de-aged batfam because I wanna try my hand at it 

I did some research before this so it's all medically possible - historical stuff can eat my ass but I'll be damned if something completely medically impossible happens

TW: DEPICTIONS OF TORTURE//BLOOD

Dick: 13

Jason: 11

Tim: 9

Damian: 10 months

These past few months were hell and there was no sign of it ending any time soon. Lately, Dick was having to be the Dad of the family despite only just turning thirteen. You may be asking what caused this change. Well, he didn't really know. All he knew was that Bruce was engrossed in his work. More so than usual. Case after case and business meeting after business meeting, his mentor and guardian were being pulled away from the family. Dick noticed that Alfred was struggling so he took on the odd chore. Things that Alfred couldn't fit in when he was busy with the younger brothers. He cleaned, did the washing up and often used his natural love of heights to clean places the butler would never reach. That was the beginning of it. He next noticed that Alfred was getting tired. Tired. Really tired. So he offered to take on the task of giving Damian his early morning bottle. It was around three am so he'd be home from patrol in time. Alfred took his offer gratefully and in return would let the boy have whatever he needed to stay awake though he still mentioned how bad it was for his health. Now, these two jobs didn't bother Dick too much. He could juggle patrol, chores and Damian's three am feeds. But then he took on more as Bruce continued to withdraw and Alfred became overwhelmed. Along with those two jobs he accepted, he soon found himself being the one who got his brothers ready for bed. He was the one reading stories to Damian. He was the one making sure Jason wasn't fighting with kids at school and was the one to punish him when he did. He was the one checking in on how his brothers were doing and if they needed any help with homework. Eventually, he was doing everything Bruce was supposed to do and he picked up on a few things Alfred struggled with here and there.

With all these new responsibilities, Dick found himself going downhill. He'd told his teachers that due to this being a busy time for Wayne industries and his butler being quite old that he'd had to take on more work and therefore his grades could slip. Whilst some were understanding and offered to give him extra materials to help him catch up, others simply pointed to his brothers who had maintained their grades and told him to stop looking for sympathy. He hadn't meant it to look like attention-seeking but the damage was done. Those teachers showed no leniency when homework was late or poorly done. The stress of slowly going from the top of his class to the bottom got to him and was only fed with the stress of being the father to kids who were only a few years younger than him. He suspected the stress was what was causing his nightmares to be so bad. He tried to mention it to someone but they were far too busy whenever he tried to so he stopped trying at all. Dick had told himself he had to be his Dad in this matter and look after himself. Jason noticed him get worse when they were training together. "You okay there Goldie?" he asked. His brother was sweating buckets, which was odd because they hadn't started anything intense yet, and looked like he could pass out at any given moment.

"'M fine Jay," he mumbled, clearly not fine. He swallowed thickly and raised his fists into a fighting stance. "Now let's get on. So what you're gonna do is...is." Jason watched him worriedly and noticed his knees begin to wobble. He sighed and walked over to him, hooking an arm around the other. "Jay I'm fine."

"You're not. Just sit down for five minutes," he ordered. Dick grumbled something neither of them was supposed to say and let the younger help him sit down. He put his head in his hands with a groan as he tried to hide a yawn. "Have you slept since you took over looking after Demon Spawn?"

"He's a baby, they cry," Dick deadpanned.

"Cries too much if you ask me. You didn't answer my question."

"I slept enough. Today was tiring that's all. Had the mile in PE and then I had to stay with Dami during his sensory play and I had to clean up after Tim's chemistry experiment that went wrong and I had to help B with the batterings case and-"

"Dude dude dude, how much stuff are you actually doing on the daily? I thought you were only helping with cleaning and Damian's feeds," he interrupted. The older shrugged to himself and took a deep breath. "You should tell B he's taking you for granted. I mean I haven't seen him thank you for basically doing all the shit he's supposed to be doing."

"It's fine. I just need a nap or something," he argued.

"Typical Goldie. Just don't fuck yourself over with your hero complex."

"Tim teach you that one?"

"Fuck off."

The final straw was when Dick was out as Robin alongside Batman. They were in the Batmobile together and Robin was texting with Tim. "I saw that you threw your test papers in the bin," Batman stated. Robin lowered his phone and glanced over at him. This wasn't good but then again, Batman might surprise him. He might be self-aware enough to realize it was his fault this was happening and they could have a productive conversation where both of them made beneficial changes. "I'm very disappointed in you." And there went any hope Robin had. He couldn't help but have his cheeks begin to burn red from both embarrassment and anger. He knew the test scores were bad and he could do better but under the circumstances, he was lucky to even pass with a D. Well C is a better pass and he probably could've done that but D was still a pass. If it weren't for Batman deciding that work was more important than the kids he chose to bring to the manor. It was all his fault. "You're grounded and after this patrol, you're not going out until I see improvements in your grades."

"Oh so now you want to be my dad," Robin muttered angrily.

"What was that young man? Would you like to repeat that?"

"Gladly," he snapped. "You, Bruce Wayne, are a horrible guardian! I've been working overtime to make up for the fact you're not home!"

"Don't you dare raise your voice at me. Just because my attendance at home has been spotty-"

"Spotty? You're as spotty as a model in a skincare ad! Face it, you're hardly home and when you are home you're in the Batcave doing work. I'm more of a father than you are!" Robin shouted. He felt his heart rate increase as he got madder and madder. "You know it's a good thing you're called Batman because you're just as blind as a bat if you can't see how shit you are!" Batman pulled over and turned to the young teen with a stern glare. Only, his glare was met with one that was just as intense. 

"That is enough from you. I'll have you know I work to provide for this family." Robin groaned frustratedly. He pushed the button to open the top of the car roof and got out. "Where are you going?"

"I'm sick of raising your kids asshat! I'm going out and punching guys in the face so I don't strangle you!" he yelled. He ran off into the night, leaving Batman in the Batmobile alone. The older sighed to himself and put the roof back over.

"He's just being rebellious Bruce. It's just a phase. It'll be over just as fast as Tim's Kelly Clarkson phase."

Batman was insufferable. How Catwoman dealt with him for so long was a mystery to him. Robin felt his chest grow tight as he thought about everything he did on behalf of his mentor's absence. It was like he could feel the weight of it on his shoulders and keeping it up was pulling his arms back. It hurt. He noticed breathing was difficult too. How long had he been running? He checked the time. An hour? Wow, he must've been really angry. He looked around. He was on the south side of Gotham which worked out pretty well. Plenty of crime there which meant plenty of criminal faces to punch. Well, he'd punch them when it was easy to breathe again. He went down another alley, apparently he'd been running down a few, and he sat down at the metal fence at the end of it. A dead-end alley probably wasn't the best place to rest but he couldn't be bothered to go much further for a safer place. He slid down the chain-link fence and sat down, trying to even out his breathing. Why did it feel so hard to catch his breath? It hurt. A lot. Why couldn't he breathe? His heart was beating faster and faster despite the fact he was sitting down now. He should be getting better. Why wasn't he getting better? Was this...was this what dying felt like? Could you die from stress? He felt his face grow wet but why would it be wet? "Aww, poor Birdie is having a breakdown. Why don't I put you out of your misery?" Robin's head snapped up and his stomach twisted in fear. No. No, not right now. Joker strolled up to him, throwing a canister in the air and then catching it in his hand. Robin knew he was supposed to get up and fight but his body wasn't listening. All he could do was jump up and frantically look for somewhere to escape. He couldn't think clearly. "Damn, you really are going through it. And with no Batsy my my." Batman yes! He could call him! But they got into that fight. What if he didn't care? "I think you need to come home with Uncle J." The canister rolled over to him and released the knock out gas with a high pitched hiss. Robin choked and spluttered as it made its way into his lungs as he dropped to his knees. "It's alright Birdie. We'll have a fun time together. Well, I'll have a fun time. You not so much." He let out a strangled whine as his eyes rolled back and he slipped into unconsciousness. "Tt tt, what a pathetic little bird. Ah well. I'm sure I'll have a grand old time when you wake up."

"Four hours," Batman mumbled, seeing the time. He should've heard something by now. Robin really was mad if he hadn't said anything by now. Batman hadn't even seen him since the car. Gotham was big but it wasn't that big. He sighed to himself for what felt like the fiftieth time today. He couldn't help but think about what Robin said. Had he been that bad of a dad? Sure he'd been working a lot more and being Batman had taken up more time than it used to and he only saw his kids at dinner if he was lucky and he couldn't remember the last time they all sat down and had family time and- okay yeah that list was too long. "You, Bruce Wayne, are a horrible guardian! I've been working overtime to make up for the fact you're not home!" Batman thought Alfred had it all handled. He'd been able to handle the kids up until now. Then again, he was getting old. As the eldest, Robin would be the first to take on jobs. He doubted Jason would do much considering he liked to be a little brat. Tim was a little young yet. Damian would be a handful for anyone let alone his elderly butler so he supposed Robin would be the first to take over the things he was supposed to do. "I'm sick of raising your kids asshat!" That would explain the bad grades. Damn, how could he miss that? Being Robin didn't even dent his grades. "You are an idiot," he muttered to himself. He needed to get back on track. Maybe Robin had gone back home. Yeah, it was nearly three am of course he'd go home for Damian's bottle. Right, he'd go home and talk with him. He'd fix this.

When Batman got home, he immediately went to the kitchen only to find Damian's bottle was still empty on the counter. It wasn't wet so it hadn't been washed. It was three am so it should be full. Maybe Dick had forgotten but that was unlike him. Perhaps he was still out. Still too mad. He frowned and filled the bottle himself though he made a complete mess that he'd have to clean up later. He walked upstairs and knocked on Damian's door. Then he thought about it. Damian was a baby. He didn't need to knock on his door. He opened it and walked over to the cot. Oh. Damian was asleep. Was he supposed to wake him up? But then surely he'd cry and wake everyone else up. Did he wait until he woke up naturally? What happened if Damian didn't wake up? The milk will grow cold if he waited. He tried to think back only to realize that Damian had come to the manor right as he distanced himself from the family due to work. He'd never actually given the baby a bottle before. Hm. As if to help him with the problem, Damian began to cry. Very loudly. He was basically shrieking. Panicked, Bruce picked him in and tried to give him his bottle. Maybe he was hungry? But when the bottle was close to him he moved and batted it away. "But you should be hungry right? Am I not doing it right?" Bruce asked. The baby continued to cry so he tried it in a different direction. That only made him cry more. "Damian c'mon, what's going on?" He tried again. And again. And again. Why wasn't he taking this stupid bottle?

"Ugh, Dick what're you- B?" Jason asked. The older turned around with a desperate look.

"He's not taking his bottle."

"No shit he won't take it. The brat only takes it if Dick does it," he answered. "Where is he?"

"We argued. He ran off and I thought he'd be home but I guess he's still mad."

"Huh, Goldie said something," he muttered to himself. He glanced over at his mentor and rolled his eyes. "Take off the cowl Bruce. You're freaking the kid out. You also need to sit down. Dick puts on that dumb lego ninja show, calms Demon Spawn down. I'm going back to bed."

"Thanks, Jason," Bruce replied, already looking for the show on his phone. He didn't know the title but he could probably find it by typing in lego ninja show.

"Yeah, whatever. If Dick isn't back by tomorrow, I'm blaming you." He nodded and watched the boy trudge back to bed. He sat down on the rocking chair and put his phone up where Damian could see it. The baby actually calmed down.

"How in the world did Dick find that out?" he mumbled, thankful that the crying was over. He carefully put the bottle to Damian's mouth but was once again pushed away. "Damian, please. I know Dick usually does it but can't I do it this once? You're hungry right?" He tried again and was pushed away again but this one was weaker. "Exactly, you're hungry. So why not drink this and I'll let you watch the rest of this show thingy?" He tried again and finally got success. "There we go. Jesus, you're a tough cookie. Like your mother...like me I guess." He rocked back and forth. After this, he should look for Dick. Or maybe he shouldn't? Did he need more time? A parenting book would go a long way. Then again, Bruce doubted there'd be one for billionaires/vigilantes. "What am I gonna do about your brother hm? I suppose I made him grow up so fast recently. He was Tim's age when he came here. Hasn't grown more than two inches but he's different. I should let him be a kid more huh?" Damian gurgled at him. Probably not an answer but if it were, he'd agree. "I hope he's okay out there." He looked down at the baby, finding that the milk was gone from the bottle. He took the bottle away and placed Damian back in his cot. He hoped that was what he was supposed to do. "Goodnight Damian. Wish me luck with the shit I got myself into." Bruce kissed his forehead and left his phone so he could keep watching the show. He left the room and went down to the Batcave to wait for Dick to come home.

Robin groaned unhappily as he awoke to the very distinct gross feeling he got when he'd been given knock-out gas. He felt groggy whilst he tried to open his eyes. He was exhausted and his body ached. "Wakey wakey Birdie. You're no fun when you're sleeping." Robin's eyes immediately shot open upon hearing that dreaded voice. His breath hitched and he looked around for the clown. He was in near-complete darkness aside from the light above his head. It buzzed quietly but he could hardly hear it over his heart beating loudly in his ears. "There we are. Nice and awake," Joker greeted. He walked out from the cover of the shadows and flashed the teenager a wicked smile. He flipped a knife in his hand and dragged a metal table on wheels behind him. It looked like it would be used in surgery. Robin gulped. He hoped he wasn't getting some sort of botched surgery. "I've been waiting for you for a whole half hour! How unfair is that on your poor Uncle Joker?" the clown complained. As he brought the table to a halt and messed with the instruments on it, the trapped hero looked to see why he couldn't move. He was actually lying down rather than sitting which was a nice change. As nice as change like this could be. He shifted a little, drawing attention to the fact his limbs were spread apart. He felt like a frog being dissected in biology but instead of pins fixing him to the metal underneath him, there were thick leather straps. He pulled at them but they didn't budge let alone loosen. "Trying to escape? Oh, I'll have none of that," Joker scolded. He must've heard the metal buckles clink against the table. "You're probably wondering about the new set up hm?"

"Not really but you're going to tell me anyway aren't you?" Sarcasm wasn't going to help him but it gave him a false sense of security.

"I am indeed. See, it's been so long since our last visit and I want to make up for that. You're going to be in for a good few days of hell and I want to make sure I have a good surface area to play with. Then, once I've had my fun, I'll leave you to die of either starvation, thirst or you just bleed out," he explained. Robin felt disgusted at the joy the older got from explaining his horrid plans. "Then once you've been bled out, I'll pin you up somewhere nice. Or I could throw you off Gotham pier with a weight around your ankles so you'll never be found. Old Batsy would spend a lifetime looking and you'd be just right there underneath his nose. Dead. How wonderful is that?"

"You're insane."

"Thank you, I try. Let's check up on those shall we?" Joker left the table and strolled over to the strapped down teen. "Let's see," he began. He slowly slid the knife he'd previously been flipping along the fabric of Robin's tunic. The tip of it touched the teen's skin barely, not enough to cut it but enough to be unnervingly close. He ripped the last part of it off to expose Robin's chest. He smiled happily at the light scars there. "There's the J from last time," he stated, using the tip of the knife to point to it. The J was just below Robin's collarbone. It hadn't been that deep but he remembered it being hard to heal. "Oh and there's the little Ha Ha's. They look so good on you. I'll be sure to give you more than that."

"Oh, goodie."

"Don't be so rude," Joker threatened, his knife pressing the edge of the knife against the teen's throat. "Or I'll have to cut our time together. We don't want that, do we?"

Joker moved his knife away and carefully used the tip of it to trace the scars. Robin took a sharp breath in, anticipating something horrible at any moment. This was going to hurt. A lot. Why did he have to blow up at Batman? Yes, the guy was an asshole but he was probably trying. In his own way. If he tried in the past then he must be capable of trying again. Perhaps Robin should've said something sooner and been encouraging rather than blowing up. His thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of his skin being split open. He whimpered under his breath and curled his toes to cope with the pain. He didn't want to show this psycho that he was in pain. "I don't want those to fade. Perhaps we can make some new ones together? Would you like a classic J or a jester? I've been working on the jester one and I'm just dying to try it out."

"Are you actually asking or am I gonna get both either way?"

"Such a little smart mouth. I'm getting rather tired of that." Joker brought his gloved hand to the teen's face and grabbed his chin tightly. He forced him to look at him and grinned. "I bet I could sew those lips shut. Then you'd rip the stitches out when you scream. Hmm is that worth my time little bird? I think it is. I'll keep it in mind for later." He slapped his face twice before he got back to cutting. "You know what would be fun?" he asked passingly.

"What?"

"If I skinned you. I could leave pieces of you all over Gotham for Batsy to find. Ooo, he'd just love to know where the rest of you was." Robin swallowed thickly. He didn't want to hear this right now. Not after the last conversation they had. He should've stayed in that stupid car and talked it out. No no, he was going to get out of this. One way or another. Joker would slip up and he'd escape and limp home. Jason would make fun of him for getting caught but he'd still help him. Tim would spend all his time home from school with him, making sure he was comfortable. Poor Damian wouldn't understand what was going on but it'd be nice to not be up so early to feed him. Alfred would make those cookies he loved and maybe, just maybe, Bruce would spend some time with him. He'd like that. Once again, he was drawn out of his thoughts by the pain the Joker was inflicting on him. "I think we should move on. How about we go a little deeper?"

Everything felt fuzzy yet incredibly painful. He felt the blood oozing from the various cuts patterning his skin and he was sure that he felt a bone pressing against the inside of his skin. He'd been screaming for a long time. He didn't know how long for exactly. Joker kept the lights on all the time so he had no sense of night and day. All he knew was that the clown would torture him until he was barely conscious then give him something to keep him awake before leaving to wash some weapons. Robin was sure he hadn't slept. Or had he? Parts of his memory were missing but that could just be his brain trying to save him from the trauma. God Joker's face would be imprinted in his mind. His laugh forever haunting his mind. His hands around his neck, choking him just to the moment of going too far only to let go. Phantom pains would follow him long after this experience was over. The nightmares would be horrible too. "Please," he begged, his voice cracking under the strain of shouting. His lips cracked and bled slightly from being so dry. He hadn't had water since the morning he was taken. "Please stop." He knew he wouldn't be listened to but he had to try. Maybe someone else would hear and help?

"Oh is the baby bird getting tired? Does he want to just die to escape it all? What will your dear Batman think when he finds out how much of a weakling his protege is?" Joker taunted. He drank in the work he did. Cuts, broken leg, dislocated shoulders, stab wounds, those beautiful infected slashes and how could he forget the dark bruises that stained the teen's skin. "Such a wonderful piece of art I've made and you have the nerve to find it horrible. Tt tt, true art is never appreciated in its time. Now open your mouth, you have twelve teeth too many." He shoved a piece of metal in Robin's mouth to keep it open and tapped his cheek. "Good boy." He got a pair of pliers out and clamped them around one of the teen's front teeth. "On three. One. Two. Gone!" He ripped out the tooth, blood spurting out from the place it had previously been. He laughed maniacally and showed off the tooth to the terrified hero. "Lookie here! Beautiful. I could make a necklace out of them. Let's go in for tooth two-"

Suddenly a Batarang flew through the air and dug into the Joker's hand, forcing him to let go of the pliers. He swore under his breath and whipped around to glare into the darkness. "Batsy? Come out, come out where ever you are," he called. He stepped away from the torture table and toward the darkness.

"You've made a mistake toying with me Joker." The Clown Prince cackled at him, pulling the Batarang, out of his hand.

"Oh is that so? Your pathetic little companion and I were having a great time together," he called back. He narrowed his eyes to try and spy the figure but it didn't help. In fact, he couldn't see the vigilante until Batman's boot flew into his face. He hit the ground with a heavy thud but before he could comprehend what happened Batman was sitting on his chest and fists were flying into his face. 

"You never lay a hand on that boy again or I'll make sure you can never breathe without being in pain!" Batman yelled, punctuating each word with a strong punch to the man's face. Joker's blood and white face paint mixed together on his black gloves, staining them. His anger wasn't helped any by the man's continued laughter despite his beating. He kept punching and punching until the laughter stopped and Joker's face was a bloody pulp.

"Dad? Dad!" Batman jumped up and looked to the table where his sobbing son was calling for him. He rushed over and started unbuckling the leather clasps. 

"Shh shh, I've got you," he told him, making his voice as soft as possible. "We're going to visit Leslie, aren't we? She's going to make you all better."

"Dad it hurts. Everything hurts."

"I know it does chum but it'll be okay. I'm going to make up for this I promise." He picked up Robin as carefully as he could and winced when a strangled cry left his boy. He speed-walked out the building, fearing that running would've jostled the injuries his son had too much.

"Dad I'm sorry. I shoulda just stayed in the car with you."

"No no, you have a right to be mad. You've been so good taking on my jobs and you won't have to from now on. I promise I'll be there now. I should've been there in the beginning." Robin breathed in shakily and tried to force a smile.

"Only took a torture session?"

"Only took feeding Damian. He's tricky." Robin let out a breathy giggle before hissing in pain. "I think you're his favourite."

"Better be. Changed his diaper enough times." Batman pressed his lips against his forehead before helping him into the Batmobile. "Permission to swear?" The older nodded with a smile. "This hurts like a bitch."

This is over 4800 words so pt 2 coming soon because we all love some after care!