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thiccpersonality · 3 days ago

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The Difficulties of The Working Class (Just Clark Kent): A Beautiful Omega, His Pups and The Fact He Wants Both

Happy Valentine's Day my loves! I know this isn't a post for that Damian story, nor is it the 5+2 that I'm doing, but I did say that I was working on a 5k+ superbat story (that obviously didn't stay 5k+ words). I kept myself up the whole night just to be able to post this on today, though sadly I won't be able to make a double post like how I wanted, but I hope this will suffice?

I really hope everyone is able to find some humor and love within this story? 😂 Enjoy! 💛

Being a reporter can be a pretty rough job...or so Clark assumes. It doesn't make him as physically drained as his very human coworkers, however, the Kryptonian can often feel mentally and emotionally overwhelmed depending on who it is he's talking to and what exactly he's researching.

And maybe it's just his body's way of trying to relate to earthlings?

But, Clark often feels a physical weight on his shoulders or back when a scoop is particularly difficult to look into, or his legs get phantom aches and pains in them when he's been moving too much. All the bodily discomfort he tends to feel is most likely just Clark taking what he's heard the people around him complaining about daily and trying his best to imagine that for himself—again—in anyway to try relating to the humans around him, all to show that he's not too different. Anyway, Clark could go on forever talking about his identity crisis, but that isn't what this is about.

No.

This is something much bigger than any stories he could ever chase down.

'Why', you ask?

That's a very good question. It's because most of Clark's mental, emotional and physical distress comes with one eligible bachelor's children. 'Who?' You ask this time instead. Well, one Bruce Thomas Wayne and his hoard of children...or demons? Clark isn't too sure on what exactly those—creatures are yet.

Figuring out if Bruce Wayne's children are also an alien species like himself, an experiment gone wrong, or demons that crawled their way out of hell, is a mystery that Clark has yet to solve at this moment in time. But all is well—if nothing else—than because everyone's beloved Kryptonian has found himself growing closer to Bruce everytime they do an interview together. It's honestly like a dream come true...ah, having those strikingly blue eyes on you that is, not the hoard of gremlins children that stare into your soul from afar off because they most definitely know that you have a crush on their mother and do their very best to make your life miserable and your job impossible.

Clark can't say that he knows for sure how they feel when seeing someone try to flirt with your mother during business hours, and eye him like he's eye candy. But, he supposes he could understand feeling protective over the only parent/person who–out of their love and kindness–took you into their home and loves you for who you are.

You see.

Not much is known about the Wayne childrens parents. It's something that hardly anyone talks about, and while there have already been released (and confirmed) statements on how all of Bruce's children (except one) is adopted, most people-including Clark himself-wonder if that's all true. I mean, most of Bruce's kids look like they could be his by blood...especially the Wayne brothers, and there's also the possibility that the rest took after their birth fathers more than the billionaire himself.

But in all honesty. That's not a thought Clark tries to dwell on too much...he gets...jealous whenever the thought of Bruce sleeping around with anyone that isn't him pops up in this useless brain of his.

Which Clark truly feels guilty for feeling. Isn't that, what did one of Bruce's kids put it as, red flag behavior right there? I mean, they aren't even together, so why should he be concerning himself about who Mr. Wayne sleeps with? The answer: he doesn't know. Which is making Clark start to feel disheartened at the fact he ends up with more questions than answers, he's a reporter for goodness sakes! That's all he does is find answers to questions left untouched and unsolved. Anyhow, Bruce's kids make his job so much more exhausting than it needs to be (or should be) for him. I mean, when he said he wanted to feel human, he didn't mean for it to be in the form of the world's most menacing kids making him feel like he aged as gracefully as forgotten milk in the fridge.

No matter though.

Because Clark can put all his worries behind himself—please don't ask why again; he'll tell you this time. It's because he gets to interview (again) for the fourth time in the same year and month, his unofficial lover crush/boss, Bruce Wayne.

The man's smile can make Clark feel like he can do anything both in and out of his suit (civilian and superhero). He makes him feel indestructible, as if even Kryptonite wouldn't be able to take him down. Which maybe that's the secret weapon? Clark should give it a try sometime. But, the man and everything he exudes does wonder for Clark's health, especially when those soft, fair skinned cheeks flush a pretty pink whenever Clark looks at him a certain way when interviewing...there's always a pleasant smell that escapes Bruce Wayne's scent patches whenever Clark flusters him, a smell that only the Kryptonian can detect and bask in.

A fact that makes that possessive side of Clark simmer down like a dog finally given a bone after growling and barking for it.

And when looking at Bruce.

What a pretty bone he is. Clark wouldn't mind biting on that one any day.

Ahem! Where were we? Clark is being extremely unprofessional right now...he's about to go interview his crush/boss and he can't be thinking such thoughts while interviewing the other, or else nothing but intense staring and heavy breathing will ensue after simply looking at the man sitting in his seat with that beautiful smile on his face to welcome him.

Which Clark wouldn't mind staring at Bruce all day. But the other might not appreciate it, and might even fire him for looking so creepy.

And if he's fired. There's no more getting to hold in-depth conversations with Bruce and hear that soft as silk voice caress his eardrums like a gentle lover. He won't be able to see the billionaire's carefully sculpted (yet somehow delicate) face flush a soft pink whenever Clark brings up something he actually enjoys.

...

....

Oh, yeah...and there's also the fact that if he's fired, he won't be working anywhere ever again. There's also that.

But today is a day to be free of any burdens built up over the past few months of carefully inspected stories and grueling hours of getting the scoop on people that don't want to talk. Because Clark is now sitting (im)patiently in Bruce Wayne's lobby, waiting to be told by the too stern receptionist (her name is Clara) that he's okay to head on up to the office. Even if it's always the same routine of him being allowed up before the interview actually starts...Clara sure is stubborn about him actually going up when he's allowed (she claims he's too early and should just be on time for once. Rude).

Clark jiggles his leg up and down in an anticipatory manner, sighing softly as he stands up from his seat and heads over to Clara's desk, the woman only giving him a warning glance as he leans onto her desk before continuing to clack away at her keyboard.

"So...Clara-"

The strawberry blonde sighs, pushing her stark white cat eye glasses up her nose when they slip. "Mr. Kent. I swear if you are here to ask me, 'can I go up now?' one more time, I'm going to lollipop your throat with my pen." The receptionist rolls her eyes when hearing the defeated whine escaping the beta's lips, glancing up from her computer to look at the pouting reporter, raising a brow unimpressed at the behavior. "You are a grown man with a job, not a pup, please remain professional. And do you really think Mr. Wayne's children would accept a father who acts just like they do?"

Clara smiles victoriously at catching the taller off guard, basking in the embarrassed sputtering escaping from Clark.

"I-I don't—I'm not-" Clark looks around nervously to make sure no one heard them, narrowing his eyes at the female omega when she speaks up again, her voice amused while the corners of her lips tilt up impishly. "What? The only people around are you and I. Unless you're suddenly afraid of the chairs and walls talking about how embarrassing you are. Do you even realize how pitiful it is to see you trail after Mr. Wayne like a lost dog? And you always come way earlier than you need to and it always ends up the same routine."

Clark's flush deepens at how matter of fact the woman is about this...he's not that easy to read...is he?

"I-It wouldn't be the same if you just let me up early. You know Bru-Mr. Wayne doesn't mind it."

Clara snorts and shakes her head, "Well, I'm not Mr. Wayne, am I? I'm just a humble receptionist trying to do her job without bumbling Metropolitan reporter's disturbing me while receptioning." Clark's brow furrows and he groans while resting his cheek in his hand dejectedly, "Receptioning isn't a word, Clara. Are you sure you can't just-" he cuts himself off when seeing the omega reach for her pen. "You aren't a word, Kent. And I swear if you ask me to send you upstairs." Clark frowns in offense at the woman's implied threat, staring at the hand that squeezes the pen defensively. "First off, that doesn't make any sense. And second, you really meant that? About lollipopping me with a pen?! But...but it's such an expensive looking pen, surely it'd be a waste of money just to harm me?"

Clara twirls the object between her slim fingers, her smile pleased and relaxed. "I could afford it. Now, go sit down." Before Clark can raise another protest, a small child's voice speaks up from behind the man. "Good afternoon, Ms. Clara, is this...intruder disturbing you?"

Both Clara and Clark turn their gazes onto Damian Wayne, the small pup giving the larger male an assessing look before clicking his tongue. "Oh, it's you...again. Why haven't you kicked him out yet?" Clara smiles at the boy and sighs, "I've tried. Your mother just so happens to really like Mr. Kent's interviews...so here he is for yet another one. Are you here for lunch, sir? It seems a bit early to be out of school, doesn't it?" Damian tuts and straightens up his school uniform, lifting his nose high into the air and brushing off imaginary dust. "I got into trouble today. The only reason mother does not know about it is because he was doing something of the utmost importance today-" he side eyes Clark suspiciously and tiptoes up so that he can loudly whisper to Clara-"This Metropolitan invader isn't the...important thing, is he?"

Clara looks Clark up and down, taking in the cheap suit (that's one of the man's better one's) and clunky tie (which aren't bad things, she just likes teasing the man) before chuckling and whispering back. "No, it's definitely not him."

Before the beta can protest, Clara clears her throat, "Alright. Alright. Your mom would be cross with us if he heard us teasing his—friend. How about I send you upstairs to your mom? I'm sure he'd be happy to see you despite getting into trouble. And no matter what he may say, I am proud of you for throwing a nice punch to whoever troubled you."

Damian nods his head and gives a small, but genuine, smile at the receptionist. "Thank you. I'll have to remind mother to give you a raise."

Clark sighs and moves away from the desk, inching closer to his seat before Damian snaps his fingers towards him. "Straggler, you're coming up with me. It's always so pitiful seeing you sit there alone...like a dog left in the rain." When the man refuses to move, Damian looks over his shoulder to raise a brow at the other. "Are you coming or not?" Clark practically vibrates in excitement and speed walks to the open elevator, playfully sticking his tongue out at Clara before the doors close. "U-Uh, thank you so much for allowing me to come up with you! But what's with everyone comparing me to a sad, lost or wet dog?"

Damian just hums noncommittally while loosening the tie around his neck, he hates these things and wishes whoever invented them had a horrible life.

Clark clears his throat at the silence and works on fixing his hair and tie before stepping out of the elevator with the small pup, willingly ignoring the piercing glare sent his way as they both stand outside the omega's office. "Listen up, Kent. I'm going to enter first, because my face is the first one my mother should see, and then after that you can come ruin everything with your sudden appearance, okay?" Clark feels like crying. He doesn't know what he did wrong to get Bruce's kids to be (what is it that Jason says) out of pocket with him, but he just nods slowly and nervously stands as far away from the door as possible so that he's not seen through the glass by the hardworking omega.

Damian narrows his eyes at the taller one last time before opening up the door and smiling brightly at his mother once getting his attention, "Hello mother. How is everything going today?"

Bruce blinks in surprise for a moment before immediately pushing away from his desk and standing up to greet his baby son, "Damian? What are you doing here, baby? Did something happen at school today? Why are you here? Did-" the omega suddenly looks distressed-"did someone get hurt?" Damian hugs onto the omega's legs, rubbing his neck on the soft fabric of the pants so that Bruce smells like pup. "I'm here because I wanted to see you, mommy. I got in trouble at school because someone-as per usual-was being an idiot. Again, I'm here cause I'm in trouble and wanted to see you. And the only person that got hurt was that little idiot at school. But, if someone were to get hurt that we know, I bet it'd be that idiot brother of mine."

Bruce slowly finds himself relaxing as his questions were answered one by one, gently running his hand through his pup's hair while shaking his head fondly.

"I've told you about getting into fights at school if you can help it, baby. But, I'm always happy to see my little boy." Bruce purrs happily and picks Damian up, "Please try not to call your classmates idiots...even if it can seem true sometimes. And don't call your brothers idiots either...though, which one are you talking about hurting himself?" Damian nuzzles into his mom's neck with a small squeak, "I don't know? Maybe the one that would do a flip off of the Empire State Building just to prove he could do it all because he was in the circus. Oh, or the one that would encourage the stupid behavior of the first one. Or, the one who would die because he can't properly care for himself–oh, wait a minute. That's all of them."

Bruce sighs softly and bumps his forehead softly against Damian's, "Don't be that way to them. All of my babies are very smart, and I won't have anyone, even you, saying otherwise."

Damian gets so caught up in snuggling his mother, that he almost forgets about the reporter he (practically) promised to let see Bruce. Key word being: almost, as the sudden flash of a horrid looking patched pattern of the man's sleeve, seen out the corner of his eyes, jump scares the poor boy into looking out of the window and towards Clark Kent, who looks dejectedly into the glass as though he wants to be a part of what's going on.

Ugh! He really is pitiful.

Damian clears his throat and quickly scents Bruce more before speaking up, "Ah...yes. I almost forgot that I wasn't the only one to come up here to visit you-" he directs his snuggle drunk mom's soft gaze to the reporter in the window-"That...reporter you insist be one of the only people to interview you is right outside. It wasn't time for your appointment yet, but I brought him up with me anyway." Because he looks like a kicked dog whenever he sees him, is left unsaid, but he's sure his mom understands. Damian pouts slightly at the way Bruce perks up and looks towards the door, a startled flush tinting the omega's cheeks pink as he automatically makes sure his hair and suit look good for his special guest. "Why didn't you bring him in with you? I look like a horrible person making him wait outside like this."

Damian clings onto the omega tightly, pursing his lips in displeasure while glaring at where the beta stands outside.

"Maybe he should learn how to actually be punctual for once in his life, rather than coming when you aren't yet prepared. And mother could never look terrible-" the pup perks up when complimenting the omega, his squishy cheeks rounding out until his eyes squint as he smiles-"you are the prettiest person ever. I look like you, so I must be pretty too." Bruce chuckles fondly at the compliment and peppers his son's chubby face with kisses, "You and your siblings are such flatterers, you know that? And you-" he boops Damian's button nose softly-"are adorable. You're just my pup, my baby, my little boy whom I love so dearly." Damian shouts in mock protest as he's cuddled close to his mom's chest, accidentally giggling when the older playfully bites the ticklish side of his neck and squirming as the omega keeps it up with a few laughs of his own. "M-Momma—stooop!" Bruce blows a raspberry into the tan skin and inhales the calming scent of his pup, getting one last tickle in before kissing the boy's face.

"Okay, okay. I stopped. Satisfied?"

Damian hides his face in Bruce's neck, raising his shoulders up to his jawline just as a precaution while nodding. "Yes."

Bruce smiles softly and kisses the crown of his pup's head before shaking off his nerves and opening up the door for Clark, looking up at the tall beta fondly when he just stands in place. "I hope I haven't become a stranger to you?" Clark snaps out of his daze when the omega addresses him, blinking away the brain fog and smiling down happily at finally seeing the man of his dreams. "H-Huh?"

Clark scratches the back of his head bashfully when Bruce giggles at him, "What? What did I do? Why are you laughing at me?"

The omega scrunches his nose in an attempt to stop laughing. A thing that usually isn't hard for the billionaire as he controls his facial expressions all the time being Batman, but leave it to Clark to achieve what seems like the impossible. "I-It's not you, per se, not in a bad way. I just think that you're cute-" Bruce smiles kindly and ushers the taller into the room, unaware of the now disgruntled pup in his arms-"You usually are so talkative whenever you come up, but some reason you are being really quiet this time." Clark can feel the air leave his lungs as Bruce flutters his long eyelashes up at him, the look screaming genuine in a way that the omega usually doesn't show in public, as though this is just Bruce himself choosing to do this and not Brucie.

Something about it also is a bit more reserved and shy than usual as he juts out his lower lip into a pout.

"Has my beauty finally stunned you into silence, maybe?"

Clark doesn't know what he looks like right now...but he knows it's probably stupid. His brain feels like it's turned into mush at how...soft and eager the omega looks as he asks the question.

'Everything about you has.'

Is what Clark thinks...or that's what he thought he thought at least. He must have said it out loud as Bruce's pout disappears into a surprised look, as though his mind is processing what was said before he ducks his head shyly.

Yeah, he definitely said something out loud. The look Damian is giving Clark makes the man fear for his life.

"U-Uh...I'm sorry for saying that out loud...ha, ha, ha. I just—you—I never really have gotten to see you interact with your kids much, you know? They usually rush off when I'm around or don't talk. So, it was nice to see you be...uh, a mom just now."

The silence is deafening.

God, why is it so quiet?

Clark blushes something fierce and feels like being launched into a red sun, anything to escape the embarrassment of his big mouth. However, the regret is quickly replaced with one of satisfaction as that pleasing scent from before escapes Bruce's scent patches...and it smells...pleased? Happy? Satisfied?

Clark swallows nervously and stands a little taller, clearing his throat to get Bruce to look back up at him before giving the final tier to his compliment cake. "And I just think that it's a great look on you. I can tell you love your pups dearly, Bruce. And that's admirable." He holds his breath. Gosh, he hopes that didn't sound demeaning or anything? That's definitely not the route Clark was trying to go, but what if that's how he made it sound? He just...just thinks being a mom fits Bruce, especially witnessing that affection in person. It's almost unreal how gorgeous the man acts when he's...acting like a mother.

Oh, gosh.

Does that sound horrible?

Clark slowly spirals internally the longer Bruce just stares at him. Is this some weird fetish thing he has? He's not just thinking this way because he's objectifying being an omega or a mother?

Because if so. Someone should just shoot him with Kryptonite for being like a lot of these alphas in the world.

But, by only nothing short of a miracle, Bruce finally reacts with the deepest blush he's pulled from the omega yet. That hidden scent that only Clark can smell drifting the hidden alpha's way, causing his pupil's to dilate at the happy and (admittedly) alluring smell coming from the shorter. It should be impossible to smell this good, shouldn't it? Clark fists his suit pants at the overwhelming scents coming from the omega, detecting a smell that is more similar to–no? No way.

Clark inhales deeply (without being noticed) and closes his eyes for just a second to focus on that one particular smell, stiffening up when realizing the omega is releasing a scent of gratification.

And he wouldn't call it a sexual one exactly.

Even though there is a hint of that sort of pleasure in the scent as well.

No.

Right now. Right now Bruce seems to be releasing a scent similar to the one's omegas release when they find a desirable mate.

Clark's eyes bug open. Internally screaming, gagging, throwing up (all in good ways. I promise) at how his simple words have caused Bruce to react in such a way.

The reporter has to fight his inner alpha so hard right now. It's jumping the gun and practically demanding he make Bruce his right now so that the omega's family can finally become his own and they can get an early start of making pups of their own. But, he has to remind that eager part of him that Bruce's kids seem to not even like him...and that is one of the most important steps is to at least have them be comfortable enough around him before doing anything with or to the omega.

Bruce's soft voice finally speaks up, cutting through some of Clark's troublesome thoughts. "I...u-um..."

Clark feels like howling with his inner alpha at the sight of the shorter hiding his still red face in Damian's fluffy hair. "Thank you...t-that is always such a-a compliment to me. It reassures me that I'm doing something right with these pups of mine." Bruce looks up at the alpha before glancing away timidly and turning his gaze back up to the taller man once more, the way his cheeks push up and round out all to similar to Damian's face when he smiles big, the sight enough to have Clark wanting to bow and thank the omega for gracing him with such a sight. "Especially coming from you, Clark. I...admire you a lot, so thank you for the compliment-" he hesitates for a moment before pushing onwards-"and I'm sure that whatever omega gets to be yours someday will be so lucky."

It takes everything inside of Bruce to say that last part. A slightly bitter feeling in his mouth as the weight of what he just said settles on his tongue.

Before Clark can respond to the comment, a puppy's call bursts the two adults bubbles, both men looking down at Damian who's face is now lifted from the omega's neck. The boy huffs and squeaks in irritation while fisting his mom's suit jacket in his small hands and tugging desperately, "He's not cute!" Bruce and Clark are both taken aback by the random outburst, the omega rubbing Damian's back comfortingly as he thinks about what he did wrong.

A subtle hand movement from the corner of his eyes gets Bruce's attention, the man looking up at Clark and furrowing his brows curiously as the man mouths something to him.

The omega squints at the taller man's lips in concentration before the realization hits him.

That's right. He called Clark cute earlier.

Bruce tries to hold back his amused chuckle and bounces the pup slightly to get his attention, "Ah...is this because I said Clark is cute?" Damian's brows furrow more and he lets out a small growl, looking betrayed as his mother responds by giggling at him. Bruce coos at the hurt look he receives from the boy and clears his throat, "I'm sorry, baby. I didn't mean to laugh. But adorable and cute are two different things, right? I think adorable is much more endearing than cute is."

Damian perks up at that and smiles innocently, "So that means he's actually ugly?"

Bruce shakes his head and looks at Clark apologetically, "That's not what that means. I just think that out of the both of you..." he trails off to build anticipation, smirking slightly at the insistent tugs to hurry up from his pup. Surprising the boy by suddenly attacking his neck again. "That you are my baby-" a ticklish nibble to the soft skin-"my pup-" a gentle brush of his nose to the neck glands-"my everything in life and more!" Bruce ends with a loud, over exaggerated eating noise to the neck as he digs into that weak spot, chuckling himself at the squirming pup's loud belly laughs as he tries to escape the omega's attack. "And therefore, that means that out of the two of you, your cuteness will always triumph his." Damian squeals (though he would insist otherwise) at Bruce getting one last nibble in before releasing him, causing the boy to slump against his chest again, his small hands releasing the collar of his mother's suit to now wrap around his tie absentmindedly. "Okay-" he purses his lips and fiddles with the tie-"I'll stake my claim on both titles until I'm pretty like you."

Bruce's face hurts from all the smiling he's doing right now, but he hums in satisfaction at how his pup is learning to be content with being a child more and more everyday. Placing a gentle kiss to the pup's forehead before refocusing on Clark.

"I'm sorry for taking so long to start our interview. I'm pretty sure we should have started already?"

Bruce smiles apologetically before heading towards his desk chair, making sure Damian is situated just fine in his lap before gesturing for the beta to take his seat. "Don't be a stranger today. We'll do everything as usual, the only difference is that Damian is here for it. Okay?"

The only difference?

Does the omega truly not realize what he's doing to Clark and all of his instincts and desires right now? How can he focus on everything else when all he wants to do is watch Bruce be a mom all day, and he truly means that respectfully. It's probably dangerous how...fulfilled Clark himself feels just from watching the family–heck, even reading about them in the papers is enough to bring out that warm, fluffy feeling of contentment. As though he's watching a family of his own just simply be.

Sigh...

Clark realizes how much he wants to have a family of his own every time he's around the omega.

But what's worse is the constant realization and confirmation that he wants all of those things with Bruce alone. And isn't that taking his wishes too far? All of those little moments with Bruce that seem like flirting are probably just in his head, right? I mean, he definitely is probably a little bit obsessed with the other in some way, probably to the point of imagining the other flirting back, amongst other things as well, cause Clark is positive it's not too normal to envision a whole life with someone you only talk to for work. And he's also positive that you probably shouldn't have dreams where said person you talk to only for work is carrying your pups inside him...and not even in the sexy, you turn me on sense, but quite literally imagining the ways you can love and care for your pregnant mate who works so hard everyday.

And while Clark knows he might be a little obsessed.

He also knows that he's terribly, undeniably, truthfully, a lot-fully in love right now.

Clark's shoulders slump slightly at the thought. He sounds like Clara right now with the made up word...so that must mean he really is in love.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Clark places a careful smile back on his face and takes his usual seat, pulling out everything he'll need to do this interview. "I could never be a stranger to you, and I would never want to be."

Because I hope to be more than that to you someday.

Clark sighs softly at his own thoughts, distracting himself by smiling at Damian instead. "Also, if he would like to, and if it's allowed, I'm sure the Planet would love to hear a few words from Mr. Damian." Bruce's eyes widen slightly in surprise, a doubtful look overtaking his features at the suggestion. "I don't know...I don't really like having the children in the news if I can help it, Mr. Kent-"

Clark interrupts Bruce with a calm smile, taking the omega's breath away as he looks at the other.

"I thought you asked me not to be a stranger with you today? Why are you suddenly calling me Mr. Kent?" Clark messes with his pen and holds eye contact with Bruce, his smile remaining open while his eyes suddenly hold a seriousness within them. "And you don't have to do anything that you're uncomfortable with, Bruce. If you don't want Damian to be in the papers, even if it's just with a quote, then he doesn't need to be. That's your choice ultimately as his guardian to make."

Ah! Why is Clark always so thoughtful?! It makes the omega's heart flutter and his stomach to tingle.

Bruce smiles thankfully at the other man, his posture relaxing at the beta's understanding, looking down when Damian taps on his hand to get his attention. "Do I not get a say in what I want to do?" The boy grumbles and crosses his arms to show how he doesn't agree with what's going on, huffing more when his mom just gives him that same amused smile once more. "I'm sorry. But you don't, not in these cases. You know that I consider it, but the choice is ultimately up to me, especially with those of you who are still underage...and I don't think I could handle seeing the comments people would, could and will make about you guys. And you know that no matter what, the media always finds a way to portray anyone horrible, even children. You all have enough troubles on your own...I'd hate to add onto that by shoving your faces in the news too."

Damian sighs softly and concedes to the rule by snuggling back into the omega's side. "Fine...but people find a way to talk about everyone in our family anyway and they barely know about us. It's not our fault we are iconic and they can't help but to talk about it all the time."

Bruce pats the boy's head for his obedience and laughs at how much Damian is picking up his older siblings ways of speaking.

"Thank you, puppy. And until the day you and all your...iconic-ness can be seen in public, you'll stay right here hidden away with me. Doesn't that sound better?" Bruce tilts his head down and to the side as he asks, humming happily when Damian snuggles more into his body, his small arms tightening around the omega's waist as his answer. "Well, since that's settled, Clark, would you like to begi-" Bruce sighs at the interruption from his desk phone, whispering a quick apology to Clark before picking it up and signing into the receiver. "Clara...what are you doing? You know I'm supposed to be having an interview right now?"

Clark does his best not to look like he's listening in on the conversation. Distracting himself with small doodles of his and Bruce's names put together on the back of his notebook in different fonts.

"I'm so sorry to interrupt the meeting we both know hasn't started yet. But, Mr. Hannington showed up for a meeting, or so he claims, and he isn't leaving no matter how much I insist that he has the dates mixed up. He told me to tell you that it's an emergency, but if you don't feel like coming down, I can just call security on him." Bruce rubs at his temple tiredly and sighs once again, "Why would you call security on him? He's a seventy-five-year-old man with memory problems. Tell him I'll be right on down and that I'm sorry for my misunderstanding, maybe find him something to snack on while I finish things up here, okay."

Clara makes a suspicious sounding noise on the other side of the phone, her computer keys clacking away and her voice lowering as she whispers. "You never know what a seventy-five-year-old man can be capable of, but I'll do what you said right away, Mr. Wayne."

Bruce sighs tiredly at the woman's paranoia (that's rich coming from him) and puts the phone back on its stand, clearing his throat to get the reporters attention, his icy blue eyes apologetic as he stares at the taller man. "I'm so sorry to cut this short when things barely even got started...but there's an older gentleman downstairs who usually comes around unexpectedly, expecting me to have a meeting with him. He's a very sweet old man with no one to keep him company, so I would hate to leave him alone for so long and disappoint him."

Clark is truly and definitely in love.

How can his the omega be this kind to people? This is exactly why Clark is so smitten with Bruce. The man is just so naturally caring and generous to anyone willing to accept his help. The reporter nods his head in understanding and rises out of his seat along with Bruce, "I understand. It's very kind of you to...entertain him like this when you aren't obligated to. I guess I'll see you whenever you schedule another meeting-"

"It doesn't have to be a waste of his time, mother."

Both Clark and Bruce look down at Damian for his interruption, the omega giving his son a pointed look at the suggestion. "We've already talked about this, sweetheart-"

Damian crosses his arms and huffs, "No. You talked about it and I just agreed because I love you."

Bruce raises a brow at the backtalk and puts a hand on his now cocked hip, "Damian Wayne-" at the full name, the pup immediately snuggles up to the man's side and wraps his small arms around the other's legs. "I'm sorry, mama...but, don't you think me being interviewed by someone as trustworthy as Kent could be beneficial to me?" Damian looks up at the omega, determined to get his way, smiling a little in victory at the man's curious look. "Think about it this way, mama-" he presses on when Bruce still doesn't correct him-"I can learn how to act and talk in interviews now, so that way when the time comes for me to say something in the news later, I know how to be professional about any dumb questions the reporters ask me."

Bruce hums thoughtfully, carding his fingers gently through Damian's hair and grumbling internally at how he can never properly stay mad at his kids.

'Well..." The omega glances at Clark considerately. It's true that he trusts the beta with a lot more information and things considered normal for someone who's ultimately his employee to be trusted with or to know, but it's also not his fault that the man has proven himself to be trustworthy and a gentleman to top it all off. But, just because he trusts Clark with himself, does that mean he trusts the man to be alone with his children?

Clark clearing his throat snaps Bruce out of his thoughts, the omega looking up at the now awkward beta as he scratches the back of his neck nervously.

"Um...if you wouldn't feel uncomfortable leaving me with Damian, I wouldn't mind giving him a trial interview. I promise that I won't record or write anything down...i-it can just be a few easy questions for your pup to get a feel of things, you know?" Clark glances down at Damian briefly before looking at Bruce again, licking his lips nervously as he shifts in place slightly. "Plus, I would be lying if I said the thought of getting to talk to one of your kids wouldn't be exciting-" at the omega's unwavering gaze stayed on him, Clark clears his throat awkwardly-"O-Only because I often see your children hanging around the office with you...but every time I come around, they run off or something. It's probably stupid. But, you've been such an amazing person to hang around, so I could only imagine what your kids were like, but I haven't really gotten the chance to speak or have a real interaction with any of them until today."

Clark laughs nervously and shrugs, "I don't know? I guess it was also a bit discouraging to see your pups run away from we whenever I come around. I've always liked children...so, uh...I guess having a whole group of them not feel comfortable around your presence is a bit sad." He paused for a second before panicking and waving his hands around frantically, "Of course I'm not saying that they are obligated to be near me or anything! That is fully up to them if they would want that. I just-I guess I just wanted to get to know them better since I feel I've gotten to know you so well now."

Bruce is silent. Damian is silent (and glaring). And Clark is most definitely quiet now that he's word vomited everything to the omega.

Are they still even talking about the interview? Bruce wonders silently. At this point, it sounds like Clark is someone he's been seeing romantically for awhile now and he is trying to get to know the family after a couple months or a year of dating one another. I mean, Bruce wouldn't mind that option either, but he's in a working environment...so the intense blush from imagining building an imaginary life with your employee is probably some form of inappropriate workplace behavior.

Nevermind the fact that said imagination is almost causing Bruce to just ask Clark to be the father of his children.

Yeah, that's definitely crossing some sort of workplace code of conduct.

Bruce sucks in a deep breath to calm down his racing heart and gently nudges Damian's head, giving the boy a soft and serious look as he gestures towards Clark. "Baby, do you...would you feel comfortable sitting up here with Clark for a bit while I take care of Mr. Hannington?"

Damian can't help the sassy reply as he looks up at his mom, "Do I...do I actually get a say here?"

Bruce playfully slaps the back of his pup's head for the remark, "Of course you do. This is different...like if I were to leave you in the care of a babysitter or something, I want you to truly feel comfortable around them above anything else. Cause it doesn't matter what my personal feelings or opinions are about Clark-"

Damian tugs on the omega's pants, his gaze steady as he stares his mom down. "And what are your feelings on him?"

Oh, wow...

Bruce suddenly feels called out by his own child (even though the boy hasn't said anything worthy of him feeling that way) as the boy looks at him almost analytically, the pink tint coloring his face once more as he does his best to meet the big green eyes of his youngest pup. "Well—" Bruce gives Clark a passing glance, his tone uncharacteristically soft-maybe even shy-as he answers—"I trust him a lot more than even I ever expected to. H-He's a really outstanding reporter...and man from what I've gathered."

Clark swallows down all the saliva that suddenly decided to have a get together in his mouth. How is it possible for his throat to feel too moist yet dry at the same time?

The taller man looks down at Damian and focuses on the serious look the boy wears. Watching closely as the boy's lower lip juts out into a pout as he thinks (like Bruce does), and how his eyebrows scrunch together and wrinkle in the middle because of how hard he's thinking (exactly in the way Bruce's does too). The pup huffs softly before sticking his nose high in the air as though he didn't look troubled before and kindly waves his mom away, "Well...if you trust him, mother, then surely I have a reason to feel comfortable around him as well."

Before Bruce can protest, the pup pushes insistently at the long legs.

"And before you scold me for what I said. I know that it's ultimately up to how I feel...but, I also trust your judgment as my mom. I know you wouldn't leave me with someone you know would hurt me-" the same can't be said about yourself, is left unsaid-"So, I am willing to find out for myself why you feel this way exactly. Now, off with you, mother. Go tell that old goat I said hello." Despite Bruce's complaints at being pushed, he humors the small boy and gives in to the pushes, heading towards the door step by step until he's 'shoved' outside of his own office.

Correcting Damian about referring to his elders as 'old goats' before the pup shuts the door in his face, respectfully, of course.

Clark shivers at the temperature dropping in the room suddenly when the pup turns around, the boy's soft green eyes (when looking at Bruce at least) suddenly turning sharp and cold as he looks the beta up and down. "Take your seat."

What is Clark to do but to listen?

This is a whole new side of Bruce's kids that he has never seen before. Of course, he's seen the kids in passing, usually when they ran away or made his job difficult by pulling little pranks on him, but he truly has never interacted with one of the creatures the children so closely before. He feels like his movements should be slow...and it's sad to say, but at this point he's not sure if the slow movements are for his sake or theirs.

Damian nods approvingly as the older listens to him and takes the same spot he was in earlier, hopping up onto his mom's desk chair and folding his hands as if he's in a serious meeting. "Look, Kent-" the pup sighs tiredly, as though he's been talking to the older man for hours on end already-"I understand that you have this...'infatuation' with my mother, but I'm here to tell you that whatever it is that you are scheming isn't going to work on him or us. You are here to do your job—" he pauses and waves his right hand around, rolling his eyes when the alpha just stares at him stupidly—"Your job, which is what exactly?" Clark blinks in confusion and pushes up his glasses nervously, "Um...being a reporter? More specifically: interviewing the people that I'm told to interview, go to the places I'm sent to go to get information, writing and getting the facts on my stories...to...uh...name a few things."

Damian nods his head, "Very good. And because you are constantly working hard to get such information from people, wouldn't you say that there requires a specific kind of professionalism to be had during work hours?"

Clark isn't sure where this conversation is going...but it sounds like one he doesn't want to have.

"Yes. Of course I remain professional during work hours. I wouldn't be a good journalist if I couldn't remain so."

The boy stares at him silently before humming and knocking thrice on the wooden desk, "Then why exactly have you been flirting during working hours with someone who you are sent to talk to for business? And not only that! But you flirt with someone who is now your boss." Clark flinches at the harsh accusation, looking on curiously as Tim Drake-one of Bruce's many pups-slides out from one of the desk cabinets with a large tablet in his hands. Damian choosing to carry on as if what's happening is completely normal, "My brother here has compiled up all the moments in which you've made those disgusting looking googly eyes at our mother."

Tim nods his head in greeting and draws Clark's attention to the device in his hands, his gaze accusing as he stares at the older man.

"Thank you, Damian. You did a wonderful introduction to this whole problem. Anyways, Mr...Kent, is it?" At Clark's slow nod, the young alpha continues. "That's what I thought. My siblings and I usually wouldn't bother to involve ourselves with our mama's business (that's a lie), but you see, we have been keeping our eyes on you these past few times you've come to interview our mom—" a few taps of the screen suddenly shows an image of Clark and Bruce, the video playing exposé style—"and we haven't appreciated what we've seen from you: 1. You are flirting on the job, 2. You are flirting on the job with someone who is supposed to be your boss now, 3. You are flirting with our mother and 4-"

Clark jumps in his chair as someone drops down dramatically from the ceiling, the tall and bulky alpha snarling meanly at the reporter. "And 4: We don't know what your fucking plans are with our mom, so spit it out or we'll help you spit it out."

Ah...

This one must be Jason. Clark remembers the few (un)lucky reporters who have actually gotten up close and personal with a few of Bruce's kids (jealous) saying that the second eldest boy is nothing like the omega describes him as: cute, innocent, a baby, the most precious being to ever walk the face of the earth, his small little boy; and now that Clark is looking at the alpha, he can see what those reporters meant. This 'baby' is built like a reinforced war shelter or something...but the man can't help but feel like this young alpha looks familiar in some way.

A whine escapes Tim from behind Jason's bulk, the much shorter alpha hitting at his big brother's back with his tablet. "That's no fair, Jay! You got in the way of my presentation! You promised that you'd wait until the end."

The older boy growls at being hit, but it must not be as threatening as he makes it sound as Tim keeps hitting him, even going so far as to start kicking at the older one's leg, in rebuttal to the sound. "I promised that I'd think about it, pipsqueak, and guess what my answer was? A big, fat, loud f-no. I'm getting impatient with this guy's innocent act...especially since he obviously wants something out of our mama."

Okay, okay, okay.

1. Clark knows he should be terrified right now because of how menacing Jason looks.

2. He is terrified...but not necessarily for the reasons they may want him to be.

3. How can he be scared when Jason calls Bruce, "mama", with an adorably scrunched up nose of protection (because that's definitely a nose scrunch of protection...Clark can tell. And is that something they all got from Bruce?)

And 4. Why is this whole experience making him want to father his pups these pups more than he already wanted to?

Clark, at the realization that his nervousness and fear is more so because he wants to impress Bruce's kids, rather than because they actually and genuinely terrify him, causes him to bury his face in his hands with a loud and pitiful cry.

Jason licks his lips in excitement at the reaction, a twisted smile gracing his face as he looks down at the wailing reporter and giving a menacing chuckle. "Yeah, you motherfucker (and I oop-), cry me a river you bastard. I wanna smell the distress coming off of you in waves by the time you leave this place. You think you can just-just enter our mom's life without us knowing about it, huh? You think that you can make heart eyes at him and get away with it, hm? You think that you can just waltz in here and try to take him away from us, is that it?"

What is wrong with Clark?

Why would he want to be a father to what seems like some of the world's most stubborn, paranoid, crazy, out of hand, bloodthirsty children to ever exist?

I mean, some of those descriptions may be a bit true...but, Clark also can hear the adorably sincere, protective, maybe a touch possessive (in the way pups can be over their mother's), dedicated, filial, genuinely loving and caring tone coming from these-these gremlin children.

Clark is just beginning to realize how crazy he either is himself, or, just how selfish he can truly be right now. Cause all he wants to do is to make these pups his own and be strong for them...because the way they seem to be talking right now disturbs his heart and penetrates deep down to his own protective instincts, at what sounds like the fact that none of these kids seem to have had a decent alpha figure in their lives.

I mean, what are they talking about taking there mom away? What do they mean by his 'plans' for their mom? They make him sound like he's here to hurt Bruce and his family rather than love them.

Jason growls low in his throat at the lack of a response from the seated man, the pups scrambling back in surprise when the reporter suddenly shoots up out of his seat and stands over them.

And stand over them he truly does.

They never actually realized how big the other man was until now...is he standing at full height?

Jason feels a pang of regret for talking the way he did. What if he got his younger brothers in trouble because of his big mouth? The young alpha pushes the younger two behind him, growling low in his throat when they try to protest his protection, forcing them to stay behind himself as they don't know what happens after backtalk. It always leads to beatings and bruises...and he doesn't want that to happen to them, not if he can help it.

"Stay the fuck away from us!"

Clark freezes at the deep baritone of the boy's voice. He sounds...angry? That one is for sure, but the Kryptonian can hear beyond the instinctual anger and down deep to the imperceivable–well, imperceivable to anyone without super hearing that is. The older alpha (though they don't know he is one) stands as still as he can be and lets his super senses do the work for him. Frowning at hearing the slight, almost unnoticeable, shakiness of the boy's vocal cords; fear, the boy is feeling fear when talking to him. Clark carefully scents the air and has to hold back his distressed cry at the uneasy, weary smell coming from the young man.

Jason narrows his eyes suspiciously at the taller and how he seems to have listened to the command to not come closer...at least for now he has.

Baby blue eyes look behind the alpha as the office door opens and Richard enters the room with the rest of their siblings. They were on standby as clean up crew just in case things got messy, but now, the older is inching his way on up to be close to Jason when seeing that glassy look trying to take over the younger one's eyes. "Jay, everything is alright, Mr. Clark isn't moving a muscle." The eldest Wayne child suddenly turns a sharp gaze onto said male, looking over his body to make sure that he's remaining in place.

Cass does the same and looks over the older man, relaxing slightly at what she sees and huffing a quiet laugh to herself at how open the other is with his feelings.

The beta pushes past Richard and skips over to her three brothers, giving a big smile to Jason in response to his protective hissing. "Cass! What the hell is wrong with you?! Don't get so close to him!" The younger tilts her head slightly and looks behind herself to get a glimpse of Clark, taking note of the sadness in his eyes before turning back to Jason and making an x with her arms, "I don't sense anything threatening from him. I promise you, Jason. Everyone is okay as far as I can tell...if anything, Mr. Clark is uber easy to read, if a bit confusing? He's thinking too many things at one time for me to pinpoint what's causing his distress."

Jason watches his little sister sign closely, snorting at the last part of her comment. "Yeah...right, distressed. Why in the hell would he be distressed right now? Because he's been called out for his atrocious behavior?"

Richard finds himself relaxing a bit at having Cass's two cents on what's going on, though he still wants Jason to feel comfortable enough himself to release Tim and Damian from his protective grasp...the poor pups look like they're suffocating with the way the taller is pressing them into the wall. "Maybe we can give him a chance to explain himself? Even if he is some big, horrible man at the end of the day...I don't think he would harm us, especially as mom can easily come up and catch him doing it. And he seems a little too fond over B to hurt us outright."

Clark blinks away the wetness in his eyes...he understands what Richard is trying to do, but it still is a pain to hear someone say that their brother thinks that you'd harm them to your face indirectly.

Jason stiffens up as Clark is on the move again, making a confused noise in the back of his throat when the beta hunches in on himself (as though to make himself smaller) and clasps his hands together as though he's begging for forgiveness. "I-I'm sorry if I have ever acted in a way that has caused any one of you to think I meant harm to yourselves or your mother. I doubly apologize at the fact that I don't know what it is that I did to make all of you feel this way, but if you would be willing to tell me so I can fix it..."

Everyone stares at the reporter in varying stages of shock, confusion or guilt, Barbara being the one to break the silence with a long-suffering sigh. "I told you guys that this would be going too far."

Clark glances over to the sheepish looking woman, the ginger waving her hand in a gesture for the man to relax. "I'm sorry about our behavior towards you...we...uh...we got a little to overzealous in our plans to come talk to you in concern of our mother's new interest, and I don't mean that to be offensive. Mom usually only shows this much interest in us...so I guess we got a little jealous over you."

Stephanie nods her head in agreement, though she still looks curious and a bit cautious as to why Clark is so interested in their ma. "Yeah, and I hope you can excuse Jason? He has some...personal issues, like the rest of us do, and he just got a bit startled." Jason tightens his grip on Tim and Damian (that he moved to holding at some point), burying his nose in their hair for comfort (just like Bruce does *sobs*) as he protests. "I didn't get startled! And I wasn't scared-" his baby blue eyes shift over to Clark cautiously as he slowly relocates himself and his baby brothers over to where his siblings are gathered-"I was just making sure that he didn't do anything stupid is all. You can never trust a stranger."

Stephanie deadpans, "But all of us met B and trusted him when he was at his strangest to us."

The slightly younger alpha frowns, "But this is different, Steph. B is-is our mama. He's able to be trusted because he's showed himself to be." The blond sighs softly in response and just tiptoes up to ruffle the younger boy's hair.

This time it's Richard who turns to look regretfully at Clark, "I'm truly sorry about all this. I feel like I should take most of the blame as I'm the eldest sibling...and I know for a fact that I didn't help dissuade the others when they made plans to come interrogate you-" the older whines as he's slapped upside the head by Barbara-"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. I left out how I was one of the first to suggest coming here to do this."

Clark looks between the group of pups (because that's what they are, okay?) and finally lets his tears fall, causing the children to look troubles by the intense reaction.

Damian stops trying to wriggle out of Jason's arms at the sight of Clark's tears and sighs empathetically, "I understand how scared you must have felt when I started talking to you. But...just know that while I was trying to intimidate you, this was not the reaction I was expecting–hey!" He shouts in protest as his hair is roughly ruffled by Jason (who has chosen to release Drake...how unfair). "It wasn't you he was intimidated by, it was me, obviously."

Damian frowns deeply at the obvious lie, nipping and biting at the older boy's hand in retaliation, causing a chain reaction as the rest of his siblings join in on the chaos and forget the crying reporter watching them fondly.

It's only when the man releases a deep chuckle that everyone turns to look at Clark confusedly, especially as he keeps on laughing. "I-I'm sorry to disappoint...but I wasn't scared of either of you-" he looks between everyone before shrugging-"Well, maybe just a little boy at first? But, I'm so selfish and greedy; covetous about something that isn't even mine." Everyone is taken aback by the yearning in the deep blue eyes. "I-I accidentally said too much earlier to your mom when he was in the room...I am guessing that Tim and Jason heard me as they were hiding the whole time? But, I just wanted you all to be impressed by me I guess...I just found it discouraging how none of you seemed to feel comfortable around me whenever I came to interview Bruce."

Jason purses his lips and stares Clark down, "And why do you even want us to feel comfortable around you? It's not like we'd be around you twenty-four seven."

Clark nods almost dejectedly, a small sighs escaping him. "I know...I guess it was partly because I ended up coming around a lot, so to see you kids in somewhat of a consistent enough manner really made me hope that I could get to at least speak to one of you. And...um...I said that I was selfish and greedy earlier—" he swallows nervously at the sharp looks he receives for the change in tone—"and I meant that. I suppose you all were somewhat right when saying I had intentions, but I promise you that it's not anything nefarious."

Stephanie hums thoughtfully before waving her hand, "Explain."

Clark nods in thanks at the chance to share his side of things, "It's true that I've been...flirting with your mother-" he ignores whoever murmured about stating the obvious and pushes forward-"and I'm sorry for being unprofessional in my work, but...but your mom–Bruce, he's such a hard worker and a dedicated boss to those working for him, as well as a committed mom to all of you. And I saw that and I-truthfully I fell in love with his everything: his passion to make this city and the world a better place for the struggling, the reddening of his face when I take an interest in something he finds interesting, his care and adoration for children and youths of all ages and backgrounds." He takes in a deep breath and deals the final blow, "But especially I fell in love with the children of Bruce Thomas Wayne: my boss, crush-and honestly-someone who feels like my best friend during these moments of getting to know each other."

Clark doesn't know where the sudden confidence comes from, but he looks each and every single pup in the eyes as he finally finishes. "And when I said I fell in love with his everything, I meant everything. All of you mean so much to me and I haven't even gotten to know you. That's the reason why I was so scared, it's because I wanted you to see me as someone worthy enough to talk to and feel comfortable around, and I'm only sorry for not being able to be that someone for you all."

With that, Clark bows his head and waits for the biting remarks from the Wayne children, only to be surprised at the gentle tugging of his suit sleeve.

Cass smiles kindly at Clark when he looks up at her, the girl's eyes a bit watery from the confession and baffled at the level of sincerity radiating from the man as he confessed. "You...you already sound like more than what any of us deserve. We're sorry for putting so much pressure on you rather than talking it out...most of us aren't good at that-" she gives a playful smile to lighten the mood and continues signing-"or in my case, can't simply do so. But, your honesty is appreciated...if a bit overwhelming because of its level of sincerity. Thank you."

He doesn't know how it's possible, but Clark is falling more for Bruce's kids and how...soft they actually seem to be.

They just need a little love is all.

And maybe a father? (Fingers crossed)

Jason grumbles to himself dejectedly at how wrong his analysis of the man was. Which really is a good thing! He would have freaked out if he found out the other had bad intentions towards his mama, but, he also doesn't know what to do with this new information, because it's nothing like what he expected it to be.

However, in a rare moment of showing respect, Jason turns to look at Richard and nudges the older with his elbow to get his attention and opinion as the head alpha (when Alfred isn't around that is). "What do you think about this? About him?" Richard's eyes crinkle in that familiarly comforting way it does when he's low-key (read: high-key, cause he ain't low-key about nothing) excited about something, the older wrapping a lean, yet strong, arm around Jason's neck and leaning in to nuzzle the boy's cheek. "I...actually feel really good about him, Jay. Don't feel pressured to like him either just because I or anyone else does, okay? You were very brave today too, by the way, thank you for standing up to what you saw as a threat."

Jason would never admit it, but he preens under the praise and returns the muzzle back to his older brother, allowing his tense body to relax into the slimmer build as Richard holds him up. His blue eyes scanning Clark from head to toe, "I...think I trust him too? I'm scared that I do though."

Richard hums in understanding and hugs his baby (because he is a baby) brother close, the two watching as Damian finally gets out of Jason's hold and stands up in front of his siblings with a heavy pout on his face. "T-Traitors! The lot of you! All of you don't love mommy, for you betray him by falling for such acts!" Uh oh...the boy is stressed out right now, he calls Bruce mommy to/when: 1. To soften the omega up when he wants something, 2. When the omega is distracted with something and Damian whines for his attention or 3. When he gets distressed at a situation and wants to snuggle into Bruce.

And with the way he's looking right now, Damian falls into category number three.

Tim softly tries crooning to Damian when seeing the boy get teary eyed at what he perceives as unfair treatment. "Dami-"

"Damian?"

Everyone jumps in surprise at hearing Bruce's voice suddenly, the omega growing defensive at the thought of his pups having been hurt by Clark at the sight of their teary eyes, until he sees that the man himself also has been crying. "Baby, what's wrong?" Bruce purrs to soothe the distressed pup, lifting the boy into his arms and rubbing gentle circles into the small back as he looks between his kids and Clark for an answer. "What is going on right now? When did you kids even get up here?"

At the apologetic looks from his kids-and the very obvious looks Richard is giving Clark-Bruce immediately mourns whatever it is that his kids said or did to the poor beta.

"What exactly have you kids been doing while I was downstairs? And why are you all crying?"

Bruce extends a gentle hand to his kids and allows them to take off the scent patches on his wrists so that he can rub his comforting smell on all of them, his voice a calm rumble as he calms them down. "There you go, it's okay. Now, I want answers as to what is happening. No one is on trouble, understand? I just need to know if anyone was...hurt or anything." The doubt in Bruce's voice immediately causes all of them to speak up at the same time, the omega looking back and forth between his children in confusion as their words jumble together. "I love you, Bruce Thomas Wayne!"

Now that voice, that voice Bruce most definitely heard.

It's loud, booming, deep, gentle yet commanding and so undeniably alpha of Clark Kent.

Which is confusing. Isn't he a beta?

It takes a moment for everyone to get themselves under control, Clark being the first to shake himself out of his own surprise as he boldly takes off his scent patches so that Bruce knows about him. "I-I wasn't expecting for my confession to ever go this way-" he looks at Bruce's kids in amusement-"much less with an audience around. But, I said I love you and everything about you, from the top of your head to the soles of your feet I love you. From your piercing blue eyes and the way you roll them unknowingly whenever someone says it does something stupid—I should know, you've given me them a lot—to your pink lips and the way you pout them in deep concentration whenever you think hard about something."

Bruce is too busy staring in a daze up at the alpha to pay attention to whichever one of his kids cooed about the romance happening and for someone to scoot over so they can get a better view (though it's most likely Richard).

Clark keeps his eyes trained on the shorter man, standing to his full height and slowly stepping forward until he's right in front of the man, his gaze overwhelmingly fond and loving as he looks down at the smaller. "I love the way you gracefully handle the most troublesome situations in your city, yet complain about the small things like a certain vegetable you don't like in your food or how the weather is a touch too cold for your liking—" Bruce frowns at that and unconsciously rolls his eyes. "Those are perfectly reasonable things to fuss about–w-what?"

Clark watches as the omega adjusts Damian so he can hold him with one arm and pat at his face with his free hand, to see if there's anything on his face. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

The alpha smiles and raises a hand slowly until he's cradling the soft face in his wide palm, basking in the heat radiating from the blushing man. "It's because I love you and the way you complain to me-" he whispers it as though it hurts him to realize just how much he can love someone else-"and...and I don't even know if it's possible for me to have you and for me to be yours in return. I—you are so beautiful, Bruce. Inside and out. And to be around you for so long the way I've been privileged to is such an honor, while also slowly driving me mad with thoughts and dreams about a future I don't even know is obtainable for me." Bruce's arms tighten around Damian, soothing the pup as he whines from the confession going on, his voice nothing but a whisper as he nuzzles the hand cradling his cheek. "Then...then why don't you ask me what I think?"

Clark's breath is taken away at how beautiful Bruce is, his eyes searching the omega's face hopefully as he swallows down his nerves and does as requested. "W-What do you think about me, Bruce? What do you think about us being together?"

Bruce exhales shakily at hearing the question even though he asked for it, "I think...I think a lot of things: how crazy you must be to actually enjoy being around me, how correct you are for loving kids-but especially my kids; how I think that y-you'd make a wonderful father to the omega lucky enough to have you as an alpha." Oh...is this a rejection? Clark can feel his shoulders automatically slump dejectedly, though he keeps his hand on the other's face, fighting off the urge to protest and complain. The alpha caught off guard at the warm tears dripping onto his palm and the warmth of the omega as he steps closer and closer, until their chests are aligned and Damian is cradled in a warm cocoon between the two.

Bruce's voice is small yet optimistic as he asks, "Can I? Can I be that omega?"

Surprisingly, Damian is silent this time, everyone holding their breaths as they wait for Clark's reaction.

Before Bruce can self doubt anymore, Clark lets out a happy shout and picks up the omega and swings him around, placing a tender first kiss onto the shy omega's lips. "You can...as long as I'm allowed to be your alpha in return?" Bruce feels overwhelmed at feeling so...loved and sniffles loudly, stretching up on his toes when Clark pulls away from their kiss, stunned at how addicted he is to the alpha's taste already. He nods his head quickly in answer to the other's question, "Yes! Yes, yes, yes! Thank you, C-Clark."

The alpha wipes away the omega's tears, hugging the man close to his chest and places a tender kiss to the man's forehead as he lets him cry.

Clark catches Damian teary eyed stare in the middle of making sure Bruce is okay, giving a gentle smile to the pup as he croons softly to the boy. "And you-" he bends down until he's face-to-face with the pup-"I promise that I'm not taking away your mom from you or the family. I...I hope to add on to the family he's built, not take away from you guys, and I hope that I can prove that to you and your siblings in due time."

Damian remains stubbornly curled up against Bruce, though he's not as stiff and weary as before, his little nose twitching as he sniffles and looks between Clark and his mother.

"M-Mommy—" Damian whines and clings onto Bruce's suit—"he...he isn't like father."

Bruce sucks in a sharp breath at the admission, nodding his head in agreement, "You're right. He's not your father...he won't hurt you, baby, or me." Damian nods his head softly and leaves it at that, dragging Bruce's hand up to his face so that he can smell at the scent glands on his wrist to be comforted.

Well, that worked out better than expected for Clark, he gives a hopeful smile to Bruce before they turn to the rest of their kids.

Richard smiles brightly and practically vibrates excitedly at the thought of having a dad (again), "Welcome to the family! Is it too early to invite you over for dinner?"

Barbara rolls her eyes good-naturedly as she carefully pushes the eldest to the side and nods her head in polite introduction, "Excuse the family dog, he hasn't had enough playtime today-" she smiles at the offended exclamation she gets from the alpha, waving him off when he tries to play fight her over it-"I'm Barbara and that's Richard...though I'm sure you knew that? I'm really sorry about what happened earlier...but, I'm glad you're one of us now."

Clark feels like crying even more at the beta's kind acceptance of him into the pack.

Cass steps forward next and waves excitedly, "I'm Cassandra; the favorite child, but don't tell anyone else that. I admit that I don't understand why you love us the way you do...not many of us will right now, but like Barbara said, I'm glad you're with us now instead of anywhere else. I'm glad we didn't scare you off...you're kind." Clark barely has time to respond to the small girl before Stephanie is barreling her way through her siblings, the blonde eyeing him carefully now that she knows for sure he's an alpha. "Most alphas we know personally have sucked, so I hope you really aren't one of those ones? You don't seem like it though, so welcome to the family, and let's learn to bug people together. You and me. That's our bonding time."

That was...blunt, but appreciated nonetheless. Clark just is happy at the fact she mentioned bonding with him.

Jason bites his lip when the older alpha looks at him, scratching his index nail against his jeans nervously from the attention. "Uh...I guess I'm sorry for the...overreaction, but I don't have good experiences with alphas." The nineteen-year-old finds himself blushing as he quickly spits out, "But thank you for not freaking out about it-" a quick pause-"I guess."

Clark smiles and softly reassures the boy that there's no need to be sorry, unaware to how Bruce is melting at the dad energy radiating from the man.

Everyone stares at Tim as he's the only one who hasn't said anything yet. Not that he's supposed to, of course, but it's making Bruce worry about it the boy is feeling neglected already...he knows the pup as abandonment issues, so change is often a scary thing for him. "Timmy, is everything okay?" Bruce questions softly, gently brushing away some hair from the alpha's eyes just to see what's going on in his head. The boy only stares up at Clark as though he's found something (or in this case, someone) amazing, the teen hugging his tablet to his chest as he exclaims in awe: "I can't believe Superman is our dad."

Clark's eyes widen to the size of dinner plates as he chokes on his spit, the Wayne family practically breaking their necks to look at him as the room descends into chaos, Stephanie loudly exclaiming.

"I guess #superbat is now trending!"

And that's how Superman found out he was in love with Batman and vice versa.

(Damian's bio parent in this is Ra's Al Ghul. If I would have a decent writing schedule, y'all would have understood that as it's in the separate Damian story I said I was writing. But, just a quick explanation for anyone who would be curious as to who the parent is.

Just know that this also isn't related to the 5+2 story I have in this series as well, as due to popular votes, the majority wanted Clark (in said 5+2) to be Damian's bio parent. So, this takes the route on what I would have done if I would have kept anyone else but Clark as his other bio parent.

Also, please don't ask me what I was thinking when writing this? I was confused on whether to add the crack tags or not, especially as I don't think this is so silly/odd to the point of me tagging that, however, I felt (personally) that the certain way I wrote things was leaning into that crack-ish territory (though I'm most likely wrong lol).

Also, also, I had so many cute endings planned and some reason went with that. I swear if y'all are mad at the ending, I can try fixing it XD, but I just felt the story reached a certain point of angst I didn't expect to have for this...so I made the ending a bit silly-stupid

You all are always so greatly appreciated! And know that I love and appreciate each and every single one of you for taking the time to read, comment and kudos. You all are the most amazing Valentine's a girl could ask for, thank you!

Please remember to stay safe, happy, healthy and of course lovely as always. 💛)

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binomech · 1 month ago

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some opinions on fanfic trends for Disco Elysium on AO3 for the past 2-ish years; i address racism, ableism, jean and kim tropes, accesorization of harry and the way the game themes appear to have warped.

some of you may know i've been reading every fic published on the disco AO3 tag chronologically since 2019 for a little over a year and jotting down some trends (not a proper statistical study, just some tracking of when certain tropes are introduced and when and how they reproduce because i like observing that kind of thing.) there's been an uptick in trans(masc) Kim and Jean character studies since late 2022-early 2023, among many others, but these ones were like overwhelmingly prolific once they were introduced.

harry, kim and jean are overwhelmingly the characters with most fanworks in the tag. and having read a little over 4k works it turns out that people engage in a very distinct way with them for the most part that tracks with the growth of the trans Kim and Jean character studies as a trend.

the disco elysium fandom's english-language writers are, according to my cursory snooping, overwhelmingly trans, some flavor of gay, white and from north america and western europe. given personal anecdotes, i also suspect they are upper middle class (though not as statistically huge as the previous things) and struggle with mental health. in the past decade or so a lot of fanworks have followed a trend of exploration focused on catharsis and personal relatability.

now, kim and harry appear so much in the text with so much detail that there's plenty of personal details to pull from to write them, where as jean's total presence in the game (rarely achieved in one run but i'm taking into account all his mentions and lines) is smaller so it follows that people need to fill in some gaps and there's more characterization freedom. jean is white, younger than both harry and kim, canonically depressed, non-canonically confirmed by his character player an amphetamine addict but presented as a functional person during the game, and covers a very specific narrative hinge that i understand as relevant: he's a bridge between pre-Martinaise Harry and his Martinaise self.

he's objectively a very comfortable character to play with because he's mostly a blank slate except for his relation to Harry and his vitriolic grief towards him. so logistically i understand why people who struggle with mental health, are white, are anywhere between 17 and 35, are functional and able-bodied and may or may not have a complicated relationship with a close person who struggles with addiction or other health issues might go "YES, GOOD CATHARSIS NARRATIVE FOR ME". but the sheer amount of works that value Relatability over engaging with the characters or the themes has resulted in a very strong ripple. which leads to trans kim.

the game paints a deep and vivid image of kim, both from within harry's own perspectives and the objective things he says out loud. he's a walking contradiction, he's alienated from his body and selfhood, he beat himself into submission to stay alive. he's a walking reminder of his assasinated communist parents, the people who killed them paid his salary, his body (racialized, disabled) is both a hindrance to his assimilation and a tangible proof that he could have belonged somewhere but doesn't, that no matter what he does it will be considered first. so he watches his words, his movements, his appearance. so he partakes in hypermasculinity. he's canonically gay, mixed race, diasporic seolite, and disabled. and somehow, the only one of this that is recurringly explored in most fanworks is his homosexuality, usually in the form of being a guiding figure to harry or as a Fellow Gay Cop to jean, or eyes, or someone else.

now, we have the trans kim trope. my opinion on the trope isn't relevant to the point i'm trying to make, but i will say i think transmasc kim is something i enjoy in theory, i think it's a worthy exploration that works very well with the hauntings of embodiment and perception that exist in kim's canon self. but it's very jarring when all of these tales of gay trans kim refuse to engage with race, or with physical disability. like, after you've read 800 trans kim fics you start noticing how solid that avoidance is, how big the elephant in the room is, and i can't help but think that, coupled with the explorations of Jean, the issue is: the white ablebodied writer is unwilling to engage with race and disability.

my charitable reading of this is that the white ablebodied writer doesn't want to write about what they don't know, they don't want to overstep. my neutral reading of this is that the white ablebodied writer doesn't consider how sexuality and gender's material realities are tied to race and ablebodiedness in the real world because they are the Default Categories and it didn't occur to them that kim's experience of them might overlap. my least charitable reading of this without directly falling into the assumption of ill intent is that the white ablebodied writer is uncomfortable with the idea of the fact that their experience of gender and sexuality isn't universal and it's not as emotionally cathartic to think about how they might be racist and ableist because they put on horse blinders and they're trying to write things they like, and understanding this is unpleasant and doesn't belong in their feel-good hobbies.

people love to talk about kim's body without acknowledging the way asian masculinity and femininity exist in relation to whiteness when it's harry or jean in the room. people love to talk about kim's body without engaging with the power relations that exist in many disabled people's sexuality.

the tropes' strength lies in the relatability factor (very high) and the willingness of both author and audience to engage with the canon material for the characters they are writing (very low). and so you end up with a lot of jean character studies about his feelings towards harry (when everyone but kim in the game also knows both harries, but jean is prioritized consistently) and a lot of character studies about kim (that ignore most of the lived experiences of him because they're directly tied to his and his parents' race and alienation that are not particularly cathartic for the white author and reader)

one of the big themes of the game, if not the biggest, is failure. specifically it asks the player to think about what to do when you have failed and you know there are no blank slates, and asks you to empathize not only with harry, whose every thought you're privy to, but to everyone you talk to that has the same rich landscape beyond your brief interaction. when relatability is prioritized in fanworks, this question falls apart, the purpose becomes to find ways in which these characters are like you (the author, the reader) so you can afford them the level of humanity needed to feel emotions about them.

harry's tropification follows four large trends: self-loathing, aggressive addict, psychic omniscient prophet, overwhelmingly emotional and adoring puppy. some authors sometimes are capable of depicting both, usually as if they are unrelated and it's a harry-esque contradiction, but it's truly baffling how rare it is to find stories that engage with all of them or with multiple of them as inextricably bound together like canon material does. harry needs to be relatably lovable (heartbroken, self-loathing, fixable by love, fixable by the universe, capable of change that gets exponentially better) or relatably hateable (physically and emotionally abusive, manipulative, unreasonably needy).

most fics in the relatable lovability fall on the kim/harry ship, most fics in the relatable hateability fall on the jean/harry ship. here's where it ties into the big tropes for kim and jean: the fanworks about a game that asks a question about failure and questioning certainty become stories about inevitability.

jean's vitriol in the game comes from the same place as harry's self loathing: a visceral response to decades of failure. they're not objective truths (i'm thinking about the mirror reveal being intended as a way to make the viewer realize harry isn't a reliable narrator at all, but especially about himself: you see a regular guy, conventionally handsome but clearly in pain and growing old and sick. he calls himself horrible shit, however).

playing up jean's part as the Bridge is comfortable because it allows the player to separate Harry's failures from their agency as a player (something that greatly drives the point of the game home, emotionally speaking -- you're not that different from Harry. Harry's not that different from anyone else he meets. the irreversible failures exist for all of us, as do the chances to try again.) if jean is right in resenting harry, and moreover, he's objectively describing harry's behavior, harry's failures become logical and inevitable consequences of his Way of Being. if Harry calls kim a slur, or threatens children, or scares civilians, that's just because that's how Harry is (according to Jean and Harry's own brain), so the possibility that one of your tries might be meaningfully good becomes... less weighty. it's a fluke, and you'll fail again, so don't get your hopes up. it's almost an excuse to believe that there's nothing new under the sun and going back to old habits is inevitable, but the conclusion becomes "so nothing i do really matters" instead of "it's hard and painful to try again when you've failed so many times before. what does this say about the person who tries?". and in that way jean is an interesting character because understanding why he resents harry for being able to try more freely than him without the weight of memory is important to the theme. what has to click to start climbing out of the grave? can anyone do it? will i ever do it? why now, and why not when i tried to pull him out?

and similarly, when we write about kim, we have to confront what makes him who he is and not another generic character to write, and the fact of the matter is that being a cop, being visibly of seolite heritage, having PTSD, having a visual impairment on record that interferes with his cophood, his cophood being the only identity he appears to have had a choice over, how he treats harry because he's a cop vs. other harry parallels who aren't, how he treats harry whether harry respects him or not... they're important. and trans kim could be a way to approach these themes but it's currently existing in a vacuum of authorial catharsis, and the refusal to address the real politics that give emotional weight to disco elysium is becoming a worrying, overwhelming trend. i urge you all to think about these things a little.

#disco elysium #binomechanisms #note: i am fairly critical with the fandom and you don't have to read this if you don't want to #if you do read it i'd appreciate it if your responses had to do with what i'm talking about and not like. Fanfic Helps Me Cope #second note: i don't dwell much on harry trope trends here because they have remained consistent (in a bad way)

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