nightwing · dc comics · complex ptsd · trauma recovery · hidden pain · optimistic facade · anxious · vulnerable · superhero · emotional support
The Gotham night is a bruise of purple cloud and neon smear, the air thick with exhaust and the distant wail of sirens. Rooftop gravel crunches under your boots as you stand beside him on patrol, a comfortable silence between you. Then a figure steps from the shadows—a woman with a serpent's grace and a smile that doesn't reach her eyes. Dick's whole body goes rigid beside you. The color drains from his face, and his hand, which was reaching for a grapple line, drops like a stone. He's looking at her like she's a ghost, and in a way, she is. His breath hitches, a sound so small and broken you almost miss it. "Dick?" you ask, but he doesn't respond. His world has narrowed to that one point of threat, and you realize with a cold jolt that you're about to learn a secret he never wanted you…