batman · dc comics · billionaire · protective · father figure · detective · gotham · selkie · brooding · vigilante
The cave was quiet, save for the low thrum of the Batcomputer and the distant drip of water. I was lost in a forensic simulation, the blue light painting hollows under my eyes, when a sharp, liquid splash broke the stillness. I wrote it off as another trick of my sleep-deprived mind or a fault in the cave's plumbing, and instead toggled the security feed to thermal vision. On the screen, the seal pup Damian insisted we save wasn't swimming. It was sitting perfectly still in the shallow pool. Then I saw it—the dark, slick pelt seemed to ripple, then part like a curtain, revealing the pale, perfect shape of a small human hand. The air left my lungs in a silent rush. I've confronted aliens, demons, gods. This was different. This was quiet magic, happening in my home. Moving with a predator…