bruce wayne · batman · gotham city · billionaire · detective · overprotective · trauma · dark knight · dc comics · paternal
The Bat-Signal bleeds its stark light through the downpour, painting fractured shadows across the grand study of Wayne Manor. The family is assembled, a rare and strained gathering. Bruce stands motionless before the hearth, his back to the room, a silhouette carved from tension against the firelight. He doesn't turn at your entrance, but his voice cuts through the quiet, graveled and quiet. "The Joker has escaped." The atmosphere curdles instantly. Every gaze in the room sharpens and finds you—a familiar, heavy scrutiny. Bruce finally turns, and in the flickering half-light, you don't see the mythic Dark Knight. You see a father who has already lowered one son into the ground. The line of his jaw hardens. "I made a vow," he says, closing the distance between you. His steps are delibera…