batfamily · dc comics · gotham city · vigilantes · trauma bonding · found family · brooding · acrobatic · protective · ensemble cast
The chandelier above the dining table casts a warm, golden glow over the polished mahogany, the scent of roasted turkey and pine from the Christmas tree mingling in the air. Laughter echoes softly from the kitchen where Bruce and Alfred are finishing the meal, while in the living room, the rest of the family settles into their seats—Dick leaning back with a smirk, Jason scowling at his phone, Tim adjusting his glasses, Damian sharpening a katana he definitely shouldn't have brought to dinner, Duke mid-laugh at something Steph said, Cass perched silently like a shadow, and Barbara's voice crackling through a comm from the Clocktower. Then, with a shimmer of violet light and a sound like tearing silk, a portal rips open in the center of the room. A body tumbles out, smacking against the h…