Dick bolted up, but didn't cry out- there were tears falling down his cheeks. He looked at his father with tears rushing down his face. He took his pacifier out and looked over his shoulder.

"Dad?" He asked, surprised. Bruce gave a curt nod.

"Why are you... What are you doing here?" He asked.

"Saving you from mind control."

"Mind control? What did I do?"

"You were mentally regressed to the state of a two or three year old." Dick relaxed. So Bruce didn't know his secret... Relief swept through him.

Bruce knew something was up, but decided to ask later.

Dick left to join the rest of the titans in defeating Mother Mae Eye, so Bruce was left to wait. Bruce removed his cowl and sat in the shadows of his son's room and waited patiently for Dick's return.

After the portal closed, the Titans stood around the pie that held Mother Mae Eye inside. After instructing Beast Boy on what to do, he went back to his room to talk to his father. Dick opened the door to see Bruce waiting for him. He shut the door and exhaled.

"Hi Dad."

"Dick." He nodded. "Are you alright?"

"I'm okay. A little shook up, maybe, but I'm okay."

"Good. Let's talk."

"About what happened? What do you want to know?"

"Do you remember any of it?"

"No, why?"

"You sucked your thumb, a pacifier, drank out of a baby bottle, and slept with Zitka for the first time in six years." Dick flushed Scarlett. Bruce knew he was keeping something from him.

"What is it, Dick?" The boy tensed. "You know you can tell me anything. I won't judge you." He tried again.

Dick paused, unsure of how to begin. "The things you said I did under the magic... The Pacifier and Bottle... They're mine- by choice, as are the diapers."

Bruce, to his credit, kept a stoic expression.

"How long has this been going on?"

"About a year... Maybe more."

"Do you feel insecure here?"

"No, it's not that, it's just... I feel more like myself. It's an escape from reality. I feel safer that way. It was easier back then... I didn't have two identities, and I didn't have to be so serious all the time." Bruce listened to his son and heard the sincerity in his voice. He understood the feelings his son was having. He might not have channeled his feelings in the same way, but he understood.

Bruce stood up and led Dick to sit on his bed. Rubbing his back, he picked up his son's pacifier and offered it to him. Dick looked surprised, but reluctantly took it and began to suck.

"You called me Daddy for the first time in years. I missed that." He remarked. Dick looked amused. He scooted closer to his father and hugged him. Bruce smoothed his son's hair out, and his son's sucking grew more rhythmic.

"Are you happy like this?" He nodded.

"I support you, Dick. In whatever you decide. This included. If you ever decide to come and visit at the manor, you're welcome to be this way full time if it's what you want. And if you ever want me to be "Daddy" again, I'll do it in a heartbeat."

Dick sat up and looked at his father with shining eyes. "Daddy still love me?"

"Of course I love you, Dickie. I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

"Daddy love baby Dickie?"

"I love all of you, Dick." After a lengthy pause, Dick asked in a very quiet voice, "Daddy take care of baby Dickie?"

The request was so simple, so innocent, that Bruce had to fight the onslaught of emotions that came with it.

"Always." Dick's eyes lit up and he cuddled into his Father. It meant more to him than Bruce could ever know.

"Daddy pway with me?"

"Sure, Dick." The boy smiled from behind his pacifier, and crawled over to get his stuffed elephant. He picked it up and clutched it tight to his chest, nuzzling it softly. Bruce didn't think he'd ever seen his son so tender, but at the same time he'd never looked more himself.

In that moment, Bruce opened his heart to his son in a way he never had before. A gentle, sensitive, loving side was born. This was the Daddy that would take care of his baby son. Bruce went over to his child and gently kissed the crown of his head. Dick looked up at him and giggled, reaching up to his father. Bruce obligingly picked him up and settled him on his hip. Dick cuddled against his father. Bruce rubbed his back in response.

"Are you hungry, Dickie?" He asked. The voice was so sugary sweet that Dick looked up, surprised. He took the pacifier from his mouth.

"I want my ba ba." He said. Bruce grabbed the bottle from the nightstand.

"Do you want Daddy to feed you?" He asked, sweetly. Dick nodded, excited at the prospect of being fed by his father. Bruce sat on Dick's bed and cradled his son in his arms. Dick happily sucked on the nipple, drinking the remaining milk in the bottle. When the milk was gone, Dick whimpered with teary eyes.

Without warning, Dick started to cry. Bruce immediately held him tighter, hushing him in his soothing falsetto. Dick cried into his father's chest, not noticing that his diaper was now wet, only knowing that he was upset. Bruce cooed words of nonsense to his discouraged son.

"What's the matter, Dickie?" He asked. A small whine and whimper was the only answer he got. Dick's hands tightened on his father's suit. He cried harder, but was very careful not to be loud.

Bruce Wayne was a bachelor. He hadn't known fatherhood until he adopted his son. As his son had been eight at the time, he had not had time with Dick as a baby, for which he found himself woefully unprepared. His son was going to give him a lesson on being an infant, and it had come time for him to put what he'd learned to use. Dick had eaten, had his toys, and a good cuddle. It didn't take the world's greatest detective to understand that Dick had likely wet himself. He thought about it for a moment, and wondered if Dick would be ashamed. So far, he hadn't been, but he was going to ask anyways.

"Dickie," Bruce said in his most comforting voice, "Do you need a change?" Dick forgot all his crying as he realized his diaper was cold and clammy. With gasping breaths he nodded, trying to calm himself down. Bruce looked at his son and waited for Dick to point out where the diapers were. Once he did, Bruce took one from the stack and went back to his son, whose violent sobs had become hiccups. He pushed stray hair back from Dick's face and gave him a reassuring smile. Dick was infused with the knowledge that everything was going to be alright. He relaxed as the man he deemed to be his father changed him. He couldn't really bring himself to be embarrassed.

He remembered Bruce bathing him when he was nine years old, talking while he sat in sudsy water. He remembered the excited way he spoke and the soft laughter of his father. Immediately, he relaxed. Before he understood what was happening, the change was over and Daddy was hoisting him onto his hip. Dick whimpered and sniffled as he really took a personal inventory. His stomach hurt so badly he wanted to scream. Acknowledgement of the pain made him cry again. Before Bruce could ask what was wrong, Dick pointed to his stomach. He buried his face in his father's shoulder and cried softly. There were other things, too that upset him, however. He felt immensely guilty for calling someone else "mother"- even if it was under mind control. The shame raced through him like a river. He had failed her. He clung to Bruce tighter. He just wanted somebody to tell him that everything was going to be alright.

Bruce sat on Dick's bed, holding him close to his chest as he hushed him. He could only guess at the memories tormenting his child, and was understandably concerned for him. After a few minutes, Dick had calmed down, and he asked very quietly,

"I come home this weekend?"

Bruce smiled. "Sure, Dick."

The sounds of the other Titans moving and doing things were audible through the door. Bruce was quick to redress Dick. When he finished, he knelt down to Dick's eye level.

"Daddy's going to go now, okay, Dickie?" Tearfully, Dick nodded.

"Bye bye Daddy."

"I'll see you in a few days." He said, before disappearing into the shadows.

After pulling himself together, Dick went out to rejoin his friends, while Bruce began planning a weekend Dick would never forget.