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If there was one thing Talia did more than anything else, it was love her son... no, her sons.
The youngest, so brave, so bold, so wild.
The eldest, so kind, so sensitive, so lonely.
The League was no longer a safe place. Or rather, it never had been. But now, being by their side was nothing but constant danger; a bomb waiting to explode at the moment it would hurt her the most.
The mere thought of being separated from her precious sons burned with madness.
She still didn't understand how she had come to love them so much. After all, how can someone learn to give what they never received?
She fully accepted the possible mistakes in their upbringing, but she did what she could with what she had.
She loved her sons, but she couldn't show it, or they would be ripped out like dead roots from a tree they wanted to make bloom quickly and easily.
The night she had to tear out the roots that kept her alive was the most painful. The older boy could barely be considered an adult; the younger one hadn't even finished losing his baby teeth and getting new, strong ones, the kind that would help him bite his way through the world.
But she couldn't keep them there much longer. Not if she wanted to see them alive again.
Jason knew the plan. He had understood it and improved it, as efficient as ever. They discussed it for days and, even more so, at night. Those hours usually gave him the courage he lacked under the sun. He disagreed, but he couldn't change much. He knew that, at the end of the day, Talia was right. As always.
She had Jason punished to confine him to his room and give him time to plan the escape. She had also coordinated a couple of other threads for months.
As night fell, they managed to evade security and reach Damian's room. The moon was already high in the sky. The little boy was just starting to fall asleep when his mother's movement and light touch woke him.
Gripping his sword, he looked toward the noise. He was used to fearing for his life; it had always been that way. That was how, sadly, he had had to grow up: with fear and paranoia.
That wouldn't happen anymore.
"My little prince," Talia whispered. Damian's eyes were almost closed, overcome by the exhaustion of rigorous training. "I'm going to need you to do something for me today."
"Of course, Mother."
The woman gently stroked her son. How could he be so small?
"Come here." She did something she had never done before. She had longed to do it with every breath, but she had never had the courage.
“My beloved children,” she whispered when she held them both in her arms.
She could hear the worry in Damian’s breathing. She was sure the little boy wanted to cry, but the grueling training etched into his soul wouldn’t allow it. The other hugged her with a force that was beginning to hurt.
“Listen, Habibi,” Talia straightened both boys, who were looking at her with expectant eyes. “Damian, my precious son, in this world there will be many things you may doubt. There will be many things you won’t feel safe about, much less at peace.”
The little boy looked at his mother, bewildered by this new behavior. There were nights when he dreamed that his mother came in and simply looked at him, that she loved him for the simple fact of being him. But an Al Ghul didn’t have time to dream.
And now, he was living it.
“But if there’s one thing you should never dare to doubt,” Talia gently wiped away a tear that threatened to escape her eyelid, “it’s my love for you. For you and your Akhi.”
She held her son’s small face. How could such a small face reflect so much pain?
“Mother, what’s happening?” The boy looked between her and his brother, searching in vain for answers.
“I love you so much, my child. You are so brave and have such a big heart. You have so much to offer the world that I can’t wait to see what you will become tomorrow.”
Talia cradled the little boy’s face in her hands, pulled him close, and kissed his forehead. “They forced you to get your hands dirty without even stopping to check if you were okay. You are so much more than you know. You are everything, my little prince. And I beg you to forgive me for not being able to give you more than this, but I hope that one day I will have the chance to redeem myself.”
Then she looked at her other son beside her, who kept staring at her as if he were somewhere he didn’t belong.
“And you, my big boy.”
At that moment, Talia allowed herself a small laugh at the sight of her son’s face.
“Jason, I’m sorry I came into your life so late, and I’m sorry I have to leave so soon.” Jason reacted more familiarly to her touch, tilting his head toward the hand that caressed his cheek.
“My big, kind, and fighting son,” she smiled. “I don’t know if you consider me a mother, I don’t know if you need one, or if you even want one, but I’ve selfishly claimed the title, and I don’t think anything feels as good as that.”
“You are, T.”
“Thank you so much for letting me. I don’t know how you can, after everything you’ve been through, wake up every day and decide to be better than the day before.”
“But I promise you, my son: you will.” She looked at them both again.
“Mothers make mistakes, but I still want you to know that you're not alone. You're bound by something much stronger than blood; you're bound by a bond that can't be broken.”
“The love and affection you have for each other is what will help you through this dangerous time.” Jason nodded, looking at Talia with determination. “My children, my little ones, this might be the last time we see each other.”
“Mother?!” Damian exclaimed.
“The League isn't a place where you can stay much longer, Habibi. You'll go with your father.”
“But, Mother...”
“You're leaving now. Your Akhi packed what you need.” Damian began desperately tugging at his mother's and brother's clothes, searching for answers.
“Mother, no. I’ll train harder, I promise! Is it because of my injury? I’m fine now, I can walk, it doesn’t hurt, really.”
Talia looked at her son. What was the League doing to that poor baby?
“I won’t complain again, I promise. I’m not weak. Don’t throw me away.”
Talia quickly pulled her son close, wrapping him in another hug.
“I love you, Damian. I love you so much that I want to keep you alive. I want to give you a life where you don’t have to measure your worth, where you can love freely without having to keep a sword under your pillow.”
“I love you both so much that if keeping you alive means taking you away from me, that’s what I’ll do. Even if your absence condemns my existence to a great emptiness.”
She let out a long sigh and continued. At least for now, the only thing she could offer her son as comfort was a little information.
“You’ll go to Gotham, with your father,” she told Damian.
“I’ve been sorting everything out regarding the clown for months now. You and your brother will be safe there; my father won’t be able to reach you.”
“And as I told you, you must leave now.”
The room remained dark until their departure time. Talia wanted to indulge herself by lighting a candle to look at her sons one last time, but that would put everything at risk.
So she settled for the idea of contemplating, after their departure, the large portraits in her father’s throne room.
Jason hugged Talia one last time as she whispered in his ear, “Don’t abandon your brother. You know better than anyone how difficult the mansion is.”
“You know I can’t go back.”
She sighed at her son’s stubbornness; in the end, he was undoubtedly raised by her.
“I can’t force you to do it. I can only beg you not to neglect him. Visit him as often as you can; Damian is just a child.” She stroked his cheek one last time. “And you were one too. I love you, Jay. I’ll pray for a safe journey for you both.”
After one last quick hug, the older boy gave his brother space to do the same as he prepared to leave.
“My Dami, you were born to reign, and I will make sure that you do. Life with your father will be difficult, but don’t let any of it make you forget where you came from and where you’re going.” The woman hugged her beloved son one last time. “I love you, my boy.”
Talia didn’t want to let her sons go. The night was cold, it always was. It would be dangerous for Damian to be so exposed, but she knew it would be far more dangerous to go out in the sunlight. A long journey lay ahead.
And Talia could do nothing but long for the day of their reunion.
“I love you, I love you so much, and I’m sure we’ll meet again,” the woman said, hugging her son tightly and kissing his small forehead countless times. She tried to memorize his scent; he was older now, but he still had that babyish essence. He smelled of the incense that permeated the entire resort and of the oranges he had eaten for dinner.
Jason took his brother from his mother’s arms and placed him on his back, a position already very familiar to both of them. Damian clung like an insect to the back of a larger predator and, somehow, managed to stick almost completely to his brother.
“Goodbye, Mom,” Jason had never dared to call Talia that, to tell the truth. He recognized her as such, but had never had the courage to do so. “I’m taking the brat.”
Damian kicked the older man in the back, trying to silence him.
Talia knew that Damian still wasn’t satisfied with the situation. She knew he would prefer to stay and fight. And she also knew that the little boy was making a great effort not to argue anymore, not to fight anymore; because Damian was intelligent and knew there was a good chance of losing, and that the pit couldn’t fix everything.
“Goodbye, my children. I love you.” Talia had never said that word as much as in the last twenty minutes, but something inside her made her feel that she wouldn’t have the opportunity to do so again for a long time.
Three hours later, the disappearance of the prince and his head guard was reported.
She had managed to buy her children a three-hour head start.
She knew better than anyone that they would know how to make the most of the time. For now, she could rest easy knowing that they would soon be safe.
Far from her, far from her father, far from the sentence she had to pay so that they could be a little freer than they would ever be there.