No Distraction
Summary- Eventually, there is a moment without distraction.
Disclaimer- The characters of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight belong to Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan, David Goyer, Bob Kane, and other associated with the creation of the world of Gotham. I do not own the characters. I merely dabble in the world.
Talia dismissed the Hungarian woman sent by one of the generals of the council of the League of the Shadows. She assured the woman she'd eaten only an hour before, and the servant believed her. Once alone, Talia lit two sticks of incense before lying down on the bed. She closed her eyes as the scent of sandalwood filled the room.
Despite her attempts to soothe it, Talia's mind refused to settle.
Tomorrow, she would address the council. A woman had done no such thing for centuries. She intended to nominate a man who had burned her home to the ground for the head of the League of Shadows. She would announce her plan to marry her father's murderer. If she succeeded, she would do what no woman had ever done. If granted leave to go to Gotham City, she would return to Mongolia and implore Ra's Al Ghul to consider her as a temporary vessel for his spirit. She could not even hope for success without his immortal soul to strengthen her.
Talia's lips parted as she opened her eyes. Her head felt heavy, and the room seemed out of focus. The incense, she assured herself as she blinked to try and clear her vision. She coughed. It must be too old, too dry, she decided. Her eyes shut as she coughed again and struggled to breathe easily. She barely kept herself from screaming.
Her eyes stung and her coughing worsened as she thought about how foolish she was being. Her father would be ashamed of her. What sort of assassin was she if she was so badly affected by two pieces of poor incense?
But he would not scold her. She'd never see him frown and turn away. He'd never flash her a smile, an expression she only ever saw out of the corner of her eye. He'd never stare her down, daring her to make one wrong move in their spars. She'd never see his hand ghost across her mother's again. He would never send her another letter. She would never stand with him and view the beautiful, devastating expanse of snow and ice that surrounded the fortress.
Talia smacked her lips as she tasted salt. Her body felt too heavy to rise, though, so the incense would have to burn itself out. Another coughing fit left Talia too exhausted to even think.
She finally fell asleep.