Do not own Bane or any Batman related content. Kali is mine. Enjoy!

As the car slid precariously over the slushy road, Bane heard a gasp from the backseat. He glanced in the mirror and saw Kali clutching her sides, face screwed tight with pain.
"Bane." She whimpered.
"We're going to the hospital. Hold on." Bane urged.
She nodded, slightly, then groaned and passed out again.
"Just a little further. Just hold on." Bane said to himself desperately. Please let her be ok. Please.

Bane sat on the edge of the plastic chair, hands clasped tightly together. Every muscle was tense. The waiting was killing him. The waiting room was exceptionally bland, with all white walls and ceiling. A few rust-theme colored oil paintings of various collection of fruit covered the hideous white. A small TV hung from the ceiling in a corner, but it was black and white, and in Russian. There were a few magazines, outdated and heavily used, but all Russian, again. He really needed to learn the damn language. A nurse walked by, and he looked up expectantly, but she kept walking, pointedly not meeting his gaze.

When they got to the hospital, she was taken from him, leaving his bare arms and hands blood-soaked. Everyone had panicked. They had quickly gotten her onto a bed and wheeled her away, but they wouldn't let him go with her. They had even tried to force him to leave, threatening to call the police. Screams suddenly started down the hall, and he shoved his way past them, to find two doctors trying to hold her down as she fought them. She instantly stilled when she saw him.

"Where am I? What happened?" She gasped, clearly in excruciating pain.
"You're in the hospital. You're safe now." Bane said quietly.

She had calmed after that. They quickly ran through the tests, and she needed surgery to fix her ribs, one of which was less than a centimeter from puncturing her lung, and for her fractured left femur. She also had a concussion. Bane sighed, leaning back in the chair. It had already been two hours. Finally a nurse came up to him.

"She's out of surgery. Everything went well." She stated.
She left without another word. Didn't even bother to tell him when he could see her. He scowled. At least the girl was alright. Wasn't she? Her mental state was what worried him. When he first met her, she was already damaged. He remembered every single time he moved she would flinch. Now what would she be like? She'd seemed relieved to see him, but why? Then he began to realize the situation carried multiple complications. She had no one back home, just the old farm widow. The old woman was less than likely to take care of her. She would undoubtedly need many months of care. She couldn't care for her beloved dog. Couldn't work. Would the old woman let her stay? How could she afford the physical, and probably mental, therapies she needed? Bane sighed heavily, dropping his face into his hands. He was stuck. Stuck with her. You really wanna be this girl's nanny?

Finally, he had enough and grabbed one of the nurses, demanding he be able to see Kali immediately. He was led to a small room, where a curtain was slightly drawn and a nurse was standing, looking at a chart. She glanced up at him, then quickly back down at the chart.
"She needs to rest, so don't keep her awake. She'll need to stay here a few days before she can be transported to any other hospital." The nurse reported, and then swiftly left.

Bane quietly sat in the chair beside the bed. She looked awful. A few places on her face had stitches, and both eyes were swollen nearly shut. There were bruises everywhere. Her left leg was in a light blue cast. She was tough, he gave her that. A machine beeped steadily beside her, and the IV bag dripped steadily. Bane reached forward, about to place his hand over hers, but he stopped. He had to let her sleep. He sighed. She would likely sleep for the rest of the day, there was little point in him sitting here. He had to start arranging things, to get her back to the US and everything that would follow.

He got up quietly, and just as he turned he heard a raspy breath.
"Bane?" She called quietly.
He turned back and sat down again. Her eyes were barely open, and he could tell she was fighting off the lingering anesthesia.
"You're in the hospital. They had to do a little surgery, but you're fine." He said quietly.
She licked her lips and shifted slightly, trying to get more comfortable.
"Are we still in Russia?" She asked, looking at him.
Her green eyes seemed faded, glassy. She looked so tired. So... empty. Bane knew that look. She was broken, and it stabbed into his soul.
"Yes, but just for a few more days, until we can move you. Then we'll be back in the US." He replied.
"I can't afford any of this. I don't even have insurance." She mumbled, closing her eyes. "I won't have anywhere to live. I won't be able to take care of Harley."
"Kali. Don't worry about anything. I'll find somewhere for you to stay. A good hospital, a good therapy place. I'll even get your dog. Don't worry, I'll take care of everything." Bane assured. Anything to bring back some light in her eyes. Instead, he saw suspicion.

"Why are you doing all this for me? You could have left me. You could have left me here. Why?" She asked.
"Please, don't stress yourself. You need rest. We can talk about this later." Bane urged, feeling uncomfortable now. The honest truth? He just couldn't bring himself to leave her, couldn't stand to see her suffer. It was far too late to back out now.
"I want to know." She said firmly, and he knew she would not let it go.
"I have more money than I know what to do with. I'd rather use it to help someone than let it gather dust in a vault somewhere." He stated blankly.
She eyed him angrily, knowing he wasn't telling her everything. But then she seemed too exhausted to question him further.
"I'm going to stay in a hotel room for the night. I'll be back tomorrow, and I'll let you know everything. Just get some rest." Bane said firmly to her.
"You don't have to tell me twice. See you tomorrow." She said quietly. Then she was out again.

Bane carefully swished lukewarm water around his mouth. He was down to his last pouch. He'd need to make more tomorrow. He glanced up into the mirror of the bathroom, and grimaced. He was hideous. She's right, you know. You could have just left her at the hospital. She would have gotten home eventually. She's not your responsibility. Bane sighed heavily. He could just leave. Take care of all her expenses, arrange everything, and then leave before it was too late. Too late for what? You're already attached. And you know she'll be hurt if you just leave. You're trapped. Fool.

Well, it's not like he had any jobs arranged for a while. Who knew when Talia would get into contact with him again, to tell him what she had planned. Fine then, he'd be stuck with her. He'd take care of her. He needed something better to do than sulk around his boring apartment anyways. Fine. A few internet searches and a few phone calls later, he had everything perfectly arranged. He'd found a house for sale not far from where she lived, so it would not be difficult retrieved her dog, or her things. There was a hospital an easy drive away, and a physical therapy center was located right next to the hospital. The house was in a very private area, with lots of land for the dog. As soon as the doctors gave the ok, or when Bane decided it was time, Kali would be on a private jet with him to go back home. From there, he had no idea what he was going to do, but as long as she needed help, he'd be there. What the hell has this girl done to you?

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