This chapter is my all time favorite so far, I don't know why, but it's certainly the most interesting. Enjoy
The Family Business
Chapter 5
The Magic Number 27
Ethanial flew, still in costume as the sun hit his back. It heated up the black areas of his suit. He landed silently on her veranda, he didn't want to wake her if she was in bed, but it had been fifteen minutes since she left so he doubted she would be.
He tapped on the glass but she didn't answer, so he slid her doors open. He would've talked to Ira about locking her doors but she was on the twentieth floor, so who other then him was going to break in?
She walked out of the bathroom and looked at him shocked, "Oh my God Ethan are you trying to give me a heart attack?" She asked as she placed a hand over her chest.
She wore what he guessed where her pajamas. A spaghetti string purple tanktop and boxers with cartoon characters.
"What's going on?" she asked him.
"Huh," he realized he was staring again.
"Why are you here?" she asked nicely, "I mean I don't mind, but I'd like to hit the hay."
"Are you okay?" he asked moving closer to her, they both now stood in the living room.
"Umm yeah," she replied her right hand on her left arm, fidgeting with one of her auburn curls.
"Well the way you left I thought maybe you were mad," she shook her head, "or hurt."
She moved her hands down to the bottom of her orchid top and adjusted it, "I'm fine."
"Well you're fidgeting which tells me you're lying," he explained.
"I'm not," she defended herself strongly; she backed up and rested her hands near her stomach by her hips.
He walked closer, "And now I can tell it's on your stomach," he told her
aggravated. She couldn't tell if he was angry or concerned. "Let me see," he asked.
"No," she answered shaking her head.
"Why not?"
"Because there is nothing there," she told him chuckling. She walked to her room and he followed her.
"Let me see," he repeated this time telling her.
She picked up her brush and put it down, "No."
He walked closer still and she backed up until she was against the wall. Once more he spoke, "Let me see," this time demanding. He brought out his hand slowly to lift up her shirt. He was about to grasp the fabric when her hand came up and grasped his hard.
He looked into her eyes and she strictly said, "No!"
He sighed and grabbed her hand in his, when she tried to stop him with the other hand he grabbed it as well. His left hand now grasped both her hands, his hands intimidating in size.
He forced both hands above her head and clarified for her, "Ira I know you still have legs, but don't kick me, don't do this. I'm on the same side as you I just want to help. I don't want to hurt you, or embarrass you, but if you're hurt you probably need help."
His face was inches from hers, his cold ice blue eyes staring into hers. She met his stare with her glistening emerald eyes, and finally blinked signaling that she had given in. She nodded and quietly whispered, "okay."
He let her hands down from above her and she lightly rubbed the red area where he held them.
"Sorry," he replied.
She sighed and looked up towards the stucco ceiling. She felt him lift up her shirt and remove the gauze she had placed on her open abrasion. It hurt vaguely because a tad of the blood had dried but for the most part it bled freely.
Next she heard Ethanial gasp, "Ira this is pretty deep, how the hell could this have possibly happened?"
"When I fought those two guys behind you, I knocked out the one pretty easily, but the other guy got in a good swipe," She explained quietly trying to lower her shirt.
"A good swipe?" Ethanial looked up at her questioningly, then reverted his gaze back to her stomach easily beating her strength and lifting up her top, "Ira if this was about two millimeters lower and you'd need surgery," he explained, "Thank God it missed all vital organs, or by now I'd need a new partner."
"So it's all good," now managing to lower the top, "I'll put some gauze on it and go to sleep it'll be fine in the morning."
"No," Ethanial replied, "Now I sew you up, go lie down on the couch, I'll get the first aid kit."
"Ethan, it doesn't need to be sewed up."
"Ira, if it's not, by morning you'll die of blood loss, or haven't you noticed that yet? You're shaking, you're white, you're weak and I'm guessing dizzy," he scolded her, "So what were you going to do go to sleep? You would've been dead in the morning, Ira."
She held her head and braced herself against the wall, "Well yelling at me isn't going to make me any better is it?!" she yelled back.
"What did you're parents tell you before you left home?" he asked.
"Why?" she was becoming annoyed.
"They told you not to be ashamed to call for help, or if you're hurt not to hide it right? Because mine said the same thing, you already broke the first two rules," he yelled at her still forgetting about the problem at hand.
"Okay," she replied, holding her stomach, leaning against the wall, and sliding to the ground, "I get it."
"Crap, I totally forgot about why I was yelling at you," he disclosed to her as he quickly ran and bent down to her.
"Yeah I got that."
"Alright if I stitch you up now, you won't need a blood transplant, but I have to hurry," he explained to her, "I'll be right back."
He ran to her hall closet and found the first aid kit located there. He dropped it on the coffee table and ran back to bring her to the couch.
Before she could object to being carried, she was already in his muscular arms, steadily being brought to the couch.
He set her down and explained, "Dad always gives first aid kits, but superhero style, meaning you've got some painkillers and what not."
"Do you even know how to stitch?" her voice was quiet.
Ethanial was getting the drugs ready in the needle, "Yeah dad taught me and Tomothy how, basic care giving," he replied, "Okay I'm going to give you some freezing solution so you can't feel it when I stitch you up okay?"
"Okay," Ira replied closing her eyes.
He looked down at the work he had before him, a six-inch slash lay diagonally from her left hip to just under her belly button. He found the right area for the freezing and injected it, Ira moaned a bit.
"That was the freezing don't worry," he comforted her. He waited about a minute and poked her, "Do you feel that?"
"No."
He pushed her skin together and commenced feeding the needle through. Her skin was cold to the touch, but that could've been for many reasons, the freezing, the blood loss, and he remembered Ira telling him once that Thanagarians were several degrees colder then humans.
Fifteen minutes and twenty-seven stitches later he was finished. He placed a fluffy piece of gauze on top of her new stitches, and then pulled her shirt back down.
"Ira, I'm done now," he told her, but she didn't respond, "Ira?" he asked, then grabbed her wrist to find a pulse, which he did. He sighed with relief when he realized that she was just sleeping.
He carefully picked her up once again, being watchful of her wings and injury and brought her to her room.
She was still cold, but it was relieving for him. The heat wave still affected Gotham, so her cool skin was a welcome refreshment. Ethanial bent over slowly, not to wake her, and placed her in her bed, her back facing him. Pulling a light sheet over her until it reached her chest.
There he sat once again finding himself staring at her, and as scary as it sounded to himself, watching her sleep. Her breaths were still shallow from her injury, but he was amazed by the way her wings adjusted themselves to fit her position almost like an automatic response.
Ira turned on her side to face him, and he watched as her wings reset themselves. A small tumble of ginger curls fell to cover her face. He smiled and got up to leave but a small noise made him turn around.
She had unconsciously turned in her sleep once again, and disrupted the stitches, not pulling any loose, but hurting herself in the process.
Ethanial thought about what would happen if she involuntarily ripped out her stitches while she slept. He shuddered at the thought and left the room, walking to the couch and to the closet once again.
Retrieving a blanket and a pillow he set himself up on the ground by her bed. And there he sat in his uncomfortable crime fighting suit on his would be 'cousin's' bedroom floor, finally realizing that he had more feelings for her then he knew.
('.')
"So little Ira's in the League now huh?" Wally asked Shay as they sat talking over coffee.
"Yeah, but I'm worried about her. She was supposed to phone. I told her to phone, and she never phoned," Shay said nervously as she stirred her coffee.
"Well," Wally started as he commenced pouring sugar into his tiny cup, "You could ask Bruce to tell you her number."
"Oh yeah, 'Hey Bruce I'm such an irresponsible parent, that I don't know my own daughters phone number, you mind giving it to me?" She said sarcastically.
"Okay, then I'll phone him and as for her number and I'll give it to you," he suggested finally stopping the sugar dumping.
"That, just might work," She perked up, immediately grabbing the portable phone and hurling it at Wally.
"Hey!" he cried as he caught it just before it impacted with his face.
"Sorry," she shrugged.
"Dad, Aunt Shay? Can we go outside and play hopscotch?" The twins asked, Johnny accompanying them.
"Sure kids," Wally answered, "I'll be out in a minute to kick your asses," he gloated dialing the phone.
"Wally," she chuckled as the kids ran outside.
"What?"
"Nothing," she sighed, "At least you know where your kids are."
"Shay, I'm sure she's fine. She's probably just tired and sleeping it off,"
Next chapter already written, probably be up in the next day...
