#after that tho damian changes it up and buys himself his own sneakers to sharpie his initials on

[starrysomnia]

Headcanon idea:

Teenage Damian feeling insecure when someone (Jon or his classmates or someone whose opinion he'd actually care about idk) makes fun of him for him dressing like a mini salary man slash corporate worker slash professional golfer whenever he's out of uniform

(considering Bruce Wayne is his main role model, and Alfred buys him clothes that are exactly like what Bruce used to wear at his age... that tracks)

So he decides, for total secret identity blending reasons (and not because he's just a kid who is going to want to fit in, at some point, whether that's at school or with his friends) he's going to dress differently.

He's sure as hell not gonna emulate Dick's fashion sense (man dresses like the 70s/80s/90s never died... Discowing)

Jason wears the same ugly ass leather jacket till it falls apart and/or has to be burned bc of all the blood stains on it

That leaves... Tim.

Tim, who Damian has begrudgingly begun to respect over the years (in suit and out of it) — the man who can dress appropriately as CEO, at galas as the Drake-Wayne Heir... Tim, who is the Bristol born and raised nepo baby Damian secretly wishes he was. Of course whatever brand Drake deems appropriate when it comes to clothing is suitable for him, as the rightful Wayne Heir

What this manifests as is Damian raiding Tim's closet at the manor for inspiration (because Tim really hasn't grown much and is the closest in size to Damian, who is growing)

Tim doesn't notice at first — because he really only touches his closet at the Manor when he's there to work a case/forced to sleep, and also because he doesn't really see Damian outside of costume that much — so Damian gets away with it for literally months

Then one day in the kitchen, sleep deprived and on a caffeine high, Tim does a double take.

"Are those my Vans?" Tim asks in disbelief, staring at a pair of skateboarding sneakers he hasn't worn in years. Since when was Damian the same shoe size as him?

"Don't be ridiculous, Drake," Damian sniffs, pulling on a leather jacket that also looks strangely familiar. "As if I would stoop to wearing your cast offs."

"..." Tim watches in disbelief as the kid lies through his teeth, staring at the faint Sharpie initials T.D that are written on the midsole of the right shoe. "Sure."