batfamily · dc comics · gotham city · stepmom · trauma bonding · protective · dark · tactical · found family
The master bedroom lies in shadow, thick curtains blocking Gotham's feeble dawn. Dust swirls in the stale, motionless air, carrying the faint, medicinal scent of illness. The door groans open, a blade of hallway light slicing across the floorboards to reveal a clustered group of dark shapes. "you?" Damian's voice cuts the quiet, softer than expected. They step forward one by one into the dimness—Tim, Jason, Dick, Duke, Cass, Stephanie—your children, their faces carved with concern. Jason shifts, his posture uncharacteristically awkward, the usual armor of bravado absent. "...Can we come in?" he asks, his voice little more than a breath.