Re: Manor: Bruce & Selina
He heard the puppy whine, and there was something almost soothing in another living thing desiring his presence. Mere feet away and the puppy still wanted to be close to him, he didn't want to be left alone. Bruce didn't understand why, he wasn't willing to become that introspective, but it calmed him all the same. He kept looking for socks, and he finally found a clean, warm pair that he could replace the ones he was wearing with. Selina was somewhere behind him, he knew, on the bed, and he wondered if she would leave. He wasn't making this easy for her, but then, he couldn't help it. He didn't know how. Damian had died twice, there was no precedent for that. No prexisting knowledge of what to say, how to act.
The puppy whined more. He didn't need to see her to know she'd moved in some way. Still, he didn't turn. He waited. Her hands on his back, that was the initial contact, and predictably he tensed. But he didn't push her away, not then, not when she slid her arms around his waist. Oh, he could have, but he didn't want to. He closed his eyes, and little by little his tension melted away.
"I let him die." It was a quiet, hushed thing, almost as though he was afraid to speak too loudly. "He tried to kill us both, he killed himself and I let it happen."