My Little Secret

1. Jason

• Jason is a flip with a preference towards caregiving, when he regresses he's typically a teen regressor, ranging from 13 to about 16ish

• He both involuntarily and voluntarily regresses, and usually the age he regresses to is a good indicator of which one it is:

• When he involuntarily regresses he will revert to the younger range of his headspace, usually reverting to a similar mindset he had shortly before Ethiopia

• He might become angry and accusatory toward Bruce (similar to how Bruce was like to him at that age) or sullen and withdrawn, but it is clear that all of that anger and upset is a front for the deep hurt he holds in regard to that period of his life

• When Bruce responds to his anger with gentle acceptance, instead of rising to the bait like Jason expects him to, his bravado falls apart and typically Jason will become a weepy mess desperately searching for comfort (that Bruce is all too happy to provide).

• Despite the clearly negative emotions this whole ordeal is based on, it is incredibly cathartic for Jason, as he's finally able to receive the care he needed from Bruce so long ago

• When he is in a older headspace, his regression is typically voluntary. Often he might regress alone, but over time he has become more willing to regress around his family (typically when either Tim and/or Cass are regressed as well)

• He voluntarily regresses in order to live out the teenage years he never got to experience (with the whole undying rage, catatonic zombie, trained to be a killer thing he had going on at the time), and often times his regression will be fairly subtle, only noticeable for his family

• He's still snarky and fond of nicknames, but he's also in need of more reassurance. He'll still occasionally pick fights but its clear that he just wants someone to help regulate him, instead of fighting just to fight (which he will do sometimes when big)

• He really enjoys baking with Alfred in this headspace, something about the gentle instruction is very soothing to him.

• One time Dick and Babs taught him how to play poker and he LOVED it --although because he becomes incredibly emotive in his headspace, he wasn't very good at the whole "poker face" thing.

2. Cass

• Cass is a kid regressor/middle (7 to 10/11) and also a flip! However she tends towards regression more, caregiving only when the opportunity arises (she still enjoys it though). She is also purely a voluntary regressor.

• She regresses in order to gain the childhood she never got to have; because of this communication is actually incredibly important to her!

• Often times she will regress when working on her speech, both because it feels easier to learn that way, but also because it combats (canonical) feelings of inferiority she faces because of her communication difficulties.

• When she's big, she feels like there's a certain expectation for how fast she should be learning and what she should already know. When she's little she feels more free to learn at her own pace, without the typical pressure.

• If she's upset, the most important thing is for her caregiver (or fellow regressor) to wait and give her the time she needs to explain herself and vocalize her emotions. Sometimes this can take a while because she is more likely to lose her words when emotional. It is essential that Cass feels heard when expressing her wants and needs, because no one ever listened to her when she was as a child.

• Usually she is very playful when regressed, and loves to regress with Tim-- she adores being a big sister.

• Often times she treats regressed Tim like he's her little dolly. Dressing him up, carrying him around, and playing pretend. Tim just kinda... lets it happen. She's very gentle, and it's so incredibly sweet that no one would dare to ever tell her that Tim is not a toy (especially since that time Dick nearly decked Bruce for almost saying that to her)

• Other times she is an absolute menance, particularly when she and Jason are both voluntarily regressed together.

• She will tease him non-stop, leading them to constantly get into play-fights with each other (which has caused too many broken vases for Alfred to even think about)

• She loves playing high-energy physical games like tag with Jason, sometimes inside...

• She's the one who is actually most likely to goad Dick into doing unsafe acrobatics with her, and there has been several instances where Alfred had caught Dick swinging from a chandelier with a giggling Cass holding onto his shoulders. Unsuprisingly, she and Dick have continued this activity despite the numerous scoldings that have inevitably followed.

3. Tim

• Tim is purely a little and regresses both voluntarily and involuntarily with a headspace ranging from ~2 to 6

• He originally started (unkowingly) involuntarily regressing; in the beginning he wasn't aware of age regression really at all so he would only engage in the behaviours when he was stressed or triggered, which usually implied a very weepy and clingy Tim.

• Tim mainly still involuntarily regresses, both as a means of processing negative emotions and sometimes just because he was exposed to something that made him feel very little 

• Now he is finally attempting to voluntarily regress (although it has been incredibly difficult for him, both because of the shame and embarrassment he feels, but also just because he struggles to turn his brain off)

• He ADORES playing with Cass when they're both regressed, regardless of his particular age

• Playing with Cass when she's regressed almost feels like permission to him. If Cass is acting silly an childish, then so can he!

• Because of this he doesn't really care what he's playing when he's with Cass, he just enjoys being around her.

• Interestingly enough, Tim gets anxious around Jason when the older boy is regressed, although he's completely comfortable around him when Jason is big

• It takes a while for everyone to realize that Tim's not scared of Jason because he thinks that he will hurt him, rather he's nervous because Jason's the "cool older kid" in his head.

• For a very long time the only little items he owned were stuffed animals, 3 to be exact.

• His favorite was a toy he had when he was an infant. A small, handsized duck aptly named "ducky", because it's (she's) a baby toy she has sewn black eyes instead of beads, and after years of Tim sleeping with her she has gotten a little gray and worn, but Tim is always gentle with her (and if she ever does get hurt, it's not like they're short on people who know how to stitch things up)

• Because of how long he has had her, Tim can get anxious about losing or misplacing her-- so when he is little she will always be in his hand, or sitting in his line of sight (unless he is out of the house, in that case someone -usually Alfred- will take a photo of her to soothe Tim's worries)

• Very few people are allowed to hold her (Dick, Alfred, Cass, maybe Bruce), and typically that is reserved for when he cannot do it himself. Preferably when this happens she is still in his line of sight.

• His second stuffie is an off-white bunny somewhat larger than ducky, with bead black eyes, who is named "Bunny" (are we sensing a pattern here?).

• He got Bunny when he was about 4 years old from his Mom; although she never spent much time with him, he has a vivid memory of going out with her to a summer market in Gotham. It was there when, after spending a good five minutes staring longingly at a toy stall that his Mom brought him over and let him pick one plushie, which was Bunny. He remembers his Mom asking what he was planning on calling him and her loud sparkling laughter that followed after he answered (although, at the time he couldn't figure out what was so funny). It was one of the few good memories he had with her.

• Typically Bunny resides on his bed, but whenever he's thinking about his Mom, Bunny will inevitably begin accompanying Ducky in his hands.

• His final toy was a dark brown bear with bead black eyes, that is the largest of the three. His fur is long enough to run your fingers through (which Tim does religously) and has a reddish hue to it.

• Dick was the one who gave him to Tim, all the way back at his 13th birthday, when he was freshly starting out as Robin

• His Mom and Dad couldn't make it to celebrate, something that Tim mentioned off-hand after patrol one night. Tim honestly was fairly apathetic to the whole ordeal, his birthday was never a big deal so it wasn't like he was disappointed.

• Bruce was out of town that week (as he was incredibly often during Tim's Robin era!??) and so Tim didn't have patrol, so he was just planning on playing some videogames after school, maybe ordering a pizza.

• Colour him shocked when he opened his door and had to promptly defend himself from the flying grayson as Dick jumped to hug him. It was a small get-together of just Babs, Dick, Alfred, and of course Tim but it was probably the best birthday Tim ever had. In which Dick gifted him both the new addition of W&Ws and the teddy bear (which was partially a gag gift to poke fun of how young Tim was, and partially genuine)

• For a long time everyone was under the impression that the teddy bear's name was, in fact, Teddy (as one would guess), but one day little Tim lets it slip that his name is actually "Robin". Something that almost made Dick cry in the moment, and yet a fact that he also uses to tease (big) Tim ruthlessly about.

• Because of his size Robin doesn't typically join Tim's entourage, but Tim will usually run and grab him when he's playing.

• Eventually, Tim starts getting more stuffed animals, including (but not limited to!) A bat from Cass, another teddy (who's name is actually Teddy) and a jellyfish from Steph, a kitten from Babs, and even a lamb from Alfred, to name a few. All following Tim's original naming conventions (Bat, Teddy, Kitty, Jelly, Lamb, etc)

• The only time a stuffie isn't named after it's animal (other than Robin) is when someone else names it for Tim -- something he will typically ask once he receives it*

• He actually has weird rules involving what makes a stuffie (has a soul) and a plushie (glorified pillow) which involves things like:

• Has to be an animal

• Has to be vaugly animal shaped (he's not a fan of squishmallows)

• Usually, no whites in the eyes (only black) but he might make exceptions

• No forced smiles/odd expressions

• He has to feel the soul

• ... it's complicated

• That being said, he does like plushies, but they aren't alive like stuffies are to him

* everytime Tim was given a stuffed animal (big or little), when he was asked "What are you going to name it?"

He would always respond with "I don't know what do you think I should name him/her/them?" (He will have already given them a gender in his head --if they pass the stuffie/plushie test).

• He's only a regressor, and though he will try incredibly hard to be a good carer for other littles, it makes him incredibly anxious and akward

• Tim was originally only an involuntary regressor and he was not a very big fan of the fact that he was a regressor at all*

• Despite that, his family noticed that he was in a better mood after spending time regressed and so they put in a lot of work in order to get him to accept his regression

• Eventually he started engaging in voluntary regression as well, although he can still be reluctant and usually needs convincing

• He cannot (voluntarily) regress unless he is with someone he trusts, and is constantly reassured that it's ok for him to do this

• Cass, Jason, and himself are the only regressors in the family and he is by far the youngest (Cass is a kid regressor and Jason is a middle/teen regressor)**

• Regresses between ~2-6

• This can be difficult to gage because of his intelligence. He might gravitate towards both toys that are more complex than that of his headspace  (puzzles in particular) and toys that are intended for ages younger than his headspace (sensory toys etc...). His behaviours, emotional regulation, and interactions all point towards a young headspace though.

• He partially regresses/ get caught in between headspaces very, very often

• This is sometimes because he is trying to deny/prevent his regression and it is Not Working Out For Him

• Or sometimes he doesn't notice at all

• When it's not denial, usually it is when he's focused working on a case. When actually drawn into the research of the case he is intellectually functioning completely normally, however once someone tries to talk to him (or heaven forbid-- tell him to go to bed) it becomes very clear that he is not completely big at the moment

• HUGE oral fixation. This extend to both his  little headspace and his normal/big headspace. There is ALWAYS something in his mouth, most common items include:

• Pens

• His pacifier

• HIS FINGERS

• Chew necklaces

• Bruce eventually also gets those baby teething keys that you put in the freezer and Tim LOVES them. He really likes the stimulation the temperature change provides

• These also come in handy whenever Tim is having a panic attack because he tends to start biting himself, so giving him the keys both redirects the action and the coldness provides a little shock to the system (like how some people use ice in their hands to ground themselves)

• Before his regression was discovered Tim was a huge thumbsucker, in and out of headspace. Whenever he was trying to sleep, trying to calm down, focusing on something, sick, bored, or just under the impression that he was alone his thumb would always find a way into his mouth. This is part of the reason that his family found out about his regression (although he doesn't know this)

• His family now tries to redirect him using the previously mentioned pacis/toys, but often times he might secretly spit them out to switch back to his tried and true thumb. He can't explain it, but there's something about thumbsucking that just can't be recreated.

• He has a very difficult time making decisions when little, and many of times this has reduced him to tears.

• He has to make so many important decisions when he's big, decisions that could change/save someone's life or effect the biggest corporation in Gotham, that he's always anxious about making the wrong decision. Or even worse- not making a decision at all!

• This of course amplifies ten-fold when he's little, and after a lot of trial and error his family figured out the best thing to do was usually given Tim 2 or maybe 3 (but that's pushing it) options, making it clear there is no wrong/right choice, and letting him decide between those.

• Other times they might tell him they're going to do/get something, but make it clear that he can say no or ask for something else.

• He's a little shadow, ESPECIALLY with Dick --who is annoyingly proud of that fact-- and Bruce, he will follow today's person of his choosing everywhere, leading to Bruce calling him "(my) little Ducky". Something Tim pretends to be offended about ("Daddy! That's already Ducky's name") but nobody can miss the pleased smile that creeps on his face. ("My Ducky's Ducky" is what Bruce will typically call the stuffie)

*I'll make a separate post about Tim's involuntary regression and how the family found out about it

** Cass is a voluntary regressor and Jason is both involuntary and voluntary and they're both flips-- with Cass leaning more towards the regressor side and Jason leaning more towards the CG side.