A/N: I wrote this a good while back, maybe like…last year or the year before…I can't really recall. I'm posting it becauseI was asked to.I wrote this because my friend was a cutter once, sometimes still is, and it's not something I like to have to see her do, and I don't like to have to deal with, because it makes me feel like I'm not doing my job as a friend.So, this is like, dedicated to her- even though she'll never read it.

Disc: I do not own Batman or anything in relation to Batman.

Catharsis

Hot, fresh coffee. Nothing was like it after a long stressful day and before a long rough night of vigilantism. Bruce breathed in the warm scent of his warm beverage. He heard someone approaching. Sounded to light to be Alfred and in any case the person was dragging their feet. It was Tim.

"Bruce…" He was right. "I…Can I ask you something?"

"Uh, sure." Bruce hated this part about taking in a ward. The QUESTIONS. What would Tim ask him today? He shuddered to think. The kid usually asked for the definition of some word someone at school said- and of course the word would only be said by the crudest of people or in the most restricted of movies. He highly suspected Tim did it on purpose to make Bruce uncomfortable, because he was certain Tim already knew the meaning.

"I have this friend at school…and she…she hurts herself." Tim sat down, beside him, but didn't make eye contact. Bruce frowned.

"She hurts herself?"

"Yeah…She like, cuts herself…she doesn't think I notice." Tim shifted. "Or at least she didn't till I confronted her about it."

"What did she say?"

"She said she didn't want to talk about it." Tim looked up, and looked into Bruce's eyes. "She's always sad, and I'm scared she's going to go too far with cutting herself, and he won't tell me anything. All I wanna do is help her, cuz she's my friend."

"She may need some time. Some people are like that. They want help; they're just not ready to receive it."

"But she's had lots of time!" Tim snapped. "I want her to stop it!"

"You can't just make her stop, Tim. Some cutters need counseling to stop the habit. Some never stop." Bruce put his hand on Tim's shoulder. "If you really want to help her, try being patient with her. Keep trying to talk to her. Maybe convince her to get help. She might not be that addicted to it. But don't think you can stop the whole problem and save her. Though your trying really hard, your efforts are more likely to be in vain." Bruce knew this wasn't helping. Tim was what, 12, almost 13? That's awfully young. How old was this girl? "You know, most cutters are girls. Smart girls, who start cutting about the time they hit puberty. They feel lonely and think cutting is the only way to express themselves. Free themselves of…emotional baggage."

"That sounds just like Lynn. She's real smart, but I'm her only friend. Her parents don't understand her, and her relatives say mean things abut her, coz she's not skinny, and she's not Christian. First she cut herself coz she felt everyone hated her. Then after when no one seemed to notice- even though I did but I didn't want to point it out, she kept doing it cuz she thought no one cared. Then it became an addiction. But that's all she told me." Tim sighed. "You know her arm bands? I'd always suspected there was something up with those. She wears them to hide the cuts and scars."

"Well Tim, she needs help. But she needs to get it on her own." Bruce smiled sadly.

"Oh…Ok…well…thanks Bruce. That's all, I guess. I just needed to tell somebody, and get their opinion. Who better to ask but Batman, right?" Tim smirked slightly.

"Just as a comfort, most cutters aren't suicidal. They do it to stay alive."

"What do you mean?" Tim asked.

"They hurt themselves to stop them from killing themselves."

"That doesn't make any sense." Tim raised an eyebrow. "I think the whole idea is stupid. It doesn't do any good."

"Maybe not. But we all have ways of dealing with stress, and anxiety. The way people cope with their problems may be dangerous…sometimes life threatening."

"You know… there's something very wrong with this world." Tim frowned and walked into the next room. Bruce sighed.

"There sure is."

END