I'M STILL ALIVE! Yeah, haven't updated in over 90 days *grumbles over lost updatable timeline again* but I am not dead and Daddy, Not Bats is not abandoned. Fixing Damian on the other hand may be... ANyway, I have a lot of other titles I'm working on, plus at least to original works that I need to do to get money. RL sometimes really sucks. Besides that, since I last updated DNB, I graduated from college with my Bachelors in Communications, got a second job to stabilize my account, and had to situate three new roommates, who are all younger than me and half seem to know everything. *laughs hysterically* Hmmm... yeah, DNB's been on back burner. It's a come and go series anyway without a definitive ending. I finish writing the arcs before posting them, and the next big one's already written, in basics at least. I should make an extended version for Teen Titans though...

Tangent. Anyway, after a couple reminders to update or face the wrath of rabid fans, and realizing my own condition Monday night, I finally got a short one done! Still working on them going back to school though. Mind's just not functioning right now. Enjoy!

Cass –11 Tim – 9

I'm Sick

"I'm siiiick…" Tim flopped onto the couch with a moan, hating every second of his continued existence. He hated being sick.

"Sick huh?" Cass squatted next to him and pressed her hand against his forehead. "You don't seem to have a fever."

"Not yet," he admitted, "but I feel it coming." He turned his head to her, pouting and moaning in his pain. "I haven't been sleeping well lately and now my throat hurts."

"I thought Jason sneaking around, Damian screaming from nightmares, and Dick sneaking in after curfew kept you up. You complained about it enough." She sat down near his head, reminding him of all the things he said lately. It only made him pout more.

"I thought so too," the boy admitted, "but I forgot when I start getting sick, I hear things just a little too well. AND I don't sleep well. Ever."

Cass shrugged. "Okay, maybe you are sick."

"I am sick!" She could hear the crackling of his voice now.

"Why don't you tell Alfred? Or Dad?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "It'd certainly do better than you complaining about it to me."

Embarrassed, Tim looked away. "Don't wanna."

His sister kept her steady gaze on him. Something was indeed up. His grammar was slipping. "Why not?"

Silence met her for a little while, then, "They'll make me take something to make me better."

"That's kind of-"

"And it always tastes bad!" The boy turned towards her, getting put a little to make their eyes meet on level ground. She still towered him, but it made the boy feel more confident. "The red stuff always tastes fake instead of like the candy canes! The purple stuff is grape and blueberry candy with methanol! The dissolvable are supposed to taste like fruit, but they taste like bad chalk and cardboard and sand all at the same time! And Alfred's Tylenol and jelly trick tastes worse with every bite!"

He groaned loudly before flopping back onto the couch. "I don't wanna take any nasty medicine. Dick doesn't have to. Neither does Dad!"

"Yes they do. It's just not as obvious. They're a lot bigger than us you know." Cass cocked her head to the side, pointing out is fallacies. She eyed him for a moment before sighing. "Haven't you read the labels on those pill bottles of theirs? They change how many a person has depending on age, weight, and sometimes gender. Their medicine's just different from ours."

"But it doesn't taste near as bad… right?"

To that she shrugged. The last time she had to take pills, she didn't take the time to taste it. Come to think of it… "I don't think they give it time to be tasty. You put one or two in your mouth, then quickly take a drink. I think they do something else before that, but they still don't give it time for taste to be a factor."

"Then let's get some pills and-"

"Not so fast genius." Cass' eyes turned cold and hard on him, stopping Tim from making a horrible mistake. "They used to sell the same things to druggies on the street, without the warning labels. They'd turn up dead the next day."

It was rare when she broke her vow of silence on her 'lost years'. Whenever she did, it took everyone by storm. Slowly Tim nodded, listening to her counsel. She eased up and got off the couch. "Let's talk to Alfred. You're older and bigger than the last time you were sick. Maybe he'll give you something different to get better."

"I hope so."

That something different ended up being Leslie and a needle. Needless to say, Tim never complained about bad tasting medicines again.

A/N: XD isn't it cannon that Tim hates needles? Not sure where I read it, but I thought i'd use it here as a punch line. Cass is referring to when she lived on the streets (so need to work on her origin story...) where she saw people popping pills. Always read your medication bottles and take the required amount when self medicating! and make sure they don't clash with other medications! If a doctor tells you to take half of a pill, it's likely it can be used to get high in larger doses, which can also kill you. Sis7 told me of a time when she was told to take half of one pill to calm down her overactive thyroid gland. It wasn't necessary to save her life, and after taking the half pill once, she didn't like the side effects and never did it again. Later she found out that 4 of that pill was the equivalent of 1 Speed. O.o ... pharmaceuticals are scary.

Stories aside, be careful with meds. And even if some other, gentler medications taste bad, it's better to be safe than sorry. I am sick (cold) and been taking things and not liking the taste, the effects, and how they limit what I want to do that exact second. never buying Zicam again. Too icky and I want water immediately after dang it! B[

Anyway, I'm alive, and so is this story. It just goes into hibernation a lot lately. Until next time! ^^V