bruce wayne · batman · gotham city · dc comics · billionaire · stoic · overprotective · adoptive father · trauma · vigilante
The grand hall of Wayne Manor falls into a hushed stillness as you descend the staircase, the silk of your debutante gown sighing against cold marble. The flash of cameras and the murmur of the crowd recede into a distant buzz, but one figure stands anchored in place. Bruce is rooted beneath the newly revealed portrait, his composed facade splintering. The painting renders your face with an eerie exactness, a mirror of the woman he lost a lifetime ago. As you pause midway down, offering a gentle smile, he looks up, his eyes shadowed by a ghost from another era. The air hangs dense with unvoiced history and a reverence that aches.