Found by the huntress 2

Chapter two: catching up with

Now

Jason woke slowly. The first thing he felt was pain, and he was in an explosion again, that combined with getting the piss kicked out of him by Bruce has him aching. Ok, he is laying on something way too soft for a prison cell or lockup, too soft for one of the Batcave's cells. Jason had crashed in them a few times when he was new to Robin was too tired to go up to his room, yet he always found himself in his bed in the morning. Whatever he is lying on was also softer than his old bed back at the manor and too soft for a hospital bed. Then there was that heavenly smell, a smell from his childhood, something despite the culinary skill he has never been able to recreate. His mother's beef stew. Something his mother used to make once a month. He also caught a whiff of coffee.

He opened his eyes and found he was blind. So, he then checked to see if he was tied up found he is covered with a blanket. So, he lifted his left-hand notes a tugging sensation, and he figured he had an IV line in it. Bringing it to his face, he found that a piece of paper was covering his right eye, and he had a bandage over his left. So, he pulled the piece of paper off and could see. Then discovered it to be a note. He suppressed a groan as he pulled himself up to a sitting position to realize he was lying on an oversized u-shaped couch in a nice apartment. He also noticed the four spent blood bags hanging from an IV stand rack. He then read the note.

'You're in a safe place, you stupid dingbat, so stay on my couch. – Helena Janice Rosa Bertinelli.'

So, Talia had not lied. Helena Bertinelli had returned to Gotham… she must be The Huntress. Talia told him the woman had become a member of Spyral but had left the organization two years ago. Talia had been keeping track of him since he helped her out when she went hunting a member of the Untitled fifteen years ago. God, twelve years ago, Jason developed a massive crush on Helena the moment he saw her. That was just before he stopped her from being killed in the Bertinelli massacre. God, Jason hoped he did not make as big a fool of himself as the bits and pieces he remembered after he got blown up about last night suggested. Was him turning into a hot dark-haired woman a dream, or did that happen?

Jason is pulled from his memories by the sound of a toilet flushing and the sound of a sink turning on. A few moments later, the door to the right of the couch opened, out stepped Helena and Jason blushed as he realized she had somehow gotten more beautiful in the last eleven years and six months since he last saw her.

Helena had realized she had spilled ketchup on her purple t-shirt when she started making the stew Jason is smelling. So, she had changed into a black spaghetti strap tank top that exposed her cleavage and some of her well-sculpted core. Something Jason zoomed in on as he had a bit of a belly fetish, and that was one nice belly on display; Helena had a small gold cross hanging from a chain attached to a navel piercing. She also grew a pair of nice…ok those were not boobs, those were not breasts, they were not knockers, it would be an insult to them to call them anything other than tits, and they were a great pair of tits. Jason could tell they were all-natural; he remembered her being somewhat flat now she has D-cups. He became aware he was in just his boxer briefs, and they were getting tight.

…

Helena was hoping Jason would wake up soon as lunch was almost ready, she hated eating alone, and she had picked up the ingredients for what had once been Jason's favorite meal. Jason's mother had taught her how to make her family's beef and potato stew twelve years ago. After her head had cooled down when she lived with the Todd's for a bit, well, Jason got together the money needed to get her a fake passport to get her to her uncle in Italy. At the time, Helena had a bit of money in her wallet and wanted to cook him something as a thank you for saving my life.

So, Catherine Todd took her to get the ingredients for the stew then told her that her teaching Helena to make it would be their secrete as it was a recipe passed down from mother to daughter through her family line. Helena flicked the light off in her bathroom and looked up. The ace around Jason's ribs did nothing to distract her view of the exposed hard yummy muscles of Jason Todd. She had already had a giant crush on the boy twelve years ago.

'Hmmm, I remembered him being fit and cute when he was thirteen, if a bit on the shrimpy side. Now Jason is tall, broad, and toned as his adopted father with scars that just make him more manly. Meow he is nummy yummy, yummy get in mha tummy…I have been hanging out with Selina way too much…wait he is awake!' Helena thinks as she takes in Jason starting to get damp. Then she realized Jason was awake, and her temper flared up.

…

Jason felt an old fear as Helena marched up to him, radiating anger. She slapped him hard.

"You stupid god damn fucking dingbat! You should have fucking told me you were alive again, god damn it." Helena angrily screamed at Jason then went to slap him again. The two had traded emails together until Jason's death.

"I figure I deserve the first slap but not a second. Who did that to you?" Jason says with a small smile as he blocked a follow-up slap. That is when he noticed the developing bruise on Helena's face just under her right eye, and his eyes went from playful to murderous. Jason knew Helena could take care of herself, but Jason still wanted to kill whoever gave her that bruise. No, he would kill whoever gave her that bruise slowly.

…

'Fuck I could not tell this before, but his voice got deep. It's almost as deep as Bruce's. They sound a lot alike. I like it.' Helena thinks when his question catches up to her brain.

"Oh, this little thing, ya, I did it to myself using your fist. I covered with the Bat by saying, you knocked me out Jason, you know he will check eventually. Glad to see you still care, you stupid dingbat. I got you some clothing there in the basket. So get dressed your scared body is yummy and distracting. You have only been out for about twelve hours. So you can't take a shower till tomorrow." Helena says with a shy smile as she pointed at the basket. Both blush scarlet when Helena's words fully register.

…

"Thank you, and you just got more beautiful Helena, great abbs," Jason says with a shy smile of his own as he looks away as his stomach does a few flip flops at her absentminded compliment. It also made him feel warm and fuzzy.

'It's nice to see she still has her absent-minded moments.' Jason thinks to himself.

…

'So, he does think I am beautiful.' Helena thinks, blushing darker as her stomach jerks, and she well feeling all warm and fuzzy.

She does not look away as Jason reached over, picked up the basket, and sets it on the couch. He began to look through the clothing. Jason chooses a black shirt, a pair of blue jeans, a brown belt, along with a fresh pair of black boxer briefs along with the bag of toiletries she got him. As he limps to the bathroom, Helena notes his ass is almost as good as Dicks. Once the door closed, she goes and tends to the stew and sees the jasmine rice she made in her rice cooker is ready. Helena had left the stew to simmer for six hours now, and it is now ready to eat. She rarely made this meal, as it had become a comfort meal for her when things got hard.

…

Jason notes Helena had a wax melting light that released the smell of Japanese Sakura blossoms, the same thing his mother had. The bathroom is her guest bath and has a combo shower tub with a purple shower curtain, sink with foaming Japanese Sakura Blossom hand soap, white toilet, and some decorative purple towels.

Jason got changed after doing his business and washing his hands and face. He swaps his old boxers for the new pair, pulled on the blue jeans, pulled his new belt through the loops, and pulled on The Punisher skull t-shirt Helena had picked up for him. He also applied some degree of antiperspirant she had tossed in a bag of toiletries.

Jason felt he must have left an impression if she remembered he liked The Punisher comics. He had considered putting a white skull on his costume but felt that would tip Bruce off too soon. When Helena was living with him and his mother, Jason used to nick two copies of The Punisher. One for himself, one for her. He would also nick her a copy of Black Widow. He had also snuck into the Bertinelli townhouse a week after the massacre to retrieve her collection of Black widow comics. Jason left the bathroom and is once again hit by the smell of beef stew, which made his mouth water. He is starving, and well, it would not be his mother's, the stew smelt heavenly.

…

"Lunch is ready, Dingbat," Helena said with a smile. She had set her walnut table well he was changing.

He saw the stew in a large pot. It looked like the stew his mother used to make, with small cut carrots, potatoes, and green beans, likely some finely chopped onions and with lots of meat, both thick chunks of stew meat and thin Carne Picada, just like his mother's stew. A plastic ladle was set next to the pot. She had set out a pot of white jasmine rice, a pitcher of lemonade, two tall glasses, some delicate whites square bowls. Laying on some napkins were two soup spoons and a bottle of ibuprofen.

"Can you stop calling me that we're not kids anymore," Jason says, exasperated as he eased himself into the chair.

"Oh, I will keep calling you a dingbat, Jason, because you can be such a dingbat at times," Helena says with a snarky smile on her face. The two then clasp their hands together and give thanks.

Helena smiled as she crossed her arms and watched him dish up with a grin as she watched the man dish up. She did not want to miss the look on his face when he took his first bite. He started by shopping some rice into his bowl, then covered it with two ladles of stew, then one of just the broth. He stirred the mix together. Helena's smile got wider as he brought the first bite to his mouth. His eyes lit up, and she saw some tears in his eyes as he removes the spoon and the taste of the stew hit his tongue.

…

Jason was transported back to his childhood. The stew Helena set out was not like his mother's stew. It was his mother's stew, savory, hearty with just some heat to it and a bit of ginger. It was something he never thought he would taste again. EBT and Disability only took them so far, and his mother had to have worked the street to make sure he had food in his stomach and clothing on his back. Once a month, they would have this stew with jasmine rice, leftovers last them a few days. His mother had died from an overdose caused by fentanyl tainted heroin. Well, he made sure Helena got to her family in Italy as he had flown with her.

"Mom taught you how to make her stew," Jason said, a large smile after he swallowed the first bite and took a moment to wipe his eyes and pour himself a glass of lemonade. They had had the stew twice that first month Helena had stayed with them.

"Yes, a few days after you saved me, and I calmed down, I wanted to cook you something as thanks for saving me. I still had 200 of my allowance and said I would buy the ingredients. Your mom said it was a family recipe, and her teaching me to make it would be our little secret." Helena revealed to Jason with an uncharacteristically happy smile. She was glad she could bring that smile to his face.

"Thank you for making it for me, Helena," Jason says with a sad but happy smile. He eats a few more bites before pouring a glass of lemonade, popping open the ibuprofen, and taking four tablets. Jason downed the pills with a sip of lemonade and was taken to another time. He was stopping off at Selina's mid patrol to get a glass of her lemonade. Even when she was fighting with Bruce or out of her apartment, she left a window open. A pitcher of her lemonade always left the Robins in the fridge before she moved in with Bruce after Jason's death. The old memory caused him to down the glass.

"This is Selena's recipe for lemonade," Jason says with a smile as he refills his glass then holds up the pitcher in a silent question.

"Yes, she gave me the recipe last year. Oh, that's right, she told me how you robins used to stop at her place for glass and how you would always have Two. Down one and then sip one." Helena says with a smile as she fills hold up her glass for him to fill.

"So, since your return to Gotham, have you worked on the list?" Jason asks as he sets the pitcher down and takes another bite of his stew. Jason had seen the men entering the Bertinelli townhouse and made a list.

"Yes. I have had to be careful so the Bat does not catch on. The first one I managed to take out was Zsasz. Stephine was getting her ass kicked by him when I first got back to Gotham. The girl was deciding if she should go for a lethal blow when I shot him in the head with one of my crossbows. That was also my introduction to the big bad Bat. It went over better than you would think. I said I saw a fellow vigilante about to get killed and reacted as I was trained. I had to work with Babs and Dinha to 'break' my training the last two years. I got boss Galante last year. That reminds me." Helena then reached over and swatted Jason on the head.

"What was that for?" Jason asks, annoyed he was glad he finished swallowing the bit he had taken.

"For running my stakeout, I had a lead on Santo Cassamento till your little firework display caused them to pack it in for the night!" Helena says with a glare as she took another bite of her food.

"Oh, he is dead. I dropped him off a roof when I first got back to Gotham, and I beat Tobias Whale to death well, I was in Blüdhaven staking out Dick well preparing for my plot for Gotham." Jason says as Helena chokes on her bite and takes a drink of her lemonade before coughing.

"You asshole, they were mine to kill, you better have a satisfactory explanation, or I will hit you again," Helena says with a glare as she angrily takes another bite.

"They hurt you. I was not going to let them keep breathing," Jason states flatly, causing Helena to blush as her eyes got wider.

"Aww, even after all these years, you would kill for me. That's sweet in a fucked up way." Helena says with a small smile.

"Well, I did have a huge crush on you…shit." Jason blurts out in a moment of nervous chattering. He thought he had grown out of that habit, both once again blush scarlet.

"I see you still chitter when you're nervous. I had a huge crush on you, too. You stupid dingbat still do. Maybe we should give dating a try." Helena says as she looks away, her blush getting a bit darker.

"Helena, I would love to. But Bruce is going to be hunting me down. I do not want to take you down with me." Jason says with a frown.

"The only reason I am playing by his rules is so I can get an invite to the cave, and the only reason I want that is so I can that was to loop the footage from the camera he has linked to the joker's cell so I could kill the fucker for killing you." Helena states with anger in her voice at the end.

"So you were planning on avenging me, well, at least someone did," Jason says with a frown.

"What do you mean by that?" Helena's expression turns into a confused frown as she takes another bite of stew.

"Bruce has let the Joker live since he…." Jason starts saying before Helena cuts him off, speaking with aggravation in her voice.

"He has had to be stopped from killing The Joker. Babs told me he once knocked out Selena just after the monster killed you when she tried to stop him from staining his hands with Joker's blood. It took Gordan shooting him twice to get him to stop. He has protocols in place to alert the League when he has a confrontation with the Joker. It once took both Clark and Diana to pry his hands from Joker's throat. Last year after he shot Tim, Bruce broke every bone in the Joker's body but his spine. Then the fucker he brought you up. It took me, Barbara, Selina, Dinah, Dick, and Anna to pull him off Joker, and the only reason he stopped is Selina asked if he wanted Helena visiting him in prison or if she wanted her to keep her away from him. The only reason I helped pull Bruce off Joker is I want to kill that bastard myself."

"Last month when Bruce went to question Joker about the new red hood, He had Dick in the room Aquaman waiting outside the door to the interrogation room in case he lost it. By the look on your face, I am guessing he did not tell you any of this. Of course, You're a dingbat, and he is an emotionally stunted Jackass. Selina says he has gotten better, but I don't believe her." Helena explained to Jason an exasperated look on her face as she takes another bite of her food which she aggressively chews.

"Well, he was not lying when he said it would be too easy for him to kill the Joker," Jason says with wide eyes and a troubled look on his face as he takes another bite then refills his bowl, Helena doing the same.

An alley near the Bertinelli's townhouse

Jason a scrawny thirteen-year-old street punk who stood five feet tall, and he is being paid by the remains Red Hood Gang to case the home next to the Bertinelli townhouse. The red hood gang planned to abduct the owner, a guy managing Wayne Industries warehouse that had something they wanted. He needed the money as he hated that his mother had to sell herself on the streets just to put food on the table. He wants to get her off heroin too. However, that would be harder as she had a back injury that needed surgery to repair, and the H was the only thing keeping the pain at bay. The cost of the surgery would be 500,000 with aftercare. His goal was made harder as his mother insisted he attend school. He would also never be a lookout again after what happened last year.

The highlight of the last two days was watching The daughter of the leader of the crime family Helena, a cute girl his age, left and returned. He had noticed that most of Bettinelli's chief operators started arrived. That's when the rival Galante family's button men pulled up to enter their way in. he made a list in the little notebook he used when he was casing a joint as the info could prove valuable. Santo Cassamento, Tobias Whale, Carlo Rossi, newcomers Roman Sionis and Victor Zsasz. Most interesting was that the leader of the Galante family himself, Stefano Galante is with them.

Except for the leader, all of them were packing some series of hardware shit. They were heading into the house, and he forgot his phone today. A minute later, the cute girl made her way back down the street. She stands at four feet eleven inches. Jason knew what was about to happen, and he could not bring himself to let the girl enter the house. Jason rushed from his hiding place.

Jason grabbed her by the waist and dragged her back into the alley as automatic gunfire started. Now that he got a closer look at her, he realized she is not cute. She is beautiful; however, he wisely kept that to himself.

"LET ME GO, YOU STUPID DINGBAT. I NEED TO SAVE MY FAMILY." The girl screamed as she reared back and drove an elbow into his ribs. He grunted. The girl hit hard; however, he ignored the pain.

"IF I DO THAT, YOU WILL BE DEAD TOO. COME WITH ME IF YOU WANT TO LIVE!" Jason yells at the girl.

"Did you just quote Terminator to me?" The girl asks as she stops struggling for a moment, and Jason lets her go as they could not be seen from this part of the alley.

"Yes, and I stand by the line. Come with me if you want to live. I have a list of names you can get your revenge later." Jason lets go and holds his hand out to her. Helena takes his hand, and Jason starts pulling her to the subway.

"Helena Janice Rosa Bertinelli, who are you, you stupid dingbat?" Helena says with an angry glare at Jason's head as she lets herself be pulled where ever this cute dingbat was dragging her.

"I am not a stupid or a dingbat. My name Jason Peter Todd," Jason said with a blush.

To be continued same Red Hood time, same Huntress channel.

To be continued