Warning: Some Language . . .
Jason tossed down a freshly-cleaned rib bone onto a plate especially for the bones and picked up another wet wipe. He cleaned his fingers and face again as he admired the woman across the table. She was even more beautiful than she had appeared to be the night before at the karaoke bar, stunningly so.
His attention undivided now, he allowed his eyes to run across her features. The curly medium-brown hair liberally streaked with blonde, the flawless skin the color of lightly-creamed coffee that accentuated the Hollywood-white teeth behind kissable lips, and a stubborn chin that added a point to her heart-shaped face. But it was her eyes that caught and held his interest: light-green surrounded by lush lashes and arched brows. Close up like this, he could see the variation in color that weren't as noticeable from afar, tiny streaks of light brown and yellow punctuated the lively green and adding character to the remarkable color.
Leah wore dark-brown ribbed turtleneck under a khaki-colored jacket, currently hanging on the back of her chair, black jeans and fashion-combat boots. He admitted it; Jason had stared at those boots when he first saw them. They made "fashion-combat" boots for women . . . Huh, who knew?
At the moment, he was noticing that those kissable lips were currently covered in barbeque sauce and he had to tamp down the urge to lick it off. He was pretty certain that was unacceptable behavior for a first date. That Leah was unconcerned about the sauce covering her fingers and face as she scarfed down another rib was one of the most attractive things about her. Jason liked a woman who wasn't afraid to eat in front of him or let a little sauce get in the way of her enjoyment.
She looked up at him. "What? Do I have something on my face?" she asked, tossing the bone to the side carelessly.
He laughed. "Want the last rib?"
Leah reached for it, then paused, her hand hovering over the succulent morsel. Milo's had the best barbeque north of the Mason-Dixon Line and maybe south of it, too. The owner was a South Carolina transplant who loved the big city but refused to abandon the down-home cooking that he loved.
"Wait! Did you want it?" she asked, searching his face for the truth.
"Nah, I'm good," Jason waved the offer away, enjoying the way Leah snatched it up. "As much as I love a girl with an appetite," he began, "how is it you're so hungry?"
Leah swallowed before answering. "I taught two advanced self-defense classes earlier. I just had time to shower and change before we were supposed to meet."
"Yeah, about that . . . So, how long have you been teaching self-defense classes?" Jason asked her.
Leah thought for a moment. "Um, I think this year will make seven years."
Jason blinked. "Seven years? When did you start?"
Her eyes shuttered as Leah glanced away. "I was eighteen. My roommate Rachel worked the hotline at the college for a while then we decided to open a place where she could help counsel victims of abuse and sexual assault while I would teach them how to defend themselves from it. It was a good partnership. Most of our students were able to successfully get on with their lives again afterwards. We opened another place off campus last year when Rachel finished her degree in psychology."
His eyes narrowed. This was beginning to sound a little too personal and felt the tension level rise by several degrees.
"Oh yeah? So, when did you become a cop?"
Leah looked back at him and laughed. "I never said I was a cop."
"Yes, you did . . ." He started.
"No. You assumed," she smiled. "My day job is training cadets at Gotham Police Academy. I'm the one instructor there that was never an officer of the law first."
"How'd you manage that?"
"I'm good at what I do," Leah told him. "My instruction is purely physical training and hand to hand. There are others whose careers have been in law enforcement that will teach them everything else."
Jason paid for their meal and helped her into her coat. Leah looked at him surprised but allowed him to dust off the manners that Alfred had ground into him all those years ago.
"You don't trust easy, do you?" he remarked, holding the door open for her as they left the restaurant.
"Is it obvious?"
"A little, yeah," Jay told her. A lot. He recognized parts of himself in her. "Something we have in common." He paused, reluctant to call it a night yet.
"Do you need to go, or would you mind taking a walk with me?" Leah asked as she slid her arm in his.
Jason wasn't stupid. A beautiful woman asked to spend more time with him . . . He was more than content to let her lead the way.
It was cold still tonight, but at least it wasn't raining anymore. While the area wasn't the best, the rain from the previous night had washed most of the grime away and left the neighborhood, if not sparkling, at least not dingy or depressed.
The area ran along the edge of his own territory. Although the neighborhood had fallen into disrepair over time, most of the people here were decent citizens, families just trying to keep their homes despite the surrounding gangs that were always attempting to push the boundaries of their territories into this one. Three- and four-story brownstones lined the street where they walked a mix of homes and small family-run businesses. The occasional tree dotted the urban landscape, breaking up the brick and concrete with touches of nature.
Jason decided he could expand his patrols in this direction easily enough. He would see if he could push back the encroaching riffraff.
"Believe it or not, my trust issues have improved a lot over the last few years. Still, old habits are hard to break," she admitted.
"You grow up on the streets?" The conversation was growing personal again.
"Actually no. I grew up in a nice suburban, middle-class neighborhood. The trust issues would come later," she admitted. "You?"
Idiot! Of course, she would turn his questions back on him. "Is it obvious?" he asked, hedging.
"Not as much as you might think. Someone taught you manners," she replied. "Did you learn those from Bruce Wayne?"
Wincing, Jason looked at her. "You know who I am?"
"I trained the officer that took your statement," she told him. "You didn't use Wayne when you gave your name, though."
He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm kind of the family black sheep," he admitted. "I thought it was better if I didn't drag the Wayne name through the mud."
"Your brother didn't seem to mind."
Jay raised an eyebrow. "He gave the hyphen?" That surprised him. He knew Dick didn't like riding on Bruce's coattails and seldom used the name granted him upon his adoption.
She laughed. "No, not really. Everyone knows who Richard Grayson is in Gotham City. I'm just surprised it took them as long as it did to put two and two together with you."
"Like I said . . ."
"Black sheep," Leah finished for him. "Uh huh. You disappeared for a while. I even heard rumors that you might have died somewhere overseas a few years ago. Glad to hear there was no truth to that one."
"Heh, yeah," Jason chuckled uncomfortably. Time to change the subject again. "Any of your 'friends' have a clue who those foreign guys were that jumped us?"
"Still working on it," she murmured noncommittedly.
Unwilling to spill confidences. Smart, beautiful, and loyal . . .
They had had spent of dinner making small talk as they ate. Jason knew Leah didn't suspect the real reason he, Dick, and Elle had gone to the karaoke bar, but she was a little too curious about Elle, having realized there was something odd with his soon-to-be sister-in-law's performance. Still, it didn't take a lot of effort to turn the subject back to the men who had attacked them the previous evening, even if Leah was unwilling to share the details of what she knew.
But the Turk that had met with Shay last night had a name all right. Jason had spent some time at the clock tower earlier that day with Barbara coming up with it. According to Barbie, Mahmet Aliv Aras' last name was still unknown by Interpol.
Jason had heard rumors of the man but never met him personally. Aras had only ever sent his men to do his dirty work, running his criminal empire from the safety of another country. Batman and Nightwing had only been partially successful in subverting Aras' attempt at infiltrating Gotham and Bludhaven over the last three years. The Turk's organization preferred to do their work quietly, never directly challenging The Batman and avoiding confrontation with Nightwing. All in all, it had been an effective strategy. Batman had never been able to prevent the Turk's ever-increasing presence, only managing to confiscate small shipments, taking down the lowest levels working for the organization on a job-by-job basis, men who knew nothing about those in power that ran the business in the U.S. for the Turk.
There were still questions about the high-placed Gothamite Dick had heard Shay refer to the night before. Just knowing there was another unknown involved, someone from Bruce Wayne's social sphere, was useful. Before now, Jason hadn't known how the women and children were being targeted. Although, Jason had little use for Gotham's upper crust, no one deserved this. Compartmentalizing the information, Jason allowed himself to enjoy the night for a change.
"So, how did your brother meet the daughter of a wealthy Chicago business tycoon? Some high-class social event?" Leah asked.
Back to Elle . . . Jason schooled his features. No, Leah may not know why they had been at the bar last night, but she suspects something.
"From what Dick tells me, he saw her singing at a nightclub in Bludhaven and asked her out." He shrugged. "Been together ever since." That much was the truth anyway.
"Love at first sight, huh?"
He heard the tiny note of sarcasm in her voice. "You don't believe in love at first sight?"
"What?" She glanced up at him. "Don't tell me you do."
"I don't know – maybe," Jason smirked. "Does it make me a sap to think so?"
"I suppose you believe in Santa Claus and Tooth Fairy, too?"
"No way," Jason laughed.
"The Easter Bunny?" she teased.
"Hey, the Easter Bunny is real, man!" Jay told her with a straight face. "He poops M&Ms and Skittles."
Leah started laughing now. "Who told you that?"
"The butler," Jason answered with utter seriousness.
She stared at him in amused disbelief. "It's hard to imagine you with a butler."
"Alfred is no ordinary butler," he said, as if imparting to her some hidden wisdom.
"You piqued my curiosity."
Better she be curious about Alfred than Elle, Jason thought. Alfred could handle the most-clever investigative reporters and detectives in the world . . . hell, he managed to keep Batman in line all these years.
"Alfred is legend," he said cryptically.
Despite his joking, Leah seemed to catch something in his voice or maybe in his face. "You aren't kidding, are you?"
"What do you mean?"
"This Alfred character that Bruce Wayne employs. You like him, don't you?" she asked. "Respect him."
Jason sighed and smiled. "Alfred, he sneaks up on you."
"Okay, now it's my turn," Leah said. "What does that mean?"
"It means that the man managed to get a rough, angry, little street urchin to trust and respect him when no one else could," he replied. "I don't know how or when it happened, but suddenly I found myself desperately wanting to not disappoint the man."
"He sounds almost magical," she remarked.
"Exactly!" Jason blurted. "Sometimes I thought he must be a sorcerer or wizard or something. He always seemed to know just when you needed something or someone. He'd show up with tea and freshly baked scones, or cookies and a mug of his special hot chocolate with just the right number of marshmallows . . ."
"Mm, scones . . ." Leah smiled. "My mother could make scones like nobody's business."
"No disrespect, but nothing beats Alfred's baking," Jason argued lightly.
Leah turned to dispute this; her mother's scones could make grown men cry . . . "That is only because you've never tasted my mother's baking," she wagged her finger at him in challenge.
"You sure you don't believe in love at first sight?" Jason smirked. "You're already inviting me home to meet the parents over dinner."
Lean blinked. Not exactly but kind of . . . She started laughing. "Oh, you're good . . ."
"All my best moves come out when there's a free meal involved," he grinned unrepentantly.
"Is it warm in here or is that your ego on fire?" she teased.
"Hello, bitches."
The voice pulled the couple from their good-natured bantering. Jason glanced up in surprise and annoyance. How did these guys get in front of us without me noticing?
Jay had been so caught up with the woman beside him, he had completely lost awareness of his surroundings. This never happened to him.
"Hand over your belongings to my buddy here and don't try to be a hero, big guy," the idiot with the knife demanded. "I will cut you up."
The second idiot stepped forward with what looked like a pillowcase. Both were wearing the colors of one of Gotham's more vicious gangs: The Torrential Reigns, the gang's moniker was a play on the name of the group's original leader, Terrence Fields.
Jason noted that Leah subtly moved into a familiar defensive stance. He chuckled at the irony of the situation.
"Man, did you two pick the wrong couple on the wrong night," he told the two teens. He judged them to be maybe fifteen or sixteen years in age. Probably looking to rise in the ranks. Babies pretending to be men, he thought in disgust. "Save yourselves a world of hurt and go home. Your mothers are probably worried sick about you."
A few months ago, he wouldn't have bothered showing such mercy. The pain they would be feeling over the next few weeks, however, would be a good reminder for them to stay in school. Maybe then, they could stay out of jail and the gangs before one or the other killed them. Had the teens been older and this six months ago, Jason wouldn't have thought twice about planting one of his hollow-points between each of their eyes. Now he carried rubber bullets in his guns. Pathetically, ever since the family welcomed him home like a long-lost son last Christmas, he had chosen to go non-lethal.
As annoying as family could be, he would admit in the privacy of his own mind that he liked knowing that he could return to the manor when he felt like it. While this freedom meant he couldn't kill, he could still put a world of hurt on the bad guys and make them wish he had. The pain would hopefully be enough to instill some much-needed common sense into their otherwise empty heads.
Jason squeezed his fist, cracking his knuckles to loosen them up as he prepared to mop the streets. He felt more than saw Leah tense as she readied herself to strike out.
"Three seconds . . ." he began. Let's see what they do. "Two . . ."
The guy with the knife yelped suddenly, dropping his weapon and grabbing his hand.
Batarang, Jason acknowledged in the split second before a furious flurry of activity exploded in front of him. He grabbed Leah's arm and pulled her back a safe distance as the distinctive winged cape of Red Robin flashed. He watched his replacement take down the second hoodlum by the simple expediency of landing boots-first on his chest. A black and yellow cape followed the path of the batarang as the newest and most vicious of all the Robins decimated his target with a series of surprisingly powerful punches. Not bad for someone whose head didn't reach Jason's armpit.
In the space of seconds, both would-be muggers were dispatched, lying prone and unconscious at their feet. The heroes turned toward the couple in unison.
"Good evening, citizens," Red Robin smirked at him, obviously struggling not to laugh. "This probably isn't the best neighborhood to take a romantic stroll. It's rather late as well. The young lady's family might be worried."
Jason sighed, rolling his eyes. Citizens? Amusement rose unwillingly in his chest. Jay swallowed the urge and attempted to return the look sternly.
"We could have handled the likes of these bozos ourselves," Jay retorted dryly. Did they really expect him to thank them for interrupting his date?
Movement caught the corner of Jason's eye even as a second batarang struck its target, causing a third, previously unseen, mugger to drop his knife before he could slip it between Red Robin's ribs from behind. Damian was quick, Jason would give him that. The kid acted in the same amount of time as it had taken Jason to recognize the newest threat. Tim reacted by extending his baton into a half-length bo-staff with the flick of his wrist. The back side of the staff shot out, ramming the last mugger in the solar plexus. The man bent forward, expelling his breath forcefully with the blow. Spinning the half-staff in his hand, Tim struck his opponent in the forehead all the while wearing that same aggravating, smirking expression of kind benevolence.
If he was a tiny bit impressed at how well the two worked together, Jason would go to his grave (again) without ever acknowledging it aloud. He had been under the impression that these two spent more times fighting each other than the criminal element that stalked Gotham. They had apparently worked out their differences since the recent addition to the familial unit. Funny, how his own animosity with his family had eased since meeting Elle . . . Dragging his thoughts back to the situation at hand, Jason discovered Leah remained beside him utterly relaxed, apparently unperturbed by the explosive violence that occurred only a few feet in front of her.
Damian glanced down at the third gang member in disgust.
"Tt," he clicked his tongue at the waste of humanity before returning his curious gaze to them. He ran an eye over Leah, approvingly – but not appraisingly since the boy hadn't hit puberty yet. Jason had a feeling the kid was sizing her up and finding her lack of fear and easy manner as intriguing as he did.
"Are you going to kiss her or what?" Damian blurted out with all the tact of an eleven-year-old raised by assassins. The boy's head rocked suddenly as Tim smacked him. Robin glared up at his elder brother. "It's not like you weren't wondering the same thing," he declared.
"It's none of your business, dweeb," Red Robin chastised lightly.
Why are they still here? "Don't you two have an old lady to help across the street?" Jay reminded them.
Tim's smirk blossomed into a full-blown smile. "Not at the moment," he replied, not even bothering to hide his amusement now. He looked at Leah. "You should be more careful who you go out with, ma'am," he told her. "This guy looks a little shifty to me," Tim added in a theatrical aside.
Damian shifted his gaze back to Jason, looking him up and down critically. "For certain, ma'am, you could easily do better for yourself," he snorted.
"Bug off, you little cretin," Jason snapped, taking a threatening step forward. "That goes for you too, Red."
Tim retracted his staff and hung it from his belt, apparently unaware or unconcerned about his impending death. "We could give you an escort home, if you like, just to make sure you both made it back safely."
Jason was beginning to see red and it had nothing to do with the colors of the heroes' costumes.
"That's very nice of you to offer," Leah replied.
Jason glanced at her quickly. She wasn't planning on taking them up on their ridiculous offer, was she?
Behind them, a clatter followed by the sounds of fists pounding flesh drifted out of a nearby alleyway. The foursome turned in response, expecting trouble. Good God, what now? It's like Grand Central Station here tonight, Jason thought in irritation. Please, don't give these two another reason to hang around . . .
A body flew out from the darkness from across the street. The punk's weapon, an automatic handgun, skidded across the road towards them. As the shadows shifted, a familiar figure emerged from the alley dragging yet another unconscious gang member with him. Jason facepalmed as Batman quickly applied zip ties to thugs before dragging the two men over to the growing pile.
Jason scanned the area for hidden cameras. He felt like he was an unwilling participant in a comedy, the victim of a prank being played on him by his family. But Bruce had no sense of humor that Jason was aware of and his 'blood-son' had seemingly inherited those mirthless genes. He glared at Tim, suspicious arising that the eighteen-year-old had somehow orchestrated this entire thing just to ruin Jason's night.
"This neighborhood borders gang territory," Batman growled at them unnecessarily as Leah gaped at the larger-than-life vigilante. "There are safer places available to take your date for a midnight stroll."
Jason scowled. "I can take care of my date," he said waspishly.
Batman grunted dryly, glancing pointedly at the pile of unconscious bodies between them. Jason felt his hackles rising at the unspoken implications behind the look when Leah spoke up again.
"I'm sorry," she said softly. "Coming this way was my idea."
The bat seemed to consider the woman with him. Instead of criticizing her choices, he told the couple instead, "The police have been alerted and are on their way. It's cold out tonight. You should find someplace warm to end your evening rather than making yourselves targets for the local riffraff." He turned to Red Robin and Robin. "If you two have finished here, there are other places that need our attention."
Without another word, all three shot off their grapples and. a second later, disappeared over the rooftops, leaving Jason and Leah alone at last . . . only for the flashing lights of Gotham's finest to cut through the night. He looked down at their would-be assailants in annoyance. Giving in to impulse, he kicked the closest one in the ribs. The guy was out cold, however, but he'd feel it later when he woke up.
"You got off easy tonight, punks," he whispered, even as Leah moved to intercept the uniforms that were falling out of the police units nearby.
"Whose idea was that?"
Damian pointed at Tim.
Batman narrowed his eyes at Red Robin. "Would you like to explain to me how butting in on your brother's date is going to make him less inclined to do you violence in the future?"
"There were four of those guys," Tim defended himself. "How did he expect to take care of all of them without blowing his cover? We saved his secret identity."
"So, you were doing him a favor, were you?"
"That's what family is for," Tim declared, smiling.
"Indeed," Batman grunted. "I don't think you give Jason enough credit. He's creative enough to have handled that situation."
"You really think that he knew those last two punks were there, Father?" Damian asked, unconvinced.
Tim interrupted. "Look, this way he didn't have to."
"And I'm just saying you both should prepare yourselves for the potential fallout of your decision." With that, Batman turned and shot off a grapple into another building. He wanted to cover the waterfront next before calling it a night.
Damian glanced at Tim before the two followed suit.
"Jason won't do anything," Tim told Damian with an assurance he didn't quite have. "Elle won't let him."
After giving their statements, Leah and Jason walked back in the direction they had come. Leah leaned into Jason's body, finally feeling the cold after standing so long outside. Taking her hand in his, Jason tucked it around his waist beneath his jacket, pulling her close. She noted the lump beneath his arm that she immediately recognized as a holster. She had spotted the telltale bump beneath the leather earlier, but now her suspicions were confirmed.
Of course, Gotham City necessitated some form of self-defense. She had a weapon or two of her own hidden on her person, just in case. Although, Leah knew Jason could handle himself from the previous evening, knowing that her date also carried did more to reassure her than it did to bother her.
She felt partially vindicated with the knowledge that she hadn't been completely wrong about him. While Jason Todd-Wayne wasn't exactly the bad guy she had first thought him to be, neither was he perfectly upright. Instead of answering questions about him, however, at the end of the evening Leah found that, his name aside and humor, she still didn't really know who Jason was.
"I could have handled that," Jason growled in annoyance, bringing her thoughts back to the present.
"I have no doubt," she said, finding herself in the odd position of soothing his manly ego.
She had been quiet for most of the excitement and decided to ask the question that had been burning inside her since she watched the interaction between her date and Gotham's notorious vigilantes.
"So, how do you know those guys?" she asked in what she hoped was a lighthearted manner.
He frowned down at her. "What guys?"
Rolling her eyes, she pulled away long enough to hold her fingers up on either side of her head, mimicking the ears that adorned the cowl Batman wore.
"Oh, those guys," he said, as if surprised. Jason shrugged in an offhanded manner as he continued walking. "This is Gotham City. Everyone knows those guys."
She allowed herself to be drawn back into his side. It was cold out after all, but she wasn't stupid. There was something more going on between her 'date' and the city's self-proclaimed protectors. With enough time, she had no doubt she would discover exactly what that something was.
REACTIONS?
Still like her? Curious to get your guys' opinions . . . Keep in mind, I have no plans to create another story for Jason and Leah, but I thought it would be a nice side plot to help keep things interesting. Hm, she seems pretty smart to me. Think she'll figure out who Jason and the others are or not? We'll have to see.
As you know I like to take my time as I develop the characters. Whatever happens won't occur in one or two chapters, so sit back and continue to enjoy Dick and Elle's story, but know we'll be seeing some of Jason and Leah, too, here and there throughout.
Unless you hate her. But, give her time to flesh out, learn about her past, her personality, and see how she meshes with Jason. ("Jason Todd-Wayne" ;D, Hah! Love that! - Remember, I plan to bring the family together as they should be. Won't be all sunshine and roses, but they won't always be at each other's throats. Siblings! Think siblings - with all the normal closeness, rivalries, and fun that entails in a reasonably semi-adjusted, only partially dysfuntional, but loving family.)
Who loves Tim's sudden urge to prank Jason and Damian's 11-yr-old's typical filterless mouth? Rude or not, I can see brothers doing this to their siblings if the opportunity arose to mess with them in a situation they couldn't react openly to you.