Thank you all for the reviews! Got this chapter out as soon as I could as well as the fourth chapter to Sleepwalking. Read & Enjoy. Reviews are wonderful, as always.
Lydia arrives in Tibet, located in the Himalayan Mountains. She pulls her jacket closer to her, shivering from the cold. She walks up the mountain trail, hearing the crush of the snow underneath her steps. She hears movement but continues walking. Lydia knows Ra's henchmen are watching her, waiting for her to come closer so they may seize or kill the young woman. She is getting closer to his location, the increasing presence of his men are sloppy.
A man pops out of the snow, dressed in all white to hide against the snow. His sword is drawn, barely waiting for an answer from the young woman in front of him.
"Take me to Ra's al Ghul." Lydia states, stopping dead in her tracks.
The man in front of her stares at her, almost in shock she spoke his name. Not many know of him as his actual name, let alone his whereabouts. All these years and he still hasn't found a new location. The man is white contemplates killing her but decides it would be best to let Ra's see her before her fate is decided. The man sheaths his sword and motions for her to follow. Lydia looks around at the other so called assassins that let their presence be known as they circle her, as if she is someone of importance that must not be hurt.
It takes a while until they finally get to Ra's dwelling. She stands, waiting alone for him to make his appearance. She looks around seeing this is almost a shack. However it doesn't seem as if it is. It is warm as far as temperature goes but is built for training. She hears footsteps in the distance.
"Who is it that speaks my name?" She hears a voice, knowing it belongs to the infamous assassin.
"Lydia Faith Valmont, sir." She calls out to him.
She sees him appear about five feet in front of her.
"Valmont? Ah, you must be Keith Valmont's daughter. What makes you dare to come to this place of the earth?" He asks.
"I wish for you to train me. Train me in martial arts and whatever you see is necessary."
"No. Leave here." He replies back, turning to leave.
"Sir you owe me." She speaks, annoyance growing in her voice.
"I owe you nothing."
"You owe my father!" She yells, causing the henchmen to go into their attack stance.
Ra's stops and turns. Lydia has a point. Keith Valmont has helped Ra's in two situations, particularly death situations. He sizes her up. Ra's walks back this time standing three feet in front of her.
"Do you know what it is I stand for, Valmont?" He asks.
"I know you stand for balance in the world. The balance you speak of involves eliminating humanity. I respect that and I would like to bring it back to Gotham City."
"Ah Gotham. How is it doing?" He asks, rubbing his goatee.
"It's gone to hell. A villain who goes by the name of Joker is creating chaos, eliminating whoever and whenever he wants. Batman stands in his way to try and stop him. He believes there is still good in people."
"Isn't there good in people?" He asks her almost challenging.
"Every person is corruptible. It takes a matter of circumstance to push them over the edge. There is no good left in the citizens of Gotham, no matter how much the Bat wants to believe so."
Ra's smirks in approval. "I will train you. As long as you bring peace to the 'wonderful' city of Gotham."
Lydia bows her head in thanks. He directs her to her living quarters where she will send for god knows how long.
--
A month passes and there is no sign of the woman known as Lydia Valmont. The Joker tears through her apartment, trying to find a single trace of where this woman went. He can tell by the dust collecting on her objects that she hasn't been here for at least two weeks. In a way he is grateful, knowing she is gone won't interfere in his plan for Gotham. He feels as if he as grown softer since she has been around, but to others it is a completely different take. He is still the clown that his men fears but they have noticed the changes he has gone through when Lydia is around.
Joker is sitting in a group full of his mob clients.
"Why haven't you killed him yet?" One asks with rather greasy hair.
"Things like this take… time. You don't have a masterpiece finished in a day, now do you?" He replies, a smile on his face.
"Sure it ain't gots nothin' ta do wit that broad we's been seein 'round?" A man with a heavy accent asks.
Joker's brows flinch at the mention of Lydia. His eyes lowly travel up and meet the man who spoke.
"I can assure you, friend, it ain't gots nothin' ta do wit her." He mocks him, causing the man to get angry with Joker.
"Yous know, yous needs a lesson in mannas. And I feels I can do it for ya." He says standing, poking the collars of his jacket out.
Joker smirks and stands, opening his eyes signaling for him to try and do something. The other mob members watch, thinking they will be amused. Last time someone tried to 'teach' Joker anything, a pencil was shoved into his eye- that and because he intruded on their meeting. The fat man approaches slowly, eyeing Joker cautiously. The fat man lunges at Joker. He moves out of the way, flicking a blade from his sleeve and puncturing his throat with the sharp blade. A groan is heard from the man as he falls to the ground, bleeding on the floor.
"Now, if anyone else feels the girl has anything to do with why the Bat isn't dead… please speak up." His arms still outstretched. He glances around at the crowd but hear nothing. He smirks and walks from the room, entering a van and leaving.