Running. Running was the only thing he could really do, and he couldn't even do that well. Something was definitely wrong with his ankle, he could tell by the way a sharp pain rocked through it when he put pressure on it, but stopping was not an option.

"Give it up, child!" He heard Slade behind him. "You won't get away from me this time!"

Dammit, his voice sounded closer than it had last time. If Richard was going to get away, he had to bolt, and he had to bolt fast. He pushed harder, the pain in his left ankle worsening with each stride. He was always tough when it came to injuries, but this was about to make him collapse.

Up ahead was a fence, and there was a dumpster close enough that he could jump on it, kick off the wall, and propell himself over the fence well enough so he could roll and continue to run.

He glanced over his shoulder, catching Slade at a too close for comfort distance away from him.

He made his decision.

Pushing off with his left foot, he sprang into the air, using his hands to grip the side of the dumpster, his bad ankle launching him from the dumpster, his right connecting with the wall, his left hand grabbing the top of the fence and sending him flying over.

It was then he realized he was going to have to land on his feet.

This would end very badly.

He closed his eyes and waited for the impact to break him, but instead, he felt something strong wrap around his chest, and his body was whipped around, facing the right. He opened his eyes, looking down, noticing that he was flying seven, maybe ten feet off the ground, and he was only going higher.

He caught a glimpse of black clad arms around him, and gazed above at his savior. He couldn't tell much about them, other than their face was hidden in the shadows of their hood.

Moments later, he was eased down onto his backside, his leg held straight out so it wouldn't land in the gravel. His hands caught him and eased him the rest of the way down. He felt a gentle push on his shoulders, and his back met something hard. He let out a relieved sigh and let his leg rest.

Richard's ankle throbbed and he let out a grunt, his eyes closing and the back of his head hitting the wall behind him. "Thanks for the save."

"You're welcome." A feminine voice answered, causing him sit straight up and his eyes to snap open. Before him knelt a girl with pale skin, purple hair, and four eyes, all of them red. She was easily the most intimidating woman he had ever met.

"I don't think I've had the pleasure of meeting you before." He said, trying to cover up his intimidation. "What's your-"

"I know you're intimidated by me," Her voice floated through the air between them, "so don't bother trying to hide it."

"Empath?" He questioned.

She titled her head to the side, as if confused, yet strangely, surprised. "You're a smart one, aren't you?"

"I also know you're something else," he shifted a little, wincing as a piece of gravel dug into his ankle, "but I don't know it just yet."

"Oh, Nightwing, don't the eyes give it away?" Her smile was sinister, and it made Richard want to shiver. "I'm half demon."

He smirked. "I just got saved by a demon?"

She leaned back to sit on her haunches, hands clasped between her knees. "Mhm. You owe me, Nightwing."

He relaxed into the wall. "Usually, people owe me. It's never the other way around."

"But you let Slade get the best of you, didn't 'cha?" She smiled at him again.

His blood boiled at her realization. "He caught me off guard. I thought he was out of town for the day, but I guess he decided to make a special appearance. Guess word got around I was planning something tonight."

Her smile faded as her eyes rested on his ankle. "I think you broke it." She spoke, reaching out to touch it. He jerked back and she have a small laugh. "Relax, Boy Wonder," he glared at her at the insult, "I'm only trying to help."

"Why would you help me? You're a demon."

She flinched, as if he had struck her. She closed her eyes, and Richard watched as two of them disappeared. When she opened them again, her eyes weren't solid red. No, they looked to be normal, human eyes, only, her irises were a strange violet color. He found himself getting lost in then as he stared at her.

"Half demon, thank you." She corrected, and his ankle felt a strange, yet soothing, tingling sensation. He looked down and saw his foot enveloped in some sort of black energy, and watched his laces unravel and the boot slid off his foot. If he hadn't have been watching, he wouldn't even be aware the boot was off.

"Hm," she said, leaning down to inspect it closer, "definitely broken. Nothing I can't fix."

"Fix?"

She looked up and smiled, tucking her hair behind her ears. "I'm full of surprises."

She held her hands over his ankle and focused on her hands. A crystallized glow surrounded her hands, and he felt his body begin to react with it. He felt something move inside him, but strangely, it didn't hurt.

Richard focused on her face, watching her concentrate on the task at hand. One of her eyes twitched, and her tongue darted out to wet her lips. He jaw clenched once, then relaxed. He found her intriguing, beautiful, even.

He felt the warmth spread through his entire foot, and after about a minute, she pulled her hands away, her hands grasping her knees.

Curiosity got the better of him and he moved his ankle slowly. It felt a little stiff, but it wasn't hurting. At all. He looked up at the pale girl, pure amazement on his face. A small smirk graced her lips. "Next time, try not to break any bones."

"Thank you..." He trailed off, hoping she would finish for him.

"Raven." She stated, pushing herself into her feet and walking towards the edge of the rooftop.

"Raven." He repeated. "I hope I see you again one day." He called out to her, rising to his feet, something in his brain telling him to go after her.

"Let's hope under different circumstances, Boy Wonder." She turned and gave him that cocky, almost sinful smirk. Her hands raised the hood of her dark cloak over her head, and a black energy, shaped like a raven, appeared, its wings surrounding her and phasing into the ground.

He had to see her again, he decided.

...

Nightwing liked to hide here, on the fire escape of the apartment building a few blocks from the industrial building she had taken him to. It had been five days since that night she had healed him, and he never stopped searching for her.

He couldn't stop thinking about her. He had been intimidated by her at first, but soon, he felt... drawn, to her in some way. He could not shake her image from his brain, and when his eyes closed, he saw her face. He saw her no matter how hard he tried to think of anything, anything else.

But he had to see her again, in person. Not in his memory or in his dreams, where she had become a reoccurring resident.

Trash cans crunching snapped his attention to the alley below, where he saw a figure curled up among the bent metal cans. A caped figure stood before it, and Richard found himself placing a name to the person.

Red X.

"You know you can't escape me now. Not when you're weak like you are at the moment."

"What did you do to me?" A familiar voice said, the figure pushing itself off the cans.

"Oh, are your powers failing you? Tsk tsk. Sounds like my pretty Little Bird has a broken wing." He taunted, stepping closer, bending over to reach for the person. "My, my. What am I ever going to do with a broken little bird?"

Red X pulled up suddenly, whirrling his prey into the wall to his left. Richard caught a flash of purple, and the unnamed person's head dangling inches above their chest. The next thing he caught sight of was purple hair. And he only ever knew one person with that color hair.

Raven.

Without thinking, Nightwing launched himself over the railing, reaching into his belt and throwing a small explosive towards X, a battle cry erupting from his throat. Red X's attention shifted to him, a red x flying at the explosive, wrapping around it and sending it flying into the wall.

Nightwing rolled and kicked out, his feet connecting with X's chest, sending the hero flying through the air and crashing into the trash cans, similar to how he had done to Raven. Springing to his feet, he reached Raven, who was on her hands and knees, trying to force at into her lungs.

He took her into his arms, lifting her up, when he caught movement in his peripheral vision. He reached for another explosive, but he felt a sudden cold wrap around him and the scene before him disappeared.

Nanoseconds later, the cold feeling was gone, and he looked around, seeing he was on the roof of his apartment building.

"It's not far away from him," Raven's voice was quiet, much quieter than it had been before, "but it's as far as I could get us away."

Richard's arms were still around her waist, his stomach pressed to her side. "How did X get the upper hand on you?" He removed his arms and leaned back on his haunches.

"I don't know." He noticed her arms were shaking. "I was walking home from the tea shop, then the next I know I'm shoved into the alley and thrown into the trash." Her chest was rising and falling rapidly.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked, not knowing if he should reach out to her or not.

She shook her head. "I-I couldnt use my powers. I feel weak, like I'm about to pass out." Her elbows buckled, but Richard reached out and caught her before she could face plant the cement.

"I got you." He said, pushing himself onto his feet, his arms wrapped around Raven's waist, pulling her up with him. He tossed her arm around his shoulders and kept his left arm around her waist, walking to the entrance to the stairwell.

"You don't have to do this." She said, wobbling on her feet beside him. "I can manage up here for the night."

He smiled down at her. "I owe you, remember?" Richard opened the door and helped Raven down the stairs and onto his floor. She was beginning to go limp entirely.

"I think I've been drugged." She said, nearly falling forwards.

"I'd say you're right." He reached his apartment and opened the door, closing it behind him, nearly dragging Raven through the threshold of his bedroom. "You probably just need to sleep it off."

He lowered her into his bed, picking up her legs to tuck them under the sheets. He pulled the covers under her chin and looked at her, staring at him with those amethyst eye that made him feel uneasy.

"Thank you..." She trailed off.

He chuckled, realizing he had said those exact words to her a few days ago. "Richard."

"Richard." She hummed before her eyes closed.

With one last glance at her, he walked out of the bedroom, leaving the door open just a crack. After grabbing a bottle of beer from the fridge, he settled on the couch, flipping the television on, and trying not to think of the beautiful girl currently sleeping in his bed.

(I'd say I'm going to do some editing and rearranging and make this into a chaptered fic. Surprise!)