The light from the Zeta-tube lit up the entryway of Titans tower as Robin stepped through the beam, carrying the unconscious Raven bridal style. He glanced down at her, still breathing steadily, as he marched them over to the elevator. He used his elbow to hit the 'up' arrow, then used his elbow again to select the floor for the Tower med bay.
One of Damian's favorite parts of his nights patrolling with Raven was afterwards, when they'd come home, split up to shower, then meet back up to swap the nights' stories over a cup of tea in the common room. No one else would be up, it'd be just them, and they'd talk until dawn crept up on the horizon before going to bed.
Tonight ended earlier than those nights, and yet it felt so long.
Raven was strong. She could do things no one else could and had the will to keep fighting. She could endure more than anyone else he had ever seen, and it pained him to know he couldn't bear her burdens for her. He could only stand by and watch helplessly as she suffered for the good of others. She did it every day keeping her father imprisoned. She did it tonight saving a civilian from near death. She had done it before saving him. He only hoped caring for her when she needed it like tonight would be enough to show her how much he appreciated and acknowledged her sacrifices.
Stepping into the med bay, he laid her down gingerly on the bed nearest the window and went to work. All the Titans had extensive medical training as they couldn't simply go to a hospital. Too many questions they couldn't answer and too much of a risk to their identities.
He didn't bother hooking her up to the monitors, he knew her vitals were fine. All she needed was an IV drip to help her body recover quicker. Removing his gloves at the counter by the sink, he thoroughly washed his hands before gathering some supplies and heading back to Raven.
As he carefully picked up her arm to clean the area for IV insertion, he marveled at the softness and clarity of her skin. He looked at her face, her features relaxed, and he felt overwhelmed by how beautiful he found her.
Kori entered the room, hurrying over to Raven, just as Robin finished setting up the bag on the IV stand.
"I heard you come in early, what happened?"
"Drugging at a bar. Vic ODed so Raven had to heal her."
Kori's eyebrows raised in concern, then settled into understanding. As the leader, she also was unable to help Raven with anything but the aftermath.
"Do you want to go get cleaned up? I can stay here and keep an eye on her."
"Thanks, but I'll stay. I've got this."
"She probably won't come to for a while."
"I know. But Raven came to my aid tonight. It's my duty to return the favor."
Kori nodded in understanding.
"Call me if you need anything, okay Damian?" Kori added as she turned to head back out the doors.
"I will. Thank you."
The automated doors closed behind her leaving him and Raven alone again. He began to fuss about, not having anything he could really do for her until she woke up. He filled her a glass of water ahead of time. Filled himself a glass of water to drink now. Inspected the medical equipment and idly polished things that were already shiny, before he pulled up a chair by her bed and waited. When he thought he saw goosebumps on her skin, he removed his cloak and draped it over her. When he thought she looked uncomfortable, he fluffed her pillows.
Eventually, he took his mask off to set aside, crossed his arms on top of the bed by her hand, resting his hand on top of hers, and fell asleep.
Raven came to as the faint sliver of sunlight began to creep through the window of the med bay. It reflected off the little metal surfaces near the counter under the pane, a tray of tools, the sink faucet, the IV pole, her bed rails, and she squinted awake as the little shiny rays caught her eye. She marveled at the view out the window of the Jump City skyline for a moment, glittering and bright yellow and orange in the early sun.
Damian, still rested on folded arms fast asleep, caught her eye, and she studied the features of his face as she had never seen them fully relaxed before. She thought how completely different he looked, so at peace. He was not one to fall asleep in front of the team, like he still had his reservations on trusting everyone fully. But it was different between the two of them. It always had been. With his façade completely dropped in sleep, it was easy to see the, almost, normal seventeen-year-old boy who was well hidden in his waking hours.
The sun inched a little higher until Damian's brow furrowed and he opened his eyes with a multitude of blinks to adjust to the light and clear away the fog of sleep. He raised his head a little to find that Raven was awake and lightly smiling at him. That shook him into focus, and he sat up straight in his seat, scanning her with his eyes.
"How are you feeling?" he probed.
"Better," she nodded, smoothing out her blanket with her hand before realizing her blanket was his cloak. She gave him a coy smile at the realization, like she always did when she caught him acting like he had a heart.
"You looked cold…" he mumbled, looking away with a light blush painting his cheeks.
Getting up to wash his hands, he returned to her with a cotton ball and medical tape in hand. He handed her the glass of water he had set on the nightstand last night before he set to work removing the IV.
"Thank you," she responded before slowly drinking the whole glass to distract while Damian held pressure with the cotton ball for half a minute before taping it to her arm.
"I'll have to follow up with JCPD today to see if they were able to determine what those useless carbon emitters drugged our Jane Doe with. I'm assuming fentanyl was involved as that seems to be making its way into the city more frequently. That's the second OD I've seen in a fortnight," he rambled as he cleaned up the med bay.
Damian retrieved the glass from Raven and set to wash hers and his glass at the sink.
"We're going to have to start looking into where its being sourced," she added.
Damian nodded, grabbed a clean towel, and began drying the glasses.
"I'll talk to Kori today about stocking Narcan for the team. I think it is becoming essential for the city that we're equipped, as we can't always rely on our speed to get help in time. We certainly shouldn't rely on your healing ability, either."
Raven looked away, feeling a little slighted. He was coming from a place of caring, she could sense that, but it hit on an insecurity of hers. Always she wanted to do better, help people more, and her capacity to heal felt like a mountain she couldn't climb over, not while she was being held back constantly by her father.
Sensing that he might have been misunderstood, Damian's eyes went wide as he quickly set the glasses back in the cabinet, then held his hands up in submission.
"I didn't mean that as an insult. Your powers are incredible and useful but…it's rough watching you go through that."
"It isn't the most pleasant thing for me, either," she shrugged.
His interest piqued, and he came back over to the chair by the bed and sat cross legged in front of her.
"Describe it."
"It…well obviously you know the part about being able to glimpse into people's minds, and them being able to see mine."
Damian nodded, crossing his arms. Raven continued.
"The way my healing powers work, the part that is hardest…as an empath, I can absorb the pain, the hurt of an injury. Taking that from a person, it kickstarts the healing process. So, I can feel it, everything. When someone is close to death like she was, like…you were…" she glanced at him, gauging his reaction, "it can be too much."
Damian uncrossed his legs and arms and softened his expression as he looked at her. He had never realized, even after years had passed, what kind of burden he had carelessly placed on Raven when he first joined the Titans. She was not the kind of person to throw it in someone's face or hold it over them. Instead, she concealed it to protect his feelings.
"Raven…" Damian started, not knowing what words would be good enough.
"RAVEN!" Garfield bounded into the room in a rush of green, transforming into a cat mid jump, curling up on her lap, and purring loudly. Jaime and Kori followed into the room, without the flourish.
"We wanted to see how you were feeling," Kori explained.
"Heard you had a rough night," Jaime added, handing her a cup of her favorite morning tea he had carried in with him. She took it gratefully. These four had been her family now for years, but she was always impressed with how well they knew her.
Damian crossed his arms again, conveying his annoyance with the interruption.
"It looks pristine in here," Kori complimented Damian.
"You're welcome."
Kori smiled, despite his attitude.
"If you're hungry, I can get some all-you-can-eat pancakes going!" the cat version of Garfield offered.
"Give me half an hour to freshen up and I am so in," Raven told him.
Garfield hopped off her lap and transformed back into his human form. Raven took the cue and took Damian's cloak off her, handing it back to him, before swinging her legs over the side of the bed and sliding on to her feet.
"You in?" she said, glancing over her shoulder to look at the still-seated Damian.
"Always," he grinned.