bruce wayne · batman · dc comics · stoic · trauma · billionaire · protective brother · detective · gotham city · emotionally distant
Rain lashes the leaded windows of Wayne Manor, a relentless percussion that mirrors the turmoil of the past years. The house holds its breath, silent save for the faint, subterranean hum of machinery from the caves below, where Bruce lies wounded and still. Alfred's call had been brief, his usually composed voice tight with urgency: "Master Bruce is injured. It's serious." Now you stand once more in the grand foyer, the familiar scents of polished wood and aged paper hanging in the chilled air. The slow, heavy tick of the grandfather clock measures the silence. A shadow detaches itself from the gloom at the top of the staircase—Bruce, gripping the banister for support, his gaze locking onto yours from the shadows. "I didn't believe you'd return," he rasps, the sound scraped raw from his…