Owner	Pose
Bruce Wayne	Bruce Wayne has finished up a training round with some of the dummies. He doesn't really need to train anymore, other than fitness. The combat is instinct now, ingrained, so much a part of him. He wipes down with a towel and pulls a shirt on over his head, a plain black tee to go along with drawstring pants. He shouldn't wear the expensive shirt when he's sweaty, it's only a t-shirt but it cost nearly a thousand dollars. Alfred would fuss when it went to the laundry. But secretly, Bruce liked to hear Alfred fuss at him. It reminded him of when he was a boy. "Tim," he says. The various Bats never know exactly how he always knows which one of them is entering the room but he somehow does. Maybe he recognizes their individual gaits. Maybe he has hidden sensors that alert him with a specific signal based on who's in the house or in proximity to the cave. God knows there are enough biosensors and surveillance equipment in the place to make the NSA jealous. "Come on in. Haven't seen you in a while. I suppose your Outsiders are keeping you busy." Is he chiding Tim for being distracted? Praising him for developing a successful team? Only Bruce knows.
Tim Drake	Tim's not a constant presence at the Manor like he used to be back in his Robin days, it's true. He spent more time here than at home, which was a frequent source of tension between him and his father. Now that's all in the past, and Tim has moved on enough that he spares just a moment for some old memories as he crosses the threshold into the Cave proper, a tinge of regret in his expression before he sets himself back to neutral.     At least he's familiar enough with Bruce's omniscience that, when his name is called out as he descends to the training area, there isn't so much as a hitch in his breath. Naturally, he suspects that it's a little bit of column A, a little bit of column B in terms of how Bruce does it, though Tim acknowledges that his own reliance on technology (a personal foible he is well-aware of, yes) might skew his suspicions a little bit. Who knows, though?     "I have them working double time after their vacation," he jokes. The vacation was a real thing that happened (a long weekend in San Francisco on Tim's dime) but any allusion to extra work to make up for it, now that just isn't Tim's style. Nowadays, at least, since he's grown up a little and settled into his leadership role.     He toes off his shoes at the edge of the workout mat and steps up onto it, hands casually in the pockets of hoodie. "Nothing much to report beyond what I've sent in my weekly status update. Advanced metahuman activity is on the decline, but the Outsiders are ready if they're needed," he adds.
Bruce Wayne	Bruce Wayne nods, "Your squad does good work, they deserve the chance to relax. Although I imagine some of them managed to find trouble well enough on their own, regardless of your intent. They always do, don't they? At least you, now, have a little bit of a sense of what it's like trying to keep these sorts of operations running. You're excelling, of course. You always do." Btruce has become better at giving praise as he's grown in maturity. It's hard to say when exactly the Dark Knight found a way to open his heart to seeing his vigilantes as a family. Tim had seen Bruce at his darkest, closed off after Jason's death, angry at himself, disconnected. He drove himself almost into the ground then. But he learned. He always learns. If he had a superpower, learning is it. "I think Cassandra has a lead on a ring of corrupt cops. I have her gathering further intelligence," he says. He takes his seat at the main control, settling back and turning his chair to face Tim. "My only reservation about the Robin idea isn't the concept itself, but how well it can be executed. We become attached to these other selves, these masks."
Tim Drake	"Just a little bit of trouble," Tim confirms, totally straight-faced despite the fact that they fought an alien giant with four arms in the middle of the California forest (and won). Just another day in the Outsiders.     He can't help but crack a smile at the praise. Bruce has always been a mentor figure to him, of course, even in those first rocky days of him training to be Robin, when Jason's death was fresh. But it means more, now, and he nods along at the salient points, his expression slanting into distant consideration at mention of Cassandra's intel. He doesn't have the personal stake in the GCPD that someone like Barbara has, but it's still alarming to hear about.     That, however, is a thread to follow up on at a later time, because Bruce's comment on his proposal brings Tim back into laser focus attention.     Before he answers, though, he takes in a breath. "You're right, we do," he says, after the necessary moment for him to give real thought to his response has passed. "That's why I think it's important that they maintain their own separate identities at the same time. Bluebird, Osprey, and Oriole should still maintain a presence in Gotham whenever they're not at Batman's side."
Bruce Wayne	Bruce Wayne runs a hand over his chin, examining the idea from a variety of angles. "I don't see why that would be an issue. Might even be a benefit. Make it seem like we have even more forces in play. Put a little more fear in the backrooms and the hidey-holes. Maybe even flush out a few rats." "Have you talked to them? How do they feel about it?" He wonders if Damian would consider being a part of it, but his complicated son and he would have to have a complicated discussion about that on another day.
Tim Drake	Tim nods, and he too pauses to give his idea another examination for potential pitfalls. It's been percolating for some time now, this proposal of his, and he likes to think he's considered as many possibilities as he can. But at the end of the day he's only human, and he's certainly not psychic, so he comes up empty-handed.     Well, there's one big glaring pitfall, and by happenstance he and Bruce are both thinking about him at the same moment. This may be a major destabilizing element to the rocky foundations of Tim and Damian's relationship.     "Not yet. I didn't want to give them any expectations until you'd made a decision, but I'd be happy to sit them down and run them through the idea," he says. His own estimations of Phoebe, Harper, and Austin's personalities seem to make him confident that they'd be interested.
Bruce Wayne	Bruce Wayne nods, "We should have a meeting about it, get their input as well. Perhaps you can talk to them individually to test the waters. Or as a group. You know them better than I," he says. Again, an improvement from the earlier Batman that Tim knew - the man who trained him initially would have never delegated authority in such a way. Or admitted anything resembling a weakness. Not that he has many to admit. Tim and Bruce are both thoughtful men. Each of his apprentices resembled him in some way, had some element of his gifts. With Tim, it's always been intellect, two geniuses finding a way to work together even when their own inspirations sometimes took them in differing directions. He talked more to Tim than any of the others, not because he liked him more, but because the exchange of ideas was always productive. Dick got bored with it and Jason just got annoyed. And Damian. Well. Damian is Damian. Barbara was different because Barbara was always differenet. She's her father's daughter first. Bruce was never her dad, not in the way he was to the rest. And Bruce was only starting to find his way with Cassandra. All of that and a city to protect. A night to conquer. A signal to answer. "My decision is that I think it's a good idea, pending working out the kinks. You were always good with knots."
Tim Drake	Bruce giving him the reins on a decision, like always, makes Tim run through the options again. It's a habit, a self-check imposed through the weight of responsibility. In the past it was all about wanting to make Bruce proud, about wanting to not screw things up, but now it's a more measured response. Nothing wrong with double-checking your work.     Besides, he's a big fan of pro/con lists, even if they ultimately never make it down onto paper. And with anything, there are pros and cons to broaching the topic in a group setting versus one-on-one.     "I'll check in with them, see how they're doing." He frowns, and puts his hands on his hips. For a moment or two his eyes are on some invisible horizon point as he thinks, and then his expression evens out as he nods. "But I think as a group is the best way to do this. This will be a team effort, going forward. So they should learn about it as a team."     That's Tim the leader speaking from experience, here. And Bruce gets much of the credit for that, for being an example and for giving Tim the opportunity to lead the Outsiders through his tacit (if secretive) approval.
Bruce Wayne	Bruce Wayne likes secretive approvals best. They avoid all the messy sentiment that gets involved in open endorsements. Bruce makes a lot of speeches, but he doesn't actually like making speeches. It's not his fault so many people need to be set straight. "Working together as a team and making decisions as a team is good. That said, I'm still going to have final say over anything that happens here. Yes, I've relied on them to help you in the past, but if they're going to be Robins...that's something different. Being Robin is a commitment, not just a costume they can switch in and out of willy nilly. I need them to understand that their participation is, as always, dependent upon their behavior, their execution in the field and their ability to work cohesively with the established unit we have. We've managed to get Gotham through a lot - sometimes on life support, yes, but still alive. We're good at what we do. They're going to need to step up their respective games if they want to keep up." "But if they're okay with that...bring them in, yes."
Tim Drake	"Of course," is the first thing that comes out of Tim's mouth, because he expected nothing less from Bruce. Not with Robin, not with the history and expectations that go along with being Robin.     A Robin, he mentally corrects. Now that there may be several in play at once.     His brows draw together briefly when Bruce touches on some of Gotham's darker times, but then he nods, the moment passed. "Phoebe I've trained myself extensively. Austin and Harper are both more raw, but they're good people, and they're committed. They won't let you down."     There's something in Tim's voice that suggests he's going to personally make certain that is the case. He's not trained an entire vigilante family in the way that Bruce has, but he's begun on that path, and his time with the Outsiders brings a unique perspective. So when he nods again, it's with surety.