Authors Note: Hi there! Here's the next chapter and as promised… some Bruce Wayne! Sort of anyways (: This chapter just kind of came to me and got spit out onto my computer if that makes any sense so I'd love to hear what you guys think. Thank you so much to all of you who continue to review, I soooo appreciate it. But to those of you who hate my story—at least I hope at least one of you does (;- please, please, please review and tell me why. I promise I don't mind constructive criticism.

Anyways, enjoy! And there will be actual Young Justice interaction—besides Roy—in the next chapter. Promise (:

Chapter Five: A Helping Hand

Killing someone—doing it well, at least—took focus and control. Remy had learned that you couldn't simply flail about with a gun, take aim and fire. With the advances in modern medicine, anyone could survive a gunshot. Precision was the ultimate key to success.

Without a doubt, Remy was a skilled assassin, but there was no room for error when you worked for the Shadows. Remy couldn't afford to take the chance that Anthony Hodgkins would live.

Remy had heard of other operatives being killed for failing a mission, but then again, those were just rumors. Echoes and whispers swept along through the clandestine web of communication Phase had exposed her to.

She had never failed an assignment before, but she didn't care to test the theory. Remy reminded herself of the consequences of failure as she made her way through the crowded ballroom. To Remy, it seemed as if the crowds of Gotham's wealthy were equivalent to that of a full day of walking in knee-deep mud.

Remy could feel her gun, tucked inside her garter, cool against the inside of her thigh. She reached down, pretending to smooth out her dress, and felt the familiar indent of the trigger. It made her focus, reminded her of what had to be done.

Her mind cleared and she took herself to a place that was as close to Zen as was humanly possible. Her thoughts and emotions disappeared like a puff of smoke drifting out of the chimney. There was pure silence and peace inside of Remy and she no longer felt nervous. This was something she knew how to do. She pushed her way through the throngs of people until Hodkgins was only about ten feet away. In that singular moment, there was Remy, Hodgkins, and her gun.

Once she was in range, she saw something that stopped her cold.

A young woman—early twenties—was standing next to Anthony. She was beautiful, with cascading black hair and strikingly blue eyes, but there was something off with the way that she stood. Remy realized, with a shock, that it was because the woman was pregnant. One of the woman's arms encircled her belly and the other was firmly planted in Anthony's hand.

Remy faltered slightly and glanced around, looking for Ares. She shook her head, knowing that he would be gone. He would be wondering why it was taking her so long. She turned back to the woman and noticed the white diamond on her left hand.

Remy felt sick to her stomach. They were going to make her kill a man who was engaged with a baby on the way? Remy felt guilt begin to wrench itself into her body. Her hands began to shake but she told herself to calm down.

It's kill or be killed, she reminded herself, taking a few deep breaths. Survival of the fittest. Kill or be killed, kill or be killed, kill or be killed. She repeated it to herself like a mantra.

Remy walked forward, as the woman disengaged from Hodgkins. Perfect, Remy thought. At least she wouldn't have to kill the baby's father in front of the mother. He smiled at the woman once more before turning back to his conversation.

This offered Remy some slight astringent to her raging guilt, and allowed her to take the last few steps towards Anthony Hodgkins.

He smiled when he saw her. "Well, hello there. I'm so glad you could make it tonight. On behalf of everyone at the Hodgkins Foundation, I—"

Before he could even finish his statement, Remy had fired the gun straight into his forehead. Horrified screams and confused shouts echoed throughout the room, but Remy didn't hang around to wait for everyone to realize she had just shot a public figure. She dropped the purse and the gun and ran for it, kicking off her heels in the process.

By the time Remy had been able to book it down the side alleys of Gotham, she had already dropped her wig, broken the glasses and torn her dress. She received a few strange looks from some other people out for a late night stroll, but no one seemed to think she was suspicious looking.

She didn't have much to worry about unless she came across a couple of cops. Either way, most of Gotham's finest would be too busy holding everyone at the charity ball for questioning to be out patrolling the streets.

Remy was still a few blocks away from seventh street—where she would meet Ares—when a black car came speeding at her. Remy noticed that there were no plates on the car and that the windows were tinted so darkly that it was impossible to see inside. It screeched to a halt right in front of her and before she could react, she was yanked inside.

The grip on her arm was tight as she flailed about, trying to break her abductors hold. When she realized it was making no difference, however, she stopped. She turned to glance at the person who had taken her.

Remy almost choked on her tongue as she felt the car lurch beneath her, springing into motion.

She was shocked to find the Dark Knight glaring down at her. Remy was surprised to find that he we even more intimidating in person than she had heard. She had heard rumors of his "bat glare" and of his masterful use of stealth. She knew him to be a master of martial arts, far more skilled than Remy could ever hope to be. She had to admit that his tall and muscular frame was impressive and even though Remy was used to being smaller than most people, she thought that Batman was particularly extraordinary.

"Evening Remy." His voice was low and gravelly, like the sound of car hitting the dusty rocks in the pavement. Remy guessed it was to disguise his real voice. Assuming, that Batman had a civilian life in the first place.

That's just pure prejudice, Remy thought ironically, but probably true.

He seemed more like the soulless, workaholic that enjoyed fighting crime twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

She cleared her throat and scooted to the far edge of the seat, putting as much distance in between herself and the dark knight as possible. "Evening."

The driver up front seemed completely oblivious to the exchanges being made.

The Batman swept his eyes over Remy's entire body twice and finally landed back at her eyes. "Your shorter than I expected you'd be."

"Thanks," Remy said acidly. "You're creepier than—no wait your just plain creepy."

He smirked and folded his arms. "You can relax. I'm not going to turn you in for the murder of Anthony Hodgkins."

Remy started, feeling her throat close but she recovered quickly, masking her nerves with a smooth expression. "You shouldn't accuse someone of something unless you have proof."

"Believe me," he said flatly. "I have more than enough proof of your ventures with the League of Shadows to lock you away in prison for the rest of your life."

Remy raised her eyebrows, feigning disinterest. "I'm not exactly clear on what you mean by that. Or the reason you've abducted me."

"It's not an abduction," he stated. "I'm driving you to your hotel."

Remy scoffed, folded her arms and managed to throw Batman a scathing look. This is completely ridiculous, Remy mentally growled. Sure, she was now dealing with the Batman, but Remy was confident in her ability to handle anything that came her way.

Batman reached down underneath the seat and pulled out a computer. He opened up the screen and clicked on a few files. "Search through those pictures and see what you find. The last one is a video."

Remy cautiously took the computer from his hands and set it onto her lap. She clicked through the images he had pulled up onto the screen. The first few were pictures of Remy sitting alone at the lunch table at school. The images then shifted into pictures of her meeting with Travis. Purchasing illegal weapons. Another picture of Remy outside of a club showed up; she was dragging a body towards the dumpster. Remy holding a gun to a well-known celebrities head. Remy breaking and entering into a jewelry store.

Remy, Remy, Remy… all of these pictures were of her either looking suspicious, doing something illegal or actually killing someone.

"You forgot the video," Batman reminded her, breaking through the thoughts swirling around in her head.

Remy looked up at him, alarmed and unsettled as she pushed play. The sound of a string quartet could be heard and Remy—dressed in a blonde wig and ugly glasses—was marching straight towards Anthony Hodgkins.

"How did you get this?" Remy demanded, slamming the cover down on the laptop. "The cameras were shorted out."

"Trade secret," the Batman explained, taking the laptop from her. He replaced it under the seat and turned to simply stare at her.

"Alright, so you've got dirt on me," Remy allowed. "Now what are you going to do with it?"

"The way I see it, Roulette—"

Remy was baffled. How could he possibly know that name? "How—"

"I looked under your bed," Batman said flatly. "It wasn't that hard to figure out that the combination that opens the hatch was the day your father died. I saw the costume, your tools your case files, everything."

Remy stared at him, taking care to keep a calm and even-keeled demeanor about her. "Listen here, asshole. Just because you have evidence against me doesn't mean that it's actually admissible in court."

"Of course it wouldn't be," Batman said, unfazed by Remy's steely tone. "But I have friends in high places. Friends who wouldn't think twice about throwing you into jail. No trial."

Remy huffed. "Seems like I don't have a choice here."

"You do," Batman assured her. "One of your options just leads to prison. The other one, not so much."

"Well, what is it?" Remy demanded.

"I've compiled a team of young up and coming heroes," he explained, watching for Remy's reaction. "They're a strictly covert team which is why you'd fit right in. They need a good lesson on how to operate on the sly."

"What makes you think I'd be able to help them? I'm working for the League of Shadows," Remy said flatly. "I'm a murderer and a criminal."

"As much as I know you'd like me to believe that, we both know it's not completely true."

"You don't know me," Remy spat out acidly.

"I've watched you for an entire year, Roulette. I've seen you kill in cold blood, but I've also seen you help civilians." Remy turned her head out the window and studied the buildings outside, ignoring the penetrating look that Batman was giving her. "You started out with good intentions. You wanted to help people, like you father—"

"Don't," Remy held up a hand, "bring my father into this. He was a real hero, maybe not one with superpowers, but he saved people every day."

"I realize that," Batman said. "But with my help you can be the hero that I know you've always wanted to be. The first step is joining my team. I can open doors for you."

Remy swiveled her head around to look at Batman and she studied him closely as the black car stopped. His face bore no emotion, despite the literal "get out of jail free card" he had just offered her. She considered her options, jail or joining some stupid team. Of course the third option of the League of Shadows eliminating her for a double cross was also in the back of her mind.

He interrupted her silence to add, "I know talent when I see it. You help me, I'll help you."

Remy ignored this as she wondered at how the Shadows would off her. Poison, gunshot to the temple, making it look like a simple mugging? Somehow, Remy decided not to care about the last, death ridden option. She was through with being controlled by the mysterious organization. "So what if I did want to join your team. The Shadows won't let me go very easily."

"I've dealt with this situation before with another member of the team," Batman assured her. "It will work to our advantage."

Remy looked out the window, realizing that they were now at her hotel. "How do I, uh, contact you or whatever?" She pushed the handle on the door open and paused waiting for his reply.

He pulled out a slip of paper attached to a small silver key and handed it to her. "I'm relocating you to Star City at this address. Green Arrow and Black Canary both operate out of the city so if anything were to go wrong, they'd be within calling distance. I'll contact you soon. In the meantime, your contact is waiting for you."

He gestured to her hotel room where the light was already on. The shadowed figure of a man—definitely Ares—was silhouetted in the window, staring down at them.

"What do I say to him?" She asked, pocketing the slip address and the key.

"That's up to you," Batman stated. He paused to insert a meaningful look at Remy. "Don't be so quick to sever ties. As I said, this will work to our advantage."

With that, the Dark Knight reached over and pulled the door shut. The car sped away and Remy was left feeling more confused than ever. Was Batman saying that she would act as a double agent? Remy thought that that was what he had been insinuating, but she could've misread.

Nonetheless, as Remy climbed the stairs to her hotel room, she felt more afraid than she had ever been. Deep inside, however, a glimmer of hope chiseled away at the hard interior of Remy Vanderbilt.