A truth field is the concept of an area that forces everyone inside to always tell the truth.

Batfamily would probably be angsty.

Jason telling Bruce and admitting to himself that he specifically started using guns to spite Bruce. He could kill with his blades just as if not more easily.

Dick saying he never fully accepted Bruce as his Father.

Damien saying he preferred working with Dick over him.

Tim referring to himself as an employee, as if they haven't been family at all.

Duke and Steph saying they don't like the fact they feel like Bruce is their dad. It feels like they're replacing their real families.

On a happier note

Batship love confessions

Bruce telling people how much he cares

Slight adjustmemt: Bruce gets hexed, people are compelled to tell him things they've kept from him/how they feel about him.

He's with the JL, and Hal blurts out that he lied about losing his debreif, he actually spilt takeout on it and hasn't had time to print another one. A few more slip out of other members, and they're all lightly amused, slightly embarassed, but don't expect anything bad to happen.

Bruce walks past the Outlaws on the Watchtower when they're ribbing Jason for his guns.

"Alright, alright! The real reason I use guns is—" and he's going to make a joke, no one expects a serious asnwer, but then Bruce drifts by. "To spite Bruce. The old man is so anal about the guns, it's stupid. Guns didn't kill his parents, that mugger did, he needs to get over it."

Bruce freezes. Jason claps a hand over his mouth. The room goes silent.

Jason turns, looking at Bruce, who holds up a hand. "I know guns didn't kill my parents, Jason. I'm the one that taught you how to use them. That does not mean I cannot be wary of such a powerful weapon."

Bruce leaves it there and sweeps out of the room, ignoring Jason calling his name.

——

"B!" Dick calls, jogging over. "Heard you got hexed, I was thinking—" he steps within the field. "That I don't know how to tell anyone I don't think of you as my father. My dad will always come first, and I can't accept you taking his place in my mind. I—"

Bruce puts distance between them, moving the field away from Dick, who goes pale. "Wait. I didn't mean that, Bruce—" Clark catches Dick's arm, gesturing for Bruce to go, and he gladly ducks away.

——

Damian storms right up to where Bruce has secluded himseld, trying to avoid any more truth bonbs before literally any magic user at this point arrives that can help him.

"Father, why is Richard—"

"Son, no!"

"—not Batman? He made an exemplar Batman. You, on the other hand, do not live up to Mother's tales, or Richard's example?"

Barry appears and yanks Damian back a few steps. Bruce just sighs. "Dick isn't Batman because he doesn't like what I've created. If you want to be his partner, talk to him about it."

He leaves, hating himself for the bitter tone, unable to drown out Damian demanding Barry let him go.

——

Bruce makes a break for the zetas, only for some members of YJ to beam onto the Watchtower as he approaches. "I can't believe he's hexed to be a truth machine. It's gotta be crazy being Batman's son."

Tim grins. Bruce thinks maybe this one won't be awful. "Yeah, it's— I feel like an employee sometimes. He acts like he loves me, but I'm only here because someone needed to be Robin."

Bruce stops dead. "Tim." Tim's eyes go wide, and he grabs Kon.

"Fuck. Run."

The zetas light up again, they disappear, and Bruce slowly trudges off in another direction. He doesn't want Tim to think he's chasing him home.

——

Bruce tries to hide in his room. He opens the door, finding Cass on his bed. "I'm worried about Bruce," she says into her phone. "He— treated me like a weapon, not a daughter, at first. Sometimes I think it would be better if you adopted me instead, Babs."

She meets his eyes, wide, horrified, and Bruce steps back, closing the door.

——

Bruce ends up in a vent. He's hiding, he can admit that. Zatanna messaged she's nearly here only a short while ago, so he just needs to avoid everybody until then.

"It's good Zatanna's here now, before anything else happens. Did you hear what Dick said to him?" He hears Steph's voice, and goes still. He has nowhere to go. He doesn't want to hear what she says, he's done her wrong so many times.

"Yeah, ruthless," Duke agrees. Bruce closes his eyes, they'll be right under him in 3, 2, 1... "I mean, saying that— is totally reasonable, actually. It feels like sometimes he's trying to be my dad, 'cept I don't want him to replace mine. I've already got Gnormon trying to screw me over, I don't need Bruce too."

"Heard. I don't care if my mum isn't the best in the world, having Bruce try to cram himself into a parental role ain't gonna help anything."

Bruce blows out a slow breath, hearing dead silence beneath him. "B, please tell me you're not in that vent," Steph begs.

Bruce drops down, and avoids looking either of them in the eye. "I apologise you both feel that way, I thought I had been obvious that I don't intend to be a parent to either of you. I know that isn't my place."

"Boss man," Duke tries, and Bruce walks away.

"You said Zatanna's here?"

——

"Heard you're having a rough one," Zatanna notes, after blurting out that her dad refused to teach Bruce magic because he stands a chance at surpassing their best magic users with his magical ancestry, not because of the reasons he was given when he was younger.

"You could say that." Zatanna mumbles a few words, then grins at him, tugging him into her side.

"Well, it's over now."

Bruce leans his head on her shoulder. "Can I stay with you for a while, Zee? I don't really want to go home right now."

She strokes her hand through his hair. "Sure, Brucie. I've got a few shows this week, you can be my stagehand."

She tugs him towards the zetas, plugging in a location he doesn't pay attention to. All that matters is it isn't Gotham.

"Bruce!" He turns, finding Dick in the doorway, Steph and Duke behind him. Damian, running down the hall in the distance. "Please, stay and—"

Shen Qingqiu: ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ what.

Yue Qingyuan: it's cute and sexy when you're being vicious and mean. I know I shouldn't allow it so I at least make a token attempt to stop you but it's hard to commit when I'm hard because of it.

Shen Qingqiu: ⁄⁠(⁠⁄⁠ ⁠⁄⁠•⁠⁄⁠-⁠⁄⁠•⁠⁄⁠ ⁠⁄⁠)⁠⁄ WHAT

“Your decisions are bad,” Bruce said bluntly. “Keep the eyeliner, ditch the hair.”

“...my mask is on. How’d you know I was wearing eyeliner?”

“I’m the world’s greatest fucking detective.”

Jason dropped to the floor, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. Dick pouted, shooting a glare down and taking a step back. “How about you insult him?” 

“I’m not insulting anyone. I adore you and despise your trashy fashion sense. Jason is a delight and he always looks fine.” 

-

“Edward Nygma is the best damn Rogue I’ve got and I don’t care who knows it. His sense of style-- the commitment, the panache.” His expression went mournful and he slumped back into his chair. “Why couldn’t you be more like Edward, son?”

“Bruce, he’s a supervillain!” Dick’s voice edged upwards and Jason, who had just about gotten his laughter under control broke down again.

“He’s brilliant and misunderstood and all he wants is attention.” Bruce countered. “He hardly ever hurts anyone. Sure, he gets over excited, but my G-d, the mind on that man. One day, he’s going to be rehabilitated and we’re going to be best friends.”

“Best friends?” Jason’s voice was edging towards hysterical, a full octave higher than normal.

-

“He’s the worst clown!” Bruce snapped, throwing his arms up. “He’s not even good at crime! All he knows is smash ‘em up jobs and grinning at people until they back down. Even his whole ‘half the crimes are silly, half are deadly’ shtick doesn’t pan out, because he is predictable. All you have to do is think ‘if I were an idiot in clownface with all edge and no point, what’s the edgiest, the fucking assholeriest, the most ‘oh I’m so dangerous’ stunt I could do?’ and then go there, because that’s where he is! 

-

“He’s too good. It’s disgusting. He says ‘golly’ unironically, he ‘opes’ inanimate objects, he drinks powdered coffee, and his ass is flatter than the stupid Kansas grassland he grew up in. How does a man like that have such a terrible ass? He has no right.” 

Jason, already giggling, howled at the scandalized look on Dick’s face. “Bruce, you can’t say that!”

“It’s true.” His face flushed darker and he slapped a hand on the arm of his chair.

THE BODY, THE ACTIONS, HOWEVER - Oh, whoever drinks it will do things without control that are the true desires of their heart. The truth of their spirit. Even if their words say something, their body is the honest one

Mobei Jun snapped alert. "What is it?"

"Truth serum," Shang Qinghua babbled. "I would have taken the antidote but that blasted sy-a servant bumped me and it broke."

Mobei Jun stared at Shang Qinghua. There was an opportunity here. He stood up and froze the doors over sealing them inside.

Shang Qinghua sank down in relief. "Thank you my king! I don't know what I would have done if someone had asked the wrong question."

Mobei Jun grunted. He looked at his human. "Why do you serve me?"

"Because you're incredibly hot and I might be in love with you even though you're going to kill me," Shang Qinghua blurted out. He clapped his hands over his mouth.

"Why would I kill you?" Mobei Jun asked in surprise.

"Hopefully it's just because I'm useless and not because I'm forced to betray you," Shang Qinghua babbled uncontrollably. Shang Qinghua shrank away as a murderous expression crossed Mobei Jun's face. "I really am loyal my king! I don't want to die, I wouldn't betray you if I had a choice!"

"Who is forcing you to betray me?" Mobei Jun demanded.

"It hasn't happened yet, but that's how it was written," Shang Qinghua said. "I betray you, and you kill me. And I wouldn't choose to betray you, so I'll have to be forced. I'm just hoping that I've done enough that you'll make it quick when the time comes." He really needed to stop talking!

"A prophecy?" Mobei Jun asked.

"You could call it that, sure," Shang Qinghua agreed. "It wasn't meant to be a prophecy, but it's certainly being forced into being one! It would be great if this wasn't happening to me, haha, I'm just an idiot writer! I'm not meant to be in these kinds of situations!"

That made little sense, but Mobei Jun had grasped the important parts. Shang Qinghua knew that swearing himself to his king would end in a forced betrayal and death, but still wished to do so. He was loyal, and terrified about being caught in the prophecy's tangles.

"This king will not kill you if you are forced to betray him," Mobei Jun swore. "I will find what made you do so and destroy it."

Shang Qinghua cracked a crooked smile. "Thank you my king."

"You do not believe me," Mobei Jun rumbled.

"I've been fighting it my whole life, no one's ever been able to help," Shang Qinghua said. "Why would you do that for a pathetic servant who never does well enough to not be beaten?"

Mobei Jun frowned. "You think the beatings are punishment?"

"Of course, what else could they be?' Shang Qinghua babbled. "Obviously it's because I'm a human cultivator, and you hate cultivators, and I'm already betraying my sect by serving you so I can't be trusted really, and there's always some kind of flaw in my work."

"They are not punishment."

"Then why hit me?" Shang Qinghua burst out. "Those really hurt!"

Mobei Jun stared at Shang Qinghua. "To court you."

"Why would you-demons court with violence. I forgot that. I work with demons, how could I forget that? But you can't want me, my king! You know I'm terribly weak!"

"Qinghua is stronger than he thinks." Mobei Jun sat down. "How long does this truth serum last?"

"Six hours. I'm going to be talking nonstop that entire time, it's going to be terribly annoying for you my king, I'm sorry."

Mobei Jun waved his hand. "Qinghua can speak as he likes. This king will listen."

Their captor is perfectly professional, polite, even pleasant as they question Whumpee, and they swiftly figure out that they've been given a truth serum.

After the interrogation is complete, Whumpee is simply released.

They haven't been injured, they'd barely even been touched.

But one moment they'd been living their life, and the next completely unable to defend themself.