#second of all

and it's not because she was doing anything incriminating, no, it's because she wanted to find Bruce, who was not answering his communications nor was he in the cave; so obviously, the next place she'd look is, y'know, the watchtower. because surely they'd know who she is, right? there's a bat on her chest.

she's proven entirely incorrect.

because for some reason, bruce is not only not on the watchtower, but has also neglected to tell the justice league about any associates outside of the robins they've met. these superpowered wonderful people are all under the impression that the only person batman works with is robin.

since they never met steph as robin, the bat on her chest doesn't mean much. she could be anyone. she insists she works with batman, but none of them can contact him to confirm this, so they just kind of... let her stay. monitored, of course, because she could be a threat, but they do.

cue steph chatting with the justice league and them realising that oh, batman has more children. oh, batman works with others than just the robins. oh, batman has not introduced them to a robin- they'd thought they've met them all.

Green Lantern: So you were... also Robin?

Steph: Yeah. not for long though.

Green Lantern: But you're not...

Steph: Not what, green boy? Black-haired and blue-eyed? A boy??

Green Lantern, backtracking: No, no, no that's- that's not what I meant-

Steph, laughing: Hood was right, you are easy to tease. good lord.

eventually Dick swings by and explains that Bruce got kidnapped in his civilian persona and that the others are handling it. as soon as the League sees him, they complain about not being told about Steph, Cass and Duke. Dick's only response is;

even more so though, is the jealousy from Damian. how on earth do you cope when you finally get to be Robin, a role you've convinced is your birthright, and no one really likes you? every prefers the Robin who came before you? Dick regularly reminds you that he can always go and call Tim back when you act out? like the complex Damian has over Tim is unreal. Tim, who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and had everything handed to him his whole life. he never had to struggle or fight for his place like Damian did. Damian has spent his whole life fighting and proving himself, and yet he can't ever seem to truly claw the mantle of Robin away from Tim. even when Tim lets it go, becomes Red Robin, they seem to share it. Tim can slip back into the role of Robin whenever someone like Dick or Bruce need him to, because *he's* the Robin who they need. he's the Robin who was able to find Bruce. he's the Robin that Ra's wants an heir out of. he's the Robin who even Jason respects. in Damian's eyes, everything Damian has fought tooth and nail for, was handed to Tim.

so of course he's going to react to Tim with violence and aggression, especially after finding out Tim has contingency plans for him. no matter how much Damian proves himself, he's never going to be enough, especially not to Tim. and so his deep refusal to see Tim as family, to acknowledge Tim's legacy is all driven by such an angry jealousy. Tim understands aspects of Bruce's legacy that Damian doesn't, like the need to sweet talk and play nice with the elites of Gotham, even if they're corrupt. they exemplify different aspects of Robin, and the aspects that Tim exemplifies are the aspects that Damian knows he'll never fully understand and therefore holds such a deep contempt for. he wants to fight criminals, not play nice with politicians. Tim understands the side of Gotham that's utterly foreign to Damian. if anything, he represents that side of Gotham, to Damian. a pretty little rich boy who's nothing but a know-it-all and not a real son of Bruce. he can't be a Wayne. he can't be Damian's family.

i’ve been diagnosed for barely a year, and i’ve already had three friends whinge that “needles make me so nauseous” and “i could never do it”