#i love the idea that tim and damian work incredibly well together if they are able to get over themselves

[sentient-forest]

Thinking about the random bullshit Duke probably has to put up with upon moving into Wayne Manor

Tim: *slamming open the door to the room where Duke and Damian fell asleep during movie night, eyes wide and frantic*

Tim: The plastic-y burn-burn smell

Duke: *still half-asleep* The wHaT??

Tim: Does anyon-

Damian: *standing up* Tt I smelled it the moment I awoke.

*the two of them dash off and proceed to prevent an electrical fire from consuming the manor at 3 am*

[lapetitechatonne]

Slept on Ships P1: Space Princess

Slept on Ships: Space Princess; Silent Jasmines hello!! so after taking a look at the very long Batpham shipping chart and seeing so many slept on ship dynamics, i decided to start a series all about highlighting romantic and platonic dynamics that---in my professional opinion---deserve more love. i'll be starting with the first dp/dc ship i created: Space Princess.

Space Princess: Dani Phantom/Mar'i Grayson

Relevant Background

so, in general, if you're not knee deep in the DC Fandom, you might now know who Mar'i Grayson, aka Nightstar, is. Mar'i Grayson is the daughter of Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing, and Koriand'r, aka Starfire, from Earth-22. she appears in the Kingdom Come series, where she has her own issue and everything! she's shown as protective of her family, like her father, and just as strong-willed as her mother.

if you'd like more info on Mar'i here's a like to the wiki article: Mar'i Grayson (Earth-22)

fun fact: in Kingdom Come, Dick and Kori are actually divorced, while in most fanfic, people portray them as together. Mar'i is also part of the Teen Titans on her earth, along with Lian Harper and Irey West.

in this post i'll be reference a few head canons such as; Dani being considered a Princess in a Ghost King Danny au and Dani possibly having an ice core (we don't know what core she has in canon.)

Why is the dynamic interesting?

they are prime Sun and Moon couple energy

Mar'i who lives her life in the sun as a public figure, her powers fuled by the sun and just as bright as her, while Dani hides in the shadows of society, lurking. giving Dani and ice core adds an extra layer of opposites.

they are equal parts soft sapphic girls, and battle hardened heroes. they're both incredibly capable political figures (in a Ghost King Danny Au) who always have to put up a front, they have to be the perfect leaders their kingdoms need them to be. they would understand each other in ways that other people couldn't

i also imagine them bonding over being the child of very famous/rich parents.

they also have colorful girlfriend and grunge girlfriend vibes.

Dani deserves to run Tameran like a fortune five hundred company while Mar'i is off being a superhero. the dynamic works strangely well for them.

Dick and Kori would love Dani, and if Mar'i doesn't marry her they're adopting her

Mar'i can be scary when she wants to, just like her mom. Dani thinks it's very hot.

Mar'i inherits her mother's height, which makes her both taller and stronger than Dani, and Dani would love it.

i like to imagine Dani having purple eyes or powers later down the road (since Vlad's are pink and Danny's are green/blue) which would make them almost opposites. it could be a fun story device to use.

A lot of people compare Mar'i to her mother, but realistically, i think she would be a lot like her dad's family, specifically Tim. it would be fun to explore the dynamics between Mar'i and Tim as niece and uncle, and they dynamic between Mar'i and Damian as sort of siblings (yes, i am a 'Dick Grayson is Damian Wayne's dad' fan). it could be prime real estate for a little bit of Danny/Damian or Dan/Tim or Jazz/Cass on the side.

Mar'i inherited her mom/dad's anger, and he Uncle Tim's ability to compartmentalize her feelings until she breaks. enough said.

through Mar'i, and by extension the batfam, Dani learns what real love looks like. she finally understands how abusive Vlad was to her. this could be in the context of a Vlad trying to redem himself, or a Vlad trying to manipulate Dani back into his life, but now she knows better.

with how much Mar'i hung around Raven as a kid, it would be interesting if Mar'i knew that Dani was not normal before everyone else. maybe Mar'i even knows a little bit of magic.

Some Prompt Ideas

a photographer and model au

Dani joins the Teen Titans and meets Nightstar

Vlad and Bruce are business rivals, but neither Dani or Mar'i particularly care and get together anyways.

Mar'i sees a clip of Dani in her ghost form with her green powers and thinks she's Tameranian. Mar'i channels her inner Uncle Tim and goes all detective to find Dani.

Dani is a mechanic and Mar'i is a student who refuses to get her very old car replaced.

Mar'i gets lost in the Zone after the destruction of her universe. She had no idea what to do or where to go. Dani finds her, and together they traverse worlds they were never meant to see.

Fic Recs

(i will admit the second one is self-promotion but i'm working with a small pool of fics lol)

Our Love Will Last Us by foldingfacets (READ THE TAGS)

Dani fell in love with the hot girl who watched her smash her skateboard into a dude without care. Little did she know the girl saw her first and fell in love faster. Maybe, just maybe, Dani doesn't have to be alone anymore. Maybe Mar'i would stay.

Can I have this Dance? by petitechatonne

When Dani goes to a gala with Sam, originally intent on keeping her friend company, she meets someone who sweeps her off her feet. Literally.

Playlists

Pintrest Boards

this paring has the ability to be cute and horrifyingly angsty at the same time, with a good helping of family chaos on the side!!! i will admit i'm quite bias about this one as the first ship i really made, but i also think they have the potential to have interesting and complex stories. there aren't enough sapphic pairings in the dp/dc fandom and yes, i am trying to single-handedly change that. join the revolution today!!!

-- find the wonder in creating. love, Kate💗

[tired-inyxe]

You have no idea how much this prompt was made for me

I fuckin love extinct animals with all my heart and everyone close to me knows it

Fuck, my batsona is a fuckin microraptor shifter! I already have a way to incorporate this!!

ANYWAY

My choices for all of these

Jason: Smilodon. No contest. A potential pack animal with massive sabers? Hell yeah!!

Dick: American cheetah. I get having him as a bird and usually I’d agree, but an incredibly fast moving big cat? Yeah no that’s him sorry not sorry

Tim: I think you’re only saying Velociraptor because they’re smart and pack hunters in Jurassic park/world but dromaeosaur pack behaviors and intelligence are basically entirely wrong and at the very least exaggerated. Anyway I do think Tim is still a velociraptor but that’s because he’s a small arrogant chaotic little shit and those vibes fit Velociraptor to a T

Damian: I think it would be funny if he’s a herbivore but also, no. The vibes are off. If he was one it would be Micropachycephalosaurus because funny but truthfully I think he would be some sort of troodontid, maybe sinosauropteryx but idrk

Bruce: Carnotaurus. Its extremely funny

Cass: jaekelopterus rhenaniae. I have to specify the species name because the other species belonging to this genus is far smaller. Anyway this is the biggest arthropod to ever exist. Cass core. You could also argue for Anomalocaris, I would totally agree with you

Steph: Dorudon. Steph is so dolphin core and I also thought of headcanoning Bruce as Basilosaurus so there’s a parallel there

Duke: Opabinia. 5 eyes, weird ass guy. Anomalocaris or the Tully monster also work here. Duke is an enigma that I love dearly and these 3 have those vibes as well

Alfred: I think it would be really funny if he’s Anomalocaris because hahaha most ancient apex predator and Alfred’s ancient but the vibes are off. I’m going to give alfred my utmost respect and give him my second favorite prehistoric animal, Inostrancevia. A well put together apex predator that has won my love and respect. dunkleosteus also could work but it’s a little too silly for me, especially after the 2023 study (I love that study sm btw Dunkleosteus is perfect don’t @ me)

Kate: T. rex. I’m not sorry and I don’t need to explain myself

Harper: Archeopteryx. I don’t have any concrete reasons for this I just think that the inventor should get something that started the most clever lineage of dinosaurs

The others I don’t know enough about so if anyone wants to explain them to me in detail I’ll try to assign them an extinct animal based off that

Also ik that all of em are carnivores but come on, the bats would absolutely be carnivorous. Now the superfam… absolutely all herbivores are you fucking kidding me

I’ll do more superhero’s in detail when I feel like it maybe, and also gonna go into my sonas backstory and how this’ll tie into it

Also now I wanna draw the batfam w these

10/10 prompt I’m gonna sleep now I’m fuckin sick and so so tired

Byeeeeeee

Prompt:

The Bat Family as shifters.

But they’re all some extinct animal.

[the-atlas-sister]

First Kiss (Batfamily Preference)

(Y/f/h= your favorite hairstyle)

Bruce:

Bruce put on a fake smile, like he usually did at these galas. A handful of people approached him and asked him about his company or life, mostly old ladies asking when he was going to get himself a wife.

He let out a puff of air as the last group of old ladies walked away from him. He raised his glass of sparkling water to his lips, scanning the room for his special guest.

That's when he saw you. You wore a black dress that fit you perfectly and your hair was in (y/f/h). Alfred led you into the large room, saying something to you.

You looked around the room filled with people, anxiety rising in your chest. Your eyes finally landed on Bruce who stared at you with a loving expression on his face. You felt at ease as you stared at him.

Bruce approached you, taking your hand and raising it to his lips. They grazed your knuckles gently and you blushed as he kept eye contact.

"You look beautiful, my dear," Bruce said, spinning you.

"Thank you," you said, smiling gratefully.

"I want to show you something," Bruce said, giving you a boyish grin.

"Alright," you said, letting him guide you up the main stairs. He continued to lead you down the long halls until you reached a large terrace overlooking the garden and pool. "Wow," you sighed, leaning your elbows on the railing. You stared in awe at the beautiful sight before you, not noticing Bruce come up next to you.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" he asked, making you look at him.

"Very," you said. "I can't believe this is all yours."

"It can be yours too," he stated, turning to you.

"That's very sweet," you chuckled, turning back to the garden.

Bruce smiled at you. "I mean it," he said, gripping your chin gently and making you look at him. "I love you, Y/N," he said honestly.

Your eyes widened. You stared at Bruce before leaning forward and pressing your lips against his. You pulled away seconds after. "I love you too," you said quietly, your face a deep red.

Bruce's face lit up before he wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling you into a sweet hug.

(Don't mind me. Just blushing because I'm imagining Christian Bale's Bruce Wayne)

Dick:

"You'll be okay," Dick mumbled, setting you on the guest room bed at Wayne manor. You had recently been kidnapped by Slade as bait. When Dick arrived, you were already bloodied and bruised.

"I'm fine," you said, sitting up, wincing as you did. "I'm Batgirl."

"Lie your ass down," Dick demanded, taking off his domino mask. You closed your mouth and relaxed against the headboard.  You watched as Dick pulled out one of the first aid kits that was held in every room (due to the family's tendency to endanger themselves), his shoulders tense.

"Calm down, Cereal Boy," you said, trying to make a joke. Dick sent you a harsh look, making you sink into the bed.

Dick noticed this and his gaze softened. He sighed and sat in front of you. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I used to love the idea of you being Batgirl. I loved to work with you, but after this- a-and after what happened to Barbra and Jason-"

"Dick, listen to me," you said, now sitting right across from Dick. "I understand your fear, but I'm not Barbra or Jason, and your not Bruce. You won't give up everything for the city. And I can take care of myself."

"But-"

"No buts," you interrupted. "I'm a little bruised but alive."

"Y/N-"

You rolled your eyes before leaning forward and pressing your lips against Dick's. He stiffened but slowly leaned into it. He placed his larger hands on your shoulders as gently as he could.

"Thanks for worrying," you mumbled as you pulled away.

Jason:

You smirked as you ran across the rooftops, Red Hood and Nightwing behind you. You had taken up the mantle Catwoman for a while, because your mother had been injured fighting Batman.

You had just stolen a golden cat statue from the Penguin, who was at large.

"Is it just me, or has Catwoman gotten smaller?" Nightwing said, doing a flip and landing in front of you.

"Is it just me or is this Nightwing's hairline reseeding?" you smirked. You watched as Nightwing's face contorted into one of fear, his hands going to his hair. You took that opportunity to jump down from the building. As you fell, you felt someone wrap their arms around your waist, catching you before both of you tumbled onto one of the lower buildings.

You jumped up, seeing Red Hood across from you. "Now, let's make this easy," he said, pulling out one of his guns, which you assumed had rubber bullets. "I got a date tonight and I can't be late."

"So do I," you stated before pulling out your whip. You snapped it around Red Hood's ankle, pulling him to his back. You yanked on the whip, pulling Red Hood towards yourself. You placed one foot on his chest and the other on his wrist holding the gun. "Now tell me, what's under that hood?" You leaned down, your gloved hands running around the metal hood, searching for a way to take it off.

"Hey-" Red Hood exclaimed as you pulled off the hood. Your eyes widened as your boyfriend's face appeared. You decided to put on a fake smirk.

"What a pretty face," you said, leaning down and placing your knees on his wrists. You smirked as you pressed your lips to Jason's. You placed both of your hands on his face, tilting your head to deepen the kiss. "Hope your girlfriend doesn't mind," you whispered before jumping up. You grabbed your whip and rewrapped it before jumping off the building. You let out a breath as you landed in a dumpster.

You jumped out and began running. My boyfriend is Red Hood, you thought.

Tim:

Where is he? you thought, looking around the cafeteria. You were waiting for your best friend, Tim. He had been incredibly kind when you first arrived at school and the two of you instinctually clicked.

You sighed after waiting a few more minutes before standing up and walking into the halls. That's when you saw Tim surrounded by three bullies.

"Look at this loser," the first one said, pushing Tim back when he tried to sneak away. "Bet he's never even had a girlfriend." Tim met your eyes. He seemed less scared or intimidated and more annoyed.

"Can I just go to lunch?" he sighed.  

"You could eat this," the second bully smirked, pulling out a stinky sock.

You scoffed, deciding to step in. "What are you, 5?" you said, pushing the bully's face to the side. He looked at you, extremely offended. "Come on Tim," you said, grabbing Tim's hand and beginning to pull him out from the small circle of bullies.

"Guess he can get girls to save him, but never sleep with him!" one bully yelled. You stopped, glaring at him before grabbing Tim's face and kissing him softly.

Tim panicked for a second, going stiff and not knowing what to do, but eventually placed his hands on your waist like Dick told him to when he explained how to kiss a girl.

"Come on," you grinned, pulling away.

"O-okay," Tim stuttered out before letting you lead him back into the cafeteria.

Damian:

"You're getting sloppy," Damian commented as you threw a punch at him. He had suggested a while back that you two start training together. You thought it was a great idea and would be fun. You were wrong.

"I am not," you defended, ducking as Damian threw a punch. He was going easy on you, and it annoyed you. "And don't go easy on me Damian. I'm Supergirl, I can handle it."

"I'm not going easy on you Beloved," Damian insisted, ducking down and going to trip you, but you easily flew above his foot. "Although we did agree no powers," he said, crossing his arms over his chest and looking up at your flying form.

"I'll stop using my powers when you stop going easy on me," you said, mimicking Damian's actions.

"Alright," Damian smirked, making you blush slightly. He quickly pulled out a grappling hook gun from who knows where and shot it. It wrapped around your ankle before you could fly away. Damian pulling on it, slowly pulling you down from the air until your feet touched the ground. Then, before you had time to react, he rushed forward, tripping you.

"Ow," you mumbled, looking up to see Damian pinning you to the ground with a smirk. "I knew you were going easy on me." Damian smiled slightly, admiring you. "Can you let me up now?" you asked, you face flushing pink at the newfound attention.

"Try and get out," Damian stated, apparently unsatisfied. You sighed before an idea popped into your mind. You leaned up, pressing your lips to Damian's. His eyes widened, unsure of what to do. He racked his brain for what Dick had told him to do in the stupid 'what if someone kisses you' talks. You then leaned back down.

"I'm sorry," you said, worried about Damian's reaction.

Damian stared at you before leaning down and recapturing your lips. You quickly reacted, lifting your head up to get a better angle.

You felt Damian's grip loosen as you continued and tried to slip your wrists from his grip, only from Damian to grab them again and press them to the floor.

"So close," he teased, pulling away slightly.

You rolled your eyes.

"SWEET JESUS!" Dick's voice yelled from the side, making you and Damian turn your heads. All of Damian's brothers stood there, staring at the two of you. Dick seemed horrified, Jason seemed both impressed and proud and Tim just looked confused. "YOU TWO NEED HOLY WATER!" Dick screeched, rushing forward and pouring his water on the both of you.

"Grayson!"

Terry:

"Terry," you said, looking up from your book as Terry walked into the living room of Wayne Manor.

"Hey Baby," Terry said, approaching you. "Where's the old man?"

"At some charity event," you stated, returning your attention to your book. Terry sat next to you, staring at you.

"What are you reading?" he asked.

"Y/f/b," you answered, turning a page.

"Well, can we do something together?" Terry questioned.

"After I'm done reading," you shrugged him off. Terry glanced at the book, raising an eyebrow at how much you still had left. He pushed the book down slightly, making you scowl at him. "Terry, I told you-"

Terry leaned forward, kissing you gently. You pushed him away. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked, staring at you with a hurt expression.

"I said after my book," you said, going back to y/f/b.

These aren’t fantastic- but thank you for reading

I take requests btw! <3

I take requests for the following fandoms:

Demon Slayer

Haikyuu

Hunter x Hunter

My Hero Academia

Studio Ghibi films

IT (the films and book)

Percy Jackson

DC

Marvel

Umbrella Academy

Harry Potter

Star Wars

Most Actors (not a fandom, I know)

Rise of the Guardians

Disney (some people like reading Disney character x reader things)

I do fluff, smut, lime and angst.

[glorified-red]

Could I request hcs for subtle ways the boys express their protectiveness?

Thank you for the request my love! I got to play a fun little game of ‘Eenie Meenie Miney Mo’ for which request to do.

Protective BatBoys

word count: 1600~

warnings: insinuation of someone getting hit by a car, mentions of attackers

I was quite tempted to write Bruce headcanons to this but I must hold back ><

Dick Grayson

Ah, Dick Grayson, the King of small romantic protective gestures

Every time, without fail, Dick will wait until he watches you get inside your house safely before driving/walking away

Its a really cute tick of his because he covers it up with a goodbye kiss and goofy waves that leave you giggling even after you close your house door

But its so he knows where you are, and he can see for himself that you made it safely inside because the second he turns away too soon, you may get locked out, or someone can crawl out from the bushes and nab you

Paranoid, he knows

He constantly wraps you up in things, when you two go swimming he’ll patter up from behind you and place a towel around your shoulders, patting you dry along the way

Very insignificant gesture but he doesn't want you to catch a cold in the A/C or Gotham wind

He’ll do the same with his jackets, maybe even plop his hat on your head when it's gets to the snowy seasons 1. Because its adorable seeing the hat fall into your eyes and 2. Because it'll warm your head up

Scarves too, he’ll even go on a tangent about how cold it is outside while he wraps you in it

Dick will always offer to drive you places, even if you insist on driving yourself to meet up with him or walking there, Dick will still offer because it means he’ll be present if you get into a wreck, sucks but then he can help with first aid

If you decline his offer though, he’ll politely ask for you to take Titus or Ace with you whenever you walk somewhere, they’re trained and he trusts them to keep you company/safe when he can't 

Jason Todd

Jason’s protectiveness comes from a place of knowing how cruel the world actually is

He can't stand the idea of anything happening to you

If he has to, he will use his reputation of Red Hood as a way to keep you safe, putting a man at gun point and sneering out, “They’re off. Limits.”

He’d bust a whole trafficking ring if it meant ending a person who touched you or hurt you in any way

But Jason’s protectiveness doesn't stop while he's wearing the helmet

Even when you two are sleeping, Jasons unconsciously protecting you, no matter how you two cuddle, Jason always positions himself as closest to the bedroom door

Whether his back is to the door or he’s facing it, Jason needs the comfort of knowing any person coming into the room would have to get through him before even reaching you

He also envelopes you, he's a big guy so its pretty easy for him to wrap you up in his arms as an extra layer of protection from the outside world

Jason doesn't really like the idea of training you past basic combat or gun skills, hell, he doesn't like involving you in the family business if he doesn't have to

So he inserts himself into any situation you may need protection in

Which is exactly why he starts going to the gym with you as a work out buddy

Jason makes it sound like he just wants to spend time with you or help you achieve your goals faster since he knows how the body works from his Robin days

But deep down you both know his true intentions: he wants to keep an eye on you

The gym is crawling with creeps that have the guts to ogle at you or get too touchy, but having Jason’s 6 foot beefcake of an ass standing beside you the entire time is like an instant creep repellent

Plus, he gets to spot you and make sure you don't get injured from bad technique or from pushing yourself too hard

He’ll even encourage you with innuendos the entire time, but at the end of the day, he’ll gladly walk you home

Tim Drake

Tim is the most subtle about his inner protectiveness, a subtle King if you will

Most times when he gets protective, you never even notice

When you two cuddle in your house, it takes him a very long time to actively fall asleep because he doesn't trust your home security system if you even have one so he forces himself to stay awake just incase anything happens

But don't worry, he’ll eventually get to updating the security in your house

He does get these protective eyes whenever something is off when he's around you, they narrow a bit and latch onto whatever is off, glaring holes into the offending object until its all clear

Its quite terrifying to witness and very hard to miss when Tim is staring dead at the man speaking to you from across the room at a Gala, sipping his drink in the corner

If he feels the need, he will walk up and control the situation, whether it mean inserting himself into the convo or simply being present for it, he’ll do it

The thing with Tim though, is when he's protective, he’s almost always touching you in some way

His fingers playing idly with the ends of your hair as he speaks to a random person who walked up to you, clinging to your shirt/sleeves when he’s analyzing a situation and doesn't want you to go forward just yet, or even as simple as holding your hand as he leads you home

Tim also keeps small snacks/waters on hand at all times to protect you from Gotham heat and pesky hunger, very much like a mother hen because he also carries a first aid kit everywhere

He follows you whenever you walk alone around Gotham at night, he’s already on patrol so he might as well make sure you make it home safe, if anything happens he won't think twice about intervening as RR

If your going out somewhere alone he always always always asks you to call him until you make it to your destination, he doesn't care if he's working on something or in the middle of a board meeting, he has an assistant for a reason who can give him notes

Its become a normal thing for you to send him your Uber tracking link so he can watch it, if you don't send it he won't hesitate to hack into your account just to find it

Damian Wayne

Damian? Wayne? Being subtle?

Its usually pretty obvious when Damian gets protective over you

He’s the type who won't hesitate to pull out a knife out of god knows where and threaten whatever is responsible for you being uncomfortable

This leads to very interesting encounters of you having to hold him back because ‘oh no a random guy bumped into you and didn't apologize’ and suddenly Damian is missing 

He’s also incredibly blunt, saying things like “Cover your drink” at galas or handing you one of those hand held tasers before you go out and saying “Go for the neck”

Will insist on training you himself, whether its hand-to-hand combat or with a sword, Damian wants to keep track of your progress himself so he can make sure all your weaknesses are trained

Its also because he doesn't want his grimy brothers near you, so its protective on all counts

But subtlety? Theres a few you can notice after being with him for awhile

He’s very careful when going out around Gotham with you, Damian knows he can fend for himself so he will gladly take the brunt of any possible situation

This leads to him always walking on whichever side of you thats closest to the road, so on the off chance a car derails, he’ll get hit first

Always making sure to match your pace when you two walk together, he doesn't want you getting too far ahead of him because he'd have to run to get to you, too far behind and he might not notice you getting taken silently, he wants you right in arms reach at all times

He has a permanent scowl and narrowed eyes but when he's protective, they get even more prominent

Bonus

All the BatBoys do the same exact thing out of instinct when it comes to protecting you

None of them will hesitate to step in between you and any attacker, pulling you behind them so they are in the line of fire now

Its a subtle action that each of them do, albeit with some differences

Damian will push the attacker back as far as he can from you, putting plenty of distance between the two of them and you, so if anything breaks out, you can run away easily

Dick will hold his arms out, fully covering you but keeping his hands in the fray so if the attacker tries attacking you from any angle, Dick is ready to protect

Tim will grip onto you somehow, keeping his hand right on your bicep or forearm so he can still hold you, he doesn't know if there can be a hidden attacker from behind that will pry you away from him, so touching you is his way of making sure he doesn't lose track of you

Jason will slip in front of you and cross his arms, its a sign of nonchalance but obvious dominance, showcasing that he doesn't need his hands to be intimidating to the attacker, he’ll glare and challenge them so all attention is on him now and not you

Taglist ♡

@anothertimdrakestan

@bungunz

@red-hood-redemption​

[hintofcolor]

More batfamily headcanons because I have so so many:

Duke has a lisp

He also has deadpan humor which his siblings love especially when their in masks and civilians can’t tell whether he’s joking or not

Duke has managed to hide exactly how chaotic he is from Bruce

Nobody told the league what dukes power is

It took them 2 years to figure it out

All they were told is that he was a meta and the all the bat kids had the time of their lives messing with them

He managed to convince a chunk of them that he could communicate with bats

He and tim together are a nightmare

Duke and Tim are the same age

Therefore they really love playing around with the twin stereotypes (twin telepathy, sharing all the same things so forth so on)

(“Oh you two are related” “yeah we’re identical twins”) (“I mean obviously I was born first” “were not” “yes I was I remember kicking you out of the way”) (“yeah Bruce couldn’t tell us apart so we were color coded” “I was red he was yellow” “I’m still not sure he didn’t get us mixed up”)

Tim gets all of his bad habits from dick

The not sleeping, not taking care of himself ,becoming obsessive over cases, holding himself to an impossible standard then hating himself when he fumbles along the way. blaming himself for things he can’t control so on and so on

No one has pointed it out because no one thinks either of them would handle the news well

Tim shattered the knee cap of Gotham academy’s quarter back in school when he overheard him call Damian a slur promptly ending his very promising football career

Dick has a playlist for each original titan member full of songs that remind him of them

Kori proposed to Dick

He cried

When angry, and I mean really angry, there are very very very few people who aren’t afraid of Dick

The people include: Alfred, Wally, kori, Roy, Barbara Tim and WonderWoman

Superman has backed away from Dick before

Dick has also made the justice league stop and take a step back because they didn’t want to get in his way

The bats are the only heroes who tend to get immediate respect because of their symbol

They hate it and tend to go out of their way to prove that they can earn the respect

Tim is one of the few people who can trick kryptonians, telepaths, and bats

There’s no special reason he just got really good at lying trying to get out of schoolwork when he was a kid

Nobody can maneuver and manipulate Bruce like Tim can and it frightens a lot of the hero community

His siblings however think it’s hilarious

If all in a good mood the Wayne kids are nightmares at galas

One time Bruce was accidentally shoved into a food table by one of his goblins

Which started a food fight

It was all over the front pages and everyone thought it was adorable, him humoring his children

The contact photos for all of them on Stephanies phone are strawberry shortcake characters she thinks each are

There’s a gold star chart in the bat cave no one knows how it got there or who started it

They also have no idea how they get a star added to their names each one has spent more time then willing to admit trying to figure it

Also trying to figure out if Bruce is doing it or Alfred

It’s Bruce

And he just randomly puts them on

He finds it entertaining how competitive they get over it

Dick gets cold really easily so in Gotham he’s practically always cold

So there are giant incredibly soft blankets on every single couch or chair in the manor

Mainly because the manor stays fairly cold because Jason runs hot

Bruce always keeps it cold even after Jason died

Since coming back Jason stays cold and nothing helps

He doesn’t mention it to Bruce

Jason’s blood glows

Not neon like a glow stick but it has a shine to it

It’s also jet black

When he gets really bad flashbacks he feels all of the injuries that caused his death which leaves him on the ground writhing until he passes out from the pain

He also tends to bleed when he gets to worked up.

He will bleed from his eyes, ears, mouth, nose, and fingernails

Its mainly his eyes tho

Pride doesn’t happen in Gotham. At least not parades because while you have all of the bats and even certain rogues protecting it the city ‘doesn’t want to take that chance’

While Gotham is a lot of things homophobic is not one of them (there are homophobes but they are are few and far between and it’s extremely risky for them to say anything hateful out loud)

So during pride month a lot and I mean a lot of people hang pride flags. Typically never the same one twice. It’s the most color Gotham sees during the year

And the big event is a gala at the manor open to everyone

Harley, ivy and Selina are the guards for it.

It’s free admission but has donation stations and all proceeds go to multiple LGBT+ charities and organizations

It’s a huge event and has been going on since Dick suggested it when he was 12

They have held it every year since and never once has it gone poorly

Barbara has punched Bruce after he told her one night when she was batgirl that she couldn’t have any more coffee

Cassandra is a very tactile person and will cling on to whichever family member is closest to her

Her and Harper are really close and it terrifies the rest of her siblings

Stephanie and Harper started a club called the ‘honoraries’ for the kids that aren’t legally Bruce’s but still live in the manor

Stephs mom travels a lot for work so when her mom is out of town she lives at the manor

She’s there often enough that she has her own room

However she is always out of the house before the sun even rises on the days her mom comes home because of how excited she is to see her mom

Cassandra is scared of dogs

[toosicktoocare]

Okay, I’m very much obsessed with the web comic “Batman: Wayne Family Adventures,” and I want to write little one-shots for it. 

If you’d like to see something written, drop a prompt in my inbox! 

Also found on AO3!

1: Better Than Dick Grayson

Jason’s beat by the time he guides his bike through an underground entrance to the Bat Cave. Patrol wasn’t hard – more annoying than anything else. There’s been an increase in copy-cat villains lurking the shadows of Crime Alley, all who can’t even follow through with a napkin-scribbled plan properly.

“Nice work tonight, Hood.”

Jason slips off his bike, boots heavy against the steel floor below him. He taps the comm nestled in his ear. “Thanks, O. Time to sign off? I’m sure you have an absolutely riveting day at the library tomorrow.” A cheeky smile plays at his lips as he slips his helmet off, huffing around a laugh at Barbara’s drawn-out sigh in his ear.

“I honestly don’t know why I help you every night.”

“Come on, O. You know you look forward to our quick-witted banter every day. That’s our thing – our trademark, if you will.” His smile widens when Barbara chuckles in his ear.

“You’re ridiculous, Hood.”

Jason slips into a changing room, grimacing as he cards his fingers through his sweat-soaked hair. “Please, O. You know you love me.” His suit is damp against him, an uncomfortable testament to just how much he’s done on patrol in the few hours he was out.

“Maybe a little.”  

Smirking, he shrugs his jacket off and reaches to the back of his neck, working his damp suit off until it’s hanging low at his waist. “You flirting with me, Babs? I’ll tattle to Dick.” He barks out a laugh at the low, impressive string of curse words that echo from his comm.

“I retract my previous statement. My tolerable feelings toward you stem from obligation alone.”

“Babs,” Jason whines, slamming a hand to his chest, “you wound me! Now I’m really going to tell Dick!”

“Well, you’re out of luck. He left for Bludhaven an hour ago.”

Jason pushes down on his suit until he’s stepping out of it, kicking it to the corner of the changing room with the notion that he’ll deal with it later. Tomorrow. He sighs – eventually.

“Detective Grayson summoned for an assignment?” He turns on his heel, snagging a towel that he drapes over his shoulders, using one corner to mop the sweat dripping from his hair.

“Something like that.”

Barbara’s voice goes soft on the other line, and Jason stops, frowning smally. “What’s up, Babs?”

“Damian and Bruce are still out, so I need to get back to them. Can you check in on Tim for me? Steph said he’s been quieter than usual all day.”

“Pump the kid up with coffee, then? I can do that.”

“Jason.”

Jason holds his hand’s up in mock defense out of habit, sighing between his teeth. “Fine, yes. I’ll follow in golden child Dick’s footsteps and take my role as the dutiful big brother.”

“Good. Also, I have that on recording now for the next time you try to sarcastically remove yourself from a family affair.”

“Barbara!”

“Later, Jason!”

There’s a crackle in Jason’s ear, and then the line goes dead. Rolling his eyes, he pulls the comm free, dropping it beside a large monitor in the cave before padding upstairs, eager to shower Crime Alley’s discount villains away.

He swings by Tim’s room first, finding him at his desk, eyes soft and cast toward the window. His expression is somber albeit a tad thoughtful, and Jason promptly pulls him out of whatever muted stupor he’s currently lost in.

“Well,” he starts, nudging the door open wider, eyes flicking to the textbook open at the desk. “You’re doing better than I did. Studying wasn’t really my forte.”

Tim twists around and cocks his head to the side. “You were a straight-A student.”

Scoffing, Jason drops against the doorframe, arms crossed. “Hey. I didn’t say I wasn’t smart.” He nods to the book. “And you’re essentially a boy genius, so do you really need to do that?”

“It’s a good distraction,” Tim sighs, turning back to the window and dropping his cheek against his fist.

“A distraction from what?” Jason’s eyes narrow into sharp slits, watching a small line of tension take to Tim’s shoulders.

“Dick left.”

Jason’s taken aback. Dick comes and goes all the time – they all do. He can’t imagine Tim will be here long, and he, himself, is only staying the night before he heads back to the safe house he’s been frequenting by himself in the morning. Now that he thinks of it, he’s sure he overheard Steph mentioning packing for a trip with Barbara in a few days.

“He’ll come back,” Jason responds, and Tim spins around in his desk chair with a sigh that’s far too long and heavy for a kid his age.

“I know that. It’s just,” Tim pauses, waving one hand around, “too quiet without him here.”

“That’s a bad thing?” Jason cocks a brow, and Tim huffs.

“You know what I mean – Dick’s all energy and smiles, and everything just feels better when he’s here. When we’re all here together.”

This, Jason thinks, is edging a delicate territory he’s not adept to handle. His vocabulary rivals Alfred’s, and yet, piecing together words into a sentence that’s both optimistic and comforting is not something he feels he’s capable of. Instead, he steps into the room, dropping his palm to Tim’s head, and the silence that follows is sharper than Bruce’s best batarang.

“Jason,” Tim finally mutters, voice flat.

“Is this comforting?”

“No, it’s weird.”

Jason rips his hand away, a sigh of relief slipping past his lips. “Well, that’s one thing we can agree on.” He turns toward the door, muscles faintly aching, his reminder that he really wants to shower and sleep. “Night, Timmy. Dick will come back soon.”

He opts not to look behind him lest he wants to feel a big-brother spark of guilt he’s just too exhausted to handle. Instead, he slips out of the room without so much of an over-the-shoulder glance.

---

Jason’s alarm starts softly from his phone, and he slams his hand against it with a low groan, trained to wake at the quietest of sounds. Outside, the sun’s not quite made it up and over the horizon, still casting the manor in a soft glow – a view that Dick swears by. Jason shuffles over to his window and takes in the view for roughly four seconds before he decides he’d rather see it through the visor of his bike’s helmet.

Still, before he can leave, he’s got one more thing he needs to do at the manor – a rather brilliant idea, if you ask him, he came up with in a sleep-ridden mind right before he conked out for the night.

He’s not Dick. He’s better than Dick.

He changes and perks an ear to the sounds down the hall, hearing the others waking. Once he hears Tim’s bedroom Keurig stop running, he acts, plastering a triple-watt smile to his face and storming out of his room.

“Ugh, Jason,” Cass mutters, rubbing her eyes. “What are you doing?”

Jason doesn’t respond, waiting, instead, for Tim to open his bedroom door, and the moment he does, Jason sucks in a long, swelling breath.

“Good morning!” He shouts, dragging out each word, making his voice as loud as possible, a bright bellow that sinks into every crevice of the manor.

Beside him, Cass cups both hands over her ears, and Damian merely turns back into his room, slamming the door behind him. Duke can’t get to his phone fast enough, and Tim promptly jumps out of his skin, his coffee splashing from his mug to burn against his hand and stain the floor. There are footsteps pounding up the stairs, and Jason smiles even wider, his cheeks stretched and tight, and he sucks in another large breath.

“Jason, what the hell—”

Jason cartwheels down the hall, narrowly avoiding a puddle of coffee to stop upright before Tim. He ruffles Tim’s hair, his forced smile fading to something softer, more genuine. “Morning, Timmers!”

“What in the world is going on?”

Bruce is breathless at the end of the hall, and Alfred’s trying, and horribly failing, to hide a laugh behind a cough.

“I’m telling my family good morning,” Jason shouts, arms outstretched. He offers Tim a wink and leans in close. “Grayson’s got nothing on me,” he whispers, tone devious, before he presses a kiss to Tim’s cheek and claps a hand to Tim’s shoulder.

When he pulls away, he slips past Bruce and Alfred, maneuvering around them with a practiced grace that could rival Dick Grayson. “Something smells incredible down here!” He adds from the stairs.

“Oh, Dick’s going to love this,” Duke mutters, ending the video recording on his phone.

“Should I call Leslie?” Bruce asks, worried, his attention torn between the startled and amused faces before him, and the echoing sound of Jason singing Broadway showtunes from the kitchen downstairs.

Tim looks down to his coffee mug, his hand faintly burning and sticky, and he smiles warmly. “Nah, Jason’s fine.”

[stxleslyds]

Jason doesn't show up in DC's animated series (though the does "spiritually" show up as Tim Drake in Season 2 of Batman the Animated Series).

Jason has a strong presence in the video games, though. So what is your opinion on Jason's characterization for Arkham Knight? He is a DLC for the Injustice games as well. Judy be warned that I did watch some clips of Arkham Knight and the torture was too gruesome for me.

RED HOOD IN VIDEO GAMES.

Hey there friend, thank you for the ask!

INJUSTICE 2.

I had to do some research on Red Hood’s appearances in the Injustice games because I was never really in touch with that story. Here is what I knew about it, there are two games for PC, one of them is Injustice and the other is Injustice 2, the games also have the comic books that give context/background to the lore of the game.

I used to play Injustice: Gods Among Us on mobile phone, and I had Jason as a playable character there, I also found out way too late that “Nightwing” wasn’t really Dick Grayson, it was Damian because he took on the mantle after he and the rock killed Dick in the comic (forever mad at that ridiculous death and the kinda scary art that comic had).

I looked for information about Red Hood’s backstory in wikis and all that because I refuse to read an alternate universe book written by Tom Taylor, there are things that I am just not willing to do.

All in all, I think that this Jason was in surface level, the same as his canon comic counterpart up until the time of his resurrection. Given that the world was at war and the League of Assassins wasn’t working openly, he and the others had to live in the shadows, he seems to have been trained proficiently by both Batman and the LoA so he is a very hardcore opponent. There are some bits of his story with Damian and a place called Gorilla City that I do not understand because I haven’t read the comics but I am fine without it.

The thing is that this Jason is pretty cool, he sticks to his morals and fights for what he believes is right, he doesn’t look like the kinda guy that takes sides in this war which is probably the best idea. Both Batman and Superman seem to be on the wrong side of history with they ideals.

What I did see and I loved eternally was the ending to Red Hood’s story, I will link the video here! But I will also copy and paste all that he says there because I think it’s really important and where I was able to see more of his characterization.

"That. Felt. Good. Titanium composite hollow point bullets with a C4 kicker. Fastest, most explosive ammo in the world. I made them myself. With the invasion over, Bruce and Superman started fighting again. I wasn't down with either of them. On the one hand, the Regime's right. Scumbag murderers and rapists deserve to die. But on the other hand, I'm no fan of government authority. Especially the dictatorial variety.

So, while the world's finest fight each other, I fight for the people. The weak. The innocent. Anyone who can't protect themselves. When they cry out for a saviour, I'll answer. As for the criminals that threaten them? They need to know that their actions have consequences. That the Red Hood is coming for them.”

This is excellent, I absolutely love this, this Jason knows his morals and doesn’t bow down to anyone and in the end, he is truly a hero to the people that need heroes the most.

Him saying that he believes that some criminals have to die but that he can’t really join Superman’s side because he cannot associate with it because he isn’t a fan of dictatorial ideas, I love this man.

I feel like this is a fair characterization for Jason, I believe that if something along the lines of what happens in Injustice happens in current continuity then Jason wouldn’t join any sides, he wouldn’t be neutral per se but he will fight for his own ideals. And his ideals in most universes are protecting people and I think that’s great. I love to see a world where Jason is seen as more intelligent and put together than the Batman.

Something that I find quite funny and interesting from this game is the dialogues that characters have with each other when they fight, I found this video compilation where you can see all the dialogues between Red Hood vs Robin (Damian Wayne), they are so fun and I love the animations too.

BATMAN: ARKHAM KNIGHT.

Oh, ArkhamVerse Jason, my beloved.

He is, to me, the epitome of this meme.

I have actually watched the whole game playthrough, several times, and Jason had a DLC as the Red Hood for that game (Nightwing has one too and I will talk about it later because I love this version of him). And, yes, the torture scene is very gruesome, it was incredibly sad and it made me feel bad. But I also think that they made it that way so it could support the kind of storytelling they were going for.

The reality is that this Jason suffered his whole life, and was constantly introduced to lifestyles that he never wanted to be part of. The world around this Jason wasn’t kind at all to him and there is a long list of people who did him wrong.

Although ArkhamVerse Jason didn’t die, like his comic counterpart did, he suffered the most. And his suffering really drove him to be the best version of an unhinged Jason Todd. But it’s clear, his brutality and murder intent isn’t laced with his Red Hood persona or at least not on the same level as it is with his Arkham Knight persona.

This Jason’s characterization works to perfection, but it only works that way because he was well developed within the game lore and the comics. This Jason was extremely well trained, he is probably the smartest version of Jason, his mind and his level of preparedness are unparalleled when it comes to other Jason Todd variants (a little MCU Loki talk right there).

I would go as far as to say that this Jason would be an excellent match to peak Dick Grayson from before New 52 in comics. Those two would clash so immensely, but man, it would be one hell of an intellectual and physical fight. Two Kings doing what they do best.

Anyway, for now take my word for how well characterized Jason is in the ArkhamVerse, I will make a post were I deep dive more on his character both in game and comics. There is so much to say about him, he is truly interesting and very complex.

Now, I will be a little cheeky and I will use this ask as an opportunity to talk about my man, ArkhamVerse Nightwing aka Pretty Boy.

I love him so much! In the game when you get to meet him (I will link the video here! it’s five minutes long, and worth the watch) you get to see both Nightwing’s and Dick’s personalities. Nightwing is fun and relaxed, he is a little bit cocky and doesn’t let Batman be a pain in his ass, he is truly a beast. Although he is never seen without the mask in a moment when he is alone with Bruce you can really see Dick’s personality shine through. He obviously has had issues with Bruce in the past but there is also this palpable respect coming from both of them to the other. Bruce wants to protect Dick but he acts like a jerk instead of telling him what is on his mind. Dick wants to help Bruce at all costs, he refuses to leave Gotham until they solve something that he was already working on before Bruce needed his help.

There is also this sort of goodbye scene between the two (I will link it here!) that is extremely sad because Dick doesn’t believe Bruce when he tells him that he is proud of him. Dick cuts him off just when Bruce was trying to open up and I think that scene speaks volumes about how rough their relationship was. Dick never finds out that Bruce was “dying” after being infected with the Joker’s blood/gas, so it’s very bittersweet.

There is also the Nightwing DLC, where we get to see Dick being the best of the best, he is so skilled and funny and smart. It is amazing how much this game made me love their Nightwing even though he doesn’t appear much, his dynamic with Penguin is just perfect, Dick literally makes Penguin’s life very difficult. All of the people working with Penguin kinda fear Dick a little bit, some of them are even impressed by his skills.

Oh and, when Nightwing gets captured at some point in the game, Penguin’s men are saying something along the lines of “I was sure Batman will come in” “how come?” “what’s tied up downstairs and getting the crap beat out of it?” “Oh yeah, Nightwing” and that is so true, if I were Batman, I will also risk my life for Nightwing.

I just love Nightwing, he makes me so happy! He is the best here!

Anyway, enough of me loving Nightwing uncontrollably, I will make a separate post where I only talk about ArkhamVerse Jason so, yeah, be ready for that one because I love that Jason too, he is hot.

[iphoenixrising]

The Demon You Know

Day 1 Urban Fantasy AU | Magical/Supernatural Creatures | Time Travel

So, something a little off the grid for my first day of DickTim Week 2021. Special thanks to my wonderful babe @vellaphoria for the beta and the incredible peeps on the Capes and Coffee discord (looking at you @themandylion, @strawberryjei and others). Also need to show my undying love for @chippon because babe, we are making it work.

**

When the sun creeps up over the sky in Gotham, then it’s time to GTFO. Capes in the daytime aren’t the usual for the city, and Red Robin has been playing it too late, staying out far past O’s warning to bring it in for the night. So, really, he’s only got himself to blame.

His penthouse perch has seen more use in the last few months since, welp, Gotham and the fact he likes to get away from the team mentality sometimes, like to return to his roots and run the rooftops like when he was still that Robin. His trips to the Manor had become more frequent since B was back in the cowl and things in the family seemed to be returning to some semblance of normal. 

Well, as normal as it could get, really.

But all that goodwill and positivity is literally ghost. Red’s hands are shaky and his inner calm is absolutely blown. He’s ducking into his perch to throw his suit off, grab his duffle bag full of sundries and fake idents, then he’s going to hit the airport as fast as he can get a flight the hell out of town, away from the terrifying sight.

(He should just call Bart or Kon or Cassie, tell them he needs an out faster than he can arrange it himself, he needs to get away from–)

He knows he fucked up when the slight sounds, small and metallic in nature, make it past his pulse thumping in his ears.

Like a horror flick, he slowly turns as the front door gives a groan and is pushed open by a very familiar palm.

Dick’s blue eyes fall on him like a ton of bricks, on Red Robin’s feet frozen to the floor, his suit only half on, and no way he can get far enough to throw himself out a window.

Fuck.

“So,” Dick keeps his voice soft, footsteps easy as he steps inside Tim’s penthouse and closes the door behind him, “you finally found me out.”

Keeping his mouth shut in times like this has really saved his ass before, so Red doesn’t say a word, keeps every muscle in his body ready to spring for the right second –

Watching the would-be robber struggle in Dick’s grip, watching the light show brighten overwhelmingly, seeing what had to be-had to be feeding.

“I figured it would be you if anyone, actually, so I’m not really surprised, just… disappointed.” Dick continues softly, only in jeans and a t-shirt since Nightwing was oddly missing from the patrol roster last night.

And Red is apparently the only one that knows why.

“But that doesn’t mean I can just let you go, Timmy,” Dick isn’t stopping, his whole body lax while Red is wound tight, backing away from the man he thought he knew. “I really wish you hadn’t found out like this. I...I had other plans.” 

Whirlybirds and pellets aren’t going to help him here. Hand-to-hand and martial arts, aerial acrobatics, none of it is going to make a difference. 

His throat goes dry when Dick’s eyes get more and more blue, when his former mentor doesn’t stop advancing, and Red Robin is running out of room to back away.

“I tried to save you, Timmy. I tried so hard to get you away, out of Gotham, even if you went because you thought you had to find Bruce, I’m the one that gave you the compulsion to leave.” The low laugh is edged with something desperate, “why the hell couldn’t you stay away?”

“This is my city, just as much as Batman’s. You taking my fucking cape wasn’t enough,” Red Robin bites out, back thumping against the kitchen counter, realizing Dick had backed him into the corner. “How did you keep it from him? Constantine, Zatanna, all the magic users he has on speed dial and he never figured you out? No one in the JLA or Titans did?”

That makes Dick pause.

“He never had to. He knew what my parents were before they ever died, Timmy. Haley’s Circus came to Gotham regularly. Bruce always knew.”

The information blast hits him painfully, that Bruce didn’t bother to tell him and look at where they are now.

“And he didn’t try to help you?” Red, Tim, gapes at the still silhouette that used to be someone he thought he knew like he knew himself. Someone that’s always had this secret. “He didn’t try to –”

“Cure me?” Dick’s mouth lifts in a semblance of a smile Tim knows. “There is no cure for this, Timmy. It’s what I am. What my parents both were, the curse of the Romain Bababiljos. It’s unfortunate for me both of them were cursed, that just makes the...the hunger two-fold.”

And it’s just a few more steps, a raised hand that makes Tim flinch back, but only a fingertip taps the edge of the domino, makes the whiteouts raise.

Automatically, with everything he’s learned, studied, experienced about supernatural creatures, he ducks his head so he isn’t looking directly into those eyes. That doesn’t stop Dick from bracketing Tim in, both hands on the counter, their bodies a breath apart.

Dick laughs softly, close enough for Tim to feel the breath on his face. “The Titans...I never had to tell them. By then, I could control myself, at least mostly. The JLA? I’m one of the Batman’s proteges. I’ve been fighting crime since I was eight. They believe in me. There was never a reason for any of them to look too deeply past the surface.”

“Wh-what do you mean mostly?” Tim’s heart slams in his chest, “how many people have you killed, Dick?”

“Do you have any idea how awful the hunger is?” And the lower Dick’s voice goes, the harder Tim’s heart starts to pound. “Surviving on hugs and family affection is tantamount to starvation for someone like me. It’s so easy to kill someone during sex because the hunger is so much I can’t control it sometimes. Anyone I’m with is in danger.  That’s why I couldn’t stay with Babs, she’s too human. The one time I came close–” 

Dick breathes again and all Tim looks at is the span of throat, thinking of the soft, vulnerable parts, anything he can use to get the fuck away.

“–but I didn’t. I have...willpower sometimes. I drained her so close, though. She was-was so fragile, Timmy, and I was so hungry. I’d been starving for so damn long. She was hospitalized for longer than she’d been when the Joker shot her, and I said never again. But Wally and Kory were...different. I could go further with him without killing them, I could get more full than I’d been in a long time. It was still dangerous for them, but I was so far gone by the time...”

“They’re both still alive. Babs is still alive. Does she–?”

“Remember? Of course not. None of them do. I made sure of that, Tim, so none of them would be afraid of me.”  And the air changes when Dick gets closer, his eyes get brighter, and Tim almost chokes with the almost touch to his body under his suit. “But, you are going to be different, aren’t you? I’m not going to be able to convince your mind that what you saw was a dream.”

“So what? You’re going to make me “disappear”? You’ll give Bruce some sob story about how I got tired of the vigilante life and left for college or some shit? Going to bury me where no one will ever find me?” He isn’t looking at Dick’s face, can’t see his own end coming, can’t believe he’d put all his faith and belief in this man only to have it all come to this.

Tim laughs wetly, blinking rapidly, and everything suddenly comes together. “He won’t ever come looking for me anyway. You made sure of that when you made Damian your Robin. Nice plan, Dick. No one is going to give a shit if I’m never seen again anyway.”

And it’s stupid not to at least try, not to duck and kick out, trip up whatever Dick really is, to break a window and fucking run, try to get Bruce, Clark, Kon and Bart and Cassie, to get anyone to listen to him about what Dick really is, to try to save himself.

(If you’d never figured out Dick was Robin, if you never put yourself in front of him, you’d be safe now. Miserable but safe.)

Even if it’s his own brain pan spitting this out, he knows it’s bullshit. 

If he’d never approached Dick Grayson with proof Batman was losing his mind, Tim Drake wouldn’t have reached twenty-one. The way his life was going, he would have probably hung himself long before getting to this stage in his life. If he’d never had Bruce or Alfred or Dick or Steph, if he’d never had Robin, never had Young Justice or The Titans, if he’d never had the Clench, never felt the rumble under his feet as Gotham had fallen, if he’d never had the agony of losing everyone in his life, if he’d never had the drive to prove his adopted father was alive…

The civilian Tim Drake wouldn’t have had the strength to make it through life alive.

So if this is the way he goes out, if Dick is the one that ends it for him–

There’re worse ways to go.

He’s not going to be the Joker’s next victim or Ra’s al Ghul’s heir with a mix of Lazarus Pit crazy. The HIVE, the Light, the mass of aliens he’s fought, any number of Rogue Gallery thugs, none of them will be the ones to take him out.

But this?

His career as Robin started out with Dick Grayson, so maybe...maybe it’s fitting this is the way it all ends. 

He sucks in a breath and finally tilts his head up, looks up into those electric blue eyes, and lets his breath out so so slow.

Because Dick is looking at him with watery eyes, with a grimace, with something Tim can actually recognize.

But those eyes light up in his penthouse perch, take on a supernatural glow, Dick snatching his wrists in bigger hands, pulling Tim closer, the heat getting through layers of Kevlar and Nomex. And just like that, he can’t pull away, can’t pull back.

There’s no way to defend himself when Dick pulls him in, when he expects to get his throat ripped out, his neck snapped, something important crushed, for the darkness to take over and his heart to slow down to a sad, weak pitter patter.

He can’t defend himself when Dick kisses him, opens his mouth, and stuns him into going completely slack.

“I told you,” Dick growls softly when he pulls back, bends enough to get Tim laid out over his shoulder, “I had other plans.”

But Tim can’t reply, can’t do anything other than lay across Dick’s back as the Romani love deamon strides down the hallway and kicks open the bedroom door.

**

And if Tim Drake survives until morning, shocking the hell out of the both of them, staring up at Dick’s surprised face and glowing blue eyes, if the soft touch to his jaw contrasts sharply with the bruises and red marks blossoming all over his body from an intense night with his supernatural mentor and best friend, if Dick doesn’t whisper, “finally, finally, my mate,” before kissing him. 

If the power Dick drains from him doesn’t kill him, doesn’t do more than give him the most amazing span of unending multiple orgasms to ever happen, if Dick isn’t fully satisfied for the first time in his life. If Dick doesn’t call them both off patrol for the next three nights, carts Tim back to his apartment, refuses him clothes and computers and tech, tells the Titans they’re taking a break from crime fighting while Tim is tied and gagged in his bed, sated enough to listen hazily with half-mast eyes. 

If Dick doesn’t hand feed him while he’s getting feeling back in his legs (finally) and give him the full run-down about his parents. If the strange mark on his abdomen doesn’t get warm whenever Dick’s hand is on it, fingers tracing the edges, making those blue, blue eyes dilate in possessiveness. If Tim doesn’t eventually escape with his sanity intact and a little terrified how much his body craves only to have Dick chase after him with single-minded purposes to convince him they’re meant to be.

Then only the man with cameras all over Gotham, waiting and watching with bated breath and fear for his Robins, unmitigated relief when his theory proves true, would be able to give all the details.

[flashfuture]

So you know that show wife swap or whatever I’ve never seen anything more than vague snippets in waiting rooms. But from what I gather the general premise is the mom switches households and has to like be mom in the new house for a week?? Whatever that’s what I’m rolling with.

So this but DC. We parent swap all over the place. And it could be any combination. Also remember most of these families don’t all live together but you’ve gotta act like the head of the team and stuff. So like I’m positing some possible combos but please mix it up.

So like Clark swaps with Arthur. Clark can do the king thing he’s sure of it. But uh Clark hates it, like he hates being king more than Arthur hates being king. And Clark knows Garth is making fun of him but he trusts that the political advice is solid. Also Mera is scary as hell and Clark is kind of wondering why she’s not the one on the League while Arthur stays home. Kaldur and Andy find this all very amusing and Andy has the worst diplomatic advice for her big brother to tell Clark. Garth loves them all and relays them accordingly. Clark enjoys patrol with Kaldur and sometimes Garth. Clark doesn’t like the seahorses and they don’t like him- it’s fine.

Arthur has no fucking clue what he’s supposed to do with these kids. Jon is adorable but Arthur has been there. He remembers Garth at this age and kids are not to be trusted. And Kon well Arthur definitely remembers Garth at sixteen and knows Kon is even less trustworthy. Ma and Pa Kent are amazing and adopt him as a son immediately. Arthur isn’t jealous of Clark he’s just not. And Lois is very determined to get the scoop on Atlantis. Arthur has no idea what she’s gonna do with any information he gives her so he’s careful. Or we’ll careful as he can be- Garth is the diplomat after all. He’ll work it out. Arthur is also incredibly impressed with Clark’s work ethic. Arthur can barely stop to breathe as Kon and him fly around the world. Jon is having a blast though.

Bruce swaps with Diana it’ll be fine. He’s got a shit ton of kids. But oh god none of them are his sisters. And Donna is at least a grownup. Bruce feels like he understands why Diana takes an observer approach as he watches Cassie challenge the entirety of the Greek Pantheon to fight her while Hercules and Ares glare at the others from behind her. Steve is busy with work but calls to give discouraging speeches. Bruce knows he can’t control Cassie thank you Steve but if she could stop fighting gods at school that would be great.

Diana has no idea how Bruce functions. She remembers Dick as a boy and he was great. Amazing. Definitely always up to something but she got to be Aunt Diana so that was fun. But Dick is all grown up. And all too amused as watching Diana try and wrangle Bruce’s children. Damian is at least self aware enough to know Diana wouldn’t even notice if he attacked her. She’s too busy trying to remember lunches because Bruce just so happened to forget it was Alfred’s week off. Tim immediately proclaims this should disqualify Bruce because he’d never be able to run the house without Alfred.

Ollie swaps with Barry because whatever. Barry’s got what Wally? He’s fine. Ollie was not paying attention. Barry has Wally and three grandchildren. Ollie would literally have never imagined any kid could be as troublesome as Bart. And Iris has no chill. Ollie has no idea what she expects him to do but he really can’t stop Bart when he decides to leave scuff marks on the ceiling. Iris is however much more receptive to his political rants than Barry is. Also Wally has apparently been radicalized at some point. Ollie’s gotta thank the Pied Piper. None of the kids live with Barry so Ollie apparently has to keep tabs on them. Ollie supposes Bart is like ten or something. Max Mercury and Jay Garrick seem to have it handled but Bart takes the it takes a village thing to the next level.

Barry also wasn’t keeping track of Ollie’s kids. But in his defense he was dead for a long time. Roy has a kid she’s great. Roy is all grown up now which Barry can’t deal with. Connor is also great he’s helpful. Mia was clearly put on this Earth to be Ollie’s evil sidekick. Barry raised a speedster. He has the most chaotic boy in existence for a grandson. As such Barry vows that Bart and Mia can’t ever be friends. Dinah is a god send. Barry sees why Ollie loves her so much. And fighting with her? Barry hasn’t had this much fun in a long time- Black Canary is a sight to behold.

Plus Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen could totally do this televised. That would be amazing. Billionaire Dad Swap

[bigskydreaming]

And one more bit from the “Kings of the Sky” AU albeit several installments in, because I just......don’t know when or why I stumbled into an obsession with the dynamics between Dick and Jason and Cass as the eldest three Wayne siblings, but its there, its real, and its happening. I’ve stopped fighting it. I just....enjoy writing those three being dumb siblings who are dumb like so, so much.

Anyway, in this AU series, Jason doesn’t go to Ethiopia and die, but rather eventually joins Dick at Titans Tower more regularly and is Flamebird. Both are closer with Bruce here than in canon because Dick helped Bruce and Jason get through the Garzonas stuff and Jason helped kick Bruce in the direction of Dick and adoption papers right after the Brother Blood storyline. Then Cass is actually the third to join the family, by way of Babs, and she’s Batgirl and then Black Bat, but there’s a period of time when its just Dick, Jason and Cass as the Wayne kids. 

(PS - this is the same series as where Jason ends up with his own age group of Titans, and accidentally falls into a love quadrangle of doom that is absolutely NOT a polycule dammit, with Tom Bronson (Tomcat), Ray Terrill (The Ray) and Todd Rice (Obsidian). Which amuses his brother and sister to no end).

Tim and Duke are both next, but sorta at the same time? Like Tim’s story takes a sharp turn when Robin II never dies and obviously is Flamebird now like Robin I is Nightwing, and Tim winds up in foster care after his parents die differently than in canon. Duke is also in foster care at this time, though a different placement, and while no Robin has died here, its been awhile since there’s been one in Gotham, and to kids who grew up with the idea of there always being a Robin, that feels weird and wrong ultimately. 

So Tim and Duke both hit on the idea of being Robin like, at around the same time and totally disconnected from one another, and that leads to them both joining the Batfam around the same time, and co-sharing Robin until Damian arrives much later and they both move on to new identities. But there’s no real confusion between Robins because Duke is the daytime Robin with more yellow coloring in his costume and Tim is the nighttime Robin with more red, and people say Red or Yellow if they ever need to differentiate which Robin they’re talking about. Anyway.

************

So [Tim and Duke] run into trouble eventually and then when running from trouble they run into each other and they’re like….huh. Awkward. And then they decide well, might as well both run from trouble in the same direction, I guess. So they do.

“Did you have a plan for dealing with these guys?” Tim yelled at Duke. The other boy looked back over his shoulder briefly and gave what would probably have been a half-shrug if he didn’t awkwardly try to barrel-roll over a car two seconds later.

“Umm, sorta?”

“How sorta are we talking about? Maybe the two of us together could fill in the gaps in the plan and come up with one full plan?”

“Uh yeah, no, its not that kinda sorta. I meant sorta in the sense that I thought I had a plan but it didn’t work and that’s why these guys are after me. Sooooo…”

“Not helpful, basically.”

“Yeah. Pretty much. And hey, I don’t hear you offering up a plan! Did you even have one at all?”

“Uh….I mean I kinda didn’t think I was going to need one because I figured some kid running around in a mask making a nuisance of himself was the sorta thing that was bound to attract Batman. And so I was just pretty much running around until that happened, and then I’d make a case for how I obviously need training and Gotham needs Robin and if its not me its likely to be someone else trying eventually anyway so why not be me?”

Duke paused just long enough to squint at him. “That’s a terrible plan.”

Tim rolled his eyes. The effort didn’t pair well with his huffing and over-all exertions from running for his life and all that, but necessity demanded. “Yeah I know, that’s why I never said it was a plan! It was mostly….more…idea-ish.”

“I’m just saying, I thought I was doing this wrong, but at least I had a plan! I mean yeah, it might have ended up with me accidentally busting in on what I thought was a bunch of Riddler’s henchmen setting up some kind of clue thing, only it was actually a bunch of Intergang type guys with alien space guns or some shit all dressed up as Riddler henchmen for some reason? I dunno what they were trying to do honestly, but so yeah I might have ended up running away on foot from like twenty of them and some kind of hovercycle -”

“I’m going to cut you off there and say wherever this is going its probably not the superior vantage point I think you think you have.”

Meanwhile, Batman was not going to be coming because he’s off on a JLA mission. However, in his absence Dick and Jason are in town filling in, and they finished taking out the bad guys several blocks back and caught up to whomever was running from them, figured out the situation and are currently sitting on the edge of a rooftop watching them realize they’re totally lost and trying to figure out where to go from here. Mostly because Dick and Jason are incredibly amused listening to their back and forth and also just…this whole situation.

Dick justifies not piping up to let them know they’re safe now by saying this is good intel gathering so we can offer Bruce our assessment as to whether they’re gonna try and keep doing this whether we train them or not, and also how they handle this whole being lost situation. Not knowing they don’t have to run anymore isn’t going to hurt them and really, this is a good field exercise almost.

Jason justifies not piping up by saying this is fucking hilarious and I will hurt you if you end this any sooner than we have to, I deserve this, I had a rough week.

Which is right around the time that Cass pipes up from where she’s been lurking unnoticed behind them this whole time: “Oh no. Was it Tom? Or Ray? Or was it Todd?”

And she does it right in Jason’s ear so he kinda aborted-shrieks and almost falls off the roof except Cass is ready for that and grabs his arm to steady him.

“I hate when you do that!” Jason growls in an attempt to cover up how badly she got him and also because he hates when she does it which is why she does it a lot. Again, they don’t hate each other at all, but they do seem to act like it a lot, and neither of them is entirely sure why. They kinda just started doing it and have each been trying to get the other back ever since and ended up locked in an unending spiral of gotcha-gotchaback, except, y’know, Batfam style.

Dick occasionally picks sides just to muddy the waters. And then he randomly switches sides without warning, so neither of them ever wants to risk getting too peeved at him even when he’s helping the other, because that might push him fully over to the other side and leave them permanently outnumbered, so they’re kinda stuck, which is exactly as he likes it, lol.

“Why are you Satan,” Jason hisses dramatically as he gets up and stomps over to the other side of the roof to sulk, lest she almost knock him off again. Its not the almost falling part that bothers him, its that she’s the one that snatches him to safety each time. She’s like a freaking cat toying with a - yeah not going there, just blaming Selina. Knew them hanging out was going to be bad news for me somehow, he gripes.

Cass just shrugs and smoothly sits down cross-legged right where she is, grinning Cheshire-cat style at him from there. “Childhood trauma,” is her answer.

“Great, and now you’re stealing my comeback on top of it?! Is nothing sacred to you?”

She offers another shrug. He would like to return those for store credit please. Maybe get something useful instead. “Haven’t decided yet. Babs is still helping me explore my options. We’re going alphabetically and we’re only on  the E-religions.”

“God, you’re the worst. I can’t believe you ruined sisters for me.”

“You already used that same line last week when you came out of your room still half-asleep and she was just sitting directly across from your door waiting and staring unblinking and you yelped and dropped your laptop on your toe, and then cursed so loud that B came running around the hall thinking we were being invaded,” Dick reported idly, still perched in the same position he’d been in all along and watching the boys below them. “Just in case you thought no one noticed when you recycle.”

“I noticed too,” Cass added solemnly.

“I have no siblings,” Jason intoned. He threw up his hands dramatically and then loudly jumped down to the street below with a little help from the fire escape. It drew both Duke and Tim’s attention and they startled before realizing it was Flamebird. And that he’d landed on the street and was stalking past them while barely acknowledging them. And that that was Nightwing standing on the roof now with his hands on his hips yelling after him.

“Oh, reeeeeeal subtle. You’re not having fun anymore so you gotta make sure nobody else does either. Wow, the Brat-like behavior, just jumped out of the shadows with that one!”

And that was Flamebird not even turning around and just yelling back. “I HAVE NO SIBLINGS!”

And also they were both pretty sure that was Batgirl crouched on the roof next to Nightwing now, and she was…..sticking her tongue out at Flamebird’s back? No, Batgirl very much definitely was sticking out her tongue, that wasn’t in doubt, it was more just….very unexpected to see.

What was happening right now?

********

Eventually Tim and Duke have inevitably worn down [Bruce’s] resistance to training them by insisting they’re gonna keep doing this and if its not them its gonna be someone sooner or later anyway. Because, as they put it, you guys may not know this but Gotham’s gotten used to Robins by now and it freaks people out not to see one and Robin’s as important as Batman really and there needs to be a Robin and its not just us that will think that, like look at the fact that already two of us had the exact same idea, huh? And also, we’re gonna keep doing it anyway, sooooo….there’s that.

And then Cass vouches that they’re both 100% serious about that.

And then Dick vouches that as a former determined daredevil kid that was absolutely going to keep doing the same thing no matter whether you’d helped me or not, B, I also am of the assessment that these two mean it all the way.

And not to be left out and just to have something to contribute but also grumpy because his brother and sister are picking on him and he’s eighteen going on ten, Jason throws in: “And my assessment is that they both definitely seem dumb enough to keep doing this without help anyway and they definitely need help or they definitely will die, I’d give it a month, month and a half tops.”

And then Bruce dryly thanks his children for their contributions, their keen insights in this matter have been absolutely invaluable, he has no idea how he would make a decision here without it.

“Oooh, a rare sighting of Bat-snark in the wild. Someone call Nat-Geo quick, maybe he’ll do it again,” Dick says.

Bruce sighs. Duke and Tim look like they’re trying to decide if they’re allowed to be amused or if that’s also part of some weird Bat-test that they’re probably taking without even knowing it.

So Tim and Duke move in, start training together, and then also get sent to school together and it takes a month or so of settling in before they decide whether or not they actually are happy about this. There’s a period of deciding they’re supposed to be bitter rivals who snipe at each other back and forth across the dining table at every available opportunity, but that changes the first night Dick and Jason come back from the Tower since Tim and Duke have moved in and where Cass is also home instead of at the Clocktower with Babs.

Since all three of the older Batkids, upon seeing Tim and Duke squabble at dinner, decide to obnoxiously coo about how adorable it is watching the kids play. Which pretty instantly cements Duke and Tim as realizing their best chance of surviving the sudden acquisition of three older superhero ninja foster siblings who all can be as obnoxious as they are dangerous but also as much as they are - Duke and Tim are convinced - all quite insane.

A belief further cemented the next morning, with all three of them having spent the night at the Manor as well. Treating Duke and Tim to their first Saturday morning episode of the Cass and Jason show.

In this episode, Jason emerged from his bedroom in his pajamas still but warily peeking his head out first to look both ways down the hall before deciding it was clear…..and then makes it just almost to the end of the hallway leading to the stairs, when Cass drops down from where she’d been waiting perched above the other side of the door, in such a way as to suddenly fill the doorway just in front of him, hanging upside down suspending herself just with her feet wedged above the doorway, all while keeping her hands crossed her chest, a dead-eyed expression on her face, and with her tongue hanging out like she’s some kind of vampire hanging upside down in mid-slumber.

Jason shrieked and stumbled back a foot before catching himself and shoving two fingers in a cross shape in her direction.

“Demon! DEMON! Goddammit, I abjure thee, that’s supposed to fucking do something about having a demon sister, now what the fuck does it take to banish you!?”

“Can’t be banished,” Cass informed him, still upside down. “Can be bought though.”

Jason halted. “What?”

“I’m really surprised you never figured it out,” Dick said from his room further down the hallway. He was leaning against the doorjamb, arms casually crossed.

“Why did you think she never goes after me?”

Jason swiveled back and forth between his siblings suspiciously, trying to scry both their inscrutable (and in Cass’ case, still upside down) faces for signs they were telling the truth. “You’re telling me that Little Miss Monstrous has been a pain in my ass from day one and the reason she’s never so much as eked a single boo in your direction is you’ve been bribing her all this time?”

Dick shrugged. “Its all about getting in on the ground floor.”

Jason squinted, still unconvinced. “Nuh-uh. No way. You’re just fucking with me. Like if this is for real, what have you been buying her off with?”

Dick smiled beatifically. “Cuddles and hugs.”

“NO! NO! Bullshit! I am NOT falling for this crap again, you are not gonna get me this way this time. I call BS, fuck you, nuh uh, you’re lying out your ass and your ass-face both.”

“Wait, what is this ‘this’ that I did before? What ever are you talking about?”

“You know damn well what I’m talking about.”

“Is this about the Care Bear you had when you were fifteen?”

“Shut upppppppppppppppp, I didn’t have a Care Bear then, you’re such a - “

“Oh, I dunno, I’m preeeeetty sure there’s some holiday photos from that year that would say otherwise, pretty definitively in the form of you and your Care Bear….”

“That I only had because you literally just gave it to me as a present solely so that you could claim that I had a Care Bear when I was fifteen, you douchebag!”

“Just because I gave you the Care Bear didn’t mean you had to keep the Care Bear and hold the Care Bear and love the Care Bear, Jay. You chose to do all that.”

“I only kept the damn thing because you’re an asshole who lied about it being a family heirloom so I felt like I had to or I’d be a total jerk. Is nothing sacred to you?”

“I didn’t lie! It is a treasured family heirloom! Its the first Care Bear I gave to my little brother to teach him the important and valuable lesson that Care Bears - say it with me now - “

“Finish that sentence and they will never find your body.”

“CARE!” Cass shrieked from behind him before jumping on Jason’s back and bearing him down to the floor in an undignified tangle as she splayed atop him like a starfish and he stared up at the ceiling in a kind of strangled frozen fury, like there was so much emotion he wanted to process he’d overheated and now was stuck like that until he cooled down.

That was when Dick leaned over him and solemnly added one final thought, as though it was a crucial addition of the gravest importance:: “A lot.”

Jason’s eye twitched.

Dick’s eyes went wide in response. “Uh oh. He went to the Danger Zone. Run Cass. We’ve unleashed the dogs of war!”

Cass was off and on her feet in a second, taking off down the hall like a rocket. “Not the dogs of war!” She yelled.

Dick was only seconds behind her when behind him, Jason rose like an eruption, growling wordlessly and sparks practically flashing from his suddenly flinty eyes. He charged after them like an enraged bull.

“Kenny Loggins wouldn’t want this!” Dick yelled over his shoulder as he rounded the doorway and vanished. Jason rounded it in hot pursuit.

“Poison Ivy won’t even be able to make compost from what’s left of you when I’m through!”

The yelling and running vanished into the distance. Duke and Tim finally looked at each other blankly.

“What?” Tim asked. Duke shrugged helplessly.

A door opened at the end of the hallway. Bruce stuck his head out. “Is it safe?”

Tim just stared at him.

“What?” Duke asked.

**************

LOL mostly I just want to get to the tail end of the series, when Dick and Jason go undercover as supervillains in the Society of well, Supervillains....Dick as War Shrike and Jason as Gray Jay. (A kind of bird usually known for or referenced as being thieving and unpredictable and unexpectedly dangerous despite its size. Jason never went into the Lazarus Pit here and so isn’t as huge as he is in canon, he’s on the smaller side due to his early life’s malnutrition. Living with Bruce helped him catch up enough that he’s not TINY tiny, but he’s still smaller enough that this particular mantle fits him a little better than it would his massive canon depiction).

Cass also partakes in the undercover storyline, just showing up uninvited in a persona she’s crafted for the mission and calls Black Swan. And War Shrike and Gray Jay are both so startled and obviously a little freaked by her unexpected arrival, that combined with her being ticked at her brothers for leaving her behind, RUDE, and them sufficiently cowed and guilted by her wrath, that it all adds up to the other villains as being clear evidence that she is the boss and they are her advance minions. 

Which mollifies and satisfies Cass immensely, and leaves Jason grumpy that their mission was hijacked and also his sister is The Worst, and leaves Dick temporarily disgruntled because This Whole Thing Was His Idea DAMMIT but then five seconds later finding it hilarious because Dick is a chaos connoisseur and he has an appreciation for whimsy and the unexpected.

“I can’t believe you not only gate-crashed our extremely sensitive and delicate undercover operation, but you completely hijacked it as well! This is so typical,” Jason grouched.

Cass simply swept ahead of him and strode down the hallway with lethal grace. “Silence minion.”

Jason spluttered behind her and she grinned to herself. He really made it too easy sometimes.

[catxsnow]

PROM DATES

Request: Hey, could I request a batmom where the topic "prom" comes up (idk how) and batmom says she never went there and regrets it and batfam makes her her "own" prom and she dances with all of her sons.

Warning: fluff

A/N: This was so freaking cute!! I loved writing it, all the fluffy feels 

GIF not mine

Word count: 2.4k

Bruce Wayne's kids didn't get along. They fought, argued, and even threatened to maim each other. However,  they would also die for each other, avenge each other, and fight anyone that tried to hurt them. They had a messed up family, but if there was one thing that they could agree on, it was how much they loved you.

Each Robin grew up with you in their life. You were there to support them, help them when needed, and be the person to look to when they needed guidance. They might not have been your own kids, but you loved them like they were. Bruce loved you for that. It was a crazy family that you had formed, but you wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

Alfred had worked far too hard for you family. He never showed that the work was ever too much for him, but you knew that when you offered for him to take the day off and relax that he appreciated it more than you could imagine. You decided that it was your time to clean the massive Wayne Manor.

Hours of washing and scrubbing as your family worked themselves away down in the cave. It was nice having the place to yourself. Music was blasting and you were able to dance around without any of your kids teasing you for it.

By the time that you reached the study, you had found an old album of Bruce from high school. He looked far younger than he did now. Stress free, no wrinkles, still the same smile that he gave you now. He looked handsome, but that never changed with his age. You couldn't stop yourself from flipping through the album to see what his life was like before you.

He seemed so different back then. Sports, hanging out with his friends, being irresponsible. You didn't think Bruce was ever capable of that. It was when you reached his senior prom pictures did you stop to admire. He looked better than ever with his suit on and a smile on his face. No lines of stress or thick scars were on his skin. 

"(Y/N)!" You nearly jumped as you name was called out. You were far to engrossed in the album that you hadn't noticed Damian and Tim exit the cave. They looked excited to see you - as they always did. Tim moved to stand behind the chair you were sitting in and Damian stood at you side.

"Bruce looks so different," Tim looked at the pictures in shock. Damian analyzed his father, at that age he looked the spitting imagine of Damian. "His prom date doesn't even compare to you. Who was your prom date in high school?"

"I never went to prom," you sighed. High school was a long time ago, but you still regretted not going to your senior year prom. Getting to dress up and get your hair done, it was something that you never got to experience. It had been decades and you still missed not having that night.

"No one ever got around to asking me and all my friends had dates already. I didn't want to go alone," you explained to them. Tim placed a reassuring hand on your shoulder. He had seeing you upset about things - especially so mundane like this where there was nothing that he could do to fix it.

"It seems lame anyways," Damian scoffed. He didn't enjoy the idea of wearing a fancy suit just to stand around in some gym with half-ass decorations and people who didn't wish to be there. To him, it was pointless. But he could see that this night meant something to you. He didn't want to see you upset about it.

You suddenly closed the album, not wanting to think anymore about your own past anymore. Tim and Damian looked between each other. It didn't take being the son's of Batman to realize that you were upset. You kissed the tops of their heads and ushered them to to the kitchen for lunch.

Tim and Damian walked far behind you and paused to glance at each other once more. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Tim asked.

"For once, yes."

><

All week you had been suspicious of your family.

For the first time in a long time, Jason had come home without your request. Dick was more giddy than normal. Even Damian seemed to hint at a smile every time he looked at you. Whatever they were scheming, you wanted no part of it. Last time they had those looks, a prank war nearly broke out.

Saturday morning, Bruce had offered to take you out for brunch. It wasn't very often that you got to lavish on dates, but he claimed that the media needed to see you out and about together - you were just happy to spend time with him. He also encouraged you to dress fancy since the place you were going to was rather expensive.

You loved getting dressed up for him - mostly because you got to hear the endless amount of compliments from him.

Brunch went as you expected it to. Delicious food, pictures from the paps, and the best kind of company with the man you loved. No matter the time or place with Bruce, you always loved getting to be with him.

He took the long way home, wanting to show you the new development that WE was working on. It was going to be a beautiful new building that would help thousands. You were always amazed at what Bruce could come up with. He held you hand the rest of the drive back, gazing over with love in his eyes.

There was a hint of a smile on his face as he drove up to your home. Something had been up with him all morning and you still weren't sure what it could have been. Nonetheless, you graciously accepted his hand as he opened the door for you and walked up to the doors of the Manor.

"What's with you?" You stopped him. You hand rested on his chest while the other was still intertwined with his own. "You look far happier than you ever are."

"Am I not allowed to be happy when I'm with my beautiful wife?" Bruce leaned down to kiss you again. You smiled into it, even more so when he pulled away. Only with you, did Bruce's gaze ever soften. "Come on, let's go inside."

Bruce pushed open the front doors and you were nearly taken aback with shock. Your front entrance no longer was the spotless floor that it usually was, but instead, was covered in classic high school decorations. A picture backdrop was in the far corner, a balloon arch right as you walked in, there were even streamers hanging from the high ceilings.

You felt like you were back in high school again. However, it was the decorations that caught your attention, it was how beautiful and handsome your adoptive kids looked standing in the middle of the foyer. For the first time in a long time, everyone had gathered together, just for you.

Dick, Duke, Tim, Jason, and Damian were in the best suits they owned. Their hair was styled and the all had gleaming smiles as they watched your expressions. Steph and Cass were there as well, both of them in gowns that looked so perfect on them that they looked way more grown than you ever remembered them being.

"What's all this for?" You asked. You broke away from Bruce's hold and did a full spin of the room to see everything that they had done for you. Finally, you had seen the prom poster with the year that you had graduated hanging up. "You recreated my prom?"

"You said you regretted not going," Tim spoke up. He looked over to Damian, who had been the one to help him get everything set up for you. "We wanted to let you have that special day, too."

Tears brimmed your eyes at the idea that they had gone through all of this just for you. Getting everyone together was hard enough as it was, you had no idea how Damian of all people was able to swing something like that. That was the thing, they all loved you enough that they didn't have issue to clear their plans for the day just for you.

Damian was the first to notice the tears in you eyes. He broke the formation that they had and approached you. He looked up at you for a brief moment before latching around your waist. You knelt down so that you could be eye level with Damian instead. He didn't say anything, but you knew what he had on his mind. "I love you too, Damian," You kissed his cheek.

He went back to his original spot and just as he did, music started to play. You had just noticed Alfred standing off to the side with a record player by him. Bruce stuck his hand out for you to grab, "May I have this dance?"

"Of course, my love."

Your afternoon had gone nothing like you expected it to that morning. The surprise of having your kids recreate something so irrelevant in their lives, just for you, warmed your heart. The conversation about prom with Tim and Damian had been so short, you never assumed that they even thought twice about it.

You were wrong, very wrong. They had managed to create you the perfect prom. They even played all the same music that was from your year, it was incredible. You had finally gotten the prom that you wanted, and this was far better than what it would have been in high school.

With this, you had the chance to dance with each of your sons, and the love of your life. Dick had been the most giddy to ask you to dance. The second that Damian had brought the idea up to him, he was all for. You were the most important person in his life growing up, he would do anything to make you happy.

Dick was grand and dramatic as he twirled and dipped you. As the oldest, and having known you the longest, he wanted to make the best first impression of your prom. You were laughing and smiling the whole time he danced you around.

Jason didn't look overly thrilled to be there, but his attitude changed as he danced with you next. Growing up, you were always his biggest supporter. Even now, with Bruce opposing all of his new morals, you still saw that excited little boy in him. For him, you were his voice of reason, you respected him in a completely different way than the rest of his family.

It was moments like those did Jason realize just how lucky he was to have you in his life. When your song ended, Jason had pulled you into a tight hug, muttering words of thanks quiet enough that the others couldn't hear. No matter what he did, he always wanted your praise.

Tim had been next. "I can't believe you did all this for me," You told him. "I don't think I can ever thank you enough, this is... this is beyond incredible."

"Of course I did it for you," Tim smiled. He spun you around in your dance before continuing. "I think if Damian and I can agree on something then it must be very worth doing. We love you, (Y/N). You're the best adoptive mom we could ever ask for."

"As crazy as you kids are, there's no other family I'd rather be in," You agreed. As the dance ended, Tim kissed the top of your head and allowed Duke to take his spot. Duke grinned as he grabbed your hand.

He always felt like he didn't have the same kind of connection with you as the rest of the kids, but he couldn't be more wrong. Duke was an excellent kid, and you were so beyond proud to say that you had a part in making him who he was today. "You look so grown up in that suit."

"I am grown up," Duke argued. He was. All of them were. They weren't the young Robin's that showed up broken and alone to your home. They were all - besides Damian - grown up. You wanted to hold onto Damian's youth forever, you feared the day that he would leave you and Bruce.

Finally, it was Damian that offered his hand to dance. His hair was slicked back and he looked just the image of Bruce. The older he got, the more you saw his father in him. "Thank's for doing this, Damian. It means a lot to me."

"It wasn't difficult," Damian tried to play it off. He was much shorter than the rest of your dance partners, but he had more skill than the rest. He didn't twirl or dip you, but you swayed around the entire 'dance floor'. "I'm happy that you're enjoying yourself."

As the last song ended, you were left feeling happier than you had in ages. Seeing all your kids together, getting along and chatting? That was all you wanted in your life. You hated seeing them fight, but you knew that they all had their reasons - as well as their reasons against Bruce. As much as he wanted to keep them safe, he was too hard on them at times.

Bruce joined you once more, snaking his arms around you from behind and kissing along your jaw and cheek. You looked around the room at everyone. Tim was dancing with Steph, Cass with Duke. Damian and Dick were chatting while Jason was talking to Alfred. This had been the most peaceful your home had been with everyone in it.

Bruce spun you around so you were facing him. His hands were low on your waist and he pulled you as close as he could. Once again, there was a loving smile on his face that was reserved only for you. "Today was perfect, Bruce."

"I'm glad," Bruce kissed you. He did a dramatic dip in the middle of the room, gaining the attention of everyone else. Dick had snapped a photo just at the right time. That picture would be better than any high school prom picture you would have had all those years ago. "I always wish you to be happy."

"I'm always happy when I'm with my family."

[eezy-breezey]

Have some Wayne Manor Quarantine Headcanons because I couldn't sleep last night and thought of these instead!

Dick

• lasted half a day

• is so incredibly bored and fidgety

• won't stop moving

• unintentionally annoying everyone

• "Hey Jay, whatcha' playing? Cool cool. Can I have a go?"

• already climbed all 4 chandeliers, twice, much to Alfred's dismay

Jason

• got Animal Crossing on release day

• has been binging it non stop

• no idea what day it is

• 11million bells in his account

• absolutely TT's

• just wants to play in peace

Tim

• non-existent sleep schedule

• Jason once caught him microwaving hot pockets at 4am

• "Well I made cereal at 12am, so this is technically lunch"

• did his online classes for a week

• hasn't touched them since

Steph

• has been living on breakfast food

• said she'd use this time to exercise and come out of quarantine super ripped

• saved every "at home workouts you can do" she's come across

• hasn't done a single one

• 2am online shopping binges

Cass

• embodiement of the "when you find out your daily lifestyle is called quarantine" meme

• has a schedule and is sticking to it

• loves that there is no one else on her runs

• very confused about the constant reminders to wash your hands

• "Did..they not wash before?"

Duke

• doesn't know how or when, but he has Tiktok now

• binging everything on Netflix

• marble racing is actually pretty good

• honestly just wants to be able to buy some toilet paper

Damian

• he's resorted to sleeping in the barn with the animals

• avoiding Richard at all costs

• had his swords confiscated

• uninterrupted pet loving time

• he dressed Alfred the Cat sf in a tie for Bruce's meetings

Bruce

• barricaded himself in his office

• still does Batman stuff, but won't allow the others to patrol

• because "it's not safe"

• he really just wants a few hours alone, please

• does video conferences from home and 96% of the time the aduio is the kids screaming and or fighting

Alfred

• his chore system did not work

• kind of misses the days when all he had to cook was food for himself

• now he has to feed The Horde™

• but honestly, he loves having everyone together for forced family dinners

[yellowocaballero]

Your reverse robin au is such an odd take on Tim? I don't hate it though? I am... confused

YES I GET TO TALK ABOUT TIM. Warning that this is probably going to be long, because Reverse Robin!Tim is probably one of the most complicated characters I've ever written, psychologically. Because Tim is my favorite character in comics, just behind Bart Allen, and I've been in love with him since I was 9. Also I'm going to talk about how we write comic book fanfic I am SO sorry you've unleashed a kraken. I'll put a cut later because Tumblr's bugging and not letting me. Content warning for discussions of suicide, self-harm, PTSD, drug and alcohol mentions, addiction, and homicidal urges.

 How do we write comic book fanfic? It's tremendously difficult. Especially for the Batfam: it's such a soap opera, if you take every single little thing as canon everybody ends up a sociopath. In comics, Bruce has PUNCHED Dick in canon. So we make up our fanon. But if we keep too closely to fanon, then you end up with fairly unrecognizable characters, which is no fun to read. And...a lot of Batfamily fanfic is just Bruce as a great dad with a hoard of adorable children. It's boring to me.  So what do we do? Well, I like to keep a character recognizable while still kind of doing what I want and what I find most nuanced and realistic. You can't completely divorce from canon, but you really should just keep to the essentials of the character. This is subjective - I find it essential to Bruce that he's not really a great parent, but he's constantly trying and working on it. Not everyone feels that way - valid. 

 So what I consider essential to Tim is this: he's a socially awkward nerd. He always feels extraneous and neglected, because he's insecure, because he was a victim of childhood neglect. For most of his life, he really doesn't consider himself Bruce's kid. He's crazy intelligent and good with computers. He's a better detective than Bruce. He has a ton of friends who love him very much, but he shows a different face to them than to his family. He has lost basically everybody he has ever cared about at one point or another and just kinda gotten on with his life, which if you want to be realistic about it was probably hugely traumatizing and a huge sign that Tim kind of boxes himself away. That's Tim to me. Everything else is flexible. And although Tim in the Reverse Robin AU is a COMPLETE FUCKING MANIAC, he is still all of those things.

 I've done it differently in other roleswap aus, but the idea behind the Reverse Robin is that everybody is half themselves, half who they were switched with. Damian is reserved and cold, but he is just as much 'oldest daughter syndrome' as Dick. Jason is intellectual and rough (which is canon!), but he is just as much of a mediator who feels like he has to single-handedly keep the family together as Tim (which is canon especially in very early Tim - check Knightfall, the stupid Gotham Earthquake thing, and his introduction). Dick is loving and hyper, but he's just as reserved and resentful and alien to America as Damian. So, Tim is all of the things I listed, so I can establish that he's basically Tim. But he is as batshit crazy as Red Hood!Jason. He's just as cruel, resentful, self-harming, desperate, alienated, attention-seeking, groomed by Talia and Ra's, and just bugfuck insane because of the Pit. He's also been low-key mentally ill his entire life due to his complete and total isolation and childhood neglect. His life ended through torture and suicide. In 'the prophetic spring', he is at Jason's lowest point in his life - and his own.

 But, and this is important, Tim as Red Hood does not work. Jason became a drug lord because he came from that background. Tim's spoiled and rich. Jason had a motivation, a reason to live, a Bruce to hate and a Dick that always reached out. Tim doesn't have this. Tim is listless and purposeless - and I say several times that Tim is cosplaying this life. He's cosplaying wanting to kill his friends, being an addict, being a supervillain. Without Bruce, without that target of hate, Tim is lost. Without his dad, who loved him, Tim is lost.

 It's important to understand that everything he does in 'the prophetic spring' in self-harm. He thinks of himself as a monster (because Tim was raised by Bruce and he's extremely rigidly moral, and he can't reconcile his morality with what he did while he was pit-mad), and as a result he wants everybody else in his life to think of himself as a monster. He wants to be hated as much as he hates himself, because at least that's real and validates his feelings. He thinks of himself as the lowest of the low, so he performs his image of a spoiled party boy - the kind of person he's never been, and who he always hated, because he thinks of himself as the person who ruined Tim Drake, not Tim Drake. The drugs and alcohol are self harm (and I'd say, in my essential interp, that Tim has an addictive personality). Having sex is self-harm for him specifically because he's sex-averse. Alienating everybody who ever loved him is self-harm. Practically begging Damian to put him in Arkham is self-harm. This is a 20 year old unstable kid who wants to self-harm until he dies or his family kills him, because he is suicidal. He's still clinging on because he doesn't want to do it himself, but if someone kills him no big deal, and if he overdoses he probably deserved it.

 It IS confusing! As readers we are used to traumatized characters who seek catharsis, affection, and safety. We want the hurt and the comfort. But I really wanted to highlight how fucking ugly PTSD is. It can genuinely make you into a cruel and hurtful person. Tim is suicidal and he responds by becoming an addict, rejecting his family and friends so nobody can try to help him, and lashing out nonstop because he wants to punish the people who love him for loving a monster. And because he wants to punish the people he blames for his death - Bruce and Damian. The Joker. But Bruce is dead and the Joker’s dead Damian isn't giving him the attention he wants...so what does he do? He's lost. And so 'the prophetic spring' is the story of someone who is so fucking lost that he tries to destroy his own life because he can't bring himself to end it again. 

 Hope that cleared stuff up. I really love Tim. You probably didn't need that amount of detail but I am psychically compelled to share these things...partly because most people take Tim's incredible trauma and just make him a cute woobie..no guys make him mean. People are mean sometimes. Fiction exaggerates and magnifies - so many hurt people WANT to do the stuff Tim does, but their lives aren't a comic book soap opera so they don't. I wanted to highlight that real pain. Thanks for asking!!!

[ectonurites]

do u have any thoughts on the whole “tim is zapped to time prison” storyline? bc i feel like it could have been pretty interesting and a good way to bring back young justice/tim’s memories more immediately if it hadn’t been such a blatant attempt to just get tim out of storylines bc they had no ideas for his character

sorry lol u don’t have to respond i just kind of wish people talked about this storyline more? and the fact that tim lowkey became one of the only people in dc with knowledge of the other timelines (i think so at least) and nobody really addressed it?? like going into the next phase where people learn about other timelines after death metal.... tim should already know some of this stuff right?

YES YES YES OKAY LETS TALK ABOUT THIS this got incredibly long because I just have a lot to say (and i included screenshots) and i prob got a little off topic but. but lets get started anyways:

i haven’t read that particular storyline in a few months so i might be missing/misremembering some details here, but that whole ‘time prison + future tim’ thing was like. a really really interesting concept and the implications/impacts it has are a big part of why i liked tynion’s detective comics run as much as i did even with it’s flaws in characterization (such as treating tim like he was jimmy neutron boy genius and making steph..... be all ready to quit/breakaway from the team like that. the steph quitting characterization really started i think in batgirl convergence and unfortunately has haunted her since, even though pre reboot never giving up was like...... one of her defining traits. dc i hate you sometimes) 

i think that one of the biggest things that bothers me about the situation is how little we saw most of the other characters in the batfamily grieve (aside from steph and some with bruce, but again the way steph was portrayed just... hhhhhh. it very much reduced her to ‘tims girlfriend’ more than i’d have preferred) but otherwise like...as far as I can remember there was maybe one line in that monsters crossover thing where dick mentioned tim was gone, jason had a single line about avoiding the funeral in rhato, i dont think they showed any reaction from babs at all until after he was back, and the most for damian I recall is at the end of the 2014 teen titans run (#24) where he looks at... a case with the old red robin uniform Tim wasn’t even wearing anymore when he died? and that just bugs me. Instead of getting to see the actual funeral we get one flashback to it way after the fact once Bruce already knows Tim’s not actually dead

But at the time when they all DID think he was dead? the closest thing we see was in that same teen titans issue (#24) there’s a memorial-type ‘sharing stories’ thing after the funeral with tim’s titans friends but.... we don’t see something like that with his family. tim is a major presence in these peoples’ lives, they are his family, when he gets sent into time prison its even SAID how loved he apparently is

its just... idk. they all thought he was dead, and if they had put more emphasis on showing not just telling how that effected EVERYONE (not just steph) in the batfam, it might have felt a lot less like they were just putting tim away until there was a story idea for him. (like obviously I know they can’t make everyone’s stories revolve around Tim, but I’d have way preferred a detective comics issue of the funeral/memorial with the family than having there only be a teen titans one, I think it would have... held more relevance & meaning... but instead they just went right into that monster crossover story instead of lingering on this)

but then the Tim story itself once it does pick up way later, with titans tomorrow/future tim coming along having that whole “tell conner you’re sorry” “who’s conner?” exchange with current tim... that opens up A LOT of things to think about, and I think was pretty interestingly done if i’m remembering correctly. future tim recognizes the timelines are different, and ya know goes off to try to change things further ("whaddaya got there?” “a gun to kill batwoman” “NO!!!!”), theres lots of fighting etc etc the good guys win as we expect, but once that’s all settled tim’s left there with this whole. thought process

which ya know is the big indicator there’s weird timeline/reality fuckery going on (or also the read here can be that tim and kon are so connected across all space and time that their bond can transcend anything even timelines and realities and reboots... “and they were soulmates” “oh my god they were soulmates”) 

ANYWAYS lets not forget that tim isnt the only one who learns about this other timeline stuff during this whole situation!

Brother Eye has records of future tim’s timeline, and cass & steph see who they used to be! and as soon as steph finds out ‘holy shit i was ROBIN and BATGIRL?’ she also desperately wants to know more! which then a bit later leads into young justice 2019 where instead of going off to college like they told Bruce they were gonna, Steph and Tim go get the help of Zatanna to see what might be going on in their brains with these timelines and weird feelings (as we see in flashback form in yj 2019 #5)

and HOO BOY DOES SHE FIND THINGS! she gets in there and finds out that oh yeah, their brains had very much so been tampered with, and with her magic she undoes some of it, by unlocking memories, and Tim finally remembers Conner! (also in case u were wondering, that panel is specifically a callback to this one from yj 1998 #17 when Cissie quit the team)

one thing that I think is weird/interesting/idk if it gets... properly addressed even, was that Zatanna also poked around Steph’s brain too and she didn’t remember everything? Might have something to do even with how Tim had been in time prison, might have taken less work from Z to open things up because of that? Who knows

additionally i wanna call attention to how he said “That entire chapter of my life” which... leading into my next point a bit... strongly leads me to believe even though he’s remembering some things he definitely does not have ALL of his memories back (because theres a lot more than just the young justice ‘chapter’ of tim’s life that was drastically changed by the new 52 & rebirth) 

BUT moving on, i wanna bring up this part from later on (after they figured out that there was a crisis that caused things in the world to change, which is why their memories/brains were messed with) in issue #16

so yeah, I think it’s indicated even though Zatanna brought back some memories and opened up his brain a bit, there’s still many holes, and some things seem more like dreams rather than memories and he’s probably unable to tell which are which on his own to some extent. (also for reference the real thing that Tim thought was just a dream is... likely yj 1998 issue #1)

So based on the things i’ve brought up here (which are the things I remember off the top of my head, I could easily be accidentally leaving shit out LMAO i haven’t fully read through any of these books in at least 3 or more months now) I think it’s safe to assume that Tim definitely has a head start on getting back his memories before Death Metal happens, but that it was by no means a complete thing. So the after effects of Death Metal are probably just gonna... be a little less drastic for him vs most other people because it was already happening, but it’ll be kinda filling in the remaining gaps? 

And like you said he is absolutely one of the few people that already knew about about the timelines/the fact that these crises have happened and changed things, but pretty much all the other young justice characters are also aware that there was meddling in the timeline/that multiple timelines and alternate universes like this exist since they were all together as a group when it got explained (in like. yj 2019 #15 i believe is where most of the explaining happens) (and cass as well is aware of things to some extent because of her and steph’s interaction with Brother Eye) but the difference is that Zatanna didn’t go into everyone’s brains, so they aren’t dealing with the same memory things as Tim (and possibly Steph? because again Z DID go in her brain, she just wasn’t able to unlock all the same things as she did with Tim) 

but yeah in general i SO wish this was explored more, both in canon and in fanworks (fanworks tho... that can still happen >:3c). Memories hazily coming in for Tim while Kon and Bart are able to confirm or deny things, him dealing with conflicting memories and feelings about his past as they trickle in... like I think we’ll start to see these types of things moving forward across a lot of titles with Infinite Frontier (i BELIEVE dont quote me on this but I BELIEVE the person writing Damian’s upcoming solo had mentioned in an interview that the memories coming back of the other timeline aren’t going to be an all at once thing but will be more gradual for most characters) but the fact that it theoretically had already been happening for Tim for MONTHS and we only got that one crumb indicating it in #16 of it instead of any actual exploration makes me SAAAAAAD 

[baticorngirl]

Title: In Mother’s Arms

Fandom: Batman

Characters: Damian Wayne, Talia Al Ghul, Bruce Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth, Dick Grayson, Ra’s Al Ghul (Hallucinated), Tim Drake,

Relationships: Talia al Ghul & Damian Wayne, Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Alfred Pennyworth & Damian Wayne, Batfamily Members & Damian Wayne, (Minor) Talia al Ghul/ Bruce Wayne, Titus & Damian Wayne, Damian Wayne & Original Dog Character

Summary: Damian Wayne had went through so much effort to finally go on patrol by himself. But once he achieves this, it almost immediately backfires. With Scarecrow standing in front of him in victory, and all his fears coming to life, how will he get out of this mess? Who could manage to save the scared little boy now?

A/N: So... a while back, I was looking for Damian Wayne Fear Toxin fics, but unfortunately, none of them had any Good Parent Talia. So yeah, this is my self-indulgent fic to make up for it. And fittingly enough, it's also Mother's Day!

Fair Warning that there's panic attacks and hallucinations in this fic, so if you're sensitive to that stuff, please don't read it.

Also, I'd like to thank @mac-attack5 for helping me flesh out the details of the plot.

Click HERE to read it on Ao3

Click HERE to read it on FF.Net

___________________________________________________

Damian felt a drop of sweat roll down his face. He tugged his cloak around himself, the night suddenly feeling so much colder. The boy's breath was stuttery and shaky. His heartbeat loudly thumped in his ears. Dropping on to his knees, the poor child watched as his vision became blurry with tears.

He wasn't sure why he felt the undying need to never listen to his family when they told him these things were too dangerous. All he knew was that he certainly wouldn't be out here, fearful and cold, if it weren't for it.

Just earlier that day, he had been so very happy. Rain had been pouring outside, and clouds had swarmed the sky, but the gloom had not ruined Damian's mood. In his arms, lay a soft, playful, little puppy with golden fur named Warrior. Damian had adopted the puppy fairly recently, and he had already fallen in love with him. Everyday since his adoption, Damian always found something new about the puppy that was just absolutely amazing in his eyes. That specific day, it had been his speed.

"I timed him, Grayson. He could run 25 miles per hour!" Damian had informed his elder brother, with a proud smile on his face. Dick reached down and ruffled his hair, smiling back. Nighwing turned his attention towards the puppy that sat next to Damian.

"Who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?" He sat down near the puppy and petted it. The dog woofed and jumped closer to Dick. Damian joined the two of them on the ground, getting out treats for the puppy.

"He is!" Damian tossed the treats next to the puppy. "And no matter what happens, he always will be." He wrapped his arm around the dog, pouting stubbornly to prove that nothing would take him away from his new pet.

Even that pout, though, had been a happy, loving, one. And in addition, his joy seemed to only continue. Damian had felt incredibly confident that afternoon. He carried himself with his head up even higher than usually, and he had a stern, strong look on his face. So just like any other time the boy felt incredibly confident, he would argue with his father over everything.

"I am undoubtedly strong enough to go on my own." Damian insisted, looking up at Bruce adamantly. His arms were tightly crossed over his chest. "You are just being paranoid, Father."

"You're ten years old. If you want, you can partner up with Dick, but you're too young to be without a partner." Bruce responded, his mouth resting in an apathetic frown. He glared down at the boy to make it clear that debating wasn't going to change his mind. "Come on, Damian. Are you coming, or not?"

Damian picked up his mask and adjusted it on his face, "I'm ready, but I refuse to go if you're going to treat me like an infant." He pivoted around to face a wall. Bruce sighed, putting a hand on Damian's shoulder.

"Fine, Damian, fine… Stay home, then." He began to turn around, walking over to the batmobile. He jumped, springing himself into the driver's seat. Turning back towards Damian for one more moment, Bruce sighed again. "Just... be good for Alfred while your siblings and I are gone."

Whoosh! The batmobile and the other batkid's motorcycles began to speed off, leaving Damian and Alfred alone together. They turned to look at each other for a moment, but looked away again just as quickly.

"Very well then, Master Damian. I'll go upstairs, and you may join me if you please." Alfred spun around and began to march into the elevator. Damian watched silently, not daring to move until Alfred was completely gone.

The minute Alfred had fully exited, he raced towards the exit. He jumped on to his motorcycle, and immediately turned it on. It sputtered out a loud, attention-grabbing vroom, but fortunately, Damian was able to turn up the speed before Alfred came back down.

Whoosh! Alfred came down just quick enough to see a blur zooming out. "Master Damian…?" He called, a worried tone in his voice. He ran over to the batcomputer, quickly turning on the communicator. "Master Bruce, it seems Master Damian has… left."

"Left?" Bruce repeated. The communicator went silent as he processed this information. For the third time that night, he sighed. As thoughts spun in his head, Bruce quickly made a realization. "Damian, do you have your communicator with you?"

Meanwhile, Damian had just jumped off his bike. His boots aimlessly kicked the pebbles in front of him. Suddenly, though, Damian felt a buzz near his waist. His eyes widened abruptly. Sound… or more, his father's voice... was crackling out of it. Panic ran through his head, but he picked up the communicator anyway.

"Damian? Hello? If you respond, I might allow you to continue." Bruce persisted with fishing for Damian's response. Tempted by the thought of being permitted to continue, Damian slowly pressed to unmute himself.

He pulled the communicator up to his mouth. "Father…?" He muttered into it. On a rooftop somewhere else in the city, Bruce snapped back to attention. "I have responded. May I now proceed?" Damian continued.

For the fourth time that day, Bruce sighed. "Fine... but tell the rest of us if you need anything." Him and Damian both muted themselves. Damian smirked, making a small cheering gesture with his arms. Pulling out his grappling hook, he latched it on to a nearby roof. His eyes widened as he stared down at the sparkling lights of the city in awe.

But not everything could go his way. Nearby, Damian heard a soft cackle. It was soft like a whisper, yet clear and coherent. Turning around, he felt his boots clacking underneath him as he ran towards the sound, sword in hand. The maniacal laugh happened again, followed by talking, which unfortunately was too far away to be audible.

"Freeze, criminal peasants!" Damian burst into the door to the building he'd heard the suspicious sounds from, kicking it down with as much force as a 10-year-old could manage. Inside, a criminal and his henchmen were working together to rob the building. The criminal had an eerie mask over his face that looked almost like a light green sack, except with holes for his eyes and mouth. Ropes held the odd fabrics to the villain's face, crossing over his mouth as if they were teeth. On top of his head lay an old, stitch-covered hat, similar to one a witch might wear. Scarecrow, Damian thought.

He ran over to the criminal, swinging his sword nearby. But just as Damian was about to hit Scarecrow, gas swarmed the air. The boy clenched at his throat and nose, instinctively dropping his sword as he did so. The muscles in his limbs tightened, the gas seeping into his body. Damian reached for his gas mask, only to have a wave of nausea stop him before it was too late.

Damian unmuted his communicator "I may… need… just a little bit… of backup." The world flickered in front of his eyes, forcing him to drop his communicator out of confusion. In the distance, he saw the dark, shadowy, figure of a man coming towards him.

"Good luck with that..." He heard Scarecrow whisper, the last bits of reality starting to fade out. In front of him, the only thing he could seem to see (or at least focus on) was the man. As the figure came closer, Damian could see he was wearing an iconic green cape with golden trimmings. Once his face began to show itself, it became obvious who it was. His hair stuck up a bit, the top of it being black, and the side being more of a white or light grey color. Thin beard hair creeped out from the sides of his chin.

"Grandfather?" Damian mumbled. The man nodded, an aggressive frown on his face. Damian reached for his sword again. "What are you doing here? What are you planning?" Ra's seemed content with the idea of just standing there silently, but after a moment, he finally opened his mouth to answer.

"I'm not planning anything, my grandson… my traitorous grandson." Ra's responded, his voice varying in volume as he spoke. Some words were spoken eerily softly, while others boomed into Damian's ears, sounding as startling as hearing a toilet flush in an otherwise silent night. "Plans are for the future. My past, even just my immediate past, holds much more value event-wise."

"What do…. What do you mean?" The boy stuttered, slowly pulling his sword a little higher in front of himself. The sword's smooth yet pointy blade perfectly covered Ra's, hiding him from Damian's vision. But just as he felt a small ting of relief from the illusion of security it gave him, it seemed to become translucent. Damian's eyebrow rose, puzzled at why he could still see Ra's despite the sword seemingly blocking his vision.

Ra's took a step closer. The sudden movement made Damian look up from the sword in surprise. He stared up at Ra's, glaring in anger. Ra's simply smiled menacingly and began to explain. "I have hundreds of assassins, Damian… You know that. It's about time I used my abundance of them to do something productive. So with the family of detectives split into groups out for patrol, I could easily assign a few assassins to deal with each. You don't think I, The Head of the Demon, would've missed such an extraordinary opportunity, do you?"

Damian stumbled backwards fearfully. He looked down at the ground, attempting to deny what he knew Ra's was saying. "You k-" He swallowed back tears. "They're d-"

"Yes, Damian," Ra's made a small motion to Ubu, who ran back to get something. Ubu came back with other assassins, all carrying corpses… corpses of Damian's family. "See for yourself."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the still-unmuted communicator, Bruce was yelling out questions. "Damian? I thought I heard the scarecrow in the background. Is everything alright? Did he intoxicate you? Damian! I can't hear you. Can you hear me?" He kicked a crook's head to the ground before quickly looking at Damian's location. It was way across the city from him. Quickly, Bruce jumped into the batmobile and began his long drive over.

"He got gassed, didn't he?" Tim questioned over the communicators.

"That's what I'm worried about… and from what we could hear, it seems likely." Bruce confirmed, looking down only for a moment before focusing back on driving. He pressed his foot firmly on the pedals, but no matter how fast he went, he knew it would take far too long to get to Damian.

Back on the other side of Gotham, Damian stared at the dead bodies in front of him. Every single one looked pale, not a single bit of life on their faces. He wanted to be with someone, hear a loved one's voice, but every single one of his loved one's in front of him. It was obvious he would never hear their voices again.

Just to be sure, he began to count under his breath, "Father, Grayson…" Everyone in the batfamily was certainly there. But it wasn't just them. "Goliath? Warrior… Mother?" He gritted his teeth even harder. That monster had really gone out of his way to kill every single person Damian cared a smidge about.

Damian turned back towards Ra's, about to make him pay for this, but his eyes glanced back towards his family just won more time. Suddenly, his teeth felt too weak to grit. Everything he loved about every single member of his family seemed to flash through his mind, making him dizzy. They were gone.

Cold sweat rolled down Damian's forehead. His legs felt like sticks as he stumbled on to the ground. The boy attempted to breath, but he stuttered and coughed instead. His head leaned down as he curled up in his cloak, tears streaming down his face. The only noise coming out was soft, miserable, sobs.

"I've taught you better than to be this weak." Ra's stated, frowning at the ball-shaped boy that was in front of him. "Didn't you know this was going to happen? What else did you expect after such a betrayal as your own? I couldn't just allow you to get away with it. Making your life miserable was just what you deserved."

Damian covered his ears, thinking back to the impossibly translucent sword. "This is all just an illusion…" He mumbled. "Just an illusion… Just an illusion…" He attempted to console himself, but felt his breath become even more shaky every time he spoke.

Slowly, though, he got up the courage to uncurl a little. Still moving at a slow speed, he began to turn his head back towards Ra's and the corpse.

"Noooo!" At the sight of his family's dead bodies, he immediately curled back up. Ra's sighed, turning away from Damian in disappointment.

Not far away, Talia had been jumping from rooftop to rooftop, looking for Wayne Manor. After getting a break from her assassins duties, she had immediately decided she wanted to visit Gotham to see her son. Damian's screams startled her, making her immediately head in his direction.

"Damian?" She asked, a worried tone in her voice. After only a moment, she burst into the building. Inside, her eyes darted right towards Scarecrow, who was smiling wickedly at a terrified Damian. She ran over to Scarecrow, throwing him on to the ground with all her might. "STAY. AWAY. FROM. MY. SON!" She shoved her foot up against his face, squishing him on to the floor.

With his head still crammed downwards, she took out her sword and put it up to his neck. "Forget what I just said… I don't think I should even let you have the choice." She carefully moved it even closer to his neck than before, hearing muffled yelps from him in response.

"Pleeeease… don't… hurt… me." Scarecrow managed to gasp out from the awkward position. Now even closer to the neck, she began to put it through. But just as she was doing this, she turned towards Damian. He was still curled up near a corner, sobbing. Knowing Scarecrow was already too scared to harm Damian any more, she ran over to her child.

"Grand… father… I'm sorry." Damian mumbled in between sobs. "I'm.. sorry." His head was curled downwards, not daring to even look up to see whoever had come over to him. Even from a couple feet away, Talia could hear his shaky breath. Even his loud heartbeat was slightly audible. Her mouth partially dropped, her heart breaking at the poor, small, child in front of her.

"Damian…" Slowly, as if to not startle him, she wrapped her arms around him. She carefully weaved them through his cape until they were all the way around. Feeling the warmth of her, Damian leaned closer to her. He hiccuped as he did, tears still rolling down his face.

She gently nudged him to lean on her shoulder, "It's going to be okay… no one can hurt you." Talia moved her hand on to his cheek, gently turning his head to face her. A soft, solemn, smile was now on her face. "I won't let them." Damian looked up to her, still visibly miserable, but at least happy for her comfort.

As soon as she let go, he wilted back down onto her shoulder, cuddling into her arms. She squeezed him tight, the soft smile fading to just a look of concern. Talia bent an elbow to massage and ruffle his hair relaxingly.

"But- but I'm not the one he's going to hurt." Damian whispered fearfully. He attempted to get out from her hugs, not wanting to be seen as weak. "Grandfather's going to hurt Father… and you. And everyone. There's nothing you can do."

"I'm… I'm really sorry, Damian." She whispered back, looking down at him sorrowfully. "Your grandfather is in the past, though. Or at least your time with him. Now that he's away from him, I'll make sure he stays away from you… and the rest of your family. But if it's me you're worried about, just know that he wouldn't dare actually kill me.. And I'd like to believe he wouldn't kill you, either." She turned around slightly and kissed Damian on the forehead.

Damian hiccuped again. Tears rolled down his face even faster than before. Still shaking, he buried his face into her shoulder. Talia rubbed his back, slowly trying to calm the boy down. After a few moments, he began to calm down and sob a little less.

Sighing, Talia wrapped her arms back around Damian firmly. She scooped him up off the ground like you might hold a toddler. His head continued to lean on her shoulder, but now, his body was farther in front of her than before, with her arms carrying it.

Talia continued to rub his back as well as she could, while carrying him outside the building. She pushed his cape around him tighter as a breeze trickled through. Beginning to close his eyes, Damia felt his consciousness drift away. His mother carefully dropped him down onto the ground again once they were outside.

Damian shook himself back to consciousness, "Mother, I'm too old to be carried." He complained, but there was a hint of exhaustion in his voice. It was obvious that after the emotionally-draining hallucinations he just experienced, he wasn't really going to get into a full-on argument.

Talia ignored his complaints, "Are you still seeing the hallucinations?" She asked him worriedly. Damian then realized that his eyes were still partly squinting, so he opened them farther. In front of him, he could still see a blurry vision of Ra's.. and some of the corpses, too. And faintly, he was still sure he could hear his grandfather whisper something menacing.

"A little.. But I… I can handle them." He shook his head again to try to get them to get away. Unfortunately, they only seemed to grow more vivid. Damian's heartbeat thumped, and he momentarily forgot to breath as Ra's started taunting him again.

"Now it's only a matter of time before you make new allies... certainly not ones my army can't defeat, though." Ra's stated matter-of-factorily. Damian made a small yelp, making Talia instinctively wrap her arms back around him.

"I don't think you can…" Talia mumbled, "I'll call up a-" Just as she was about to speak, a car zoomed by. It was mostly black, but with small yellow tints in some places. From inside, a dark figure popped out. She moved herself in front of Damian, but immediately smiled when she was the person's face. "Beloved!"

"Talia?" Bruce's eyes widened at the sight of her.

"You don't happen to have the fear toxin antidote on you, do you?" She asked, getting straight to the point. Talia scouched her son closer to Batman so he could see him better. "Damian got gassed, and he's not doing very well." She laid Damian onto her lap.

"Considering Scarecrow's such a common villain, I always do." Bruce slid down to a kneeling stance. Talia shifted Damian and herself to face Bruce, positioning Damian's arm higher so it was easy to inject into. He pulled out the antidote as quick as he could, and pushed it straight into Damian's arm.

Talia and Bruce both held each of Damian's hands, leading the sleepy boy over to the batmobile. She strapped him in just before Bruce began to drive off. As they rode, Damian's head gently bounced with the car's movements, rocking him to sleep.

When Damian woke up, he was back at the manor, curled up in bed. His mother, father, and siblings (plus Alfred) were all huddled around his bed. He yawned, suddenly turning to see the dogs beside him. Titus and Warrior both reached in to nuzzle Damian. Warrior, being the younger one, playfully bounced on to Damian's lap, meanwhile Titus simply stood at his side, and gave him a soft lick on the cheek.

"You're awake," Everyone responded, not at all in unison. Some said it fast and excitedly, while others said it slow and disappointedly. Either way, Damian was sure that every single person there said it, even if it was in their own odd way. He watched as Alfred set down some cookies and milk in front of him as a comforting treat.

Overwhelmed by the sound, Damian pulled the blankets up over his face. But as the dogs continued to lick at their owner, the blanket didn't stay up for long. Damian sighed, wrapping his arms around the dogs to nudge them under the covers with him. They quickly went under, making Damian hold back smiling from all the warmth it gave him.

"Let's just let him rest…" Talia suggested, standing up. She quickly motioned for the rest to leave the room. They slowly began to do what they were told. Bruce stayed to ruffle Damian's hair, but followed the rest immediately after.

Looking to his side, Damian sighed. Even as they left, he could still hear their rustling. As annoying as they were, they weren't going anywhere any time soon. Yes, his humongous family would stay by his side for a long while… and there was nothing even Ra's could do about it.