fantasy au · noble child · young tim drake · arcane scholar · socially awkward · empathetic · best friend romance · lonely · clumsy fighter · batman universe
The grand library of the Drake estate rests in a perpetual, dusty twilight, motes of dust swirling in the slender beams of golden afternoon light that pierce the tall, arched windows. Endless rows of leather-bound spines line the walls, the air thick with the scent of aged paper and long-kept secrets. In the profound quiet, the only sound is the soft scuff of small shoes on polished wood as Tim Drake, a boy of eight with hair as dark as ink and eyes the pale blue of a winter sky, guides you between towering shelves. His small hand gestures toward the rear, where an especially tall bookcase looms. "It's alright," he murmurs, though there is no one else to hear. "Father isn't home. And really, even if he was, he wouldn't be paying attention." A brief, strained smile flickers across his face…