offered, putting down his briefcase on the countertop. The butler nodded and returned to cooking.

Once outside, Bruce couldn't find the pair immediately. Although he could hear Jason still chanting. He searched the area and eventually found Jason chanting up at a tree. It was one of the tallest he had but he couldn't see why that would make Jason chant at it. So he followed the boy's eye line and found Dick climbing it. He was almost halfway up it at this point which was saying something. That must've been what kept them occupied all day. However, he couldn't find the fun in it. 

"Dick, get down from there!" he shouted worriedly.

"He's fine," Jason assured him. "Dick and heights are like best friends."

"I don't care if they're bloody brothers, one fall from there and he could be in the emergency room!" Jason rolled his eyes and folded his arms. He didn't appreciate Bruce shrieking. It wasn't like they hadn't done more dangerous things in their lives. 

Whilst this was going on, Dick continued to climb the tree and took a pit stop on a sturdy-looking branch to take a look around. He could see over the tall walls that surrounded the manor and make out the skyline of the town. He marvelled at how the glass of the apartment buildings shined in the setting sun. Then he was met with the grim thought that Joey was probably out there. He was probably scouring the streets for them. When he got his hands on them, Dick wasn't quite sure what would happen. Would he keep them working or kill them out of spite? That question sent shivers up his spine. He didn't want to imagine the mangled mess he would make of them. 

"Richard!" Bruce yelled at the top of his lungs. He finally caught the boy's attention and motioned for him to come down. With a sigh, Dick did as he was told and joined them back on the ground. "What were you thinking? Do you know how dangerous that was?"

"Yeah," he replied nonchalantly. "I could've gone higher if you hadn't stopped me."

"That would've been awesome. You would've been able to see past Gotham!" The young pair high-fived at the notion. 

"No, no, this isn't a high-five moment. This is a what you did was very dangerous and could've gotten you killed moment," Bruce interjected panicked. Dick shrugged. "What? Don't shrug at the notion of death. Why would he shrug at that?" he asked Jason in confusion. 

"Because Joey threatened us enough with it that it's lost its oomph." Oh. Right. 

"Just don't do that again, alright? I don't want you to get hurt."

"Why?" Dick asked.

"What do you mean why? What type of person would-" Bruce paused himself before he could follow through with that sentence. "I-I just do okay? Now go inside, tea is almost ready." The boys shrugged at his odd composure and ran inside. "Lord give me strength."