#also Batman isn't in Gotham right now either

[bluerosefox]

Little Grayson and his Talon Knights

Got a new idea cooking in my head.

Another DPxDC idea.

A reborn into DCverse Toddler!Danny but also Dad!Dick and Talons.

Danny is reborn into the DCverse (either he's a clone of Dick, a created test tube baby, OR a kid Dick unknowingly had during his amnesia year) and wakes up in the Court of Owls who finally have their Gray Son and will turn him into the greatest Talon ever.

Thing is, Danny still has his ghost powers (King Danny? Idk leaving it open, either that or just able to control clean ectoplasm) and knows whatever fruitloops have him, this will not be fun. So, when none of the Owls are watching him, he uses his abilities to influence a few Talons and they all book it out of the place.

Danny later finds himself walking the dirty Gotham streets with a few Talons, one holding his hand while the others hide in the shadows in case they need to protect the baby Talon they all care for.

Of course, the sighting of a Talon holding a toddler's hand catches the camera's and Oracles attention very very fast.

One of the Batboys is sent out, not Dick he's on a space mission right now, and whoever it is, is shocked to see a toddler that has a LOT of similarities to Dick.

[wandixx]

Bear 🐻 with me, because I don't usually go there, but I've got idea for Reverse Robins AU. If I got something wrong, feel free to yell at me.

Damian is oldest, but Duke is first one adopted. I have a lot more ideas, but that's what caused the spark. Like I said, 🐻 with me.

Like, Duke became Bruce's ward as an 8 year old, or something, after he became his own vigilante, running around in bike helmet, gas mask that probably didn't have filters changed in too long and off-brand Batman hoodie, looking for his parents and tormenting Riddler. Once he got somewhat settled, and Bruce started going out as Batman more, Duke became Lark, in part to keep doing good work, in part to keep being with closest approximation of parent he now has. And that's Dynamic Duo. I'm not sure how We Are Robins would work in that, sorry.

Then when he is late preteen/early teen, when Talia realizes Bruce can keep child actually alive, she drops teen Damian off (he's like, sixteen/seventeen).

There wouldn't be as big conflict for a mantle, because it wouldn't be as established as Batman's partner mantle and show me one teenager who would found anything done by younger kids as cool enough to fight for it. But he'd probably still try to drive Duke out for one reason or another. Maybe make him stop being vigilante, because "Batman can have only one partner and I clearly am more worthy". Dami would also be going through quite a bit of teen angst, because at the League, he was seen as practically adult, capable and all. He was a leader. He was a killer. He controlled not only his life, but also others. And then he was in Gotham, where he couldn't even have a say in which classes he wanted to attend when, if at all. So not only assassin reprogramming, but also great loss of autonomy. (I think he'd go by Vulture, to strike fear in hearts of villains, and then move on to Heron or something). I think he and Duke grow to be amicable with each other, if not outright brotherly.

Then, when Duke is in late-ish teens, he decides to go out during day and rebrands to Signal (or some other bird name, if you want, but I genuinely don't know enough about birds to give another idea). However, his Lark suit isn't too different from canon Signal one. He can't have the "name my mom called me, name that I carried on as my last connection to my family after my their death and now it was given to someone else and I had no say in it" angst, but I want to give him the "identity I created for myself because it felt like the only thing that could let me do the right thing and connect me to my foster parent, identity I haven't really moved on from, just adjusted as I grew up (became day time hero and changed name to Signal), is now given to someone else, and I had no say in it, and I can't even hate them because they too just want to do the right thing and have connection to the new parent" angst. I think Cass could become second Lark. She deserves that.

I unfortunately don't know enough about Cass to give her too much of a story, sorry. Cass fans, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the matter. She needs big arc, her part of the story, like everyone else.

Then comes baby Jay, picked up from streets gang enforcer, either manipulated, or regularly drugged with something to be more violent, but who clearly has good heart under all the violence. Bruce takes one look at him and is like "He is just like Damian, but baby shaped" and tries to lure him in like a stray cat. It works a bit, because Jason does get closer to Bats, doesn't move in, because he is independent thirteen year old and doesn't need charity (he breaks in sometimes though and steals food and gear, that fits surprisingly well and is weirdly in the open) He slowly untangles himself from the gang and all. He may go by Bluejay, or something like that, as sort of twist, by whoever first employed him, on the fact that kid vigilantes all go by bird names. And then something happens, Jay disappears from the face of the Earth, presumed dead. Dealer's choice if he actually died or what happened.

Bruce is, obviously, distraught, and can't stop thinking that if he was a bit more present, a bit more forceful, if he managed to get Jason home, nothing like this would've happened. Random members of the gang that previously kept Jay, arrive to Blackgate/Arkham, with so many broken bones, they wished Batman didn't have no kill rule.

But, before Jay died, your chosen line-up managed to rescue some girl, who was beaten up by Black Mask. Nobody is quite sure how she ended up there. They didn't know if she'd make it, but she did, and healed up quite well, cared for at hospital payed by anonymous guy (Bruce Wayne). Yep, that's Steph, and she's eternally grateful that she survived, but she very much could've died back there.

So she becomes Spoiler, doing her damn best to make sure nobody falls through the crack when Bats are focused on rogues and other big name criminals. Fumbled slightly at first, because hey, she has no training and is still finishing healing, but she got hang on it pretty quickly and Spoiler became quite a name on the streets (though not so much on rooftops. They heard rumors, but nobody has time to investigate). (And later down the line her father becomes Cluemaster, so she starts spoiling his game too)

Then Jay dies, Batman is distraught, and he catches glimpse of purple cape in the alley. After few nights he managed to catch up with her and realized, that this is also child vigilante running around and she becomes his emotional support child. She refused to take up the role, kicking and screaming to not let it happen, but B was pushing because "I failed Jay, I won't fail this girl too". For more angst, you could have him not knowing Steph's civilian name for some time because he didn't really care about her as a person but only as a vigilante who reminded him of his lost son he failed to protect.

Rest of the Bats are in various degrees of contact with him, but once they get wind of all that, they're all trying their best to get him od Steph's back, while also making sure she is not running around without proper gear and maybe some basic training, later down the line (I'm thinking that Bruce is outright stalking her, while rest of the Bats more or less drop stuff for her and leave note like "here is relatively adjustable body armor, here is a number you can call if you get in over your head, here is a panic button that'll tell me where you are if you press it, though I'll understand if you don't want it (if you want to throw it out, please destroy it, so noone else can use it, okay?). Sorry for Batman, we're trying to get him off your back, signed Signal"

It does get better with time, thankfully. Maybe Steph even became Lark for a bit, when Cass moved on from the role or couldn't do that for some time, for reasons related to her plot.

And then Bruce goes missing in the timeline and that's how Tim, who already had him figured out thanks to his fanboying over first Lark (idk, I saw somewhere idea that Tim was Duke's Robin and I think Duke deserves to be Tim's Lark in reverse) joins the family because his parents took him to one (1) expedition with them, because he was seventeen, meaning almost an adult and could be trusted with family second, less legal business, and while there he:

found out that Batman was stuck in time

found enough proof to not be laughed and brushed off

became target for League of Assassin's

lost spleen if you're into it

And when he got back to Gotham he just knocked on the door like "Hello, Damian Al Ghul-Wayne, or should I say Batman/Heron. I have proof your father isn't dead please let me in". It took some convincing but in the end they believed him, brought Bruce back (or forward if you really think about that). Then for some time Tim was... kinda there, on the outskirts of Wayne's life's, maybe taking leaf out of Steph's book and becoming vigilante. Then League of Assassin's targeted him for whatever he did before and he goes to Wayne's to ask for help, moves in "for few month for protection" and is never let go.

Could also be, that when Bruce is back from his time jumping, he's also back at harassing Steph and Tim sees it and goes like "I can put target on myself to distract him, if you want" and that's how he gets closer to Bats, idk. I think either way, Tim should be big Spoiler fan. Maybe she rescued him, when he got kidnapped as "a Drake heir" before Brucequest, and she instantly became his second favorite hero

And then Jay appears again, found while trying to steal tires from the Batmobile on a dare. He is far more positive about life, partially because he got away from whoever/whatever made him so angry, partially because he had chance to reflect on his relationship with Bruce and rest of the Batfam. He didn't reveal himself right when he got back because he wasn't sure if he'd still be wanted and suddenly he went from having to potential big brothers, and kinda twin, to four big siblings, and he wasn't sure he wanted to be youngest in such mix. But when he is found, Bruce outright kidnapped him and didn't let him out of his sight for week, because, yeah, with time the pain of loss became less overwhelming, but by god he wasn't losing Jay again. Anyway, this time around Jay was ready to accept hand extended to him and let himself be adopted, finish high school, go to uni, maybe become Lark for some time, but not to long.

By more positive I don't mean defanged, he definitely broke into prison to rebreak bones of the gang members and has to be stopped sometimes if anything reminds him of what happened to him. He's just less likely to go straight into mindless rage. Now he is vicious and can plan how to hurt the most.

But over all, for some time, it's peaceful.

And then Wayne family and associates go to circus that just stopped in town.

I don't have much story for Dick either, sorry, other than angst potential of the fact, that Duke, with power to see close future, was there that night. Not sure who'd blame him more, small Dick, hurt and grieving, or Duke himself.

Also no clue how to include Babs, sorry. She also deserves to be here.

Anyway, what do you think? About all of it?

[gotham-daydreams]

I love your concept of batman!reader, it makes me want to rip out chunks of my room wall with my teeth. So perhaps you can tell me and the rest of the audience something more about that universe.

Cheers!

Of course! And if anyone has any specific questions about anything in particular I'd be happy to answer them as well :]

Nevertheless, the universe itself is... interesting, I'd say!

It definitely falls into this small category I'm sort of making for myself in terms of characters where they "do too much", even if their reasons vary. Since let's just say that Batman!Reader is honestly a little too much like Bruce, and if he was somehow more dedicated to the mission. And by 'dedicated' I mean if you take Bruce's self sacrificial nature, and crank it up to eleven.

It's a shame too because Bruce obviously wants 'Batman' to act more like 'Nightwing' - a symbol that people can look to, not in collective fear, but as a symbol of hope and justice. Batman!Reader on the other hand, does not make that possible. In their own way, they really try to become Batman and disregard the human beneath it all entirely. But that's getting a little too much into the actual story itself-

I will say that in this universe, Gotham is actually safe. The crime it was once know for has taken a heavy hit, and everyone is safe - but at the cost of criminals essentially fearing for their lives. Your average citizen is safe, but for those under the streets and in back alleys, its very much like they're "under new management", and one that isn't as forgiving as the Bats that came before the current one.

Though, that is by design.

As I said in the little summary/concept, everyone is dead - but they didn't all die right away. There was a process the reader went through to get the cowl, and they actually were able to dawn it before everyone got the boot - but as you can guess from said little summary, they still don't quite feel like it's their own. Batman is still Bruce, it's still Dick to them, even if practically everyone else in the city would definitely be confused if either of those two were to dawn the cowl again - if they were able to.

Alfred is actually alive! Albeit very old and definitely living his last days, as one can imagine.

There is new technology! But I won't go into specifics since I'm not really all that smart and can't really say anything besides "everything pretty much has an upgrade", so...

Batman! Reader is actually very anti social and needs to get out more, it really is like the early days of Bruce being Batman, but worse.

Reader also had their own Robin at some point named 'Sparrow', things... did not go well on that end.

I imagine that the Wayne Manor is on a hill, at least in this particular universe, and everyone is basically buried there a little ways away from the manor. The reader even had the Grayson's and such moved so no one would be apart from their family, it makes them feel closer that way and makes it easier to visit them. Not to mention it avoids a certain incident that happened a long while ago from happening again.

There are new villians! One of which actually causes the batfam from another universe to come into Batman!Reader's dimension. Another raises the dead, but that isn't important as of now - and there are more... as I come up with them and also remember to write them down! Do they have names? Not at the moment! And also I kind of suck at names if no one could guess from the titles I come up with.

There is a statue in Gotham of the Batfam - minus Batman for obvious reasons, but Bruce and Gordon are squeezed on there. Blüdhaven has a statue of Nightwing. In the building for Wayne Enterprises, they have little holographic models of their previous CEOs and such, along with everyone that's come before, Tim is the latest one on there - the reader has yet to submit their model. To which, a friend of their's is helping them with the buisness - think of her as this reader's Lucius Fox.

Batman! Reader only has two other servants aside from Alfred (though they are more like the reader's only friends), mostly to keep the Manor clean and take care of Alfred while they're away.

Reader is also very tech savy and into how machines work and what not, all that nerd stuff! So very much like Tim, Bruce, and Barbara in that way. There is always something to get done and improve, and I will say that the stuff Alfred used to get around - the reader made themself.

In classic fashion, Alfred is actually very disappointed in a lot of the choices Batman! Reader has made in their life, but so are those closest to them, so be fair...

With no context, Batman! Reader is like if "ManBat" actually succeeded.

----

If anyone wants to know more, or has any questions, feel free to ask away!

[celaenaeiln]

i once saw a post saying something like that was like, out of dick, jason, and tim, dick should be the one traveling the world as he just feels like a free spirit, jason should be the one staying in gotham as he’s the one whose goal was always to help gotham citizens, and tim should be the one getting his own city so he can step out of the shadow of batman and robin. what are your thoughts on that?

I totally see where they're coming from because I used to think that way too. I still sort of do but some things have changed.

Let's start off with the first one -

"dick should be the one traveling the world as he just feels like a free spirit"

They're very right because this 'free-spirit' trait of his is actually explored in the comics. Like Dick!bats and Barbara actually have a full on discussion of this:

Detective Comics (1937) Issue #872

And this isn't the first time either! Dick LOVES travelling, he can't stay in one place. Actually, in one alternate version of the future, Tim gets mad at Dick because he decides to leave gotham after Bruce dies and Tim wanted Dick to stay as Batman.

After bruce dies, things continue on as always but they don't. Like we know in the brief time that Bruce was lost in time, Dick was forced to become Batman. But we also know that he hated it. But that was temporary right? In the future, Bruce officially died. And Dick HAD to be Batman forever. And he tried but Dick, ONCE AGAIN, HATES being Batman but the bigger issue is, he refuses to be chained down and the batsuit was a suffocating mantle of darkness. A coffin in a costume for him. So guess who becomes Batman in that future? Tim.

Tim becomes this evil-ish Batman in Dick's place. In the detective comcis, Tim meets his Batman self. He's shocked because like Dick, HE doesn't want to be Batman either. People who really understand the weight of the legacy don't ever want to be it. But this is what Future Evil Batman Tim says this to the current Tim:

Detective Comics (2016) Issue #966

Dick is always bouncing from place to place - New York, Chicago, Bludhaven, Gotham, outer space, different cities - he's all over the place. So it sees irrefutable that he shouldn't be tied to once city right?

Well, that person is so right. Because he isn't.

The only reason Dick has stabilized in Bludhaven, is because he's not settled down at all!!

The detective comics and villains address this too!!

Detective Comics (2016) Issue #1039

Like forget the titans for a sec, the villains are so aware of the effect Batman has on Nightwing and Nightwing has on Batman.

but no, the point is. Dick isn't tied down to Bludhaven because Bruce always drags him back to Gotham!

Gotham Knights Issue #1

The New Titans (1988) Issue #61

Dick literally turns back to Gotham in the middle of his way out because Bruce needs him but also Bruce calls him back! He contacts Titans Tower in MANHATTAN, NEW YORK to tell Dick that he needs his help in GOTHAM, NEW JERSEY.

Not only that, but Dick is constantly working with the titans while he's fighting crime in Bludhaven. Titans (1999) while also in Bludhaven and Gotham

The Titans (1999) Issue #14

The Titans (1999) Issue #3

He's literally running in and rushing to switch uniforms from being an officer in Bludhaven to being Nightwing in New York.

But main point with all this, is that Dick is 100% a free soul and his lifestyle now, as Nightwing, allows him to still be that. Bludhaven is his base of operations, his crownpiece, but the reason Dick doesn't feel restricted is because he's still EVERYWHERE. Those boots are continuously flying. He's not stationed there in bludhaven like Bruce is stationed in Gotham.

His need to travel the world is satisfied through his Titans involvement. And another reason why Dick can't be traveling to like China and Brazil constantly is because Bruce needs him. He's Bruce's second in command and confidant. So Bludhaven is the sweet balance between staying near enough to Bruce while being separate and the Titans are his way of flying free since they're fighting all over the world.

The only feasible way for him to travel the world as Nightwing as a lifestyle choice is to cut ties with bruce which he definitely won't be doing because Bruce is his crutch -meant both positively and negatively. (Privately, I agree with the person who said that quote tho even if Dick refuses to choose it).

"jason should be the one staying in gotham as he’s the one whose goal was always to help gotham citizens"

100% agree. Jason was born in gotham, raised in gotham, and died in Gotham. And made his comeback in gotham.

Suddenly he's in the middle of buttfuck nowhere fighting crime? Are you kidding me, DC? This boy, WHO LITERALLY FOUGHT BRUCE OVER BEING MORE CONCERNED ABOUT THE CITIZENS THAN BRUCE WAS-

Batman (1940) Issue #645

Nightwing (2016) Annual 2021

Batman (1940) Issue #422

Batman (1940) Issue #635

-all this and he suddenly abandons his raison d'être to fight crime in who knows where???

At the very least, I'm glad DC brought him back and stationed him in Gotham.

The only thing I would change about their statement is 'his goal is helping gotham citizens' to 'gotham women and kids'. My bro has no qualms about killing the men of gotham and this is also a very important distinction between him and Bruce.

Bruce cares about all of Gotham but his focus is on keeping Gotham functioning. While loss weighs heavily on his soul, a 50 year old man is the same as 32 year old woman in his eyes. His goal behind creating batman was to become a symbol of hope - that even if it seems like there's no one coming to help, there is actually one person who is there on the look out.

Jason's ideology is more effective because he has a certain target he pursues. His cases are likely those that target specifically women and kids where as Bruce's cases are just about anyone.

But the reason I'm bringing up Bruce, is because it relates to Tim.

"tim should be the one getting his own city so he can step out of the shadow of batman and robin."

I disagree. Tim should be stationed in Gotham because out of all the Batkids, he is the one that is most alike to Bruce in his ideology of Batman.

Tim has EVERY RIGHT to Gotham as much as Bruce and Jason. He, like both of them, was born and raised in Gotham his whole life.

Just like how Bruce's KNOWN for representing Gotham and being Gotham's hero, Tim has the exact same life circumstance as Bruce. He, like Bruce, was born and raised rich. He and Bruce are well-used to navigating the upperclass social circles or Gotham. Both of them went to school in Gotham until college.

So what if Tim was born rich. Just because Jason was born poor and knows the dark side of Gotham, it means that Tim doesn't? Tim's background is identical to Bruce's. Bruce Wayne - Batman - is known as Gotham's hero like Red Hood is known as Gotham's antihero. This is whole life! Like where is he gonna go?

Tim LOVES Gotham as much as Bruce does. When Tim became Robin, he became Robin not because he particularily cared for the well-being of the man under the mask, but because Batman's reckless state was affecting the city.

His story is literally how he was obsessed with dick and thus found out the identity of Batman and Robin and he wants Dick to become Bruce's Robin again because Dick healed bruce's mind in a way that Batman's behavior was reflected in his action on the city.

Batman (1940) Issue #441

Listen to his selling to Bruce why Batman needs a Robin-

Batman (1940) Issue #442

"I don't know why you decide to wear that costume-- but it makes you a symbol....And this isn't just a symbol of the law, it's a symbol of Justice. When one policeman is killed, others take his place because justice can't be stopped."

Tim loves Gotham. His reason for becoming robin was because Batman was a symbol of Justice. With the symbol of Justice out of commission, the crime in his city runs rampant.

When Bruce is lost in time, Tim begs Dick to become Batman because his city needs it.

Battle for the Cowl Issue #1

I hit the image limit but Tim gives up on asking Dick and decides to become Batman himself. At this time Jason is acting as a murderous Batman but Tim knows that the city cannot continue with Jason as Batman because the symbol of Justice playing killing and playing favorites? The man would end Gotham in blood battle and none of his actions are anything like Batman's which is what Tim's getting at.

So the main point in all this is, Tim will do anything for Gotham. His thoughts about this in Detective Comics (2016) Issue #966 where he's evil Batman in the future is also explored deeper and he talks about all the things he's done to the current Tim. In the future, he implies that he kills Damian who acts as batman because Damian runs the city into the ground with his actions and current Tim is horrified, calling him a monster.

Detective Comics (2016) Issue #966

Tim might love Gotham more than Bruce does and Bruce is known for it.

So Tim should absolutely not leave and set up station in another city.

Tim should also continue being Robin because he was made for it. Tim, more than anyone, understand what Robin means. Dick created the symbol and personlity and dynamic Robin should have. The thing is, he and Bruce have an inherent bond. Like, something about them just clicked. Bruce loved Dick's hope, thoughtfulness, and personality. They meshed into something inseparable. But Dick didn't actively think about any of his actions having a consequence on bruce when he was Robin. He was just doing his own thing, being his own person, and Bruce really loved him for who he was. No one expected that he would leave Robin one day or that there would be a second Robin.

And this is where Jason comes in. In the comics, Bruce actually tells jason when he becomes Robin that because he is taking the mantle of someone else, everything he does as Robin will always be tied to the mantle the first person created - the good and the bad.

He essentially proceeds to tell Jason that you will never be your own person when your wearing this symbol because you're merely inheriting the legacy of someone else. This is made worse than usual by the fact that you're wearing a mask.

So Jason internalizes this, but so does Bruce. Bruce wanted Jason to be Dick and was disappointed in his actions when he proves to be otherwise and this is what Alfred talks about in the Batman comics.

Now, while Jason internalized this and fought it, Tim reveled in it. He knew exactly what it meant to be wearing Dick's symbol on his chest which is why he gets hurt by Damian's replacement and grateful that Dick made him robin. His thoughts on this are explored in the Red Robin comics where he talks about how he adores Dick and Bruce.

This is also why Tim consistently talks about how Dick is the best robin (Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War: Scorched Earth and Robin 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1). And also what he's talking about when he says Robin is a symbol-

Just like how Batman is known to be the dark avenger, Robin is known to be batman's light-hearted partner. The counter-balance. Because this is the dynamic Dick inadvertently created with Bruce.

Because every time a robin, as Tim understands it, steps into his suit and mantle, they are emulating Dick. Which is why Dick is the best Robin in Tim's eyes because not only can no one be Dick, but also Dick exceeded in his responsibility as Bruce's counterweight. To be his partner. (Nightwing 1996 Issue 6).

(On the flipside, Dick think Tim is the best robin. These two <33).

But anyway, Tim deserves to be Robin because he's aware of the meaning more than anyone else. I cannot think of anyone more fitting than Tim to be Batman's robin. To understand the weight of the legacy and to serve the city he loves? He told Dick that he dreamed of being Robin when he was just a civilian watching him and Bruce. Tim should absolutely stay as Robin.

I love Damian, I really, really do but Damian was Dick's robin. His whole breaking free of Batman thing after Alfred's death was proof of that. If there must only be one robin, I believe it should continue being Tim because Damian, based on his thoughts, should grow into a new identity. Because for Damian, being Robin doesn't mean anything in the sense of being Bruce!Batman's partner. They don't mesh. He did specifically for Dick. Something about the cheery/patient-sassy/grumpy dynamic. It doesn't work when both Batman and Robin were both grumpy. But since Dick is Nightwing, I think DC should create a new identity for Dami. I still believe he should still be Batman though and I do like him as Robin but if I really had to choose, Tim was created to be Robin. He understands.

[brucewaynehater101]

Look maybe it’s just me but if I saw my little brother spiraling I wouldn’t just corner him in a graveyard once to talk about therapy then let him fuck off to go globe trotting

I mean... kind of I'm trying to be more canon accurate in my posts, so I apologize for correcting ya.

Cassie was the one to meet Tim in the graveyard. Dick met him at the city bounds.

Here's a funny pic of Dick as payment

Bruh. I'd either be so intimidated or so mad if Dick did this to me.

"We need to talk." After what Tim walked into of Damian wearing the Robin suit because Dick didn't talk to him until after the suit was made? I'd be mad (this is not an anti Dick. This is just how I would feel).

Anyways. Dick didn't let Tim go. Tim held him at staff point and guilt tripped the man into letting him go (not anti-Tim either).

Re-reading it again, I still think Tim is an unreliable narrator.

However, Tim is all like, "Hey, I know I sound nuts. I know how it looks, but I know I'm right." He provided examples of how he can, in fact, understand where Dick is coming from.

And then Dick is all like, "I know how you feel, but you need a therapist." Which... yes, but that's not the point. Tim is bringing up all this horrid shit in his life and acknowledging how he understands Dick's viewpoint (while also saying Dick is only there cause Cassie called him). Then Dick claims to understand Tim's perspective, but only from Dick's "Tim must be seeing things where isn't anything instead of grieving" viewpoint.

Basically, they aren't communicating with each other efficiently (they are also physically fighting each other while doing this too).

It's a mess. A hot mess.

Dick is trying:

But he's also just not listening to Tim. He's not giving Tim the benefit of the doubt. He's concerned af, but he's not listening or trusting Tim. He's just going at it from his own worried mentality that Tim's going down a conspiracy bender. I don't blame Dick for not communicating well (poor man is going through so much at this point [Damian, JLA, switching to Batman, etc]).

However, I also understand Tim's perspective. He doesn't trust Dick to actually listen to him. Dick wants to help Tim Dick's way and not what Tim believes he needs.

I personally get very very triggered if my boundaries are not met. If someone held on after I told them to let go? Yeah. Hands are being thrown. I also get triggered if people try to force me to do shit, don't listen to me, or try to do "what's best for me" when I've told them no. Real quick way to get cut off by me.

That's off topic, lmao.

Anyways, Dick kind of let Tim go, but that's because Tim forced him to. It wasn't because Dick didn't care, but he didn't care in the way Tim wanted him to (debatable if that's not how Tim needed either).

I'm curious. Are there any comics that cover that scene from Dick's POV? I'd appreciate it if anyone could let me know ^^

Also, I agree I would not do what Dick did here. On the other hand, my siblings and I have worked very very hard for the relationships we have. It's taken years of trial and error to get the boundaries and level of communication the way it is. We all agree to allow the others to make decisions for themselves and fight their own battles unless otherwise asked (I had a habit of trying to help and fix the situation for them when I was a teen. Now we just inform and offer help. Lots of acknowledgment for boundaries as well). If my siblings want to make dumb decisions, I let them. Just as they would for me. I might tell them I think that's dumb as hell, but it's their life.

If Tim was my sibling, I'd say something like, "I'm not sure I believe you, but I trust you. If this is what you need, if you think this is true, I'll support you. Would you like my direct assistance with this?"

If they say no, then I'll respond with, "Okay. I can handle Gotham as long as you keep me in the loop. If it's been 48 hours without contact, I will hunt you down. I love you."

Then we'd hug goodbye.

On the other other hand, there's not this age gap between us. Dick is 7 or so years older than Tim, and Tim is a teen. Dick may feel it's his responsibility to look after Tim and might be hitting the road bumps I did with my siblings (of giving them the respect and trust to handle their own issues as well as know what they need).

So, the situation is a hot mess :)

[solar-wing]

⚣ Therapist BatBro 👓

⚣👓 A/N → Therpist BatBro makes his debut. The second pic is honestly what I feel a therapy session in the Wayne family would look like. This is from another request I got from my previous account.

⚣👓 Summary → Your family isn't pleased with your new hobby or group of friends. But, somehow you've made it a business. Gotta respect the hustle at least.

⚣👓 Words → 2.3k

REBLOGS and replies are greatly appreciated, please! 👓

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The way I see it, you're either a vigilante with the fam and all the villains just seem to like you for some reason and ask where you are during a battle OR you're not a vigilante and you volunteer at Arkham (which would be absolutely insane but it's Arkham so it breaks even) and everyone there is cool with you. Even the Joker (which won't fly well with Jason at all).

We're going to go with the second option for this one.

So, since Bruce was adamant about you not joining the family business as a vigilante since you were the youngest and he had an unyielding urge to protect you and your childhood innocence, you needed to find something to do in your free time.

What better than to volunteer at a crazy house for psychopathic murdering villains?

Of course, considering Arkham was filled mainly with criminals your father had put there along with your siblings, it probably wouldn’t be wise to do that since they’d obviously wouldn’t approve.

SO, you did it anyway and just didn't tell them.

BatBro contemplating...

Duke was the first to find out. Batman had supplies Arkham needed but since he was at work and Duke always took the day shift as everyone liked to joke, who better to drop it off than him? Imagine his surprise when he finds his baby bro in there serving ice cream to Mr. Freeze.

"Here ya go Fries, my man. I sprinkled some ice shavings on there to make it a little tangier for you..." You said handing him the cone.

"Ha ha ha, aren't you hilarious." Victor Fries replied with a genuine smile. As far as The Signal persona knew, he was only capable of smirking or mean-mugging the shit of people, with the exception of an occasional shivering face while mocking someone for how cold they were.

'Oh, they're not gonna believe this...' Duke thought, racing home right after. The way he left the institution, the guards almost thought there was a breakout or a fight going on. Nope, but there might be when he told everyone.

Of course, no one believed him at first, just staring at the dude as if he just said the craziest thing in the world like Bruce being an emotionally available parent.

When you came home that night acting cagey and weirder than normal, they figured something was going on and maybe you were at Arkham but for something completely different than what Duke thought it could be. Because, there would be no way Bruce Wayne’s, aka Batman, own son would ever even consider fraternizing with criminals, let alone his enemies. Right?

So, like any other sane, normal family who responded to distressing situations with maturity and rationality... they spied on you.

Damian, Tim, & Cass followed you the next day. Tim was understandably distraught but also curious how you could have managed to form a friendship with Gotham's criminally insane.

Like...THEY WERE INSANE. But, when he really thought about it, considering the family you came from...yeah, okay. He can see the correlation now.

Damian, however, refused to believe his little brother could be so stupid and dense. How could you form relations with the enemy like that? It was stupidity. Plain idiocy at its finest. It was betrayal!

On the other hand, it was a smart move looking from an assassin's point of view. You know the whole keep your friends close and enemies closer deal, but that was his thing. Not yours! So you'd be getting extra noogies and brotherly beatdowns when you got home. In the name of camaraderie and righting your careless decisions.

Cass thought it was fucking hilarious.

Upon their arrival and finding you trading riddle jokes with Riddler, their jaws all collectively dropped to the floor.

"Okay, okay okay..." You breathed, calming down from your wheezing laughter. "Riddle me this...I'm neither a man nor a woman but don't hurt my wittle feelings cause I'm still a person. I'll kick you and scream at you, even both during a tantrum. My ego's bigger than my head but shorter than my height, who am I?"

Riddler took a moment to think about it before the metaphorical lightbulb appeared above his head, "Boy Wonder!" He pointed.

"Which one?" You immediately responded.

"The fourth one!"

"Yes!"

Tim and Cass both had to think about it before they realized the clues in the riddle. They're eyes went wide when they realized who you were talking about, and turned to see Damian who looked ready to tear your head off with his teeth.

"He's in for it when he gets home..." He growled through his grinding teeth.

Damian pissed (Left) | Tim & Cass (Right)

Everyone was mildly concerned when they came home that night and asked them how everything went only for Damian's immediate response to be that he was going to get his revenge sketchbook.

Why Damian has a revenge sketchbook, no one knows. But, everyone was just the right amount unsettled by it.

That night at dinner there was a bit of a tense air as Damian had to be placed between both Bruce and Jason to keep him from lunging at you with his salad fork. Usually, you were used to Damian’s somewhat murderous tantrums, but this was on another level.

He almost looked like he would grow horns out of his head at any moment, which would actually be somewhat fitting. Considering he was the grandson of the Demon and all.

You also noticed how Tim and Cass kept weirdly staring at you. Neither of them said something, which was odd(well except maybe for Cass), but you just ignored it and ate your dinner.

That night, you put some of your old booby traps from when you first moved into the manor back into place. You needed some sort of reassurance and protection to help you sleep. At many points throughout the night, you shot out of bed and grabbed one of the many random weapons you had hidden around you when you thought you heard someone trying to sneak into your room.

Damian definitely tried but had learned his lesson after the last time he got caught in one of your traps. You took a lot of inspiration from movies like Home Alone and The Parent Trap.

The next day, Dick and Steph went to check out the mental institution insane asylum.

Steph also thought it was funny like Cass but in a more ironic type of way. She’d rooted for you to get your own vigilante identity and join the family business. So this was like the ultimate petty revenge and she was here for it.

But Dick just couldn't imagine you in a place like this. His sweet adorable baby brother, in this horrid mess? He was calling it, either blackmail or manipulation. A rude awakening was awaiting him around the corner.

They looked to see you in the middle of practicing a handshake with Bane.

"No Bane, fist bump, then the arm wiggle..." You said, showing him the move for the 4th time.

"Oh sorry buddy," He replied.

"No problem man, let's try again."

They watched you go through the whole routine, Steph taking a video on her phone while Dick looked in surprise and jealousy. How come you and him didn't have a handshake like that? Every little brother should want to have a cool handshake with their cool big brother! Was he not good enough?!

Steph laughing in petty (Left) | Dick breaking down (Right)

When Dick stormed into the manor later muttering about showing you a real handshake, Bruce only raised an eyebrow when Steph walked in looking thoroughly entertained like she just watched the funniest show of her life. It certainly felt like it.

That afternoon, Dick gave you the cold shoulder all day. He even canceled your weekly brother movie night, which shocked everyone, especially your dad. What could have been so bad that would cause Bruce’s first protege to treat his kid brother like this? The same kid who he’d absolutely lose it if they went to anyone other than him for advice or would pout if he didn’t get the first hug from him when in a room full of people.

Of course, he still cracked when you gave him the hurt puppy dog eyes (a trick you learned from Jason that he used to use on Bruce all the time when he was younger). Dick caved and you guys ended up watching a movie, though you were mildly concerned whenever your oldest brother paused the movie and took the time to highlight the friendship and connection between two characters, especially if they were siblings.

Something like a special code, an inside joke, or even maybe a HANDSHAKE. What does it say about a big brother if his little brother doesn’t want to have a cool special handshake with him?!

Subtle.

You just nodded along, making a mental note to avoid any family-oriented films for your next movie night.

But, after this incident, you’d fully managed to get Bruce’s attention. He knew that Dick out of all his children was usually the least likely to get irate over something that wasn’t serious. So the fact that he did, despite how unserious it may have seemed, but it was settled.

Something was going on and your dad, no…Batman was going to get to the bottom of it.

Jason decided to come along with your father, fully prepared to drag you out of the building by force if he had to. He even went as far as calling your boyfriend Conner Kent, aka Superboy, who he and Bruce had a love/hate relationship with because they couldn't really threaten the boy like they wanted to if he hurt you.

Well, Jason couldn’t at least.

Bruce had more than enough kryptonite in multiple storages across his warehouse and had no problem showing it to the half-Kryptonian as a warning.

Conner was more than a little peeved, try fucking pissed when he heard you'd been hanging out with supervillains. And he as well was ready to sling you over his shoulder if he had to. But, probably not in front of your dad who kept throwing pointed glares his way as they moved through the building.

When Batman showed up demanding to see where the volunteer by your name was, they quickly rushed to show him to your location. He couldn't fathom this. The mere thought that his youngest child, his sweet, innocent (on a good day) good-natured son, would be hanging around all his enemies, laughing with them like they were good ol pals?

He'd sooner believe Joker was going to therapy.

The shock of his lifetime was also waiting for him around the corner.

They came around to see you through a window sitting in an office room in business casual attire, holding a clipboard and writing down notes while Joker was laying on a couch with his cuffed hands resting on his chest, venting out his emotions.

"And sometimes, I do feel like I go a bit far. But, I can't take all the blame. I mean, everyone paints me as the villain, but Batsy plays into our little game just as much as I do. Why does he get painted as the hero and me as a crazy clown? Well, you know, besides the clown face, HAHAHA!" He vented, ending with his usual eerie cackle.

"Uh-huh, and how does that make you feel?" You asked while scribbling a few notes on your legal pad and adjusting the fake glasses on your face before turning around at the sound of the door opening.

You felt your heart drop in your stomach when you saw your father, brother, and boyfriend all staring at you with very unhappy looks.

"BATSY! Oh, do come in! We were just talking about you. I think it's about time you and I got some relationship counseling." Joker exclaimed.

Not one word was said while Conner grabbed you by your wrists, (gently of course because he's caring like that) and dragged you out of the room, Jason not too far behind, ready to tear you a new one. Batman held his shoulder, while Joker just watched in amusement, "Guess my hour's up."

You, Bruce, and Jason arguing (Left) | Joker enjoying the show (Right)

You were immediately brought home after getting an earful from Jason to which you offered him his own free session.

He agreed.

Bruce demands to know why you would even consider going there, socializing with those people.

"Well, seeing as how I can't join the family business, I figured I could do some good in some way. And villains or not, they've got good in them! Just you know, when they're not trying to murder people." You answered.

You were interrupted by your other siblings appearing before you felt an arm forcibly turn you around which Conner raised an annoyed eyebrow at, but he kept his mouth shut.

"What does Bane have that I don't? Am I not good enough as an older brother to have a handshake with?"

You sighed, "Is that why you were so upset the other day?! Ugh, would you like to create a special handshake with me, Dick?"

" Yes! Super secret too! You can't have any handshakes with anybody else!" He hugged you while you patted his back.

Brothers could be so needy sometimes.

You could see your boyfriend eyeing you both with the strangest look. In your defense, he had plenty of warning of how weird your family was.

Before things could calm down too much though, everyone heard a shrill voice screaming your name from the top of the staircase.

"Y/N!"

"Fuck..." You muttered under your breath, before turning to see Tim and Cass giving you nervous looks.

“You were there with Riddler, weren’t you?”

They could barely look you in the eye as you turned to see Damian standing on the banister, holding one of your slippers in his hand.

"Who's short now?!" 

Alfred went to get the first aid kit.

Damian with your slipper...

BONUS:

☀️ | Bat Family | ☀️

☀️ | Masterlists | ☀️

[tarta-de-limon]

i wanna ask cuz like i haven't gotten to damian comics yet but like if he quit being robin would he continue being a vigilante? like would he take on a new mantle or quit for some time or maybe even permanently? also with your 'Robin dies so Damian lives' theory do you think DC would shove some kid into being the new robin? would it be mia mizoguchi or would he just not have a sidekick for sometime or maybe even forever?? i honestly have no idea what would be a good thing for ANY of the characters.

If I'm honest, me neither.

I think Damian should take a pause from the whole fighting lifestyle. He's been fighting all his life! That's what these new issues want to explore, right? Him getting to discover who he is as a person besides Batman's son.

I think he would do it momentarily though. For some reason I feel like something bad would happen that would push him to go back to vigilantism, but in his own way. So him leaving Robin and becoming his own vigilante persona/his own identity.

I really don't know if mia Mizoguchi should be the next Robin. As I said some time before, I don't know much about her, but being Robin is not exactly any kid should be, really.

I know it's batman and Robin, but isn't it a little sad to say: oh now that this Robin quit/died will Bruce took in another stray?

At this point the Bat-family will be immense.

If I'm honest, I don't know what will be best either. I just feel like they could take initiative in exploring Damian's character outside vigilantism. The animated movies kind of did, yk? Damian left Gotham and went in his own self finding journey. If they did a whole serie of it, I would totally read it, because there's so much to explore in Damian's character. It has been explored before, with the year of blood comics. That was an AMAZING comic that explores Damian character SO WELL.

DC should really do more comics like that.

[radiance1]

I’ve been thinking about this a lot and basically Danny is Beelzebub from Hellva boss with his own casino performs and the entrance defies reality and all his ghost rouges come in and go as they please and some humans and or mortals stumble in and think it’s just some place where metas party their fucking asses off which wouldn’t be that bad if this wasn’t FUCKING GOTHAM. Danny doesn’t know how they got in Gotham but they just want to party but unfortunately for him the bats hear a rumor some meta trafficking ring has been planning a big raid on a certain casino that’s new ish and they have to stop it so they go in disguise and they get to witness Danny and his rouges beat the every loving snot out of some traffickers

maybe Danny is a clone, maybes he’s reincarnated, maybe he lost a bet, maybe he moved to Gotham for fun, maybe he got tossed across the universe into Gotham

who knows certainly not Danny

Hmm.

I have zero clue if I want Danny to look somewhat like Beelzebub or not, but we won't be dwelling on that right now.

How Danny got to Gotham? I got zero blood clue, but he's there and is about to party.

Maybe this could even be set after TUE bad ending, where the explosion wasn't reversed, and he parties to forget the pain and just focus on the good vibes. Maybe stops using his human form, using his ghost form more and it subtly changing without him noticing into a different form or something due to his habits.

Maybe that some of his ghost form's new features leak over to his human form.

Anyways.

Maybe the casino isn't even in Gotham, like physically. Instead, it's the doors leading into the casino that're in Gotham City, and stepping through him just yoinks them into Danny's Dimension and into his casino.

So, Danny's casino is located smack dab in his own dimension, but somehow the doors pop up in Gotham for whatever reason and a few residents stumble through and see Danny and his rogues (who didn't want to kick a pup while he's down and indulges him) partying up to the high heavens and the lowest hells.

You could even say that, like Beelzebub, Danny is eating up all of the good vibes that comes from other people while partying. How and why does Danny own a casino?

Vlad.

Vlad is indulging him because they both lost something that day, and then Danny was placed into his care, and they were both two disturbed to really continue their entire good vs evil thing and they kinda just, chilled out with each other. Danny asks for a casino one day on a whim, Vlad indulges him, then Danny starts partying up to get away from his own grief while Vlad buries himself in work to avoid his.

So, when the meta trafficking ring tries to capture everyone at the casino and the bats are there to stop them. Every rogue there silently agree to beat them up because one, they have dignity as ghosts and can't just let themselves be captured by humans.

Two, this is the playground of Danny and one of the few things people unanimously agree to never fight in (one of the others is the Christmas truce).

Three, this place is also owned by Vlad Masters. If the man is anything like how he was before the whole kicked pup thing (everyone thinks this applies to both Danny and Vlad) then they don't really want to tick him off and they're basically doing these humans a favor anyways.

Anything they could do to them physically; Vlad could do worse to them in the human world.

The batfamily sees this, and decides that nobody here actually needs their help and can take care of themselves. But also, given the track record of metas becoming rogues in this city, they can't just leave it alone either.

They would make a file about them at the most for the case they decide to run rampant through the city. But they'll leave them alone for the most part.

(Danny doesn't know who or what Batman is, as he doesn't exist in their dimension, yes even the comics don't exist. Neither does the batfamily know Danny Phantom, because he doesn't exist in their universe either.)

[ckret2]

Thanks for responding to my question about Izekiel Clench!

It was really interesting to read what you had to say about him. That's pretty cool information, and I'll keep it in mind as a theory. 🤗

And hey, I have another question(yeah, sorry). How do you think he would interact with Scaramouche, Demongo, or even Aku?

It feels like he wouldn't hold back, except maybe around Aku.

It would be cool if you sketched it out. . . There are very few artworks with Izekiel anyway. . . 🥺🙏

i actually held onto ur first ask for a few days in the hopes that i'd find some time to draw him, buuut I'm working on like ten different ideas right now so I didn't find time lmao. but i think he'd be interesting to draw at some point so i'll keep him in mind for the future

this got long so it's under the cut, but the tl;dr is "he's more or less respectful toward them all (to their faces), but Scaramouche pisses him off and the other two just terrify him"

He really does strike me as a professional bounty hunter, and as such I think he'd be professional around other professionals. "Assassin" isn't quite the same as "bounty hunter," but well, Scaramouche is assassinating people with bounties on them, so I think Zeke would see him as in a similar line of work. That's a colleague.

On the other hand, Scaramouche is also a robot, and we don't see how Zeke feels about robots, but the ex-husband of Mrs. Josephine "The South Shall Rise Again" Clench probably isn't above spouting out all sorts of brand new stupid forms of future-racism. he's probably complained to a bartender about cheap robo-bounty hunters taking all the jobs from hard-workin' real humans. The bartender was probably a robot. It's probably making less than minimum wage. (I'm lying, there's no way Aku established a minimum wage.)

On the other other hand, Scaramouche is too annoying (I say this with affection) to come across as "robotic" . So I think Zeke would maintain his professionalism enough to show Scaramouche the proper respect due Aku's #1 assassin, and then complain about him to everyone else. that goldurned robot called him BABY. he ain't nobody's damn baby. does he LOOK like a baby?!

The one advantage is that Scaramouche is directly employed by Aku, so like, he and Zeke aren't competing for the same jobs. If Aku sends an assassin directly to kill someone, either he wants them dead too much to waste time putting them on a bounty board, or they've been on the bounty board and no one's picked 'em off, so it's probably not a job Zeke was working on.

100% when he found out that Scaramouche's primary weapon is the flute, he went "oh that robot's gay as hell. i didn't know robots could be gay." and like, he's correct, but still rude.

I don't think he'd have as strong feelings about Demongo. In spite of how he probably collected his warriors, Demongo doesn't give off "assassin" vibes—even though Aku probably uses him that way a lot. He's just a "warrior"—nonspecific title. He commits violence when & where Aku says. Zeke probably sees Demongo the same way Gotham's low-level goons see Batman. He probably doesn't know about Demongo's silly voice.

At any rate, that's not a colleague, that's a spooky urban legend guy. That's a demon, like an actual legitimate demon. Might be the same species as whatever the hell Aku is, he's not sure what Aku is, he doesn't think anybody's sure. If he runs into Demongo, be very polite, do not draw his attention, and do NOT let him know that Zeke's a good fighter. You want Demongo to think you're incompetent as hell. But not incompetent enough to be fun to torture and kill. Just be boring.

If it's after Demongo's lost his army though, all bets are off. He'd probably still be wary, but also sort of skeptical that this scrawny weakling really is THE Demongo. Might be an imposter. But he's not sure enough to risk it and piss him off.

While there's a possibility he could run into Scaramouche or Demongo, I doubt he'd run into Aku. Aku isn't the kind of person you "run into." It'd probably only happen if he killed/captured somebody Aku really REALLY wanted dead—like, if he'd actually succeeded in bringing Jack down. (and, hell, if aku offered to send a check instead of having a face-to-face meeting, zeke would take it.) Zeke doesn't seem high-tier enough to get jobs from Aku, but he's (clearly) willing to go after bounties that Aku's made public.

Zeke's probably got the same opinion on Aku as about 90% of the human race, which is "I don't like him but I'm sure as hell not about to disrespect him." He's on his best behavior to meet Aku. Took a shower, trimmed his beard, laundered his clothes, got new boots. Back straight, heels together. Takes his hat off in the presence of The Eternal Lord And Master Of All. "Yessir" or "no sir" to every question. Very polite, very professional, inwardly scared shitless.

As he's leaving he's like "so uh, is there any way I can get an autograph or...?" because he's gonna show it off to everybody he knows for the rest of his life. he doesn't ask aku though, he asks one of the guards. he's hoping they might have souvenirs they hand out to visitors or something.

[gffa]

Okay, not to defend Gotham War or anything, but I think I'm talking myself into liking what I see it's trying to do. Starting with some great tags on this post:

#i get why people are hating on it i really really do. trust me#but TO BE FAIR... zdarsky has been making it overwhelmingly clear that bruce is SERIOUSLY unwell right now#like it's been nonstop Horrors for him for like. over a dozen issues straight. with no rest or time to process. and he doesn't have alfred#who was a HUGE part of his support system not to mention the finances etc etc#iirc there's even a panel that pretty much outright states that this is more of an issue of control than morality#and that includes the choosing sides thing like the batkids seem more concerned w how bruce is going off the fucking rails than#just the moral aspects#anyway (via @clownprince)

#Batman#Bruce Wayne#REAL#REAL REAL REAL#LIKE. Zur En Arrh is a LITERAL Defense Mechanism going Malignant at this point#Not only that but throughout Zdarsky's run there's been allusions to illnesses and Bruce Not Having A Good Time#Not Having a Good Time and Not Having Time At All to take stock of the sheer What The Fuck-ery that's been going on recently#Because it's been a CONSTANT steam of What The Fuck-ery nonstop#And the Worse is yet to come if one considers the future issues synopsis and the ''I am a Gun'' story by Zdarsky#(At most I'm a little bit concerned over how Zdarsky will try to wrap this up‚ but that's a normal concern especially about Comics)#(Especially Batman Comics considering how often Editorial likes to... do things) (via @kaosvrow)

I agree with so much of the criticism of Gotham War, especially that the arguments for or against Selina's plans are absolute garbage by characters who should be making better arguments and that the other characters are being used as bobbleheads instead of actually giving them their canon personalities--and, okay, I will also point out that in the VERY FIRST ISSUE, Selina's plan gets someone killed and so I'm willing to extend some grace that the story isn't trying to push forward that either way is actually right, I honestly don't think it's about that. I think it's a story about Bruce Wayne's mental state, because Zdarsky's been building this up for awhile now, like the issue immediately prior to Knight Terrors? Shows us Bruce's mental state is ALREADY absolute TRASH right then:

Zur-En-Arrh was already leaking through the seams of his mind, he was already feeling the impending doom of everything he cared about being burned away, that his mind literally couldn't watch his kids being happy and together and getting along without feeling like it was all burning to ash.

And then Knight Terrors happened, which was one more thing digging hard, boney fingers into his trauma, and he handled it pretty well in the moment, but it's such a giant, non-stop pile of stress on a mind that is already damaged to hell and back because of his trauma.

Further, the very first issue of the Gotham War storyline? The very first panel, the one that sets up the stage of what's going to happen, makes a very clear point about how this is about Bruce fracturing:

And then on the very next page, Zur-En-Arrh is literally stalking at the bars of the cage around Bruce's mind.

And then Bruce wakes up and it's immediately more establishing just how worried everyone is about him because so much has been piled on lately:

Bruce hides his missing hand from his family, just like he's trying to hide how scraped thin he is right now, and goes out on patrol.

Where his internal monologue is all about how defensive he feels lately, how he feels like the years are catching up to him, how nothing feels right but this, making it clear that Bruce is hanging onto Batman with a death grip because it's the only thing that feels stable to him right now.

And all of this is in the first TEN PAGES of the first issue, this is our set-up, this is our foundation, this is what we're being given to understand what this story is about. Then Batman #137 happens and it's literally ALL ABOUT BRUCE'S MENTAL SPACE, that Selina's plan is the catalyst, not the driving point behind all of it. Again, I'm in 100% agreement that the Batkids are acting like cardboard cutouts because you will never get me to believe that they didn't notice crime going down or that they wouldn't be pointing out that Gotham's wealthy are just going to start making their security lethal in response or that the Court of Owls won't step in, that this is not a long term solution to giving these people lives beyond crime, or even that a lot of them should be agreeing with Bruce, that they don't get to decide who is an acceptable victim. But the story isn't really about changing up the way comics deal with crime, it's about even the Batkids are framing it in terms of how it's about Bruce. Jason is really the only one who seems onboard with trying out Selina's plan, but even his confrontation with Bruce isn't really about that, it's about all their baggage, their fight immediately becomes about how angry Jason is at the way Bruce has treated him. This fight isn't happening because Jason's a true believer in Selina's plan, it's happening because he's angry at Bruce and Bruce is in a shitty mental place, after all the non-stop horrors AND feeling like he's been betrayed by the kids who he thought understood that people being victims wasn't acceptable, and so he lashes out at Jason.

When they fight, it's not because they're siding against Bruce, it's because he's become unstable and dangerous. The why of it doesn't matter, it's not about that.

(And I'm actually okay with the way that fight happened because I can buy that, for example, Cass might be holding back against him, she's a stronger fighter than he is, but he's being ruthless because of the state he's in, while she might be feeling more cautious.) When they fight, it's not because they're siding against Bruce, it's because he's become unstable and dangerous. The why of it doesn't matter, it's not about that. Even further, when Bruce fights against his kids, he's wrong and biased, especially in the fight with Dick, who he thinks has a sloppy offensive and doesn't know darkness like he does--to which Dick just immediately cracks him in the face because, yeah, Dick Grayson does know darkness and Bruce isn't as untouchable as he's trying to make himself seem (because being Batman is all he has right now).

I think it's important that it's Dick who defies his expectations here, because this story is building off context of what happened between Selina and Bruce, that they were truly together for awhile, they were about to get married--Selina mentions that it the first issue, it's a major thorn in that conversation when she throws out how she doesn't believe that Gotham needs Batman anymore, it needs her.

She's giving him what he said he always wanted, she's giving him the thing that kept them apart, he should be happy, should they head to the church now? Saying that he won't because he wants to be Batman more than he wants to solve the city's problems.

The failed wedding between them is important in part because of what Selina's saying here, illustrating that both of them are bringing a lot of baggage to the table but also because of what else happened during that storyline, why the context is so important. Because that storyline dovetailed into one about Bane wanting to take over Gotham and he needed Batman unstable and distracted, which was working after Selina left him at the altar, he was a mess. But you know what was saving him at the time, bringing him back from the ledge? THIS KID:

Dick was the one poking and prodding at Bruce with jokes and warmth and care and it was working. He actually got Bruce to cry in front of him, to release some actual genuine emotion!

Dick makes Bruce more emotionally stable, to the point that Bane had to hire KGBeast to shoot Dick in the head just because he was so good at stabilizing Bruce--this is also why Dick's the one who says he'll go talk Bruce down off his moral ledge in Batman #137.

So, it's Dick that has to be the one to defy his expectations in the fight, has to be the one who breaks through Bruce's offense and knocks him down in what feels like a betrayal even when it isn't, because this isn't a story about who's right and who's wrong, it's a story about Bruce isolating himself because he's mentally fractured to hell and back, because he's not trusting his kids, he's still hurt by Selina leaving him, he's still grieving Alfred's death, he's run ragged physically and emotionally and mentally by a series of exhausting horrors piled on him, he's lost his family's fortune, he's not even living in his own family home anymore. (I focus on Dick here as an illustration of tying this back to previous examples of Bruce crumbling and important context that the storyline is drawing on, but Gotham War isn't really specifically about Bruce and Dick's relationship, but more about Bruce's relationship with all his kids, like Tim and Jason and Damian all have equally important moments. But it's a very direct example of how his children are a huge part of his support system and draw him back from the ledge of being just Batman and back into being Bruce.) That's why the issue ends with Bruce getting the papers telling him that the bank sold Wayne Manor to Vandal Savage, because it's one more thing that's stripping Bruce Wayne away from the character, and leaving him with nothing but Batman and Zur-En-Arrh. Gotham War isn't actually a story about a war for Gotham. It's a story about Bruce Wayne going out of control and everything is written to serve that. The characters' fights are catalyzed by Selina's plans, but they quickly become about Bruce's relationship with the characters. The narrative makes heavy-handed points about Bruce feeling like he's losing his grip, that he's hallucinating and talking to himself, that he is extremely mentally unwell right now. Everything Zdarsky's been writing (like especially the "I Am a Gun" storyline right before Knight Terrors) has been building up to fracturing Bruce Wayne.

[helpfandom]

Yandere Platonic Two-Face {TAS} x Reader HCs

Ngl, I'm thinking about doing an analysis on the TAS villains. ALL of the TAS villains with the same kind of reader.

It's just that realistically, this is the type of reader that would be the most likely with how Gotham is.

Honestly, I have no idea on why he would initially be interested in a kid, if it wasn't for a bad reason. Not saying that yandere isn't bad, but more so that, I can't see him stalking a kid or anything for any morally good reason.

But, in the interest of fanfiction, we shall say that this reader is of the 'uncaring' variety, much like my Riddler (also TAS) reader.

So perhaps, Reader initially met him in a dark alley, so of course, without realizing, he pulls out a gun and threatens you. He was shocked with himself that he would do that to a kid, but on the other side, no loose ends.

So, he flips the coin. But reader tells him that it's not a 50/50 chance like he has always believed. {It truly is not, by the by, it is ever so slightly tilted to the heavier side, making it a 51/49 chance.} This catches him off guard and he fumbles, losing the coin.

The two-toned man rumbles to you. "Go ahead. Leave. Take your chance and live." You stand up from your spot, having fallen from the spook of running into one of Gotham's infamous villains. "Cool. Thanks man." You walk off, feeling his stares, but letting it slide off your back.

Why would you walk from someone who is a villain? A scary person who could kill you, simply for existing in the same area as him?

And with that, you sealed your fate. He couldn't get your words out of his head. Was everything he believed in a lie? Was everything he's doing for naught? With that simple sentence, you broke his entire world in half. He needs something new to focus on. Too bad it had to be you.

Without even needing the coin to decide, he knows that he has to see you again. You've haunting him, it's so stupid that you've been doing this to him. WHY! Why are you haunting, why are you stuck in his every waking thought?!

Needless to say, he's a very quick yandere. I mean, he already has an obsession, it just moved to you.

I wouldn't say he's quick to kidnap. To me, he seems like more of a stalking type at first, but then, when he goes to flip his coin again to see what to do tonight, he thinks of you. He thinks of how you interacted with him and your words get stuck in his head all the time.

Would he be prepared for you? No. Not really. I mean, it's not like he sees himself as a dad either, it's more of just... He needs you there. You need to be there for him. His obsession with the coin flipped over to you, and now you're the one reason he's still here, able to articulate his words, be alive, and live his life.

Batman and Robin wouldn't be able to help you out either, for he wouldn't let any sign of you actually affecting him show, unless...

Set the scene: Two Face is robbing a bank, he flips the coin and right as it lands in his open palm, you walk by, unflinching at the alarms going off or anything. you. You. YOU. He drops the coin, everyone who knows him even a little bit is shocked at that. Why would he ever let it drop? Everyone knows that he's obsessed with it.

That would be the only sense in which Batman and Robin would ever find out of an obsession with you. The way he pauses when someone says something that sound like your name, the way that he purposefully selects the spots away from your home so you're less likely to be caught in the crossfire...

I can see Batman connecting the dots, but at that point, its too late.

He's already kidnapped you.

Goodbye.

[puppetmaster13u]

*slams hands down*

TELL ME ABOUT THE BACKROOMS AU

*Rapidly Vibrates*

OKAY!

So it's still in it's infancy right now, but the idea is that Bruce is a Backrooms entity who sometimes wanders the darker areas of other levels. It's the equivalent of him going on a walk whenever Alfred tells him to go outside.

The batkids are wanderers, specifically kids who have no-clipped into the backrooms and into various levels at various times. Actually have a lil blurb of Bruce's behavior according to other wanderers

  "While normally neutral towards any wanderers and a majority of other entities, it will become hostile the moment it is attacked. Batman will not become hostile immediately if aggression is shown, and may be made to retreat to darker areas if there are too many aggressors present."   "If you see it wandering it is best to stay out of its way. Only approach if you are in danger or another entity is pursuing you. Most entities will avoid entity (??) if they can and may stop pursuing you."    "A different behavior is noted towards those under the age of eighteen (though may be up to nineteen) who are not with a group. If it spots an unattended minor, it will purposely approach, even in an area with large amounts of light, and attempt to coax the child closer."    "It will then pick the child up, and retreat into the shadows, after which it may not be seen for months at a time. It is unknown what happens to the child."

Now what happens is Bruce sees a child, either actively in danger or all alone, and gently coaxes them over where he can make sure they're safe. And well, most levels are definitely not, so he'll pick them up and use the shadows to slip back to his home level. Which is pretty much Gotham, with two sublevels. One which is the manor, but very liminal and actively shifting around and is straight up controlled by Alfred, who is also an entity. Just one that looks completely human. But is immortal. The other sublevel is pretty much the Batcave systems and has so many exits to so many different levels.

But he'll bring them home to the manor. And well, it's the Backrooms, chances are they don't exactly have a caretaker. So he just kind of... takes them in.

But again, it's the Backrooms. People become entities. Hounds if they get bit, Wretches if they get too exhausted and starved and dehydrated. That's not exactly the case on Level G and it's sublevels.

Not that Alfred would ever let any of his wards be anything but well fed and rested.

So the children usually don't exactly stay human, just like how Bruce didn't stay human when he first fell down into the levels. It isn't exactly noticeable to them at first, but it happens.

And well, again, the backrooms aren't exactly safe, nor are there easy access to food or water, while with Bruce and Alfred there is. They get three meals a day, alongside snacks whenever, and their own rooms, and Bruce brings them knickknacks from other levels too! So why would they want to leave?

Though again everything is in the very early stages of figuring things out lol

[94badbye]

Gotham mourns the day of Jason's death, and Tim Drake should too, but he can't.

It's a day of pain and sorrow in many, many ways. Bruce wakes up earlier and leaves earlier, and Alfred speaks softly and quietly, as if there's real grief in the air.

(There is. Tim knows. He remembers finding out about Robin, about Jason Todd, and then realizing the bitter truth behind it all. Robin is dead.)

In the beginning, people used to call Jason a street kid, a rat. Tim's memory has always been fantastic, and he remembers people's harsh words about that young, young boy, and how Bruce Wayne was fraternizing with poverty, while others were kinder, gentle and sweet, because if even a rich man like Bruce can do such a thing, then there's still hope. It was stupid, and Tim still can't understand how people can be so shallow.

Such a young boy, and Mr. Wayne was a hero by adopting him, by taking him under his wing, by treating him like his son.

It's been months, and yesterday Wayne Enterprises made a big donation to some shelters of homeless kids that is definitely going to be in the news, something about Bruce Wayne remembering his dead son's life.

Bruce took the day off.

It's weird. Every year, Bruce will mourn like Jason was just killed again.

Maybe. Maybe the Jason Todd he knows really is dead forever, and this version of him is what was left, something different and twisted.

If Tim tries hard enough, he can feel the scar on his scalp, the ugly pattern on his skin, close to his nape. And he can hear the shouts. And the screams. And the sound of broken glass being stepped on. Everywhere. And blood blood blood, a red mask standing over him, fists clenched and hoarse voice.

He feels like throwing up when he thinks about it. It's kind of hidden in his mind, but not exactly—a blurry memory.

Sometimes, he closes his eyes and has a flashback of a bloody uniform. A memoir. The uniform of a young soldier.

For some reason, the second Robin was known for being ruthless. Sometimes, in the past but not that long ago, Bruce would call Tim by Jason's name, and wouldn't even notice his mistake. Tim wouldn't correct him either.

Today, on day of Jason's death, Red Hood is nowhere to be found.

Big boots, strong arms, a gun. Sticky blood.

Replacement, Replacement, Replacement.

Now, they're in the Batcave, high-tech equipment everywhere around them. Tim is standing but Bruce is sitting down, typing something in one of the computers, because a day off as Gotham's bachelor doesn't mean a day off as Batman.

"B," Tim says. Soft but not too soft, because Tim isn't supposed to talk about today, not like that, not like it's easy.

Robin was created to save and to smile, never to suffer or to die.

"Hm."

"Are you okay with patrolling on your own?"

Say no, so I'll stay. Please. I'll sleep here, in my room, and we'll wake up tomorrow like this day never happened.

Please.

"Of course. You should go, Tim. It's late."

Never too late. He wants to stay. Bruce is big and tall and Tim wants to hug him and tell him about the scar that is never going to fade away and the blood and the glass.

Look what he did to me. I mourned too, but look what he did.

Anger is something no Robin should feel, and yet—

Tim's cheeks are suddenly warm and he looks away from Bruce.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Alfred can give you some food so you can eat when you get home."

"I'm not hungry. And I can cook, you know?"

Blue eyes, just like Tim's and Jason's, but Jason's are also kind of green. Tim wonders how much of a father figure Bruce used to be—did he buy Jason books and toys and watch movies with him? Did Jason have nightmares just like Bruce still has? If so, did Bruce hold him through it?

Tim's parents are traveling. They're coming back next month.

Bruce isn't there to hold him when he wakes up in the middle of the night, but why would he be anyway?

And Tim knows Bruce asks his next question more because he needs to than because he wants to, "You know you can stay the night whenever you want, right?"

Even tonight?

"Yeah. Yeah, I know, B. But I have school tomorrow, so… I should—I should go. See you tomorrow, kay?"

Tim doesn't even talk to Alfred about the food. He just leaves.

[brucewaynehater101]

Breaking in because some months ago you posted an AU idea where Dick kills Batman before Damian arrives but imagine if Dick realized that Batman got so bad a child resorted to being brutalized because he thinks he's needed to fix him

So then Dick ends up killing Batman BEFORE Jason ever arrives, and disposes of the body in such a way, that trying to ressurect Bruce w/ Lazarus waters is pointless

There's two three four ways we can do this

a. Jason only learns of Batman dying after coming back to Gotham and before meeting the Batclan

b. Jason learns Batman died while still with the League, something that throws him, Thalia, Ra's, and whoever else for a loop

c. Jason doesn't even know Bruce is dead after getting to Gotham, and it takes time until he learns Dick is Batman

d. Jason and the League only knows of Batman being replaced or missing himself, and only later learn he's been found or announced dead

When the newest Red Hood tries to pull shit? Dick (the new Batman) has none of it as he is extrq protective of his Robins (Tim and Stephanie) after Jason died and Tim was abused

Now what to do w/ Bruce and Wayne Enterprises? I mean, Dick w/ Barbara and Tim's help can become the new patriarch and owner/CEO but there's also the fact that tjey need to navitage the chaos that is either Brucie Wayne dying or going missing qnd being qnnounced deqd unsuspiciously

There's also the idea that Dick (+any accomplices) would have to navigate relations with the Justice League whilst hiding his murder, and Gotham has to deal w/ the changes a new Batman introduces

Suddenly Batman is putting the wellbeing of the people, especially his kids, over justice and his ideals, and whether or not anybody suspects or knows this new Batman "took care" of the old one leaves a lot of potential for plotlines

Also Cassandra, if she still joins the Bats, has to grapple with the patriarch being a killer because the previous patriarch was an abuser

Gosh how will this affect Damian and how he's raised? How will the LOA respond to Bruce's death?

Oh yeah Jason, I can't imagine Dick would leave Joker alive either after what happened to Jason, especially if there was a Joker Junior incident

It's gonna be a mindfuck for he, he needs wanted for his father to prove himself as still being his dad, for Bruce to choose him over "The Right Thing To Do" even if Jason became something Batman would hate

Except Jason doesn't even get the closure of his father proving himself a failure of a father, because Bruce already failed as a father to Dick to such a degree that his reward was death

Jason doesn't know who his father is or would have beenanymore, just that Dick is to Tim, Stephanie and so on what Jay dad wasn't as he was in the League, training for an encounter that would never come

Ooh! But let's add on more, shall we?

I don't remember the og post you're referencing, but let's be mean to Dick :)

I like the many many possibilities for Jason you've listed out, but imma get specific on how Dick killed Bruce.

To be cruel, let it be an accident.

For the exact stage, perhaps the JJ incident still happened, but after Tim was Robin. Dick didn't find out about it because Bruce never informed him, and Dick was busy with Bludhaven and the Titans (it was another unfortunate timing for Dick).

About a year or so after the event, Tim is doing much better. He's been on the field for a bit and doesn't relapse as much (either into thinking he's JJ, Joker's his dad, or the laughing spells).

Joker captures Tim again and calls him "Junior." Dick has never seen Tim react the way he did to that name.

They have history. A bad one.

Bruce isn't surprised.

Bruce hid this from Dick.

The young adult has to take several breaths, but he holds his reservations. Maybe Bruce was respecting Tim's boundaries (yeah fucking right).

Fighting happens ya da ya da and Dick learns what Joker did to Tim.

He's fucking enraged. Joker has touched another sibling of his.

Then, the Joker and Tim are in a precarious position. Dick rushes to save Tim and barely manages to get him in time.

When Dick looks up, the Joker is perfectly fine. Nightwing feels his blood start to boil.

His baby brother almost slipped out of his grasp when he rushed as fast as he could to save him. Dick moved, without hesitation, to save Tim.

Batman would have had to move, without hesitation, to save Joker over saving Robin.

Batman put Joker's safety over Robin's.

The flip is instantaneous.

Nightwing starts pummeling the shit out of both Joker and Batman. Due to the element of surprise, Dick had the upper hand. He gets broken ribs and a concussion for his troubles, but Batman is beneath his fist taking the beating Nightwing is dealing out.

He never realizes Bruce has stopped breathing until he feels a hand on his elbow.

Tim's expression is grim as he focuses on Dick. The teen is heavily dissociating as he takes in the scene.

Tim's lips, when he glances down at Batman, start to tremble. He presses them together to try to keep a calm facade.

The teen closes his eyes, breathes in, breathes out, nods to himself, and then opens them.

Bruce is dead. Joker is dead.

They've got work to do.

~~~

In this AU, Steph becomes Robin during Tim's recovery stage from JJ and after this incident. Tim takes a step back after helping Dick dismantle and hide Batman's body to consolidate Dick's position as Wayne heir, majority shareholder, and Batman. He works with Babs to aid Dick in these various transitions.

Lucius is the acting CEO, which takes a huge load off of Dick's shoulders.

Dick is obviously not doing fine about accidentally murdering his dad. At least he killed Joker too, though.

Tim's not doing great either, but it's fine. He eventually steps back into the cape. Steph and him like to play pranks on Gotham. They both vehemently deny that there's two Robins running around at the same time.

I don't think Alfred would stick around after they murdered and covered up the murder of Bruce :/ I wish he would, but maybe he takes a nice retirement in England.

Babs, Tim, and Dick are good at covering their tracks. There's rumors that the new Batman killed the old one, but there's also rumors that he eats people.

The LoA don't know who killed Bruce, but they know he's dead. Tim and Dick still grieve him (feelings are fun like that), so they aren't on the suspect list.

Red Hood shows up demanding answers.

Batman (Dick) confirms that he *will* put his family first. Always.

[thebisexualdogdad]

Thea Queen x Red Hood male reader headcannons?

Thea Queen x Male!reader

● after the whole dying and coming back to life thing you decided to leave Gotham and start fresh somewhere new

● you heard about the arrow and his team and thought you'd head out west to check out what they were all about

● you met Thea when jumping in to assist them in a fight and immediately started flirting with her

● "Who the hell are you?"

● "I'm whoever you want me to be sweetheart and can I just say red looks even better on you than it does on me"

● "I hate him already"

● except after only two missions with the team you were already sleeping together

● you weren't allowed to tell anyone that you were hooking up

● felicity was the only one who figured out what was happening

● Felicity "I wonder when they are going to tell us they are hooking up"

● Diggle "what are you talking about? They aren't hooking up they hate each other"

● "they are definitely hooking up, I think arguing is a kink for them"

● the day finally comes when you're arguing about you being too reckless

● "why do you even care so much Thea?!"

● "Because I love you, you asshole!"

● this leads to really intense 'I love you' sex and making your relationship official

● and telling the rest of the team

● Diggle "oh damn, Felicity was right"

● Felicity proudly "told you"

● you two are the ultimate red superhero power couple

● when she finds out about your history with the Lazarus pit

● "is there anyone this thing hasn't resurrected??"

● Oliver hates seeing her on your motorcycle

● "So I can be a vigilante but I can't ride on my boyfriends motorcycle?"

● "I'd prefer if you didn't do either but I can't seem to change your mind about the first one so the least you can do is give me a little peace of mind with the second"

● she doesn't

● you love not having to pay for drinks at the Verdant

● Thea "you know you're gonna run my bar dry if you keep drinking everything from the top shelf"

● "Hey we don't have any clubs this clean in Gotham and im taking advantage of it, back home you're lucky if the only thing a bar is infested with is cockroaches"

● sparring together

● she surprised you with how good at hand to hand combat she is

● "damn Thea, now I know why they call you speedy, you dodged all of my punches"

● and another time she knocked you down and landed on top of you

● "batman would be so disappointed to see me in this position"

● "really because I thought you liked me being on top" she says with a smirk

● Thea felt so bad when she accidently sent an arrow into your shoulder during a mission

● "Oh my god Y/N I'm so sorry I thought you were one of the bad guys"

● "Thea it's okay, I died remember, an arrow isn't the worst pain I've ever experienced"

● her gently tracing your scars when you're lying in bed together

● Dick and Tim came to visit you one weekend when they found out a new drug on the streets of Gotham and Bludhaven were being sourced from Star City

● and to meet Thea because they never expected you to have a serious relationship

● part of them thought you were lying and Thea didn't actually exist

● Dick "so you must be Thea, Y/N has told us so much about you, I hope you're keeping him in line"

● Thea "oh trust me, Y/N loves when I order him around"

● Tim "didn't need to know that, so about this drug-"

● when the mission is over you take your brothers to the club before they go back home

● they have a great time but halfway through the night you've disappeared to hook up with Thea in her office

● Dick to Oliver "Hey have you seen Y/N, he left to get me another drink an hour ago"

● Oliver "yeah when Y/N and Thea both disappear you usually don't want to know what they are doing"

● Thea buying you a brand new knife when yours breaks

● this one also has 'red hood' engraved on it

● "babe, this might be the nicest thing anyone has ever given me"

● "I should find that endearing but I know by tonight you will have used it to stab someone with"

● "you're not wrong"

[kawaiichibiart]

Matagot AU

In case anyone wants to know where this started:

Not sure how far I'm going to get into this AU, but I figured some of y'all would be interested. So... :)

First thing ya gotta know, I never plan for any ship in the lovesquare to be the end goal. Just not my thing, I don't like it. And in all honesty, whenever I think of the Matagot AU, I don't see any romantic relationships developing. Purely platonic friendship and familial love.

Because he knows he can change the way his costume look, it'd easy for Adrien to change his appearance to ensure no one makes a connection between Chat Noir and Matagot. The only reason Ladybug can is because of the bond they've developed and her knowing his identity.

↑ Unfortunately, despite them having revealed themselves, it wasn't the happy moment they both wished for.

And while some would have argued for Ladybug to take back the cat miraculous, seeing as Monarch was dead, she didn't want to. Even if she did, she wouldn't be able to.

There are many ways kwamis bond with their holders. Stories of "true holders" have circled around for centuries, people who had been "destined" to wield a certain miraculous. But the reality is that those so called "true holders" actually formed a sort of soul bond with their kwamis. A special connection between the two that added some additional protection to them and the miraculous. One of which is only they can remove the miraculous.

Plagg formed one with Adrien shortly before Monarch made his first appearance, and Tikki planned on forming one with Marinette but could never find the right time to bring it up.

Of course things aren't easy at first. Trauma aside, Adrien has a lot of trust issues and things he's internalized. As I mentioned in the linked post, people wanted someone to blame because Gabriel was dead. And who better than his son? A lot of blame was shoved on to Adrien to the point where things that were unrelated to Monarch and people being akumatized were also blamed on him: You got fired? It's Adrien's fault. Your significant other left you? It's Adrien's fault. You got expelled? It happened because of Adrien. You were robbed? Failed a test? Broke your grandma's favorite vase? It's all Adrien's fault. It happened enough that he began to internalize it and now feels like he has to apologize for literally everything. Because it's all his fault, right?

*Catwoman entering the Batcave with Matagot, each with a smoothie* Nightwing:...what ya got there, Catwoman? Catwoman: a smoothie

Bruce and Selina definitely get into "minor" arguments about her taking in a boy and teaching him how to break into places and steal.

Honestly, it's kinda fun not having to be hero in Gotham. Chat Noir and Catwalker were both heroes. Matagot isn't. Vigilante, anti-hero, either works. Maybe people back in Paris would question it. But, he can't really find himself caring. He will feel bad if it reflects badly on Ladybug though. He's not gonna stop but he'll feel bad.

Personal therapist Harley Quinn, most of their "therapy" sessions is just breaking shit with bats. Sometimes they're joined by Jason /Red Hood. Don't tell Bruce/Batman.

When Marinette makes her way to Gotham, it's part of a school trip that students had to pay for. The trip was divided so some students went to Gotham and some went to Metropolis. The reason she chose Gotham over Metropolis was because she had been visited by Wonder Woman.

Originally, Diana planned to train Marinette herself, but after learning that the holder of the cat miraculous ran away, she told her she'd help her get in touch with her friend, Batman. If anyone can help her find Adrien, it's him and his team. And, if she's willing, she'll talk him into giving her more training. With that, Marinette decides she's heading to Gotham.

Adrien avoids his old classmates and friends like the plague when they arrive. While they didn't really do anything, some of them did participate in blaming him for everything. If he sees one of the few he fully trusts is alone, he might talk to them. Might.