Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A reconnaissance mission in an area that ended up getting a powerful earthquake may not have been the best idea. No one expected it and were sent onto the city without hesitation. It was after collecting the evidence and apprehending the criminals that the earthquake hit. And unfortunately, one building crashed down as Robin ran in to save some construction workers from a condemned building.

The construction workers were able to get out safe, but Robin didn't seem to make it out in time as the ground shook. Everyone was tense. They didn't have the time to react before the building fell. They weren't sure what to do. They even began to question if Robin had even survived the collapse.

The only thing calming their anxiety was Superboy, who refused to believe that something to Robin. Not to mention his hearing helped him keep an ear out for Robin. He could hear a heartbeat fluctuating between panic and attempted calm. It was a relief knowing that he was alive, but that didn't entirely help, knowing that they had limited time to get him out. Superboy was the only one willing to go in to get Robin, believing he was the best option to get Robin out alright. No one was going to argue it, not wanting to feel the wrath of Superboy's adrenaline rush.

Superboy carefully worked his way through the rubble. He carefully repositioned some of it so that he had a clear opening when he found Robin. All the while, he kept an ear to Robin's heartbeat. It was thankfully still beating, though beating slower, a clear sign that Robin had passed out. He also kept his infrared sight activated to help locate Robin's body.

Robin's frame started getting clearer the closer Superboy got to him. He was on the ground with his arms around his head in an attempt to protect it. It was a wise choice and helped decrease his risk, or at the very least the severity, of a concussion.

When he finally reached Robin, Superboy realized that Robin's leg was caught under a broken beam, which helped explain why he was unable to escape. Blood also surrounded Robin's legs and head, more than likely the caused from debris hitting him. Superboy removed the beam without an issue. Looking at the limb, he wouldn't be surprised if there was some kind of damage with the odd position it took.

The wreckage began to shake, an effect of the oncoming aftershock, prompting Superboy to pick Robin up. He quickly bolted out of the building, protecting Tim's head. He allowed it to collapse the rest of the way once they were out of the wreckage and in the clear.

Everyone was just glad that Robin was okay as they circled around the duo. Superboy didn't let go of Robin, not even when Wonder Girl offered to take him. He may have looked a little rough for wear, but it was a relief that Robin was alive.

"He'll be okay." Superboy stated.

~

Nightwing entered the medbay to find Martian Manhunter, Conner, and Tim there. Tim had his mask off but had a pair of sunglasses on. Even though everyone in the room knew his identity, Batman still wanted his identity to stay a secret to a good portion of the others.

When Nightwing had heard about what happened, he went into overdrive. He was apprehensive about the damage, juggling between anger and concern. Sure, he was thankful that Tim was alive, but Nightwing didn't want the current Boy Wonder to get hurt during what should have been a routine reconnaissance mission.

"He's okay." J'onn confirmed. "He had a minor concussion and thankfully the beam that fell on his leg only caused a stable fracture. It should heal rather quickly, but he will have to take it easy for a while."

"Thank you." Nightwing replied with slight relief before aiming his attention at the younger heroes. "Can I have a moment with them J'onn? Alone."

"Of course."

J'onn excused himself, exiting the room without a word. Nightwing stared at the duo with irritation. Without J'onn in the room, a good distance away from what Conner could tell, his disdain for the situation evident.

"Don't be too mad at them." Tim pleaded. "I went in there to save people. They didn't have the time to react to it."

"Really?" Nightwing scoffed. "The speedster, Kryptonian hybrid, and Amazoness didn't respond quickly enough?"

Tim glared at Nightwing. He wasn't too fond of his snarky sarcasm at the moment. Especially since it was laced with a lecture.

"You know what I mean. Look, it was my fault not theirs. I wasn't thinking, I just acted."

Tim was anxious about the situation, knowing that Nightwing was aggressively worried. Coner could sense Tim's tension.

"He saved lives." Conner interjected, defending Tim. "Isn't that what matters?"

"Not at the cost of his own." Nightwing argued, turning his wrath towards Conner. "He's not like you, and you know that. He's not invulnerable, and yet, you didn't stop him. Heck, you could have done way before he did."

"Stop it." Tim pleaded. "Don't forget, he got me out of there."

Nightwing bitterly sighed, biting his tongue. He gazed at Tim, who was distraught by the tension. Nightwing could admit that Conner had a point. No matter how defensive he was towards Tim and his safety, there were lives that needed saving.

Nightwing turned walking towards the door. He needed to cool down, and he wasn't going to do it there. Nightwing stopped at the door, turning his head to the side.

"Thank you for saving him." Nightwing sighed.

Nightwing left the room with that. Leaving Tim with Conner wasn't a bad idea. He knew that he would keep Tim safe.

Chapter Text

Conner was stuck in Mount Justice, waiting for some of the team to return. He was comfortable sitting in the living area, eyeing a black screen. Bart, Cassie, Tim, and Jaime were taking care of a Robbery while M'gann, Conner, and Kaldur took care of another issue across the country. The latter group got back first, which was why Conner was waiting around as the others went home.

The sound of several Zeta Tubes welcoming a group back echoed through the halls. It was clear that the quartet was back and were making their way into the hideout. Conner stayed in his seat, knowing that they would come there. Footsteps got louder as they approached the living area.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Bart asked.

"Yeah." Tim confirmed. "I've been tossed harder than that."

"But he hit you pretty hard." Cassie stated.

"I've been smacked by Killer Croc's tail harder than that."

"But he's a nearly ten foot crocodile human hybrid." Jaime reminded.

Conner quietly watched their little debate. Tim seemed normal, a little roughed up, but alright. Tim playfully chuckled, unfazed by their concerns.

"Don't worry." Tim comforted. "I'll be fine."

Everyone seemed a little disheartened by Tim's stubbornness. However, none of them were willing to argue it any further.

"If you say so." Cassie accepted. "Just take it easy, okay?"

"Okay." Tim agreed.

Cassie, Jaime, and Bart left, all having to report home. Tim stood there watching them. Once he thought he was alone, Tim groaned in pain. His arm wrapped around his ribcages as he leaned forward slightly.

"What did you do?" Conner asked, approaching Tim.

Tim jumped slightly, not expecting Conner to be there. He straightened his posture in an attempt to hide his pain. He gave Conner a smile, not wanting to worry the Kryptonian hybrid.

"I didn't do anything." Tim denied. "I'm just a little tired from the robbery."

Tim awkwardly chuckled, hoping that his lie would work. Conner's eyes scanned Tim's body. Tim's hand was subconsciously hovering over his side, raising some suspicion. Without warning, Conner grabbed Tim's shoulders, keeping the teen in place, as he did a further inspection. Tapping into his x-ray vision, Conner could see cracks on his ribs.

Tim wanted to fight back, but he couldn't find the words. Not that it would matter. He knew Conner could see the damage. Conner slung an arm around Tim's shoulders, so that Tim wouldn't try to escape the inevitable.

"This way." Conner demanded, forcefully guiding Tim towards the medbay.

Tim and Conner were the only people in the medbay. That in itself was relieving. They wouldn't have to explain what happened and could tend to Tim's injury in peace.

Tim was sitting on the bed with his feet hanging over the side. Conner approached the bed with some medical wrap in hand. He rolled a chair over before taking a seat on it.

"Going to need you to get your shirt off." Conner stated. "I got to see the damage."

Tim followed the request, slowly getting the top off. It was a little embarrassing, not because he was doing this in front of his friend, but because he was admitting defeat. He was hurting his pride by admitting that he was hurt.

Once the shirt was off, Conner was stunned by the damage. Two large bruises coated Tim's sides. They were black and blue and when Conner lightly tapped one, Tim flinched in pain. Conner didn't need more prompting, wrapping Tim's abdomen.

"What did you do? Hit a truck?" Conner interrogated.

"No." Tim denied. "Got kicked by Bane."

Conner recalled the villain in question. A hulking man with enhanced strength thanks to a carefully perfected toxin. He may not have been superhuman, or Batman, but he was still pretty intimidating the few times Conner encountered him.

"We handled the robbery just fine, but we didn't expect him to show up." Tim filled in. "Considering what he could do, this isn't too bad."

"Not too bad?" Conner loudly remarked, dumbfounded. "Tim, he cracked five of your ribs. How is that not bad?"

Tim yelped as Conner tightened the bandages. It was clear that Conner didn't like his choice of words. A mix of concern and annoyance was plaguing Conner no doubt.

"Yeah, but his vendetta is against Batman, not us." Tim hissed, prompting a curious gaze from Conner. "He may ruff us Robins up, which in and of itself is its own issue, but he never liked the idea of killing children. Something about his corrupted childhood prevents him from doing that. Most likely due to the trauma of growing up in the environment that he did if I had to guess."

Tim hissed as Conner tightened it slightly. Conner got it as tight as he wanted, tying the remaining wrap. He could tell that Tim was still sore, both from his ribs and the firmly adjusted wrap.

"You know you can say that it hurts, right?" Conner stated. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. Not to mention Bane probably hits like a truck."

Tim bit his lip. He wanted to admit that it hurt, but his pride got in the way. The pride and stubbornness of being the only normal human on the team blocked his ability to admit defeat.

"Come on." Conner begged. "You're amongst a good friend."

"Okay." Tim accepted, wrapping his arms around his sides. "It hurts. Now can you help me get down? My lungs are dying."

Conner gently assisted Tim. He slide Tim of off the bed, helping Tim get his footing. Tim attempted to straighten up his posture, hunching slightly to prevent the strain on his ribs.

"You wanna watch a movie?" Conner asked. "I want company and I don't think Batman will mind if I borrow you for a while. Plus, you'll be able to relax and let your ribs take it easy."

"That sounds nice." Tim agreed. "It'll give me time to think up an excuse for the damage."

They trotted down the hallway, back to the living area. Conner sat down as Tim slowly worked his way down. As he grabbed a pillow, Tim laid down on his side, using the pillow as a cushion for his side.

He didn't need to say anything for Conner to know that he was comfortable. Conner flipped the television on, looking for something good. When an old action movie popped up, Tim nudged Conner, wanting to keep it on. Conner smirked, getting the point, and set the remote down.

Chapter Text

Embers flickered, bouncing off of a fire. The rocky interior of a cave reflected the fire off of the walls, silhouetting around two figures. Conner was sitting in front of a fire made from parts of a tree that he hauled in. He watched the fire with Tim's bandaged up head resting on his lap.

They were going on a hike, which was a nice little break from their busy crime fighting lives. It was meant to be a fun, refreshing activity to get Conner and Tim outside. Unfortunately, the day seemed to have other ideas. First, they were attacked by a small group of drones courtesy of Lex Corp. Conner was able to fend them off well enough on his own since Tim wasn't prepared or in uniform. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to prevent Tim from losing his footing and stumbling back, cracking his head open on some jagged rocks.

As a result, Conner had to drag Tim down the mountainside. It only got worse as rain began to pour. Knowing it wouldn't be wise to travel out in a downpour, especially with Tim in the condition he was, Conner found a cave. When he got into it, he opened up a small first aid kit that Tim had the hindsight to bring. It had some bandages in it, which Conner used to secure the injury. Once that was taken care of, Tim began to shake, prompting Conner to get something to light a fire.

Knowing they had to wait the storm out for an unknown amount of time, Conner had no qualms with knocking a tree down and dragging it inside. Tim didn't move since Conner left, if anything, he was shaking more. Conner acted fast, ripping several parts of the tree apart and using it as firewood. He used this heat vision to get a fire started.

With the fire going, Conner tended to Tim. He knew Tim was definitely going to feel the effects of the impending concussion when he woke up. But for now, warming Tim up was all that mattered. He made sure they were close enough to the fire so Tim could feel the heat. Tim progressively stopped shivering, which was a good thing.

All Conner could do was wait. Waiting for Tim to wake up. For the storm to pass. While he knew everything was going to be okay, he had to be patient. He just listened to the rain falling and the low rumbling of the oncoming thunder.

A moan snapped Conner out of his train of thought. He looked at Tim who started to shuffle, starting to wake up. Conner slowly sat Tim up, knowing that he was going to feel a little woozy.

"Take it easy." Conner sighed. "You hit your head pretty hard."

Tim didn't respond. His body, on the other hand, jolted. Tim leaned forward as his gag reflex forced him to vomit. Conner wasn't disgusted by the reaction, lightly rubbing Tim's back to help calm him down.

"What happened?" Tim groaned, sitting up.

"You lost your footing and took a tumble down the mountain." Conner filled in. "Banged your head pretty hard."

"That would explain why my head is pounding."

His hand clenched the side of his head, reiterating that point. Tim curiously scanned their surroundings. Their stony protection was a little confusing. With him being unconscious, for who knows how long, Tim had no idea what they were there. Or why they were there for that matter.

"Where are we?"

"In a cave."

Tim shot Conner a glare. Sure, he kind of asked for that kind of response, but it felt a little redundant. It was an obvious answer to an obvious question.

"I can see that. But why?"

"It started to rain and I didn't want to risk you getting worse because of it."

Tim accepted that response. It made sense. The concussion was bad enough, but piling onto that with a potential fever or cold wouldn't be a good thing.

"Okay."

Tim started going down. He was a little tired, and wanted to sleep. Conner, on the other hand, wasn't about to let that happen. He stopped Tim midway, keeping him in a sitting position. Tim glared at him with annoyance.

"You got a concussion, remember?" Conner reminded. "I'm going to need you to stay awake for a bit."

Tim annoyingly scoffed, leaning against Conner. He watched the fire dance around as he felt Conner's arm drape around his shoulders. The bandages still rested on his head and Tim could feel the wait of it and the blood it absorbed. Explaining this to Bruce was going to be such a joy. It would have so much joy that he was going to be grounded for the next century from all of the fun the explanation was going to be. Tim mentally rolled his eyes at the thought.

Conner also had a point, not that Tim would admit it. It was a concussion and required Tim to stay conscious for a period of time so that he could get the damage assessed. It was something that Tim always knew, but rarely had to put into practice. He would just have to live with it and Conner's correct assertion.

Those weren't the only things that were on his mind though. He really appreciated that Conner took care of him. Sure, it was probably easy to do since Tim was unconscious up until this point, but he was still thankful that Conner took care of him.

"Thank you." Tim sighed.

"You're welcome." Conner replied, grinning.

Conner rubbed Tim's shoulder, which Tim welcomed. It was still raining, so they would be stuck in the cave for a little longer. Not that either seemed to care much. They were out of the rain and had a fire to keep them warm and out of the dark.

Tim could collect himself up enough to ride what remained of the concussion out. All he had to do was muster up the will to stay awake, which wasn't too difficult. Conner, on the other hand, could continue to monitor Tim to make sure nothing worse happened. He doubted that anything else was going to happen, but with their recent luck, it wouldn't be a surprise.

Chapter Text

Another day of school was coming to a close. Conner wanted to pick Tim up and take him out for a bite before they had to report for their next mission. It didn't take him long to get to Gotham Academy. An unseen fly at high speed got him there in no time. As he landed the bell rang, prompting him to enter the courtyard.

Conner scanned the area. Though there were countless numbers of students, he honed his attention on Tim's heartbeat. As he got closer, the sound of crude words began to surface. They were coming from where Tim's heartbeat was. With that came several more heartbeats.

Conner soon realized that Tim was surrounded by three bullies. They were ganging up on Tim, pushing and hitting him. They also spewed harsh words, hateful words about his intelligence and family ties. They called him a charity case, demeaned him for his "lack" of strength, and Tim's quiet nature.

What surprised Conner was that Tim didn't fight back. He let them beat him. Conner knew Tim could fight back, but he didn't. That's what really bothered him. While Conner knew couldn't go all out because of his identity, but that didn't mean that Tim shouldn't defend himself.

Conner stormed towards the trio. He grabbed at one of them and threw them back. It startled everyone huddled around the area and relieved Tim. The second bully, though frazzled, didn't like that his friend was compromised and went to sock Conner. Conner grabbed it with ease and tossed him aside.

That only left one other bully. The head from what Conner could assume. He threw a punch at Conner and hit him like it was nothing. Conner was unfazed and annoyed by the hit, glaring at the bully with disdain. That caused the bully to flinch, but he kept his stance firm.

Conner grabbed the bully's uniform and slammed him against the wall.

"Who do you think you are?" The head bully interrogated, trying to sound intimidating.

"A friend." Conner growled, holding out a fist, ready to use it. "A friend that won't let you ambush someone because they're different."

"Conner!" Tim called.

Tim was watching Conner with mild annoyance. He wanted this to stop. Conner looked back at the bully. The bully was definitely intimated at this point. Conner let him go with an irritated grunt. The bully landed on his butt as Conner grabbed Tim and left.

~

An ice pack tenderly dabbed Tim's check as Conner held it there. Tim flinched slightly at the touch. There was definitely a bruise, or at the very least a red spot on the bone. Conner wasn't that enthused with the situation and Tim wasn't all that fazed by it.

"Why didn't you stop them?" Conner inquired. "I know you can defend yourself in these kinds of situations."

Tim knew Conner would ask about that. It wasn't exactly something that many people have witnessed. Even less were willing to stop it. Out of the people he knew, none of them were even aware of it.

"What's the point?" Tim replied. "They're only boosting their egos and they don't really do it that often. I'll stop them."

Conner was a little skeptical about Tim's claim. While he knew that Tim could stop them, and probably would, he couldn't help but think that Tim would drag it out as far as he could. He was never one to go through things quickly if it didn't need to. It was a bit of a victim complex that Tim had, and a complicated one at that. Tim never saw himself as a victim necessarily, which was something that was common in people with victim complexes, but Tim did fell like he had to be the victim to protect everyone else.

"You don't have to put every little thing on yourself." Conner stated. "That's not fair."

"Life isn't." Tim grumbled.

"You say that, but I know you don't mean it."

"Gotham does have that effect on people."

"Of course it does. But when you're with me, you don't have to be like that."

Tim tilted his head slightly into the hand with the icepack. It didn't sting anymore and it, coupled with Conner's hand was comforting. It mixed well with Conner's words of comfort. Deep down, Tim knew he had to hear it. He may not have wanted to deal with it this soon, but he was going to have to now.

"Thank you." Tim sighed.

"No problem." Conner replied with a smile.

He removed the icepack to inspect the damage. The swelling and redness had gone down. It wouldn't bruise, or at least not as bad as it could have if it went unintended. Conner left Tim for a moment to put the icepack back.

Tim was still there when Conner got back. Tim was patiently waiting as he lightly kicked his feet back and forth. He gave Conner a soft grin with something clearly on his mind.

"Please don't tell Bruce." Tim requested.

"I won't." Conner agreed. "But who's to say that he doesn't already know?"

"I already know about what?" A voice interrupted.

Conner and Tim's attentions shot towards the door, stunned. Batman was standing in the doorway and he wasn't very amused. They were flabbergasted, not knowing how to respond. They were definitely busted, and there was no way he was going to let Tim get out of a lecture anytime soon.

Chapter Text

Amazo had been released in Metropolis and the team had to get the android under control. Knowing the android's abilities, they had to devise a plan to take him down without much, if any, contact. It made the fight a little more difficult, but it had to be done this way. Amazo was able to imprint super strength and heat vision into his arsenal already. The area was already showing signs of battle, with debris scattered on the ground.

Wonder Girl and Superboy were starting to get annoyed with the evasion, wanting to smash Amazo. Amazo was being especially difficult and Robin's plan to keep distance was annoying. Superboy lunged at Amazo as Wonder Girl tried to sneak up on him. They were deflected by Amazo and several strong punches sent them flying.

Robin threw himself at Amazo, hopping on his back. He quickly set a bug on Amazo before flipping off of him. Pulling up a screen, Robin activated the bug. It set off shocks, short wiring Amazo. The android collapsed as he powered down.

He stood proud, relishing the victory. Wonder Girl and Superboy were just glad that ot was over. Amazo was out of commission, and he would be for a while. All they had to do now was contact the League so they could take care of the rest.

Something pierced Robin's chest, causing the Boy Wonder to gasp in pain and the others to freeze. Somehow, Amazo mustered up enough strength to pierce Robin with a twisted pipe before officially powering down. Robin looked down in agony, half tempted to grab it. To clench his chest to stop the bleeding.

Adrenaline kicked in as Wonder Girl and Superboy jumped into action. Wonder Girl bolted towards the android, stomping on him several times to make sure the android was out of commission as Superboy approached Robin. He slowly got the Boy Wonder onto the ground before pressing the emergency button on his utility belt. Robin was on his side so the pipe wouldn't cause any more damage by shifting around.

Superboy knew as well as Robin did what could happen if he tried to remove the pole. So removing it was not an option. Superboy just held on to Robin trying to keep him conscious for as long as he could.

"Hold on." Superboy requested. "Help is on the way."

~

Tim woke up in the med bay. After several hours of work, removing the pipe and giving him a tetanus shot and a blood transfusion, the League requested that he rested. Several stitches crossed across Tim's chest and was covered by medical wrap. It was going to hurt for a while, but sudden, sporadic movement would only make it worse.

Tim's nurse was none other than Conner, who promised to keep him bedridden until he was told otherwise. Conner made sure that Tim got fluids and barely moved outside of what was absolutely necessary. Tim favored lying on his side so that he could look at Conner without much issue. Tim groaned in pain, prompting Conner to approach him.

"Are you okay?" Conner gently asked, lightly placing a hand on the side of Tim's face.

"Chest hurts." Tim complained.

"Need some pain killers?"

Tim nodded. Conner grabbed a small container with some pills and a glass of water. It had been a few hours since he had been given some, so giving Tim a couple now wasn't going to be an issue. Conner slowly and carefully sat Tim up. With an arm behind Tim to support him, Conner gave Tim the pills followed by the water. He received thanks once they were in Tim's hands.

Tim took them with strained acceptance before giving Conner the cup back. Conner set it on the table and helped Tim lay back down. Conner fixed the blanket so that Tim was covered. Tim shivered, clenching his chest in pain for a moment. The pain was troubling, but so was the cause of it.

"I'm sorry." Tim weakly huffed. "I celebrated too soon."

"There's nothing to apologize for." Conner reassured.

"I let my guard down and look what happened."

Conner couldn't be really upset with that. Admittedly, there could have been one last scan, but Conner wasn't going to hold it against Tim for his approach. He was glad that Tim took down Amazo more than anything. Dealing with him was annoying. It always was, even when the team was younger and had different active members.

"Amazo short wired." Conner reminded. "There was no way you could have predicted that."

Tim didn't have the energy to argue. Even if Conner was right. Tim just couldn't argue. Tim shuffled slightly to try getting comfortable. It didn't help much, giving him pain until he found a position that was the least painful, but it was worth trying.

"It hurts." Tim repeated.

"I know." Conner understood. "I'd say get some sleep, but I don't know if you want to."

"I don't know if the pain will let me."

"Then let the medication kick in before you try. Until then, do you want to see a card trick?"

Conner pulled out a deck from his pocket. He smuggled it in in the event Tim wanted to play something while bedridden. Amused by the sudden appearance of the deck, Tim sot Conner a grin. He gave Conner a nod and that was all that Conner needed.

Chapter Text

Tim was patiently awaiting the arrival of the acting members of the Team. He had just gotten off of school and was waiting for a new mission. Tim paced around the living area in an attempt to keep himself busy. The sound of the zeta tube in use and the robotic declaration echoed their base, prompting Tim to bolt towards the zeta tubes.

Tim was pulled in to a shocking scene as Batman entered, supporting Conner and Superman, Cassie, and Bart were not too far behind. Conner was breathing sporadically and he was unconscious. It startled and stressed Tim to see Conner like this. Curiosity was another big emotion as he anxiously followed alongside them.

"What happened?" Tim asked.

"I'll explain later." Batman bluntly replied. "Right now, we have to get him stable."

Tim eventually came to a stop as Cassie and Bart went their separate ways. Tim simply watched the two league members taking the Kryptonian hybrid to the med bay, not wishing to follow his friends. He was well aware that he wasn't going to get answers that second. Even if he wanted to ask Cassie or Bart, he knew that a full report would be better obtained from Batman or Superman. And if there was one thing he knew, it was that it would be better to stay out of their way until after they got him stable. Any and all inquiries would have to wait.

~

Tim checked on them an hour later. The sound of steady beeping stated that Conner was stable, which was a relief. However, Conner was still unconscious. Superman and Batman were still in the room, the former just about ready to leave. Tim bounced back between the two, curiously concerned.

"Is he okay?" Tim asked.

Superman glanced at Batman. It was clear that Superman wanted to answer, but didn't. He didn't want to overstep his bounds with his fellow League member's child and protégé. Batman turned his attention towards Tim, wanting to give him his full attention.

"He'll be fine." Batman calmly replied. "He just needs to rest."

"What happened?"

"While he was on patrol with Impulse and Wonder Girl, he was hit with some Red Kryptonite."

"Red Kryptonite? As in Kryptonite that have a variety of side effects on Kryptonians?"

"The very same. It progressively started to weaken him, but not without throwing him into a rage along the way. We had to step in in order to subdue him long enough for the Red Kryptonite to knock him out."

"But he's only half Kryptonian." Tim recalled. "That has to count for something."

"That may be, but therein lies the problem. He's half Kryptonian. Lex may make up for the human half of his D.N.A., but that can't stop the flaws in Superman's from happening. It doesn't have the strength to."

Tim bite his tongue with disappointment. He hoped that something like this wouldn't happen. However, Batman had a point. Superman's D.N.A. did so much for Conner, but unfortunately, that came with its own Achilles ' heel. Batman saw the conflict in Tim's body language, and as much as he'd like to relieve his concerns, there was a few other things needed to know.

"It weakened him," Batman stated, "but the emotional corruption has waned. However, it also gave him a fever. We'll be monitoring him for a bit."

Tim was a little disheartened by the prognosis, looking at the ground. He was glad that it didn't kill Conner, but the fact that it put Conner in such a weakened state was depressing. He didn't deserve to be in this predicament, but it did prove that even his most invincible friend had his weaknesses.

A spark lit up in Tim's mind, raising his head up. He had an idea. One that was both helpful and relaxing.

"Can I stay with him?" Tim curiously offered. "He's helped me out on numerous occasions that it would be rude of me not to return the favor."

Batman and Superman exchanged glances. The offer was an endearing one, and it was coming from a place of good intentions. Neither seemed bothered, but Batman let Superman answer the question this time.

"That would be great." Superman accepted. "You may not have much to do for a while since he's out, but I think he'd appreciate it if he had a friend here when he wakes up. Just make sure he stays comfortable."

"I will."

~

Eyes stiffly squinted as Conner progressively started to wake up. As he recounted what had happened, he slowly turned onto his side. He recalled the Kryptonite and the effects that came with it. He recalled Batman and Superman stepping in. What he did not remember was Tim being beside him.

Tim was wearily leaning onto the bed, using his hands as support for his head. His eyes were drooping, but he was still able to watch Conner. Conner put a hand on the top of Tim's head as he sat up, causing him to jump slightly.

"Watching over little old me?" Conner asked.

"Technically, I'm older than you." Tim joked, grabbing the damp cloth that had fallen off of Conner's forehead.

They both chuckled at the joke. As true as it was, it was still a funny thought since Conner was physically around the same age, if not a little bit older than Tim. Tim placed the back of his hand on Conner's forehead to check his temperature as Conner looked at him curiously.

"You had a high fever." Tim explained. "I've been taking care of you. Thankfully you were able to break it about twenty minutes ago. Though you did wake up once or twice a bit delirious. You thought I was a woodland fairy the first time. A kitten the second time."

Conner was both amused and embarrassed by the observation. At the same time, he was thankful that he couldn't remember it. Tim removed his hand away from Conner's forehead. He was still a normal temperature, which was a good thing.

"You're still good." Tim deduced. "You're free to go."

"Thank you Doctor Tim." Conner replied, getting off of the bed. "I don't know about you, but I'm hungry. Wanna grab a bite?"

It wasn't so much an invitation as it was a demand as Conner pulled Tim to his feet. It was like nothing happened as his energy shot through the roof. He pulled Tim out of the room.

Tim wasn't even mad about Conner's burst of enthusiasm. He was just glad that Conner was healthy and that the issue cleared itself up. And if Batman or Superman got annoyed, it didn't matter. They gave up the right to control Conner's care the moment Tim took over. For now though, he was going to enjoy his patient and whatever that might bring.