Solidarity?

Chapter 10

March 12, 2005

(MOO)

Beatrice raised an eyebrow and stared at her companion incredulously. "I don't believe you…" She muttered after a moment, shaking her head at him. "I cannot believe you never said anything. In all the time we've been together, not a single word was every uttered about this."

"Bea… it's not like I could ever tell you… he likes to keep a low profile." Richard hopped off his motorcycle to join his girlfriend's side. He looked up at the familiar mansion, then back at the lavender-haired woman standing next to him. She was looking at the intricate façade with a skeptical expression, as if wondering why any single person would need such an extravagant house.

"Tell me," She replied flatly, crossing her arms over her chest and cocking her hips to the side, "How can you keep a low profile when you rake in billions… a year? And live in a mansion like this?" She waved an arm toward the front of the house.

"I don't know. I guess you'll just have to ask Bruce that," Richard responded with a nonchalant shrug. He took her arm and began leading them up the long walkway to the door. "Look, Bea…" He bit his bottom lip for a moment, before continuing his sentence. He wasn't sure if he should be telling her this, but he knew that there was little point to beating around the bush. "There's a lot more to Bruce than you understand. He's not just my benefactor… well, I can't really tell you what he is, but I'm sure he will."

Beatrice watched him for a moment, then sighed deeply and let him lead her to the front door. The path was long and twisting, and it bothered her that they couldn't just walk across the lawn like normal humans. "You're skirting around the subject very unskillfully," She stated after a heartbeat's rest.

"It's a hard subject to explain and skirt at the same time," Richard responded quickly. They reached the door and Richard pulled out his key to let them in. The door swung open without a sound, and Beatrice was greeted with grandeur and elegance of every kind. It kind of made her sick to think that someone had that kind of money to burn on stupid things, like 2000 square feet of hand-carved mahogany wood paneling, or an 18th century French loveseat. Why do people need such frivolities? What was the point?

"Don't you think this is over the top?" She whispered to her companion, shocked at the way her voice reverberated in the entryway. She felt strangely like she was standing in St. Peter's dome, and it set her teeth on edge.

"Yep." Richard responded without a second's thought. He reached forward and helped Beatrice out of her coat, hoping that she didn't feel too out of place here. "But I've lived here for nearly seven years, so you get used to it aver a while."

"So, what's it like to go from the lap of luxury to the dump we live in?" She questioned as he hung up their things. He laughed slightly as he turned to her, and smiled. She looked a little strangely at him, wondering why living in their hellhole would be a humorous subject to him.

"It feels great, actually. When I lived here, it was no picnic, Bea. I was under constant scrutiny and observation, and very little was just handed to me. Living on my own is a lot better now because of what Bruce taught me…" He paused to look at her slightly shocked face, then added: "And because I don't have him breathing down my neck every two minutes."

"No," Beatrice said sarcastically, rolling her eyes slightly at his benefactor's god-awful timing, "instead he calls you every twenty seconds… and interrupts us."

"Don't get mad at me because he's obsessive compulsive about calling me. It's not like I'm related to him or anything." He turned to his left and began walking through a door, motioning Beatrice to follow him.

They walked for a minute or two in complete silence, as Richard lead them deeper and deeper through a maze of hallways and corridors. Finally Beatrice turned to him and spoke. "Is this like a rat-maze for humans? Or have we suddenly stumbled onto the last, hidden Labyrinth?"

Her companion chuckled lightly, his eyes never leaving the space in front of him. "It seems like this place could be either one of those options. I don't know how many times I've gotten lost and had to wait until Alfred found me. It seemed like I was always being scolded for 'not having a mental-map of the lay-out of the house'."

"Alfred?" Beatrice turned to look at him questioningly.

"Bruce's best friend and butler," Richard responded quickly, "Al's a really nice guy; he's always doing something for me or Bruce." He paused for a moment to look at the lavender-haired woman. "Actually, I think the two of you will get along great." There was a quick pause as Beatrice smiled, unable to respond to the comment.

"Ah-ha… here we are," Richard said as he turned to a door. "Bruce doesn't meet guests often, so it's usually Al's job or mine to go and find him." Beatrice looked at him strangely. "He almost never leaves his study," he immediately explained.

"Ah, that explains how you found him so quickly."

Richard pushed the door and poked his head inside, a few muffled phrases were exchanged, and then he motioned Beatrice to follow him into Bruce Wayne's private study; this was an honor granted to very few.

"Beatrice," Richard said as she slowly and carefully entered the large, ornately decorated, book-covered room, "I want you to meet my benefactor, Bruce Wayne. Bruce… this is Beatrice, my girlfriend."

The handsome man, who sat behind a boat of a desk, appeared to be about 35, dark-haired, and extraordinarily handsome. He flashed perfectly straight, white teeth at the young woman before getting to his feet and shaking her hand. "Miss Beatrice, I've heard so much about you. It's a pleasure to finally be making your acquaintance."

Although she tried, Beatrice could not help the eyebrow that shot up in response. It seemed to be a natural reaction when someone either put on a front, or was really sleazy; very similar to the way Bruce Wayne had just acted. She forced a smile and nodded politely. "It's wonderful to finally be meeting Richard's benefactor."

"Why don't you sit down…" He motioned them to take a seat, as he gracefully sat down in his own, executive chair. There was a small moment of awkward silence, where no eye contact was made and the only sound in the room was the whir of Bruce's laptop. Finally, Bruce spoke again. "So, Dick tells me that you're studying theater tech."

"Yes." Beatrice watched him carefully, not quite sure where this odd conversation was leading. Being in his presence made her very uneasy; there was something about Bruce Wayne that set her teeth on edge and fine-honed her powers. Something about him seemed… off.

"Oh, Richard," Bruce said suddenly, turning to his "son". Richard nodded to show he was alert, and not dozing off from the lack of conversation. "I had Alfred prepare your room for you… I hope you don't mind, but I assumed that you and Beatrice would be sharing a room…"

Beatrice's face quickly blossomed with a newfound, red blush. She couldn't do anything but turn away and start looking at the books on the shelves. Richard glanced from his suddenly uncomfortable girlfriend to his benefactor, and shot him another icy stare. It really wasn't his place to be assuming things like that; Beatrice was very private about her life and liked to keep it that way.

"That's fine…" Richard said shortly. He looked towards his girlfriend. "Are you okay with that, Bea?"

Beatrice tore her eyes away from "Tax Laws 1999-2000" and turned to Richard. Her burning red color was still evident on her pale face. She looked out the window and shrugged. "I guess… if you don't mind."

"No-" Richard stopped his sentence short as he notice a small, blue light was blinking on Bruce's phone. He sighed deeply and looked at his benefactor calmly. "Bruce, it appears you have a call. I think Bea and I will go unpack while you take it."

Bruce nodded knowingly, his face suddenly turning grave. Beatrice noticed that his new expression aged his face nearly ten years, and exhaustion was apparent in his eyes. "Yes. This is a very important call I've been waiting for." He paused for a heartbeat as Beatrice and Richard rose to their feet. "I hope you enjoy your stay, Beatrice. And I hope I am able to make dinner this evening. Pleas, don't hesitate to ask Alfred if you need anything…"

Richard nodded curtly, cutting his benefactor off. No more time could be wasted with a call such as this one. "I'll talk to you later, Bruce." The couple made their way to the door, and exited the room. Beatrice looked at Richard, then at the heavy wooden door, then back to Richard again.

"He sets me on edge," she spoke finally, "and I think I've figured out why."

Richard raised an eyebrow, as if silently asking her to explain.

"Who was Batman's sidekick for so many years… until he left one day to go and patrol the West End of Jump City?" Beatrice asked rhetorically. She walked to the banister and looked down a flight of stairs into a large room below. Richard's face flushed, and he turned away from her. There was a long pause, and then he joined her side at the banister.

"You're a lot smarter than I give you credit for…" He sighed deeply. There was another pause, and Richard turned to her. "You're right though, Bruce is Batman… and he's brought you here for a reason."

"That being…?" Beatrice arched an eyebrow.

Richard started down the hall and motioned for her to follow, which she promptly did. "Remember a few months ago, when you were attacked?"

"Yes…" she stated hesitantly, as if she wasn't quite sure where this conversation was going. What did her attack have to do with Batman? And why was Robin so frustrated about it?

"That wasn't a demon, or evil spirit, or anything like that… Bruce and I think it is a collective of nano-robots. We think that they were taking samples of blood to get information on your powers, and Starfire's powers, and Cyborg's tech… we think that they were trying to get information on us by drawing out blood…" he stopped speaking and took a long, deep breath, trying to figure out just what else he should tell her. There was so much that she needed to be informed of. And yet, Richard didn't want to expose her just yet. He suddenly had a deep, innate fear that if he did… something terrible might happen to her.

"And you want me to help you look for the person sending out the nano-bots?" She questioned, looking at him calmly.

"Yes. Well… it's a little more complicated than that." Richard shifted uncomfortably under her serene, unwavering gaze. She was far to calm for something as dangerous and important as this.

"It's always more complicated." Beatrice rolled her eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest and continued to watch him carefully.

"Deathstroke," he paused, thought for a moment, and then continued, correcting the name. "Slade, is powerful… far more powerful than I can explain to you. Batman and I have been fighting him off and on for years. He's cunning, ruthless, and highly intelligent." Richard stopped to open a door, and led Beatrice inside a new room. "Right now, we just need some help before we can decide what we should do…"

Beatrice sighed deeply and rolled her eyes. She took one quick glance around the new room, and then turned to look back at Richard. "Call me crazy, but if Slade is too powerful for just one person… wouldn't it make sense to team up with one another. What about you and I get together with Starfire and Cyborg and Beast Boy? What harm can come from that?"

Richard's face flushed slightly and he looked away, shifting slightly. "It's more complicated than that," he repeated.

"Is that so?"

"Look, Bea. Garfield and I get along well enough, but as for the others… well, they're best left alone. You never know what could happen if you put too many superheroes together… you start to have conflicting view points, your attacks aren't synchronized, and all hell breaks loose." Richard kicked off his shoes and flopped down onto a familiar, deep, soft bed. The scent of fresh fabric softener wafted up to his nose and he smiled. He had forgotten how much he loved his bed, if anything it was definitely a change from the lumpy rock he slept on back home.

"Didn't it work for the Justice League?"

Richard groaned and rolled away from his companion, feeling as if the subject was becoming a royal pain. "Look, Bea… the matter is complicated there's nothing we can do about it…"

"Well…" The mattress shifted as Beatrice crawled on it and snuggled next to Richard. He hated it when she did that, because it always made him weak and the knees… and she knew it too. She knew that she could just snuggle up to him and he would do whatever she wanted. "Who's to say it won't work?"

Richard rolled over and encircled her waist with his arm. He looked into her dark, beautiful eyes and sighed slightly. "I think its best if you just let the whole matter drop, Bea. There's not much that can be done and I think we should just face it."

Beatrice sighed deeply and shook her head. "I'm only suggesting."

"I know you're trying to help… but let's just put off work and thinking for a little longer, please?" He leaned over and kissed her sweetly. "And besides…" His trademark grin appeared on the tips of his lips. "I never did get my nap in this morning."

"Oh, you poor, poor child…" Beatrice said sarcastically, but she couldn't help the smile that worked at the edges of her mouth. She kissed him once more, before she let herself get wrapped up in his warm embrace. Maybe he was right… maybe she didn't need to worry just this moment…

(MOO)

Okay… so I know it's short and everything… But I think the next chapter might be the last… so expect it to be like crazy ridiculously long; or long for me. Expect the Titans to get together, fight with each other… and then go fight Slade… and I will leave the rest of the story to your imagination.

OKAY! I just need to give a shout-out here: VinnieTheGeek! You're today's shout-out. I want to dedicate this chapter to you, because you've read like every Teen titans story I've ever written and always left great reviews! You so totally ROCK!

Anyways… Still plugging my website! There I have art and stories that you can only find THERE! So go and check it out, you might find something cool… who knows!

PLEASE REVIEW! It always makes me feel so darn special!