The Girl Who Was Defended By The Bat
With Batman the previous night:
Batman's eyes narrowed as he watched from the shadows as Red Hood brutally attacked his enemies. There were four of them and for a normal person the odds wouldn't have been great ones. But Red Hood wasn't normal. In fact, normalcy was something that was stripped from him even before Batman had come into his life.
He knew he was there, but he was ignoring him until he spoke up.
Red Hood gave no quarter. He held nothing back swinging his energy blades as if he had trained with them from the beginning. He hadn't. As a former Robin, that was something that he wouldn't have allowed. It would be too easy to kill with weapons like those. But that wasn't something that was unusual for Red Hood. He was nothing if not vicious. It disturbed Batman more than he cared to admit. A twinge of guilt surfaced but he buried it quickly and efficiently.
"You don't change, do you?"
The sickening crunch of bone breaking from a swing of Red Hood's fist reached his ears.
"I'm not killing them."
They'd wish they were dead, though after he was finished with them, of this Batman was certain.
"I may have a job for you."
Hood grunted and said, "Involving the giant alien death machine in the sky." He never stopped moving. He didn't seem to even be out of breath as he continued to fight. He was one of the most skilled fighters that he'd ever seen.
Batman slightly inclined his head at Red Hood's deduction. "You've gained a lot of off planet experience and you're…" A loud crunch sounded as Red Hood's boot connected with his last enemy that remained standing. He fell to the ground with a dull thud. "Capable of making hard decisions."
Batman watched as Hood approached him.
"And you usually try to stop me."
That was true. Red Hood's penchant for sheer destruction was something that held no place for anyone who wore the symbol of the bat…and yet here he was relying upon it.
"I might not this time."
Hood made a thoughtful noise. "This is getting interesting. Tell me more."
"Come with me then."
Batman pulled out a grappling hook and aimed it skyward. He saw Red Hood glance back at the unbound men with a shrug. Batman knew that meant that if he hadn't gotten what he needed he'd come back for it. He'd hunt them down to the ends of the earth if need be and they'd be damned if they made him do it. Batman turned his back and allowed himself to leave the scene.
:::
They ended up on Westward Bridge which was close to Arkham Island. Batman had a lead he wanted to check out before they faced Jochi.
"So, what's the deal with this? What does he want?"
Batman folded his arms across his chest and looked out at Gotham River. It was a quiet that night and he supposed the world was holding its breath to see whether or not there would be any more tomorrows.
"He demanded that I show up with two from my clan."
Red Hood laughed. "So, what? You're bringing me and Dickie bird? How did we get to be so lucky?"
Batman paused briefly, "Nightwing isn't coming."
Hood laughed again. "Don't tell me Dickie had the guts to refuse you." Batman remained silent and he could feel Red Hood studying him. He could predict the assumptions that were about to be made. "You, you didn't even ask him you sick fuck! As usual, his life always has been and always will be more important than mine."
"Jason-"
"No. You don't get to say my fucking name anymore. Who the fuck else is going? Who else is worthless to you?"
Batman didn't think. He reacted to Red Hood's words and the assumption that he had made. He had his hand around his neck and was dangling him from the bridge. As the sound of the water filled his ears he realized it would be so easy to just drop him. And yet all he was doing was trying to provoke a reaction out of him. He had already won that. He couldn't give him more. He had probably already done irreparable damage to their relationship.
"Do it." Red Hood ground out. "What's one more time?"
Batman pulled himself out of the red haze that engulfed him and brought Hood back onto the ground. Hood showed no signs of distress at his actions, but that meant very little.
"Kunoichi will be with us."
"The pink haired little girl from the League?" Red Hood said incredulously. "She's no bat."
"She is if I claim her to be."
Red Hood studied him silently before saying, "Shit, you're in love with her." Batman narrowed his eyes. "God help anybody you actually love. Does she know?"
"Our relationship, not that it's any of your business, is not of that nature."
Red Hood brushed off his words obviously not believing them. "And can she keep up with us? Is including her to a tactical advantage?"
"I've been fighting at her side for months now. She's rough around the edges, but she's skilled and trained. I don't mind having her at my back."
Better her than Superman.
Batman frowned thinking about how Superman hadn't immediately come forward with the information about Jochi's arrival. If Batman had sat back and let things play out he probably wouldn't have come to him at all. He would have condemned the whole world because he was foolish enough to think that he could handle it all on his own.
It went without saying that he didn't trust Superman, but more than that something told him leaving Kunoichi in Superman's care was a bad idea. Sakura was disciplined but it was entirely possible that she would pick up his bad habits. He made a mental note to talk to Sakura at his earliest convenience about her moving out of Metropolis and to Gotham. He'd find a way for her to practice medicine. He'd keep her mind active and busy.
He'd keep her from falling in love with Superman because he had no doubt that was where this whole situation was heading. He had seen them on top of the tower in Metropolis. She had leaned into him and held his hand. She looked at him with starry eyes, as if he could do anything. But he had no doubt all he would do was hurt her. She deserved better than that.
"That's probably because she doesn't know you well enough. If she did, she'd keep a knife handy."
Ignoring him, Batman gave Red Hood the time and location of the place they were meeting. Without a word, he disappeared into the night.
When he listened in on Superman's communication with Wonder Woman the next day it was one of the few times he hated being right.
