Chapter 28

The Flea still exists, located in an abandoned warehouse in the heart of the warehouse district. Since I was last here, they've gotten somewhat more sophisticated, at least as sophisticated as street kids can get. Numerous old wooden tables crowd the majority of the warehouse, with vendors selling stolen objects and little knick knacks. There's loud music playing from two large speakers up on the walkway. The term "street kid" must have expanded sometime while I was away, since I spot at least several individuals who look well into their thirties, and in a natural way. I glance over at Ed and see that he's been fidgeting nonstop, his hands folded into each other and his fingers moving nonstop.

"Don't do that," I discreetly tell him, my eyes darting around, "you'll come off wrong."

"I...I can't...perhaps it's best if I were to return to the car-"

I take his hands, pry them apart, and stick them in the pockets of his leather jacket, "There, you'll look more laid back," I look up at his timid, nervous expression, "also, keep your head up, you look insecure."

"Why such a large emphasis on appearance?" Ed asks, as I browse the various stalls set up around the Flea.

"Appearance is everything, no matter where you go. It telegraphs how you're feeling at that moment, or at least, what you want people to think you're feeling," I explain.

He nods, as we approach a vendor selling small trinkets in wooden boxes.

"I was thinking of getting something for my place," I tell her, "you got anything that sticks out? You know, like, a conversation piece of sorts?"

The vendor looks through one of the boxes, and takes out a small, green ring, a slightly green glow radiating from it, "I got this recently. Seems pretty cool."

I gingerly take the ring, examining it, "Hmm...I remember a friend of mine owning something similar to this a while ago. But I haven't seem them in quite some time," I place the ring back into the box, "in fact, I haven't been seeing a lot of my friends lately. You know what I mean?"

The vendor shrugs, "Yeah, but I mean, it happens all the time."

"But never on this scale, it's like everyone's suddenly skipping town or something."

"Is there a problem here?" I turn around and see a tall, muscular man in his early twenties. He has a confident, snarky grin on his face, and from the corner of my eye I see the vendor shy away.

"Just some small talk is all," I assure the man.

"If you're not going to buy anything, then I suggest you leave," the man threatens, and from behind him two other men walk out, both armed with wooden planks.

"What makes you such an authority?" I challenge, placing my hands on my hips.

He leans back, crossing his arms, "This part of the Flea is my turf. And if you're gonna have that attitude…" he gestures to the men with planks, and they step in front of him.

I reach for my daggers but hesitate, I should avoid killing if possible, although, when push comes to shove, it's still an option. Three guys, two if the leader decides to hang back, and I have a feeling he will. As long as I can keep this fight contained, things should be fine.

"It was just a question," I roll my eyes, silently challenging him.

"I think you need to learn a lesson in respect, little girl."

I quietly chuckle to myself at the idea of him calling me a "little girl". The man scrunches his eyebrows in confusion, but that confusion quickly turns to anger.

His two henchmen sense this, and advance forward. I make sure Ed's behind me before I slide into a fighting stance. The other street kids in the Flea stop what they're doing, looking on watchfully as someone stops the music. The man to my left swings first, bringing down his plank. I jump back, and as soon as his arm begins to slow down, I grab his arm and kick him in the stomach, knocking him back. He loses grip of the plank and I grab ahold of it.

The other thug comes at me, swinging his plank. I block his attacks with my plank, holding it with both hands. As he winds up for another swing, I spot an opening, and quickly smack him with the plank, sending him stumbling backward. His back turned to me, I whack him hard with the plank, an audible cracking noise echoing through the warehouse as the board breaks over his back. I dump the plank, now in pieces, as the second man writhes in pain on the ground.

I turn to the leader, who reaches over to a nearby table and grabs a lead pipe, swinging it back and forth as if it were a sword. He runs at me, thrashing the pipe. I duck, dodging it, before I kick him in the shin. He lashes out, swinging his pipe. It hits me square in the jaw, knocking the wind out of me. I fall back, catching myself on a nearby table. The man approaches me, slapping the pipe into the palm of his hand, "You fought well...for a little girl."

His head is knocked forward as a small object bonks him on the head. He turns around and sees Ed, holding a small jar of marbles.

"Mister, I suggest you walk away right now," Ed threatens, clutching the jar tightly, his hands shaking.

The man laughs, turning towards the defenseless Ed, "And what're you going to do about it, dork?"

Ed shies back, before making eye contact with me from across the way. He straightens himself, and hurls another marble from the jar.

It bounces off of the man's stomach. He laughs cruelly, "Oh, ouch, that hurt."

Ed slams the jar to the ground, shattering it, "You are a disgusting human being. It's because of people like you that the world can not advance in civilization," he leans forward, pointing an accusing finger, "you use brute force to intimidate and harm those around you. You think it puts you in some sort of position of power, but really, it just makes you vulnerable...makes you weak."

The man stops in place, and the Flea becomes dead silent as its patrons look on. I take this opportunity and grab the man from behind, grasping his neck and choking him. I kick him in the back of the knee several times until he drops the pipe. Grabbing the pipe, I throw him to the ground and knock him with the pipe in the back of the head, rendering him unconscious.

I stand, and look around as the onlooking patrons of the Flea return to their usual tasks, a general buzz returning to the marketplace, and the music is started up again. I run to Ed, stepping over the unconscious man.

"Ed! Are you okay?" I ask him worriedly.

"I think it's you we should be more concerned for," he points to the newly formed bruise on my left cheek, where the pipe had struck me.

"Oh, this?" I gently rub it, the sensitive nerves pricking a hint of pain, "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"You...you took on Aaron…" a young boy, probably in his early teens, approaches us.

I smirk, "Yeah, turns out, the guy was mostly just bark. No big."

He comes closer, his eyes small and beady, "You...mentioned that you're looking for missing children?"

I nod, "Mhm, you know anything about that?"

"My older brother went missing a couple of days ago…" he explains, "my name's Otis."

My smirk turns to a smile, extending my hand, "Hi Otis, I'm Nat," I gesture behind me, "and this is Ed."

Otis takes his hand and places it into mine, and he gives a weak, light handshake. I stand, "So, how about we find these missing kids together?"

I glance over at Ed, and he raises his eyebrow at the use of my false name, but I keep my confident smile. Even if this kid knows nothing about our case, this is a good opportunity to reestablish relationships in the Gotham street environment.

Ed hangs back, remaining silent as we follow Otis out of the Flea. He leans in and whispers to me, "I see you're using your old street name, clever move. What I'm worried about are those brutes you fought back there. We've made ourselves some clear enemies."

"Ed, you've seen me fight dozens of times, you know that I can handle guys like them. If they come back," I pat the knives strapped just under my skirt as well as the bag of rigged marbles in a small bag attached to my belt, "I'll be ready."

Author's Note: Currently, counting votes from Fanfiction and Wattpad, Team Edward is in the lead by a landslide! Definitely wasn't expecting this :)

Song that plays in the Flea: "Under The Darkness" from Kichiku Megane (warning, source material is NSFW)

LittleFireQueen: Everyone's rooting for some kind of rivalry between the two, and I may/may not be able to deliver...maybe ;)

GibbyCentral: Yaaas :)

Starkid who Loki'd Hogwarts: Wow, I spot at least three references to nerd culture in your username, nice going! And personally, I don't Natalie and Ed's relationship and sibling like, but of course you're entitled to your own interpretation. And Oswald is probably one of my top characters as well...and yes, I'll admit, Mr. Taylor is attractive, although that's not the only selling point of his character (hopefully...right?)

UndercoverSkeleton: Yay, Team Edward! And you'll get to see a lot more character development to come, characters tend to be my specialty ;). And Oswald will be coming back into the picture soon, the story is on Episode 2 story-wise, he returns to Gotham in Episode 3. And love triangle? It's what everyone wants, but whether or not I can give one, that's up in the air right now

Fuchsia Grasshopper: Yeah, I was tentative to introduce Gordon and Bullock at all, fearing that their inclusion might seem token or a case of the plot serving the show too much. Hopefully that isn't the case

Thanks! :)