January

It was mid-January and the cold month had escalated with its weather. Blizzards had come and gone and piles of snow buried the streets. The peace the city needed from Leviathan seemed to arrive, albeit in the worst way. The days went by as if the invasion had never happened. News anchors discussed fresh topics. Time marched on. The people of Gotham adjusted.

Aaron and Chloe ventured out into the winter wonderland, bundled up in warm coats, scarves, and mittens. The snowflakes gently fell around them as they made their way to the local park. Chloe's face beamed with excitement as she spotted a hill covered in pristine snow.

"Mr. Aaron, let's sled down the hill!" Chloe exclaimed, pointing to the slope with a gleeful grin. "I saw someone selling sleds! We just have to!"

Aaron blinked twice. "Um, are you sure? That hill seems kinda big."

"Come on, come on!" Chloe dragged him forward. "We have to try at least!"

"Fine, fine." His lips tugged into a smile. "Be warned though. If you try to race me, you'll lose. You'll never defeat the chosen one of sledding."

"Bring it on!"

In reality, Aaron had never sledded before. He was raised in an orphanage and as a result hardly went outside to do recreational activities. This was going to be a first. Luckily, he was always good at firsts. He rented two sleds from a nearby vendor and they positioned their sleds at the top of the hill. Radiating with confidence, Aaron counted down. "Three, two, one, go!"

With a push, they both slid down the slope, their laughter filling the crisp winter air. Who arrived earlier? Aaron, of course. The journey felt second nature to him, his hands and body weight knowing exactly when to toss and turn. Chloe was also surprisingly skilled. From the looks of it, she had already done this. It was too bad that she was going up against the Chosen One. She lost by approximately five seconds. Groaning in defeat, she leapt from her sled.

"You were lucky this time, Mr. Aaron," Chloe exclaimed, finger pointed at him. Her cheeks were rosy from the exhilarating ride. "We go again! I'll beat you for sure!"

Aaron raised his hands in surrender. "I'm not going anywhere. We can do this as many times as you want." To add salt to the wound, he joked and said, "But you'll never beat me, Chloe. Trust me, I am a master of sledding. A master."

"We'll see about that!"

They spent most of the afternoon going up and down the hill. It was bewildering. Exhilarating. He felt truly alive as he exchanged high-fives, snow balls, and laughter. As the day drew to a close, they sat on a nearby bench, sipping hot cocoa to warm up. The vendor seemed to sell everything. Well, this was Gotham. If there was one thing reliable about the city, it was the streets. Thieves, merchants, and scam artists roamed like rats.

"You know, Mr. Aaron," Chloe began, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "I have a snow-related joke for you."

Aaron sipped on his hot cocoa. The heat of the plastic cup was dulled by his mittens. "Alright, hit me with it." He sipped his drink again. It wasn't coffee but it was a decent batch of cocoa and just sugary enough for his tastes.

"Why did the snowman bring a broom to the park?"

Aaron instantly figured the joke out. He decided to humour her anyway. "Not sure. Why did the snowman bring a broom?"

"To sweep you off your feet!" Chloe burst into laughter, delighted by her own joke.

He tried not to cringe. Where did she learn that from? Maybe he had been letting her watch too much TV. "Wow. Amazing."

"Hey, I can tell you didn't like it!"

"No, I did. Totally."

"Did not!"

"Did too."

"Did not!"

He laughed and pretended everything was jovial; that he was spending another ordinary day with his adopted daughter. He pretended not to notice the keen eyes watching him and his every move. In his head, he laughed because this outing with Chloe was as innocuous as it seemed. There wasn't a hidden motive or a special reason. He just wanted to treat his adopted daughter.

Did Tim Drake, the esteemed mystery solver of Batman Incorporated, buy it? Aaron would have to wait and see.

For the past weeks, the Bat Family had been discreetly watching him. Monitoring his behaviour, his interactions, his work. Generally, the spies were Tim Drake and Stephanie Brown, and on the rare occasion it was Dick Grayson. Cassandra and Duke Thomas were nowhere to be seen. He suspected the latter simply lacked the experience for a tailing mission while Cassandra…she probably didn't know. The Bat Family was likely doing this behind her back. Cassandra trusted Aaron but the Bat Family did not. Her feelings could potentially jeopardise the mission.

Aaron sensed what they had been doing immediately. With his union with the Manhunter, it was like his senses had dialled up to eleven. His brain and deductive skills were functioning akin to a supercomputer. Immediately after his meeting with ****, as his powers settled within him, he figured that Oracle was soon going to conduct a background check on him. And not just any background check–a full search of his entire civilian history. Meaning, a scan of his birth certificate, his orphanage, education, and the authenticity of his passport. Given Oracle's skills, she could track his SIM card and the messages in his phone.

So, he told Hadiyah to wipe out every incriminating message on his little device. As the vigilante Nobody, Hadiyah had high-end experience in wiping out evidence. Even the legendary Oracle could not and would not catch her.

It did limit his free time though. The powers he gained from Manhunter–he couldn't test them out. Not yet anyway. There were too many eyes watching.

His relationship with Tanya Fox remained hidden too. There were no sightings of them together in CCTVs and the account he withdrew money from was private and intended for Tanya's daughter, Tiffany, till she became of legal age. Also, Aaron always withdrew physical cash because it was untraceable, not to mention it logically followed since a thirteen year old girl wouldn't know how to write cheques or do e-transfers. Moreover, according to Cassandra, the relationship between Barbara and Tiffany was strained. The details were unknown to him but it was to the point that missions and conversations were far in between. As a result, Aaron doubted Barbara would go and ask Tiffany about her personal finances. It would be a total shit show. An advantage for Aaron to shadow under.

Then there was his ordinary life. Frankly, that was the easy part. Aaron had gone back to Wayne Technologies, much to his supervisor's relief, and worked as if nothing had happened. As if he wasn't the Chosen One. As if he hadn't talked to ****. As if he wasn't a cosmic entity of unknown origins. As if the Bat Family wasn't counting his every move.

Noah and Todd were particularly welcoming of his return. After all they had gone through, from the Ivy incident to the Leviathan debacle, they pretty much considered him a brother. A good guy with incredible athleticism and a reliable nature.

Aaron flashbacked to that day fondly.