With the tight restrictions finally lifted, Jazz takes the liberty to explore the mansion, confident that she won't be reprimanded if she gets caught. She's heard rumors about Wayne Manor; when she was younger, she mentally drew pictures of what it would look like. Now though it seems her imagination was too colorful. Most of the mansion is shrouded in tarps covering much of its glamour.
But she is about to find a few pieces of evidence that proves why this manor was once the envy of most if not all of Gotham. The painted portraits hanging off the walls in the hallways are like nothing she's ever seen. The titles identifying the people smiling or staring down are missing, but she gets the sense they belong to the Wayne bloodline. She slowly walks down the hallway, pausing to study each picture with a tilted head. Reaching the last one, she stops and stares at the couple standing behind a young boy. Her eyes narrow when she finds the boy's bright, blue eyes familiar but can't place him.
Something strange happens the longer she stares at his beaming face: a small seed of jealousy digs itself into the pit of her stomach. The happy faces, the affectionate hands on the boy's shoulders, the woman's kind eyes all make the seed grow, burrowing it's roots deeper into her and bring a scowl to her face. A voice interrupts the envy consuming her.
"Looking for something?" Terry asks, suddenly appearing behind her.
As she spins to face him, she can't help but feel like a guilty child caught with a hand in the cookie jar. "Uh, no," she stutters. "Just wandering; didn't have anything better to do."
He stares into her unnaturally pink eyes, somehow picking up on the tree of jealousy dwelling within her. Although curious, he decides not to pursue it. He turns and starts down the hallway without sharing another word.
"Hey, hold up a sec," Jazz suddenly calls out making him face her. "You know who these people are?" She asks pointing at the portrait.
"Ever heard of Google?" Terry replies, stuffing hands in his pockets.
She scowls at the reply. "You don't have to be nasty," she replies, turning back to the happy family.
Reprimanding himself for the unnecessary hostility, Terry sighs as he approaches her. "Thomas and Martha Wayne," he explains nodding at them.
Being a Gotham citizen, Jazz knows exactly who they are and worse yet, what happened to them. "Woah," she quietly gasps looking at Bruce's face in a different way now. The envy dissipates as condolence and respect replace it; she scolds herself for making a naïve assumption about this once happy family.
"You know the story, right?" Terry asks when she doesn't say anything further.
"Yeah, I just never knew what they looked like. They're the real heroes of Gotham."
Terry finds himself surprised by her statement. He has never met someone who shares the same view of the Wayne family. Gotham respects the memory of Thomas and Martha, talking about them as innovators and generous philanthropists, but never heroes. Batman is supposed to be Gotham's hero and no one else.
"So how come a lot of the furniture is covered up?" Jazz suddenly asks bringing Terry's attention back.
"You tell me, Miss Psych Major," he replies before walking down the hall again.
Scowling, she follows suit falling into step beside him. "I'll rephrase then; how come some of the furniture is uncovered?" She asks making him grin.
"I'm a snooper," Terry shrugs.
Although she knows that quip for a reply is a tip of the iceberg, she senses that the answers she is seeking can't be worded. There's a dynamic between Terry and Bruce that she will have to work to understand, but she's glad she has a chance to do it. The only problem though is the fact that she's still keeping secrets from Terry, something that has been infecting their friendship.
After realizing she was keeping something from him, Terry closed off and became more distant. He isn't the same man she had gotten to know the last time they met before his incident, and Jazz couldn't help but notice this. However, she isn't ready to disclose her deepest secrets yet, and so she is willing to sacrifice the friendship. As long as their partnership works, she doesn't care what happens to anything else.
They make their way to the kitchen where they find Bruce waiting for them. After explaining how business matters have required his presence in Italy, Terry offers to drive him to the airport.
"You two seemed civil earlier," Bruce starts as Terry drives down the winding road before exiting the gates. Given the fact the two argue more often than anything else, Bruce has reason to be skeptical of the few times they get along.
"Temporary moment of sanity," he quips as he gets on the main road. "I wouldn't get used to it if I were you. Anyway, you want me to send her out on any calls while you're gone?"
"Only if you need her to control minor disturbances; otherwise, I expect you to do most of the work. Red light."
The car comes to a sharp stop a foot before running the light. "I saw that, you know," he mutters.
"Uhm. Have you heard anything about Inque yet?"
"Not since she completed the job a week after the… you know," he replies. "But if your hunch is right, she should be targeting another company soon, within days really."
"I don't expect you to go out alone if and when she shows up, understood?"
"I know," he replies taking off after the light turns green. "I'll brief Jazz about her."
"Good. I expect her to know Inque like the back of her hand."
"Of course. What about Barbara?"
"What about her? Car," Bruce quickly but calmly warns.
Slowing down to let the car in front merge into his lane, Terry continues, "I know how to drive, Bruce. Anyway, aren't we going to tell her about Jazz?"
"She'll find out soon enough."
"Oh, by the way, mom invited you to dinner next Sunday night." Bruce half-turns his head and raises a brow. "You paid the med bills; it's her way of showing gratitude and apologize for going off on you."
"Is there a way I could get out of it?"
"Of course there is. But I won't let it happen." His grin stretches so wide one would think the Joker just gassed him.
Bruce shoots a glare his way, but it doesn't seem to have an effect on him. He turns his attention back towards the road. "You're getting back at me for making you pull weeds all day yesterday."
"That and so many other things. What can I say? I hold grudges."
"What time?"
"Six-thirty, and I believe I'll be out on patrol by then," he reminds him, still smiling.
However, this time Bruce smirks in reply. "I guess bringing Batgirl in was a good idea after all."
Terry's grin quickly disappears as he turns to look at Bruce with wide eyes. "Oh no, I'm not going."
"Eyes on the road, McGinnis."
He does as told. "Here I thought I could actually get back at you."
"Nice try."
The car finally arrives at Gotham International Airport and pulls up into Bruce's private airstrip. Terry gets out of the car to help unload a single piece of rolling luggage while Bruce checks in with the personnel.
"This is the hotel's information. Call if you need anything," Bruce says handing him the card after Terry hands the bag to the attendant. "Keep up with the physical therapy and ice that wrist."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Terry replies, rolling his eyes the way he always does when Bruce plays mother hen. "I'll see you in a few days."
Nodding his farewell, he turns and heads to the waiting plane. Once Bruce is out of sight, Terry returns to the car and drives off. On his way back, his phone rings with Jazz on the other line.
"Yeah?" He answers.
"Hey, I got an alarm coming from Gotham Tech Institute. It looks like the intruder is some sort of black shape shifter."
"That's Inque. Stay at the cave till I get there, got it?" He orders, surprised by Inque's unexpected appearance.
"But-"
"Don't argue with me. I'll be there in ten minutes." He hangs up on her before she has the chance to protest and speeds off toward the manor.
Back at the cave, Jazz lets out an irritated groan after the line disconnects. 'She'll be done by the time we get there,' she thinks to herself while studying the floor plan of the building that set off the alarm.
Red dots blink in different areas indicating damage to some parts of the lab, while the police radio spouts off details about the attack.
'I could at least make sure she stays there till Terry arrives; no harm done there, right?' She tries rationalizing.
A low whimper makes her look down and find Ace's big, brown eyes staring up at her. They are pleading her not to go, to wait for Terry. Batman. The experienced and almighty fighter. The tough guy who could stop such a foe. Frowning at the dog before her, she sighs.
"Sorry, pup, but I gotta do this," she says as she gets up, grabs her suit and runs to an alcove to change.
Just as he said, Terry runs down the steps of the cave ten minutes later and stops in front of the large monitor. He finds the seat empty with a floor map displayed on the screen.
"Jazz?" he calls out, but the name bounces off the walls of the cave going unanswered. He takes a look around and finds the newly designed Batcycle missing. "Slag it!" He curses before hurrying to get ready.
-continued-