Never before had Bruce Banner simply wanted to unleash the Hulk and allow him to destroy, as much as he wanted to unleash him on Arkham. He wasn't sure what angered him more, the broken girl in Cap's arms or the distraught Steve, who was desperately trying to comfort her. After taking several deep breaths to keep his anger under control, he spoke.
"Steve, I need to see if I can deal with a few of these injuries. I need to try and stop the bleeding or she'll pass out from loss of blood," he said kindly. Steve nodded and gently whispered something to Babydoll, who visibly tensed in his arms. Bruce said nothing but waited patiently as Steve continued talking to her, no doubt reassuring her that Bruce meant no harm.
Bruce knew that Steve had managed to convince Babydoll to let him treat her when he gave him a nod to proceed. Bruce opened his medical bag, which lay at his feet, and took out a pack of anti-septic wipes; he then turned his attention to Babydoll's back and the laceration marks that covered it.
"This may sting a little, Babydoll, I'm sorry but it's necessary," Bruce warned.
Bruce couldn't see Babydoll's face as she was sitting on Steve's lap with her back to Bruce, but he could tell that she was nervous about being touched especially by a stranger. Bruce began to clean Babydoll's back as gently as he possibly could. As Bruce worked Steve tenderly stroked her hair and whispered comforting words to her, but she remained rigid with fear.
It took nearly five minutes to clean Babydoll's back. When he was finished Bruce could see that some of the whip marks looked deeper than others, generally where it was clear the whip had struck her numerous times. These would have to be stitched once they returned to base; for now he would make do with simply bandaging her to put pressure on the injuries and to stop the bleeding. Taking a thick roll of bandages out of his bag, Bruce hesitated; ideally the bandages would go beneath the dress but he knew that asking the poor girl to take it off in the SUV was a definite no, so for now he decided to simply put the bandages round her, dress and all.
Sliding closer to Steve, Bruce addressed the young girl directly,
"Babydoll, my name is Dr Bruce Banner; I'm a friend of Steve's. I'm the one that's just cleaned the wounds on your back, and now I need to bandage it. So is it okay for me to wrap this bandage round your torso? I'll dress your wounds properly when we get to the Hellicarrier," he said kindly. At first she gave no reaction to his words, but then she tilted her head to look at Steve, probably seeking reassurance. Steve looked back at her with such a fatherly expression that Bruce couldn't help the small smile that graced his lips.
"It's okay, Babydoll, Bruce is a good friend of mine and a great doctor. He's tended to my wounds loads of times. He won't hurt you, Babydoll, he's a good man. I swear it," said Steve with confidence. Babydoll seemed to consider his words for a moment before nodding her consent. With Steve's help, Bruce bandaged her most pressing injuries and by the time they had got in the Quin-jet and landed on the Hellicarrier, Babydoll had stopped bleeding.
Agent Maria Hill was there to meet them as they entered the Hellicarrier, Steve still carrying Babydoll, as she hadn't the strength to walk and could possibly have broken bones. As far as Bruce could tell the young girl didn't seem to mind, Babydoll looked content in Steve's arms. As they made their way deeper in to the Hellicarrier, Tony suddenly stopped them by putting a gentle arm on Steve's shoulder, who was leading the way with Agent Hill.
"You take Babydoll to the medical bay with Bruce and the rest of us will debrief old-one-eye," said Tony casually.
"Director Fury asked to see all the Avengers," stated Agent Hill sternly.
"Yeah well, tough luck; he's getting four of us including me so he's got nothing to complain about," insisted Tony.
"Thanks, Tony," said Steve with a grateful smile.
"Don't mention it, Spangles. Now let's go, I don't want Fury giving me detention for being late," said Tony leading Hill, Clint, Natasha and Thor down one corridor while Bruce led Steve and Babydoll down another. Bruce couldn't help but smile at Tony's antics. That man never changed and, personally, he didn't want him to. Tony Stark was, without question, a never ending source of amusement.
Bruce Banner watched Babydoll look around the medical room with curiosity. Steve stood with Bruce at her bedside. They had put her in a private room and Bruce was still trying to figure out how he could get her to let him bandage and treat her wounds properly. Then an idea came to him.
"Babydoll, I need to re-bandage and properly treat your injuries. I also need to check for broken bones; in order to do that you'll have to remove your dress so I can do a full examination but I don't want to make you uncomfortable or do something that's going to upset you, so if you like I can ask a female doctor to do it?" said Bruce gently. Babydoll considered his words as she lay on the bed. As she thought it through, she started to bite her bottom lip and her brow furrowed. Bruce wondered what she was thinking but Steve seemed to have a good idea of what was going through her mind, because he said reassuringly,
"Babydoll, no one is going to be upset or angry with you if you want a female doctor to examine you. I promise you that we completely understand. Dr Banner won't mind, will you Bruce?"
"Not at all; I completely understand and I'm not angry, Babydoll," reassured Bruce with a smile. Babydoll considered for a second more before nodding, whilst giving Bruce a nervous look; clearly worried about his reaction. Bruce gave her a warm smile to show he didn't mind, but he didn't like the implication that she expected pain or punishment for preferring to allow someone else to examine her. What else had Babydoll been punished for? And how had she been punished? Bruce wondered, being careful to keep his anger in check. He didn't think Babydoll would appreciate meeting the Other Guy right now.
Excusing himself to find a nurse, Bruce made his way to the staff lounge knowing exactly who he wanted to examine Babydoll; and as luck would have it, he found Nurse Rose Roberts, a sweet, middle-aged woman with strawberry coloured hair and warm brown eyes, sitting on a settee with a cup of tea and a classic novel in her hands.
"Hey Rosie, have you got a minute?" asked Bruce, popping his head round the door.
"Bruce! Hi, sure I've got a minute. What can I do for you?" asked Rose with enthusiasm. Bruce smiled, typical Rosie, always willing to help.
"I was wondering if you'd examine and treat a young girl. I don't know her exact age but she appears to be in her teens. We took her from Arkham Asylum in Gotham. She's been beaten, whipped and tortured. She's not keen on being touched by strangers," explained Bruce as they walked to Babydoll's room.
"Well, if she's been abused, she won't like strangers touching her and I don't blame her. Poor thing!" exclaimed Rosie clearly upset. Bruce knew she didn't like the thought of any child being harmed. It angered her as much as it did him.
As they reached Babydoll's room, Rosie asked,
"What's her name?"
"Babydoll," replied Bruce and opened the door.
Authors Note: Next up, The Joker
