Jason probably shouldn't be driving his bike so fast, especially with the new rainfall making the road slick. He doesn't care, though. Dick is in trouble. Babs hadn't said much, doesn't actually know much by the sounds of it, but it's obviously bad. Bad enough that Roy had called the only for emergencies number. Bad enough that Bruce himself had gone to get him.

He focuses all of his attention on the road in front of him, knowing that if he starts to let his mind wander even a little then his thoughts will spiral into worst-case-scenarios. The last thing he or Dick or anyone needs right now is for him to spiral.

He gets to the Batcave in record time, barely comes to a full stop before he's off his bike and running to the infirmary, his footfall echoing through the cavernous space. Roy is there, standing near the entrance, chewing on his thumbnail. Bruce and Alfred are crowded around the hospital bed and though he can only see his legs, Jason knows that it's Dick lying there.

"Jason," Roy says as he approaches, lowering his arm and moving into Jason's path.

"What happened?" Jason tries to see around Roy, but Roy moves to block his view. Jason glares at him. "Will you get out of my way?"

"Jason," Roy says again, and Jason gives him a shove, stepping around him, and his stomach twists.

"What the hell are you doing?" He starts forward again, and again Roy steps in front of him, this time putting a firm hand against his chest.

"You have to let them work," he says quietly.

Jason turns to him, his anger building, and part of him wants to fight. "They're putting a tube down his throat. He should be in a hospital!" He shouts the last part, loud enough that Bruce glances up at him, but only for a moment before turning his attention back to Dick.

"There wasn't time," Roy says. "J, there wasn't time. Alfred knows what he's doing."

Jason lets his tense body relax a little, taking a small step back, and forces himself to turn his attention to Roy. "What happened, Roy? What the hell happened?"

"I found him in an alley with an arrow in his shoulder. I was gonna take him back to Olly's place to get some help but he just…" He takes a deep breath. "He collapsed. Started spasming, I had to call-"

"Wait, he was having a seizure and you brought him here?"

"It wasn't a seizure."

Jason looks up at the sound of Bruce's voice. The man looks a little run down, the worry lines on his forehead and the corners of his eyes more pronounced than usual.

"The arrow that hit Dick was poisoned. Strychnine. It causes muscle contractions. If they go on long enough, it can lead to hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis, respiratory failure...Roy did the right thing by bringing him here. We were able to act quickly. We gave him a paralytic to keep his muscles from contracting, fluids to-"

"Is he going to be okay?" Jason interrupts, making no effort to keep the heat from his voice. Bruce takes a deep breath.

"He's going to need to be kept under strict observation until the poison is out of his system. And we need to get the arrow out of his shoulder. He'll have a long recovery ahead of him for an injury like that. But yes, Jason. He's going to be okay."

Jason nods. "Good."

Now that the adrenaline and the initial panic have worn off, it makes room for other emotions. Namely, his discomfort at being back in this place that holds so many complicated memories. He turns to Roy.

"Thanks for having his back out there. I should get going."

He's barely made it two steps before Bruce says, "You don't have to go, Jason."

The temptation to ignore him, to just march out of there and leave the Batcave and everyone in it, is strong. He and Bruce have made a lot of progress. But there still exists a bitter, cold-hearted boy inside of him that hates Bats and hates this place, that wants to ride away from here and not look back now that he knows Dick isn't going to die.

Just this once, Jason thinks to that angry, hurt part of himself. We're not doing it for Bruce. We're doing it for Dick.

So he stays.

xxx

"Hey, J Bird."

Jason jerks awake. He hadn't meant to fall asleep, but it's been a long three days. It turns out waiting around for someone you care about to recover from a near-death experience is as physically exhausting as it is emotional.

"How do you feel?" Jason asks, sitting up.

Dick closes his eyes, making a thoughtful face. "Tired," he says finally, opening his eyes. "And my shoulder hurts."

"Yeah, that's what happens when you get your dumb ass shot by a poison arrow."

"How long have you been here?"

Jason shrugs.

"How long?" Dick asks.

"Few days."

Dick studies his face for a long moment, not saying anything. He looks serious. Jason waits for him to say something, but he doesn't, so it's Jason who finally breaks the silence.

"What?"

"I know that can't have been easy, that's all," Dick says, still staring at Jason with that unwavering, piercing look.

Jason feels suddenly embarrassed, almost naked under Dick's gaze, and he scrubs at the back of his neck with one hand. "Oh, come on. It was nothing."

"It wasn't nothing. Thanks."

Jason lifts one corner of his mouth. "Sure, Dickie. You're welcome."

xxx end