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Dick really hated the blindfold, but he couldn’t exactly tell his captors that. Captors. He almost snorted at the thought. He couldn’t believe he’d actually gotten caught. But then again, they caught him in the broad daylight as Dick Grayson. Nightwing went out almost every night looking for trouble, but Dick Grayson was pretty fucking shocked at the bold move and didn’t see it coming.Ha! See! He wasn’t seeing anything right now.It was driving him crazy. For starters, the blindfold was tied so tightly that the edges cut into his skin, and the knot had snagged on his hair and was pulling painfully every time he moved his head. Furthermore, he hated not being able to see because it made his mind run wild with horrible scenarios. Like it did now.It had been silent in the room for so long that Dick had no idea if his captors were still in there with him. He was pretty sure he hadn’t heard them leave but the silent darkness had his memories slipping away from him like sand in hourglass.Deep breaths, he told himself. They don’t know you’re Nightwing. They just want a ransom from Bruce.A sudden, throbbing pain exploded right under his temple as one of the men landed a punch in his face. Dick gasped, more out of shock than pain, and his eyes started to water. It was a natural reaction to being punched in the face, but it made his captors laugh all the same.“Aw, that’s all it took?” a deep voice mocked. “I really thought he was gonna be a little tougher than that.”“What’d ya expect?” another voice snorted. At least two, then. “He’s Wayne’s kid. Little shit probably never suffered a day in ‘is life.”If his hands weren’t zip-tied around a column behind him, Dick would’ve punched whoever said that. He’d probably suffered more than all these assholes put together.“At least the dead one knew what it’s like,” a gruff, female voice said, and Dick’s stomach turned when he realized they were talking about Jason.“Leave my brother out of this,” he snapped before he could think better of it.There were a few moments of silence before that first deep voice drawled: “Well, will ya look at that. He speaks.”“Yes, asshat.” Jason would be so proud of him for that one. “And if you mention my brother again, I swear to god, there won’t be a place where you can hide from me.”Laughter erupted in the room. From the way it echoed, Dick guessed it was mostly empty. “Oh, I’m so scared! What are ya gonna do, kid? You’re tied to a pillar.”Something cold pressed against his cheek, and Dick’s heart sped up when he realized it was the edge of a blade.“What?” that same mocking voice from earlier asked, softly now. “Not so talkative anymore, are we? But I think you need a lesson in manners.”The woman snorted. “You’d think Wayne’s kid would have some of those.”Dick raised his chin and with all the dignity he could muster with his legs tied to a chair and his arms around a pillar, spat: “Fuck you.”The knife dug into his skin, burning as it traced a path down his cheek. Dick forcefully grit his teeth. He wasn’t going to give these assholes the pleasure of showing even the slightest hint of discomfort.“Hm. Maybe we underestimated you,” the second voice said. He sounded like the sort of guy who’d weasel his way out of everything.“You sure did, pal,” Dick said, somehow managing to sound smug despite the blood dripping into the corner of his mouth.There was a lot of it from what he felt. The knife had gone deep, and was likely to leave one hell of a scar, but that was a problem for later.“Seems like that lesson in manners didn’t pay off,” the woman said. From the lack of other voices, Dick was pretty sure there were only three of them. He heard approaching footsteps, light and fast, and only moments later, he was backhanded across the face. The fresh cut on his face stung as he spat out the blood pooling in his mouth. There was a disgusted noise, and Dick felt a surge of pride warm some of the cold dread that had been pooling in his gut.“Oh, sorry. Did that hit you?” he asked, turning his head in the direction of the sound. “I didn’t see you there.”Without any warning, there was a sharp, piercing pain in his shoulder. It flared out, shooting white-hot tendrils to his collarbones and back. He couldn’t prevent a scream being torn from his throat. He bit down hard on his lip to cut it off, barely feeling the sting from pulling at the cut on his cheek over the pain in his shoulder. He was pretty sure someone had just rammed the knife through it. To test that theory, he shifted ever so slightly and immediately held still again when he felt his skin tear open further.Yep, definitely got stabbed in the shoulder. Fuck.“You ungrateful little shit,” the woman said, her eerily calm voice unnerving. She must’ve been right in front of him because he could smell her minty breath. “We’ll just have to send you back to Wayne a little more like they sent your parents to the morgue.”Dick screamed. Not in fear or pain, but from pure rage. He surged forward, trying to rip his hands free from the zip ties, and barely noticed it when his shoulder bumped against the hilt of the knife embedded in it. He kept going, even as the sound of shattering glass filled the room. That, and the gunshots that followed it, were barely audible over the dull roar of fury that was pounding in his ears.Hands roughly grabbed his uninjured shoulder and side. “Dick! Dick, for fuck’s sake, stop it! Stop struggling, goddammit, you’re gonna-“The knife tore free and clattered to the ground, and then the room was silent. The anger had melted like snow in the sun, but the pain had dulled as well. There was nothing. All at once, Dick felt like an empty shell.A soft, familiar voice muttered: “What the fuck, Dickie.”“Jay?” he asked quietly, not daring to hope. “Yeah, Big Bird,” Jason answered, softly squeezing his shoulder. “It’s me.”“You came.”“’Course I did.” He heard the rustle of fabric, followed by the familiar swish of Jason flipping open a switchblade. “I’m gonna cut off those zip ties, and then we’re gonna take off that blindfold, alright? Just stay still.”Dick couldn’t have moved if he tried, but he nodded and held his breath as Jason sawed through the ties at his ankles and then moved to the other side of the pillar to get the ones tying his wrist together. He was incredibly careful as he lowered Dick’s arms.“I’m gonna try and undo the knot on that blindfold now, alright?”“Y-“ Dick coughed, his throat suddenly feeling like sandpaper. “Yeah.”“Don’t try to talk, Dick,” Jason softly chided him, fingers working on the knot but catching on Dick’s hair every few seconds. “I’m surprised you still can, with the way you were screaming when I came in.”“Are they-““On their way to have an in-person meeting with Satan?” Jason grimly finished his sentence. “Damn straight they are.”“You killed them? But Bruce-““I didn’t kill them,” Jason interrupted, his voice surprisingly clear. “I threw in a smoke bomb and fired a single rubber bullet. They killed each other in the chaos. Either way, I think Bruce won’t mind that they’re dead.”He tugged on the blindfold a few more times, then sighed.“If you have to cut through it, just do it Jay,” Dick told him, guessing what the issue was. “I just want to go home.”Jason’s voice was soft when he replied. “Of course. Hold still.”For the second time in maybe twenty minutes, the cold blade of a knife was pressed against his cheek. The only difference was that Jason was being painstakingly careful, mindful of the wound that was already there. He cut through the blindfold in one, clean slice and then pulled it away from Dick’s eyes.The light was blinding, sending sharp spikes of pain through his head. Jason cupped his head. “Ssh, stay still, Dickie. Don’t wanna aggravate those wounds. Just keep your eyes closed, alright?”“I- I can’t, Jay,” he stuttered, feeling the last bit of his resolve crumble now that he was finally, completely free. Tears spilled down his cheeks, silt burning in the cut on his cheek. “I gotta- I gotta get out of here, I-““I know,” Jason cut him off, still sounding so uncharacteristically gentle. His hands moved down to Dick’s leg to fasten something around it. “I’m going to get you out of here, Dick. Trust me.”Dick nodded. He really did trust Jason, but he was so desperate that it made his chest hurt and he probably would’ve trusted the Joker himself if he said that to him.Jason wrapped an arm around his back, hooked the under his knees, and very carefully lifted him out of the chair. Dick slumped against him, pressing his cheek against the familiar smooth surface of Jason’s leather jacket. “Thank you, Jay.”“Ssh. You’d do the same for me.”He felt from the way Jason was moving that they were going down a staircase. He could hear a frantic voice rising up. Jason must have heard it too, because he cursed softly. “I told B I could handle it.”He twisted his hand awkwardly, presumably to press the button on his helmet that modified his voice, because when he spoke next, it was in the low, robotic drawl associated with Red Hood. “Mr. Wayne?”He sounded like it physically pained him to call Bruce that, and Dick had to stifle a snort. It wasn’t hard, not when he heard Bruce’s familiar footsteps rush over and a big hand rested on his forehead, brushing his matted hair back. “Oh, thank god. Thank god, you’re okay.”“I wouldn’t call this okay, exactly,” Jason muttered. Dick could almost hear his eyes roll. “Careful, Mr. Wayne. He has a few injuries that need to be checked out.”He felt himself being transferred into Bruce’s arms. It brought back memories of when he was barely ten and had nightmares, and Dick turned his head into Bruce’s jacket, breathing in the familiar scent of his cologne.“I’ve got you,” Bruce whispered, dropping a kiss to the top of his head. “You’re okay now.”“Yeah,” Dick mumbled, allowing the careful motion to lull him to sleep. “I know.”