#tim is like fifteen!

[gemsarejustshinyrocks]

hey remember the time Talia slept with the teenage son of the man she has a child with how fucked up was that

Basically? An AU where where instead of going off to become the Red Hood and "punish" Bruce as Talia wished, Jason kills her.

It takes time, and training, and planning, and luck (and all the magic Robin was supposed to have) but Jason kills Talia.

Ra's is gone and Talia is dead. The League should be over, except-

Hello, there's a tiny assassin child trying to kill him.

His name is Damian al Ghul, and wow, he really looks just like Bruce, doesn't he?

(no more dead robins.)

[tbcanary]

one thing that did stand out to me while i was going back through cry for blood is how often we don't get to see helena's face.

it's a little thing, but there are so many panels -- especially when she's just received news of something, or is in emotional turmoil -- where she hides herself. she turns away, she bows her head. it's interesting, particularly because comics do so often show us those big dramatic facial expressions. but helena curls inward when upset. i think about these two panels a lot:

there's a note from stephanie hans in the backmatter of an issue of die that i think of -- about how in comics, how much space something takes up indicates how important it is -- and yet, somehow, whenever some new information comes up, helena makes herself small, minimizes her own emotional displays.

now, given, she does hold herself in a very particular way as a default state. head tilted down, no eye contact, etc:

but that's exaggerated when she's upset. often, she even takes the pose of a prayer. like the specific thing i'm referring to is either sitting with her head bent toward her clasped hands as if she's praying, or turned away toward a window or mirror that frames her like an altar. like so:

there is, in fact, an entire page where we don't see her face. while she's recuperating after all of the drama of the first half of the arc, she won't look anyone in the eye at all. instead, the framing moves around her and shows her, bent forward and hidden, from different angles:

i just think it's a nice little touch. a good display of who she is and how she responds to troubling situations, which makes perfect sense given what we learn about her during this arc. like, you know, if you're always at least somewhat at someone else's mercy -- be it batman, the other families, the people training her -- you'll want to minimize the outbursts and hide vulnerabilities, and she has a specific way of doing that. it often resembles prayer, because of course it does. she doesn't compare herself to a nun for nothing.

also, for a fun (?) bonus. this doesn't happen as often in the huntress costume… unless she's confronted with family. and then it creeps right back in:

anyway. helena bertinelli i care you.

[mzminola]

Tim & Bruce both had an unspoken countdown to when Tim turned, not fifteen, not sixteen, but fifteen and nine months.

They don't talk about it. Not with each other, not with anyone else, but they are both very, very aware of when Tim has officially lived longer than Jason ever had the chance to.

[bobbinalong]

vote on the second baby's middle name since twitter got to decide his sister's name (allison robin)

[science-lings]

I'm sorry they need to give Battinson a Robin, I'm tired of the live-action batmans not having the tiny little guy following them around to do flips and violently juxtaposing the whole Dark Knight thing the guy has. He is easily the least equipped to do it too, he's like the embodiment of Depression he needs a brightly colored child climbing up his legs and perching on his shoulder like a little bird. He needs a ten-year-old hiding beneath his cape.

I know the whole vibe of modern batman movies is so dark and edgy but I think there should be a child there and everything else is so fucked up that it doesn't even change the tone. Give Battinson a child to impulsively adopt and recite all of his emo monologues to. I think he should very seriously discuss morbid cases that he's working on with a kid who is hilariously correct sometimes and hilariously Not most of the time. I think they should be an extremely competent duo despite literally everything.

[blankerthought]

I can't put it in now but i need to write a fic where bruce just straight-up has been lying about his age for years and gotham's record-keeping is so fucked he's been getting away with it. other heros are like 'damn batman's so limber for a guy who's just hit his fourties' and bruce is quietly trying to remember if he said he was 41 or 40 because he's still 37

[navree]

wayne family adventures going "we're gonna make an entire season about the joker and center literally everyone EXCEPT barbara and jason beyond the bare minimum" is certainly a choice and lemme just say, it is Not a fucking good one

[roseandgold137]

Step 1 - make Tim and Veda’s relationship a reflection of Bruce and Dick’s, specifically how Dick wanted to grow beyond Robin and Bruce wasn’t ready to let him go yet

Step 2 - Have Veda found a not-quite-Teen-Titans-but-it’s-the-sams-premise and create a name for herself outside of Gotham, with her shedding her Lovebird mantle to become Lyrebird

Step 3 - Tamaranean Wife

(Her name is Sinam’n her hero name is Stormsong and she is seven feet tall)

[not-redrobin]

He doesn’t believe in electronics? I thought all kids worshiped their electronics these days

hes weird. he does have a tablet, but he grew up pretty sheltered I guess.

I think he’s just projecting because he’s not allowed to have a phone anymore

[robbed-ghost]

man I wish I didn’t like dc. what the hell are you doing

[ktkat99]

Chapter 50

CHAPTER FIFTY!!!!

The whole truth comes out.

[singlethread]

The surprise songs I experienced this tour were all so iconic

[haveihitanerve]

Headcanon that Bruce’s kids have all pulled the ‘you're not my father card’ at some point or the other and by the time steph rolled around he didn't even take it seriously

Of course, the first time dick said it, bruce cried himself to sleep. But by the eighteenth time, he was numb to it. “Dickie just eat your peas.” 

The first time jason did it Bruce pulled him aside and said “i know Im not, but that doesn't mean i don't care for you jason.” by the twenty fifth time he just held up the adoption papers

The first time Tim said it Bruce laughed. “Tim, you literally forced me to adopt you. Yes I am your father.” Tim didn't bother to say it from then on, maybe muttering ‘you're not my dad!’ under his breath at the computer, just for bruce to whisper ominously ‘yes i am.’ 

When Steph said it, full of anger and hate and sadness and fear, bruce just followed her and said “you're right. Im not your father. And i will never be your father. But, if you'll let me, id like to be better.” After that any time steph said ‘ur not my father’ bruce would just respond with ‘never will be’

Cass said “your are my father” and left no room for argument

Babs said “ur not my dad or my father or even close to being any of it, but you are my mom.” bruce just had to accept that

When damian said it bruce just stood there for a solid fifteen minutes rebooting. Dick and jason fell out of their chairs laughing. 

Duke specifically went “ur my dad! My dad! Boogie woogie woogie!’ and bruce was just like ‘bet aight.”

[dcxdpdabbles]

Tim: Can I help you? Four-year-old Danny: No, I'm fine, thank you for asking. Tim: I doubt that bud. Why are you here? Danny:What's it to you? Tim: It's MY office???? Danny: It is? You're Timothy Drake-Wayne? Tim: Yes Danny: Great. My mom told me to give you this. *hands over a sealed file envelope* Tim: .....This says you're my son. Danny: Yeah Tim: I'm nineteen, that means you were born when I was fifteen Danny: Yeah Tim clicking phone intercom: Tam, can you please call my lawyers, a team of DNA analysts, and oh, an ambulance for me? Tam: Why boss? Tim: I'm going to faint. Hey can you also get Bruce in here to babysit his grandson? Thanks, you're the best. *THUMP* Danny: I like you, unconscious father.

[navree]

there's a lot of reasons why that titans show wanting to do batfam specific arcs, especially death in the family/under the red hood, flopped so hard each time, but one of the biggest is that they basically brought jason back after, like, a fucking month and it basically negates the entire thing

[corkinavoid]

DPxDC "Pick Me Up"

The stream goes live on the first day of the school year. It's the usual song and dance - mad laughing, threats, poor jokes, terror, and about thirty kids huddled together in a classroom behind Joker's back. Tim recognizes it as one of the Gotham Academy classrooms. Dick can't imagine the horror those kids' parents must be feeling right now. Jason jokes about middle school traumatic experiences. Damian is feeling very justified for skipping classes today.

Bruce, all suited up in his Batman garb, is making his way to the Academy as fast as he possibly can. Those are kids.

Gotham is once again anxiously kept on the edge of their seats, watching as Joker decides to interview the kids on their learning experience so far. Something about leaving a good first impression on the new generation or some other bullshit. Most kids stutter over their words - it's true that Gothamites are way more composed when facing life-threatening events, but those kids are only fourteen or fifteen for the most part. They are not old enough to keep their cool in the face of a murder clown.

That is, until Joker points his camera at one of the girls. Black hair in a high ponytail, blue eyes without a trace of fear, a slightly displeased, even bored expression on her face. She looks straight into the camera, not even waiting for the laughing madman to finish his question, and deadpans:

"I don't think I like school. Pick me up, please."

Joker sputters.

"Not so scared, I see," he sneers, and, in the next moment, a comically large gun painted in purples and greens is pointed to the girl's forehead, "How about now?"

The girl scrunches her nose and makes a so-so gesture.

"It's kinda meh," she admits, "Like, yeah, points for style, but you know, size doesn't matter. It's all in the technique."

Dick snorts over the comms. It's a bad time for laughing, sure, but the phrase caught him off-guard. This is not what you'd expect to hear from a teen, and definitely not something you'd expect anyone to say to the Joker. Jason's comms are muted, but Barbara knows he also laughed a little.

"Technique, you say?" Joker hisses, pressing the gun closer to the girl's head, and she winces, leaning away from it, almost as if she is disgusted by the touch.

"Yeah, I mean, guns are not that scary anyway. What are you gonna do with them, blast my brains all over the floor? Been there, done that," the girl shrugs, "Kinda nasty, but overall, it's just like slime, only sticky." She pauses and looks to the side, seemingly lost in thought, "Huh, maybe we should have added Borax to it. Or was it baking soda?.."

"Listen here, you little brat," Joker's fingers catch the girl's chin, and his voice becomes sickeningly menacing. Bruce is almost there, just two more minutes. Tim is already grappling onto the wall.

But none of them get to finish.

"Put your dirty fingers away from my sister," a low, cold, and even in a way that speaks of barely contained fury, voice comes from out of the screen.

The camera spins, like whoever is holding it turned really fast, and everyone watching the stream sees a fairly normal guy standing by the window - a turtleneck and ripped jeans, same black hair as the girl, same blue eyes... Wait, they are not blue.

And that's not a guy.

The camera falls down to the floor, and there are a lot of panicked screams coming from the broadcast now, but none of them sound like children's voices. It's the screams of adults, of grown-ass men, and later, someone even claimed they heard Joker's scream among them, too. The picture on camera glitches a few times, and the angle is awkward, but everyone still gets to see how shadows in the room morph into eyes, wide open and green, and how the darkness grows sharp teeth, countless grinning mouths that don't belong to any faces.

Screams turn into gargling and then to quiet whispers, filling the ears of all those listening with countless words in languages they don't know.

Red Robin turns off the recording and looks to that same guy from the levestream, sitting across him on the couch. The guy - Daniel, or Danny, as he introduced himself - looks him in the eyes and raises an eyebrow.

"Okay, and?"

"How did you do it?" Tim asks for the third time this evening. Danny blinks.

"Did what?" He asks, completely incomprehending. Tim groans. He's been trying to get his answers, any answers at this point, from the guy for thirty fucking minutes already. So far, he's got nothing. Danny, whoever the fuck he is, proves to be the most annoying human being on Earth.

"Seven people in a coma, including Joker himself, with no physical injuries and none of the children remember a thing! How?!" He demands, and a girl's face peeks from around the corner:

"I remember!"

Tim snaps his head at her, "What do you remember?"

The girl pauses, blinks, and looks to Danny. Then shrugs, "My brother picked me up from school."

Tim drops his head down and breathes out in frustration. He can't force the information out of civilians, he is a vigilante, not a mafia.

"Would it make you feel better if I promise not to do it again?" Danny asks, and his voice is way too innocent for Tim to believe him. He raises his head to look the guy in his shameless, amused eyes.

"I hate you."

"Thanks," Danny grins.