What the Pictures Show

Bludhaven

The jangling of keys awoke Dick from the deep state of misery he had been in for the last hour-or-so. He had been staring at the paper in his hands for far too long. Peeling his eyes away from the black and white print that laid on the counter, Dick got up and walked over to the door, dragging his feet behind him. He was just feeling so dejected and drained, not to mention bruised. He just wanted to cry himself to sleep already.

'I swear... I don't have the energy to deal with Bruce right now,' Dick sighed.

Surprisingly, when the door swung open, Dick was immediately assaulted with an onslaught of hugs. Dick's lips turned up in small smile. His little brothers were so cute. Damian's cross face matched the ferocity of his hug and Tim's visible nervousness was so endearing. "Well this is a nice surprise! How are you guys?"

"You've seen the paper haven't you?" asked Damian, ignoring Dick's question and eyeing the discoloring on his face. Damian looked like he really wanted to stab someone.

Dick's face fell and he nodded. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure everyone has at this point. You didn't have to come all the way here to ask me that. I'm fine. I just had a messed up patrol and some tabloid guy snapped a picture. Nothing bad actually happened."

Damian tightened his hug, surprising Dick. Damian wasn't exactly known for being sympathetic or comforting. He'd probably be more comfortable with the current uncomfortable situation if he was making fun of Dick and talking about superiority. The fact that he wasn't and that he was actually hugging Dick said a lot.

"Well this is a little uncharacteristic for you isn't it, Dami?" Dick said, returning the affectionate gesture.

Damian's frown deepened and he huffed in offense, but didn't loosen his grip. "I feel like this is an appropriate response to the situation, or at least that is what Alfred has taught me."

Dick gave a small, quiet laugh. "Well he's done a good job. Thank you. So you guys wanted to talk about the articles?"

Tim walked over to Dick's counter and picked up the paper Dick had been looking at. He then, promptly, chucked it in a nearby trash bin. "It's complete garbage. Complete garbage," he said, obviously frustrated.

Dick laughed. "We're all in agreement then."

"Yeah. How're you dealing?" asked Tim

"I told you, I'm fine. We'll just have to do some PR stuff and it'll be fine. None of it really bothers me, it's just annoying. I'm so happy that you guys came over, but I'm one hundred percent okay." Tim and Damian didn't need to be burdened with Dick's emotions, they already had so many other things going on. Dick didn't even want to think about all the stuff online about them and Bruce because of him.

Tim rolled his eyes. "That's a lie and you know it. You are not fine."

"I am. By injuries are fading away and once Bruce talks to the media, this'll all die down and—"

Tim sighed exasperatedly and interrupted Dick. "I don't care about how the public feels, I—we care about how you feel. This is bothering you, as it should. You need to talk to us about it."

Dick plopped down on a chair next to Tim. "I know... All the negative attention is really uncomfortable, but we all know nothing actually happened, so it's fine. All the interviews that I'm going to have to do are going to be really stressful but after that... Things'll be great again."

"No, they won't. You know it goes beyond just what the papers are saying. This isn't about PR. This is about you and Bruce. Your relationship with each other. You know how he's been treating you isn't right."

Dick avoided Tim's eyes. "I know, but that's just what B does. He's emotionally stunted. He'll apologize later. There really isn't a problem."

"Father didn't do what the newspapers are claiming, but that doesn't mean that he didn't hurt you," said Damian simply. "Just think about the disgraceful argument he had with you outside WE."

Dick protested "He hasn—"

"Yes, Dick. He hurts you. Definitely emotionally. Everyone knows that. He can be extremely manipulative and cruel. He's hurt you before too. Like actually—"

Now it was Dick's turn to interrupt. "As Batman! It's part of the job! Both of you should understand that! Besides, I'm an adult."

"That's no excuse. That's a horrible excuse. And anyways, you didn't deny that Bruce hurt you. So let's talk about that," said Tim.

"No." Dick refused to have this conversation. They didn't understand.

"No? Ugh, fine. You know you'll feel better if we talk. I get it though, saying it makes it real and that's scary. I totally get it. We don't have to talk now, but instead I'll talk and you'll listen and Damian will be your emotional support puppy. Damian, go hug him and don't let him leave," Tim ordered sternly.

Damian rolled his eyes, but, surprisingly, complied, hopping onto Dick's lap. "I'm not a puppy, but since Richard is in need my presence and you need my help... fine."

'Okay... This is weird. Damian never takes orders from Tim or hugs a lot in one day. It's really sweet, but really weird,' thought Dick, resigning himself to listen to Tim.

Tim took a long sip from the coffee cup he had been carrying around before starting his rant. "Okay. I'm just going to start by saying that what Bruce did was shitty and that you didn't deserve it. Seriously, who gets pissed at someone for donating to charity? B really needs to do some reflecting about that. And reflect about how good of a father he is in general."

"I liked you better," said Damian softly, interrupting Tim's speech.

"What?!" asked Dick, looking down confusedly.

"I liked you better than Father. You're my Batman. You should know that. I think you forgot," mumbled Damian, embarrassed. Then raising his voice, "You did a really good job when Father was gone and as much as I respect Father, he hasn't been at your level. You're my Batman and I'm your Robin. I'm just not sure if Bruce should really be your Batman. You deserve better. You need someone to care for you. Really care. Maybe let us be your Batman for a while?"

"Dick?" Tim looked at Dick with a strange expression on his face.

Dick's throat was suddenly dry and he felt his eyes well up. Dick felt years and years of buried emotions swirl in his chest. He pulled Damian close and sobbed.