Dick Grayson one shots

To heal or not to heal

Whumptober day 21: body horror
    Not quite sure what that means... but I gave her a good ol' college try anyway.

Darkness.

That was all Dick was aware of when he awoke. He panicked, shooting up in the bed he was lying on.

"Woah," Bruce said, putting a hand on Dick's back to support him.

Dick violently flinched, heart rate spiking.

"You're safe Dickie," Bruce soothed. "You're at the manor."

Dick took a shaky breath, relying on the senses had available to confirm what Bruce was saying. He could hear the man's heartbeat, slow and steady, nothing denoting he was lying. The warmth of the sunlight brushing his skin lined up with the angle of the window in his bedroom back at the manor. It smelled faintly of cookies and the laundry detergent Alfred used.

He breathed deeply, calming his racing heart. "W... W-hat," he started, his voice cracking painfully. "What happened?" He asked.

The bed dipped as Bruce sat down on its edge. He grabbed Dick's hand, squeezing it. "Do you remember anything?" He asked.

Dick thought back. The only thing he could remember was pain, various places on his body twinging with the memory of it. "Whatever it was it hurt," he mumbled.

Bruce squeezed his hand slightly. "You were in central city with Flash," he said. "Remember that?"

"I... I think so?" Dick replied, rubbing at his head. There was a bandage resting over his eyes he realized.

Bruce nodded. "Flash was... talking to a meta. She... she didn't know what was happening to her and... and she lost control."

"Wally? Is... is he..." Dick butted in, his heart rate spiking as remembered snippets of what Bruce was relating to him. A searing pain, a bright fiery explosion...

"Flash... Wally... is fine," Bruce reassured. "You took the hit for him."

Dick stilled, reaching up to brush his fingers over the bandage covering his eyes. "I... I should've healed though... right?" He asked.

"Dick, that blast would've killed anyone else... it would've killed Wally..." Bruce trailed off, hating that he almost wished Dick hadn't pushed the speedster out of the way. "Your eyes... there was nothing left for your body to heal."

Dick wanted to cry. "Y-you don't... you can't mean that," he mumbled.

Bruce pulled Dick into a hug, rubbing his back. "Alfred thinks there might be some possibility of... of your eyes coming back... but we'll just have to wait and see," he said.

Dick let out a shaky sob, leaning his head on Bruce's shoulder.

"It'll be okay bud," Bruce promised.

"H-how?" Dick sobbed. "Y-you didn't want me when I was n-normal... now I'm a... a blind talon... Good for nothing... worth nothing."

Bruce felt Dick's word like a shot to the heart. He knew he wasn't the best parent around, but for one of his kids to feel like he didn't even want them... "That's not true," he insisted. "Believe me or not, but that's not true. You are my son. You have worth to me. You have always had worth to me."

Dick sucked in a shaky breath. "H-how?" He mumbled. "I've... I've killed people... I... I've done horrible things."

"And you've done amazing things too, saved countless lives. Your worth isn't based on the things you have or haven't done. It's inherent," Bruce reassured.