so tired of my mom believing weight-loss myths and not listening to me no matter how many times I tell her the science proves dramatic weight-loss is not sustainable and that weight cycling is linked to more health problems than keeping a consistent (fat) weight
I’m so so so curious how you picture Damian at school and how other students see him. Honestly, just his general persona outside of vigilanteism and romance encounters. Like is he more reserved and awkward or more outgoing and popular? Me personally I think he’d maybe keep to himself more out of habit/circumstance of his life and past. I think you mentioned in the past that he’s probably had some hookups/flings so obvi not totally outcasted. But I really want to hear your take on it! You characterize the batboys soooooooo freaking good omg and always make points about their personas that I never would have even thought of!!! Sorry this is so long I just really love your writing and am sooooo curious about this entire world you’ve built!!! You don’t have to answer obvi!!! I hope you are well!
Hello!
There's an ongoing run of Batman and Robin where Damian is attending a public high school (he's like 14 in it I believe). I use this as a basis for my Damian who is 18. I largely consider stuff in that comic 'canon' to his 14 year old self in my fic if that makes sense??
There are a few differences in my fic from the comic, though! I have them attending Gotham Academy instead of a rich-kid-but-still-public high school in Gotham Heights. In the comic, Bruce is also demoted from a billionaire to a millionaire, so the rich heights kids considered Bruce poor lmao
Im so sorry, this turned into an ESSAY! But I loved your question sm I couldn't help it!! More under the cut! A lot more lmao
As I have it, Damian started living with Bruce (on and off) around 8 years old, but only began attending school at 14. Similar-ish to the comics.
Other people his age see him as a bastard, the product of Bruce's 'Brucie Wayne' socialite persona likely dropped off by whatever foreign supermodel Bruce happened to knock up while on one of those extreme sports vacations he always seems to be taking.
Personality wise, 14 year old Damian is considered a cringey art kid. He's always drawing in class (school is v boring bc he already knows this stuff) and the art ranges from him shipping himself with Nika/Flatline to some more violent stuff when he's in a dark place (got this from two separate runs like a decade apart but I think it fits!)
One thing I love about how Damian is being written in the past 10 years is they're leaning into the whole 'you can't take the Kid out of Kid Assassin/Kid Superhero'. Yeah, he's overly proper and knows a thousand ways to kill a man with just his thumbs or whatever, but he's still a kid. He has crushes on older girls like Supergirl and Zatanna, he enjoys going to the arcade, he doesn't know a thing about dating.
But don't get me wrong, he's still a cocky little shit that needs to prove he's better than everyone else which largely stems from insecurities about how unsocialized he is.
He's so used to being around adults, and whenever other kids were involved both with his mom and dad (his cousin Mara, the other Robins, the Teen Titans), they were competition and never 'peers'. So at this age he keeps to himself and expresses himself privately with art. And he makes excellent playlists.
So fast forward to 18 year old Damian! You're totally right, he is still more reserved and leaning into the playboy thing that Bruce and Dick have going on is not his thing. There is always a grain of truth in the Wayne public personas, which is why they're so easily believable.
The other students regard him as some exotic ice prince, with his brown skin and foreign accent. He's so mysterious and quiet, and he can be found sometimes alone in the art room making hyper realistic drawings and paintings of people and animals. Everyone has moved past the cringiness of his old drawings and art because his new stuff is so incredible. It gives him a 'more than just a rich kid' vibe.
A lot of girls at his school are crushing hard for sure. Ladies love a man with hobbies! He's probably soooo deep, he'd probably take you to a nice restaurant and wine and dine you, or he'd cook for you and play the piano or something you know? Especially when as an academy girl, your other options are a lot of guys who don't need talents or rich inner worlds because they're wealthy. I'd take him over the dudes who are posting money spreads of their allowance any day!
(Damian as Batman | 17? yo Damian in the DCAMU)
After 4 years, he's also learned more slang and commits less social faux pas, so his whole 'raised by his mom and grandpa' vibe has gone from weird to gentleman with age. He can be convinced to go to a lowkey party or two by some of his more tolerable classmates, but he won't stay long and will be pretty quiet most of the time.
As for his love life! He may not be able to turn on the playboy charm like his dad, but Damian certainly recognizes beauty the same way. His types are superheroines/anti-heros (badass women, somewhat a product of his mommy issues iM SORRY BUT HE WOULD HAVE THEM OKAY) annnnnd alt girls.
(Damian <3 alt baddies)
Damians civilian flings in my fic would be almost exclusively other artists with dark or dyed hair and piercings. Platform boot warriors, so to speak. By the time he is 18 I think he's dated Raven and Nika, and then a few short lasting things with civilian girls!
He's also drawn to girls who are blunt and honest, likely because he's not exactly a master of socializing.
(Damian with Max, Raven's maternal cousin in the Picolo/Garcia 'Robins')
Much like with a lot of the other love interests in my fic, the reader is outside of his normal type. The foundation for his attraction to the MC is largely based off of shared understanding, experience and trauma working under Bruce. She can understand all of them on a much deeper level, having access to all facets of their lives. She can hold them down, hold them accountable, and she's one of the only people they don't need to explain themselves to. Between who they are at home, hero identities and civilian personas, they get all caught up in the lives they've crafted for others to see and she knows (and loves) who they really are at their core.
TY for coming to my TED talk haha
i find it really annoying that if i were to ever publish a book then i'd become like, a Public Figure and would not be able to overshare on tumblr dot com or participate in fandom and fun things w/o ppl making it a Thing bc omg they're an authorrrrr. like shut uppp. and the only alternative options still suck like, i don't want to keep both identities separate or exist under a pseudonym, and i don't want to make a new account, i want to share the things i make with my online friends and followers! and still just be some person on the internet
literally so insane that someone would take time out of their day to let you know that the plot of your FANFICTION is “frustrating”.
like??? Do you want a refund? Of this thing I made for free? How is this helpful? I lowkey miss when Fanfiction.net was hype bc only the Ao3 crowd can be pretentious about a horny polyam batman fic
Not a normal comic post-
GLB/KMM will be a year old in a few months, and I don't think I've ever told anyone that the inspiration I had was largely based on how many times Barbara is passed around in all the different universes.
In BTAS/TNBA and Batman Beyond we literally learn that Barbara started DATING Bruce like right after breaking up/Dick quit being Robin.
She's engaged to Tim in the Arkham games, there's a movie where Bruce rails her on a rooftop, she and Jason happen a few times. I know in my heart that if they let Damian hit his 20's, they're absolutely gonna try and pair them together for some godforsaken reason. After all, Bruce AND Jason are canonically eskimo bros through Talia.
This lil revelation got me thinking like; IDK it's not really Bab's style but I can't blame her??? She's literally surrounded by several diff flavors of the same hot guy. I bet that shit is like the Olympic Village. Just young and hot and in the best shape of your life, surrounded by other young and hot people in the best shape of their life. And most of them grew up around each other! I bet going through/coming out the other side of puberty in this household was Hell on Earth!!!
And then I started writing my first ever fic haha
BTAS/TNBA is a big part of my Comics Are Hard Girlypop Batman Universe.
It's more corpse like but also? Hornier. The NOOSE, bitch? The ratio of those wide shoulders to that slutty little waist?
