Author's Note: The theme of this chapter is very much 'new friendships', both authentic and less so. As with the last chapter, the second half of this one is taken directly out of the comic this story will be referencing and if you didn't guess it by the end of the last chapter, you'll know by the second half of this one. More on that in the author's end note.
Jason was convinced that only the people who were born and raised in Gotham could truly love the city. It was a necessary but not sufficient condition. Far from everyone who fit that criteria could even stand the city let alone love it. A part of him thought that perhaps that was why Dick had so easily retreated to Bludhaven. Everyone in the outside world probably wondered why anyone lived in Gotham at all. The only exception he could think of to that rule was Jim Gordon.
There were certainly parts of Gotham Jason liked more than others. Robinson Park, for instance, was a favorite place to spend a weekend afternoon with his brothers and the dog. He liked the areas on the edges of the suburbs, the typical middle-class neighborhoods which were far smaller in Gotham than in most places. What he really didn't like was the business district. His father aside, Jason felt unbelievably uncomfortable around the upper-class and avoided going to any and all events thrown by Wayne Enterprise as much as he could. Most of the time Bruce allowed it, unless it was for charity, and in those cases Jason didn't really mind too much. He could always make Tim do most of the schmoozing and not feel even a little bothered that he was essentially hiding behind his younger brother.
"Coffee, Mr. Wayne?"
He looked up from his phone at the waitress who was standing over him with a tray. She was blond, pretty, but looked probably about as star-struck as he had when he was twelve and met Superman for the first time. Jason forced an easy smile, something that always had been much harder for him to fake than for others in his family.
"No, thank you," he replied. It was a fairly high-end cafe, but Jason was pretty sure no place within the country aside from Wayne Manor had the coffee he liked. "Just water and another menu. I'm waiting for a friend."
As it happened, he didn't have to wait long, but when he finally saw Connor walking down the street from the Wayne Tower toward him, Jason did a double take. In his worn jeans and old hoodie, he felt amazingly under dressed.
"How is it possible," he said, eyeing the perfectly tailored suit, "that you look waspier than me? What's with the getup?"
"We're in the business district," Connor waved a hand indicating their surroundings before sitting down. "Besides, I can't exactly show up to talk to Bruce Wayne dressed like…"
"Me?" Jason offered. "Why not? I do it all the time."
"You're his son."
"And you, what, never met him before?"
"It's basic courtesy."
"He's not Hannibal Lecter. That one came by last night." Connor raised a brow. "The demon's head decided to grace us with his presence. Luckily it was short."
"Everything alright?"
"For us? Never better." He figured his father probably wouldn't appreciate him sharing everything, even with a trusted ally, but the thought of Ra's' impending demise was a source of excitement he couldn't hide. "So how was the meeting? Anything useful?"
"Very. He told me how to make sure that no one but myself could access Oliver's assets. I would have included Mia and Roy, but frankly right now I don't trust either of their judgments."
Jason refrained from saying that he would never trust Harper's judgment. Addicts and money were not a good mixture at the best of times. Heaven knew one of the biggest reasons they never had spare cash in their tiny rundown apartment in above Park Row was due to Catherine Todd's habit. Now that Harper was running with Deathstroke and Cheshire and using again, that money was far safer with Connor. Jason had no doubt he'd put it to better use and make sure his sister was taken care of.
The waitress came by again, and this time they both ordered. Jason got a burger, Connor a caesar salad and soup. She offered them a wine and beer list, but both refused politely. Jason wondered if she recognized Connor, but if she did, she made no indication. Green Arrow's identity was public, so even if one didn't know that Connor himself had an alter ego, his relations and Oliver's current imprisonment was enough to make him infamous. Jason, who had long ago stopped looking for things to be fair, though that particular arrangement was particularly cruel.
"Good judgment is always in short supply," he agreed, picking up on the earlier thread. "Did my dad tell you anything about how to deal with your dad being… you know…"
"In jail? You can say it." His tone was harsher than Jason had ever heard it. "He gave me the names of a few good lawyers. Didn't make any particular suggestions though."
Jason nodded. "I'm not really surprised. I know Prometheus was a bad guy, and I'm real sorry about Lian…"
"Oh you don't have to make excuses for Oliver," Connor said bitterly. "Prometheus deserved to die, but Mia didn't deserve to be left alone like this after everything she'd gone through. What did he think was going to happen?"
You don't really want him to have walked down that road. Dick's please from almost a year prior rang in his head. If he had, you would've come home and not recognized your father.
He'd scoffed at those words, ridiculed them as just an excuse for inaction, but now the horror of what their family could have become was sitting right across the table from him. Roy Harper had been destroyed by his daughter's murder which, along with Harper's own descent into darkness, pushed Oliver Queen down a path that left a city without a hero and his remaining children without a father.
"Is she still talking about staying in San Francisco with the Titans?" he asked in an effort to distract himself more than anything else.
"She's with them now. Not sure how long I'm willing to let her stay."
"Oh, I know that one. Damian ran away once from me in Bludhaven. I thought I'd have a heart attack. You can always go with her, you know. I'm sure the Titans have room for another archer."
"Star City still needs Green Arrow." Connor shook his head. "Besides, they're good kids, but the Titans are Mia's friends, not mine."
"I hear that," Jason took a gulp of water. "My very brief run with them - the older team - everyone kept acting like I was Dick. Imagine how much I liked that. Though," he smiled wistfully, "it wasn't all bad."
"Girl?" Connor guessed.
"Woman. And way out of league for the stupid fourteen-year-old kid I was, trust me."
"Well, maybe now that you're back…" the fair-haired man must have seen the look on his face because he trailed off. "Is she… not around anymore?"
"She died." Jason swallowed. "Don't know if it was before or after I was brought back. I didn't ask."
"Sorry."
"Me too." He was quiet for a moment, then shrugged a shoulder in the best show of nonchalance he could muster. "It's not like I'd have a shot even if she was around. Like I said, way out of my league. Amazon princess and all."
Connor looked like he wanted to say something very badly but chose to bite his lip instead. Jason gave him a look. "What?"
"Nothing." The other man took another fork-full of salad, then apparently deciding it wasn't 'nothing' spoke up. "I'm just wondering if we know each other well enough for me to tell you when you're being an idiot or if that's offensive."
Jason barked out a huff of laughter. "Considering how I went off on you the first time we met, and you're still talking to me and are now listed as 'Hawkeye' in my phone, I think we can safely say we're past that point."
Talia would have been the first to admit that she did not enjoy American cities. She much prefered Europe or the Middle-East, sometimes parts of Asia. There was something about the grandioseness and lack of extensive history that made the cities feel cold to her, and Metropolis was about as American as it got outside of New York. Being in the city was a necessary evil, much like working for Lex Luthor, though she found ways to entertain herself in that department.
Then there were always Bruce's visits to look forward, but he had left two days ago, and Talia knew she probably wouldn't see him for a few weeks. So it was back to her apartment to eat, check on some of her side-projects, and hopefully do some light reading before bed. The driver was already waiting for her outside LexCorp's main tower, dutifully holding the car door. Lawrence, the doorman at her building, greeted her with a cordial nod, and as she watched the lights of the floor numbers change on the ride up the elevator, Talia wondered idly if she could get away with removing her heels now.
She was still wondering that by the time she got to her apartment, but her thoughts were interrupted just as the key slid into the knob.
"It's about time," came a voice from a few doors away, and Talia turned to see a woman with short black hair and a blue blouse poke her head from an apartment down the hall. The woman's look of annoyance quickly turned to embarrassment as she saw her. "Oh! I beg your pardon! I thought you were the delivery man."
"No, I live here," Talia said mildly.
"Right, yeah," the woman looked flustered. "Obviously. See, I just moved in. I've been unpacking all day, and I finally ordered some Chinese, and I thought you were the guy, you know?"
"Sure." Talia pushed her door open. It had been a long day, and she was too tired to pay attention.
"So… uh… I guess we're neighbors. I'm Nyssa." She walked forward and held out her hand. Not to be rude, Talia introduced herself and the two shook hands. "Nice to meet you."
Talia nodded her assent and actually managed to make it over the threshold with a polite, "If you'll excuse me…"
Nyssa looked like she wanted to say something else but her attention was diverted to a tall, bearded burly man talking down the hall with a paper bag. "Hey! Looks like my food's finally here." She took the bag from the man, handed him some bills, and turned back to her. "You… uh… you want to join me for dinner?"
Tired as she was, the prospect of cooking was even less appealing than socializing, so despite herself Talia agreed. Nyssa's apartment was laid out much like her own with the obvious presence of several large boxes still stacked against the walls, but the couch, coffee table, and a blue egg chair were already set up in the living room. Within moments the Chinese food containers were set out onto the coffee table. Talia took the couch while Nyssa sat cross-legged in the chair across from her.
A bit awkward though the woman was, Talia found herself warming up to her, especially after she'd mentioned that she'd been on her own for most of her life, since shortly after her mother's death. Having few precious memories of her own mother, Melisande, before her death at the hands of Qayin in the Lazarus Pit, she could certainly empathize.
"What about your father?" she asked, twisting some noodles onto her chopsticks.
Nyssa shrugged a shoulder. "Haven't seen him for a couple of years. He's basically a bastard. Total control freak. Always wanted me to do what he said, never wanted to hear what I had to say."
"Sounds like my father." Talia nodded, finding yet another point to empathize with.
"You too, huh?" Nyssa reached for the container and pulled out a piece of chicken.
"You cannot even imagine." She didn't think it was really possible to out-do Ra's al Ghul in the stubbornness department. The only person she knew who came close was the one she'd shared a bed with two days ago, and oh, but Talia did not want to think what that said about her mental health.
The food containers were nearly empty, and the fading light of the sunset was streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows to her right. She rose, not wanting to go deeper down any line that a conversation about fathers might start. Talia picked up one of the paper containers.
"Here," she said. "I will help you clean up."
"No, no," Nyssa waved her off, still holding her own chopsticks. "I got it. After all, I invited you."
She went to pick up an empty can of soda, and Talia was about to object out of habit, but then her eyes landed on a strange thin rectangular scar. An inch or two in length, it ran vertically down the other woman's wrist from the base. Before she could stop herself, Talia asked, "What happened to your arm?"
Nyssa went paperwhite. "What do you mean?"
"Nothing." Talia could not believe how callous and insensitive that had been. "Apologise. I meant no offense."
"No, don't…" the other woman shook her head, appearing to desperately need to clear it. "Don't worry. I just forget it's there sometimes. It's just… from a long time ago."
Not knowing what else to say, Talia nodded and picked up her discarded shoes. "Thank you for dinner."
Nyssa smiled weakly and walked her to the door, opening it.
"Maybe we can… do it again soon? I don't know… I don't know a lot of people in Metropolis."
The awkwardness was back, and Talia felt absolutely wretched. What right did she have to intrude on something which was so clearly deeply private? And after the woman had been nothing but kind, inviting her into her home and sharing a meal with her.
"I would like that," she smiled reassuringly and waved. "Have a good night."
As the door closed behind her, Talia thought she saw the woman grasp her wrist.
Author's End Note: So there you have it. This story will be taking heavily from "Death and the Maidens" though don't expect all the events to play out the same way. For those not familiar with Nyssa's character from the comics, she's very different from what we see in Arrow. The Nyssa in Arrow is much more like Talia than her comic-book counterpart which is much much darker. Stay tuned!