Playing with Fire
Genesis West was an unusual teen to say the least. The daughter of two super heroes. Auburn hair. Freckles. She knew she was unusual when she realized she had spent a large part of her life living with people who wore full length spandex suits to go out and fight crime. And the fact that she technically had two fathers didn't help her unusual way of life. Her biological father was none other than Central City's pride and joy, The Flash. Her mother was a young league member that died during the Thanagarian conflict. But that was seventeen years ago when she was barely a week old.
Her second father, and mentor was the dark knight himself, Batman. Batman was like a father to her mother so she sort of considered Batman to be her grandfather. Though god forbid she call him that. Batman barely tolerated being called 'papa'. She attended a private all girls school in upstate New York. She barely went anywhere without one of them with her. Which is why she found it odd that they let her join the Teen Titans. But she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She was having a great time with the titans. All except one.
Everyone couldn't help but notice the bad blood between her and Robin. They got in an argument at least twice a day. Every time Genesis called Tim 'mini-Bruce' and told him to leave her alone. Robin would ask what her problem was. At that point she would through a tantrum and breath fire at him, trying to get him out of her room. Today they had gotten one argument out of the way and Robin had reached his wits end. He had to know more about her mental state from Bruce.
"...I just don't get her Bruce. She seems okay until she sees me." Tim said into his cell phone as he paced around his room. "I know it doesn't have anything to do with her mother's death."
"She's dealing with a transition. All she knows of the world is everything me and Wally have taught her about it. Didn't you guys take on Deathstroke not to long ago?" Bruce asked.
"What's that got to do--
"She's probably tired."
"Why are you making excuses for her? This has nothing to do with the other titans or who we fought." Tim said getting annoyed with the lame explanation Bruce was giving him.
"Tell you what, your skills at getting information needs work." Bruce said.
"What?"
"I'm giving you an assignment to find out why my daughter hates you - on your own." Bruce said.
"You're joking right? She won't even talk to me right now. And you want me to invade her privacy."
"What better time to do it." Bruce said.
"...Did you start smoking pot while I'm away?" Tim asked looking at the phone oddly.
"Excuse me?" Bruce asked raising his voice a little.
"Nothing. But if she catches me looking in on her can I blame it on you?" Tim asked.
"Good bye Tim." Bruce said. Tim flipped his phone shut and sighed.
"Can't you just live with the fact that I just don't like you?" He turned to the door when he realized Genesis was standing in it. Her green eyes in their usual glare, her arms cross over her chest.
"There must be a logical reason." Tim answered smirking.
"Let me know when you find it." she said and walked away. He looked at her retreating back oddly. It was almost as if she wanted him to understand why she hated him.
"Okay." he said to himself as he sat down on his bed. He opened his lap top, started the note pad program and named his new project: Genesis W.
Genesis W.
Robin watched as Genesis left the tower with Cassandra, Starfire, and Raven.
She acts like a regular girl around everyone else. She goes shopping with the other girls. Talks on the phone to her parents. She's a little harsh towards them, though. So I want to include them in the reason she hates me.
Robin felt a little guilty as he went through Genesis' things. But Bruce had told him to figure it out for himself. He found a composition book under her pillow. It looked like a journal as he flipped through it but it was too long to read at the moment, so he scanned the pages into his computer so he could read them later. As he went through her jewelry box he found the usual. Earrings, rings, a lot of them had real diamonds and emeralds on them and were made of either gold or platinum.
"Gifts from daddy: Bruce." Robin muttered to himself. He smiled when he found that the jewelry box had a false bottom. "Pay dirt." In the small compartment he found a silver locket. It was in the shape of a heart and had several swirling designs engraved on it. He picked it up by the thin chain and took a picture of it. He found the seam and opened it. It immediately started playing music. "Shirley Bassey: Love story." he said recognizing the song. His step mother loved that song. It was something completely common in his house to come home and find his parents dancing to it. He opened it all the way to see the picture inside.
His mouth dropped in shock. He recognized the man immediately, but he hadn't seen a picture of him in years. "Jason Todd." he said. A name he hadn't said in years. A person he never expected to see in a heart shaped locket in Genesis Wayne's jewelry box. He forced himself out of shock. He closed the locket and put it in his utility belt. He put everything back the way he found it and ran back to his room as fast as he could. He picked up his cell phone dialed Bruce's number.
"Hello?"
"What did you do to them?" Robin asked.
"Tim? Are you alright? You sound a little strange." Bruce said.
"Genesis was in love with Jason wasn't she?" Robin said.
"..."
"I'm right aren't I?" He asked. "Jason is only two years older than her. He'd be nineteen now, right? What happened three years ago before he died?"
"It's only been one day, I'm impressed you've jumped to so many conclusions in such a short time." Bruce said. "But if I told you now you won't learn anything."
"Bruce--
"It's up to you whether of not you want to continue. I can't promise that I won't get mad at you if you ask anymore about them." Bruce said and hung up. Robin snapped his phone shut and sat down on the floor. The various voices in his head trying to come to a decision. He decided to sleep on it.
The next morning all the titans were in the kitchen getting their breakfast and starting their day with light jokes and conversation. That is until Genesis stormed in. She looked around and then spotted Tim, sitting at a round table, eating cereal with Conner and Garfield. She stormed over to them and stood beside Tim, making him look up at her. As soon as he did she raised her hand and slapped him so hard he fell out of his chair.
"Whoa!" Garfield said. She kicked Tim in the stomach making him curl into a ball. Conner sprang up and held her back
"Give it back! I know you have it!!" she screamed at Tim. He coughed, trying not to throw up. She kicked him hard and he didn't have his chest guard on.
"What are you--
"The locket you theft!" she yelled getting out of Conner's grip. She grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him off the floor. "I know you have it! Give it back!"
'I knew she'd miss it. It was stupid to take it. She's going to kill me.' Tim thought as he tried to get out of her grip.
"What is wrong with you?" Conner asked trying to get her to stop strangling Tim.
"Me? He stole Jason's locket!!" she yelled letting go of Tim. "God! Could you be any more like Bruce!? Why can't the two of you just leave me alone?" She pushed away from Conner and stormed out the kitchen.
Tim took a deep breath and held on to the locket a little tighter. He had procrastinated all day about giving it back to Genesis. He thought about just leaving it in her room when she was out but she hadn't left all day. He opened her door a crack to see if she was still awake. He started feeling worse seeing she was kneeling in front of her bed crying. She gasped and looked at the door when he cleared his throat.
"Leave me alone, you bastard!" she growled. Her hair turning to flames for a moment.
"Look, I'm sorry." Tim said walking in the room.
"You think that makes up for--" she stopped talking when he held out his hand. She snatched the locket from him and turned back to her bed.
"Haven't you ever been curious about anything?" Tim asked as he sat down next to her. She just looked at the locket in her hand. "I wanted to know why you hated me. I mean to my prior knowledge we hadn't met before I became Robin--
"That's just it." She said. "It was just like - Jason died, and boom we get a new Robin. Papa just replaced him like he was a dead gold fish or something. It's how they both deal with it. Mommy dies and daddy just gets a new girlfriend, every week. If I died they wouldn't care."
"So you're mad at them for getting over their grief?" Tim asked.
"There's a difference between getting over your grief, and masking it. They are masking. Covering up their pain with something pretty." Genesis said. "It's how they deal with me. They give me things they think I'll like hoping I'll forget everything they did to me." She opened the locket and looked at Jason's picture. "To us."
"What happened?" Tim asked. She looked at him with her usual glare.
"Why don't you just find out from Bruce?" she asked.
"He'd never tell me everything." Tim said. "He never talks about Jason. He only does to tell me I'm nothing like him or to tell me to shut up talking about him. He locks me out of all the computer files he has on Jason. The ones he didn't get rid off. The costume behind the glass is the only thing I ever see of him."
"It's because of what happened." Genesis said closing the locket.
"What happened?" Tim asked.
"How long have you got to sit here and listen?" she asked.
"All the time in the world." Tim answered.
"That's a good thing." Genesis said. She sighed. "Suppose I'll start when we started..."