A Basket Full of Bats

The Thief

The first week was horrible. Bruce ended up pretty much living at the hospital. There were lung problems, heart problems, the already tiny baby kept loosing weight. They were trying to correct a heart murmur with medication. The highlight of Bruce's day was always 3:56 pm.

Jason would rush to the hospital after school then sit on the floor next to his brother and read aloud to him. Everyday it was, "Hi Dickie Bird! I hope you're being a good egg. I got a new book for you." The NICU was kept dim so Jason had a camping headlight he used to read with.

Damian was picking up and delivering breast milk. He'd take the last patrol slot of the night and end his patrol with a stop at Catwoman's apartment. He'd change out of uniform in the back of the Batmobile, Terry'd drop him off at a secluded spot they'd found near the hospital. He'd drop off the breastmilk, take the bus into the university and shower at school. Everyone at school was sure he was in a much improved mood the last week and wondered why. The truth was he was just tired and couldn't be bothered saying much to anyone.

Tim was dutifully arranging and rearranging Bruce's messed up schedule for him. He had charts and picked up documents from Wayne Enterprises and he was also researching medical facts related to micro-preemies.

Cassandra was hand-sewing a baby blanket from one of Bruce's black silk shirts so Richard would know Daddy's smell. She'd found with a soft yellow minkie fabric to line it with so the baby would be warm. Cassie really didn't like being cold and she liked crafts.

Alfred gave her a little embroidery patch with R for Richard on it.

Cassie smiled, and touched it and did a little happy dance then went back to her sewing.

Stephanie stayed far away from Richard and the hospital and all things baby. She'd flinch every time the phone rang, certain it was the hospital with either bad news or terrible news.

She was heavily pregnant now and kept stopping to make sure the baby was still kicking. She'd stolen one of the stethoscopes from the bat cave and would listen to her baby's heartbeat sometimes.

In the second week the reporters descended. Jason got in trouble when he gave one of the reporters a bloody nose when the idiot wouldn't get out of his way and kept harassing him. "Sorry I didn't come see you yesterday Birdie. I kind of ended up having a chat with the police. I'm sorry I lost my temper Dickie Bird. Do you want to know what else happened with the pirates? I didn't read ahead. I waited for you."

None of the nurses would have dared tell Jason that Richard's bed was sound proofed to help protect him from over stimulation. Especially because when Jason was reading he tended not to notice the alarms and warning lights, the huffing of the respirator. The extreme attentiveness of both Bruce and the nurses. It wasn't good for a micro preemie to cry. Living and growing took all the strength they had. Bruce was struggling to learn what Richard's movements and expressions meant so that he could anticipate his son's hunger, soiling or any other discomfort before he wasted his precious energy crying.

The heart murmur wasn't responding to medication. The pediatrician was concerned Richard's lungs would be damaged if they kept him on the respirator much longer but he wasn't doing well. He'd stopped loosing weight but he hadn't managed to gain an ounce back.

Damian ran into trouble one night on the milk run. It was Gotham. Someone saw an suspicious looking backpack exchange on a roof top. They decided they wanted whatever Nightwing had and snatched it. After an hour long wild chase across the rooftop resulting in the back pack flying off into the Bay, Nightwing flew into a complete rage, broke both of the idiots arms and left him hanging off a lamp post. "YOU IMBICILIC CRETIN! You precociously ignorant repugnant mass of enema addicted feculant bowel movements! I am distraught with you..." Nightwing gave the crook one last swat and stormed off into the early morning fog.

"Nightwing?" asked Batman(Terry) when Damian returned to the Batmobile.

"The contents of the backpack were completely valueless to him!" protested Nightwing.

"It's Gotham. It's just as well he never got a chance to look in the backpack. The loss of a day's supply is better than that particular intelligence getting onto the street," answered Batman.

"Why didn't you back me up?" Some how Damian managed to phrase the question so it didn't sound like an attack.

"I was dealing with the gun runners."

When Damian finally showed up at the hospital empty handed he quietly did an inventory of the near empty milk fridge. "I'm sorry Richard," he whispered. "You're mother is trying but she simply is not producing much milk."

Selina had to sneak into the hospital in the late afternoon so Richard didn't run out of milk completely. If he had to be supplemented with formula at all, it would really throw him off. Starring at her baby while she pumped seemed to encourage the milk supply a little.