#brutim my BELOVED

[necrotic-nephilim]

i think it's funnier if tim still views the relationship in a detached way bc he's doing this to keep bruce stable but bruce starts getting attached and calling tim things like sweetheart and ducky

and then bruce realizes that tim doesn't really return those feelings and has a breakdown

(based on my tags on this post) oooh, that *is* fun, actually. i love your brain. i'm so enamored by BruTim being such an emotionally complex relationship that doesn't hold the typical love you associate with BruDick or BruJay.

especially because you expect *Bruce* to be the clinically detached one. he's the one who sucks at his emotions and sucks even more at showing them. even when he loves someone, he's not going to process it well. he's going to make a mess of everything. so for him to express so much positive emotion towards Tim with petnames that are *just* on the cusp of romantic, like sweetheart and ducky. they *could* be casual, they hover right on the edge of sweet nothings to real emotion. it gives Bruce plausible deniability when DIck hears one of the petnames and squints at Bruce from across the room, trying to decide if he's going to do anything about it.

but for Tim. for Tim all of this is a job, and not even one he plans to hold onto for long. sure, Tim cares about Bruce, but i think fanon has really twisted around just how much Tim cares. this isn't a familial bond, it's a workplace one. Tim doesn't want Bruce to replace his parents, even when they die. he doesn't want to get too close to Bruce and lose sight of himself. it's a careful balance, helping Bruce and being there for him while setting his own clear boundaries about were this ends. and the sex of it all, when Tim realizes that being Robin includes *that*, is also just the job. maybe Tim enjoys the sex, maybe he's detached from it (i think it's fun if Bruce can't figure out which and is gaslighting himself in both directions bc he doesn't know if he wants to torture himself with knowing he can't stay away from a boy who doesn't want him or if he wants to live in the fantasy that this is something real) in the same way he is Robin. he puts everything into it, but emotionally, Tim still holds himself at a distance. he'll initiate sex with Bruce needs it, he'll enjoy the bodily sensations and *maybe* even the thrill of getting attention from an older man. but Tim isn't the type of person to fall in love with Bruce like Dick is. Tim wants to have a normal life by the time he's in his 20s, and there's a planned obsolescence in his role as Robin.

so when Bruce starts dropping the pet names in, maybe even by accident first. pet names are expected in sex. the first time Bruce calls Tim 'sweetheart' is while fucking him and Tim doesn't think twice about it. it slips out in aftercare too and Bruce keeps pushing and pushing until he wears Tim down to getting used to them in casual conversation. the first few times Tim gave Bruce a sour look but now he just sighs, if he reacts at all. he lets Bruce press a gentle kiss to his forehead and call him sweetheart when they're alone in the cave. it's so casual. "pass me that file, sweetheart" or "when are you going home, love?" and even "good job, ducky" which is the real kicker, bc Bruce will shrivel away before giving anyone honest praise for their work that doesn't come with strings attached. and every time, Bruce is expecting, *hoping* for a smile from Tim. a shared pet name for Bruce, a soft look, anything to indicate a romantic fondness. he convinces himself Tim is just shy. it takes time for Tim to open up sometimes and Bruce isn't going to rush this.

but when every night, without fail, Tim always leaves Bruce bed after sex to go him and sleep in his own manor. when he never pulls away from Bruce's romantic touch but doesn't lean into it either, it's forced to click for Bruce. and i think him having a breakdown is so fun about it. bc he can have *anyone*. he had the unwavering adoration of the past two Robins who loved him without condition. everyone is in love with Bruce Wayne or Batman. except *Tim*. Tim who *asked* for this role and because of that treated it like a job, not a gift. Bruce gave Robin to Dick and Jason. he chose them. but he didn't choose Tim and somehow, it's the tease of someone unobtainable that breaks Bruce.

i love the thought of Bruce, maybe under influence of truth serum or some sort of psychoactive drug breaking down into tears while Tim is taking care of him and tending to his wounds. and Bruce has his head in Tim's lap, looking up at Tim with more emotional vulnerability than he's shown *anyone*, rambling about love and feelings. most of it isn't coherent, but Tim understands. and somehow it's worse that there's no cruelty in Tim's eyes, but only *pity*. he stays the night, for *once*, but he's doing it out of pity. he's letting Bruce hold him because it's what Bruce needs, and Tim is just doing his job.

(Bruce holds onto the moment greedily anyway, bc he'll take what he can get and if emotional manipulation is what's needed to get Tim to stay the night and whisper soothing things to him that almost sound like love, then Bruce will definitely file that information way to use later. he'll break Tim down sooner or later, even if it's not a conscious effort. it's just how Bruce is and what he can't stop himself from doing. after all the good he's done, is he not allowed to be selfish in these rare vulnerable hours?)

[necrotic-nephilim]

for the ask game (1)

au where bruce is attracted to his robins and batgirls. he tries not to think about it or act on it, but it's getting more difficult with every new member of his team he acquires. does anyone know? do the robins and batgirls notice his weird behavior? what do they do about it? do they ever find out the truth? who would think it's terrible and who would find it strangely hot/comforting/nice? does bruce ever act on his feelings?

for the ask game!

oh my GOD do i have thoughts for AUs like this, i love this shit so dearly, dirtybadwrong Bruce who's trying to keep a lid on it my beloved.

i think the fun of this AU is if characters would notice Bruce lusting for themselves vs would they notice Bruce lusting for a different Robin/Batgirl. like does Dick pick up on it when it's just him and Bruce? no, because it's just. him and Bruce. he and Bruce are weird and complicated and hold endless bounds of nuance. that's just How Bruce Is, and Dick is the "test run", in a sense. he knows Bruce is new to this whole sidekick/family thing and is giving Bruce grace for being rough around the edges. but when Bruce starts looking at Jason or Tim or Cass that way, that's when Dick starts to notice. it's never enough of a suspicion he feels justified to bring it up, but the thought lingers. he's hyperaware and grows less and less comfortable with leaving them alone with Bruce. it's a weird game of chicken, Dick and Bruce staring each other down when Bruce's touch lingers too long. each waiting for the other to say something first. if Bruce ever broke and actually acted on his feelings, Dick would be eaten alive by the guilt of knowing something was up, but never saying something until it was too late.

obviously, Cass would know. there's no world where Cass *doesn't* know, the nature of who and what she is would immediately clock it. but the issue is, Cass doesn't have a good framework of what family looks like. she doesn't really understand familial vs romantic love bc she has no firsthand experience of what a parent's love should even look like. so she never calls it out. she just watches. i'm a fan of Cass believing this is normal and believing she too can express and act on attraction that's vaguely incestuous. maybe it's with Babs, maybe it's with Dick or Tim or Bruce himself. but she recognizes this as Normal and Accepted within the Batfamily, so it severely fucks up her understanding of familial love and i just. man it's my favorite thing about Cass in Batcest honestly, is how you can play with her lack of experience with love, boundaries, and sexuality.

Tim is the fun one for me. because my favorite flavor of BruTim is when Tim knows, as he agrees to be Robin, that there's a non-zero chance that Bruce is going to be Weird and agrees anyway because he's decided it's an acceptable risk. so Tim knows from the get-go because he's expecting it. if Bruce acts on his attraction, i think it's either with Tim or Cass first, because they're the most likely to confront him about it in a way that isn't entirely negative. Tim has accepted it's a possibility and Cass just seeks being loved and touched so. it leads to the first time someone's ever confronted Bruce about it. and the thing is, Bruce really doesn't like confrontation about his flaws. the first time Tim tries to imply he's okay with it, Bruce would lash out at the idea, tell Tim how inappropriate that is and benches Tim for a week. it'd probably take a united front from Cass and Tim to get Bruce to even *admit* to the attraction. still Bruce wouldn't allow it to happen and he brushes them off until finally, the dam breaks. it's fun if there's a cause like sex pollen, but i think it's *more* fun if it's just. a random fucking Tuesday and finally Bruce is at his limit. he has no real reason, there's nothing particularly different about that day's routine. he just sees Tim or Cass striping armor and sighs and gives in.

i don't think Steph, Jason, or Babs would notice until anything substantial happened. not because they're not wicked smart, but just because none of them were looking for it. Jason put Bruce on a pedestal when he was alive, and when he came back from the dead he wasn't close enough to be noticing Bruce's interpersonal dynamics outside of his narrow scope. Steph has no real framework for what healthy fatherhood looks like, so if Bruce's touches linger, if he stares too long, she just shrugs and assumes it's how it is. and Babs was just never quite close enough to Bruce to notice. if and when she notices, is when actual sexual things start to happen between Cass and Bruce. because Cass would see no reason to hide it. Babs would be pissed, but it'd be tricky to navigate. Cass would be an adult, even if she's only 18/19, so technically, she's old enough to be consenting. if nothing else, Bruce is a careful man. even when he breaks and gives in to his desires, he covers his tracks well. he makes sure he has enthusiastic consent and there's no legal recourse that could be taken. age of consent and all that. there's not much Babs can *do* other than try to tell Cass (and/or Tim) that this isn't normal or okay. not that it gets her anywhere, but god would she try.

by the time Duke comes along (if we venture out of the pre-Flashpoint era) i think it's a sort of. open secret, in the Batfamily. talked about in nothing but hushed whispers and knowing glances. at some point, they've all had sex with Bruce, caving all for different reasons. some more than others. Tim sees it as a duty, Cass sees it as a way of seeking comfort, Steph sees it as getting Bruce's approval for once, etc. it's never forced on them, but eventually, they all come to Bruce sooner or later. and that's the fun irony of it, i think. they try to convince the others not to, but would go to Bruce on their own well. because complicated reasons they can't put into words. sometimes, Bruce is just a messy man who doesn't realize how prized his Attention to for the rest of the Batfamily. that weird duality of not liking him, but also wanting desperately for him to like you. all of them have dealt with it, at some point. so for Duke, it takes a while for him to understand this... whole dynamic. it's Cass who tries to explain it to him, and he's a little horrified, a lot confused. especially when Bruce starts staring at him a little too long as well. i think he'd only want to watch first but well. they all cave eventually.

also fun bonus if we venture into the Dark Knight Returns universe for my bestest girl Carrie Kelley: there's such a like, "i'm fucking around and i'm finding out" vibe to Carrie. like Tim, she's very proactive in just. deciding she's going to be Robin and she's ready for whatever that entails. (IMO canon Carrie is closer to fanon Tim than canon Tim is but *that* deserves its own post-) like she takes one look at the old man that is Batman and goes yup. he's never fucking getting rid of me now. if Bruce started having weird feelings about her, i think she'd have *fun* with it. she's decided she's in it for the long haul and for whatever being Robin means so. she's almost teasing about it, seeing how hard she can push before Bruce snaps. since it's an older, gruffer Bruce, i think he'd express open annoyance at it first, almost a sort of banter about how Carrie behave. but of course he caves and Carrie leans into it, because there's a fun in having all of Bruce's attention to herself. in the main timeline, Bruce is pretty split with so many Robins and Batgirls, but during their era, it's *just* her and him and she's very proud she's got him all to herself.