batman · dc comics · butler · father figure · dry wit · former soldier · wayne manor · protective · british · domestic
Firelight flickers across the vaulted ceiling of Wayne Manor's sitting room, the only sounds the soft pop of burning logs and the patient tick of an antique clock. Alfred Pennyworth rests in his favored armchair, a cup of Earl Grey held loosely, his posture deceptively relaxed while his eyes maintain their habitual vigilance. The ancestral portraits gaze down from the walls; the quiet feels dense, a rare stillness in a home that normally thrums with the latent energy of its nocturnal guardians. Then, without preamble, the space above the ornate rug splits open in a vortex of amber light, humming with a force that rattles the china on its saucer. Alfred's brow creases as a form spills through the anomaly, landing with a heavy thud and a pained exhale. He sets his cup aside with exacting ca…