Things got easier after that. Plas was extraordinarily nervous around Manhunter for a while, but the League was (ironically) not known for its ability to keep secrets. Even though he switched to sessions with Wonder Woman, O'Brian couldn't prevent J'onn from hearing about the things he said through the JLA grapevine.
For their part, the majority of the League members were stunned at the things they began to hear. Things like the time Seamus O'Brian had taken his son to Vegas, checking him as baggage to save on the airfare. Or the fascinating tidbit that Plas hadn't had his shots, as his father considered vaccinations to be a waste of time. The worst part of these revelations wasn't the knowledge that their teammate had been damaged: it was the new perspective this knowledge gave to their treatment of Plastic Man over the years. For example, it had seemed a good idea at the time to criticize O'Brian for not knowing the difference between a proton and a neutron. With the understanding that, calling him a "useless retard," his father had refused to send him to school or see to his education, their comments began to seem less… admirable.
They weren't quite sure how to respond. Many avoided Plas for weeks, only to seek him out in the hopes of delivering awkward, stumbling apologies. His disconcerting calmness and attempts to soothe the supplicants only worsened their guilt. Others (especially Elongated Man) could react with little more than redirected rage and self-loathing at not having realized the problems sooner. The better detectives of the League were taking it especially hard, as they felt that the signs had been obvious from the beginning. The phrase "Hindsight is 20/20," had anyone thought to mention it, would have offered them little comfort.
Plastic Man himself was getting better every day. He began to laugh again. It was less frequent an occurrence than it had been, but it felt more genuine when it happened. His jokes returned with his good-humor, and they, at least, hadn't changed, much to the disappointment of all concerned. He returned to League meetings and missions, and people began to realize how much they had missed him in times of crisis, both for his power and for his personality.
He grew much closer to Batman than anyone, even Superman, had previously believed possible. After all, the Dark Knight tended to keep human beings, with all of their faults and complications, at a safe distance. But now he seemed… not more open, exactly. At least, not with anyone else. But when neither of them thought anyone was listening, he could be heard chuckling, or joking. And O'Brian seemed to get something out of the association as well. He focused more on his actions during missions than he had before, and he started taking formal combat training.
In short, it isn't often that a story can begin with violence and end with joy. The face behind the iron mask is never one that wants to see itself. But every now and then, one looks behind the mask. Then, it becomes clear that that which was hiding could never have been so twisted and deformed as its covering had been.