Disclaimer: I happen to own a pencil, but not Hotstreak...if only (sigh)

Chapter Nine: Licking Their Wounds

Francis pulled himself up the dock and then collapsed onto the rotting planks, drawing in deep ragged breaths and wincing when his ribs protested. His leg had gone numb now and his shoulder gave off a dull throbbing, the pain was the only thing keeping him awake at this point. Slowly, Francis lifted his head and surveyed the damage Wade's explosive had left behind.

The warehouse was little more than rubble, there was only one wall left relatively intact and the docks were strewn with bits of concrete and glass.

Francis sighed and raised himself to his knees, coughing up blood and water as he did so. Grimacing, Francis put a hand to his chest and stumbled to his feet, clenching his teeth.

"Gear!"

Francis looked up suddenly, the movement made his head hurt. Static shoved pieces of plaster off of himself and then dropped to his knees beside his partner, looking terrified. Batman was right beside the two in a moment. Francis frowned...hadn't Batman been holding Jesse when the bomb went off?

Batman looked up and saw Francis standing, or swaying more like, a few feet away and he walked away from Static and Gear to help the pyro. Francis shoved his helping hand away. "Where's Jesse?" He demanded.

Batman looked away. "I saw Wade take him. I'm sorry Francis, but we have to tend to Gear now. If we went after Wade in this state, someone would end up dead."

Francis looked crestfallen and didn't protest again when Batman slipped an arm around his back and helped him walk over to Static who was trying to wake Gear up.

"Gear. Please bro, please..." Static pleaded.

"Shu' up V." Gear mumbled, his eyes fluttering. "Hurtin' my head."

Static almost cried with relief. "You're not dead. Oh god...I thought. But you're not." Static looked up at Batman with teary eyes. "He's alright."

Batman knelt beside Gear and put one hand gently against his neck, feeling for a pulse. "For now he is. His pulse is weakening. We have to get him help now. Let's go to the hospital..."

"No." Static interrupted, putting one hand behind Gear's back and lifting him into a sitting position. Gear's face screwed up in pain but only a faint whimper escaped his lips. "The hospital's too far away. My pops' house is closer and Daisy's there."

"Static, I don't think..."

Static shook his head. "No listen. Gear's losing blood fast and my pops has a fully stocked medical kit in case I ever came home injured. It has everything we need right now and we can move Gear to a hospital once he's stabilized."

"Fine, but I was going to ask if you wanted to reveal your identity to Francis like this." Batman nodded towards Francis, who had sunk to the ground beside them, staring at Gear with tired eyes.

"I could close my eyes." Francis offered with a half-hearted grin.

Static paused and closed his eyes, mulling over the situation. "No, Gear's more important. Let's go."

Batman helped Static lift Gear and then he called his jet down from the clouds with a remote. "I'll take Gear in the jet, it's far safer. Take Francis on your disc but watch him, he's not in great condition either."

Francis nodded his head in agreement but he had gone strangely silent.

Static watched Batman take off and the he turned to Francis. "Ok, get on." He unfolded his disc and magnetized it into the air.

Robert Hawkins was sleeping soundly in his bed. His daughter and her husband in the room across the hall and their two children nestled in sleeping bags at the foot of their bed. His son's girlfriend was sleeping in the guest room. None of them expected to be woken by a phone ringing. Not at three in the morning at any rate.

Robert stumbled sleepily out of his bedroom and down the stairs, picking up the phone in the kitchen. "Hello?"

"Pops! Sorry to wake you but this is an emergency. Wake Daisy up and get out that first-aid kit you've got. We'll be there in a few minutes." His son Virgil's panicked voice came out of the receiver, his words coming fast.

Robert was fully awake now. "Who's hurt? Virgil, are you alright?"

"I'm fine but it's Gear who's in trouble. Oh...and keep Taylor and Devin away, they don't need to see this." Virgil hung up.

Robert stood in the kitchen, holding the phone in one hand and rubbing his forehead with the other. Then he went to go get Daisy, who was standing at the top of the stairs with Sharon and Adam.

"What's wrong?" She asked. The look on Robert's face was enough to have all three of them worried for the life of their friends.

"Richie's hurt. They're bringing him here. Daisy, Virgil says they need you're help." Robert said heavily.

Daisy nodded and returned to her bedroom to get dressed. Sharon looked alarmed. "They? Is Hotstreak coming here?"

Robert shook his head. "Virgil didn't say. He did say to keep the kids upstairs however."

"Maybe I can help." Adam offered, coming down the stairs.

"From what it sounds like, they could use all the help they can get." Robert clapped his son-in-law on the shoulder. "Let's clear away an area on the couch for Richie, we'll also need blankets and some water I'm sure."

Virgil landed on the stoop of his father's home and jumped off the disc, Francis descended far more carefully and leant against the doorframe, holding his chest. Static looked at him. "What you're going to find out right now must remian a secret." He said sternly.

"Yeah, I understand." Francis said.

The jet landed behind them and Static went to help Batman unload Gear, who had broken out into a sweat. "Quickly." Batman grunted, holding Gear's feet. Static maneuvered the stairs while holding Gear's upper half and knocked at the door.

Within moments Robert opened the door and stepped aside to let Static and Batman rush inside. Francis followed after slowly.

"Here." Daisy was waiting for them and they set Gear on the couch. Daisy pulled out a knife and cut away Gear's shirt to get better access at the wound in his stomach. She looked at it for a moment , and then at Static. "It's a lot better than it could've been. He hasn't lost too much blood, I can stitch this up easily enough but he'll need a transfusion soon."

Static nodded. "I'll do it. We have the same blood type."

Daisy smiled and reached for the first-aid kit, pulling out disenfectant and bandages. Daisy wiped away the blood with a wet cloth and then she closed the wound cleanly and quickly.

"You're next." Daisy pointed at Franics who had sprawled across an armchair.

She went to the kitchen to wash her hands of blood and returned, kneeling by the chair. "Sit up." She commanded.

Francis did so, slowly and clearly painfully. Daisy frowned. "Shirt off."

Francis pulled his shirt up and over his head, wincing as blood from his shoulder that had dried on his shirt was torn away, starting a fresh blood flow. Daisy frowned again at the bruises on his chest and she put a hand on his side and gently pressed. Francis hissed and jerked away. "Don't do that." He muttered.

"Re-injured your ribs. Now they'll just heal slower." Daisy noticed the blood caked on his shoulder and jeans. "Off." She pointed at his pants. Francis blushed and hesitated. Daisy rolled her eyes. "Oh c'mon. Don't tell me you're shy. I'm a doctor, this is my job."

Francis sighed and unbuckled his belt, pulling the jeans down his legs. Daisy touched the wound in his thigh gently. "Okay, more stitches. Adam hand me the bandages please."

Francis looked up and saw a vaguely familiar person holding a roll of white bandages. "Hey Evans." He nodded.

"F." Adam returned the nod with a small grin. "Not looking too good."

"Are you friends with him?" Sharon asked, coming down the stairs. Then she saw Francis in his boxers. "Oh...um."

Adam laughed and went over to his wife. "Not friends really...acquaintances more like. Back in Dakota I knew him through my brother."

Static was standing over Gear, looking worried. "Is he going to be okay?"

Daisy looked over. "Yes. He'll be okay, the wound really wasn't that bad. It was just blood loss and shock that got him. His temperature's gone down and he's stopped sweating. He'll be fine." She turned back to Francis and touched his shoulder. "Stitches here too. You must really like needles."

"No actually, I don't. I hate them." Francis said, glaring at the needle in her hand.

Daisy smiled reassuringly and turned him slightly to the side to get a better look at the injury.

Static sighed in relief and ran a hand through his dreadlocks. And then he pulled his mask off.

Francis looked up, and then jerked involuntarily. Daisy caught his arm and held it still. "No way. Hawkins?"

Sharon smacked her brother on the head. "What did you do that for?!"

Virgil rubbed his head and scowled at his sister. "He would have found out anyway. Besides, his wife already knows who I am."

"She does?" Francis asked confusedly and then looked at Sharon. "Oh, and you're that probation officer. Didn't you work with Dule?"

Sharon started, and then looked surprised. "Yes I did. You have a good memory."

Francis shrugged, and then winced. Daisy touched his shoulder to remind him. "Yeah, don't do that."

Francis looked back at Virgil. "You're Hawkins. And what I said tonight..." Francis trailed off, dearly regretting his outburst to Wade now that his childhood victim was standing in front of him.

Virgil smiled. "It's okay. It was stupid of me to get so mad over one black eye, right?"

Francis nodded gratefully. "Soooo, you're the one who kicked my ass up and down the streets of Dakota daily?"

Static smirked. "Yup. And you have no idea how good it felt."

"I'll get coffee." Robert stood and walked into the kitchen. "I'll help Daddy." Sharon followed after him and a few minutes later they came back with a tray and several cups. "Help yourself." Robert invited and settled into another chair, taking his mug with him.

"Can I put my pants back on?" Francis sat forward stiffly to grab his jeans.

"Yes. Shirt stays off though, I don't want you hurting those ribs even more. Sit at still as you can and don't move too much until I have the chance to set them." Daisy said while stirring her own mug and fixing one for Virgil who was reclining on the floor, relaxed now that Gear was out of danger.

The group sat in silence for a moment, taking in the oddity of the situation and enjoying their coffee. Suddenly, Batman stood. "I'm going back." He said brusquely and headed for the door. "I'll stop by tomorrow." He said as an afterthought and then left.

"He's a weird guy isn't he?" Francis said, staring at the door.

"He's not very friendly until you get to know him." Virgil supplied knowingly.

Daisy snapped her fingers loudly, drawing everyone's attention. She pointed at Francis. "Since you know Virgil's Static, which is the biggest secret he has, it's only fair that you tell us a secret of your own in return."

Francis raised one eyebrow skeptically. "A secret trade? I'm afraid I don't have any secrets." He turned away and sipped from his mug.

"That's bull." All eyes went to Virgil. "It doesn't have to be big one, c'mon!"

"Yeah, just a little one F." Adam nudged him gently with a grin.

"What kind of secret though?" Francis asked looking confused. He sat still for a moment contemplating and then his face brightened. "You told me your real name, so I'll tell you mine."

Virgil frowned. "We already know your name is Francis. Something else."

Francis waved his hand, dismissing the fact, and smirked. "Francis isn't my real name."

That got eveyone's attention. "It's not!?" Virgil asked, flabbergasted.

"What is it?" Daisy asked, delighted her game was paying off.

"I'll tell you, but you have to promise that this doesn't leave this room." Francis said seriously. Everyone nodded in agreement and leant forward expectantly. Francis sighed. "Okay, first off, you should know I'm Italian. I was born there and moved to the U.S when I was seven."

"But you don't have an accent." Sharon pointed out.

Francis waved his hand dismissively again. "I lost the accent. Good thing too, Wade never left me alone about it. Neither did your brother." Francis nodded at Adam.

"I apologize for him. Get on with it." Adam said impatiently.

"My real name is Francisco Bennet Stone." Francis said quickly and grimaced as the words left his mouth.

The whole room went silent for a minute until Virgil snorted and clapped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing.

Daisy leant backwards against the couch and smiled at the ceiling. "Francisco.. That's the greatest thing I've ever heard."

Adam just outright laughed and Sharon slapped his arm. "Be nice." She scolded.

Francis blushed but continued speaking after it had quieted down again. "When we moved here...my mom wantd to Amercanize my name, thought it would be easier for school I guess. She just never changed it legally. I have know idea where Bennet comes from." Robert nodded as if it made sense and took another sip of coffee.

"If you were born in Italy, are you fluent?" Daisy asked.

Francis nodded. "It was my first language."

"Say something!" Virgil said eagerly.

"Why?"

"Just do it!"

Francis sighed and blew a lock of red hair out of his eyes. "Voi non vi arresterete fino a che non, imbroglierete?"

Virgil sat back, mouth agape. "That's so cool. I can only speak a little Spanish."

"What did you say?" Adam asked.

Francis smirked slightly but hid it behind his mug. "That's another secret isn't it. I only promised to reveal one."

Sharon walked quietly downstairs and poked her head into the living room. The furniture and walls looked gray in the early morning light and there were bodies lying all over the floor. It was hard to tell which lump was Francis or Virgil but the lump on the couch was obviously Richie. He had woken up once in the night but had gone back to sleep after Daisy gave him some pain medication. The color was starting to return to his face but he was still almost as pale as his hair and would need donor blood in a few hours.

One lump turned over on their side and Sharon saw it was Francis, lying with one arm under his head and the other wrapped around his chest. There was a small wince as the movement pulled at his ribs and then his face smoothed over again. Sharon moved forward, walking on tiptoes over the carpet and pulled one of the blankets, the other was hopelessly entangled around his legs, back up over Francis' chest where it had fallen from. Francis stirred again and rolled over onto his stomach, pulling the blanket with him.

Sharon smiled and moved onto her baby brother. Vigil was sleeping on his back, one arm draped across his eyes and his mouth widening with every snore. Sharon moved away some empty mugs from Virgil's head before he rolled into them and carried them into the kitchen. As she washed them at the sink, she yawned. Last night after everyone had finally gone back to bed around four 'o clock, Sharon had tossed and turned fitfully until she gave in to the morning.

Sharon turned, stretching her back at the same time, and gave little yelp. Francis was sitting at the table watching her serenely. "Mornin'." He said and rubbed a hand through his sleep-mussed hair. It had fallen out of its usual spikes and now went out in every direction from his head, some falling across his face.

"Good morning." Sharon said and reached for the coffee-maker. "I didn't know you were an early-riser."

"I'm not, but once I'm awake, I'm awake for good." Francis said and took the mug offered to him.

Sharon sat down opposite him. "What woke you?"

"You." Francis said simply.

"Oh...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..."

Francis raised a hand to stop her. "It's cool, I'm a light sleeper. Besides, I was going to look for those pain pills Daisy gave Gear...I mean Richie...last night anyway."

"Are you in pain?"

Francis raised an eyebrow at her as if to say, well that's what pain pills are for. "My shoulder's killing me. Can't feel my leg actually, not sure if that's good or bad."

Sharon stood to get the bottle of pills and came back, handing them across the table to Francis who popped the cap and swallowed two. "No water?" She asked with a small grin.

Francis shrugged, and grimaced, grabbing his shoulder. "Not necessary."

"What about your ribs?" Sharon asked, knowing they had pained the pyro last night.

Francis stretched. "Not too bad. I could deal with it."

Sharon sighed. "Men never want to admit when they're hurt."

Francis opened his mouth to protest when a little voice cut him off. "Mommy, Uncle Virgil is sleeping on the floor." Both Sharon and Francis looked to the doorway and saw Taylor standing there in her pajamas, holding Devin's hand who was still looking behind him into the living room with awe at his uncle.

"What are you two doing up?" Sharon asked, in a dramatized whisper. Taylor and Devin took the hint and started whispering too.

"We're not sleepy anymore." Taylor explained.

"Perfectly logical." Francis pointed out, sipping his coffee.

Sharon rolled her eys. "Okay, but you both have to be super quiet until everyone else gets up, alright?" They both whispered alright and climbed into chairs at the table. Devin, who sat next to Francis, looked extremely troubled and pointed at Francis' bandaged shoulder and face with a quivering finger. His eyes welled up with tears.

"Mooooom. He's doing it again." Taylor whispered.

Sharon picked up Devin and walked him around the ktichen. "It's okay baby. Francis is just a little hurt. Just a boo boo. Right Francis, you're okay." Sharon said over Devin's head, looking right at Francis.

"Right. I'm fine." Francis said, playing along.

"You see? Just a boo boo." Sharon tickled Devin in the side and he laughed, squirming out of her grasp and back to the table.

He pointed at Francis. "Just a boo boo." He said loudly, to reassure himself, and then joined his sister in eating cereal.

Francis stood and walked over to Sharon, limped actually. "What was that?" He whispered.

Sharon sighed. "Devin is a little sensitive. He hates it whenever anyone gets hurt, even on television, and we have to assure him that it's alright or else he starts to cry. It's a good thing I suppose, he's very perceptive of emotions."

"Oh, okay." Francis went back to his seat and helped himself to the cereal the kids were eating. Taylor looked up at him curiously. "You look familiar." She said finally.

"Oh yeah?" Francis said with a smile. "Where from do you think?"

Taylor considered the question for a moment. "School, maybe. Or TV." She thought about it for a few more minutes until her eyes brightened and she stood up on her chair. "You're Frankie Stone!" She yelled pointing at Francis.

Devin dropped his spoon. "Skateboarder!" He yelled.

"You came to my school to skateboard and I saw you on TV. What happened to your hair? It used to be blond." Taylor asked leaning across the table and touching Francis' hair.

"What did I say about being quiet?" Sharon said sternly, and then she registered what her kids were saying. "You're a professional skateboarder?"

Francis smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, kind of." He looked at Taylor. "What school do you go to?"

"Edison Elementary. All the kids at my school like you." Taylor continued. She stopped and gasped. "Could you skateboard for us here?! Oh, mommy wouldn't that be so awesome?" Devin clapped his hands enthusiastically in agreement.

"Taylor, Francis is a little..." She looked at Devin. "...unwell at the moment. Maybe some day he will."

"Sure I will." Francis said with a large grin at both the kids. "Did you know that you go to the same school as my son?" Francis asked and his smile wavered as his thoughts drifted back to his son. Sharon put a hand comfortingly on his wrist but Francis shook it off and stood up, the grin back in place. "I'm going to go wake your uncle up unpleasantly." He took a handful of dry cereal and hobbled back into the living room.

"I wanna go watch." Taylor said and hopped of her chair, following Francis. Devin stared after his sister and then started eating her cereal. Sharon rolled her eyes and made more coffee. No doubt Virgil would want some in a moment.

Wade hit the slimy wall angrily. "Stupid fucking F-stop and his stupid fucking hero friends!" He hissed and punched the wall again. Drips of water fell from the low ceiling and splashed over Wade's body. He howled in anger and turned away from the sewer wall, wiping droplets from his face.

He looked at the brat, sitting on the wet floor hugging his knees to his chest and watching Wade with wide, fearfull eyes. Wade nudged the boy's leg with his foot and Jesse screamed, jerking away from Wade and holding his leg with both hands. Tears streamed own his face, leaving clean pink streaks behind on his dirt-coated cheeks.

Wade grabbed a hold of Jesse's shirt and pulled the boy up off his feet. He glared at him for a moment and then threw him back to the ground. Jesse shrank back against the wall. "It's partly your fault brat. I hope you know that." Wade turned away with a sick grin on his face that Jesse had come to fear. "I'll make sure you pay for your part in this mess, just as soon as a I tear your fucking dad apart, limb from fucking limb."

Author's Note:

Ooooh boy. Poor Jesse. Looks like Wade's come unhinged. This chapter was supposed to be fluffy fun. Gear's injury wasn't as bad as Static had thought it was...to explain the quickness with which Daisy fixed. him. That and I'm no doctor so I have no idea how someone would go about fixing something like that.

An idea that's been in my head for ages is that Francis is Italian. Francis...Francisco. There are similarities there, am I right? And of course he speaks Italian. Men who speak other languages are sexy. Mmmmmmm... Also, Francis gets along with kids so well because he is a kid at heart, gotta love him. And wasn't Devin cute?

P.S Francis was just saying, "You won't leave me alone until I do, will you fool?" In response to Virgil asking him to speak in Italian.

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