Chapter Text
Jason shoots the man in front of him, once, then twice, and then a third time. The image of this man standing over his baby brother is seared into his head, and he can barely push back the green tinting his vision. The only thing that pulls him back from the edge is Dick’s voice. It sounds muffled and far away, but he can make out Damian’s name. Jason turns around, his hearing starting to come back. Dick is hunched over Damian’s body, his hands pressed against Damian’s chest. It takes Jason a few seconds to realize what’s happening, but he feels his legs almost go out from underneath him when he does.
Four Hours Earlier
Jason kicks his feet up on the coffee table, leaning back in his chair. It’d been a long day, and he was working early instead of his normal six to three night shift. He finished all of his work and got home by seven. So, he turns on the TV as background noise, and picks up a book. He quietly reads for a few minutes before his phone starts ringing. He glances at it, and sees Dick’s caller ID on the screen. So, he silences the ringing, and puts it back down. It only takes a few minutes for it to start ringing again, and Jason puts his head back.
“I can’t get one night where they leave me alone?” he mutters as though the last time he talked to one of them wasn’t two weeks ago. Also, it was Damian, who busted in on one of his drug deals while actively fighting a rival gang. “What do you want?” Jason asks, sounding annoyed.
“Damian is missing. I need your help.”
“Where’d the brat run off to this time? Have you checked the Kent’s?”
“Yes, he didn’t run off. He was kidnapped, and I’m sure of it.”
“Ok, why can’t Bruce just track him down?”
“Because Bruce isn’t here.”
“Then call him. Where could he possibly be that’s more important than tracking down his son?”
“He’s in the hospital. Can you please just stop arguing, and help me look for him?”
Jason freezes, his throat getting tight. “Why is he in the hospital?” His voice comes out tighter than he means for it to.
Dick’s tone softens as he answers, “He’s fine. Apparently he and Tim were out walking earlier when someone started shooting everyone in the area. They think that it was a random shooting, but Tim got hit. That was actually why it took us a while to realize that Damian wasn’t home after school. Some of the teachers saw him before class, but he wasn’t there when class actually started. His bag was still at school too. I need your help to find him. I haven’t told Bruce, because Tim needs someone there in case something happens.”
“In case something happens? Like a medical proxy?”
Dick sighs. “Yes. It’s not looking good right now, but he’ll pull through. He was shot in the chest, and he’s in the ICU. They think he’ll be fine, and that he’ll be moved soon.”
“Ok, I’ll help. I still think we should tell Bruce though. I know he’ll want to come running, but we can’t lie to him about his youngest child being missing .”
“I know, I know. I just wanted backup, so I could convince him not to leave the hospital.”
“Fine, where should I meet you?”
“I’m almost at your safe house right now.”
Dick hangs up before Jason can respond, and he grips his phone almost hard enough to break it. He grabs his guns, and heads outside to meet Dick. They end up searching for hours without finding any leads before Dick’s phone starts buzzing.
“What’s that?” Jason asks, peeking over Dick’s shoulder.
“It’s a distress signal. I think it’s Damian’s. We have to get to this location. It’s an abandoned amusement park on the edge of town. That’s really weird. I don’t know why anyone would take him there, but we have to check it out. Keep your eyes peeled.”
Jason nods, forcing himself not to roll his eyes. They head to the amusement park. Even as they’re hopping the fence surrounding the property, they can hear laughing that breaks the silence. Jason frowns, reaching out to touch Dick’s arm. Dick barely glances at him before following the noise. Jason follows a little more cautiously.
That is until he sees the scene that’s causing the laughter. One man off to the side is telling the others to stop, but no one is listening. Two men are standing in front of a small body while a third one is standing over him with his foot planted on Damian’s chest. Jason’s chest constricts as Dick races over. He kicks one of the first two men in the head, and everyone backs up.
Jason starts shooting before any of them can do anything. Two go down immediately, and he shoots the last one in the arm. The one Dick kicked was knocked out cold on impact. The two men Jason shot are already dead by then, but he saved the rest of his bullets for the man that thought he could put his foot on Jason’s brother. He shoots him over and over again, unable to even stop.
Then he sees Dick doing chest compressions on Damian as he sobs, and begs unintelligibly. Jason’s hand goes for his phone immediately. He calls Barbara as he crashes to his knees beside Damian’s head. He’s covered in blood, and his fingers are broken. They’re bent completely out of shape, though his chest doesn’t seem to be in much better shape. It almost looks caved in, not that the CPR is helping with that.
“Jason, I’m surprised to hear from you.”
“We need an extraction, and medical help right now.”
“In costume, or out?”
“Out, it can be an ambulance. Just call someone.”
“Who is it?” Barbara asks, his voice all business.
“Damian. He’s-” Jason has to pause for a second before continuing. “He’s not breathing. We need an extraction right now.”
Dick motions towards Damian, and pauses his compressions. He still hasn’t said anything coherent, but Jason understands. He takes over rescue breaths while Dick continues with compressions. Barbara keeps asking questions, but he can’t tell what they are. He drops his phone back onto the ground, and doesn’t give it another thought. He keeps his eyes on his brother even as sirens start wailing in the background.
How are they already here? It hasn’t been that long, has it?
He breathes for Damian again before pressing his fingers into Damian’s neck. Dick is looking at him with so much hope in his eyes, but Jason just shakes his head. Paramedics run up, and Jason has to pull Dick away from Damian’s still body. Dick goes completely limp, and Jason pulls him in for a hug. He watches over Dick’s shoulder as they continue trying to reestablish a heartbeat. He keeps Dick tucked against his chest. The air stays trapped in his lungs until he hears them start to load him up. He’s not close enough anymore to hear the EEG over the sound of blood rushing in his ears. The lights are still on when they drive away though, and that’s the only reason Jason even knows that they succeeded.
“He’s alive,” he whispers, but it’s enough for Dick to hear.
“He is?”
Gordon runs over to them. They’re both still collapsed on the ground, Jason’s arms loosely wrapped around Dick. Dick is crying again, but relieved this time.
“What happened?” Gordon asks, kneeling down beside them.
Jason lets his hands drop to the dirt on either side of himself. “Damian was kidnapped earlier. He was actively being assaulted when we got here. Someone was practically standing on him,” Jason says, his eyes distant.
“Is he alright?”
“No, but maybe he will be. Can you call the old man? Tell him what happened and that Damian is heading his way?”
Gordon nods, and stands up. He’s still watching Dick, but he calls Bruce. Jason eventually forces Dick to his feet, and drags him to his car. They both get changed, and then head to the hospital. Bruce is waiting for them in the lobby.
“Hey, what’s the news? On either one of them,” Jason adds.
“Tim is stable, and in a normal room now. Damian is in surgery now. I don’t know anything else.”
Dick sniffles, and Bruce wraps his arms around Dick. “Shhh, I’m here. You’ll be alright. We’ll figure everything out. Thank you for helping, Jason.”
Jason nods. “Yeah, it’s no problem.”
They end up sitting together for hours waiting to hear about Damian. They don’t talk, all three of them still unsure of what to say. Eventually a doctor comes out, and makes a beeline for Bruce.
“Mr. Wayne, I’m here to talk to you about your son.”
Bruce stands up. “We can speak over there. I’ll be right back.”
Jason puts a hand on Dick’s arm, offering silent support. Dick leans into the touch, both of their eyes still trained on their dad. Bruce talks to the doctor for at least fifteen minutes before walking back over.
“He’s out of surgery. He has eight broken ribs, four broken fingers, a broken cheekbone, and a fractured collarbone. They’re pretty confident that he’s going to survive though.”
Jason feels Dick deflate next to him. “Can we see him?”
Bruce nods, looking twenty years older than he did the last time Jason saw him before tonight.
“Can you point me to Tim’s room?” Jason asks, standing up.
Bruce nods again, and gives him directions to Tim’s room along with the room number.
“I’m heading that way. Let me know if anything changes.”
He walks to the elevator, and makes his way to Tim’s room. Tim, surprisingly, is awake.
“Hey, Jason,” he says, sounding sleepy.
“Hey, buddy. How are you feeling?”
“Fine, I’m surprised you’re here. I figured you’d be with Damian.”
“How did you hear about that?” Jason asks, sitting down next to him.
“I have my ways.”
“You’re hurt pretty bad. What happened?”
“Bruce and I got shot at. I don’t really remember anything other than that. How is he?”
“He’ll live.”
“That’s not a good answer.”
“Not really, but that's all I have to say right now. You should get some more rest.”
“You should get some rest too. You look like shit.”
“Wow, thanks, Tim,” Jason says sarcastically.
He leans back in his chair, closing his eyes. Tim laughs softly though it sounds painful.
“Get some sleep,” Jason whispers.
Tim hums, and Jason allows himself to drift off. Tim is still asleep when Jason wakes up again. His phone is buzzing, and he looks down to see a text from Dick.
Damian is awake. You should come see him. He’s completely out of it, but I think he’s going to be alright.
Jason blinks, then looks at the clock.
“I was asleep for seven hours?” he whispers.
He glances back at Tim one more time, then heads back to Damian’s room. Damian is awake, but his eyes are glassed over. Dick has a gentle hand on Damian’s leg. Damian turns his attention to Jason as he walks in.
“Akh, you’re here. Baba said you were, but I wasn’t sure,” Damian says, his accent coming through more than it normally does.
Jason blinks, entirely unsure of how to respond. He’s never heard Damian talk like that, especially not to him. “Yeah, I’m here.” He grabs Damian’s small hand in his own. “How you feeling?”
Damian pauses, thinking about it. “High. I don’t really feel anything else.”
Jason snickers. “Yeah, that makes sense. You’re probably on a lot of meds.”
“I don’t think I like it. Can you tell them to stop drugging me?”
“No, I can’t. We have appearances to keep up, remember?”
Damian shakes his head. “No, I don’t. You’ll have to keep mine up for me.”
Jason bites his lip, a smile still sneaking its way onto his face. “I can do that.”
“May I get some more sleep?”
“Of course you can.”
Damian hums, and lets his eyes fall closed again.
“He’s so cute isn’t he?” Dick coos, his face soft. His voice still holds a tinge of the grief from earlier, but he looks and sounds better. So does Bruce, who is still standing in the corner.
“I’m going to see Tim,” Bruce says, giving all of them a smile.
Jason nods before turning back to Damian.
“I’m so glad that they’re both going to be ok,” Dick says. “Thank you for coming. I don’t think I could have saved him today without you.”
Jason brushes his thumb over Damian’s knuckles. “Yeah, well, I don’t want the brats dead. We already knew you were useless anyway.”
Dick smiles, and punches Jason’s shoulder. Jason smirks, but keeps his eyes on Damian.