luke henry ; robin (notjustsidekick) wrote in musingslogs, @ 2011-04-19 23:34:00 |
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Entry tags: | batman, robin |
Who: Luke and Thomas
What: Thomas wakes up and talking ensues.
Where: Virginia Mason Hospital.
When: Early hours of the morning after this.
Warnings: None.
Luke remained at the hospital throughout the night and into the early morning hours, only leaving the room to make some calls in preparation of what was to come and what was already happening. He was worried that something might happen despite the police presence outside and the fact that Thomas hadn’t woken up yet just made him worry more. He’d already made the mistake of agreeing to move out of Aubade and leaving Thomas alone; he wasn’t going to do it again. The doctors did their best to reassure him and he tried to send them out to talk to Max and Audrey as well since they still weren’t allowed inside, but there was only so much they could say while Thomas remained unconscious.
The chair he sat in was next to the hospital bed, though it was also positioned strategically so he had both full view of the door and would be able react in time should someone who didn’t belong attempt to get in. With nothing left to do but wait, Luke alternated between watching the door, watching Thomas, and shaking himself awake every time he began to drift off.
Thomas was sure his eyes were open, but he couldn’t see anything. The roar of a crowd (he’d been in a crowd?) had been replaced by the whir of--something (HVAC?)--and he couldn’t see anything but white. It wasn’t like the vague blurs of his last hospital visit (that was that smell, bleach, antiseptic, a hospital smell), it was just white. He couldn’t get his thoughts to work. Thomas didn’t habitually dream, and the twisting anxieties for his children (odd to have children, he never would have--but he must have) temporarily overtook his attempts at coherency, nebulous flickers of fear and concern. He took his eyes off the ceiling and tried to get up.
The doctors had told him a bit about what to expect with someone who’d sustained a concussion, but all that was forgotten once Luke saw that he was awake and attempting to get up. Typical. “Don’t,” he said, rising from the chair and hovering over the bed with evident concern. “You shouldn’t move around too much. Just relax.” He glanced towards the door, wondering if he should go and get a doctor or something. One had said he would check back in soon but Luke didn’t know when ‘soon’ was going to be. “How do you feel, Thomas?” There was a hope, albeit small, that it wouldn’t be that bad.
To his great relief, Thomas’ sight came back immediately. For a split-second, he didn’t recognize Luke, and he tried to tense in preparation for what probably would have been a very ugly, short fight, but realization came back almost before his shoulder refused to cooperate. “Luke.” He fell back with a grunt of pain, and turned his head to look at his shoulder as if there was something to see. He pushed at the hospital gown to get a look at the bandage they’d put on him when he’d come out of surgery. “Bullet,” he said. He was already worrying about the damage the doctors must have seen. It would only confirm suspicion. “Where am I?” He looked around for a clock.
The fact that Thomas recognized him was hugely reassuring, and he didn’t seem to be suffering any memory loss otherwise. “Yeah. You’re lucky you only got it in the shoulder. Could’ve been worse.” Luke hadn’t thought of the risk associated with bringing him to a hospital like this, but it wasn’t as though they could have done anything to stop it. “Virginia Mason hospital. There are police outside and they’re only letting certain people in.” He’d already tried to convince them to allow Max in but they wouldn’t budge. On the one hand it was frustrating, but then again at least it meant they were doing their jobs properly. “You’ve been out for a while,” he added. “When you fell, you hit your head pretty hard. I’ve been waiting for you to wake up.”
Virginia Mason. Not good. Not one of the private hospitals in which Thomas could buy silence. It wasn’t possible not to see all the scars, and that aching, queasy feeling was probably a concussion. He’d had several before; the cowl wasn’t bullet proof, and like army soldiers’ helmets, it only distributed force. Yes, they probably noticed. CT scans. Thomas’ sharp blue eyes narrowed. “How long?”
Luke couldn’t help thinking that if he’d been there, if he hadn’t left Aubade in the first place, then he could have ensured the ambulance took Thomas to a different hospital. Then again his presence might have ensured it never happened at all. “Uh...” He glanced down at his cell, trying to remember when he’d gotten the call. “About five or six hours. We were at Bathos when the hospital called,” he said apologetically, his way of explaining why they hadn’t brought him elsewhere. If Max’s plan worked and Corbinian acted as the Bat, though, there would be no need to worry.
That wasn’t that long; not as long as Thomas feared. His recovery time would not be bad, in that case. He might be able to get them to release him as soon as tomorrow as long as he took treatment for infection. He didn’t try to sit up again, but rather tried to lift his arm. The bullet had only grazed him, something that happened through nature and not armor. It had been close. He winced. “Tell them to take me off the pain-killers. It’s hard to think.” He let his head fall. “Max and ‘Manda?” he asked, looking for Luke’s eyes to read his expression.
“Okay. I’ll tell the doctor next time I see him.” He didn’t mention that he also planned on ordering the doctors not to release Thomas unless they were absolutely sure it was safe to do so. Luke lowered himself back into the chair, leaning forward and resting his chin on his hands. “They’re fine. Amanda is safe and Max was here with Audrey, but I’m not sure if they’ve left or not. The police wouldn’t let them in.” He hesitated for a moment. “Max told me about your plan.”
Thomas sighed, resigned, and prepared (mentally) for a fight. “People are dying,” he said, bringing his voice down to a far lower level, the one he used with his daughter, the quiet persuasive one. “There are too many risks.” The painkillers did make it hard to think. He was sure he had better opening arguments than that.
The only reason Luke managed to keep himself from launching into an angry tirade was because he knew things were already being taken care of. Corbinian would act as the Bat - there was no doubt in his mind that the man would agree; he had to - while Monarch and Thomas were in situations that undoubtedly cleared them of any association. It was their best shot. “I know that,” he said with forced calm. “But you ending up in jail won’t fix this and it won’t get rid of the risks either.” Luke shook his head and sighed. “It doesn’t matter. You’re not going through with it anyway.” It was said with a stubborn sort of finality before he intentionally changed the subject. “What’s your Board of Directors like?”
Thomas thought the Board topic was a completely unimportant mis-direction. He stubbornly stayed on the previous one. “It will. They will have the Bat, and a stationary target that’s more difficult to obsess on from the outside. They will tire of it quickly, and the criminal system is slow. No one would target family or others since they will have a Bat for certain and in the open.”
Thomas’ inability to understand why they couldn’t accept a plan that resulted in jail was frustrating, and even though Luke didn’t want an argument he wasn’t willing to back down either. “First off, there are still people who will target Monarch. Second, no matter which prison you end up in chances are nearly everyone there will want you dead. Third, Seattle needs the Bat and you can’t take that away from them. Besides, if you do someone else will take up the mantle instead.” He leaned forward, continuing with his list and ticking off each point on his fingers. “Fourth, and most importantly, you’ve got people who need you and care about you too much to watch you go to prison and get yourself killed. So when I say you’re not turning yourself in, Thomas, I’m not kidding.” You won’t need to anyway, he almost added, but caught himself just in time. “I’m going to meet the Board soon, but I figure it’d be better if I was prepared,” he added, reverting back to his previous attempt at a distraction.
Thomas frowned. The bullet hadn’t taken much out of him, not as much as his previous hospital stays had, and that alone was disturbing. Thomas had been shot and concussed far too many times. He just wanted to get up again, and he was annoyed at the pain-killers that had been administered when his brain wasn’t working. “No reason to target anyone else if I’m Bat. If the Bat is a criminal beyond doubt, no reason to take it up. Can survive anywhere.” It wasn’t a boast. Thomas felt himself drifting off again, and pushed it away. He shut his eyes anyway as he spoke. “The Board, yes. Good idea. Listen your first session, ask Todd questions after, start talking slowly, do a lot of research before you do. You’re young, they won’t listen, but give it a few days and stay stubborn. You are already better prepared than I was. Smarter, too.” Thomas let out a slow breath and some of the tension went out of his shoulders. Damn opiates.
He knew now what Max must have felt like, trying to reason with Thomas only to find that it was like arguing with a brick wall. “The Bat’s not a criminal, and you can’t make him into one. Don’t underestimate the power of your own symbol. Besides, we won’t let that happen and you know it.” Luke made a mental note to let the doctors know that they needed to inform him first before deciding to release Thomas. Someone had to keep an eye on him and make sure he didn’t go turn himself in anyway. “Really?” He was surprised, mainly because he didn’t think he was prepared at all. Maybe it was the painkillers talking. “Mr. Todd said he’d help, and I can be stubborn. They’d better learn to listen, though, since I’ll be taking your place.” It was obvious that it was just a joke, since Luke doubted they’d be inclined to listen to someone half their age.
Thomas smiled a little bit. “I was never much good at business. Always hired better minds to pay more attention to the money. It’s important it does good things, Luke.” Thomas forced his eyes open. “Don’t let them take it and turn it into blood and profit. The money needs to go to people, not to the Board. They won’t understand, don’t try to tell them. But keep it on track.” His eyes started to drift down again.
Luke nodded, because if it was important to Thomas then it was important to him even if he didn’t know why. The whole point of him temporarily taking his place was to ensure the Board stayed on track instead of seizing the opportunity to serve their own agendas, and young or not he wasn’t letting that happen. “I’ll take care of it, Thomas. Don’t worry.” He was silent for a long moment, trying not to think of what would have happened if the shooter had better aim, before he spoke again. “You should rest. I’ll get one of the doctors to come in and make sure everything looks okay.” He’d have to leave eventually come morning, but there was no doubt Luke would be back as soon as he could.
Thomas, Inc. had never been an especially virtuous company. Oh, it had it’s charity components, but most of them were pet projects, generally leading back in one way or another to Thomas, but for the most part it was a company for profit and gain, and while Thomas expected that, it was still a far cry from using the money for organized crime or war profiteering. “Fewer examinations the better,” he said, already falling asleep. “Too many scars. Tell them to let Max in.”
He had a point, but ensuring a full recovery without problems overrode the other risks. “I know, but they need to make sure there won’t be any lasting damage. It’ll be fine. We’ll fix this,” he added, though he probably wouldn’t have said it if Thomas hadn’t been falling asleep in front of him. Luke had already attempted to convince the police that Max could be allowed in but so far he hadn’t had any luck. “I will.” He rose from the chair, deciding that he’d try again and see if there was some way he could get Max in. If Thomas himself gave permission, maybe it would be enough. At the very least Luke could let her know that he was okay.