title: and for actaeon, artemis
author: medie
rating: teen
word count: 652
note: written for oxoniensis's porn battle on livejournal. This is Talia re-envisioned for the Batman Begins 'verse

-

It's a benefit for the impoverished youth of Gotham. Offhand, she knows of four men in the room who are active in the child sex trade and oneof them will be dead before morning.

The man watching her is not one of them, is not the man she's here to kill.

She takes a flute of champagne off a passing waiter's tray, smiles lightly in thanks and continues on. Part of her thinks her father is right,this a city which deserves to die in a wave of flame. What's left of her soul causes her stomach to lurch at the thought. She quashes the reaction, smoothes a hand along the silk draped over her skin. It's luxurious and a purchase from her last job, fitting that blood money would go to a dress of the same shade.

He appears without her sensing his approach. She approves, he paid attention to her father's lessons.

The ones worth paying attention to at any rate.

He smiles, kisses the back of her hand, she ignores the thrill of it. "I don't believe I know you."

She smiles, the darkness covered with a pleasing light. "But I know you."

Even here she can see the Batman looking back.

-

He doesn't know who she is, she's sure of that. Her father never reveals weaknesses lightly and she is his greatest weakness of all. It doesn't matter if he knows her identity or not, he's draw by her all the same as she thought he would be.

He can't resist the siren call of the dark, especially hers.

She lets him lead her in a dance, presses her body too close to be proper but enough she can feel the strength beneath his tux.

Her father wanted her here but she doesn't care. Bruce is not the only one drawn to the dark.

-

"What brings you to Gotham?" He asks with his palm pressed against the skin of her back, thumb tracing tiny circles. "Business?"

"Of a sort," she shows more sadness than she feels. "My father recently passed away, I'm here to clue up his affairs." She suspects he'd be shocked if she thanked him, more still if she confesses her relief her father's gone or her worry that he isn't. The wind blows her hair away from her face and she closes her eyes, sees the mountains and the flames against the sky.

She was wrong once before, she can't be again.

"I'm sorry," he murmurs.

"You shouldn't be."

-

This is a mistake, this is what he would want but she doesn't care now.

She kisses Bruce because she wants to, lets her body slide against his and tease him with unspoken promises. She wants to stop, wants to tell him but she's not that reckless. She has a contract which needs to be fulfilled, this is a dalliance and a risk that she can't stop herself from taking.

Bruce is trying to keep up the image, she laughs into the kiss. "You're not fooling me," she says, pulling back and keeping her mouth just out of reach. "I know what you're hiding."

Alarm flares in his eyes for a brief second then she pushes him hard into the wall and waits.

When he grabs for her, she grins dark and triumphant. He fucks her against the wall, face pressed against her neck and she knows.

-

The councilman with the penchant for little boys suffers an unfortunate accident on the stairs of his penthouse. It's quick, clean and far better than he deserves. She steps on him on the way out.

She's not surprised to see the Batman waiting. He says nothing, cape moving in the breeze.

"You killed my father," she tells him.

He braces himself, waiting for the fight.

Talia kisses him. It's the same thing.

-

She thinks her father is dead but maybe he still won.