"Alright," Aria held her breath five seconds at a time, to at least remove the shakiness of it.
She had no way to tell the time, as her phone was taken away from her for being late so many times. However, by the sun setting, she figured that it would be close to night time…Maybe dinner or supper time for families.
"That's it!" Aria exclaimed, not paying attention to…the fact that she was alone. "Batman always comes when there's trouble! And trouble comes at night!" Pleased with herself, having thought of a plan on the spot.
"Maybe I should get into trouble and then he'll come and rescue me!" Aria nodded, "it would be the quickest way to meet him and tell him! But….no way I could ever go up against Joker or even Bane." Shaking her head, "what Batman villain isn't so…scary?"
Hanging her head low, chewing on her lip "Maybe, I could find the Wayne Manor? It isn't like it is hard to find the richest house in all of Gotham." She looked up, seeing the shadow of a gigantic mansion sitting on a hill that was surrounded by gates. The sun disappearing near the home. "That…would be the best way…Yes."
Straightening up, she sent one last look to the dumpster with a grimace and began her journey to the Wayne Manor.
'Getting to Bruce, I should be safe there, as long as he believes me…But, the way towards the manor doesn't keep me safe in a dark place like Gotham, I hope that the Joker or Two-Face hasn't escaped or anything. Or police find me. What the hell could I say!'
"Well," Aria carefully walked across the street when the street light allowed her to do so, "keep your nose up, don't look so scared, and scream" her voice mimicked her mother's when Aria asked her if she could start walking to school on her own.
Mommy…
"I don't know how many times I have to make myself clear to you" a distant voice sounded in a growl as the hand that belonged to the voice was currently pushing a face into the concrete of a wall.
"Ugh! Sorry boss!" The squished face squeaked as his own hands tried to pull himself away from the wall. His cheeks were already stained and bruised from various punches and the rough brick wall was causing tears.
"Sorry doesn't mean shit to me" growling the dominant one, "I had just one condition for you." He rubbed his palm against the back of the face, "against my notions of how idiotic you are, can you remember that condition?"
"Yes! Not to…"
"Not to?"
"To…To…Sell drugs to kids! Not to go near them! But I didn't! I swear!" The man, poor, pissing his pants, sobbing.
"So then," the man pulled his head back by the hair, "tell me why I found children high!"
Splat.
The time that he threw the man into the wall was the last time. Huffing, as he just let the body fall, rubbing the blood into his gloves. "Great, now I have to get new gloves."
"Yeah, well, don't throw it away where someone can find it and use it as evidence" mumbled a voice as a door was open allowing another voice to chime in, this time more feminine but just as annoyed, "Jason…Must you use our place as a meeting ground for your…" she had no words as to describe what her comrade did.
At this, Jason threw her a smirk, "I have to let them know that I am a serious business man!"
"For drugs?" Laughed the second male voice, belonging to Roy.
"Hey, better me to keep track of them than them doing who knows what to innocent people" Jason shrugged as Koriand'r rolled her eyes, long used to the jokes between men. She slightly hovered over to Jason, looking down at the body, head burst open. "What should we do with him? And by we, I mean you, Jason."
Jason, in turn, looked at Roy, as if Roy had any idea.
"I guess dump him on the closest drug lord?" Roy suggested. Really, what else was Koriand'r expecting from these two?
It was not that Roy or Jason were awful, or evil, despite whatever they say but that they were riff-raffs. Each had their own history, their own scars and each expressed themselves differently. Koriand'r recognized unhealthy coping, but she also noticed fewer drug lords taking advantage of people since Jason came under a red hood that he wears.
Besides, when has a warrior princess been against killing?
She walked to the kitchen, pulling a water bottle from the fridge, "whatever you decide to do with him, keep him away from the…" she looked at the dusty walls, the makeshift roof, and the black windows, "…home"
"We could use your help though, Kor" Roy in a more gentler voice directed towards his friend.
Sighing, she finished up the water bottle because after all…what warrior princess hasn't become accomstomed to death?
"Damn it, Roy! Pull your weight!" Jason growled as he held the leg end of the dead body that Koriand'r wrapped in whatever left over plastic was found.
"Sorry, I don't exactly make carrying dead bodies a hobby" Roy snapped back.
"Kor, can you please help?"
Koriand'r rolled her green eyes as she hovered above the two a few meters, "I am helping. I'm keeping an eye out for anyone. Specifically, a certain bat" Huffing.
"Yeah, well, I would rather take on Batman than being stuck here" Roy whined, "Jay, you have a cig for me after this, right?"
"Just shut up and carry, you wimp."
Gotham, as all fictional cities, changes depending on the artist. Some artist draws a kind, nice, sunny Gotham. The kind of Gotham where there are no muggings or escaped criminals or poverty. While other artists prefer the dark, gritty, crime filled Gotham. The kind of Gotham where women and Black people are always on the lookout, holding a key or pepper spray. It is the Gotham that brought murders. The kind of Gotham that Ras wanted to destroy.
It was not that Aria was completely and utterly terrified. She still managed to walk and ignore the strange looks of a girl with garbage on her clothes walking around, randomly. A few times she had to sprint ahead to escape a scene or a strange man. She had to keep her wits on her. She was a lost teenage girl who really, at the very end, had no idea if she was even going in the correct direction to the Manor. She only followed what appeared closer to her.
What strike her odd though…Was the absence.
The absence of cafes, restaurants, shopping markets…All she saw were tall, empty, hole filled, and black windows. She saw people, but she saw people on the streets, sometimes laying on the floor, eyes white and wide open.
"…Where…am…I?"
She stopped, perhaps not the best option but she needed to know, to understand, what the hell was happening.
"Are you going alone, sir?" Alfred asked Bruce, bringing down the dinner, despite Bruce not eating.
"Yes, for tonight, I am" Bruce replied, slipping the cowl over his head.
"Is that wise?"
At this, Bruce frowned, "Alfred, I've been doing this solo before even Dick was brought into our family."
"Master Wayne, I was not referring to you but to Mister Timothy and Damian," Alfred looked cross.
Shaking his head no as Bruce made his way towards the Bat-mobile, "No, they can use the time off and a night to themselves."
"Usually, I would agree with you Sir, but they do need…" Before he could finish his reply, he was greeted with smoke and a gone Bruce, "…you, Sir."
"Who does he think he is?!" Damian stabbed his mashed potatoes with his spoon, obviously upset at his father's decision to exclude them from the trip.
Tim grimaced as he watched Damian eat, almost like a hungry-Dick, "He is Batman, you know. Besides, if you wanted to go so badly, you could always sneak in to get the motorcycles."
"…And risk upsetting father?"
"Now, since when did you start caring about his feelings?" Tim couldn't help but tease a little, giggling.
"Shut up Drake!" Damian growled, "I'm only staying here so I don't cause more stress to father!"
At this Tim's grin widened, "Sure, that's why, and not because you love us, or anything."
Scowling, "Has Grayson rubbed off on you or something?"
"Why?" This time Tim's grin fell, "Have you spoken to him?"
"No!" This time Damian threw his plate away to the edge, "You're just acting like him and it is infuriating. Can't you just find Brown so you're not sulking?"
"We're not talking right now, you know that Damian. Things just caught up."
"Peh," Damian lifted his shoulders, "not like she was valuable or good at fighting anyway. I'll never know why father kept her around."
At this Tim took a bit of potato on his spoon and flicked it at Damian, landing on his cheek, "Now, you shut up."
"Drake!"
"You know," Aria said as she found her feet to walk again, "for a teenager, I'm taking this quite well." She nodded, "Other people would be crying, or running into some drug dealer or whatever. Maybe even Joker. But here I am!" Convicting herself more than anyone else, "Having a plan and working it out!" Laughing, "I'm so not lost! Not at all!" Laughing to keep her fear at bay as Bruce wondered the night within his car and Jason and crew carried a dead body. Nothing out of place for Gotham.
"Do you hear something?" Jason asked, nearing towards one of the Drug lords the guy previously worked.
"Like laughter?" Roy asked Jason.
"It sounds like a girl" Koriand'r frowned. "I'll go check it out" she flew up, her neon green allowed her to have some light against the moon.
"Can we just dump it somewhere? Why does it have to be the house?"
"Because you brat," Jason whined back in a mocking fashion, "the boss has to know that I'm not kidding when I state my—."
"I see something!"
SCREEEECCHHH
Aria yelled as she was pulled backwards onto the ground, her back hitting against the floor.
"Damn, you smell" Her attacker smirked, "must be lost. Are you one of Two-Face's girls? Did little girl get lost?" His gigantic hands gripped her front shirt and pulled her upwards, "you may stink but hey…you can't always be a winner" his grin showed a fake gold tooth.
"GET away from me!" Aria scrambled, the newspaper dropped as she used every limb possible to get away from him before getting the breath knocked out of her again as he shoved her back down.
"Keep quiet you ru—"
A figure shoved, or rather ran into him, throwing him away. The saver stood in front of Aria, hand fisted.
"You know," Jason growled, "I keep on getting pissed off every day. This must be a special piss off Red Hood day" he cracked his knuckles.
Koriand'r's attention was to Aria as she wrapped her arms around the scared girl and away from Jason, "Shhh…it is okay"
Aria turned and all she saw was just orange and green and she screamed.
"Gah! Girl!" Roy shouted above her screeching, "Can't you see that we're trying to save you? What are you even doing here?"
Koriand'r let go of her as her only point was to keep her away from Jason's fight, "Please, we mean you no harm."
"Yeah, you're lucky that we came…" Roy sniffled as he came closer to her, "Yo, girl, when was the last time you took a shower?"
Aria at this point curled up in a ball, whimpering, not knowing exactly what to do but just to lie there.
Jason, on the other hand, was busy throwing punch after punch at the guy. Not allowing any words or blood or the crunch of bone to stop him. All this caused a commotion. Enough for someone to call the police of a fight. Enough for the Bat-radar to pick up. Enough for Koriand'r to spot a certain car with a certain shape…
"We have to go" Koriand'r flew over to Jason, placing a hand on his shoulder, "I saw the car, the kind that your…"
"Shit" Roy screamed, "If he finds us then he'll take me to see him! I don't want to see the bastard! But we can't just leave her!"
"He can come," Jason stood up, "why does it matter?"
Koriand'r chewed on her lip, "I don't think that he would take kindly to two dead bodies and blood on your fists. It will only cause stress to you…"
Aria uncurled herself, taking deep breaths, preparing to speak, if only to go to the bathroom—
"What in the world is going on here?" A dark shadow flew onto the crime scene. His eyes under the cowl narrowed at the scene before him.
"Hey, long time no see" Jason laughed throwing a peace sign towards Batman. Koriand'r kept a strict stance and Roy prepared to bolt if need to be, which would have been soon.
Frowning, "Red Hood, what have you gotten yourself into—"
Before any of them could get a word in Aria, who had stood up, removed the need to pee and in a panic—
"I'mfromanotherworldandIknowyouareBatman!"
Clamping her hands over her mouth and her eyes huge as now...all eyes were on her.