It was not long after lunch that he found himself storming towards the front doors of the Institute. Ignoring Roy's baffled 'What the fuck got his panties in a twist' as energy surged through each and every one of his cells.
He needed air. Needed to breathe somewhere that didn't make him feel as though he was being buried alive. But more importantly, he needed to move. Needed to feel each and every cell in his body stretch. To expel the energy that was building each and every millisecond, and training was no longer cutting it.
Gotham wasn't what he wanted. It was depressing; like something a person would see in a post-apocalyptic movie. It was a dystopian world co-existing alongside the real world. A horrific nightmare come to life. And he hated it. Hate the restrictions that came with being forced into living there. Not that he had complained much.
Wally had done enough of that for the both of them.
But Wally wasn't 'a kid'. Wally got to regularly go on missions. Wally got to regularly stretch his legs. Wally got to attend meetings and know what the hell was going on. All he got were snippets. Overheard whispers about Vandal and Slade, even mentions of Ra's and Zoom-
The mere thought of the latter had shudders running up Bart's spine. Because even if Vandal hadn't been seen in fifteen years, the others had been. Members of the light had cropped up every so often, destroying lives before disappearing again. And Zoom- god, he could kill Zoom. It didn't matter how illegal it was; he had never wanted to harm someone the way he wanted to harm Zoom.
Jogging as slowly as he possibly could without looking weird, he tried to take his mind off of the monsters that were rumoured to be gathering in Gotham.
It wasn't often he got to be alone with his thoughts. Either he was training, on a mission, more training, eating, or asleep. And most of that involved the presence of others.
He actually enjoyed taking time to himself. Enjoyed reading, or just being in the world for a moment. Jogging in the city allowed him to just exist. Another person passing the world by.
Eventually he came across a Starbucks and decided to take a break from his quote-in-quote jogging.
Walking up to the counter, he smiled at the girl stood behind the cash register. The first thing to flit through his mind was to question whether her hair was naturally white or not. There was a hint of silver in her blue eyes, and a part of him wondered why the emotion that flickered through them looked so much like recognition. He was absolutely certain that if he had seen her before, he would most definitely remember her.
"You know, most people don't go jogging in jeans and a shirt."
Shrugging, he quickly looked up to the menu boards before looking back at the girl – Rose, her name tag said.
"I had already left home before I decided to jog. Had to work with what I've got. Could I get a venti hot chocolate, whipped cream and the works to sit in, please." Glancing at the food, he felt his stomach growl. "Ooh!" His eyes widened and he felt a grin stretch across his face. "I'll take two cinnamon buns as well please."
A perfectly sculpted eyebrow rose as she grabbed a marker. "Should I tell your teacher you're skipping school." Her lips had pulled into a smirk, and he almost felt offended.
Almost.
"I don't go to school anymore." Cocking his head to the side, he watched as she put the order through the till. "You don't exactly look like you're old enough to have left school." Not that he knew all that much about mundane schooling.
With a snort, she slid the plate with the two cinnamon buns across the counter towards him. "You wouldn't catch me dead anywhere near one of those hell holes. That'll be nine fifty."
Handing over ten dollars he nodded. "Sitting around all day sucks, but some of the teachers could be wicked cool. That and-" Someone appeared behind him in the queue and when he glanced to the side he felt his face fall.
"Wally said I would find you here." There was a smile on her tan face, blue eyes wide and somehow happy. "I need to talk to you."
"Here's your change, freckles."
Looking back up at Rose he smiled, thanked her and moved to the end of the bar to collect his drink.
After collecting his drink and setting himself down at a table by one of the windows, he was joined by Cassie. He had known her all of five days, and while she was fast en-route to becoming one of his best friends, he wasn't in the mood. Frustrated bitterness was still clinging to his cells, not to mention he had been content talking to the barista.
"She's pretty for a mundane." Cassie all but whispered the last word and yet still managed to strictly emphasise the word and it's importance.
Shrugging, he took a drink of his hot chocolate. "I didn't notice." Moving to pull at the cinnamon bun, he met Cassie's eyes. "So what's up? Roy steal Artemis' bow again? Cause I've gotta ask, does he do that this often all the time? It's already getting old and I've been here like five days. I can't imagine how the rest of you cope because if I have to deal with it much more I'm just gonna buy her that new bow th-"
"Nah, this is just a thing that happens every couple of months. Artemis will say something that will drive Roy nuts, so he'll spend a week or two stealing her bow and hiding it. Then Clark will get involved and it will be over until the next time."
Stuffing his mouth with bun, he nodded slowly as he chewed. 'Hmming' through the food. "What set him off this time?"
"Artemis keeps implying that he has a crush on Jade Nguyen." Glancing around the coffee shop Cassie leaned forward, a grin plastered to her face. "He totally does though. It's so obvious, and totally hilarious cause she's- Well, there's a reason she isn't supposed to leave Idris you know?"
"We should set them up." He decided. "How crash would that be? Roy would stop acting so repressed, and Artemis could sing 'I told you so' to the world like we know she wants to."
For a moment, Cassie looked like someone had told her Christmas had come early. "Okay, yes. Yes. Project Rade – Or Joy? Definitely Joy. Project Joy is now totally a thing. We can work on that in between preparing for whatever war everyone is convinced is coming. And speaking of war, guess what I heard?"
"The Vamp's are secretly plotting to destroy us all and take their rightful place as Kings of Gotham?"
"No." And then Cassie's face grew more serious. "The League has made some kind of deal with the Court and they've returned to the city."
He might have only been in Gotham for five days, but he was anything but an idiot. Not only did his brain work far faster than the average Shadowhunters, he had an eidetic memory. Everything he had heard or seen on the news; every rumour; every image. It was seared into his mind.
For a moment, his heart felt as if it was beating at a normal rate. The League was a group of highly trained, impossibly skilled Nephilim who cut themselves off from the Clave and went into hiding. No one heard from them unless they wanted to be seen or heard. The Court was a mix of Nephilim and Downworlders who were against everything the Clave stood for. However last he had heard the Court were one hundred percent against the Light, so-
"That doesn't make any sense."
"Right?" Cassie pulled her phone from her pocket. "I asked a friend of mine if he knew anything about the deal, 'cause he's been lowkey looking into the Court- He said he didn't know anything about the League other than the fact he's convinced he saw Ra's in Whole Foods yesterday. But what he does know is that the Court are scouting again. Which is kinda terrifying when you think about it."
"Scouting?"
"For an operative. They're looking for a new 'Talon'." She made inverted commas with her fingers, a look of disgust on her face. "I mean, half of me doesn't want to care because B's Clan usually deals with that shit, but the other half of me knows that it's different this time around. I mean, come on, Slade fucking Wilson has reappeared, do you know how terrifying that is? He tried to kill Conner and Kara when they were kids. And he was weirdly obsessed with Grayson for like, ages."
Most people seemed to find Cassie's gossiping frustrating, but Bart loved it. Because while most people though gossiping was useless, Cassie knew how to use senseless talking to gather information. She would gather bits and pieces and piece together the facts and then she passed it on. Or at least, she had started passing it on to Bart. Who took what she told him and tried to figure out what she might be missing.
Maybe it was wrong of Cassie to 'accidentally' eavesdrop on top secret enclave meetings, but it meant that the two of them weren't as in the dark as they would be otherwise. He liked being included in something; even if that something could end up having his ass suspended from active duty in a heartbeat.
At least the rest of the Institute, and anyone who passed them by, just thought they were gossiping kids. As frustrating as the stereotype was, it gave them space. Meant that maybe, just maybe, they could start up their own investigations.
"I think most of the bad guys need hella intensive therapy sessions." Cocking his head to the side, a dry laugh slid past his lips. "So long as the therapists are tested first. We don't need another Harleen."
Cassie nodded, taking a sip from her drink. "I could do it. I'd love to get into, like, Ra's head for like two minutes. He's terrifying, but I just want to know why they think the way they do."
"What makes the villains tick, with Cassandra Sandsmark."
Leaning back against the wall, his fingers drummed against the concrete ground. Staking out wasn't exactly his thing, but someone had to do it. Someone had to figure out what was really going on. Everything being hearsay was frustrating. News told him one thing; pack members told him another; Selina twisted her words to make it would like it was nothing; Cassie was never told anything; Kori couldn't tell him anything because she was missing; Raven needed every ounce of protection she could get; and Vic-
Closing his eyes he let the hatred for the world burn in his chest. Everything sucked.
He felt like he was being pulled in fifty different directions. Whispers of war were everywhere, but no one knew exactly what was happening. The Nephilim didn't know nearly as much as anyone pretended they did, because this was Gotham.
Gotham didn't want the Shadowhunters there, and with no one cooperating they were weak. And he wanted to blame everyone. At least Megan tried to get along with everyone; but the Shadowhunters abused how nice she was. Bruce kept everyone a mile away, distancing himself from everyone and everything; pushing to get the Nephilim to leave the city. Selina kept more information to herself than she shared with the pack. After Kori, the Fae Folk seemed to remove themselves from contacting anyone.
Sometimes he felt so utterly alone; because he wanted this solved before the war really broke out. Maybe he was just more invested than everyone else. It wasn't the first time someone he cared about was entangled with the man's plans for the world. Just this time, he was going to save them. Even if it meant losing himself in the process.
He wouldn't lose anyone else to the psychopath.
"Hasn't your sister ever told you that you shouldn't be out so late by yourself?"
The familiar voice hit his ears, and his eyes flew open. A grin spread across his face as he met the warm, chocolate brown eyes of his best friend.
"Dude, hasn't anyone ever told you that you're terrible at sneaking up on people?"
It was far from the truth; despite how large Vic was, he could be stealthy when he wanted to be. Much to Gar's chagrin. Despite how sensitive all his senses were, he couldn't always pick up on his best friends approach. There were very few people in the world who could sneak up on him. Although Vic had only joined that short list over the past few months.
Apparently his training was paying off.
"I'm not kidding, dude. You're sat in a fucking alley way, at two o'clock in the morning on a Friday night. What the hell are you thinking?"
"That the only people likely to attack me are the Joker's gang, and last time I checked, dude, I can out run those guys."
Vic dropped down to sit opposite him. "He's still alive." Shaking his head, a scoff slid past his lips. "Which makes no sense what so ever."
"I know, dude. Grayson, Todd, Drake, and Wayne showed up at Meg's because they can't figure out how he's doing it."
"You'd think Todd would have some kind of a clue."
Gar shrugged, staring out of the alley towards the street. "I don't know, dude. Sometimes I think he was never actually killed. Because if he was, Meg's wouldn't be needed."
"I'm surprised Grayson went to your sister and not Zatanna." Vic stated, his tone thoughtful. "Isn't she usually his first choice?"
Nodding, he mulled it over. Most people went to Zatanna rather than Megan, and it frustrated him. Just because his sister wasn't the greatest Warlock in the world didn't mean she wasn't good at her job. If people gave her a chance she could be one of the best in the world. As far as he was concerned though, she was the best in the world. After all, she had single handedly taken out Simon and sent him straight to the Clave. Something no other Warlock had successfully accomplished.
But she could be shy. Always eager to please, and maybe some people found that off putting. Or maybe they felt like going to her was taking advantage of her kindness. She always put missions before herself.
Or maybe it was the fact Zatanna was trained by the greatest Warlock to ever live.
"Zatanna's magic is different. She has a set focus with her magics, Megan works with everything."
"Including necromancy?"
"Initially excluding necromancy. She's started studying it now. As the technical High Warlock of Gotham, she should have a rough grasp of everything."
Vic cocked his head to the side. "I take it you avoided mentioning Rae."
Narrowing his eyes, he turned to meet Vic's gaze. "Jaime mentioned her, I cut him off. I've warned her that her name was mentioned to the Wayne Clan in the context of Warlock. Just gotta hope they don't go investigating."
"I'm sure she'll be fine. If anyone knows how to protect themselves, it's her."
"I just don't want her being dragged into a world she doesn't want involved in."
"And yet you've happily forced yourself into her life."
Despite it being a teasing-joke, the words sliced through him like a butter knife. "I'm in her life as Garfield Logan, veterinary receptionist. Not Gar, werewolf. She needed a friend, and that's what I am."
"We should try all meeting up for coffee some day. I'll find a way to contact you and you can drag Rae along. I miss hearing you two do nothing but bicker."
"How's it going?"
Vic looked at the ground, shaking his head. "Well, we're setting up near Gotham. So I'll be a hell of a lot closer. Training is intense as hell, dude. You're lucky I can manage these monthly meet ups. And I'm still barely scraping level two."
"Cassie said there's rumours the League and the Court have made some kind of deal."
Nodding, a humourless laugh slid past his lips. "It's fucking crazy man. I first heard about the deal a fortnight ago." A mix of horror and worry settled in his eyes. "Apparently the prophecy is more commonly known than we thought. Ra's, the Court, Vandal- They want to see it come to pass. They believe that by enacting the prophecy they will be the chosen ones. That they will be leading the world to a new era under their control."
"What, so the Light are cultists now?"
"Basically. We don't get to join up until we're level five, so I'm just working off of hearsay."
"It's been enough so far. So long as we can find Kori and stop the war, we're good. Slade isn't getting away with his shit. Not this time."
A dark grin stretched across Vic's face. "We're gonna get that son of a bitch. We're gonna stop the light. We're going to tear the League apart. We're going to prove to the Clave that segregation is stupid; that Nephilim and Downworlder's can work together without incident."
"We're going to change the world, dude."
"Or die trying."
The blade sliced through the Demon and it burst into flames before turning to a pile of ash on the floor.
His chest was heaving, and he wanted to scream at everyone who thought it was a good idea that just Artemis and he should go on the mission. All he had done for two hours was kill Demons. Two whole hours. While he appreciated getting to expel his built up energy, it was still tedious over kill.
"This could have been finished forty five minutes ago if Roy and Conner had been with us." He hissed, pulling his stele out of his boot so he could draw an iratze onto his torso.
Looking over to Artemis, he saw her drawing her own iratze onto her upper arm. "Broody and broodier apparently had more important meetings to attend to."
"Bart and Cassie could have come."
Because there was no arguing that statement. There was no reason for the two youngest members of the Institute to have not joined them.
"They've been begging to do something all day."
Artemis' lips twitched as she drew a second iratze on her own torso. "It was why the kid took off earlier, wasn't it? He's bored."
Not quite. He thought to himself, thinking on how he had felt Bart's frustration at their situation.
"He's used to getting to go on missions."
While the statement wasn't one hundred percent true, uncle Barry had stressed the need to keep the truth one hundred percent under wraps. They were in Gotham. An unpredictable, and ridiculously dangerous city. While they didn't have to hide anything in Central, there was no telling as to what could happen if the truth got out in Gotham.
At that point, he was one hundred and one percent certain that Hal was the only person in Gotham that knew. Not even Roy knew, and that was saying something.
Coughing, Artemis shook her head wryly. "He should be allowed to come with us. He's not quite up to standard, but he needs to get his feet wet. The more someone gets out and about, the faster they learn."
"He's better than he lets on." He stated quietly. "I just don't think he's all that good with dealing with new people."
He could still remember Bart's return to the Central Institute. For months he had been a mix of different characters; as though he was testing out which personality people reacted best to. He could remember sitting his cousin down, and telling him to be whoever he wanted to be. It didn't matter what anyone else though of him; being who made himself happy was what was important.
Since then, Wally had become Bart's number one confidant. He still didn't know whether that was a good thing or not.
"I'm sure he'll settle in just fine, baywatch. He and Cass are sure on route to become the worlds best gossips."
Part of him was pretty sure the two kids were fast one route to becoming the worlds greatest spies. Bart had mentioned on more than one occasion about how left out he felt. Everyone else was getting the down low on what was happening in the Downworld while those two were left out of the meetings.
"Come on, Crock. We should be heading back. I don't know about you, but I could sleep for a month."
When they left the warehouse, he decided he could probably sleep for longer than a month. But he always rested pretty quickly. Everything about him was faster than almost everyone else. He healed faster. Rested faster. Ate faster. Thought faster. It was as fun as it was frustrating. Because sometimes he wanted to sleep for hours and hours at a time, but he would be awake before almost everyone else.
Artemis coughed again, and he looked at her from the corner of his eye. He didn't mention it; last time he had mentioned that he thought she might be coming down with something, she almost decked him. Artemis and colds were not friends. Giving her a once over, he internally frowned. She was a little paler than usual, and her skin was almost starting to look clammy.
Don't mention it. He internally hissed. She'll deck you.
"My dad's in town."
And okay, what?
Momentarily freezing, he pushed himself to continue on as if her saying that wasn't a big deal.
"A-are you okay? With that? I mean-"
She shot him a look and he instantly clamped his mouth shut. It had been that way for as long as he could remember. They weren't friends. They weren't enemies. They weren't each others romantic interest. They lived on a line that was some weird combination of fighting, flirting, keeping each others secrets, and pretending not to care about each others well being.
But they did care; because they weren't friends. They weren't. But they had a strong friendship. They fought impossibly well together; knew each others style despite not having fought with one another since they were both students in Idris. They insulted each other, but defended on another whenever any other asshole decided to try and insult the other.
It was the way they had been since the day they had met, and maybe, just maybe, he should have listened to Dinah when she said they would have made good parabati.
"Not really." She replied, pushing forwards. "I hate him."
"I know. I hate him for you too."
"He's rejoined the Light."
And that was it, his opportunity to start just a little bit of digging.
"How do you know that?"
Stopping in the middle of the street, she folded her arms and glared at the cracked pavement beneath their feet. He turned to face her, burying his hands into his trouser pockets.
"He appeared during one of my missions last week. Tried to recruit me. Said the Light are preparing for something new. Something big. Told me I'd be spared if I joined them. That he wanted me to join them. I was stupid enough for a split second to think that he wanted me to join because he cared about me. He said losing such a skilled warrior would be a terrible loss."
"Arty-"
"I know. I know he's a bad guy, that he's a monster. That he's going to end up dead. I know I would sentence him to that death if I had to. But still, every time he tells me he wants me to join, I can't help but want that fatherly recognition. It sucks."
"Yeah. Yeah, it really does." Because even if he never spoke about his own dad, it didn't mean he couldn't relate. "I get it, Arty. We all want our parents to love us, but we don't need it. You've got Olly, and even if he is a bit- Odd, he loves you like you were his own. That's a real dad. Someone who takes you in, loves you unconditionally, and is proud of everything that you are. Lawrence can go fuck himself."
Her lips curved into a smile that reached her eyes, and in that moment she looked younger than he had ever seen her. "I'm glad you're around again, even if you hate it here. But if you tell anyone I said that, I'll rip your tongue out."
