Still fluff just with a sprinkling of angst...something purely angst is brewing. Pray whilst you can

EDIT: TW BULLYING

https://www.bullying.co.uk/

https://www.nationalbullyinghelpline.co.uk/contact.html

https://www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools-information/if-youre-being-bullied/find-help-and-support

Edited 06/02/2024: format changes and additional dialogue

"You what?" Clark shouted, shocked by what Bruce had just asked him. They'd been working in the lab based in the Watchtower when the conversation took a drastic turn from research to their personal lives. He was even more shocked to hear real names being used, making it ever more personal that he was being asked for advice. Bruce sighed before he repeated himself. 

"I need your help talking to Dick." Still, Clark couldn't help but gasp at the sentence. The man who made it very clear he wanted to work alone all his life in all areas of his life had just asked for help. 

"Where's the real you? You never ask for my help. I'm like in your top five most disliked heroes," he inquired. This had to be an impostor but then how would he know their real names?

"You may be a ticking time bomb for destruction but you know emotions better than I do," Bruce responded. "I'm...I'm struggling with him. He's always hidden things from me but since he started going to school it's only got worse and I fear what that is."

"Why are you asking me now? If he's already hidden things from you then why is it important now? Plenty of kids don't tell their parents about school drama." Something must've happened to spark Bruce's parting with his pride. 

"School called. Told me he's been skipping his breaks and lunches by jumping over the fence. They don't know what he's trying to avoid but whatever it is, it must be bad. I can't think what could be causing this since no hero is taking him out of the school and his team hasn't had any missions. It's personal this time," he explained. Clark frowned.

"Is he missing his actual classes?" The billionaire shook his head. "And he hasn't hinted at anything?"

"Not at all but he's only gotten better at hiding things like that," he replied. Clark let out a sad chuckle. 

"That's normal. Kids his age don't want to talk about all their feelings." There was something comforting in that. At least Bruce hadn't messed his protege up too much. "I'll talk to him. I'm sure everything's fine. I bet he did something stupid in front of a crush and is just trying to get out of seeing her," Clark joked.

Now Clark had a problem on his hands. If Dick wasn't opening up to the man who raised him, then how was he going to crack him? From watching Bruce over the years, the best way to crack a bat was to get them tired enough so they wouldn't go on the defensive. It took energy to go on the defensive and to act out or simply run away. That was a good place to start but then he had to remember that the bats weren't the same.

Okay well, how do you get Dick, the master of pulling all-nighters and still having enough energy to kick serious butt, tired? A mission would work but he'd have to be tired before it. Bone tired. So he employed the likes of Alfred to switch Dick's coffee with decaf and Black Canary to work him that little bit harder in training. It didn't make him feel particularly good about himself but it was done with a good intention. Surely that cancelled it out.

By Saturday, the night of the mission, Dick was running low.

The first part of the mission was a simple stakeout which will only help with making Robin tired. He didn't do well with sitting still and he got disinterested easily. It also meant he couldn't jump into a fight to derail the conversation without putting the mission at risk. Superman glanced over to the trainee bat, finding him half asleep. Perfect. 

"So Robin, how's school been?" he asked.

"Fine," the younger answered through a yawn. "A little tiring but fine." He knew it wouldn't be that easy. If it was then Bruce would've figured this predicament out and he wouldn't be sitting here.

"Have you been doing anything different at school?"

"What do you mean?" Ah, he had to be careful now. It was like defusing a bomb. One wrong move and this would blow up in his face.

"Y'know, have you joined any new clubs? You're at that age now where there are more things you can join." Robin shook his head slowly. Great, he was suspicious. That was never good with someone who could connect the dots so easily. "Anything during lunch? Maybe breaks?"

"Did B put you up to this?" Robin accused. There was no point in being inconspicuous about it now.

 "He's worried about you. The school called him about what you've been doing." Superman admitted. He heard Robin's breath hitch slightly. Oh, something was going on. He could Robin's heart thump against his chest like it was trying to bust its way out. It was something he perceived as bad then, not something embarrassing or something well-meaning but ultimately something Bruce would disapprove of. 

"You took me on this mission because you wanted to get information out of me?" Superman nodded cautiously. Where was he going with this? "Wow, you've been taking notes on what Bats does. Wonder why he signed you up to do this instead of just doing it himself."

A beat of silence passed. This wasn't the right way to go about this. Batman's techniques were too well known. He thought to himself on what to do next. Maybe he should go about this in a different way. Out of hero work. Robin didn't want to talk but maybe Dick will grant the conversation if it was with Clark, not Superman, someone who had come to before with issues he didn't feel right talking about with people at home. He pressed his fingers to his ear comm.

"Hey, I think Robin and I need a break from missions tonight. Can you send another pair out here?" he asked. Robin turned to him with a quirked eyebrow. 

"Did one of you get hurt?" Wonder Woman answered. 

"No, we're both fine. I think we're too tired to do this mission without getting hurt. That okay?"

"Erm sure. I'll send the Flash pair down there. You two...rest up?" Superman turned his attention to a very confused boy wonder. 

"What're you doing?" Robin asked.

"I went about this as Batman would but something tells me you don't want to talk like that. How about we grab a coffee and find a nice rooftop somewhere?" It took the younger a good second or two to register what the hero had just said. 

"Sounds good. Between you and me, I think Alfie's been giving me decaf coffee," he replied. Superman laughed nervously, brushing the comment off as quickly as he could.

They spotted a rooftop far from the prying eyes of the public and headed straight there after grabbing some coffee. Superman wasn't a fan of the stuff but, with whatever he was going to be dealing with, he guessed he'd need it. Robin chose to make his own way up, turning down the alien's offer to carry him. He supposed the boy wanted a while to think before they got down to business. It didn't take Robin that long to catch up with him and perched himself on the ledge.

 "So, what's been going on?" Superman asked, sipping his coffee.

"That depends. If I told you, who else would know?" he responded carefully. Ah, a test of loyalty. Exactly what he didn't want. He took a moment or two to think about his answer. 

"Bruce would have to. It's up to him who else knows," Superman said cautiously. He heard a hum. Was that good? Did he pass? 

"There are these guys at school." He passed. "They're...they're different from the other bullies. Something about them. It's like they know exactly how to ruin my day and aren't just throwing stuff at the wall until something sticks."

"It must be a little more than that to make you skip your breaks," the older argued. "To my knowledge, with Barbara being a few grades above you it must be the only time you two can hang out during school. I can't imagine you'd give that up because some guys are pushing you around." Robin took a sip, keeping his eyes on the world below them. Everything about this seemed to irk him. 

"You don't understand. They don't beat me up or call me names. I mean they do, but they're something different. Last week, somehow, someway, they got their hands on fear toxin."

"How much?" Superman was quick to ask. This may be bigger than he once thought.

"Nothing major. It was on a rag so I got a straight hit. Had a panic attack and was sent home."

Superman couldn't believe his ears. What kind of kids went to his school? He thought it was one of those snob schools where you got in if you had rich and nothing else. How the hell were they getting their hands on controlled substances? 

"That's not the worst of it. They found...found the video. Of my parents. Must've been on Reddit or something. Played the audio through the speakers at lunch because one of them is chummy with the principal. Of course, loads of people asked if I was okay. They're not all monsters. Still shook me up though. Hearing them scream again." He took another sip. His hands shook a little, making the liquid inside his cup slosh slightly. 

"Did school not do anything?" Superman asked worriedly. He had the right mind to storm in there himself.

"They've tried but those...idiots, they just find ways to get what they want. Even when they get suspended, they bribe someone else to carry out what they want. You'd think rich kids wouldn't bother with money but twenty bucks is twenty bucks. Doesn't help that they all see me as some outsider."

"So you decided to avoid it by skipping breaks. That way you wouldn't be there to bully," the older thought aloud. 

"There you go," Robin teased. "I'm not just running away though. When I skip school, I get intel on them. Try to find out what the hell is wrong with them because there's bullying and then there's what these guys are doing. Maybe they work for someone." And there's Bruce's influence making its appearance. A sense of paranoia that someone somewhere was orchestrating everything with varying amounts of evidence to back it up.

"Have you found anything on them?" he asked, entertaining the idea that they were some sort of master criminals. 

"Two take drugs. They get their drugs from a guy downtown. I'm going there this Tuesday to investigate more. One has a little sister called Daisy but she lives in Hawaii. Think their mum left and took the kid she liked the most." He didn't know how to turn off his detective's brain it seemed.

They let themselves have a bit of silence. Robin spent his silence wondering if he should've spilt the beans whilst Superman silently panicked about what to do next. 

"You can't keep running away from this. It only pleases them," Superman spoke up. Robin hummed, unhappy with the statement he made. 

"It pleases me too. Believe it or not, I don't want to suffer more than I have to," he replied bitterly, finishing the last of his coffee. "I'm not a coward. I just like to get school over and done with without having five panic attacks a day."

"I'm not saying you're a coward but I am saying that this is unsustainable. You're going to get yourself in more trouble sneaking out. You won't have to suffer when Bats gets involved. I'll have to hold him back from killing them," Superman joked. He got a smile out of the boy but it wasn't wholehearted. There was hesitancy in his voice. 

"Yeah. Kinda sucks that I can't do this myself though."

"You're only thirteen. Sometimes you need an adult to step in when you're over your head," he explained. It was astounding to think that Robin would've tried to sort this by himself without any help at all. Robin smiled to himself sorrowfully. 

"I forget I'm only thirteen sometimes."

"How come?"

"I think meeting the team didn't help. They all act their age or thereabouts. I mean, have you met Wally? He acts more like a thirteen-year-old than I do. He makes me feel old half the time." He wasn't wrong there. "I just feel so...adult. I don't remember when it happened but somewhere along the way, I forgot how to be a kid."

"Maybe you should take notes from your team. Acting your age won't do you any harm," Superman replied, rustling Robin's hair. A giggle escaped the younger's lips, warming his heart.

"When you tellin B?"

"Morning. Both of you could do with a good night's sleep and he'll only be up worrying." Robin agreed and finished the last of his coffee. 

"Fancy giving me a lift home?" he asked, reaching out his arms as a child would. Superman didn't hesitate to let the boy climb onto his back. He hooked his arms under Robin's legs, securing him in place, before leaving the rooftop. He committed this method to memory in case a certain bat had no idea how to talk to his Robin.