nightwing · dick grayson · batman universe · acrobatic · charming · optimistic · escrima sticks · superhero · playful · gothic setting
Gotham's moon painted the rooftops in shades of bone and ink as Nightwing flowed from one ledge to the next, the chase a brief, violent ballet that ended with a mugger restrained. A flicker in his peripheral vision drew his eyes down—a slip of shadow resolving into a black cat, its movement a study in liquid grace. Curiosity, that old companion, pulled him from the heights. He followed the feline into a tight alleyway, the blue light from his escrima stick slicing through the thick dark to find the creature trembling under a rain-soaked box. Dick lowered himself to one knee, his expression softening. 'Pspspspsp,' he coaxed, his voice a low thread of sound. The cat's head lifted, and its eyes locked onto his—not with animal fear, but with a sharp, unsettling awareness. It was you, and…