Take him with her?
It was insane. Ridiculous. An idea that was surely suicide. She couldn't possibly even consider that deal, not even hesitate to say a good ol' fuck you to the clothed man, and continue to beg for them to be released. But there was a part of Jinx that still stopped, looking at him with both confusion and interest. Because yes- she was truly curious.
Why did he wish to go with them? They were the enemy that Slade had been searching for all this time. Hunted like animals, Slade finally had them cornered so that they couldn't escape. He even had a toxin in which he could drain powers, something that was the most frightening to Jinx. The strange man whom Jinx thought was working with Slade actually.. wasn't.
It was all too confusing.
"What?" she choked out, nearly stuttering on the word. Her eyes flitted back to the Titan children, chatting happily with one another, rubbing their little fingers on the glass and snickering at the brown mud smeared on Beast Boy's face. The word poop was continuously muttered. Her pink eyes flitted back to the slim man, staring straight into his eyes.
"I wish to go with you." he said again, simply, as though there was nothing to it. "There isn't a way off this island without Slade seeing it. As his follower, it would be unwise for me to make my leave without an explanation, especially when my part is needed to direly here. With you and the children captured, our help is needed more than ever."
Disgusted, Jinx bit her lip. Those followers merely did whatever Slade told them to do. It was pathetic to see them scurry around like little mindless drones, scuttling around Slade's feet everytime he barked an order. This man wasn't much different, except he seemed to hold some sort of other intelligence instead of mindlessly following his dictator. It was something she could work with.
She had to. There wasn't a choice.
"Fine." Jinx said curtly, her pink eyes flashing dangerously. Her hands balled into weak little fists; her attempt at bluffing. "You can come with us. I don't know your intentions, and to be honest, I don't give a rat's ass."
The man stayed silent, merely staring at her with blank glazed eyes.
"But hurt those kids, and I will find a way to end you." She spat, her threat hissing out of her mouth as though it was poison. "I'm all they have right now. And believe me, I'm not letting Slade touch them with his little pinky toe."
The man continuously stared at her, no words coming from him. Jinx swallowed some anxiety that had welled up in her throat and coughed, feeling her venom drain and her awkwardness come back. Her balled fists fell apart into limp hands, all her strength gone.
She turned towards the Titan children and knelt down in front of them, her hands on the grubby glass that held Robin, Cyborg and Starfire.
"Jink!" Starfire said cheerfully, her tan face blushing slightly as she waddled up to the glass, grinning widely. "I am so happy that you have comes back! I have mized you."
"Mized?" Cyborg whispered to Robin, a non-discrete sort of whisper.
Robin rubbed his tiny chin for a moment. "I think she means to says 'missed'." The little Boy Wonder whispered back, the tone all knowing and definite.
Starfire turned around and glared at them, her eyes glowing brightly. "I knows what I said! I said right! Right!"
"Okay!" the two little boys yelped, clamoring to hide behind one another. "Okay! Yous right!"
Jinx chuckled quietly as Beast Boy climbed into her lap and sat there, and shook her head at Starfire's antics. "Yeah yeah, I missed you too Starfire. I missed you all..."
The three titans stared at her, their smiles so wide that Jinx thought their faces would crack.
Urgh. Jinx thought suddenly, gritting her teeth. I don't need this sentimental shit, do I?
She turned towards the silent man, who was standing in the same spot as before, staring at all of them through his eye slits. It was slightly creepy and unnerving to watch him do that, but Jinx had to keep him nearby. She didn't trust him for a second.
Escape or no, he was hiding something.
"Aren't you going to let the three go?" she called out, her lip sticking out in a sort of pout as she asked him. It was better to pretend as though she was some kind of innocent ditz for now. If the man thought that she was an idiot, than he wouldn't worry as much about leaving his guard up. It was a lesson she learned back at the HIVE academy.
The man cocked his head for a minute before stepping forwards, the grass silent underneath his clothed feet. He touched the side of the glass cylinder, hidden buttons appearing onto the glass.
With a large hiss the cylinder broke down, letting fresh air into the container. Small little yelps of relieved gasps were heard from inside the glass, breaths of fresh air, cold air seeping into the warm mix of small children musk and farts. The three Titan children seemed to never be happier when breathing fresh air. As the entire glass container folded itself up into the ground, they were finally free.
Robin stepped out first, hesitantly. Sweat had beaded and dried on his forehead, leaving behind a grubby stain of brown. He was barefoot for some reason, his boots gone. Even the little 'R' that he wore over his breast had disappeared, the little cloth hole flapping with the breeze. He stepped onto the grass carefully, and almost instantly, a huge smile appeared on his face. It occurred to Jinx that maybe the children had missed the fresh air more than she had realized, how long it must have been for all of them.
"Gr-ass!" Robin shrieked, wiggling his toes in the air as he jumped around. His torn little black cape flowed around him humorously, twisting in his legs and arms. Beast Boy had squirmed from Jinx's lap and was playing with Robin in the form of a puppy, bouncing around the boy's feet before falling onto his back for a stomach rub. Robin sat down and petted, beaming. "Cyborg! Star! Play in da grass! It so fluffly!"
"Fluffly?" Starfire inquired. She was the next one to come off the blackened spot they had been forced onto for so long. Starfire actually flew off the thing, flying for the first time in a long time. Her body seemed to come to life, her legs stretched out and her face lit up in a brilliant smile. Little star-bolts appeared on her hands, glowing brightly in orbs. She swooped down to Robin and joined him in the grass, joyously rubbing her face into the lush green. "Come Cyborg!" Starfire yelped, her voice muffled with grass. "Come and join our blugdorf party!"
Cyborg stared at them as though he would rather eat dirt.
Jinx laughed aloud, nearly forgetting that the silent man was still there, staring at all of them as though they had lost their minds.
"Ahem." Jinx cleared her throat, loud enough for the children to hear. "Guys, I know that you're happy and all, but we can't do this right now. We have to go."
"Go?" Starfire said quietly, her voice drawn into a little whisper. At first Jinx thought she was disappointed, if it wasn't for the next question. "Do you means it..?"
Jinx nodded, unsure what else to say.
"Pwomise?" Robin asked quietly, rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hands. "Pwomise we won't stay here enymore?"
"It scary here." Cyborg commented profusely, his lip sticking out. "No cuddles. Always cold. I 'ate it here."
It was quiet for a moment, all the children staring at her with widened eyes, tears even gathering in Starfire's. Jinx felt something close to a sob choke in the back of her throat, emotions welling in the back of her chest. It was hell here, for everyone. And to know the fact that the children were elastic just to see fucking GRASS said a lot about how Slade had treated them.
"Come here, you guys." Jinx opened her arms, pushing aside the screaming discomfort in her mind. The Titans' didn't seem to notice, they all ran forwards and plunged into her open hug, squeezing at her thin waist with little whimpers and soft thank yous.
She looked at the silent man, her pink eyes boring into his once more. "Let's go."
Just as he had promised, there was a bomb underneath Slade's prison of Hell. The silent man, or as Jinx called him, Creep, had given her an entire blueprint of what the bomb looked like and what it contained. Even the countdown of when it was supposed to be finished was in the corner, mindlessly beeping away as it counted down the seconds.
Jinx had studied it furiously for a moment, trying to remember all the numbers, the intricate design, and how the hell they were going to detonate a bomb that wasn't even made to go off yet. It wasn't impossible, but explosives were never her good point. Gizmo was always the guy for that.
Well Gizmo isn't fucking here, now is he? Jinx thought to herself angrily, biting her lip so hard that she tasted blood. None of them are here. It's just you, and Creep, and the Titan kids. Come. On.
"How are we going to set this off without anyone noticing?" Jinx finally asked, closing the blueprint and handing it back to him. "This entire plan sounds half-assed to me."
The man raised an eyebrow and gave her a small glare, those eyes piercing. "Do you suggest a better plan?"
"No. But anything I come up with will be much better than this piece of shit. You can't expect us to teleport from one area to the next, Creep."
Jinx and the masked guard of Slade's were sitting underneath a rock slit, where the hill sloped off into the valley. It was a good little view, even though they could see the building looming in the distance. The Titan children were asleep back inside the cave, safe underneath Robin's torn cape as a blanket and leaves as a mattress. They were quiet, leaving Jinx alone to speak with Creep about their plans for the next day.
And she still didn't trust him. Not for one minute.
"Why must you keep calling me that?" Creep asked disdainfully, sniffing in retort. He still had the mask on, leaving only his eyes exposed. "I do have a name, you know. Not all of Slade's followers have numbers assigned to them. I have kept my name."
Jinx scoffed, leaning against the cool rock. "Yeah? So what's your name then?"
"I will not tell you."
"Then you will forever be known as Creep." Jinx confirmed, giving him a wide smile. She leaned forwards a bit, brushing her long pink hair out of her face. "And this plan, Creep, is bullshit."
Creep scoffed again, looking at the trees and foliage that dipped down into the valley. "If you do not like it, then think of a better one."
Jinx rolled her eyes and settled back onto her spot, huffing as she squirmed uncomfortably on the hard rock. "I will, thanks. It would be easier to steal a small jet from underneath the base instead of a large rocket, don't you think?"
There was a second of silence. "But we will not all fit into the jet." he said in a confused tone. "It only has four seats. There are six of us."
Jinx shrugged. "You forgot that Beast Boy can change into a little monstrous bird. One of us can ride on him while the other steers the jet. Whoever it is can be decided tomorrow."
"So we're just going to wing it?" Creep sounded disgusted.
"Yes." Jinx said blatantly, shrugging. "It's worked so far."
"That is utterly predictable of petty criminals. That is their means of operation, is it not?"
Jinx nearly laughed at Creep's way of insulting her. If he wanted to get on her bad side, talking like that DEFINITELY wasn't going to do it. It was too funny. "Yes. All of us petty criminals just go about, winging everything all the time. Rob a bank? Just do it. Decide to sneak into a house? No plan needed! Want to catch a joyride on a car that isn't ours? Let's just go."
Creep stared at her, his glazed eyes narrowing. "You do not know when to shut up, do you?"
Jinx stared at him back, not because he was looking at her with that glazed expression, but because of what he had said. It was strikingly familiar, achingly so. She pushed the thought from her mind. No. No. It CAN'T be.
A long moment passed without either of them saying anything. Just the two of them stared into the distance, looking at the large grey building that uglied the entire forest, ruining the beauty that it held. Even as it was dark out, Jinx could still see some of the lights from the hallways peering through the cracked cement, shining like beacons.
She settled into her spot, closing her eyes.
Tomorrow, they would escape.
Tomorrow, they would be able to run away from Slade once again.
Tomorrow would be a new day.
A new day with a strange new man who she called Creep.
And that would have to be good enough for now.
I'm really sorry for the long wait. Eep.
Please review.