Weekly Comic-based Fic Recs #1
I started doing this in reddit lol but Iβm going to give one fic rec per βmainβ batfam member every week that are either grounded in comic canon or canon characterization. Some characters Iβm less read for so Iβm relying on the good word of trusted mutuals and other rec lists. (If you have a rec that you know is based in comic canon (aka only rec if you yourself read comics) send it my way, itβs particularly difficult to find less fanon dick/bruce/jason/tim/damian fics)
EBB AND FLOW by orpheusaki
ββI'm not suicidal,β Bruce says with a roll of his eyes, reaching out to take a biscuit from the plate in front of him. Alfred had specifically sent them with him to give to Clark, but what he doesn't know can't hurt him.
Besides, Clark doesn't even seem to mind, given he's more focused on glaring at Bruce from across the table, βI didnβt say you were. I simply made some observations.β
(The recurrent pattern of coming and going, decline and regrowth, of Bruce Wayne.)β
Relationships: Bruce & Alfred, Bruce & Dick, Bruce & Jason, Bruce & Tim, Bruce & Cass, Bruce & Damian, Bruce & Duke, Bruce & Clark Kent
Tags: Implied/referenced Suicide, Suicide Attempt, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death, Unconventional Families, Recovery, Bruce Wayne-centric, Time Skips, Angst With a Happy Ending
im only honest when it rains by FromStarstuff
βIt had been somewhere close to a year now, since Bruce had come back, and anyone could clock that Dick had been relatively touch and go. Or perhaps, rather, one could say that he appeared sparsely and sporadically, never for very long, and was always on his way before you could really ask him anything. He was around, sure, he had been to Gotham, sure, and most importantly of all: no feuds or underlying bitter tensions were crackling in their little web. Everything was fine, seemingly, except for the fact that if Dick spent more than twenty consecutive minutes in Gotham he felt himself start breaking out in hives.β
Relationships: Dick & Bruce, Dick & Damian, Dick & Cass
Tags: post-reborn era, dick grayson versus communication
Oracle, Re: Birth by KamalasFanfiction
βThis isnβt something Bruce would approve of. This isnβt something her dad would approve of. But neither of them are stuck in a tower with poor ventilation and heating, sweating next to a generator running their only means of communication, while someone runs around wearing their face. Sending two characters that had disturbed her as a child was showboat-y, and a little crass, but it confirmed one terrifying fact:
The imposter was using her brain scan.
The Batgirl of Burnside isn't really Barbara Gordon- she remains Oracle, and is trapped while watching someone else run around and pose as her.
She's willing to do whatever it takes to get her life back.β
Relationship: Barbara Gordon/Dinah Lance (implied)
Tags: New-52, Pre-New 52, DC Rebirth, Isolation, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Barbara Gordon is Oracle, Barbara Gordon is Not Batgirl, Past Sexual Assault, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Dubious Morality, Canon Disabled Character, Fake Hostage Situation, Mild Language, Ableist Language, Blood
Jason reels back. That guttural voice could only belong to one person.
A fraying gauntlet clamps down on his shoulder. βDid you have a justifiable cause when you murdered that man?β
Of course itβs an accusation. He wants to join the worms in their chorus of laughter.
As it is, he swallows his elation and grinds the morsel to dust. βYour city is falling apart and you want to waste your time worrying about whether or not I had a legitimate reason for slicing up that rabies-infested piece of meat? What kind of a protector are you?β
The Batman grunts in lieu of a response.
Earth-51 Bruce + New Earth Jason reunite at the end of the world.
Day 4: "No one's coming." | The Batarang Incident | Lossβ
Relationships: Jason & Bruce, Jason & Earth 51 Bruce
Tags: Jason Todd Summer Week 2025, Comic Countdown to Final Crisis Vol. 1 (2007), Jason Todd has BPD, Jason Todd has PTSD, Survivor Guilt, Hallucinations, Jason Todd has Daddy Issues, Jason Todd-Centric, POV Jason Todd, Angst, Why are there so many different tags, Canon Compliant, you have no proof this didnβt happen off page, Jason Todd is Red Robin, happy early birthday jason!, Canon says Jayβs physically 18-19 during countdown. Donna + Kyle were in their mid 20s beefing with a teenager lmfao., u ever think about how JTβs post countdown growth was ruptured by an author who literally said growing up poor, + getting raped made jt an evil child? π dc fans donβt read interviews or care about poor people so nobody cares, anyway enjoy ur e-51 bw & jt angst. Donβt we all wish things could be different?
I thought it was for youβbut it was for me by Shirokokuro
βYou gonna say anything?β Tim finally asks, practicing his nose stalls on the grind box nearby.
Bruce doesnβt respond. He sat down on the bench fifteen minutes ago. Tim probably clocked his car five minutes before that, even.
Tim laughs and shakes his head. βSeriously, Bruce."
Relationships: Tim & Bruce
Tags: POV Bruce Wayne, Bruce Wayne is Bad at Communicating, Bruce Wayne Tries to be a Good parent, Tim Drake is Robin, The Clench (Batman Contagion), Skater Tim Drake, the most important tag tbh, Tim Drake-Centric, Good Parent Bruce Wayne
yeah, dad, maybe no one is perfect by Luvo
βThereβs the sound of a grappling hook hissing and light feet landing on the platform. βHey, Batman,β Robin says. βWhatβsβuh. Whatβs happening?β
Stephanie laughs louder. Above her, Batman looks over her head, face grim. βWeβre not taking in the Cluemaster,β he says.
βYeah, I figured. Heβs, um. Dead, and all. Whatβoh. Did sheβ¦β
Stephanie swallows her laughter, taking a breath to steady herself. βYeah,β she says through a smile, βI pushed him. I killed him.β
βRight,β Robin says. βOkay. So, do weβ¦β He looks helplessly at Batman and asks, βWhat do we do now?β
It's a story about murder, it's a story about motive, it's a story about mommy issues. Or: Stephanie Brown kills her dad!β
Relationships: Steph & Crystal Brown, Steph & Tim, Steph & Bruce
Tags: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Character Death, Itβs Arthur, Past Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Bad Parent Arthur Brown, Complicated Relationships, Stephanie Brown kills her dad, Stephanie Brown-centric, Drug Addiction, Suicidal Thoughts, Angst with a Happy Ending, Stephanie Brown has daddy issues, she also has mommy issues!
to be buried alive by FromStarStuff
βBruce died and Cass couldnβt breathe for a week. She didnβt want to believe it at first, didnβt want to even think of it. She knew Bruce and she knew death and they didnβt fit together, not at all.
He was gone, gone like Brenda and Bludhaven, gone like Steph had been. Like Faizul. She felt it inside of her, so keenly it was as if she had killed him by her own hand. She could search the whole earth and not find a trace of him. It was too much. The pressure was squeezing her insides, left her constantly choking for air. She couldnβt stop dry heaving.
Or: Bruce is dead. Instead of leaving, Cass stays in Gotham. She learns a thing or two about being Batman.β
Relationships: Cass & Bruce, Cass & Dick, Cass & Damian, Cass & Steph, Cass & Barbara, Dick & Bruce
Tags: Cassandra Cain-Centric, grief and loss and healing, the trials of burgeoning sibling hood, cassie cain versus her EPIC titanic self loathing, basically βdick and cass tag team Batman: the life the movie the blogβ, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
How Long Can a Good Thing Last? by aSintobeRin
βDamian has been Robin for one year. Grayson has been Batman for one year. It hasnβt been that long, really, but the prospect of Father returning to take Batman over againβ¦
Damian feels horrible for how much he doesnβt want that to happen.
Damianβs perspective from Batman & Robin (2009) #15-16β
Relationships: Damian & Dick, Damian & Bruce
Tags: Whumptober 2025, Day 5 alt; deal with the devil, Gun Violence, Gunshot Wounds, Blood and Injury, Mild Language, Hurt Dick Grayson, Protective Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson is Batman, Damian Wayne is Robin, Comic: Batman and Robin vol 1 (2009), Comic: Batman and Robin (2009) #15, Comic: Batman and Robin (2009) #16, Iβll give you context (or at least as much as I can for a Morrison comic), Hospitals, implied/referenced surgery, Dick & Dami are very special to me, sorry to jason todd fans everywhere, I wonβt bash him but this run desecrates his name, spoilers for grant morrisons Batman run, cross-posted on tumblr
and there was absolutely no other way this could have gone by sydandgotham5
βYou can figure out how it goes. He makes the two-foot climb to the top of the diving board. He looks down into the water below, and though the red letters along the edge of the pool all declare obnoxiously β12 FEET!β, he thinks to himself that it didnβt really look that deep. He thinks that, clearly, everyone was just trying to hold him down. Stop him from flying. Stop him from breaking free. And so Duke does itβhe dives. For about two seconds, it feels good because itβs just him, the water, and the glowing warmth of his own triumph.
Of course, he sinks. He couldnβt swim.β
Relationships: Duke & Bruce, Duke & Dick, Duke & Original Male Character(s), Duke & Tim
Tags: Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Religious Guilt, Minor Character Death, Bruce Wayne is Bad at Communicating, Bruce Wayne is Bad at Relationships, Duke Thomas is a Batfamily Member, Duke Thomas-centric, Character Study, Social Commentary, We are Robin
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