GOTHAM KNIGHT

By FAH3

THE ICEBERG LOUNGE

The exclusive club for the elite upper class of Gotham was a triple threat. It was a club, a restaurant with fine dinning and a cuisine that would make five star chefs blush, and a casino rolled into one. In the center of the massive building sat a real iceberg that had been specially transported and placed within the club's walls. It sat in the middle of a massive circular acrylic tank that housed various species of fish that could survive the frigid temperatures of the salt water surrounding the massive frozen berg. The building itself that housed the Lounge seemed to be a massive heirloom to the Cobblepot family. Where the building sat was once the location of the original Pinky Museum of Natural Science for several generations.

It was an ancestor of the Cobblepot family that not only helped in founding Gotham itself, but also contributed a large amount of money in the construction of the museum. In return for the financial aid, the Cobblepot wing of the museum was added. When Gotham built a new museum and planned to demolish the original, the Cobblepot wing was purchased by Oswald's grandmother. As the rest of the museum was torn down, the Cobblepot wing was converted into a bird sanctuary. After the death of Oswald's grandmother and the almost complete depletion of the Cobblepot family fortune, that building was closed and left vacant. When Oswald bought the building back, it was almost condemned. It took time and a great deal of patience, but the building was given a massive renovation and opened its doors as the Iceberg Lounge and was given rave reviews. All of its interiors were a testament to Old Gotham when it was a thriving metropolitan city before it sank into its now dubious reputation. All of its architecture mirrored that of the grandest of ballrooms and clubs from the roaring twenties with every modern convenience that anyone could ask for.

While the upper crust of Gotham society wined, dined, and threw away their money; they had no idea of what lay in the bowels of the massive structure. A morbid collection of various weapons, mementos, and grotesque taxidermy trophies of various victories that Oswald, also known as The Penguin, had conquered in his quest to become one of the most elite of society and feared of Gotham's underworld. The weapons ranged from all sorts that had been used in eliminating competition or taking out various threats to his empire while the mementos were smaller items. Items like various weaponized umbrellas he had used throughout his life or the personal effects of his former competition. There were even rare jewels and priceless pieces of artwork that he admired and couldn't bring himself to part with them after going through so much trouble to acquire them. Then there were the taxidermy trophies. Some were of various species of birds that he considered his pets and only true friends. Like various vultures, hawks, and even a finch or two here and there. Then there were other things like a pair of hyenas that once belonged to the Joker. The Clown Prince though it was hilarious to let loose the two starving scavengers that had been trained to be equal to vicious attack dogs. After Penguin's men put them down, he had them stuffed and took a portrait of himself using one as a foot rest while extinguishing a cigarette in the snout of the other. Joker didn't like that and sent him a laughing gas bomb. Thank God Oswald had lackeys or he would have had a permanent smile on his face.

However, the stuffed animals were the tamest of the collection. For displayed in various pressurized cases in order to keep their contents preserved were bodies. The preserved, posed, and displayed corpses of the people that had wronged him in the past or dared to try and get in his way. The body of the mob boss he eliminated to make a name for himself, even other weapon smugglers that tried to muscle him out of the business. The body of his father, whose drunkenness and adulterous lifestyle had caused his mother many nights of misery, sat in its own case. There was no flesh or organs, merely bones. Still, his father's remains sat on display as a reminder that anyone could betray him. Even his family. Many a day he would walk amongst the preserved dead and chuckle. Every time he ventured into his morbid collection, a wave of content satisfaction would wash over him.

Tonight, the doors were shut, the kitchen was cold, and the lights were off. The only things that were on were the coolers that kept the iceberg from melting and the lights inside Oswald Cobblepot's office. While the Iceberg Lounge was a front, it was still a legitimate business. With any business comes the hassle of paperwork and bookkeeping. Oswald was looking over the latest figures and numbers to the lounge as he grumbled under his breath. With each mutter of obscenities, he started to sound more and more like his namesake. As he went over the books, he paused for a moment. He didn't know how to explain it, but something felt off. He glanced up and looked around his office; not sure if he had heard the sound of something moving or not. The Lounge did have a small rodent problem not too long ago, but they had already gotten that taken care of. With his desk lamp being his only light source, he couldn't really see anything around him.

"Tracey? Candy, is that you?" he asked, wondering if it was one of his two secretaries were working overtime. "Boys?" he asked, louder than before.

Oswald's sense of unease became stronger as he was greeted with silence. The hairs on the back of his neck began to stand on end as he could almost swear that he was being watched right now. Reaching over, he turned the desk lamp around and was greeted by a large and menacing form that had the distinct shape of a giant bat.

"I pay that rat catcher several hundred and I still have a rodent problem." Oswald muttered to himself and not caring if his unwanted guest heard him or not.

"I know you keep your eye on the black market, Penguin." The figure said.

"I'm a respectable businessman. I don't know what you're talking about." Oswald said.

"Don't lie to me." The figure said in a low and agitated tone. "You're going to tell me everything you know about a competitor of yours."

"Oh, am I?" Cobblepot asked as he removed a used butt from his long cigarette holder and placed a fresh one in it. He lit the cigarette and then took a long puff on the holder. "If I had such information, what would be in it for me?" he asked as he slowly reached under his desk.

Attached to the underside of the desk was a swivel that held a sawed off shotgun. A little bit of muscle in case he had unwanted guests that had worn out their welcome. As his hand began to slip under the tabletop, a surprisingly firm grip grasped him by his wrist and stopped him.

"I'd keep that flipper where we can see it." Supergirl said as Batgirl emerged from the shadows behind her.

"What the hell is this? On your way to a comic book convention and decided to harass me for a few giggles?" Penguin asked as Supergirl let his arm go and backed up as Batman stepped closer.

"Don't make me hurt you, Cobblepot." Batman growled.

"I'm getting really sick of the attitude." Oswald said as he stood while rubbing his wrist. "You three have better luck getting into a nun's skivvies then getting anything out of me."

"So you're not going to help?" Batman asked him.

"Why in the bloody hell would I do that?" Penguin asked him.

"Bet you twenty he's going to kick the desk." Batgirl whispered to her sister.

"What?" Supergirl asked.

With a surprising amount of force, the Batman kicked the wooden desk hard enough to flip it over. The desk landed hard, causing the shotgun that was hidden underneath to fire and take out the large window behind it before rolling to a stop with it sitting now fully upside down. Oswald was now backed up into a corner and somewhat shaken from the sight.

"Do you know how much that cost? First Mercy, now you! For Christ's sake!" Penguin shouted before the large costumed vigilante grasped him by his coat. He spun the short man around and slammed him, back first, into a row of metal filling cabinets that shook them and left a visible dent in the drawers.

"Called it." Batgirl whispered.

"Tell me what I want to know before I rip that bottle out of your face." Batman growled as he saw Penguin's eyes darting around the room, looking for either an impromptu weapon or a way to escape.

"Damn it all to hell." Cobblepot groaned to himself. "Who do you want to know about?"

"Joe Chill."

"Chill? Why him? He's just a guppy in an ocean full of sharks."

Batman punched the cabinets directly next to Penguin's head, leaving a massive imprint and causing a small business trophy to fall and graze Oswald's chubby cheek. He could feel blood begin to drip down his face as Batman raised his hands to either side of Penguin's head and began to apply the slightest amount of pressure to his "eyepiece."

"TELL ME WHAT YOU KNOW!" Batman shouted.

"Damn." Supergirl whispered in shock as she saw the criminal begin to blubber like a crying child.

Even Batgirl, despite her best efforts to remain stone faced, was wincing in shock at her father's actions. She wasn't there when he had almost killed the Joker, but she couldn't help but wonder if this was how Dick felt when he saw the Dark Knight teetering on the brink of loosing all self control.


YAMANUCHI, JAPAN

Every time he had looked upon the ancient school in the past, he always felt a sense of wonder and awe. It had always felt like it was something from an epic movie or one of the video games that he would frequently play. Not now. Not anymore. The awe and wonder was gone. Instead there was nothing but anger and pain. It was like something had been torn from within him, making him feel hollow and empty. No matter what, the anger and pain just felt like it was growing worse. Even when the police had caught the man responsible for his pain, it only seemed to make it worse. The police had brought Ron in to make a positive ID, but Ron couldn't bring himself to look at him. Truthfully, Ron wasn't even sure he could ID the man because he never got a good look at the man's face.

It had been dark in that alley that night. When he Ron heard the gun cock, it was from behind. When he turned to look, it was under the light of one lone street lamp. The gunmen wore a hat as well with his jacket's hood up, which made the upper half of his face covered in shadow. It was almost as if he was using the shadow itself as a mask. The only thing Ron knew was that the man was tall, skinny, and had about three days worth of stubble on his face. His father tried to reason with the man, even offering his wallet. Ron had noticed something though. He didn't know if it was because of the adrenaline of the situation or the training he had received from Master Sensei, but he could see the man's hands were shaking. He was nervous and his finger was on the trigger. Instinct had kicked when Ron grabbed a trash can lid and threw it at the gunman. The man covered himself out of reflex, giving Ron time to move. As Ron walked around his parents, he was rushing the gunman when the armed would-be mugger lowered his arms after the lid clattered to the ground. Everything had happened so fast and so slow at the same time. It was as if Ron had been frozen in mid movement as he saw the man raise and point the gun where he had just been standing when he fired the gun twice.

After the gun fired, Ron's fist connected with the man's jaw and sent him sprawling to the concrete and into a puddle. When Ron turned back, he saw in horror at what the man had just done. Both of his parents were laying on the ground in the light of the street lamp, Ron stumbled to them and fell to his knees as he heard his parent's killer run away but didn't care at that moment. His mother had a hole in her chest where her heart was while his father had a bullet hole to the head. Blood was quickly pooling beneath the both of them from the large exit wounds as all signs of life were gone. Ron didn't know how long he knelt there in the cold and damp alley. He didn't even remember being taken to the station when he regained some of his senses. When he noticed where he had been, he saw the police officer that he had talked to t the college as he talked to a detective.

"The guy hasn't moved or said anything since we found him."

"He's probably high on something."

"For God's sake, Flass! He just watched his parent's get shot. I've met him, he's a decent kid."

"It's Gotham City. Decent people have no place being here. They'd be happier some place else. We probably won't even catch the guy who did it."

"There's still a chance."

"Wise up, Gordon. The sooner you realize this isn't Chicago, the better. Just take a statement and let him go. I've got better things to do then look into the deaths of a couple of tourists." The detective said and walked off.

"Sometimes I wish I could take a baseball bat to his face." Gordon muttered to himself before turning his attention to Ron.

Two things happened not too long after Ron overheard that talk. One was that when Commissioner Loeb found out whom Ron was and what all he and Kim had done, he made finding his parents killer one of the department's top priorities. The second was that Gordon had been promoted to a detective shortly after that night. Gordon took over the case and found that they had everything they needed to put Chill away. They found him in a bar not far from Crime Alley getting as drunk as he possibly could. He almost started a fight when the bartender cut him off and called the police on him. When they arrested him for assaulting a police officer, they found the gun on him along with the residue from firing it all over his hands still. They had even found a tooth that Ron had apparently knocked out of his mouth when he had punched him that had more than enough DNA to put him at the scene. Gordon even found footage from an old security camera that clearly captured Chill's face. They had him.

Ron wasn't interested. After he buried his parents back in Middleton and settled everything with the resulting paperwork, including becoming Hannah's legal guardian, he couldn't stand being in Gotham City or back home in Middleton. So he sold his family's house to Dr. Anne Possible so she could rent it out. He knew she made more than enough money to keep herself and the twins afloat, but a little more never hurt. With his affairs settled, he and Hannah moved to the ninja school in Japan. Hoping to find some sort of way to make peace with everything and try to balance his heart and mind, he made sure Wade did everything he could to make sure no one could find him. He didn't want to talk or see anyone as it brought too much pain and even more anger. So there he sat in the gardens of Yamanuchi as he tried to meditate. The only thing he felt was the breeze as the only sound he focused on was that of his breathing. He wore the normal loose fitting clothes of the school as he focused his mind and tried desperately to find inner peace. Thankfully, he had some company besides his little sister whom Yori was keeping an eye on. Not too far from where he sat was his pet mole rat Rufus as he sat and meditated as well.

Ron continued to sit motionless and unmoving. As he continued to meditate, he seemed unaware of a figure cloaked in black ninja garb as they made their way to him. When the ninja was right behind him, they made a kick toward the back of his head. Ron immediately spun and caught the foot and used his attackers momentum to spin and throw them to the ground. The ninja immediately leapt to their feet and attacked again with a series of punches and kicks. Ron simply side stepped and deflected most of the attacks, but more than one connected. However, Ron did not flinch or recoil. If nothing, it seemed to make him angry before he launched his own series of attacks. He managed to grasp his attackers left arm and pressed it against their back. He continued to apply pressure and forced his knee into their back. The attacker relented, shouting that they surrendered. Ron wasn't listening. He continue to glare at them with rage as his face was flushed bright red. He was determined to break their bones and make them hurt.

"Stoppable-san STOP!" an old voice shouted.

The voice seemed to bring Ron out of his rage and released his opponent. The ninja he fought stood to their feet and began to gingerly rotate and massage their arm to make sure it was still functional while Master Sensei approached them.

"You did it again, Stoppable-san. I have told you that your mind and body must be balanced at all times." The old teacher said.

"My apologies, Sensei." Stoppable said.

"You said he had anger issues, but that was scary." His opponent said, causing Ron to notice the rather feminine voice that came from behind the mask.

Now that they were no longer fighting, Ron finally noticed the fact that the woman had rather stunning ice blue eyes. The ninja removed her mask to reveal that she was a Caucasian woman with subtle red hair that flowed down to her shoulders. In a word he had used in high school, her hair was very flippy. As he saw her, his mind immediately went to Kim. While the young woman would never pass for her sister, one could mistake them for at least cousins.

"Stoppable, this is one of our newest students." Sensei introduced.

"Andrea Beaumont." She said and offered her right hand as she still slightly rotated her left arm.

"R-Ron Stoppable." He said and shook her hand.

"Stoppable, I would like to request that you mentor Miss Beaumont in our more advanced classes."

"Me? Why me?"

"You have come a long way since the first time you came to us. It is time that you passed the knowledge you have learned to others."

"Sensei, I'm still a student myself. I'm not ready." Ron protested.

"Miss Beaumont, may you give us a moment alone?"

"Yes, Sensei." Andrea said as she bowed and left the gardens.

"Stoppable-san, you need to do this. Despite our best efforts, your anger is still unchecked and clouds your judgment. Many of the other students have refused to spar with you because of how many you've injured."

"I know, Sensei. I meditate and do the breathing exercises, but nothing seems to help. As soon as I start fighting, it's like I'm shoved in the back of my head. I can see and feel everything, but I can't control myself. It feels like some sort of auto-pilot takes over."

"I understand, Stoppable. What you have been through is tragic. Despite what anyone says, they will never truly understand what it has done to you. That is why I want you to train with Miss Beaumont. She too has suffered a great tragedy as you have. If anyone can understand the pain in your heart, perhaps it is she."

"This is some sort of therapy, isn't it?"

"That is for you and she to decide." Sensei said before he walked away. As Ron turned back to Rufus, he saw a grin spread on the little rodent's face.

"You had something to do with this, didn't you?" Ron asked him.

The mole rat's response was to make a zipping motion across his smiling mouth.


STOPPABLE MANOR

It was a new day and was surprisingly bright and cloudless. Hannah and Lara were in the large kitchen of the manor as they tried to make something for lunch. As they moved about and were relatively getting along, Hannah couldn't help but notice that Lara seemed distracted.

"Is everything okay, mutant?" Hannah asked.

"What? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." Lara said.

"I'm not buying it. Something's up with you."

"What makes you say that?" Lara asked.

"Those vegetables you're trying to dice are your fingers." Hannah said as she glanced down.

Looking down at the cutting board, Lara saw that the carrots she had been working on were cut and now littered with pieces of chipped knife. Each time that she brought the knife down on her fingers, she caused the steel to chip and break with only faint pink marks across the teen's fingers. Lara looked at the ruined knife and grimaced at its state.

"I think I should take over." Hannah said as she took the cutting board and dumped everything in it into the garbage before Lara threw the knife into it.

"You and dad make this look so easy. I can't even boil water." Lara groaned.

"Too easy." Hannah said to herself as she decided to keep her mouth shut.

She had to make an effort to try and bond with her sister on some level. That's why the both of them were in the kitchen trying to make lunch and Hannah trying, in vain, to teach the young redhead how to cook. The only thing they seemed to succeeding at was the small headache that Hannah was getting from all the frustration.

"It just takes practice, like everything else. So before we try to ruin anymore of our father's cutlery, why don't you say what's got you distracted?"

"Why are you so curious?"

"I'm trying to be a good big sister." Hannah said and saw the look she was receiving. "Okay. Let's just say its morbid curiosity."

"Well, it's dad."

"What about dad?"

"It was the way he acted last night. The way he treated that guy in the bar and what he did with the guy in the casino. It was – scary." Lara said.

"He can be intense." Hannah admitted.

"How do you get used to something like that? I mean, he seems so bright and cheerful."

Hannah sighed as she washed her hands and turned to face Lara. "Do you want the truth or a lie?"

"Surprise me." Lara said.

"Ron hasn't been bright and cheerful for a long time. Don't get me wrong; he's improving the longer he's around Kim. Ever since his parents died, he's been – how do I word this?"

"Moody?"

"That works." Hannah said. "All I can say is that you get used to it. I mean, he's been like this for as long as I can remember."

"So you mean he's always Batman?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying. Batman is a tool. He wears that and becomes and even bigger hard ass so he can scare the criminals. Putting fear into them gives him a better edge. And he's mister bright and cheerful when he wears that suit and steps out of the house so no one puts two and two together."

"So which one is dad?"

"He's the guy in between. He's tough on us when it comes to training and when we're out in the field, but he has to be. Look at what we did in Coast City and what we normally go up against. We have to be on our toes. One little slip up and we're in the Emergency Room or worse. It took me and Dick forever to convince him to go out there with him. During down time, he tries to relax a little." Hannah said and thought for a moment. "Or at least when the both of us make him relax."

"So what's he like when he's not working?"

"He's actually a good dad. He spends time with us, helps us with homework, the normal dad stuff. He also listens to us when we need to talk about something. That way we can give him a good boot in the butt whenever he's being stubborn."

"How often is he stubborn?"

"When is he not stubborn? But the more Kim's around him, the more he starts becoming his old self. That's what she says, anyway. So, Kim's going to be here for lunch soon and we've ruined three knives and one cutting board. What can we make in under half an hour?" Hannah asked her.

"Do we have any Peanut butter and jelly?" Lara asked.


Beneath the manor in the caverns below, Ron couldn't help but smile as he watched the girls worked on one of the monitors. As he watched, he breathed a sigh of relief. At least they weren't trying to kill each other for the time being. It was very refreshing to see them acting like sisters and not rivals. He couldn't imagine what it was like for the both of them. Hannah especially to find out someone she didn't like was now her biological sister. On top of that, there was the revelation that Ron was actually her father and not her big brother. The more Ron thought about it, the more he wondered if he should contact Dr. Thomas Wayne. He and his son were one of his good friends, and Thomas was good friends with a highly respected psychiatrist by the name of Leslie Tompkins. Maybe he should get her number and arrange a therapy session for both Hannah and Lara.

"Penny for your thoughts?" a voice asked from behind, causing Ron to smile.

"Just making sure the girls don't burn the house down." He said as he turned in his chair and saw Kim walk up to him as she removed her red cape from her uniform. "They decided to make us lunch."

"That was nice of them. What do they want?"

"It's either because of what yesterday was, or she's trying to convince me to buy a car."

"She won't be eligible for a driver's license for a few more years."

"That isn't stopping her from getting a head start." Ron said as he went back to the monitors.

"Where's Dick? I haven't seen him around lately." Kim said as she only heard the girls heartbeats and no one else's in the mansion above.

"He's been taking his leadership role with the Titans seriously. Right now, they're doing a small recon mission with Black Canary and Green Arrow in Santa Prisca. There have been some troubling rumors about a new strength enhancement drug."

"Is that such a good idea? They're still kids." Kim asked him.

"They're more than that, KP. Our mission to Coast City proved that." Ron said.

"I know, but I still worry about him." Kim said and paused. "Do you ever think about just letting Dick just be a kid?"

"All the time." Ron said. "After what he saw at the circus, I could see the same darkness I saw in myself after my parents died. I didn't want history to repeat itself."

"What changed your mind?"

"The night he ran away. Dick deduced where Tony Zuco was operating and went looking for him. I'm just glad I got there when Zuco threw him into the Gotham River. I knew Dick wasn't going to stop looking for him, so I did what I thought was best."

Kim was silent before she glanced at the monitors then back to her fiancé.

"How are you doing?" Kim asked him as she leaned on the back of his chair with her chin resting on the headrest.

"Lara talked to you, didn't she?"

"You did freak her out a little. Breaking someone's bones in a fight I can understand. Shoving a broken glass into a man's hand just because he was a jerk?"

"He's a former gun runner. He's lucky I didn't do worse."

"Ron," Kim started as she stepped in front of him. "You're letting this get to you. Remember what happened after – you know." Kim said, unable to bring up the aftermath of her fight with Doomsday.

"I'm still in control, KP."

"Are you sure? I don't want to second guess you; but we both know that there's enough mental baggage between the both of us that would make some of the nut cases in Arkham look almost stable." Kim said, making Ron groan in slight frustration.

"I've spent years trying to find this man, KP. It almost feels like a lifetime." Ron said.

"I thought the police arrested him before you went back to Japan."

"They did. When I first became Batman, I was curious to see what the police had done with him. It turns out that a grease ball lawyer got Chill off on a technicality and that the evidence wasn't admissible."

"How did he pull that off?"

"It turns out that Chill was a temporary cell mate with Carmine Falcone. The DA gave Chill a free pass in return for Chill's testimony. Once they had everything they needed from Chill, all the paperwork they had on my parent's case was misplaced."

"You've got to be kidding me." Kim asked; shocked at what she was hearing.

"Gordon's done more good for this city than anyone realizes." Ron said.

A sudden shrill beep began to sound, causing the couple to jerk their heads to its source. A fire alarm had just gone off as the computer zeroed in on its source and displayed it full screen. Looking to the monitors, he saw there was a fire in the kitchen that was out of control. Hannah had the extinguisher, but Ron knew it wouldn't matter in a few seconds. The minute the teenager aimed the cylindrical device, the sprinklers activated as the cameras went dark.

"What happened?"

"The computer cut the power to the kitchen. That means it's an electrical fire." Ron said as he bolted out of his seat and up the stairs with Kim following close behind.

Worried about Hannah and Lara, Kim rushed past Ron in an instant and was in the kitchen within seconds flat. She quickly pushed the girls behind her as she took a deep breath and began to blow a steady gust of cold air. When Ron finally arrived in the kitchen, he saw a thick sheet of frost was covering the counter, cabinets, and a few of his kitchen appliances. As he waved the smoke away and everyone made sure the fire was out, both turned to the two sisters.

"What on earth happened?" Kim asked them.

"We were trying to cook lunch." Hannah said.

"What were you cooking?" Ron asked them.

"You wanna tell them?" Hannah asked her sister as she began to blush so deeply that it matched both her and her mother's hair.

"I tried to make toast." She said. "And the toaster – caught fire."

"How?" both Kim and Ron asked in unison.

"I don't know. All I did was push the button." Lara replied.

"It looks like she takes after you, KP." Ron said.

"I'm not that bad."

"Do I need to remind you of our Home Economics class? The art teacher put your cake in the student art show as a sculpture." Ron said. "And you won the award for best impressionist art piece."

"I'm suddenly glad I take after dad." Hannah muttered to herself and noticed the look Kim gave her. "Too soon?"

"You think?" the maiden of steel asked her. "Go clean yourselves up and we'll go out for lunch."

"What about the kitchen?" Lara asked.

"We'll take care of it later. Just go wash up." Kim said. As soon as the girls were out of the room, Kim turned and looked at the charred devastation. "I'll pay to fix everything."

"On a reporter's salary?" Ron asked her. "Don't worry about it. This should be an easy fix compared to what usually gets destroyed around here."

"They're that bad?" Kim asked.

"Remember what life was like with your brothers? Imagine that, but one has super powers." Ron said and saw Kim's eyes widened in realization.

"Forget the title of Dark Knight. You need to be made a saint." Kim said.

"Technically, we've both died once. So I think we qualify." Ron said as he made sure all the appliances were unplugged. "So, where do you want to go eat?"

"Anything but Bueno Nacho." Kim said.

"Why not?"

"Because we need some variety in life. Don't make me take you on, Ronald."


YAMANUCHI, JAPAN

Ronald was overlooking the entire mountain range as the sun began to set from the highest window in all of Yamanuchi. It was a beautiful sight to behold and Ron never tired of seeing it. However, it didn't feel complete. Something inside of him still felt broken. His temper had calmed somewhat, but not completely. It was one of the reasons he was practicing various moves and stances while overlooking the mountains. His anger still felt like a wild animal that was fighting to be set free. No matter how hard he tried, it just wouldn't go away. Reluctantly, he closed his eyes and looked away. Watching the sunset was bringing him nothing but misery and anguish.

"I was wondering where you were."

Ron turned to see Andrea walking toward him as she finished ascending the stairs. "I will give this place props for at least one thing. It gives you one hell of a chance to work on your cardio."

"It does excel at that." Ron said with a slight smirk.

"You didn't show up for our usual sparring session. Anything wrong?" Andrea asked.

"Today just wasn't a good day." He said.

"Need to talk about it?"

"Not really." Ron answered as he focused on a few more stances.

"Too bad. You know, I was really looking forward to our sparring session today. I think I could've knocked you on your ass." Andrea said.

"I doubt that." Ron responded.

Before he knew what was happening, Andrea grasped him firmly and threw him over her shoulder and onto his back. Ron lay on the ground in a confused stunned state as he tried to figure out what had just happened. As he did, that's when Andrea leaned over him with a very cocky smirk on her face.

"Told you so." She said.

"You do know I'm on my back and not my butt, right?" Ron asked her.

"Close enough."

"You forgot one thing."

"What's that?" Andrea asked.

Ron was able to use his leg to knock Andrea's foot out from under her. The sudden loss of balance caused her to tumble backwards onto the ground with Ron quickly rolling over on top of her and pinning her arms to the ground by her wrists. She struggled for a bit before relenting and looking up in irritation.

"Always be mindful of your surroundings." Ron said.

"If you wanted me on my back this much, you could have just asked." Andrea said and noticed how quickly Ron blushed. She quickly wrapped her legs around him and was able to push him off of her and back onto his back and allowing her to sit on top of him. "I think I like this position better." Andrea said with a small chuckle.

"You distracted me." Ron said, trying to not sound like a complaint.

"How do you know I wasn't being serious?" she asked him and saw the noticeable blush return once more. "Jeez, Ron. Haven't you ever had someone flirt with you before?"

"Not like you can." Ron said. "It's also been a while since I dated."

"How long ago was that?"

"About two years."

"So I'm guessing that means you're single?" she asked him.

"Maybe." Ron said as he noticed that Andrea had been lowering her head closer to his. Ron soon found himself lifting his head upward and kissing Andrea on her full lips that she gladly returned. As they broke the kiss, both had a smile on their face. "I'm a little rusty at this."

"Well, you just need to remember three little rules."

"Which are?" Ron asked her.

"You give me everything you've got. After you give me everything, give me more. And I make the rules."

"Is that for dating or – something else?"

"How about we go to your room and you can find out?" she asked him.