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Jason stopped responding. She didn't know if he passed out or if he was just ignoring her. She didn't dare try to take his helmet off. It was explosive, and the air bubble was too small to hide from the explosion to use it.
Instead she began going through the list of how to help with hypothermia.
The only thing she could do was share her body heat, really.
He was basically a useless lump of muscle at this point, and he didn't resist her moving him to a laying down position. It would help with blood flow.
Then she realized that he was sitting in a pool of blood. And she couldn't take off his clothes.
She hissed as she dragged him away from the blood, slipping in it and practically drenching her cape in it.
She ripped her cape off, throwing it into the pool of blood.
Purple soaked up red.
She shivered and glanced at Jason.
"They aren't coming, Stephanie. We're already dead."
She huffed. Idiot probably didn't hit his emergency beacon.
She searched his pockets for it, hissing at the small zaps they rewarded her with. She found his Bat-Beacon, lit up. So maybe he still held out hope for Dick.
She found a second. Plain black, nondescript, save for a T carved on it.
She could use all the help she could get.
She pressed the second beacon, and began the process of warming Jason up.
Idiot didn't tell anyone he couldn't thermoregulate. Idiot didn't tell anyone Bruce slit his throat.
It took her a moment to hear the small sound. She was too focused on listening for Jason's heart beat.
"-son! Habibi!" She heard a woman yell. It was garbled and staticy.
She realized it was coming from the beacon she pressed. She held it up to her face and looked at it. There was a speaker, and supposedly a mic.
"This is Spoiler, Red Hood is currently incapacitated. I thought this was an emergency beacon, we need help. Who is this?" She asked.
"You are one of the Bats." The woman snarled. "How is my son incapacitated?"
"Freeze trapped us in an ice bubble. He was stabbed, and he apparently can't thermoregulate and he's hypothermic." Stephanie reported. She elected to ignore the 'my son' comment for now.
"Tell me how you found this communicator, Stephanie." The woman snapped.
"How do you know my name?" Stephanie replied.
"It is my business to know all who are allies with the man who slit my son's throat." The woman snarled.
"I didn't know. I didn't know he did that." Stephanie replied instantly.
The woman sighed. "Never matter. Did Jason tell you to take this communicator?" She asked.
"No. I was looking for his emergency beacon. We're trapped." Stephanie answered.
"This is not an emergency beacon. It is an emergency communicator for Jason to use when he is... to say goodbye. I hate the concept." The woman spat. "If he did not use it, he does not believe he is dying. So you will not let him. I will pull strings to rescue you."
"Who are you?" Stephanie asked quickly.
"Talia Al Ghul." The woman replied. Stephanie heard a small click, and the static stopped.
Stephanie put her head back on Jason's chest, listening for his heart, and feeling the rise and fall of his breath.
She was really fucking tired. From the fight before she was trapped, from the cold, from worry. She didn't think she would have been worrying about Jason Todd of all people.
She couldn't fall asleep. Talia Al Ghul would literally kill her.
She stared at the crystalline ice, reflecting what was in the bubble.
It reflected the red onto her. Jason's helmet, his blood, everything. It drowned the purple.
She didn't know how long it had been. Her eyes kept threatening to slide shut.
And the reflections in the ice began shifting rapidly. And it got extremely bright.
Steph weakly shielded her eyes, taking a defensive stance over Jason.
"Spoiler! Steph, are you there?" She heard a faraway voice call. Dick, it was Dick.
"We're here! Hurry!" She shouted.
"Found her!" She heard Dick shout.
"Jason is in here, too! He's hypothermic!" She yelled.
She didn't hear a reply, but she could see the flames kick up.
Steph pulled Jason away from the flames, and huddled closer to him.
It seemed like forever until the inner ice began to melt. She didn't move from her spot on top of Jason.
And Dick stepped through the hole.
"Stephanie! Are you okay? Is Jason okay?" He fretted.
Stephanie didn't move as Batman stepped through the hole, too.
"No, he's fucking not. Especially now that he is here!" Stephanie snapped. "Get him out! Now!"
Bruce took a step closer. In a split-second decision, she grabbed one of Jason's guns. "Not a step fucking closer. I want you f-fucking gone. Leave. I-I know what you did."
"What lies did Hood tell you?" Bruce growled.
"Get out!" Stephanie's trigger finger twitched.
Dick turned to Bruce. "B, just go." He hissed. Bruce silently left with an air of annoyance.
"You are going to tell me what that was about when we get out of here." Dick declared.
"As long as the Bat-Bastard is far, far away." Steph agreed, finally moving off of Jason. She let Dick pick him up, and led the way out of the bubble, keeping an eye out for any Bats.
Tim was outside. With Redbird.
"Thank God." She breathed. "We need to get him to Leslie's ASAP." Stephanie said, motioning to Jason.
Tim nodded. "He can go in the back."
Stephanie got in the back, and Dick laid Jason down on her lap, before getting in the passenger seat.
Tim floored it to Leslie's. "Dick, do you know how to get his helmet off?" She asked.
"Yeah. The key to taking it off is his gloves. If you aren't wearing them, boom." Dick replied.
Stephanie ripped Jason's gloves off, and unlocked his helmet.
His lips were blue. Stephanie ran a hand through his hair. "Hey. You're gonna be okay. You were wrong, Dick came for you." She comforted, despite the fact that Jason was unconscious.
"He didn't think I was coming?" Dick whispered.
"He thinks you want him dead." Stephanie stated.
Dick made a hurt noise and turned back to the front.
Stephanie kept her hand on Jason's pulse point for the entirety of the ride. When Redbird squealed to a stop outside the clinic, she threw the doors open.
Dick grabbed Jason, and all four of them rushed into the clinic.
"Leslie, he's hypothermic, he was stabbed. He can't thermoregulate." Stephanie reported to the woman. She nodded, and ushered the vigilantes out of the room.
So Steph was left to wait in the empty clinic with Dick and Tim. She sat on a chair and sighed.
"Stephanie, what the hell happened?" Dick asked.
"You already know Freeze trapped us in an ice bubble. Shit wasn't fun, we couldn't get through. Apparently Jason was impaled by an icicle before, as well." She began. "And then we started talking. He's an asshole, sure, but he's an asshole to himself. He kept saying Bruce wasn't coming for him, that Bruce hated him. It was only when he started becoming delirious that he told me that-" Steph choked on her words. "Bruce slit his throat. I saw the scar. His... ally confirmed it."
She saw Dick go rigid. Tim was clearly suspicious. "He could have been lying. He kills people, he's not above lying."
Stephanie shook her head. "No. He wasn't nearly cognizant enough to lie. He sounded so genuine. He said he asked Bruce to choose between him and the Joker. I really don't think he was lying."
Tim frowned. Dick finally moved past his shock, trying to push past Tim and Steph.
"Dick, where are you going?" Tim asked.
"I'll believe my little brother over our father. I'm going to beat Bruce's ass." Dick snapped
Tim grabbed his arm. "Dick, think about it." He said.
Steph grabbed the other arm. "You can't go. Jason needs you here."
Dick pulled out of both of their grips. "Fine." He snapped.
"I'm going to get a computer and try to find proof. I'll be back." Tim announced.
Steph let him leave, even if it irked Dick.
She and Dick sat outside the room Leslie was treating Jason in for over an hour. She was tired, but couldn't sleep. She kept looking over Jason's gun in her hands, watching the windows for Bruce.
And then Leslie came out of the room Jason was in.
"He'll be fine. He needs lots of rest, but he will be fine." She confirmed.
Dick rushed into the room, Stephanie hot on his heels.
Jason blearily peered at them from under pounds of thick blankets.
"Oh, Little Wing." Dick breathed.
Jason didn't reply, but his eyes focused on Dick.
Stephanie focused on a small beeping from his jacket. Talia's communicator. Stephanie picked it up and pressed the button.
"I shall be arriving in two hours. Protect my son, Ms. Brown." She demanded.
"We took him to Leslie's clinic. He's going to be okay." Stephanie comforted the woman.
"Of course he will. He is my son." Talia preened before hanging up.
Dick was gaping at her. "Was that-"
"T'lia." Jason slurred. "Ma."
Dick went from gaping at Steph to gaping at Jason. Stephanie shrugged. "I don't have the full story. She just calls him her son."
Dick shook his head. "Whatever. Whatever whatever."
Silence overtook the room as Dick sat at Jason's side. Stephanie took the spot in the room where she would be able to watch every entry and exit points the best.
Dick fell asleep on Jason, and Leslie came in to remove some of Jason's blankets.
She guarded the room for an hour before Tim came running in, shocking Dick awake, and Stephanie from her almost sleep. “Wake up!” he yelled.
"I'm up! I'm up! Tim, what is it?" Stephanie gasped.
"I found it. I found the evidence." He panted.
"Show it." Dick growled.
Tim glanced at Dick, then the laptop in his arms. "You can't run after Bruce when you see it."
"Deal. Show it to me." Dick demanded.
"Wha?" Jason murmured.
"Nothing, Jason. Don't worry about it." Stephanie said. "Over here." She directed Tim and Dick.
Tim sat next to her, and Dick next to Tim. He opened the laptop and played the video.
There was no sound. Jason had a gun pointed at the Joker. It was clearly from Bruce's point of view. They watched as Bruce's arm extended, and with it a batarang. That flew into Jason's neck.
Dick slammed the laptop shut and ran to Jason's side. "Jay, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry." He began hyperventilating into Jason's chest.
Tim comforted Dick. Stephanie went back to keeping watch, her energy renewed.
She saw a black shadow outside the window and her gun was trained on it.
The window slid open.
It was Cass. Steph lowered the gun, and sighed in relief.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"Everything." Steph sighed.
"Bruce almost killed Jason. He slit his throat." Tim replied.
"No. No. Bats don't kill. No." Cass denied.
"We saw the video, Cass. He threw a batarang into Jay's neck." Dick sniffed.
Cass clearly saw the truth in Dick, because she dropped to her knees.
Steph was too tired to go over and comfort her. She just sat in the chair and watched the entrances.
Bruce didn't show up. Cass eventually moved to the chair next to Steph.
Another hour passed. Tim fell asleep.
A Shadow slipped into the room. Not Bruce.
"League." Cass hissed, tensing for a fight.
A woman entered the room. One Steph had only seen in pictures on the Batcomputer. Talia Al Ghul.
"It's okay, Cass. They are safe." Steph whispered.
Talia looked across the room. Dick hardened in a defensive position above Jason. "Talia." He growled.
"I don't see why you are planning on defending him now, Richard. You stayed complacent in working with the man who slit his throat." Talia hissed.
"I didn't know!" Dick shouted. Tim jumped awake. "I didn't know, and the only reason I'm not beating Bruce into the ground right now is because Jay needs me here."
"He needs me. You didn't even care enough to kill the man who murdered him!" Talia snapped.
"He did. He did kill the Joker." Steph spoke up.
Talia narrowed his eyes at Steph. "Yet the clown breathes."
"Bruce gave him CPR. But I watched Dick beat him to death for simply saying Jason's name." Steph replied.
Respect gleaned in Talia's eyes. "Very well. I take it the rest of you did not know as well?"
Cass and Tim shook their heads. Talia rolled her eyes. "You are lucky my jet has room for you all."
"Cass and I don't need to go." Tim said.
Talia shook her head. "You are but a child. And I have news for Cassandra that would make her want to stay." Talia grinned.
"What news?" Cass asked.
"It's something you may want to keep to yourself." Talia replied.
Cass shook her head. "My family. Can know."
Talia sighed. "Jason's biological mother is not Sheila Haywood as she said. She is Sandra Wu-San."
Cass tensed entirely. But she didn't dispute the claim, so Talia wasn't likely lying.
Talia approached Jason, and messed with his hair. "Now we must leave quickly, before the Bat realizes we were ever here."
~~~
Steph hadn't slept in 48 hours. She hadn't slept in 18 hours when she and Jason were initially trapped. It had been twenty-two when she boarded Talia's jet.
The whole time, she didn't let go of Jason's gun. She sat in the corner of Jason's frankly opulent room, clutching the gun, as if Bruce would come crashing in any second. She watched family come and go from the room, but she couldn't be convinced to move.
Jason slept, and when he woke up, he wasn't lucid.
There was a boy who was sleeping in his bed. Talia said he was her other son.
He looked like Bruce. The gun in her hand shook.
The sun was rising. She saw it through the windows.
Talia strode into the room, and sighed when she saw Stephanie, sitting on the small couch. She sat down next to Steph.
"I never thanked you for helping my son. Thank you, Stephanie." Talia whispered, placing a hand on Steph's shoulder.
"I-I had to lay on top of him. To keep his body warm. And I almost shot Bruce. And he almost died and I don't really know him that well, but I'm terrified if I look away he will be dead." Stephanie rambled.
"He won't. I promise." Talia assured.
Stephanie was shaking. "I put my head on his chest. To listen for his heart. To feel him breathing."
"I will bring a cot in, if you wish to sleep closer to him. But I am sure he wouldn't mind if you shared a bed." Talia stated. She paused. "You must shower and change, first. You are covered in blood."
Steph looked down at her pants. Jason's blood was on them.
The gun clattered to the ground as she let out a heaving sob. Talia pulled her into her arms, and began muttering soothing words in Arabic.
She sobbed into Talia's shoulder, and let the woman carry her into a bathroom. She felt Talia begin to draw away, and gripped her shirt.
Talia turned on the faucet, and began to draw Stephanie a bath.
It reminded her of when she came home with a broken arm and her mom helped her shower, when she was eight. It reminded her of having to help her mom shower when she was too out of it to function.
It did not help her to stop crying.
Talia gingerly undressed Stephanie, and put her in the bath. She washed her, humming a song Stephanie didn't know.
She was so gentle, so kind.
Talia ran her fingers through Stephanie's hair. She scrubbed blood off her skin.
And Stephanie eventually stopped crying. Talia handed her a towel and left the room. She returned moments later with fresh clothes.
Stephanie dried and dressed herself. Talia grabbed a brush, and led her back to Jason's room, where a very cushy cot was sitting near Jason's bed.
Stephanie and Talia sat on the cot, and Talia carefully brushed her hair. Then she put it in a long braid down her back, holding it together with a beautiful green ribbon.
Talia lightly cupped Stephanie's face. "Get some sleep. You are safe here. Nothing will happen."
She then stood up, scooped up the small boy on Jason's bed, and left.
Stephanie took his place. Her head sat on Jason's chest, listening to the regular beat of his heart. The regular in and out rhythm of his breath.
And she fell asleep.