That post-save-the-world clarity is craaaaaazy
What's under those robes? 👀✨️
Here’s more of them because they are the ultimate dynamic duo, literally it’s the ultimate life form and ultimate warrior.
love my test tube children (kon too…might do another him later) also i forgot to give Damian a helmet and elbow pads…but he’ll be fine….probably
I love Fics where Damian gets carried around. So here is a HC from me.
Bruce is at a meeting with the JL, and he brings Robin with him. Why? He just comes along, no real reason. Bruce shows Damian the watchtower, and they run into Hal and Barry. Hal and Barry never met Damian, and they think he is a normal child that fights crime with Batman. Well, they are wrong. They ask Damian which his favorite is, Flash or Green Lantern. Before Damian can say something, Bruce picks him up and carries him away; Damian is too stunned to say anything. This was actually smart, because Damian definitely would have destroyed Hal and Barry with words. Even if Bruce thinks that they're idiots sometimes, he still needs them, and he can't just let his son destroy their mental health with one sentence.
Later in a meeting something similar happens, but it's Superman asking. Before Damian can say anything, Bruce picks him up again, sits him in his lap, and starts patting his head. None of the heroes know it's for their own good; they think it's cute.
The picking up Damian thing also goes for the others. Once Duke and Damian are in the Gotham Library, because Damian has a group project and he refuses to go to the houses of his classmates and he also refuses to bring them to the Manor. Duke is also there just because he also has some homework to do (and because Bruce told him to supervise).
When one of Damian's classmates says that he doesn't like some random animal that Duke hasn't even heard about, he starts to sprint over to Damian and picks him up. Duke knows that Damian would have verbally destroyed the other kid, and he doesn't want to take care of a crying child.
This picking up and making Damian shut up thing works for everyone except Dick. The others say it's because Dick doesn't hold Damian tight enough or because he is too used to getting randomly picked up by Dick. He is a little bit salty about it when he learns during a mission that this also works with Stephanie.
The entire thing was first discovered by Alfred and Tim. Damian and Tim were alone with Alfred at the Manor, and they nearly got into a fight; however, Alfred walked in on them before something happened. He sees that they're both going to explode soon and that they will start fighting. So he decided to just take Damian and place him in a different room. He crouches down to Damian, ruffles his hair, and holds him, then takes his hand and leads him away. For some reason that completely resets Damian's brain (it's probably because in the league no one ever held him, except for training, and then it was violent).
Tim is like, 'What just happened with the Demon Brat?'.
And from that day on, they figured a way out to make Damian shut up.
Tim Drake - 12 days
Tim fidgeted with his hands, his gaze fixed on the wall.
Tim: All around the mulberry bush, the monkey chased the weasel, da da da da—
Suddenly, an alarm blared on his phone startling everyone at the cafe table he was sitting at.
Tim: POP GOES THE WEASEL!
He erupted into cackling laughter, but as he slowly laid his head on the table, the laughter quickly faded away. Cassie, Kon, and Bernard exchanged worried glances.
Cassie: Hey, Tim, how long have you been awake?
Tim (rocking back and forth): 288 hours.
Cassie (stunned): 200 and what?
Kon (shocked): You've been awake for 12 days?!
Bernard (sighing): Again, Tim?
Cassie & Kon: Again?!
Bernard: I've seen this happen with him so many times. At this point, his brain starts to cry.
Cassie: Don’t you mean die?
Tim sobbed for a few moments, his eyes fixed on his phone, before falling completely silent.
Bernard: Nah, I mean crying.
Tim: You've seen me do it before, and I can do it longer. The first record holder lasted 12 days! I can go even longer—like a full month! I can! Batman couldn't even do that!
Tim cackled rocking back and forth.
Tim: Coffee helps especially when you replace it with all other liquids.
Tim grabbed a large cup of coffee, his hands trembling uncontrollably. He took a few big gulps as Cassie looked on in shock, while Konnor blinked and then shrugged, taking a few sips from his tea. Bernard gently rubbed his boyfriend’s back.
Cassie: Dude, why are you even avoiding sleep?
Bernard (explaining for his boyfriend): The double life, regular paperwork and then hero work. Timmy, let's take you home okay?
Tim: Home, no home. I fall sleep. Sleep for the weak... Did you know if you look at the walls long enough, new people appear?
Tim waved, laughing nervously then tensed horrified.
Tim: Their faces are contorting again!
Bernard: Let's take you away from the scary... invisible person and get you home to not rest.
Bernard took Tim's hand and led him outside of the Dunkin' Donuts.
Cassie: I could not handle dating a batkid.
Konnor nodded.
Kon: I dated him for a while. Would not recommend.
----------------------------------------------------
Dick Grayson - 18 days and 15 minutes
Kori and Beast Boy walked into the Titans' living room. Raven was the only one there, deep in her daily meditation.
Kori: Where's Dick at?
Raven: Outside counting blades of grass.
Kori (confused): Counting blades of grass?
Beast Boy (frustrated): Oh Jesus, has he been awake for days again?
Raven nodded, her eyes still closed.
Raven (monotone): He'll crash any second, but he thought being outside in the sun would 'revitalize' him.
Beast Boy: That's not- I'll be back.
Beast Boy went outside where Dick was, indeed, counting blades of grass. BB approached him, tapping his foot. Dick looked up, his eyes wide and one twitching.
Dick: Hey- Hey- Hey buddy. Did you know we have one hundred thousand blades of grass? I- Did you change colors?
BB: What color do you think I am?
Dick squinted his eyes.
Dick: Blue.
BB: All right, we're on that color. How long have you been awake, buddy?
Dick: I stopped sleeping last Wednesday... Then a week passed... Then another, that was 14, now it's Saturday of the second week. And- I hear the world singing.
Dick lay on the ground, counting the same patch of grass as he whispered incoherent nonsense. Beast Boy crossed his arms, sighed, and walked back inside the tower.
BB: 18 days this time.
Beast Boy walked away as Kori covered her mouth in shock.
Raven: He's surpassing the world record holder. Also, his brain might be dying.
Kori (alarmed): Might be?!
Raven: He's a batkid, their brains are made of steel or something.
Kori: I have one trick that usually knocks him out—
Raven: I know it's sex.
Kori (giggling): Yes, but he falls asleep on top of me every time.
Raven sighed, shaking her head while Beast Boy left the house with a water bottle.
Beast Boy: Right, I'm going to give him this sleep juice Alfred sent us. He says it knocks them out in a few seconds.
Raven: Smart choice.
Beast Boy: Thanks.
----------------------------------------------------
Jason Todd - 5 days
Jason: I can't sleep.
Roy: How long have you been awake?
Jason (groggy): About five days. Man, I tried to go to sleep, but my body physically won't let me.
Roy: Well, you have been drinking Red Bulls every other hour. You're too focused on the mission. Just go to sleep.
Jason shook his head, rocking back and forth.
Jason: Can't sleep… Won't sleep… No sleep.
Roy tapped his foot, thinking of a way to get him to sleep, then smiled.
Roy: You know you're becoming just like your dad. That's good; he can go six days without sleep. Maybe you'll—
Jason stood up, went to another room, closed his door, and fell into his bed to sleep.
Roy: Works every time.
----------------------------------------------------
Damian - 1 day
Damian: I don't want to go to sleep! No!
Damian kicked his feet as Bruce dragged him to bed.
Bruce: Nope, you’ve stayed awake for 24 hours. That's it. Go to bed!
Damian: You're so unfair!
Bruce: You're not depriving yourself of valuable sleep—Alfred, shut up!
Alfred, who was reading a book about sleep disorders, smirked and then walked away.
Congrats to them <3
Peter walking into the main room looking around confused
Tony: "what's up kid?"
Peter: "okay I know I'm not crazy but I put my phone down for two seconds and...its gone?? Where could it go??"
Natasha across the room: "should we tell him-?"
Bucky: "don't you dare"
Peter looks under the couch using his phone flash light: "am I insane...?"
Sam: "you'll find it eventually kid!"
Steve: "did you check the lab?"
Peter: "not yet actually.. Thanks Mr Rogers!"
Peter rushes off still holding his phone
Tony: "I think *should* force him to take an ADHD test.."
Natasha: "you think??"
"Oh, Damian was such an asshole" "The bats tried to integrate him he's just ungrateful!" "He had no reason to be as rough or rude as he was"
If I was raised as a prince and suddenly got sent away to the most corrupt, dangerous, and disgusting city in bumfuck New Jersey, I would be worse. The fact that he didn't burn that bitch down makes him a better man than I could ever be
If anything, he didn't crash out enough
Do you have a recs for fics based on the Apprentice arc?
Ooohohoho yesss, you've come to the right person. I have quite a lot of fics to rec (ive been obsessively consuming and hyperfixating like mad on the apprentice arc in particular):
(Also i consider haunted to be part of the overall apprentice arc so there are a few fics based on and set after that episode)
First you can look at the tag "dick grayson as slade wilson's apprentice" on ao3 and there are hundreds of fics, with every dynamic and characters you could want, these are just my favorites ive read (put very very vaguely in an order going down from my most favorites):
Never Alone
My favorite, its a masterpiece, its amazing! After haunted robin continues to have hallucinations and its a finished longfic that gives a really good look into robin's mental illness and how he is still only a human. I made a whole post about this fic and how its perfect in every way, i have not binged a longfic this long in forever but i did this one in a single reading session because i was completely and utterly gripped
More coherent and detailed but completely spoiler free rambles about what makes this fic so good here i cannot stress enough how this is a must read if you like the arc. I like, really really want you to read this one
The voice and gears of sunset
Oneshot set right after robin is rescued from slade in the apprentice arc. It hits so hard and hurts. Robin's recovery and him trying to connect again with the titans after what he had gone through, the titans being there to help every step of the way. The ending melts my heart
Emotional motion sickness
Oneshot set many years later when the batfam is fully formed and robin is nightwing. A good fic with dick and damian's brotherly relationship and discovering new ways to cope. There is an encounter with slade and that scene fills me with so much undescribable emotion
The fight and the war
Oneshot with the batfam. After an encounter with slade, dick is interogated with his family about the way he responded to slade's commands in the battle and how it could have gotten him killed. Dick is forced to admit what happened back when he was with the titans in the apprentice arc. Very good protective batsiblings in a different way to the other fics
Bedeviled
Oneshot set right after haunted. The spores have a lingering effect and robin presses an emergency distress signal to batman who is there for him
To pick at a scab
Years later with the batfam dick comes to the batcave and his younger brothers have some questions about a sound recording from his time with slade. Dick is thrown into a vivid flashback and the batfam break him out of it and help him talk through it. Oneshot
Just the same
Robin deals with stockholm syndrome and cant help but compare how similar or even better slade is than batman. The titans are there to help him figure things out. Oneshot.
Reforming Nightwing
Unfinished longfic. The titans never find iut about the nanobots and dick is forced to be slade's apprentice for 9 years. After Slade is killed and dick is able to excape, he goes to bludhaven where he picks up a new civillian name and the new identity nightwing. Meanwhile tim and steph want to figure out who this new "nightwing" and what his connection is to the villian "renegade"
Do you think batman will give me partial custody?
Oneshot. After the apprentice arc, robin returns to gotham. Unable to figure out how he feels about the situation he goes to his parents' graves where he encounters harely who helps him start a conversation with him about the abuse they both faced
The apprentice
Unfinished longfic where the titans dont discover the nanobots and robin has to continue being slade's apprentice. He spends his time figuring out how to get a message to the titans or to batman or to anyone without slade knowing
Next to my robin and some matchsticks
Oneshot set after apprentice part 2 where the titans patch up robin's wounds and talk about some scars he has, some from his time before the titans and some from slade
Travesty: the anime only let Saiki keep his sweater paws for one scene this episode
So much stolen
They stole a bit of his coziness 😭
i finally have enough time to properly draw again, so i'm treating myself to a PTA Mom VS. Twilight Saga. listen all i want is a silly little post reveal story with silly little shenanigans and extreme pettiness + perfectionism from twilight in the most trivial of matters. is that too much to ask?
i am going to tag this under 'spy x pta' LMAO
(for those who don't know, PTA stands for Parent Teacher Association. commonly in elementary schools, parents in the PTA are often stereotyped as overbearing, overly competitive, and petty)