Chapter 20 — Competence & Care | +18
ᯓ♡ fandom: The Batman (Reevesverse) | STRAYS
ᯓ♡ word count: 1,250
ᯓ♡ synopsis: From Batman’s conflicted observation to the urgent care of a wounded street cat, Selina’s secret photo, Sofia’s ferocious stance, and most of all, in Elara’s competent hands, a tapestry of what care means in their world
ᯓ♡ warnings: Veterinary medical procedure • Animal injury • Possessive dynamics • Emotional vulnerability • Found family • Surveillance
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The same night, her half-sister finally got out of bed and not on the floor, Selina crept back in, black jacket shedding water. She spots them: Sofia on her side, Elara curled small, hand on Sofia's sleeve like an anchor. "Good job, kid." Selina smirks to herself, pulls her phone quietly to snap a photo in the amber lamp glow, won't admit it aloud. She pockets it before crashing into the armchair, watching over both.
A few hours later, the morning light casts gray through grime while coffee scent was thick in the air. Batman perches on a gargoyle across the street, binoculars steady on the loft window. Sofia, a fugitive mob boss, pours mugs.
Elara in the armchair, laughing at something Selina says from the couch, eyes safe, without any fear. Evil should rot in cells, Bruce thinks, but this... looks like family, domestic as hell. Sofia spots him first, body shifting protective as step between an oblivious Elara and the window.
She murmurs low to Selina. "Company outside." Her gaze flicking fierce to the gargoyle, then back to Elara. Watch all you want, bat; touch her and I'll gut you.
Selina gave a casual nod, but she was alert. Let him stare, proves we're not the monsters here. Bruce lowers the binoculars, conflicted; vengeance or hope? He vanishes into the shadows, leaving them to their breakfast.
When it's already night, the sky outside was still that pre-dawn grey, when Selina's voice cut through the quiet loft. "Shit, shit."
Sofia was up immediately, her hand going to the knife under her pillow before her brain fully engaged. Beside her, Elara stirred, mumbling something about "no more math homework..."
"What?" Sofia called, already standing.
Selina was crouched by the window, a large grey tabby in her arms. "Phantom came back, he's hurt."
Phantom was one of Selina's rescues, being a massive, battle-scarred tom who came and went as he pleased, disappearing for days on urban explorations before returning like he owned the place.
Sofia crossed the room, looked at the cat. There was something wrong with his right hind leg; swollen, angry-looking, the skin stretched tight over something that shouldn't be there.
"Abscess," Elara said from the mattress, voice rough with sleep, but suddenly focused. She was sitting up, slipping her glasses on. The regressed softness from other night replaced by vet student precision. "Probably from a bite, how long's he been gone?"
"Four days," Selina said, worry etched in her face. Phantom yowled, a deep, pained sound.
"Clinics won't be open for hours." Elara was already moving, pulling on her hoodie over her sleep shirt. "And he's in pain now, I can help, if you want?"
Selina looked at her, then at Sofia. "You sure?"
"I've done this before. At the college, back home." Elara was already going to her backpack, pulling out her field medical kit, the one she kept stocked for emergencies. "I'll need wet food, warm water, and those old blankets you use for the cat beds."
Sofia watched as Elara transformed, her entire demeanor becoming professional with this purpose.
"Get the supplies," Sofia told Selina. "I'll help her set up."
They cleared space on the table. Selina brought a can of tuna-flavored wet food, a bowl of warm water and torn blankets. Elara opened the medical kit box to gather sterile gauze, saline solution, a small syringe, antiseptic, bandages and gloves.
Phantom yowled again, louder.
"Hey, big guy, I don't want to hurt you." Elara's voice was soothing and calm. "We're just gonna fix it."
She opened the wet food, let him smell it. His ears perked slightly. She put a small amount on her finger, let him lick it off. Then another. Distracting him while her other hand gently probed the swollen area.
He hissed but didn't strike.
"Good boy," she murmured. "Sofia, can you hold his front half, please? Gentle, but firm," she asks, before glancing at Selina. "Can keep the food coming?"
Sofia moved into position, hands settling on Phantom's shoulders. The cat tensed, but the food distraction was working.
Elara's hands moved with deliberate care. She cleaned the area with saline-soaked gauze, and feather-light touch. Phantom's yowl dropped to a low, grumbling growl.
"Okay, big guy. This next part's gonna hurt, but just for a moment." She pulled out a small vial from her kit. "Painkiller, injectable."
She administered it with the practiced efficiency of one quick stick, plunger pressed and done, with Phantom flinched just once.
They waited five minutes as the cat's growling quieted, his body relaxing slightly as the painkiller took effect.
"Okay," Elara said softly. "Now, the messy part."
She picked up a sterile needle from her kit, positioned it carefully over the swelling. "Hold him firm, please."
One quick, precise puncture and pus erupted from the wound; thick, yellow-green, smelling foul. It ran down Phantom's leg like a hot river.
Elara didn't flinch. Just applied gentle pressure, helping the abscess drain completely. Her free hand stroked Phantom's head, keeping him grounded. "Good boy, it's almost done, you're so brave."
The cat, surprisingly, stayed calm. Watched her with half-lidded eyes, purring weakly.
When the wound was empty, Elara flushed it with saline, applied antiseptics, and bandaged it the best she could, as the whole procedure took around ten minutes.
She lifted Phantom carefully, placed him in the nest of torn blankets Selina had prepared. He settled immediately, already drowsy from the painkiller.
"He'll need antibiotics," Elara said, washing her hands at the sink. "I can get them from the clinic tomorrow, change the bandage daily, and watch for fever, but he should be fine."
Selina was studying her. "You just... you fixed him."
Elara shrugged, drying her hands. "Yeah, it's, uh, what I'm learning to do."
"You protected one of mine." Selina's voice was rough with gratitude. "Thank you."
Sofia, who'd been silent through the whole thing, felt something shift in her chest. She'd watched Elara be small, be scared, be vulnerable. But this competence, this calm in the face of pain was new.
Or maybe just another facet of who Elara was.
"You were incredible," Sofia said quietly.
Elara flushed, ducking her head. "It's just basic wound care-"
"No." Sofia moved closer and touched Elara's shoulder. "You were calm, professional. You knew exactly what to do, and you did it." She struggled for the word. "Impressive."
The corner of Sofia's mouth twitched. Not quite a smile, but recognition.
Elara's flush deepened, but she was smiling too. "Thanks, mama."
The title came so naturally now.
Sofia's hand squeezed her shoulder once, then released. "Come on, ;et's get you back to bed. You just did surgery on a war-torn street cat at 6 AM, you've earned more sleep."
"I've got him," Selina said, already settling beside the nest of blankets. "You did your part, I'll watch him."
Elara nodded, sleepness suddenly hitting her. She stumbled slightly and Sofia steadied her, before just... picked her up. Not roughly, just efficiently.
Elara squeaked, her hands flying to the woman's shoulders, her cheeks warming and eyes a bit widen. "I can walk-"
"Humor me," Sofia said, carrying her back to the mattress. "You just saved one of Selina's strays, you get to be carried."
She set Elara down gently, pulled the burgundy blanket over her. Elara was already half-asleep,
Sofia sat on the edge of the mattress, watching her drift off. A tiny regressor who played Pokémon at 3 AM and drained abscesses at 6 AM. Who called Sofia "mommy" and meant it.
Sofia's hand moved to rest on Elara's head, fingers gentle in the dark hair. Mine, she thought. My stray, my girl.
And for the first time, the possessiveness didn't feel like Arkham's control or her father's ownership, but like protection.
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