Disclaimer: Bullseye, the Daily Bugle and Ben Urich are not mine. Everyone else, is.
A/N: Just to state right off, there is nothing at all romantic between Ben and Leigh, there friendship is more along the lines of father and daughter. Got that? ::smiles cutely::
Your Winter
Chapter Two: The Hard Knock Life
"Life is just one big sexually transmitted diesease."
*
"--and where the *hell* is my muffin?"
"Right here, Melissa. Calm down."
Did I mention that besides getting coffee, sandwiches or any other food related items, I also play the part of Office Therapist? Which was why I had my arm around the Society columnist Melissa Braddock, who was currently in the middle of a nervous breakdown.
"I just can't believe he left me." She wailed, burying her face on my shoulder. I sighed and patted her shoulder. "I know sweetie, I know." I said soothingly, but here again we have another case of me being a total fake. I've dated a respectable number of guys, had my heart broken a couple of times. But I have yet to find "the one". The guy that made me feel like my soul was being ripped apart, like I would cease to exist without him. I haven't had that yet.
"Oh, Leigh, what am I going to do?" Oh yeah. Enough of my inner ramblings. Back to the present situation. "What your going to do, Melissa, is let go of my shirt," I hated to be whiny but it was new and she was practically wiping her nose on it, "take the day off, go home and rest, and go out with me and Angelica tonight." She sniffed. "Angelica?"
"She broke up with Daniel." Melissa winced, "God help us all." She muttured, relinquishing her grip on my top and wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "Is my mascara running?" I plucked a tissue from the box on her desk and wiped the black tracks on her cheeks. "Running? Babe you sobbed it off twenty minutes ago." She gave me a watery grin.
"Leigh, could you--?" She gestured to the files strewn across the floor. I smiled wanly, "Yeah. I'll handle it, you get out of here, and call me later?" Melissa nodded, impulsively hugging me. "Your amazing, Leigh." I shoved her towards the door.
"Yes, I am. Remember that the next time I forget to bring you fat free cream cheese."
*
"Leigh?"
I looked up from Melissa's filing cabinet and beamed. "Well, well, if it isn't my favorite investigative reporter." Ben Urich rolled his eyes and beckoned for me to follow him. "C'mere, I want to talk to you about something."
Ben Urich jokingly refers to himself as my mentor. In a way, I guess that's exactly what he is. His column, "Urban Myths", is my favorite, and Ben is another one of the vastly under appreciated talents that work at this paper. He's also the only guy I've come across here that actually doesn't mind listening to me bitch and moan when I'm having a bad day. We have an understanding. He doesn't tease me about my obsession with shopping, and I don't put salt in his coffee. Yeah, that actually happened once, but I swear it was accident.
I follow him across the hall to his office and plop down in a chair. Ben sits on the edge of his desk, the ridiculous hat he always wears pushed back so that I can see his face. "What's up, 'O Wise One?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at his serious expression.
"Leigh, how would you feel about writing a column for me?"
I think I passed out. No, I know I passed out, because five seconds later Ben was hauling me back to my feet from where I'd tumbled off my chair. After all, it's not every day that someone just off-handedly offers you the very thing you've been lusting after for the past year. After regaining conciousness, I simply gaped at Ben. "Are you joking?" He grinned. "Me? I never joke."
"Ben--"
He waved me silent, "Leigh, you've been working here almost a year and a half, and while your the best gofer we've ever had, I think your talents are being wasted." He watched my face with an amused expression. "And stop looking so surprised, I can tell it's getting to you, my coffee was starting to suffer."
I somehow managed to pick my jaw up off the carpet and speak. "And you want me...to write a column for you?" I clarified, still unable to believe him. He picked up a folder off of his desk and handed it to me. "You know who the Kingpin is, right?" I rolled my eyes, "No, I've been living under a rock for the past two months." He gave me a look. "Cut the sarcasm for a second, Leigh, I'm throwing you gold."
I shut up. Ben continued. "Since his case was dimissed," He waited, seeing if I was going to comment. "Lack of evidence," I supplied, not looking up from the folder, which was full of newspaper clippings and crude sketches. "Right. So Fisk has been released, and everything is pointing towards him picking up right where he left off."
My gaze caught on a drawing of a man with what looked like a bull's-eye branded into his forehead. I held up the picture. "And who might this cheerfull lil' fella be?"
"Thats your subject. Bullseye." I snorted, "Clever. Great drawing, by the way, he looks like a chimp with a goatee."
"He's Fisk's top assasin. The top assasin in the world, if my sources are to be believed, which I think they are." I studied the picture for a second. "I've never heard of him before this. Why haven't you written about this Bullseye dude before?"
Was it just me or did Ben look suddenly uncomfortable. "To be honest, I've been waiting for the right moment. It's a big story. Not many people are aware of him, and those that are..well they keep their mouths shut.
"Guess so. He doesn't exactly look friendly."
"The city was keeping him under wraps, they still refuse to even confirm Daredevil's existence, let alone some big shot assasin's. But I've heard, from a reliable source, that he was being kept in a prison hospital for injuries sustained from his fight with Daredevil, and escaped from their early this week." I paused, flipping through some more articles. I remembered the day the whole Daredevil/Kingpin thing had gone down, it had been about six months ago, when I was suitably new enough to be practically wetting my pants with excitement at such a huge story. Ben waited silently while I toyed with this new information I'd been given. "So what is it exactly that you want me to do?" I asked finally, looking up at him.
"I want you to find out everything you can about this guy. But Leigh," He looked suddenly serious, "I want you to be carefull. Not only is he extremely dangerous and completely mental, but he's hell-bent on revenge."
"Sounds like a few of my ex-boyfriends." I quipped with a grin. He didn't smile. "I'm serious, Leigh, if you don't feel comfortable doing this, don't." I got to my feet, feeling curiously light-headed. "Your sure you want me to do this?"
"I'm positive. But only if you want to."
I looked down at the folder in my hands, then back to Ben. There was no question.
"I'll do it."
A/N: Just to state right off, there is nothing at all romantic between Ben and Leigh, there friendship is more along the lines of father and daughter. Got that? ::smiles cutely::
Your Winter
Chapter Two: The Hard Knock Life
"Life is just one big sexually transmitted diesease."
*
"--and where the *hell* is my muffin?"
"Right here, Melissa. Calm down."
Did I mention that besides getting coffee, sandwiches or any other food related items, I also play the part of Office Therapist? Which was why I had my arm around the Society columnist Melissa Braddock, who was currently in the middle of a nervous breakdown.
"I just can't believe he left me." She wailed, burying her face on my shoulder. I sighed and patted her shoulder. "I know sweetie, I know." I said soothingly, but here again we have another case of me being a total fake. I've dated a respectable number of guys, had my heart broken a couple of times. But I have yet to find "the one". The guy that made me feel like my soul was being ripped apart, like I would cease to exist without him. I haven't had that yet.
"Oh, Leigh, what am I going to do?" Oh yeah. Enough of my inner ramblings. Back to the present situation. "What your going to do, Melissa, is let go of my shirt," I hated to be whiny but it was new and she was practically wiping her nose on it, "take the day off, go home and rest, and go out with me and Angelica tonight." She sniffed. "Angelica?"
"She broke up with Daniel." Melissa winced, "God help us all." She muttured, relinquishing her grip on my top and wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "Is my mascara running?" I plucked a tissue from the box on her desk and wiped the black tracks on her cheeks. "Running? Babe you sobbed it off twenty minutes ago." She gave me a watery grin.
"Leigh, could you--?" She gestured to the files strewn across the floor. I smiled wanly, "Yeah. I'll handle it, you get out of here, and call me later?" Melissa nodded, impulsively hugging me. "Your amazing, Leigh." I shoved her towards the door.
"Yes, I am. Remember that the next time I forget to bring you fat free cream cheese."
*
"Leigh?"
I looked up from Melissa's filing cabinet and beamed. "Well, well, if it isn't my favorite investigative reporter." Ben Urich rolled his eyes and beckoned for me to follow him. "C'mere, I want to talk to you about something."
Ben Urich jokingly refers to himself as my mentor. In a way, I guess that's exactly what he is. His column, "Urban Myths", is my favorite, and Ben is another one of the vastly under appreciated talents that work at this paper. He's also the only guy I've come across here that actually doesn't mind listening to me bitch and moan when I'm having a bad day. We have an understanding. He doesn't tease me about my obsession with shopping, and I don't put salt in his coffee. Yeah, that actually happened once, but I swear it was accident.
I follow him across the hall to his office and plop down in a chair. Ben sits on the edge of his desk, the ridiculous hat he always wears pushed back so that I can see his face. "What's up, 'O Wise One?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at his serious expression.
"Leigh, how would you feel about writing a column for me?"
I think I passed out. No, I know I passed out, because five seconds later Ben was hauling me back to my feet from where I'd tumbled off my chair. After all, it's not every day that someone just off-handedly offers you the very thing you've been lusting after for the past year. After regaining conciousness, I simply gaped at Ben. "Are you joking?" He grinned. "Me? I never joke."
"Ben--"
He waved me silent, "Leigh, you've been working here almost a year and a half, and while your the best gofer we've ever had, I think your talents are being wasted." He watched my face with an amused expression. "And stop looking so surprised, I can tell it's getting to you, my coffee was starting to suffer."
I somehow managed to pick my jaw up off the carpet and speak. "And you want me...to write a column for you?" I clarified, still unable to believe him. He picked up a folder off of his desk and handed it to me. "You know who the Kingpin is, right?" I rolled my eyes, "No, I've been living under a rock for the past two months." He gave me a look. "Cut the sarcasm for a second, Leigh, I'm throwing you gold."
I shut up. Ben continued. "Since his case was dimissed," He waited, seeing if I was going to comment. "Lack of evidence," I supplied, not looking up from the folder, which was full of newspaper clippings and crude sketches. "Right. So Fisk has been released, and everything is pointing towards him picking up right where he left off."
My gaze caught on a drawing of a man with what looked like a bull's-eye branded into his forehead. I held up the picture. "And who might this cheerfull lil' fella be?"
"Thats your subject. Bullseye." I snorted, "Clever. Great drawing, by the way, he looks like a chimp with a goatee."
"He's Fisk's top assasin. The top assasin in the world, if my sources are to be believed, which I think they are." I studied the picture for a second. "I've never heard of him before this. Why haven't you written about this Bullseye dude before?"
Was it just me or did Ben look suddenly uncomfortable. "To be honest, I've been waiting for the right moment. It's a big story. Not many people are aware of him, and those that are..well they keep their mouths shut.
"Guess so. He doesn't exactly look friendly."
"The city was keeping him under wraps, they still refuse to even confirm Daredevil's existence, let alone some big shot assasin's. But I've heard, from a reliable source, that he was being kept in a prison hospital for injuries sustained from his fight with Daredevil, and escaped from their early this week." I paused, flipping through some more articles. I remembered the day the whole Daredevil/Kingpin thing had gone down, it had been about six months ago, when I was suitably new enough to be practically wetting my pants with excitement at such a huge story. Ben waited silently while I toyed with this new information I'd been given. "So what is it exactly that you want me to do?" I asked finally, looking up at him.
"I want you to find out everything you can about this guy. But Leigh," He looked suddenly serious, "I want you to be carefull. Not only is he extremely dangerous and completely mental, but he's hell-bent on revenge."
"Sounds like a few of my ex-boyfriends." I quipped with a grin. He didn't smile. "I'm serious, Leigh, if you don't feel comfortable doing this, don't." I got to my feet, feeling curiously light-headed. "Your sure you want me to do this?"
"I'm positive. But only if you want to."
I looked down at the folder in my hands, then back to Ben. There was no question.
"I'll do it."