⭐️ Eternal Shadow 🌙 Damian wayne ~~~~complete

chapter 19: Unspoken Lines

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The sun hadn't even cleared the horizon when Damian padded back through the Tower's quiet halls, the hush of early morning clinging to the air like a second skin. The rooftop garden door closed softly behind him, but he could still feel the ghost of her warmth beneath his cloak.
The scent of rain-soaked jasmine and earth clung to his clothes.

He should've left hours ago.
Should've stayed away in the first place.
Should've never—

"You're a real piece of work, you know that?"

The voice cut through the silence like a blade.
Damian stiffened, fists clenching as Dick stepped out of the shadows near the training room entrance, arms crossed, face unreadable.

"Following me now?" Damian muttered, refusing to flinch.

Dick snorted, jaw tight.
"Didn't have to. You've been leaving a trail obvious enough for even Gar to follow."

Damian bristled.
"If you've got something to say, Grayson, say it."

"Oh, I've got a hell of a lot to say," Dick bit out, pushing off the wall. "Starting with what the hell you think you're doing. Sitting in that garden all night like some silent, brooding gargoyle, hovering around a girl you keep pretending you don't give a damn about."

"You don't understand," Damian growled.

"Then explain it to me!" Dick snapped, voice rising before he dragged a hand through his hair. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks a lot like you're breaking your own rules for her. And I know you, Damian — you don't do that. Not without a reason."

A muscle jumped in Damian's jaw.

"She... she matters."

Dick's expression softened a fraction, but he didn't back off.
"Yeah, I know. That's the problem, isn't it?"

The silence between them sharpened like drawn wire.
Neither one willing to blink first.

"I made her a promise," Damian said finally, voice low, frayed at the edges. "I told her I wouldn't leave her."

"And you always keep your promises," Dick said, quieter now. "Even the ones that tear you apart."

He stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"But you can't save everyone, Dami. You can't bleed yourself out trying. Not even for her."

"She's not like the others," Damian snapped, frustration cracking through his control. "You think I haven't tried? That I didn't fight this? I don't get to walk away from her. Not now. Not after everything."

Dick stared at him, seeing too much, the weight of years between them pressing down like old ghosts.

"She makes you reckless."

"She makes me human."

And for a moment, neither of them spoke.

The words hung in the air like smoke.

"She makes me human."

And that was it. That was the truth neither of them wanted to name out loud.

Dick let out a breath, shaking his head.
"You don't get to play martyr, Damian. Not this time. I've watched you burn down bridges to protect the mission, push people away, cut ties before they could even hurt you. And now, now you're willing to throw yourself on the fire for her? When you don't even know what she's capable of?"

"I know her better than you do," Damian shot back, voice low and dangerous.

Dick's mouth tightened.
"No, you know the pieces she lets you see. The parts you want to save. But there's more, Damian. There's always more. And you weren't here when we had to pick up the pieces last time she broke."

That landed like a blow.

Damian's expression flickered, something dark and wounded surfacing before he masked it.
"I should've been."

"Yeah," Dick snapped. "You should've."

The words were out before he could pull them back.
And it was too late.

Damian's jaw clenched. The tension between them like a storm about to break.

"Enough," Kory's voice cut through the air, firm, sharp as steel. She stepped between them, one hand on Dick's chest, the other raised toward Damian. Her eyes softened as she glanced between them. "This isn't helping anyone."

Gar appeared at Dick's side, looking unusually serious.
"Guys... c'mon. This isn't the time for a dick-measuring contest. Mars is barely holding it together. You think she won't feel this from halfway across the Tower?"

That pulled a visible flinch from Damian.

Dick closed his eyes, exhaling hard.
"I just... I'm trying to keep the team safe. Keep her safe. And I don't even know if those two things are possible at the same time."

"She's family," Kory said softly. "Even if she's not easy. Even if it hurts."

Damian's voice was rough.
"I don't care how dangerous she is. I'm not walking away."

"Then maybe," Dick murmured, finally meeting his brother's eyes, all the fight bleeding out of him, "you're the only one who can stop her if it comes to that."

The weight of it settled heavy in the room.

Damian nodded, slow and grim.
"I won't let it come to that."

For a long moment, no one spoke.

Gar finally broke the silence, trying for levity.
"Well... since we're all here, anyone up for breakfast? I make a mean French toast."

Kory smiled faintly.
"I'll help."

Dick clapped a hand on Damian's shoulder before walking past him.
"I'm still watching you, Damian. And her."

"I'd expect nothing less," Damian said quietly.

And when the hallway emptied, he stood alone in the dim light, the distant hum of soft music from the rooftop garden reaching his ears.

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