13558/We Need to Talk About...

We Need to Talk About...
Date of Scene:	11 December 2022
Location:	Batcave
Synopsis:	Damian and Bruce discuss leaving the proverbial Robin's nest. Good times were had.
Cast of Characters:	Damian Wayne, Bruce Wayne

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Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian had, under the guise of doing a Senior project for school, been using the rapid prototyping equipment in the cave. Alfred of course told Master Damian that he would have to explain it to Bruce eventually, which the you g man knew. Though Damian wanted something tangible to pitch instead of an arbitrary no from the Bat.

  Welder's goggles made observing the piece of tech easier, the round lenses protecting Damian's retina as it worked on the black metal.

  "That is the last piece for the glove." He told himself, putting on the black armor on his left hand, in the background the signature scallops of the Bat clan were being sculpted on the last piece.

  He had checked the fit on the glove before a chime rings, calling his attention to the modeler. Grabbing the last piece of armor, Damian clicks it into place, connecting the gauntlet into a power pack on a gunmetal and black utility belt, turning the buckle, his forearm and hand mostly disappear.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Hmmm." The thoughtful, gravelly noise not entirely disimilar to clearing ones' throat sounds from behind Damian while he's at his workspace. Dressed in work slacks and shirt with the sleeves rolled up Bruce stands with arms crossed watching.

"Are you ready to tell me about your 'school project' yet, or should I give you another twenty-four hours, Damian?" The question is simple. Not accusatory necessarily but there is an edge of humor to his tone. Clearly he had heard Damian speaking with Alfred or otherwise figured out what was going on to some extent. He is a detective after all.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian had not expected there to be a Bruce behind him, but he turned all the same, his hand seemingly vanished. "Well. Now is as good a time as any."

  A hand reaches down and turns the buckle again, the gauntlet 'rematerializing' in front of them. "Father. I feel like I want to be more than just a Robin." Is what he leads with. "I started adapting the Red X suit to something different, able to resist more damage while on Titans missions. And..." he looks down for a moment, trying to find the words, while tapping on the gauntlet. "Computer, display Project Batwing." He asks, a holographic display showing the Red X suit morphing, changing, and growing taller, into a black suit, with a red Bat on the chest. "I want to be a Bat."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Bruce Wayne regards Damian quietly allowing him the time to regain his composure. Once the project is put on display his arms uncross. Stepping closer he hesitates a single moment. Then his hand lifts to rest on one of Damian's shoulders lightly. Not squeezing nor reprimanding merely there. "I'd been wondering when you were going to bring this up. You're old enough to start thinking of your future."

The display is looked over with a singular nod contemplating the schematic. Slowly his chest inflates with a drawn breath as he fixes Damian with a smile. "This looks solid. Is the suit called Batwing, or is that your new name?"

Damian Wayne has posed:
     There was a definite weight lifted off his shoulders when Bruce speaks, and to his suprise was not shot down. "The suit so far is that. I hadn't thought that far yet for a codename. In case..." He leaves it at that. "I wanted it to be a Bat...not just a bird." The quiet part there being the small Wayne wants to follow in the larger one's footsteps. "I did not want you to think I was doing this without thought...which is why I wanted to show you just a bit of what this design can do."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Damian-" Bruce trails off as he turns to regard his son. Lips press together tight while considering his words. It didn't matter that he was a great detective when there were times like this that left him fumbling over his words. He turns further to face him head on meeting his gaze square. "I know you've been working on this for awhile."

Again he finds himself smiling down at the shorter man his son was growing into. With some bit of amusement. Some part pride. Some part wistful recollection. "I have never told a Robin when they 'graduated'. They tell me when they're ready." His eyes break away to glance upward in a moment of thought. "There have been times I've told them no based on whether I feel they're ready or not. There have even been times they proved they were ready when I thought they weren't. You're eighteen. You've been ready for quite awhile, Damian."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     There was no pretending that Damian didn't know that Bruce knew. But that did give Damian the time to adapt his former 'gray-area' suit into something else, something better.

  Damian took those words to heart, letting a Robin determine that was something he never considered. He always thought it was something he determined, with the exception of Dick...and Jason...hmm. maybe he didn't consider the things he should have. But when Bruce says Damian has been ready for a while, he couldn't help but nod while his eyes got a little misty, Damian always worse his heart on his sleeve, even if he was mostly a grumpy cat. The youngest of the Waynes embraced Bruce tightly. "Thank you, Father."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
The unexpected hug is responded to rather quickly by Bruce as the hand that had been on Damian's shoulder moves to his back returning the embrace for as long as Damian may need it. The grip tightens just a bit while he feels his own emotions well up as much as they ever do.

"I'm not as good a father as mine was to me. It's my greatest failing. I know I can be over-protective at times - Because I care. I don't want to risk losing any more of my family than I already have."

"You always have a place here Damian. Whether it be as Robin or Batwing," he finishes with the potential new codename to try it out for size.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "I know. And I...wish I could say the same about The League but here...has felt more like home then that place ever felt."

  Honest candor from Damian as he releases the hug. "I don't know about Thomas. And I know the circumstances of my birth are dubious to say the least. But if it was not for you, I...I would have been exactly what Grandfather wanted." An obvious tone of forboding there. For a long time, Damian was the weapon Ra's wanted and used.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"You've come a long way. We both both have." His hand lifts to muss Damian's hair when the hug breaks apart. "Dubious history aside, you are my son, Damian." That last assurance given his attention returns to the rendering on holographic display.

An alarm on his cell goes off alerting him to a reminder. "I have to attend to an overseas conference call. Keep me appraised of your progress. If you need any help-" The offer trails off leaving it open to be accepted or not.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian's crew cut is indeed mussed a bit before leaving his eyes on the hologram. "I will let you know. Tell Katsumoto-san hello for me." Assuming Bruce was going to talk to Wayne Industries cohorts in Japan. "Our branch on the Nikkei has been exceptional this quarter." Yes, Damian pays attention to finances, he also controls much of the Titans' investment portfolio.