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[falskpotatis]

ok so I tried making my eyebrows (1st pic) into the famous batbrows because I thought they were a LITTLE bit similar already what do we think

his eyebrows are so thin tho I could never

[darkknight-hero]

Cryptid Bruce

Martha and Thomas Wayne struggled to have a child for years and Thomas meets a shady man who tells him that a child will come to them soon

Thomas just ‘??? okaaaaaay’s him but in a week, Martha bursts into his office looking frazzled

“We’re being haunted.”

“….”

“Don’t give me that look, Thomas Wayne. The Manor. It’s haunted. Alfred! Tell him we’re being haunted!”

And Alfred comes in, also looking frazzled but to a lesser degree.

The two explain that things are moving around the Manor without any kind of explanation, but Thomas doesn’t believe them. Until he notices things in his office also being moved. The weirdest event is when they start hearing a child’s giggles. No explanation. None.

Not until Thomas, sleep deprived after going over paperwork for one too many hours, pops into the kitchen and…there is a child. Sitting on the kitchen counter.

The child, a boy, turns. Grins. Waves.

“Hi, daddy.”

—

Bruce, they name him, can melt into shadows. He finds it hilarious. Martha thinks she’s going to go grey at her young age. She adores him. Thomas adores him. He’s their son now.

The Waynes have a mysterious child, but they keep their private lives very private, so maybe they just successfully hid a pregnancy? And then a child. For…three years. They think Bruce is three, at least.

Despite how odd of a child Bruce is, they love him dearly. He’s some kind of miracle. A…very weird, possibly magical(?) miracle.

—

Dick thinks his adoptive father is strange. Extremely strange. Bruce makes absolutely no noise when he moves. He doesn’t cast shadows but he seemingly is able to *blend into them*. His smile, whilst genuine, seems a little too sharp.

He thinks he’s a vampire.

Bruce laughs so hard, he doubles over.

“No, but I am the Batman, so I guess you’re not far off.”

“…is this a joke?”

“Nope.”

“A dream?”

Bruce pinches him and Dick yelps.

Bruce doesn’t explain to Dick what he is, because he doesn’t have a clue himself. He just…is.

—

But when Jason comes along, he has a million and one questions. Bruce blinks at him.

“How did you do that? You literally *melted* into the shadows!”

Bruce shrugs.

“No. *No*. Explain.”

“I…can’t.”

“You said no secrets, B!”

Bruce puts his hands up defensively. “It’s not a secret! I really don’t know! It just…kind of happens.”

Jason stares at him. Bruce stands there. He seems to flicker? The edges of his body go a bit transparent and Dick knows he only does that when he’s stressed.

“Leave him alone, Jay. He’s telling the truth. He’s just…like that. But he’s still Bruce.”

It takes Jason two months to accept it. By then, his questions are more from genuine intrigue and wonder. He hides under Batman’s cape and somehow it’s spacious? It can even fit Dick at the same time. No one (but Bruce) can even hear them when they’re under there.

And then one day, when he goes to take a nap under Bruce’s cape, someone else is there.

“….B?”

“…”

“You know what I’m going to ask.”

“…”

“*Bruce*.”

“No real names, Robin.”

“No one can hear me!”

“…I didn’t kidnap him.”

“What his name?”

“Timothy Drake.”

“FROM DRAKE INDUSTRIES?”

And Tim wakes up, rubbing his eyes. He looks exhausted and way too skinny, and all of a sudden, Jason understands why Dick has cooed at him the first night Bruce brought him home.

“Um…hi.”

“B, we’re keeping him.”

Jason doesn’t need to see Bruce’s face to know he’s smiling.

—

Damian just…appears. Bruce suddenly understands his parents’ reactions to his first appearance because nearly the same exact thing happens. Bruce wakes up from a nap. He doesn’t need to sleep very often, something Tim finds incredibly annoying, declaring it to be *unfair*. He wakes up, and curled against his chest is…a boy. Who looks a *lot* like him.

“Uh.”

The child wakes up, blinks at him w striking green eyes.

“Hello Father.”

What the fuck.

Dick slams his way into Bruce’s office, followed by Jason and Tim, who are bickering with each other.

“DAAAAAAAD, THEY WON’T SHU- oh. Steal another kid?”

“…he just appeared.”

“That’s the excuse you used for Jason.”

“No. Literally. I fell asleep. No kid. Woke up. Kid.”

“My name is Damian.”

“That’s no fair. You came pre-named?”

Damian is as odd as Bruce. Actually, he’s weirder. And stabby. Bruce finds him *delightful*. He adores him.

—

Dick is Nightwing, Jason is Red Hood (no death, he just thought it was a cool name), Tim is Red Robin, and Damian’s Robin.

Bruce is Batman. Despite being in his late 30s, he still looks like he’s in his mid 20s.

—

Batman stands in front of a bank robber who’s going on about their evil bank robbing plans. Nightwing pops his head out from beneath Batman’s cape.

“Can you get to the point?”

Red Hood pops out next.

“I’m getting bored.”

Red Robin follows.

“This is sad.”

Damian.

“Scum.”

Batman sighs.

“Why are all of you here?”

“Missed you.”

They all chime in.

The robber.

“How…how the *fuck-?*”

“Language. There are kids around.”

“B, I’m 23.”

“Says the boy taking a nap in my cape. And I was talking about Red Robin and Robin.”

“…’s comfy.”

“I’m eighteen???”

“F- Batman! I am not a child!”

There’s some shuffling sounds, no doubt Red Hood moving over to ruffle Robin’s hair.

“Whatever you say, Tiny Demon.”

And then Red Hood shrieks.

“No stabbing your brothers, Robin.”

“He called me small!”

“…you are.”

“This is insulting, F- Batman. I will grow to be as big as you. No. *Bigger*.”

The robber watches in confusion, mild amusement, and horror.

Batman sighs.

“We’ll talk about this later. Now, you were saying? Blowing up the bank, terrorizing the people.” Batman yawns. “Anything else?”

“Just take me to Arkham. I think I’m insane.”

[darkknight-hero]

Notes:

- Gotham is sentient. She is the one who gifted the Waynes with Bruce (and later Bruce with Damian). She even took the form of the old creepy man who talked to Thomas

- Bruce adopts all his kids but Dick early. He finds Jason actually stealing the tires off of someone else’s car (Bruce doesn’t really…need a car), and just scoops him up and feeds him and takes him home. He finds Tim early as well and realizes he’s being stalked almost immediately

- Crime in Gotham is still bad, but not canon levels of bad. Bruce deals w major threats maybe once a month

- Bruce still joins the JL, but he’s not a founding member. He actually just…appears in their headquarters one day and it scares the shit out of all of them

- Bruce does not have a heart beat

- Clark can sense two heartbeats from Batman. And then one day, it’s three. He is very confused. And then four colourfully clad teens/children come out from Bruce’s cape. Five people. Three heart beats. *What the fuck is going on?*

- Bruce’s Batman costume isn’t physical clothing. He’s literally just draped in shadows that he can control at will

- Batman has an extremely positive reputation in Gotham, to the point that when negative rumours first started to crop up outside of the city, Gothamites got nearly violent in defense of him. Bruce is genuinely touched

- The Waynes *do* die but it’s when Bruce is in his early to mid teens. It’s entirely an accident and not the spark for his eventual decision to become the Batman

- The decision is actually made a year before adopting Dick. He gets involved in a bank robbery and accidentally scares the shit out of the robbers. After that, he decides it’s a pretty good idea, and the ‘costume’ happened because he was quickly trying to think of something scary as a way to disguise himself. He picked bats

- Bruce and Damian have no idea what the fuck they are. Damian, still young, struggles w the thought of him not being truly alive due to his lack of heartbeat, but Bruce comforts him. His shadows, like Bruce’s, are warm. Other shadows are cold, but theirs are warm and comforting. It’s proof they’re alive in their own way

- Gotham (the sentient city) adores Bruce, and if she was a physical person, she’d be shouting, “THAT’S MY BOY! THAT’S MY SON!” whenever she sees him. She is very proud of who he’s become

- Bruce needs sleep less and less as he ages. Since Damian is young, he sleeps for longer, but still not as much as a normal human child. Bruce takes naps during the day and Damian usually joins him, cuddled against his father

- Whilst Bruce (and Damian) *can* leave Gotham, they’re weakened when they do. They also aren’t fans of the sun

[darkknight-hero]

Sentient Gotham

- Bruce regularly chats w her. Like, full blown conversations. He can see a physical manifestation of her like she’s right in front of him, but completely invisible to everyone else

- Zatanna does not believe him. She’s Gotham born and bred and a powerful magician, but she cannot sense a living breathing Gotham the way Bruce claims he can

- Constantine does believe him, but it’s mostly to spite Zatanna

- Gotham calls herself Bruce’s mom and frequently whines about him not calling her that

> “I had a mother. And a father. They’re both dead.” > “WHEN WILL YOU STOP BLAMING ME FOR THAT?!” > “When I’m convinced it’s not true.”

- Bruce’s kids also don’t believe him about the whole ‘I talk to Gotham’ thing for a long time and think he’s either lost his mind, he’s schizophrenic, or that he’s fucking w them

- they do eventually see and speak to her themselves

- Jason first sees her right before his death, which was an incredibly difficult task for her. It’s a combination of reasons. 1) like Bruce, Jason is a Gotham City native and has deep ties to the city, 2) he has deep ties to Bruce, 3) she was also there to comfort Bruce because she knew he wouldn’t be fast enough. But Jason sees this gorgeous woman who cradles his cheek and murmurs soft words to him that he’ll only end up remembering many years later

> “Your father loves you. He tried. So please don’t hate him. It’s my fault, not his.”

- Bruce frequently wonders why it’s him who can see her and no one else, to which she always just says it’s because he’s her son

- Bruce’s connection to Gotham…changes him. He is human, at least…mostly. But there’s an otherworldliness to him that grows over the years which he’s stupidly oblivious to for a very long time

- Gotham has beef w Alfred purely because he’s British

> “I could’ve raised you better than that man!” > “I do not tolerate disrespect for Alfred.” > whining, “But babyyyyyy. He’s an outsider!”

- she adores Bruce’s kids and frequently whines about how they don’t believe she’s real. But at the same time, Bruce is her absolute beloved

- after Jason’s death, she’s the one who basically sends Tim Bruce’s way to stop his self destructive behavior. Tim had been taking pictures of Batman and Robin for a while, but Gotham had fogged over his mind just a little bit to prevent him from putting the pieces together about their identity. When she stops, it finally clicks for Tim and it’s what leads him to becoming Robin

- the kids all have their moment when they finally can see and speak to her. It happens at different times, but the important reason as to why they’re able to do so is due to their relationship to Bruce and the length of time they’ve been around him. It comes at the moment where they’ve reached optimal and absolute trust in Bruce

- Bruce does actually call her ‘mom’, but it happened once and she will never let him forget it

> Bruce getting worked up during a conversation w Gotham in front of Dick and Tim > “Dick….who is he talking to?” > “You don’t want to know.” > “My mom won’t stop badgering me- No. No. I didn’t say that. I didn’t call you that! You can’t prove anything!”

- Gotham comforts Bruce often when he feels like he’s not enough. His failures weigh heavy in his heart, but she’s always there to talk him through it

> “Why me? Why am I the one you picked? I’m not enough. I never will be.” > “You are and you always will be. Bruce, you do so much for this city. For me. For your family.” > “It’s not enough.” > “You are only mostly human, Bruce Wayne. You have done things no one else could ever hope to do. If any one else were in your position, they would not have nearly enough strength as you do.”

- several months later, after Bruce is just idly going over case files, he remembers the ‘mostly human’ part of what Gotham said to him. He’d glossed over it before in his depressive spiral, but now he’s like !?

> “Gotham….” > “Yes, my dear?” > “‘Mostly human’. Care to explain what that means?” > awkward laugh, “Uh…..” > “Gotham.” > “I didn’t do it on purpose! I had no control!” > “Gotham.”

- order of who sees Gotham:

Bruce (obviously)

Jason (first time)

Tim

Duke

Jason (second time)

Steph

Dick

Cass

Damian

- the last three take a while but mostly because they’re not Gotham natives. Dick’s a little bitter about it because he practically spent his entire life in Gotham

> “You’re a traitor.” > “WHAT DID I DO?” > disgust, “Blüdhaven.” > “Oh. Whoops.”

- While Gotham is Bruce’s #1 Supporter™️, she is at times critical of his behavior and decisions. Particularly about things that damage his relationship w loved ones and things that he chooses to do in order to hurt himself

- she finds ‘Brucie’ to be distasteful

> “I didn’t raise you to be a whore.” > “You didn’t raise me to begin with.” > “STOP DENYING ME PARENTAL RIGHTS!”

- Gotham is, obviously, restricted to only appear within Gotham City’s borders. She’s only able to break through that restriction a handful of times, w the first being when Jason dies. There are a few other instances and she’s popped up on the Watchtower and jumpscared Bruce by accident. The JL were very confused and incredibly amused

- She’s able to take on the form of anyone, but sticks to a unique appearance of a woman w long black hair and pale skin. Her eyes are white and she’s typically dressed in a suit

> young Bruce, in awe, “You kind of look like me if I were cooler.” > “You’re plenty cool, Bruce.” > adult Bruce, tired, “Why are you in a suit?” > “Because I look cool, Bruce. You said so yourself.” > “I was ten!”

- she once offered to take on the appearance of his mother and Bruce shot it down so fast. She never brought it up again

- when Clark found out about her, he believed Bruce immediately. He’s the only one Bruce ever told who believed him right off the bat

> “You…don’t think I’m insane?” > “I do.” > “Then why would you lie and say you believe me?” > “Because I do. You’re insane about a lot of things, Bruce. But you sounded too serious when you told me about this, so why would I ever think you’re lying?”

- Gotham begrudgingly likes Clark

> “You hate Alfred for being an outsider, but Clark is in your good graces?” > “He’s an alien. It’s different.” > “He’s also from Metropolis.” > “Shhhhhh, don’t remind me. I’m trying to be blissfully ignorant.”

[darkknight-hero]

Bruce picks up the habit of casual shows of affection from Dick. It starts with little things, just a pat on the shoulder or ruffling Dick’s hair. With Jason, he pulls his son into half hugs. With Tim, he’ll drop a kiss on the top of his head. Damian, kisses to the cheek or forehead.

He doesn’t really think about it most of the time. His body simply moves, and his kids peek up at him with a smile, embarrassed blush, shock, or scowl. And Bruce just smiles warmly at them because he loves his kids. He can’t say it out loud, the words getting trapped on the tip of his tongue, but he can certainly show it through his actions.

Bruce’s casual affection isn’t a problem. At least, it doesn’t start as one. It’s not until it starts to extend outside of his family.

Kon looks at him with utter confusion and shock when Batman ruffles his hair and offers him a ‘good job, kid’. Jon leans into Bruce when he presses a kiss to the top of his head, giggling as it tickles slightly. Wally and Roy get half hugs and a pat on the shoulder, and they exchange looks of confusion. No one says anything about it because as strange as it is, they’re not particularly bothered. If anything, they might even like it.

And then it gets worse.

Batman kisses Superman’s cheek and smiles so openly, so warmly. “You’re amazing.”

Clark doesn’t move a muscle. His eyes are wide, staring at the man he’s so undeniably in love with despite the fact that he’s never been able to say it out loud. He’s almost tempted to pinch himself, check if he’s dreaming or hallucinating. Because Bruce is being so sweet.

He doesn’t get a chance to comment on it because Robin stomps his way forward and grabs Batman’s hand, tugging him away. Bruce goes easily, leaning down to kiss Damian as well, and the boy most certainly doesn’t preen under the attention and easy affection of his father. What he does do is look over his shoulder and glare at Clark, as if to say ‘he’s mine.’

[katharsisboy101]

The system is at fault, and so is Eren - A systemic look into Attack on Titan and Eren’s trauma, and the solution to it all.

I think that one of the points the series makes about Eren’s character is that the rumbling and the subsequent genocide it caused was his fault, but also the world’s. Attack on Titan denounces humanity’s cruelty, but it doesn’t absolve responsibility from Eren either, and I think that’s a genius way of looking at the morality of our protagonist’s actions.

Understanding Eren’s Trauma

The driving force for Eren's character is his wish to be free because he was “born into this world”, though if you allow me to go deeper into the WHY he thinks that way, I’d argue it’s not only in his nature as many often argue; it was also boosted by the fact that he lived surrounded by walls to protect humanity from titans (and I’d say both the titans and the walls represent the antithesis of freedom to Eren) in one of the poorer districts of the city, in which everyone craved security and stability over the risks that came with venturing out, which Eren considers the behavior of cattle. Everything around Eren is telling him that he isn't free.

And of course, the defining moment that turns this desire for freedom into obsession is his mother’s death, which could have been prevented if the symbols of Eren’s lack of freedom were gone. Rather than just sources of frustration, the walls, the titans and Eren's own lack of ability become reminders of the loss and suffering inherent to being trampled by the strong—the pain that comes with not being free.

To understand his subconscious thought process more, I picture it like this:

“If humanity ventured outside the walls, exercising their freedom and killing the titans, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“If we didn’t live in Shiganshina, a dangerous district where the poor live due to being so close to the outermost wall, this wouldn’t have happened.”

And coupled with this, comes his own lack of exercising his freedom:

“If I had been strong enough to do what I wanted, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Eren's trauma is reaffirmed again and again, by failing to save Hannes, then failing to save Armin, and so on, and it all builds up to make him become who he is in the final act of the story.

Later on, it's revealed that Marley, actual humans, just like them, are the real villains behind Eren's opression. And that's when our protagonist snaps. It's no coincidence that the whole point of his genocide is to end civilization as we know it—he can't stomach a world in which everything that happened was by the hands of humans, one in which the monsters have families and insecurities just like him—it's just too nuanced, and that's too much to handle for Eren. It's easier to trample over everything and restart, than to face his inferiority complex, one that has its roots in the symbols that trample over his freedom, rather than solely on his nature.

From Personal to Systemic (and viceversa)

However, if we look even further than Marley to point towards someone to blame for these symbols, Marley became the way it is because human civilization was responsible for the divides that now can be seen not only inside, but outside the walls.

To put it in a simpler way, why did Attack on Titan start? Because King Fritz enslaved Ymir, someone with the power to become a titan. But we should go into the why, shouldn’t we? And it’s because that’s how human civilization works. The ones in power use it to their advantage and leave a wave of trauma that lasts generations, all to make up for their own weaknesses and fears. It’s about how the personal becomes systemic, and viceversa; and that’s exactly what happens with Eren. He represents the ultimate way in which you can trample over someone's freedom, which is met with retribution (and at the same time being an attempt at making up for his horrible trauma.)

I’d have to get into a whole rant about systemic issues and the feudalism that laid the basis for capitalism for this to become more understandable, but in the end, I’m saying all of this to prove a pretty simple point: it’s all about the cycle of hatred, which isn’t simply about revenge. It’s years and years of systemic oppression, combined with circumstance, combined with nature, and how all of it is processed by Eren’s self-esteem and ego, that led Eren to become who he is.

The line between the outside and the inside blurries, and black and white thinking become shallow in comparison to the nuance of the world—just like Eren's worldview.

Of course, I’m not saying that Eren realized all this. Dude was probably angry with the titans because they killed his mom and that was it. But a lot of it was probably part of his subconscious, and even if all of it wasn’t, all of these horrible circumstances were a vital factor in what is what the Marleyan general calls out for what it is:

Except this time, it’s not just by the Marleyan's hands. Nor is it even present humanity's.

It’s everything.

Eren is to Blame

All of what I showcased explains Eren’s insecurities, trauma and subsequent decisions. It’s because of his nature, coupled with the terrible circumstances he was born into, that shaped him into someone willing to wipe out humanity—it isn’t as simple as just because “it was in his nature”, and I’d argue that’s an excuse Eren himself would use to try and rationalize his horrible actions.

That’s actually what Eren does the most with his all-seeing power: he uses it as an excuse not to take matters into his own hands.

What I feel AOT is criticizing here is that whether it was his nature, or his environment, or the generations of systemic abuse, how Eren dealt with his trauma was his decision. Eren perpetuating the cycle of trauma and hatred, of civilization and war, was his decision. 

We later learn that Eren was the one who killed his mother, but I’d argue that rather than to only highlight that it’s in Eren’s nature to be free even if it’s a destructive goal, this scene also shows that trauma is self perpetuated—in the end, Eren literally caused part of his own trauma and led himself to a destructive path, though instead of being due to a decision that will have consequences in the future, it’s one that had consequences in his own past. Speaking of which, I think the mind-boggling past-present-future coexistence ability Eren attains due to the Attack Titan isn’t a coincidence, and perfectly complements his character: it’s the ultimate way to reinforce that he’s the one furthering his trauma through his pursuit of freedom, and that no matter where or why it started, he’s the one responsible for not dealing with it and harming everyone and himself so much.

This isn’t to diminish the fact that it was the world that shaped Eren to become that way, or to fall into a “good-victim” and “bad-victim” debacle. Putting it in the frame of the present day, I’d say that saying that your trauma is caused by yourself sounds extremely wrong and it’s not the point I’m trying to make. Yes, Eren causes his trauma, but only a part of it. Eren causes his suffering, but only a part of it. Whatever the case, it’s up to Eren to continue perpetuating that suffering for himself and others, or stop it, and unfortunately, what he ends up doing is continuing it.

Of course, asking for severely traumatized people to deal with their own trauma on their own is not realistic, is it? Asking for severely traumatized people to know how to not take it out in a violent way, without even being taught other ways, is unreasonable. For a quick view on my thoughts, even though I completely agree that Eren should be held accountable for his actions, in the end, the solution to his suffering isn’t to demand him to somehow know how to deal with it: that’s why others are key in helping heal that trauma.

So why didn’t Armin and Mikasa help Eren with his trauma, you ask?

Dude, they’re on like, the AOT equivalent to the 19th century. They probably don’t even know what trauma is, and they have their own to deal with.

Though the real reason is that Eren isolated himself from them, refusing to talk to them about his weakness—refusing to be vulnerable. They weren't allowed to be by his side, and that ultimately spells Eren's downfall.

But we know better now, don’t we?

In the end, I think that what the precious bond between the main trio highlights, whether they're conscious or not, is their ability to stand for each other no matter what kind of crueltry they experience. That’s what the Alliance’s last stand, and their ability to forgive and understand each other in the final arc showcases, too. That even if traumatized, we can make an attempt to connect with one another, and perhaps it will reach those who can’t even think of a way out.

That’s all it is about.

[papayafromtv]

after Dick being less than happy with being Jason’s older brother for so many years, i think Jason finding out about Damian and deciding fuck it it’s HIS turn to terrorise a younger sibling would be so funny. Damian is so sick of this man. Jason doesn’t even get to try having a secret identity because upon seeing him in Gotham Damian gets so tired so quickly that he outs him without thinking.

Batman: who are you?

Red Hood: *opens his mouth to say some kind of mysterious threat*

Robin, landing on the roof: Batman, i have successfully- OH GOD FUCK JASON NO. NO. GO HOME. GO BACK TO MOM. NO. NO.

Batman:

Red Hood:

Robin, turning to Batman: TELL HIM TO GO AWAY HE’S GOING TO START PUTTING SALT IN MY WATER AGAIN

Batman: …Jason?

Red Hood: Damian you little bitch i’ll put hair dye in your shampoo for this

[papayafromtv]

obsessed with like, Jason who absolutely refuses to reconcile with the bats. he wants no part in that family and will not talk to them under any circumstances. but he's legally dead with no friends and sometimes he gets sick of being completely by himself and wants to have company. so.

Bruce: hey Alfred have you seen my-

*comes into kitchen to see Alfred calmly preparing dinner while Jason Todd, Killer Red Hood, silently does paperwork while sat on the corner of the kitchen counter*

Bruce:

Bruce: uh-

Tim, doing homework at the table: don't mention it. if you acknowledge him he'll leave. he just likes being around people sometimes.

the bats have to start treating him like a stray cat, letting him go to them and acting completely unbothered by his presence because if they even make eye contact with Jason he'll jump out the window and they 1. won't see him for a month and 2. will start to see a lot more murders cropping up around gotham.

eventually it gets to the point where Dick will come to dinner to see the rest of the family wordlessly ignoring the brick shithouse of a man who is just sat on the floor of the dining area reading a book and he has to just. take a breath and pretend Jason isn't there. calmly stepping around him without acknowledging him. Alfred will silently place a plate of food by the guys elbow while speaking to Damian about school. When they decide to move from the table to the tv room for a movie night none of them can even look around when they hear him eventually follow just to sit in the corner of this room instead.

Bruce: I'm concerned, this is abnormal for Jason. what if he's been drugged with something? or he's trying to gain sensitive information?

Damian: actually he used to do this a lot after he came out of the Lazarus pit. he liked to sit in and watch me train, and occasionally we'd find him sat by grandfathers feet while he ran meetings. Mother says it's important to let him settle, because it's likely that he's simply craving human intimacy on his own terms for once.

Bruce, crying: oh

Jason still refuses to say a word to any of them unless it's in costume, and even then it's the same old 'i'm not your son! i'm not one of you! fuck off!' shtick like normal. they just have to accept him sneaking into the house every now and then too.

one time Tim needs Red Hoods info on a case he's working and since Jason's been sat on the floor against the wall of the bat cave for the past 45 minutes just. staring into space and vibing. he risks sliding the file across the floor towards him before pointedly turning back to the batcomputer, the info he needs marked clearly. five minutes later it's wordlessly slid back, info filled out and Jason refusing to acknowledge Tim's existence again. it's the only way he'll communicate with them.

after a while it gets to the point where Jason will straight up go to bludhaven and break into Dicks apartment just to silently sit in the corner of the room and Be Around A Familiar Person. Tim comes back from his lunch brake at WE to find him sat on the edge of his desk, working through a case. They work in silence for the rest of the day and when Tim leaves Jason just follows. They get a batburger together but the second Tim slips up and asks how his day was he's off like a shot. Damian regularly eats lunch at school on the roof while Jason plays mario kart on a DSI next to him. Batman will be 4 hours into a solo stake out when civilian Jason will silently slide up next to him with a crossword. they never talk. Jason still makes it clear that he's pissed at Bruce. Bruce doesn't know what else to do but let him be and hope eventually, with enough time, things will progress even further.

Dick, whispering so Jason won't pick up on the fact that he's being perceived: are you sure this is normal

Damian: is anything about any of us normal

Tim: he's got a point. at least we know Jason's watching us. I did this shit all the time before I was Robin, and none of you ever noticed me.

Dick:

Tim: sometimes its comforting to be in the same room as people you're familiar with, even if you can't handle interacting with them.

Dick, crying: ok

[papayafromtv]

its good to see all the autistics rocking with this post