The Archer | T.D. ✔

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Rory opened her eyes and all she saw was white. Squinting from the bright color, she could see that it was a ceiling she was looking at and not the bright lights of heaven. That must mean that Slade didn't kill her as he had hoped to. She blinked multiple times, trying to ger her eyes adjusted to the fluorescent light in the room.

Looking around, Rory quickly noticed that she was in a hospital room and there were vases of daisies everywhere. There was an IV in her left arm pushing fluids into her body and a tube in her nose. With a groan of disgust, she took the plastic tubing off of her face deciding that she should leave the needle in her arm. The nurses could force one back in her and that was a fight for another day.

The white daisies that covered her room were gorgeous, and it made her smile. There was a groan to her left, looking in that direction Rory saw three people there asleep. The person sat closest to the door was Roy, from what it looked he had been asleep for a long time. Next to Roy was Oliver, his arm was wrapped around Roy as he leaned on his shoulder for support. Rory smiled at the fight of her family there together.

The third person was sat closest to her bed, and she noticed that he was holding her hand in his sleep. Tim Drake was passed out in his chair in a position that did not look comfortable. He had bags under his eyes and looked pale. Rory worried when the last time he slept and ate was and was going to kick his ass for it later.

She squeezed his hand softly, making Tim smile in his sleep and muttered her name. Rory decided that it was best she didn't wake him, Tim needed the sleep so she laid in the bed and watched him sleep as she traced circles on his hand with her thumb. It was about an hour after she woke that Roy finally stirred, waking Oliver in the process. 

Roy's eyes met hers and he had to blink away the sleep to make sure what he was looking at was real. Rory gave him a smile and waved slightly, making him chuckle. Oliver rolled his eyes with a laugh. 

"Nice to see you awake Twinkle Toes."

Rory rolled her eyes at his comment. "Debating on going back to sleep Harper, seeing your ugly mug might kill me." she grinned. Roy laughed at her comment, Oliver chuckling beside him.

"Good to see that you didn't lose your sense of humor, kiddo. How are you feeling?" Oliver asked, standing up so he could sit on the bed next to her legs.

"I feel like I was shishkebabed." 

Oliver rolled his eyes. "You were, and you almost died. Tim barely got you here in time, what the hell gave you the idea to fight Slade Rory?" he asked, concerned laced in his tone.

"He was going to kill me either way Oli, I would rather go out on my terms and fight than die like a coward," she answered, her tone firm but her voice shakey. 

"You scared the hell out of us Rory, why didn't you try to run?" Roy asked.

Rory looked away from them, she couldn't answer that question. It would have been sensible to run away and try to get to someone who could help her, but Slade was an assassin there was a good chance she wouldn't have lived if she had tried to run.

At her silence, Oliver let out a sigh. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is that you are alive and well."

"I wouldn't say well, she has a hole through the middle of her," Roy commented with a laugh. Oliver reached over and whacked him on the head. 

"Nice Roy, totally appropriate for a hospital," he muttered and looked at Tim who was still asleep. "He hasn't left your side since you arrived, not even Alfred can get him to move. I'd say you have Tim wrapped around your finger kiddo." 

Rory looked back at Tim and smiled fondly at his sleeping figure. She would rather see him like this than how she had seen him last; broken, worried, and on the verge of tears. The memory of seeing Tim like that hurt her, she never wanted to cause that look on his face as well.