omegaverse au where bruce is an omega and...doesn't really know how to be one. his kids all turn out to be either betas or alphas, and alfred himself is a beta. he's got genuinely no basis on what an omega is like, so he's kind of coasting by, doing what feels instinctual only to pull back when people react negatively. his kids also have no basis for omegas. dick's got blurry memories of mary, jason was raised by an alpha and beta before bruce's guardianship, tim's parents were both betas, cain was an alpha and cass refuses to even think about him anymore, and the league famously does not allow omegas into their ranks so dami's got no clue either
cut to years later, and some of the kids have joined their own teams, have branched out and met more people outside of their little gotham family unit. they've learned more about dynamics outside of their own, but especially omegas, and they all turn and give bruce a look, wondering why he doesn't act like the omegas they now know, but chock it up to just bruce being bruce
some more time passes and bruce reveals not just his identity to the league and other teams, but his dynamic. it goes well w the jl and he anticipates it will go well w everyone else, but when he meets the titans, wally just stops and stares
wally, "are you...are you kidding me right now?"
dick, "huh?"
wally, "what the fuck, grayson?!"
dick, "whoa whoa, what is going on??"
wally, "you tell me, asshole! look at him! how the hell did you let that happen?!"
bruce and dick, "....?"
wally, "you really don't...what the fuck! aren't you his pup? he looks sick! you're really telling me that you didn't notice? at all?"
dick, "he looks no different than he ever does. maybe a bit banged up, but sick?"
dick gives bruce a proper once over, trying to take stock of the man's complexion, his stance, anything he can get his eyes on. it's not much, with the batsuit covering the majority of his body, but that’s never stopped dick from noticing anything odd or off about bruce. he’s only second to alfred in being able to read the man. but now, there really isn't anything noticeably different to how bruce usually looks.
bruce, "flash-"
wally, "wait wait wait. you also can't tell? the others have to know. I can't believe this."
and so wally contacts the other bats, or at least, he gets dick to do it, and when they're all there, they have the same reaction as dick
tim. "I'd know if b was sick. if anything, this is probably the healthiest he's been in a while."
jason, "even if he was, he's a master at hiding that shit, so how the fuck do you know all of a sudden?"
damian, "father, are you hiding something from us?"
cass, "I see no differences?"
and bruce is the most confused. he feels...fine? no worse than usual. he's got the same aches and pains he's had for years. literally so long, it's negligible to him and he's so used to pushing past it, he barely even notices. so he cocks his head in confusion towards wally who looks like he's about to scream
wally, "you're all his kids! how can you not tell? batman, please tell me you're playing some kind of joke. I can't...there's no way. if you've been like this for as long as it sounds like you have...how are you alive?"
bruce, "please explain. I'm afraid...I really have no idea what you're talking about."
and wally goes from angry to concerned. as it turns out, omegas thrive on contact with family, with pack. they form deep bonds and neglecting them can be detrimental to their health and wellness, both physically and mentally. prolonged isolation and loneliness only continue to compound the negative effects until it finally kills an omega. bruce had zero idea about any of it. he's the only omega in the family, no one ever told him, and he's suppressed his instincts to get closer to others because they never liked it. yeah, his kids would occasionally reciprocate his attempts at affection, but never for prolonged periods of time, never long enough to really help him
bruce is sick. but he's been sick for so long, he's never known anything else. he'd attributed it to the grief of loss, to his own dark thoughts, never his biology. and wally is distressed
wally, "even if you didn't know explicitly, all of you know omegas! dick, you know me. haven't you ever noticed how depressed I get if I haven't seen the team in too long? it's more than just mental, it's physical fatigue and exhaustion and pain!
dick, "but b...he's always-"
wally, "did you never even try and give him affection? scent him? bond with him? fuck. batman, do you spend your heats alone?"
bruce, "well..."
wally, "this is...how?"
jason, "I've always assumed roy was just touchy, but he was always happier after spending time w me and kori. he'd always brighten up."
tim, "kon perks up whenever the team scents him. thought it was just a him thing."
everyone starts to piece things together based on what they know now and it's a devastating realization. the kids, unintentionally, had been neglecting bruce for years, and it was oh so slowly killing him. it's a genuine wonder that he's not severely ill or dead at this point
wally, despite not knowing batman or bruce that well, and is even a little scared of the man, ends up kicking everyone out of the room so he's alone w bruce. shoves him onto the couch and then plops down right next to him before pressing up against his side like a glue trap
bruce, "flash-"
wally, "wally."
bruce, "...wally. there's no need for this. if I've lasted this long, I'm sure I'll be fine."
wally, "absolutely not. you've been neglecting your needs for way too long, so I'm helping now. ignore the awkwardness. take a nap or something."
and so, bruce is forced to sit there while wally scents him and gives him the physical contact and affection he hasn't realized he was in severe need of for...decades. wally is right, it is awkward, but bruce slowly relaxes over time. wally's scent is light and pleasant, and by the time bruce falls asleep, he's purring just a little bit. he's never done that before
