Chapter 2: Step up or step out
"Alright so that was probably the most boring physics class ever." Jackson says, Mary nods in agreement. "So what do you guys have next?" Kyle asks. The quiet blonde speaks up for the first time this morning, "Calculus." "Ah nice. Uhm it says here I've got Spanish." Kyle says. Mary looks back down at her feet. "Hey, Mary is there something wrong or are you just always like this? I don't mean to be rude by that but it seems like you've been down all day. You okay?" Kyle claps her on the back, she jumps and almost looks like she's gonna flip him for a split second, "Nope this is true genuine Mary, she's just shy." Jackson replies. "Oh okay, well I'm sorry for asking…" Kyle says. Egypt looks on "What about you E?" Jackson asks "Spanish as well, just follow me Kyle." Egypt says "Okay, thanks Egypt." Kyle says. Since their classes are all in the same direction they all walk toward their classes and then two football players come by and push Kyle and Jackson "Who's the extra dweeb?" the tall one says "Uhm, I'd love it if you didn't call me ing to resolve conflict before there's much of one. They laugh then the taller one gets serious, "Kyle West eh, hold him down Tony." Mary flashes out from behind us, "Henry I would appreciate if you didn't try to hurt my friend, capice?" He apologizes and scatters off friend in tow. "What was that all about?" Kyle asks. She sighs and gives out the most they all knew about her personal life thus far, "His dad works for mine. I didn't want him to hurt you guys." She is now back to her shy self, looking back down at her feet. "Wow I'm so sorry to hear that Mary." Kyle says She jumps and looks at him shocked as if he knows something then blurts out, "We do carpet." She then runs off to class. "She seems nice, I wonder who her parents are?" Kyle says. As lunch rolls around Kyle is looking around for his newfound friends but then is jumped again by Henry and his goons. "Hey back off of my friend." Egypt says while running towards them while she's running towards them she says. "Back of before you get what you deserve." "Wow, would ya look at that, you haven't even been here for a whole day and you've already got people protecting your sorry ass." Tony says. Kyle looks at him "To be fair Tony I have no need for their help but they're good friends unlike you so let me say this once. Please leave me alone and I won't have to get physical with you. If you bug me one more time today I will tell authorities and if you still attempt to bother me by then then I have the right to fight back." Just then Jackson walks into the cafeteria where they're all having lunch and asks what all the commotion is about and before he could lay a finger on the two football players they walked off hurriedly. "Why are they so rude? That's now the second time today they've attempted to demoralize me." Kyle says. "Because those two dweebs think they run the school just because they're football players." Egypt says while getting annoyed all over again. No one notices Mary's absence until they look back to where the jocks are sitting and spot her sitting between them. She comes back shortly and shuffles awkwardly back into the circle. "And why were you over with those assholes?" Jackson asks inquisitively. " Yea like through all our High School years you never hung out with them till now whats going on"?. Egypt looks at Mary then back at the jocks. "They shouldn't bother us again." She replies. "Well thank you Mary." Kyle says. While Kyle accepts it Egypt doesn't she's still got a bad feeling about the whole situation. That night our four new faces all went out on patrol with either their parents or on their own. Little did they know this patrol would be a statewide mission tonight. Kyle was known as Quickshot when he was patrolling and found a mysterious clown quartet He thought he could take them all on his own. Boy was he wrong he attempted to zoom past the clowns but they knew a speedster was coming and thus put ice on the floors and when he began to slip on the ice upon coming in he was whacked in the back of the head with a crowbar. When Kyle woke up he was tied to a chair and the clowns from earlier but there's a figure this one is smaller than the clowns and wearing a dark cloak. "Hello cutie I'm sure you're eager to meet my baby. Ace!" the Joker steps up to Ace and sticks a huge needle in their arm injecting them with a toxic green colored fluid. A giggle is heard from Ace indicating Ace is a girl. Joker yanks the cloak off the girl revealing a pretty girl in an all black tight leather tank top shorts and boots, with a throwing knife in hand and bright blue eyes her hair pulled back into a ponytail that sways behind her a spade painted over her right eye. That ponytail and those eyes. Where has Kyle seen them from? "I'm Ace it would be a pleasure to meet you, but I guess the real pleasure is to end you." She says "Well then I guess it's about time we get serious." Kyle says as he makes his way out of the ropes he's tied to. He reaches for his bow and realizes it's not there. "Okay hand to hand then? Let's do this." and with that Kyle is facing off against Ace in a one on one fist to fist battle. "I've never gotten serious before, exciting, I like it when they fight back." She pants narrowly dodging a punch aiming for her gut, then countering with a kick. "Is this really all you've got? I'm not even using my speed." Kyle says mocking his opponent. What a bad move. As he mocks her she manages to grab his arm and straddle him pulling her blade from its sheath, "It's too bad I have to kill you, I think you're kinda cute." She leans down to his neck her breath brushing his neck as she whispers, "Kyle." How does she know my name? Kyle thinks to himself and just before she slits his throat he flips her over, "Almost baby bird! Just gotta try a bit harder!" Harley yells. "So are we done playing around? I'm tired of sparring." They both say in unison, they then share a laugh before trading hard blows. "If you don't kill em' daddy's gonna give you a spanking!" Joker cackles she suddenly starts fighting twice as hard. "She doesn't want to hurt anyone. She's slowing me down!" Ace yells Joker throws her another syringe and she plunges it into her arm injecting herself with the drugs. She then gets much faster with her blocking and even manages to hit Kyle a couple times between blocking. "Alright, that's what I'm talking about." Kyle says, "Nice to know you feel the same, If you didn't have to die," She grunts after a punch to the gut, "I might consider askin' you to dinner" Kyle mentally laughs this girl has quite the humor, but I'd never go with someone like that. I'm a good guy. Ace punches Kyle one more time in the gut and this one is a lot more impactful than the rest she then pulls out her knife, "I prefer to play with my food but looks like I'll just have to eat it." She throws a knife and right before it implants itself in Kyle's forehead an arrow deflects it. "Oh mom's here." Damn it that's another person saving me for something I clearly can handle on my own "You're on your own kid, see you at home!" Joker runs off with Harley in tow. "Such great parents." She says after running to her blade on the floor and instead of taking a clear shot for Kyle's leg she starts to cry. "I'm sorry Kyle." She then takes her blade and almost implants it in her chest when for once it was his turn to save someone, "Hey, I don't know how you know my name, or why you look so familiar, but I do know that anyone to give me that good of a fight shouldn't kill themselves." He takes the blade from her and says "Until we meet again." she doesn't run though, "I can't go home. You don't understand either they kill me or I do." she says "Why don't you come with us for a bit then?" She shakes her head and walks over to a corner rummaging through a familiar looking backpack pulling out a piece of paper. "If you guy's could drop me off at um. . . Nightwings? Whoever the hell that is. I need to talk to him." She passes the crumpled yellowed tear stained paper to Kyle. "THE NIGHTWING?! You don't know who Nightwing is?" Kyle asks shocked, she looks down at her feet and mumbles, "Just read the goddamn letter and be glad I didn't kill you." "Uhm excuse me? Who's taking you home? And I was handling myself just fine over there." Kyle jokes around. "Here get on my back I don't have a car but I have super speed and Nightwing is my uncle so I'll get you there quickly." Kyle says setting an actually serious tone in his voice for once. "Please just read the paper." Ace says. "Fine, I'll read it." Kyle says as he reads it he sees something at the bottom of the paper and it looks like a bunch of random numbers so he gives her the paper back and says "Let's go." "Alright. . .cousin." She mumbles She gets on his back and they blast off to the Grayson household and as they arrive she nearly falls off him, "It's Mary, by the way, see you tomorrow. . . hopefully. . . actually could you stay with me, I don't know him." "Sure… I'm just a bit set aback by the fact that you're Dick Grayson's daughter… Also that you tried to kill me more than once in one night… and that your killer side thinks I'm cute?" she blushes a bit, "That was one side of me, separated… I think, I'm set back too, I thought I was a Joker until this morning. . .plus who names their kid Dick?" She laughs a bit. "Yeah, What were they thinking naming uncle Dick, Dick?" Kyle chuckles as they wait the next five minutes they learn a lot about each other. Just as they're about to leave and try the next day Dick opens the door. "Hey Kyle, who's this? Oh wow did you finally bring a girl home? I bet Wally's proud but you're at the wrong house." Dick says "She's your daughter and she needed a way to get home Uncle." Kyle says Mary is looking down and blushing at the previous comment a bright red. "I'm Mary." She says "Well, it's very nice to finally meet my daughter. Thank you Kyle you should head back to your house we'll see you tomorrow." Dick says and with that Kyle says "Alright I'll see you guys tomorrow love you." Kyle then rushes home. "Hey mom hey dad I'm home." "How was patrol son?" Wally asks. "It was fine, I got jumped but I handled myself well, I also payed a visit to Uncle Dick, I'm gonna go to bed now though, I'm tired." Kyle says. Then Kyle walks up to his room. He sits and thinks about the night. So Mary's my cousin and she has a crush on me? Or was that Ace? What is going on? Kyle then falls asleep.a dweeb, I'm a junior and I'm new here. My name is Kyle West. What's yours?" Kyle says try
