#kinda..

Bruce was a child who grew up quietly confused, unconsciously trying to understand whether this was what fatherhood was meant to be. Because in the few short years he had with his parents, they had never loved him the way Alfred cared for him.

And yet, every time the thought got too close, Bruce would remind himself that Alfred was only his butler. That he remained in the manor because Bruce paid him to. Even if, somewhere deep down, Bruce wished Alfred would do what other children’s parents did — pull him into a hug when he had done well, tell him he was proud of him, praise him like it meant something more than duty.

Alfred praises Bruce whenever he earns exceptionally high marks or does something genuinely remarkable. The second is painfully difficult to achieve, and although the thrill of being praised for his grades sends a bright spark through his chest, Bruce cannot help feeling as though he has only done the bare minimum. Alfred always uses the same words. And every time Bruce notices it, he feels horribly ungrateful.

The real question here is: would Alfred attend Bruce’s school events?

To Alfred, it would have felt improper, almost disrespectful, to occupy a role that was never his, especially one that had been so cruelly taken from others. Those seats should have belonged to Martha and Thomas Wayne. Therefore, Alfred never attended Bruce’s school events. He was there only when it was time to take the boy home.

Bruce had taken part in a silly little play the teachers put together during the children’s free time, and he had tried very, very hard because it was going to be the first performance he would ever do for Alfred.

Alfred never came.

One of the parents in attendance did praise Bruce to him afterward, though, which at least gave Alfred some idea of what Bruce had done. His expression gave nothing away upon hearing about Bruce’s apparently remarkable performance, but that night Bruce fell asleep and dreamed that Alfred had woken him with congratulatory biscuits. It had been nice.

(Alfred did not make any biscuits the next morning. In truth, Bruce remained alone in the house until late into the evening, when Alfred finally returned from somewhere he had apparently needed to be.)

Nor did Alfred ever attend any of the choirs Bruce participated in, or the various holiday events held throughout the school year.

(That night, Bruce lay awake replaying every moment from that week until he finally decided it had all been his fault. Alfred had only been trying to help when he suggested a change to the project, and Bruce had answered him too sharply. It would have been incorrect, it would have ruined the entire “scientific” process, but Alfred had been gentle, and Bruce had only been unkind.)

And Alfred’s refusal to appear at such events— or anywhere within Bruce’s school life, really — did nothing to help Bruce’s growing reputation as a lonely child. No one ever believed him when he spoke of Alfred, and before long it became a cruel, endless joke among the others that Bruce Wayne was going mad and seeing ghosts.

he. has. wicks!!!

the origin of wick dreadlocks is florida usa, and are named due to the resemblance to a "candle wick" because of how they stick straight up and/or out!

now, wicks have a bad reputation even within the loc community.

its already known that like if you got dreads, generally, ppl think u are unkempt, and dirty, and things of that nature, but there is even more discrimination against wicks its unreal. like legit yall i cant even begin to explain the nasty shit ppl say about them because i will be sad.

its kinda just considered the "crazy Florida man hairstyle". and a lot of the hate is due to the fact that wicks, appear "unkempt" or things of that nature

there has been a lot of texturism in the loc community which has brought with it the idea that dreads need to be retwisted to be "properly" taken care of, and need to be flat on your head and all these other things that often bring with it the need to hide your natural hair. i get unsolicited advice on my hair all the time telling me "i need a retwist" because of the belief that black hair needs to be all tidy and stuff to be respected.

but the thing is, dreads aren't meant to be all neat and tidy all the time y'know. its black hair in one of its most natural forms. and who better to showcase that than hobie brown, spider punk?

wicks kinda go against everything that dreads are "supposed" to be and "supposed" to look like.

i just love everything about this movie but i especially wanted to like talk about this hair choice. hair most def has meaning, especially black hair, so i think this was a really cool and fitting design choice for his character and everything he represents.