Y'all hankerin for Talon Dick and Cass content? No? Too bad

TW: Self-harm will be mentioned but not graphically//blood

https://www.supportline.org.uk/problems/self-injury-and-self-harm/

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/self-harm/useful-contacts/

https://www.benice.org/get-help/crisis-hotline

https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/if-youre-having-difficult-time/if-you-want-self-harm/

Batgirl grunted as she was thrown against a wall. She was losing this fight and badly. To be fair to her though, her right arm had been broken halfway through so her ability to fight was less so than normal. She always hated fighting Clayface. Well, hate was a strong word. She incredibly disliked it. He didn't need to have a good fight overall to do some damage, her broken arm being proof of that. She rolled to the side to dodge a punch whilst hissing in pain due to the jostle of her broken bone. This fight needed to be wrapped up and fast but at this rate, it would be another hour or so. Although she didn't like to do it, she wasn't left with much choice. She had to call in one of her family members. Which one was free? Her answer came in the form of a window shattering and light footsteps hitting the ground. Instantly she knew who it was. This probably won't end well. Robin's entrance grabbed the villain's attention which gave Batgirl a moment to make a makeshift splint for her arm. Robin dodged each punch thrown at him before throwing a capsule of dry ice at the flowing mud, freezing it then ran up it. He grabbed a disc from his back pocket and slapped it into Clayface's face, causing him to reel back and snap off his icy limb. Robin backflipped away and continued until he was beside his older sibling. He pushed her back a few spaces then pressed the trigger on the disc. This sent an electric shock through the villain, forcing him into unconsciousness. There were sounds of sirens outside the building which were bound for them. Batgirl looked down at her younger sibling who had gently pulled at her injured arm. He remained silent as he tightened the makeshift splint since she couldn't apply the same pressure with only one hand. She nodded her thanks to which he didn't reply.

"Are you kids alright?" Jim Gordon announced as a small army of armed policemen surrounded Clayface. His sudden outburst sent Robin into attack mode that was only just about halted by the older hero's tight grip of his shoulder. "Safe people," she whispered. The last thing she needed was to tranquilize her younger brother because he got too protective and started to throw punches over it. "Do you need any help?" the commissioner asked, seemingly unaware that he could've had his ass handed to him by a small child. Batgirl shook her head. She much preferred to treat her wounds in the comfort of the Batcave rather than some cold hospital room. Her broken bone didn't break the skin and should heal with a cast. If it didn't, it wasn't like corrective surgery was out of Bruce's price range. "Alright, thanks for the catch, you two. Have a safe night." Robin took this as the cue to leave and took hold of Batgirl's hand, leading her carefully through the crowds and giving a heart-stopping glare to anyone who dared to get too close. He took her behind the building where he'd spied her motorcycle in the first place. Technically it was Jason's but she was allowed to borrow it for the night. When he found the bike, he took the helmet off and handed it to her. She shook her head. Only one of them could wear the helmet since there was only one. She could survive a wipeout and didn't want him to be forced to use that God awful Talon serum that allowed him to heal. He forced her to take it from him, clearly not one to be negotiated with. "Mission?"

"Protect you." She sighed. Did she have time to deal with this? Her arm was killing her, the pain only being dulled slightly through both adrenaline and sheer will power but neither would last much longer. Robin would understand that. He was always nice about it if they didn't have the ability to knock him straight out of it. Seeing no other way out of it, she relented and took the helmet. Robin got onto the bike, moving further on the seat so she could sit on the back. At least it was only a short ride and he was a good driver so the risks weren't exceedingly high. "Careful," she stated as she slipped on the helmet. After she'd wrapped her arms around the younger, successfully steadying herself, Robin set off weaving through the streets tactically to get her home as fast as possible.

The Batcave was empty when they returned. Most likely this was due to them arriving earlier than usual. Cass sighed, knowing this would only prolong Dick's state and therefore rebound when he eventually came out of it. Unfortunately, she couldn't do it on her own and Alfred could do with some time without a disaster. Dick got off the bike and waited patiently for her to get off before lightly grasping her wrist and leading her to the med bay. She was sure that if he were able to, he would be carrying her bridal style. He helped her get onto the gurney even though she didn't really need it then went to get the appropriate materials for a cast. Cass watched him worriedly. She never liked him like this. He seemed so devoid of anything that made up who he was. His personality, his true personality, had been shining through this past year of having him in the manor. He was upbeat. An optimist. He'd began to ignore the negatives of the stats. If a mission had a 15% success rate, he just saw it as a welcomed challenge. He was loving too. Whenever someone so much as mentioned they weren't feeing 100%, he was right there. Steph loved the hugs that he gave unconditionally. Cass supposed this was how he showed love through his Talon side. She hadn't noticed it before due to the dim light of where they were and the focus on not screaming in pain taking up a lot of her attention, but there were a few deep cuts scattered along his exposed skin. She frowned, knowing something that no one else did.

Joker offered a deal so tempting Dick couldn't refuse. He didn't care how the Clown Prince knew. He didn't care that there'd be consequences to it. All he cared about was getting what he wanted. Cass glanced at him, urging him to reconsider. Yet he ignored her. "Fine," he'd said. "Just let her go." Joker chuckled and nodded. He waved a hand and Cass was released. She wasn't a hero at that moment. They'd been taken when they were walking around the park. It was so out of the blue. One moment they were feeding the ducks, the next they were strapped down to metal beds. Cass was sure she'd been used as a bargaining chip. She was sure Joker didn't even know that he already had the bargaining chip. "Good choice. Start her up boys! It's gonna be a fun night." A machine whirred and some disgusting looking liquid was put into Dick's veins. The bargain you ask? In exchange for Cass's sparing, Dick would be given his ability to feel pain again only he'd be at the mercy of Joker. Yet, once it was done and he was saved, Dick made Cass swear never to tell the others. He thought they would think less of him. She agreed.

She wondered if it hurt when he was like this. They were never able to track down what was put into his body at that time. She'd also muddied up the blood samples since she snuck him painkillers to deal with the recovery. She winced when she felt Dick's fingertips graze her hurt arm. He paused and passed her the tablets he'd gathered for her. She gave him a soft smile and took them. Once you went through life like this, you didn't need water to take tablets. You just became accustomed to the feeling. Dick took off the splint and replaced it with bandages. They were tight enough to keep the bone in place but not enough to cut off circulation. Then he began making the cast around her arm. As he worked, Cass had to wipe the dribbling blood from the cut above his eyebrow from dripping into his eye. It was too much to see him go on without medical attention. She knew he wouldn't stop so she had to force him to. "Enough."

"No. I must protect you. That includes recovery and reintegration to work," he responded. She pointed towards the ceiling with a duh look on her face. Obviously, she was referring to the fact that Alfred could take over and help her. He shook his head.

As she was about to take this a step further, Bruce appeared in the room. He must've heard what happened through Gordon's ramblings. "Are you alright?" he asked Cass. She nodded and flickered her eyes over to Dick who was working on the cast. She felt relieved that he'd remembered Bruce was safe. "Dickie, how 'bout you let her finish this up? You could do with some help too," he suggested. Defiant as ever, the boy shook his head and continued. "You're going to have to tell him," he added, giving his older child a sorrowful look. She huffed and tapped the younger on the shoulder. 

"Mission complete."

"Incorrect. You have yet to recover."

"Unneeded. Out of danger. Mission completed." His movements paused, his eyes jumping up to stare at her. "Mission complete," he relented. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and collapsed to the floor. Luckily, Bruce caught him before he hit the ground. Cass got off the bed, tilting her head towards it so he put her brother down on it. He hummed and did as she suggested. "Did Clayface do that?" he questioned, noticing the cuts. She shook her head. Though it didn't matter where he got them, Bruce felt curious enough to ask about it later. "Are you okay doing your own cast or do you want Alfred to do it?" he asked. She put up two fingers to show she wanted the butler. He nodded and left to fetch the elderly man. Cass perched herself on the side of the bed and ran her fingers through Dick's hair. He looked tired when she got closer. There were bags under his eyes. She doubted he slept much. None of them did but that wasn't the point. He was their youngest and she wanted the best for him as any big sister would want for their little brother. She continued to comb out his unkempt curls with her thin fingers as he came back around. His fainting spells normally didn't last too long, Unfortunately, now that he had the ability to feel, the cuts he'd sustained on patrol were killing him. His eyes blinked open but were already wet with unshed tears. She silently asked what was wrong though she was pretty sure of what had him upset. "Hurts."

"Hurts?" Bruce repeated.

His repetition caused Dick to thrust himself up into a sitting position out of shock but this just knocked all the air out of him. He winced and whimpered whilst Cass pushed him back down. Bruce, suddenly overcome with fatherly protection, was by his side in seconds. He held his hand and received a series of tight squeezes from the boy that were reactions to the pain. "Since when did things hurt? You said you couldn't feel it," he asked. This might not be the best time but he also didn't know whether this was a yay or boo moment. Dick had desperately wanted to feel normal and often thought that feeling pain would aid him in that pursuit yet on the other hand he'd not experienced pain since he was little. Would it be much worse? How sensitive would he be to pain now? Pain would feel so unfamiliar. Surely that would throw him through a loop. "I'm sorry," Dick replied, curling himself up in a ball. It sort of helped with the pain, he found, but everything still hurt. He must've crashed from his adrenaline high. 

"Don't be. It's okay. Can you tell me why you can feel it? I just want to know," Bruce insisted. Alfred had long since busied himself with Cass's predicament and hoped that the billionaire had things under control. "Joker. Last time he gave me this serum," Dick tried to explain but he found it all too much. 

"He made him feel pain," Cass explained on his behalf.

"Why didn't you tell me? You must've been in so much pain and I didn't give you anything!"

"Cass did. I thought you'd think less of me." The older shook his head with a caring smile, pressing a kiss against the smaller's forehead. 

"I would never think that. Can you tell me where it hurts? Or point if that makes things easier?"

"Hurts the most in my chest," he muttered.

"Can I have a look?" He nodded. Bruce let him slowly uncurl himself then unclasped his shirt, carefully moving the fabric aside to see what was going on. Dark bruises stained his pale skin. He reluctantly prodded around the younger's ribs to see if any of them were broken. He grimaced. Although not broken, he could tell one was badly bruised. It seemed aggravated so he must've had it when he was fighting Clayface at the least. "Alright, I'm gonna start you with some morphine. It'll make you feel better," he explained. Dick nodded and tried to curl back up into a ball but his guardian kept his back against the headrest. "I know you think it'll help but it'll be better if you keep straight," he told him.

"Hurts either way."

"That's normally how these things work chum. How's Cass?" Bruce asked.

"Dick did good on getting the bone set. All I needed to do was finish his work," Alfred replied. "Would you like me to inform the others about his ability to feel pain? They'll want to know." Bruce looked to Dick who nodded. 

"That would be great Alfred, thank you. How about you two head upstairs to rest? We need to have a little chat."

Once the room was empty, Bruce got to work gluing up the cuts. They weren't deep enough for stitches but were too deep for just plasters. Admitedly, he felt jossled when he saw Dick wince at the sting. It seemed fake but he knew it was completely real. He'd have no reason to fake it. He handed the boy for a tablet for the pain and a glass of water, the latter being unneeded. "Are you mad?" Dick asked, hesitantly taking the pill. He had to reason in his head that Bruce wasn't trying to do something with the medicine he didn't want. He hated just having the thought cross his mind. Maybe he should talk to someone about that but it seemed sort of pointless since he was still taking whatever he was being given. Still, it didn't sit easy with him. "God no, why would you think that?" Bruce answered, sitting beside him. He got the vibe that this was a sit-down conversation. 

"I worked with Joker to get what I wanted even after you said it didn't matter that I couldn't feel pain. It was selfish of me," he stated. His eyes fell to his hands that were fiddling with the buttons of his utility belt. 

"I'm not going to be mad because you took the oppurtunity to get what I know you've always wanted," Bruce insisted. He placed his hand carefully on the other's shoulder to avoid aggravating something. 

"I like it Bruce. I really like feeling like this. Even though it hurts, I like that it does in some way. It's complicated."

"Dick, I'm going to ask you a question now that requires an answer. You can stay quiet but I strongly advise against it. Would you ever purposefully hurt yourself so you can feel like this?" He prayed that the answer wouldn't be what he eventually got. This was exactly why he'd worked months on developing a way for him to feel pain that would go hand in hand with therapy to prevent a situation similar to the one unfolding in front of him. "Yes I would and I have. I may have allowed myself to not dodge punches but I didn't intend for this severity."

"Have you done anything else?" he asked. He dreaded the response. Dick shook his head then seemed to rethink. 

"Not at this level," he clarified. "When I get bruises, I poke at them a lot and I pick at the scabs. It feels nice but in a bad way sort of. I can't explain it."

"Oh, Dickie." In the shock of it all, he'd let his tone slip. Dick caught it.

"I did something wrong didn't I? Am I in trouble? I swear I'll stop just don't be mad-"

"Take a deep breath. You'll aggravate your ribs more," Bruce told him. "You're not in trouble. You need help. I already have therapy set up for when we did figure out how to get your sense of pain back so the help is already there." Dick nodded, still not looking at him. "Wanna tell me something?"

"I took the most normal thing about me and ruined it. Now I'm not any closer to being normal."

"This is something you'll talk about in therapy and I'm not that well trained in the subject but just know, no one is normal. Feeling like you aren't normal now that's normal. Everyone feels like that and we all deal with it differently. Some people, like you, develop unhealthy habits to deal with it but that's not good because they're still unhappy only with health problems," he attempted to explain. Those Dad books really needed to update themselves. He could really do with a chapter on how to raise a defected Talon. "I understand," Dick responded. He finally lifted his eyes from the bed. "Thank you."

"No need. I have to finish my patrol but I'm sure Cass would like some company. Especially from her little hero," Bruce suggested. The younger nodded and got off the bed, wincing before limping upstairs. Bruce watched him go then breathed out a long sigh. He really hoped he'd nipped it in the bud. Self-harm was often difficult to differentiate from the injuries you were bound to have in this profession. It was especially difficult if he was using a criminal's natural want to murder him to his own advantage. He'd have to remain vigilant. Perhaps he should tell the older siblings about the problem. Then again, if they were dealing with something they might hide it because of this situation. He didn't know. He could get the therapy as soon as possible and just hoped that this wouldn't go any further. Yet his pessimistic side knew that there was something addictive about the act. It may just be that a Talon who can feel pain again is ever weaker to the high. Then again, this was Dick Grayson. He could do anything.