A/N: I do not own neither the Batman franchise nor its characters and/or settings. The only thing I own are my OCs and the plot to this story. Everything else belongs to DC. Warning: Mild swearing?
Claire was dead tired and didn't hesitate to call and say she wasn't coming in that day. Her arm seemed to double in size overnight, and when she'd removed the delicate wrappings Alfred had put on her, she nearly screamed. Her brown skin was dry, and looked stretched thin against the blood pooling beneath it. The bruise was already a deep red and it hurt to touch it, and moving it was both possible and painful.
She knew her aunt would be asking — sooner rather than later—, why she would be wearing long sleeves again in warm weather and those questions she couldn't even fathom an answer to. Sighing, she pulled herself from her sheet, leaving the wrap tangled on the bed as she dragged herself to the bathroom. Her aunt would never swallow the bullshit she'd spoon fed Holly.
She found the spare toothbrushes and a bottle of face wash she knew Holly wouldn't mind sharing. Clean teeth and a clean face was as good as she was going to get that morning, seeing that she was opting out of showering because she didn't have any clean clothes here and doubted Holly washed any of hers either. A fancy dress was much better than a dirtier one which meant she'd have to be extra careful when she brushed her teeth.
"You up?" the red haired woman poked her head through the door before letting herself in. "I bought breakfast."
Claire stifled a yawn with her hand before running it through her hair as she stepped out of the bathroom."And I shall eat, my sister."
Like a shadow, Claire slinked after her best friend with her newly recovered energy. They sat down in the kitchen in silence, shoveling food in their mouth almost like a competition until Holly slurped the last of her syrup off of her plate. "I won." she laughed, licking her fingers.
"I'm disabled, you ass." Claire snorted, chewing the last forkful of eggs in her mouth. "My arm is lamer than Kyle's ability to pick up girls."
"Damn." Holly took both plates, whisking them off to the sink to run water over them. "So, how the hell are you going to tell your aunt you broke your arm trying to split a wood board in half."
Claire didn't know what compelled her to tell her friend something so stupid, but the fact her friend was that gullible to believe her almost made her facepalm. Well, at least she wasn't asking for more details. "First of all, my arm is far from broken. Let's just get that straight." she frowned, pushing away from the table. "Second of all, I won't have to tell her because she isn't supposed to be home for the next few days which gives this monstrosity on my arm plenty enough time to change colors like leaves in Fall. "
"If she's gonna be gone, why'd you spend the night here?" Claire cringed at the sound of metal scrapping against metal as the dishes clattered in the soapy water.
"She hasn't left yet." she yawned, slinking to the couch a few feet away. "Besides, your apartment was close to the gala, and I didn't want to ride the train that late. Plus, my aunt would have my head if I woke her up."
"So she knows you're here?" she heard from the kitchen.
Claire sank into the soft cushions, willingly handing herself over to the comfortable piece of furniture. She ran her hand over the blue corduroy arm as her eyes grew heavy. "Not really." she snorted tiredly, struggling to keep her eyes open. "But, I'm sure she can guess where I am if I didn't make it home." Her words trailed off near the end, the sound of her breathing drowning out Holly's response if the woman even bothered with one. Why was she so tired?
She felt a hand shake her roughly, forcing her awake.
"Claire. You need to get up, girl." Holly frowned, shaking her again. "It's a quarter till twelve and you can't sleep all day. And your phone is ringing too."
At the mention of her phone, she was up in an instant, and almost immediately regretted moving that fast as the blood rushed from her head. Hissing as her shin hit the coffee table with a heavy thud, she stumbled towards the room she'd been occupying. She shuddered when she snatched the phone up with her aching arm, answering the phone without bothering to look at who was calling.
"Hello?" she croaked, her mouth felt dry.
"Claire?" a man said, a man whose voice she couldn't recognize. Claire frowned and took the phone from her ear, waving Holly off as she poked her head through the door. The number was Bruce's, but she knew his voice was deeper and gruffer over the phone. Plus, he never called her during the day and if he did, he was just waking up. It was in the afternoon and she knew Alfred wouldn't let him sleep in this late.
"Um, yes? May I ask who's calling." She asked politely, glaring at Holly as she leapt over the queen sized bed and pulled her close to listen in.
"Why are you talking like that?" she mouthed, pressing her ear against the back of the phone.
"Move!" she hissed as she brought the phone to her chest, shrugging her off with a shake of her shoulder before turning her attention back to the man on the other end. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"
"This is his son."
She blinked. That didn't sound like Tim. "His son?"
"Who's son?" Claire heard Holly echo.
"I'm assuming you know where headquarters are. Bruce is expecting you there within the hour. " the supposed son said, almost sounding bored.
"Headquarters?" she murmured having to scratch her head. Had she been to headquarters on her own? When was the last time she'd been there anyways? A week? Two?
"Bruce is in a meeting at the moment, so–"
"What? I thought he had the day off?" she interrupted, confusion pulling at her brows.
"He did. But he got called in last minute. That's why I'm calling you instead. Anyway, he needs you to be at HQ for another meeting. If you can't get there on your own, a zeta tube should be located within a five mile radius from your apartment."
With that, he hung up.
"Where's headquarters?" Holly asked, plopping down onto the bed nearly giving Claire a heart attack fifty years too early. "Want me to drive you? My mom bought me a new car, wanna give it a spin?"
"You know where the Wayne Tower is, Holls." she forced a laugh, praying that she sounded more convincing than she felt. "I'm sure everyone who's ever heard of Gotham has." It never hurt to secure a lie. "You don't have to drive all the way to Midtown. Honestly, if you could give me a ride to my house, I'd be solid. I can't show up wearing this." she said, pointing to her choice of dress. Of course, she wouldn't really be going to the office. But no way was she popping up at the Hall of Justice with no bra on. That would practically be giving Hal material to hit on her.
"You're right." Holly agreed, shifting to sit cross legged on the bed. She leaned forward, digging her elbow into her knee. "Let's get you some clothes."
Hopping off the bed, Holly skipped out of the room with a wink only to return a minute later, jingling her keys.
Claire slid into her flats and found her wrap jacket peeking out from beneath the bed.
Holly was a terrible driver. Even in traffic. She had road rage coupled with the fact her mouth was dirtier than a truck driver. The usual ten minute drive to Claire's apartment was nearing fifteen and Holly decided she'd had enough sitting around. Holly was a patently very steers savvy for a rich girl, and Claire was certain her friend could rival Batman in the number of secret streets mapped in her head. She managed to speed through most of it with back roads, baffling Claire at how her car managed to fit on such tight spaces.
"Honey, is that you?" she heard as the door shut behind her. Her aunt waved from the living room. "I didn't here you come in last night. You should have told me you weren't coming back or at least called, I left the door unlocked and everything."
"It's me. And I completely forgot. Those people are so tiring and Holly's place was close by. Sorry I didn't call you though." Claire apologized, stealing a quick kiss on her cheek as she passed. "I've got to go in for work today but I'm running a little late. So, I'm grabbing some clothes and heading out."
"Do you know if you'll be staying at Holly's again?" Jayla asked, pushing off the couch. "Because if you are, please don't forget your keys again. You can't keep relying on the doorman when I'm not here."
Claire grinned sheepishly nearly to her room,"I promise I'll find my keys. You look nice by the way!" she laughed and shut her door as she tossed the jacket on the bed.
Kicking through the pile of clothes she'd neglected, Claire wormed her way to her dresser, pulling out a comfortable pair of fitted cargo pants and a random long sleeved shirt she was certain she slept in. It was long and clean which was good enough for her.
She was out the door in ten minutes, most of the time was spent on her trying to get out of her dress. She didn't want to risk breaking the zipper with her inability to keep her focus. She also didn't want to risk bleeding on the damned thing either because a nose bleed would probably ruin it — well, if red showed up on red. Plus, she would have been ready a few minutes earlier had she remembered a bra. But, once she was secure and dress-free, Claire hauled ass to the nearest tube.
"Recognized: Phoenix —B27." The voice welcomed, scanning her like she'd seen it do countless times before. The number thing was new, but it only meant she was officially a part of the whole hero business.
"M'gann!" Claire called, successfully gaining the attention of the green-skinned Martian.
"Claire, it's good to see you! You must be here for the meeting." M'gann smiled, floating over to her.
"Yeah, I guess I'm not the only one who got the call." she laughed, her gaze drifting over to the young speedster flickering in and out of focus further down the hall. "You know, we should really get together so you can teach me how to do that. All I know how to do is get nose bleeds and locked joints." M'gann made flying look easy and for Claire it was just the opposite. She still had scrapes and bruises to prove it too. Of course, the Martian had cultivated her powers from an earlier age and had other people's advice. All Claire had was an overly active imagination and about half a year of official practice under her belt. Everything else was breaking things from an early age.
"Sure thing! I'd be glad to help. This time, now that things are calmer now, we can work on more than just the basics. Do you remember the meditations I taught you that help with your concentration? I recall you struggling with that."
Claire nodded, scratching the back of her neck. "I try to do them every once in a while. Adjusting to work has been something and my night life is pretty hectic right now too. I tend to do it when I have trouble sleeping though. It really comes in handy, I wish I could make time to do it more often."
"Really? That's fantastic! I'm glad that it helps. I have a few more I could show you if you wa-"
"Recognized: Batman —02. Recognized: Nightwing —B01. Recognized: Robin —B20." the zeta tube whirled, its lights flashing as the three heroes stepped into the headquarters one after the other. The arrival of the three males drew the attention of the remaining few loitering outside the conference room and Claire, despite herself, couldn't help but grin.
Her figurative not-so partner-in-crime was dressed in full gear, resembling a miniature Bat in the way he held himself, but the only difference was both his build and stature in addition to him being way brighter.
Tim, or the Red Robin or just plain old Robin, found his spot next to her as Bruce took to gaining everyone's attention, his long cape dragging behind him as he did.
Though she was five years older than the boy and he was the better trained hero, the two bonded almost immediately. Maybe it was the boy's cleverness that drew her to him or maybe it was her personality that drew him to her. They just hit it off.
"Why aren't you dressed?" He whispered, staring straight ahead. Had his lips not been moving, he could have fooled anyone into thinking he was paying attention with the intense look of concentration on his face. "This isn't how you make a good first impression you know."
"First of all, I'll have you know that this isn't my first time being here. I've seen a couple of these guys here before." And that wasn't a complete lie. Her amount of contact with other heroes within the League was very limited. And some of the people here were people she'd never been introduced to. Sure, she'd heard about them, either on the news or from M'gann herself, but *he* didn't need to know that. "Plus, I was told to be here within the hour and that hour was almost over when I actually got the call. The Batcave isn't exactly one of the pit stops on the Zeta tub. So, you can go somewhere else with that. Especially coming from someone who was late."
"You consider a minute late?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"If you ride the bus, you would know a minute is *way* too late." she snorted. "Are we going into the conference room or are we staying out here?"
"Probably out here. Too many people." All three of the friends turned to look at the man from nowhere. She forgot he came in with Batman and Robin which was an explanation in itself.
"Nightwing! You received the call too? I thought you were on leave." M'gann peered over Claire's shoulder to look that the man —Nightwing, she reminded herself. "If you're here, that means something this must be important then."
At that, Tim and Nightwing nodded before turning their attention to Bruce.
"Today's gathering will be brief. We have a lot of work to do with little time, so I won't repeat myself." His voice was deep with authority. This was the first time she'd heard him speak in such a manner and she couldn't help but look across the vast room to see if anyone else was surprised. They weren't. Their eyes were trained on the Bat with unwavering attention, and almost feeling out of place, Claire pulled at her sleeves as she directed her gaze back to Bruce. "Living quarters have yet to be supplied for those who lived at the previous base prior to its destruction. However, we've found a solution to our problem and we are taking immediate action. The League has purchased an academy as a temporary housing solution. As soon as we have the proper technology to maintain the privacy of the residents, we will proceed with allowing admissions." Claire nudged M'gann and the two girls shared a smile. "I understand living situations have become rather complicated, but things will be resolved soon. Financial support will also resume now that we have a clearer understanding of our funds with the repairs and debts paid on behalf of recent events. Monthly allowances will resume along with the mission board being posted. I assume you all are aware of your teams and their individual ranking, so please choose the appropriate missions in accordance with your capabilities." The Bat paused, and Claire could see the cogs in his head turning. "That'll be all. You are dismissed."
No one moved until the Bat moved, and everyone seemed to relax when he disappeared down the hall with his cape whipping behind him. Claire, among the three —four now—, to speak first."Who let him speak? I mean nothing good is bound to happen when the man who rarely talks has a lot to say. Don't you think?"
"I do find it odd he was chosen to speak out of all the other members." M'gann agreed, nodding.
"Tim?"
"Well, it isn't like there's any other members around." Tim frowned and scratched at his chin.
"Maybe they're at another meeting?" M'gann peeped, looking to Claire.
"Maybe." she agreed, not bothering to voice her second question of why he wasn't there too. "Wanna go train?"
She wasn't familiar with the Hall of Justice. She'd only been there probably twice and both times were brief and lacked anything memorable. Well, besides the first time, she met the founders her first time. But even that was short lived because as soon as she was finished being introduced, she was pushed out into the hall away from the conference room, and was made to sit there for almost two hours. Claire, of course, was a curious person. She was also smart. Plus, she was so damned lazy, her mind was telling her yes but her body was telling her no. She listened to her body. Claire's relationship with her first mentor was budding and needed time to grow before she could start sneaking off. Her mind was made up, and her curiosity withered away, and she sat in one of the comfortable chairs along the wall. She fell asleep and that was her first trip. Her second was when Wonder Woman came to hand her over to Bruce, Batman at the time, and she was left to wait in her jet (that Claire, courtesy of her curiosity, discovered could become invisible with the push of a button). Then, she was flown to the Wayne Manor where she too discovered the brooding, silent bat to be Bruce Wayne, a billionaire with a number of kids that Claire didn't know the exact number of. But, that explained how Robin didn't age. Maybe both trips were eventful. But, that didn't change the fact that M'gann and herself had been lost for a good forty-five minutes before they even found a practice room.
She'd have to pitch the idea of having a few 'You Are Here' maps installed around the base, so people wouldn't get lost because forty-five minutes was ridiculous and Claire just didn't have the patience just like she didn't have the concentration.
Claire's hand shot out, seizing the other woman's arm in a desperate attempt to steady herself.
"M'gann," she whimpered, she couldn't help her shaking. Flying was evil, and the moment her feet stopped touch the ground, she regretted starting.
"You are doing wonderful." the redhead laughed, working Claire's fingernails from her arm. "Remember to breath, and focus on something in your head. Focus on the sky." M'gann gave up on her arm, deciding a distraction would fair the girl much better. She directed a finely manicured finger upwards, pointing to the domed sky above them. "The sun and the clouds are floating with ease, so try and be like them. They are relaxed. You can't fly properly if you aren't comfortable just like you can't drive correctly if you're all stiff."
"Well, I can't do either of those," Claire snorted, her gaze was locked on to the sky. She studied one cloud in particular, it was thick like the tail of a rabbit and was a creamy white that reminded her of the icing on a red velvet cake.
Her stomach dropped, and she was quick to claw at M'gann who'd already lunged for her. "Claire!" the other woman exclaimed, and tugged her back up. "Weren't you focusing? What happened."
She opened her mouth to respond, but her stomach spoke for her, loud enough for the room to echo its responses. Grinning sheepishly, Claire let go of M'gann, scratching the back of her head.
"Oh my goodness -Claire!" The gargling of her stomach died mid-growl at being yelled at and Claire was slow to look at her.
"What?" she frowned, crossing her arms. M'gann's mouth gaped, forming a small circle. The circle of disbelief, as Claire dubbed it, was never a good sign, and her nerves shot up at the look in the Martian's eyes. "Oh my God! What's wrong?" Claire whipped around searching for the answer with wide eyes, struggling to ignore her angry stomach.
"You're flying." she heard, between the gurgling in her belly and her heart pounding her ears, just barely. Her stomach did a barrel roll, and she fell.
"So you flew?" Tim repeated, looking somewhat surprised. Of course, being raised by Batman practically made him a master in schooling his emotions, but the smile in his eyes didn't escape her. He was quick, but she was quicker when it came to the eyes. "Batman will be happy."
"I've never seen him happy. He'll probably tell me it was about time and go on about his day." Claire frowned, glancing at her two friends. It was strange hearing people besides herself in her head. Tim, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind. It was weird for her, but she hoped she would get used to it seeing how the three of them would be working together soon. "Plus, that wasn't flying. I floated and fell."
"Well, you did it by yourself, so you are a step closer to flying." M'gann corrected, swallowing a sip of her drink. "I'm surprised you didn't realize you let go. You went in circles and everything."
Tim snorted.
"I thought something was wrong." She said, glaring at Tim. "Sorry about your arm." Her brown eyes fell at the red markings along her pale forearm.
"It's not a problem." the other woman smiled, reaching over to pat her hand.
Claire grinned, nodding before turning her attention to the plate of food in front of her, stabbing her fork into a sliced piece of steak.
"Hey, Dick." Tim said aloud, waving. Both women looked at each other, surprised, before Claire peered over the edge of their booth with her fork hanging from her mouth, trying to be nosy. Tim scooted over, sliding his food with him, making room for the taller man as he breezed past her. "Claire, I don't think you've met Dick."
"Oh, I've met plenty." she frowned, settling back into her seat. Claire ignored the disapproving look M'gann threw her way, and crossed her legs, avoiding the kick Tim aimed at her left leg. It was always the left.
A/N: Thank you for the new follows and favorites. I appreciate your viewership and hope you enjoy my story. I'm not a fan of this chapter honestly. This was a filler, and I hate writing them, especially earlier as the story develops. But, I needed to set up an idea of what Claire is like outside of Bruce and when she is around people her age. Her relationships are interesting for me to write and I like seeing them. I promise the next chapter will be more interesting I hope now that I've made Dick and Claire meet. I can't see Claire and Dick hitting it off. He reminds her too much of Bruce and later on, you'll see her constantly reminding him of that fact. Also, I hope Tim wasn't as OCC. Next chapter, Babs will make an appearance and Dick will be too. Don't know if I'm going to make something of their relationship yet. Should I? That can be the question of the chapter. Please R&R and I hope you have a pleasant week! Until next time.
