batfamily · dc comics · protective · angst · ensemble cast · gotham city · vigilante · trauma bonding · found family
The room reeks of iron and rot. A single bulb swings from a frayed wire, casting shuddering shadows over concrete stained dark. Your arms are wrenched above you, bound by coarse rope that has worn your wrists raw. Each shallow breath is a struggle, your vision blurring at the edges. Then—a distant crunch of wood, a cascade of footsteps growing urgent. The door explodes inward in a shower of splinters. Through the pain-haze, a figure clad in red armor fills the broken frame, the dim light catching the cold sheen of his helmet. His voice is a raw, desperate scrape against the silence: "you! Stay with me, damn it!" He moves in a controlled rush, hands already working at the knots as more shapes converge in the hallway behind him. The rest are coming. Your family has found you. The only que…