damian'd lived nearly ten years without his brother at this point. having him back, however brief it had been, had been both a blessing and a curse. there was so much he was hiding. so much. ]
I'll be there in twenty.
[ he's lost his appetite. packing everything up and shoving it in the fridge, scribbling a quick note to kate that there's leftovers in the fridge. he's up and off.
he's there in fifteen. could've been twelve, if he hadn't paused outside the safehouse to steel himself. this? this is hard. people not knowing him is hard. but dick had known his name, right? right, so....
who is he kidding? it didn't matter. unless the one waiting down there was the one he'd accidentally murdered, it didn't matter.
so he walks in, all confidence. easily recognizable as the hellspawn of bruce wayne and talia al ghul, but the way he carries himself isn't much like either of them. he has bruce's confidence, talia's grace, but it's clear that he's not modeled himself after either of them. his hair - long and a little beyond his shoulders now - is dark, and there's a wicked scar trailing from the bridge of his nose to the right side of his jaw from a murder attempt that didn't quite stick.
he recognizes dick. he recognizes him immediately. there's still a flash of something across his face. grief? relief? but it's gone before even he can figure it out. ]
[ in bat speak, that's much earlier than twenty minutes. dick was already prepared. he wants somewhere with space. the safehouse is crowded. too many people a step away from something explosive.
even him. he's been reining in his darker impulses. telling himself there'll be time to practise his power. and find a gym.
he's waiting near the door for damian. he has to study him, but it's undeniable. that's bruce's bio-son. his eyes and talia's nose. just how many are there? across all the timelines. bruce tends towards being a father in all of them.
dick's left his only child life behind. and it doesn't bug him as much when he has a family of his own now.
[ there's so much to get into. so much he isn't certain of. bruce was dead in dick's time before, their fights over what sort of man he was and what his legacy was worth had been explosive.
He's not shy about studying him in turn. Not speaking as he does, taking in the differences. The little tells that tell him this isn't someone he's familiar with, but all the similarities that automatically make him family.
He'll never not have a soft spot for Dick Grayson. ]
I've been getting that. [ the other one is broader. he's not jealous. it doesn't matter. dick's body is enough for him. he doesn't want to be anybody else.
even another himself.
he's satisfied with his first check over damian. he'll get to know more as they go. ]
Come on. [ he leads damian to the spot he chose. as private as it gets in here.
turning around, he stays nearby. he was warned about the empathy bond. but it's a double-edged sword. dick could find it useful if he tried to soothe anyone.
he also doesn't want to be too far away from damian. when trying to establish a bond with him. some kind of bond. he'd wondered if he could work with jason. but damian's body language towards him is very different. ]
Okay. I'm guessing you know me. [ everybody else seems to. ] I'm the oldest in the family?
[ he lifts his eyes to the ceiling, like he's about to roll them. but then thinks better of it. ]
My name is Damian Wayne. My mother is Talia al Ghul. I have a younger sister, Athanasia. In my world you're the oldest, second is Tim, third is Jason, and then myself.
I was raised by the League of Assassins until the age of eight. At which point I left to live with my father and learn from him. You served as my mentor, Jason served as a distraction, Tim as an annoyance. You were briefly Batman and I was your Robin.
[ god how much does he get into? his world is a nightmare. ]
this is the best information ever. dick grins at him. if not for the empathy bond that makes others skittish, he would have put his arm around damian.
though he stops smiling. looking thoughtful. ]
You can say I'm dead. It's okay. [ the expression on damian's face when he'd come in had been confusing.
damian took his name. another one he hadn't thought he'd share, but he guesses he's that guy now. at least it's a family member. jason can have robin. so can tim. and damian can have robin and nightwing too.
dick was never going to retire peacefully.
though he'll be mad if he died wearing the cowl. ]
damian isn't quite as good at masking his emotions as one might expect him to be. part of it is being raised by honest and true boyscout clark kent after his own father had failed him, and part of that is what came with that boyscout not being so good anymore. his gaze drops, something painful crossing his face. ]
... You died when I was thirteen. There was an accident.
[ damian loves his brother dearly, but Jason is sometimes even less a team player than he is. And all that self loathing gets in his way more than anything else does.
But, then again, the Jason that Dick knows might not have been quite so broken. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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You're already in the safehouse, right?
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I'll find us a spot.
[ he realizes he might not know damian by sight. but the other jason had known him, right? ]
you'll know me when you see me.
[ 2/2 ]
i'm the handsome one. obviously.
see you soon.
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damian'd lived nearly ten years without his brother at this point. having him back, however brief it had been, had been both a blessing and a curse. there was so much he was hiding. so much. ]
I'll be there in twenty.
[ he's lost his appetite. packing everything up and shoving it in the fridge, scribbling a quick note to kate that there's leftovers in the fridge. he's up and off.
he's there in fifteen. could've been twelve, if he hadn't paused outside the safehouse to steel himself. this? this is hard. people not knowing him is hard. but dick had known his name, right? right, so....
who is he kidding? it didn't matter. unless the one waiting down there was the one he'd accidentally murdered, it didn't matter.
so he walks in, all confidence. easily recognizable as the hellspawn of bruce wayne and talia al ghul, but the way he carries himself isn't much like either of them. he has bruce's confidence, talia's grace, but it's clear that he's not modeled himself after either of them. his hair - long and a little beyond his shoulders now - is dark, and there's a wicked scar trailing from the bridge of his nose to the right side of his jaw from a murder attempt that didn't quite stick.
he recognizes dick. he recognizes him immediately. there's still a flash of something across his face. grief? relief? but it's gone before even he can figure it out. ]
Grayson.
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even him. he's been reining in his darker impulses. telling himself there'll be time to practise his power. and find a gym.
he's waiting near the door for damian. he has to study him, but it's undeniable. that's bruce's bio-son. his eyes and talia's nose. just how many are there? across all the timelines. bruce tends towards being a father in all of them.
dick's left his only child life behind. and it doesn't bug him as much when he has a family of his own now.
dick comes up to him. he looks at the scar. ]
Damian?
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He's not shy about studying him in turn. Not speaking as he does, taking in the differences. The little tells that tell him this isn't someone he's familiar with, but all the similarities that automatically make him family.
He'll never not have a soft spot for Dick Grayson. ]
You're taller than I expected.
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even another himself.
he's satisfied with his first check over damian. he'll get to know more as they go. ]
Come on. [ he leads damian to the spot he chose. as private as it gets in here.
turning around, he stays nearby. he was warned about the empathy bond. but it's a double-edged sword. dick could find it useful if he tried to soothe anyone.
he also doesn't want to be too far away from damian. when trying to establish a bond with him. some kind of bond. he'd wondered if he could work with jason. but damian's body language towards him is very different. ]
Okay. I'm guessing you know me. [ everybody else seems to. ] I'm the oldest in the family?
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[ damian makes himself comfortable, leaning against the wall. his arms folded, guarded, but the rest of him is open.
or at least more open than jason. ]
That seems to be the constant.
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There's a lot of timelines and none of us are the same, but there's overlap. [ clark had felt like clark. jason had treated him like dick. ]
So. Tell me about you.
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My name is Damian Wayne. My mother is Talia al Ghul. I have a younger sister, Athanasia. In my world you're the oldest, second is Tim, third is Jason, and then myself.
I was raised by the League of Assassins until the age of eight. At which point I left to live with my father and learn from him. You served as my mentor, Jason served as a distraction, Tim as an annoyance. You were briefly Batman and I was your Robin.
[ god how much does he get into? his world is a nightmare. ]
I don't get along with my father.
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he can suspect what it is here. ]
My second is Jason. I don't know a Tim. [ more robins. his name means a lot to more boys.
he didn't want to share. but okay. it's not his call anymore. ]
At least it was brief. [ he can't imagine being batman. unless bruce was dead.
even if bruce was dead. only if damian had needed robin that much. and robin needed batman. ]
I'm not keen on the cowl.
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You weren't back then, either.
[ and damian had been so betrayed when he'd given it up. his eyes drop to the floor, dark brows drawing together. ]
I succeeded you as Nightwing.
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now he knows better. ]
Nightwing. [ what a cool name. ]
Did I pick that for myself? [ please say yes. ]
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You did. But I suspect you borrowed it from Kryptonian mythology without realizing it.
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[ it's from superman?
this is the best information ever. dick grins at him. if not for the empathy bond that makes others skittish, he would have put his arm around damian.
though he stops smiling. looking thoughtful. ]
You can say I'm dead. It's okay. [ the expression on damian's face when he'd come in had been confusing.
damian took his name. another one he hadn't thought he'd share, but he guesses he's that guy now. at least it's a family member. jason can have robin. so can tim. and damian can have robin and nightwing too.
dick was never going to retire peacefully.
though he'll be mad if he died wearing the cowl. ]
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damian isn't quite as good at masking his emotions as one might expect him to be. part of it is being raised by honest and true boyscout clark kent after his own father had failed him, and part of that is what came with that boyscout not being so good anymore. his gaze drops, something painful crossing his face. ]
... You died when I was thirteen. There was an accident.
[ it was an accident. ]
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he doesn't feel anything. he should. but it's not sad to know. ]
As long as it wasn't stupid. Here lies Dick Grayson, run over by a golf cart. [ but it obviously affects damian.
dick reaches out to him. ]
Can I? [ hug him. ]
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[ it's not a lie. but it's a lie by omission. ]
I'd rather you didn't.
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well.
he fell and no one caught him. poetic in a way.
if he doesn't ask for details, he can fill in the picture. it'll probably be better than the truth. ]
Okay. [ but it's here if damian wants it. ] I know about the empathy bond, and... anytime you want.
[ damian is welcome to reach out to him. ]
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I'll keep that in mind.
[ ... ]
What about you?
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well, dick can relate.
but he won't press. damian bleeds for him. that's enough. ]
Me? [ he shrugs. ] I'm mentoring the Titans. At least until Jason steps up to lead them. Then I'm done.
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[ forgive his shock here. ]
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Is there a reason he shouldn't? [ he understands if jay doesn't want to. but everyone acting like this is the worst idea.
he's not jay's biggest fan, but the kid wants a family. the titans are that family. is it hard? ]
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[ damian loves his brother dearly, but Jason is sometimes even less a team player than he is. And all that self loathing gets in his way more than anything else does.
But, then again, the Jason that Dick knows might not have been quite so broken. ]
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It's his choice - the team looks to him. He's Robin. [ the team looks to dick because he takes charge of stuff. he hates it.
besides, he thinks it will help jason. ]
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tw child abuse bc what the fuck injustice bruce
wtf
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