"This is all your fault you know!" yelled Robin at Artemis as she stood firm with her hands crossed over her chest. "If you weren't all friendly with her and watched her like you were supposed to, she wouldn't have escaped!" Robin was furious. Probably the angriest one of the group. It was a smile mission, and they had failed, leaving Huntress victorious once more.
"How is this just my fault?" asked Artemis. "It was a team mission, we all had to watch her. Where were you guys?" she interrogated. Zatanna looked away, feeling extremely guilty. She couldn't help but blame herself for letting Huntress escape.
Robin just growled. "Well it doesn't matter now, because she's gone. Probably out of the city by now!" he groaned, taking a seat on the coach. The team didn't have that many clues to work off of. They had reviewed the footage from the security tapes, but none of them told them were she was going or where to find her.
"She has only been missing for 32 minutes," noted Aqualad "She could not have left the city just yet,"
"You okay M'Gann?" asked Superboy. Everyone looked over and saw Miss. Martian standing quite still, stiller then usual. Her brow was furrowed in the middle of her face as if she was deep in thought.
"She – she said something about finding 'work'," recalled M'Gann. Everybody's ears perked up as they remembered what Huntress had said on the security tapes. "What does she mean by 'work'?"
Kid Flash nodded, catching on to Miss. Martian's point "That's what we need to find out if we're going to find her-"
"OW!" Robin's shriek of pain interrupted Kid Flash's idea as he tightly gripped his right arm. Next to him sat Charlotte Corday, looking as innocent as possible. "Stupid cat!" yelled Robin. "She –!" Robin paused as he examined the scratch on his arm. He couldn't help but noticed that the scratch marks on his arm formed a symbol. Three lines with the one in the middle being the longest. "- scratched me," he paused again as a smile formed on his face. This was a symbol of a place in town. "I know where she is,"
Minute's Later...
"That Cat Scratch Club?" gasped Miss. Martian as she and the rest of the team stood just outside the adult bar. This club was located in the darkest place of Gotham where most of the criminals of the city lived and 'worked'. The club itself was extremely sketchy. The pink neon sign was mostly burned out, and the bouncer outside look terrifying. The clientele that entered the bar were all completely buzzed and didn't seem to noticed the seven under aged teens in strange costumes.
"I can smell it from here," growled Superboy, commenting on the harsh sent of alcohol and vomit. This place disgusted the Young Justice team. It was filthy, dirty, and had a reputation of soliciting women of older ages to willing customers.
"C'mon. Let's go," said Robin with authority.
Miss. Martian gasped. "In-in there?" she clarified. "We-we can't just go in there," even though she had only been on earth for a few months, she knew enough about the reputation of the club to be scared of it.
"Listen, M'Gann. I know it's sketchy. But you're Martian! You can handle yourself in there. You've fought some of the craziest people in the world! That has to count for something!" encouraged Zatanna.
"And if anything happens, I'll be there to protect you," said Superboy, pacing his arm around her. Miss. Martian sighed, then nodded.
"Okay team, let's stick together in there," said Aqualad. And with that, they headed inside.
The interior of the club was almost worse than the filthy street that was seen outside. Drunken men and women were scattered amongst the place, either completely wasted or completely passed out. The atmosphere was replaced with a thick layer of cigarette smoke, causing Aqualad to have some trouble breathing. The smoke also blurred the vision of the young group, as if the dim lighting wasn't bad enough.
The team scanned around the room, looking for Huntress. That was until an older man came up to Artemis and grabbed her wrist firmly. "Hey pretty lady," he whispered into her ear. "Does your carpet match your drapes?" he asked, snickering stupidly to himself. Artemis sneered at him, and was about to retaliate when Kid Flash pulled her away from his grip.
"Leave her alone," he said threateningly. The older man growled some before suddenly passing out on the floor in front of them. When he was out, Artemis turned to Kid Flash with a look of confusion on her face.
"What was that?" she asked.
Kid Flash gave her a strange looked. "What do you mean 'what was that?' I was helping you,"
She rolled her eyes. "I was fine on my own,"
"That's the thanks I get for trying to be nice?" he said, crossing his arms.
Artemis placed her hands on her hips and sighed. "Fine. Thank you," she mumbled just loud enough for Kid Flash to hear.
He face quickly split into a smile. "Don't mention it," he winked.
"There she is!" exclaimed Zatanna as she pointed a long finger to the other end of the room. In one of the corners of the bar, Huntress was seen escorting a much older looking man in the direction of the bathroom's. A suggestive smile on both their faces.
"What's she doing?" asked Kid Flash.
"I don't – wait – I know that guy!" said Robin. "That's Lion Smith! He's been to jail for selling younger women like a thousand times," he explained.
Kid Flash scratch his head. "Then what is she doing with him-?" Suddenly it all hit them. It hit them so hard they were at a lost for words and totally winded for air. It was the most obvious thing and it was under their very nose. "Oh shit,"
Each of them ran as fast as they could to the bathroom, pushing over drunken bastards left right and center. But when they finally reached the bathroom-
CRACK
They were too late.
The scene in the bathroom was quite a sight. Huntress stood over the man's body as it lay on the floor. His neck was snapped in half, causing his head to be craned in an awkward position. His eyes were wide open, but no other sign of life was radiating off his body. He was dead.
In only seconds did it take for the team to register what had just happened. But obviously they took too long as moments later, Huntress had flung herself out the bathroom window, and was in a full out sprint down the street. "After her!" commanded Aqualad.
The six other teens did as they were told and began to peruse Huntress with full force, but unsurprisingly, it was Kid Flash who caught up to her first. When he did, he tackled her into a near by wall and took a step back, letting the whole team encircle around her. Huntress was trapped with nowhere to go. When they were surrounding her, she purposely made intense eye contact with all of them. Waiting for the first one to speak. Waiting for the first one to make the comment that had been on all their minds.
"You're the one who killed them," murmured Robin. Huntress paused… then nodded slowly. "You're the one whose been killing all of those criminals. It was you all along!" he concluded.
Huntress smiled at him. "That's right little birdie," she joked.
"But – but how could you do that?" asked Miss Martian. "Just kill all of those people,"
Huntress's eyes narrowed at her. "At least I'm making a difference. If I hadn't done anything, crimes rates would be the same as they were a few months ago,"
"How dare you?" asked Superboy, fury building up in his stomach. "How dare you kill all of those people?"
"They had it coming-" she muttered.
"No. They didn't. And they didn't deserve it. Everyone has a right to a free trial," said Zatanna.
"In this corrupted court? Everybody gets to walk. And even if they were sent to jail, how many of them just break out again and go back to their old ways?" The team silences at that statement allowed for Huntress to continue. "That man I just killed was known for trafficking young girls. But he had an in with the police to let him keep working. If I didn't do what I did, he'd be sending off a young girl to some pervert right now!" she yelled. No one said anything else. "Figures," she snorted "Think about that next time you want to 'trial' somebody,"
Suddenly, she crashed her foot down into a manhole cover that no one had noticed before. From the impact of her foot, the iron cover broke right in half and fell down the manhole. "Ta," she whispered, as she elegantly jumped into the manhole.
None of the team believed how quickly she got away. It was so quick that the team had to collect themselves before coming up with a plan. "I'll look at a map of the sewage pipe line system," said Robin, triggering his computer. Blue prints appeared in front of the team moments later. "Okay, the pipe line that she went down only has four other exits. One here-" he pointed to a street in the North of Gotham "One here-" one in the south "One here," he pointed to one in the east, "And h-" Robin stopped as he squinted at the location in the west of Gotham.
"Yeah?" asked Artemis, urging him to continue. He shook his head and studied the map once more. "She has to come back up some time, and it'll be at one of these place. I say that Aqualad and Zatanna take guard at the one in the north, Wally and Artemis in the south, Superboy and M'Gann at the east, and I'll go to the one in the west,"
Kid Flash moaned "Why do I have to go with her?" asked Kid Flash.
Robin eyed him "Because I know you'll just act stupid again and let her escape. Artemis is the only one who seems to distract you," spat Robin.
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Artemis and Kid Flash in unison.
"Look, it doesn't matter! Just go to you places and wait for someone to call you over! M'Gann, can you hook us up?"
When she did, they all split up and ran to their designated spots. Robin ran especially fast to his. He knew just where the place was … a little too well in fact.
When Huntress emerged from the sewers, she glanced around cautiously. After seeing the team only moments ago, she knew that they were tracking her. When the coast was clear, she popped and gathered her bearings. Identifying where she was, she smiled. This city never her let her down. That is, until she heard a soft boyish snicker bounce of the walls of the ally, and felt a strong pair of feet plant themselves on her back and push her forward.
"Always come back to the same place, huh?" asked Robin. Huntress, both annoyed and shaken up, peeled herself from the cement ground. This was indeed the same ally that they had met numerous times before. When they first met, and on Independence Day.
"No wonder you found me," she said as if to sound like he was stating the obvious.
"And I think I figured it out to," he continued. "This entrance to the sewers-" he pointed to the one she had recently just popped out of "Is connected to every other sewage line in Gotham. If you ever need a quick escape, just follow any line and you'd pop up here. That's why I kept running into you here," he concluded, arms crossed.
"Very good, Boy Wonder," she Huntress sarcastically.
"It wasn't hard to figure out after I put the pieces together. I should have known…" he voice trailed off spitefully as he took a moment to be ashamed of himself for not figuring out the crime earlier.
"We do have a lot of history here, don't we?" noted Huntress as she glanced around. "It's was the first place we met, and now, it'll be the last place you ever see me!"
Forming her hands into fists, she attacked Robin with the last little bit of strength she had. However, this time Robin found himself being able to hold her off. It was his movements that were fluid, unpredictable, and ready. Every hit she tired to make either missed him or was blocked by him. The only thing that was different this time was that Robin was at peace with himself. He had figured her out, and now knew what to do. Huntress, on the other hand, had just completed a job and was now trembling with adrenaline. She tried not to think about it, but the factors of the situation left her movements rigid and awkward.
"I can't believe you did that," spat Robin when he had a moment to catch his breath.
"I do what I need to do," she growled.
"But all of those people. And not just them, their families-"
"Shut up!" she cried, trying to kick him. He dogged it and continued.
"I know that it feels as though people should be killed," his voice was much softer now. "But that's never the answer,"
"I said shut up!"
"And now, to have their blood on your hands. You may have ended crime, but how could you live with yourself?"
"SHUT UP!"
Two more punches later and she collapsed. Tears poured from her eyes like waterfalls and her wails of sadness were loud enough to alert the whole city. "You asshole! You asshole!" she chanted between weeps. Robin watched her for a moment. It had hit her. The sin that she had been committing finally caught up with her. She had taken lives in the name of justice, but never knew what the emotional consequences were after that.
Robin knelt down and wrapped his arms around her. In those moments of peace she cried on his shoulder, spilling her soul out onto his sleeve. The murders hurt her, but she never thought they would. They were criminals – they didn't deserve a second chance… right?
"I-I didn't mean to," she stuttered.
"Shh… I know, I know," comforted Robin. In an instant, their relationship changed. He wasn't the hero, and she wasn't the villain. They were equals.
She pushed him away slightly and looked deep into his eyes. Through the slits of their masks, they could see two common people, thrown into the lives that they chose, never expecting such horrible penalties. "I have to get out of here," she whispered to him. Robin dropped his head. It was his duty to call the other and take her in. "Please. I can't. I'll go/ I'll disappear. I promise I'll never bother you guys again. I-I just-can't..." the tears returned to her eyes as she pleaded with Robin. He looked up again. He didn't want her to go.
"What if I talked to Batman? I'm sure he'll-"
"After what I've done?"
Robin sighed. She was right, no one would accept her, and it would be a rare chance that they actually give her a try at being one of the good guys. With another sigh, he dropped his arms. He was going to let her go.
Huntress's tears of sadness turned to tears of joy in an instant. She squeezed him around the neck as if her life depended on it. "Thank you," she whispered.
Suddenly, she grabbed the sides of his face and pulled him in for a delicate kiss. Nothing serious, just one of thanks. When she pulled away, she smiled. "I can see why Zatanna likes you," she joked. Robin blushed a bit and looked away.
"Go. They'll be here in a moment," he warned. Huntress nodded and hopped up onto her feet.
Before she left however, she turned to him. When their eyes made contact, she pulled off her mask, revealing not only her wild hair, but also her whole face. To Robin, it was beautiful and perfect. All of the futures were strong, yet feminine. She introduced herself and extended her hand out to him "Helena Kyle,"
Robin glanced at her hand and followed suit. Removing his own mask he grabbed her hand and introduced himself. "Richard Grayson,"
"I already know that, Dick," she teased with a smile. He laughed as they shook hands. Then, with a little wink, she took off running. Never to be seen again.
Robin watched her for a moment, then put on his own mask. Deep down, he would miss her greatly.
Minutes later, he was joined by the rest of the team. "We waited for half an hour and she didn't show," growled Artemis.
"We thought it would be best to find you since you seemed to know where she's heading," explained M'Gann.
Robin paused and turned to face his team. At that moment, he promised himself that this would be the first and only time he would ever lie to his team. "She's gone,"
The team gaped at him. "What do you mean 'she's gone'?" asked Superboy.
Robin called up his computer. "While you were all gone, I was monitoring heat movement in the sewage system. Nothing showed up. We don't have a lead,"
"Surely you must have some idea where she is?" asked Aqualad.
Robin sighed and shook his head. Kid Flash snorted. "Well what a waste of time! And not only that, the League is going to be mega pissed at us for failing a simple mission!" he complained as the seven of them walked the streets of Gotham to the only known entrance in to the mountain. They all filed into the 'telephone booth' and disappeared one by one. Robin went in last. When he did, he scanned the city once more and couldn't have but notice a black figure hoping from rooftop to rooftop. He felt a little uneasy about the whole thing, but knew it was the right thing to do. "See ya 'round Hunt-… Helena,"
