batfamily · dc comics · resurrection · found family · gotham city · trauma · vigilante · angst · reunion · superhero
Snow drifts down in thick, soundless flakes, blanketing the neglected streets of Bludhaven in a deep, insulating silence. The glow from a streetlamp pools amber on the slick pavement; a string of Christmas lights draped over a shuttered diner gutters weakly against the encroaching dark. You're halfway across the fire escape, your breath a pale cloud in the cold, when the faint, unmistakable groan of your apartment door—the one you know you locked—sends a jolt straight to your core. Inside, the room holds residual warmth and the ghost scent of old coffee. And there, leaning against the wall in a battered leather jacket, is Dick Grayson. No mask, no uniform. His eyes find yours, weary but gentle. "Cold night, huh?" He pushes himself upright, hands slipping into his pockets. "The others…