It had been a week. A stressful heart attack-inducing week of waiting. Waiting for the Joker to make his move. I was assuming that he was deep in his lair filled with goons working up some grand plan on how to kill all of us one by one. I was incredibly wrong.
Tim had long since woken up, and had long since gone back to his way of avoiding Jason at all costs. Being that Jason pretty much avoided the family, he didn't mind much. I think he felt pretty guilty for the Joker finding out everything as it was. Tim had gone about his business with the family as usual with the aid of a wheelchair and eventually his own legs, being too stubborn to actually use the wheelchair anymore.
Honestly to have the Joker walk in through the front door of Wayne Manor guns blazing was the least thing I had been expecting. But the Joker was anything but predictable. I was sitting in the kitchen with Alfred and Tim, preparing for dinner, when it happened. Jason was upstairs. Bruce was down.
The knocking was slight, almost soft, so not alarming. Alfred went to answer it. We thought it might have been Babs or Cass finally responding to our calls, but no.
The shots rang out clear as day. I could feel Tim drop the mixing bowl behind me and we ran together to the hallway. Well I ran, he hobbled. We hid behind the wall and I looked out to see Alfred.
He was on the floor, leg shot. He was a good actor; we knew he had seen worse. But the Joker was bent on finding us; he wouldn't go out of his way to put down an old man. The Joker had a crazed look in his hollow eyes, more crazed than usual. He had three goons, all big guys with big guns. They ambled inside while he strode around, sizing up the place.
"Tim." I turned toward him, his face pale. He was afraid, it was obvious. If anything could frighten a member of the Bat family it was the Joker. "Go get Bruce and Damian. Barricade yourself in the cave. You are weak and can't fight, you'll only bring us down."
He nodded and jogged down to the library to find the entrance to the cave. I knew he would fight Bruce to be a part of bringing down the Joker, he would agree with me. He was weak, not prepared.
I couldn't tell you why a sudden pain shot through my heat as I thought of Jason. How he must have heard the shots ring out. I knew he would be coming down soon; he would have to deal with this mess. I didn't want him to get hurt, I wanted him to stay up there and let Bruce and I take this man down.
I heard him take more footsteps down the hallway as his goons followed. I hid in the shadows until they came into view. I ducked behind one of the goons, knocking him out with a swift kick to the back of the knee and an uppercut to the jaw. He hit the floor and already shots were being fired at me. I leaped and ran down the hallway weaving as I went.
"Dick?" Jason called from the opposite direction. He did it on purpose. He distracted them. They trained their guns on him, firing at random while he ducked behind a column, giving me enough time to take out one more goon.
"Oh give me that!" The Joker swooped down and took the gun from the unconscious man's hands, pointing it at me. Jason peaked out from the other end of the hallway.
I bounded away before he could get a clear shot. I leapt over his head and toward Jason on the other end of the hallway. I nodded at him and we ran off together in the direction of the library. We kept weaving in and out between rooms, putting more distance between us and the Joker. He still followed close by though.
By the time we reached the library, Batman and Robin had just immerged from behind the clock, Tim hopefully in the cave.
"Look out!" Bruce yelled as we dove inside the room. Shots rang out behind us and I felt a cold breath of air whiz past my ear. I saw them enter the room in the back of my vision and jumped to protect myself while more shots fired out behind me.
"Dick!" Jason yelled even though he was standing right next to me. I rolled away from the shots and ducked behind the piano, watching Bruce take out the last goon. Jason skidded to a halt next to me.
"Joker is alone, I got it." I said to him, getting up.
"Better let them handle this one." Jason put his hand on my shoulder easing me back down behind the protection of the piano. "Looks like they already have him."
"Why? Are you okay?" I looked him over, but he seemed all in one piece. No cuts, nothing bleeding.
"Dick. Just don't move okay?" He looked at me, and then looked over the piano with a worried glance. "Here."
He sat me down, leaning against one of the legs. I worriedly looked up at him. I knew something was wrong, but I felt no pain. He bit his lip as he looked down at me while easing his jacket off.
"What?" I looked down. I really shouldn't have. There was a dark splotch of rapidly seeping blood on my shirt right below my left lung. I couldn't feel it at all. It must have been the endorphins shutting of my pain receptors, which was bad. He pulled my face up and placed his jacket on my chest.
"You're going to be okay." He looked at me with such determination in his eyes. He knelt closer to me and cupped my face in his rough palm. "Please."
"It's fine." I mumbled as I felt the first sting of pain, trying not to wince. "I'll be fine."
"Listen Grayson," I struggled to look up at him, my slight was going fuzzy and I felt myself cough op blood. I felt it dribble down my chin. "I won't let you die on me."
"Drake!" I faintly heard Damian yelling to Tim in the cave. "Get the first aid kit! Grayson is going into shock!"
"Go get Alfred." I stuttered, trying to focus on Damian, but Jason's eyes were the only thing close enough and strong enough. "He…he needs it."
"Bruce has that handled." Damian looked up and then back down at me. Jason's hand never left my cheek and his eyes never left mine. "Drake hurry up!" he yelled again.
"Dick. Dick stay here." My eyes glazed in and out, I tried. I really did, by unconsciousness has a way of being so appealing. "Dick! Stay with me!"
I felt his warm hands grab my neck and jawbone, keeping my face up, eye level with his intense gaze. I got lost in his eyes, I could drown in them.
"You are not leaving me." He said. Despite Damian standing right there and Tim supposedly hurrying from the cave, he kissed me. I saw the sparks again like I had the first time we kissed. It should have kept me awake. It should have been enough.
I wanted to weave my hands in his hair and bring him down to me the way I had before, but my body didn't respond. In fact, it stopped responding. I seemed to drift in and out for a few more seconds to see his beautiful face rise above me, but after that, I was gone.