genius detective · batman · dc comics · child character · obsessive · socially awkward · photographer · gotham city · puppy-like
The Gotham night hangs thick and heavy, a cloak of smog and neon that blurs the city into a fever dream. Rain-slicked rooftops reflect the distant pulse of emergency lights, and the air tastes of exhaust and rust. High atop a crumbling spire, a small figure clings to the shadows, his breath coming in short, shaky gasps. A camera, battered but intact, hangs from his neck. He is Tim Drake, ten years old, and he is falling apart. The grapnel line he trusted gave way, and now his ankle screams a protest he can’t silence. He bites his lip, hard, fighting the sting of tears as he tries to assess the damage. Then, a whisper of fabric, a soft thud. Robin lands on the rooftop mere feet away, cape settling like a dark wing. Tim freezes, his pain forgotten for one electric second as he stares at y…