Dick woke up the next morning and looked tired, Bruce couldn't help but notice. But still he looked better than he had two days ago.
"Ready to go, Dick?" Bruce asked.
Dick nodded, looking slightly concerned. "Where's Scarlet?" he'd really wanted a goodbye hug...
"She's probably still asleep, Dick, it's pretty early." Bruce said. Still, he did idly wonder where his six-year-old could be, but he was more concerned for Dick at the moment.
"You'll see her soon, Dick, I promise." Bruce said, escorting Dick out to the car. Alfred was staying at the manor to care for Scarlet while he was gone with Dick...
In reality, the six year old was on Bruce's laptop, on Craigslist to be exact.
She was posting an add in the wanted section.
WANTED; TONSILS.
MY BROTHER IS GETTING HIS TONSILS OUT BECUZ THEY ARE BROKEN, BUT I THINK HE NEEDS NEW ONES... I WILL PAY ALL I GOT $6.77, AND GIVE A FREE HUG. THANKS!
She smiled and posted the ad. All she had to do was wait.
Dick changed into the hospital gown with dinosaurs on it and sat on the bed. He was still eerily calm...
He sat down on the gurney and let them stick in an IV, and didn't really even seem to care when they started giving him shots. Bruce was, however, more or less of a mental wreck, but he didn't let it show.
And then the nurse came in with the anesthesia. "I want you to count down from 100, okay?" she said, securing the mask on Dick's face over his mouth and nose. Dick nodded, counting silently. Less than twenty seconds later, he was asleep.
"He'll be under for an hour or two. You'll see him in about an hour, Mr. Wayne." Bruce nodded, squeezing his son's hand before he was wheeled into the operating room, and he was utterly alone.
His heart started to race. His son was gone from him now, about to have his tonsils cut out... He was unconscious and drugged, he wouldn't feel anything, and he knew he was doing the right thing... But why did it hurt so much? He knew his son was in pain, and he knew this would make him feel better... He sighed. This was just another part of being a father.
He saw his son forty five minutes later in the recovery room. He was hooked up to several standard machines, still looking peaceful, but his hand twitched, letting Bruce know he was fighting the drug... His heart rate increased, as well. Dick had been exposed to sedatives before, especially with he Joker and Scarecrow- so he was recovering fast.
His eyes fluttered open and he blinked, looking confused and pale.
"Hi Dick. How're you feeling?" Bruce asked.
Dick didn't respond, instead blinking sluggishly before an expression of panic came over his face.
"It's alright, Dick, it's fine... I'm right here." Bruce said, cupping his son's chin in his hand and turning the boy's face so his eyes met his own. Dick instantly relaxed, definitely looking drugged...
"How're you feeling?" Bruce asked, hopeful he wasn't in too much pain. Dick went to shrug but failed, his arms instead flopping uselessly... Definitely drugged. Bruce smiled despite his concern. So he was still in la-la land, then.
Three hours later they were discharged with the pain killers for Dick and instructions on what to do for him. Dick, while he'd changed from the hospital gown to the batman pajamas Alfred had packed, clearly didn't feel like walking, so Bruce carried him to the car.
He set him in the back seat, and he promptly slumped over so he was sprawled out.
"Tired?" Bruce asked. Dick nodded feebly, and Bruce made sure to drive slowly. He carried Dick inside and was met by Alfred at the door.
"How is Master Richard?" the old man asked, slightly anxious.
"He's mainly just tired, Alfred." Bruce assured him, carrying his son up to bed. Almost as soon as he set the boy down, he was asleep.
"Sleep well, Dick." he said, smiling. He elected to work from Dick's room, grabbing his laptop, and found some email welcoming him to craigslist and another email spontaneously banning him from craigslist. He chalked it up to spam and started working.
Scarlet was in the attic. Wayne Manor had a shockingly large attic, but there were no lights up there, so she'd grabbed a flashlight.
She shined it around carefully. There was only insulation and drywall, no floor, so she was left jumping from rafter to rafter. Who knew? Maybe someone had left some tonsils in the attic.
She saw something brown and wrinkly, about the size of a quarter, and realized this could be the tonsils she was looking for... Until she saw the dead rat five fee away and realized they were just turds.
And so she continued her quest throughout the attic.
"Master Bruce, I regret to inform you Master Scarlet hasn't showed up for lunch." Alfred said around one, coming in to find Bruce still sitting by Dick's bedside. It was getting close to the time when Bruce was supposed to wake Dick up for painkillers...
"Did you see her at all this morning, Alfred?" Bruce asked, starting to get concerned.
"Briefly for breakfast, sir, but otherwise, no..."
"Scarlet!" Bruce called, since Dick had to wake up in five minutes anyways...
Scarlet, who'd been in the attic, jumped backwards, startled, when she heard Bruce yell her name and didn't land on a rafter, instead landing on only insulation and drywall and falling through, landing, dazed, in the bathtub, which she'd been above.
Bruce heard the large noise and paled considerably, running into the bathroom...
"Scarlet! What happened?" he demanded, seeing his daughter covered in plaster, insulation, and blood...
"I... when did the floor turn into the ceiling?" she asked, looking up at the gaping hole in the ceiling she' fallen through. Bruce gaped for a minute before snatching her out of the bath tub and setting her on the sink ledge...
"Why would you even go into the attic?" Bruce asked, dabbing at the cuts she'd gotten from some fiberglass that'd been in the insulation.
"I was bored?" Scarlet said. Bruce couldn't know she was trying to get Dick new tonsils, that'd ruin the surprise.
"That was dangerous, Scarlet- what if you'd fallen out and slammed your head into the bathtub or the tiles? You'd be dead." Bruce said, looking angry. "Not to mention Dick was sleeping, what if you'd fallen into HIS room?"
"Sorry, Tati." Scarlet squeaked, as Bruce shined a flashlight in her eyes to check for a concussion.
"I want you in your room until supper. Are we clear?"
"Yes." Scarlet said, hanging her head. Bruce didn't care. At the moment he had to be ready to give Dick his painkillers, he was cleaning Scarlet's minor cuts and bruises, and he was tired and stressed, since his son had just had his tonsils out this morning. Not to mention Scarlet had almost gotten herself killed and left a hole in the ceiling, so his reaction wasn't unwarranted.
As soon as Bruce was done patching her up, she scurried off into her room, wondering how on Earth she was going to find Dick new tonsils.
"Hi Dick, how're you feeling?" Bruce asked, smiling reassuringly as he filled a dropper with Dick's medication.
"Good, I guess." Dick said hoarsely, giving him a wane smile. "What was that noise?"
"Nothing, Dick." Bruce lied. He didn't want to worry the boy about his sister at the moment.
"Oh, okay." Dick said, laying back. he was relatively easy to care for, at least, he hoped he was, since he didn't want to stress Bruce.
"Want anything to eat? Soup, maybe, or jello?" Bruce asked.
"No thanks..." Dick said, yawning and suddenly gagged. Bruce went to grab the trash can, but the boy was fine a minute later.
"You okay?" Bruce asked, moderately concerned.
"Yeah, it just felt... Weird." Dick said.
Bruce nodded, handing his son a glass of water. "Drink this, at least, you need to stay hydrated..." Dick obeyed, before rolling over and falling asleep again. The night was relatively calm, with Bruce having to be up every three hours to medicate Dick... But life went on.