Chapter 2
The air around Wayne Manor seemed very tense throughout the day. Zoey just kept to herself, not desiring another argument with Bruce, she settled herself on the roof of Wayne Manor with her black Macbook and was replaying her Linkin Park playlist. It was a chilly January day, but Zoey didn't really feel the cold, her skin was too warm anyway. The sky seemed to be mirroring her mood; dark and cloudy.
"Excuse me, Miss Smith," A soft voice interrupted her thoughts. Zoey turned around and smiled when she saw Alfred walking towards her with a cup of hot cocoa. "Can I get you anything else?"
"A new life?" Zoey suggested, gratefully accepting the cup of hot cocoa.
Alfred smiled back, "I'm sorry, Miss Smith, but I don't know where to get you one of those. How about a hammer?"
"A hammer?" Zoey inquired. "What in the hell do I need a hammer for?"
"To bang Master Wayne over the head with for annoying you on your birthday."
Zoey laughed, "Thanks, Alfred, but I have better methods for dealing with him."
"Always happy to help attempt at cheering you up, Miss Smith," Alfred said, inclining his head slightly. Alfred left her, and Zoey giggled to herself. She loved Alfred and his wit; just another perk of living in Bruce Wayne's house….
When Zoey's stomach started growling a little while later, she went down to the kitchen and found it empty. She laughed when she found a cake sitting on the counter with her name on it. Right next to the cake was a small box with a ribbon on it.
"I didn't mean to offend you," Bruce's voice from behind her startled her slightly.
Zoey smiled and turned around, "I wasn't offended; just a little hurt." She indicated the small box, "What is this?"
"Your first birthday present in seventeen years," Bruce responded.
"You really didn't have to."
"I know I didn't," Bruce said, walking closer to her and kissing her gently on the lips, "I wanted to."
Zoey opened the box and her eyes glittered. Inside, nestled on top of velvet, was a white gold link bracelet. All along the bracelet, there were ruby birds and onyx bats.
"Phoenixes," Zoey mused, her smile growing. She hugged Bruce tightly, "Thank you so much, Bruce."
"My pleasure, Zoey," Bruce responded. "Here, let me put it on you."
Bruce took the bracelet and clasped it around Zoey's slim wrist. She shook her wrist and the charms clinked together. She pulled Bruce closer to her warm body and kissed him passionately. Their kiss deepened rapidly, and Zoey could feel not only the heat from her body, but the heat from Bruce's body. She couldn't help but moan slightly as their tongues dueled. Bruce pushed Zoey against the counter slightly, his hands on her hips—
There was a small cough, and just like that, all the magic was gone. Bruce turned around, and Zoey looked over his shoulder. Alfred was standing in the doorway looking slightly embarrassed.
"Master Wayne," Alfred said. "The Bat-Signal…."
Bruce nodded, "It's fine." He turned to Zoey, whose face was glowing slightly out of embarrassment, "You ready to go to work?"
Two minutes later, Bruce and Zoey were both down in the cave below Wayne Manor. Lucius Fox, who had designed Bruce's armor, had designed a set for Zoey. It was very much the same, just designed for a woman, and it was red and black instead of just pitch black. She had a red and black cape made out of memory cloth as well as gauntlets that were identical to Bruce's. The only major difference between them was that she word a mask instead of a cowl
They both jumped into the Tumbler and Bruce sped off. They were in the heart of the city five minutes later, on top of the building where the new Bat-Signal was located. Commissioner Jim Gordon was waiting for both of them.
"Nice to see you brought her," Gordon commented when he saw Phoenix.
"Kinda hard to keep her away," Batman growled. "What is going on with all of the fires?"
"A friend of yours has been seen in town," Gordon said, ignoring Bruce's question.
"What friend?"
"The one who tried to poison Gotham's water supply."
Both Batman and Phoenix exchanged looks.
"You aren't talking about Jonathan Crane, are you?" Phoenix asked, though she was well aware of what the answer would be.
"We're not so lucky," Gordon responded. "Crane's still locked up."
"It's not possible that you're seeing who you think you are," Batman growled at last. "He was killed when the train was destroyed."
"Tell that to the one walking around town," Gordon said. "Are you going to look in to it?"
Batman vanished without answering, leaving Phoenix alone with Gordon. Phoenix sighed deeply before talking.
"Gordon, call me an optimist, but is there any way you could be mistaken about who your men have been seeing?"
"There's always a chance," Gordon said. "But not a very big one in this case."
"And they haven't been able to catch him if it really is him?"
Gordon shook his head, "Every time my men have tried, he's vanished before their eyes."
"Great," Phoenix groaned. "Just great."
An hour later, Zoey actually had to search Wayne Manor for Bruce. She knew that if what Gordon had said proved to be true, there was a big storm coming for both her and Bruce. After searching the entire house and the caves, Zoey sat down on the marble steps.
"Bruce!" She called her voice echoing slightly. "Bruce, running from me won't help you! We need to work together if we're going to defeat Ra's Al Ghul!"
As if he had heard her, Bruce appeared on the floor above her, his eyes avoiding hers' and his voice hollow, "I thought I defeated him once. Now that I know I haven't, I doubt that even the two of us working together can."
Zoey climbed the steps two at a time and stood beside him, "Bruce, that's not true. You don't know that."
"Don't I?" Bruce inquired. "Zoey, you're strong, but have you ever fought against Ra's Al Ghul by yourself during the months that you trained with him?"
"Of course I have," Zoey responded. "Ra's trained me himself under Triton's request. Those months were hell on my muscles…."
"He burnt down my parent's house; he tried to destroy me after I saved his life—"
"I know, Bruce," Zoey said, forcing him to look at her by putting her hand on the side of his face. "I know all of that. But you can't let this turn into a quest for vengeance or it will destroy you. I'll tell you right now, if it destroys you, then I'm going down with you."
Bruce's smile was somewhat forced, but it was a smile to Zoey, nonetheless, "I won't let it destroy me, Zoey, but do you have a plan?"
"I sure as hell do, follow me."