Chapter 7

Following his deciding to humor Huntress, Jason wasted little time rebuilding himself. He spent several weeks just getting himself back in shape, and polishing up his skills both on duffel bags and street toughs unfortunate enough to run into him. In the case of the latter he was also able to get some new guns out of this, though ammo was obviously limited more often than not.

Still, Jason was satisfied to find that his fighting skills and physical ability had not at all deteriorated since recovering from his near-fatal injuries at Killer Croc's hands. Whether it was all because of the incredible rejuvenating powers of the Lazarus Pit that had brought him back in the first place, his own ironclad will and determination, or some combination thereof, Jason didn't know. Only that his results spoke for themselves.

He was still without his costume and gadgets though, which meant that for now at least Red Hood was still missing. That said though Jason quickly decided that he could use that to his advantage. There were after all perks to everyone thinking you were dead. It allowed you to get things done with less fear of intervention. Granted, Jason usually wasn't interested in not being noisy, but he figured that he could still make the most of it as was.

It was about another month before Jason finally met up with Huntress once more. She smiled upon seeing him again and to Jason's pleasant surprise she'd brought his costume with her.

"Hello again. Glad to see you decided to give this a shot"

Jason shrugged. "Figure I still have time to humor you. Everyone probably thinks I'm dead by this point anyway" his eyes fell back to his body armor and helmet. She'd even gone out of her way to repair the damaged armor and helmet in full.

"Must have taken a while to fix them up after Croc went to town on me...thanks"

"Well you can't go trick or treating without your mask now can you?" Huntress asked, smiling teasingly as she did. "Just make sure to be a good boy while we're out or I won't give you any candy"

Jason chuckled. "I know, I know. No killing. I'll play along, don't worry"

"You better" Huntress warned, her tone becoming more serious. "I'm giving you a chance here. Don't waste it."

"Lady I was given a second chance already. And I know what will happen to me because of what I've done. I'm more self-aware than you think"

"That means we've still got a ways to go then"

Jason grumbled but said nothing further. No sooner was he back in his Red Hood costume was he following Huntress across Gotham's rooftops, silently impressed with how she was actually able to keep pace with him. She might not have been able to outfight him, but she did come close to outrunning him.

"So where are we going exactly?" Red Hood asked as he and Huntress continued to jump from rooftop to rooftop, with them making their way through a good portion of the city.

"You and the Bat aren't the only ones who know how to find criminals" Huntress replied. "There's this underground cage fighting circuit that I've been wanting to bust for years but have never been able to. Now that you're here though I'm fancying my chances a lot better"

"Gonna be harder without guns" Red Hood pointed out. "I've been on the receiving end of your fighting skills twice now. You took down Killer Croc. You were trained by Lady Shiva. Honestly I almost feel bad for these people now that you're coming" then her red lips formed into a sly grin. "Almost"

Red Hood chuckled. "So the princess has a dark side after all"

"Only kind of princess I ever was was a Mafia one. And that's something I've rejected ever since that night…"

There was a tense silence following this as the two continued to traverse the rooftops of Gotham City. Finally though they descended and went to a fenced out area that was fairly remote and with no sign of life anywhere. No sooner where they there did Huntress turn to Red Hood: "Changing time"

"Wait, what?"

"We can't just walk into this place we need tickets. The guy giving them to us will be coming any minute. I don't think I need to explain why he can't be dressed like this when he shows up"

"Alright then. It's not black tie is it?"

-X-

Following their meeting with the driver Jason and Helena arrived at the location of the cage-fight dressed in something considerably more formal and less flashy than their costumes, with Jason wearing a fairly inconspicuous and standard tuxedo while Helena wore a red dress that had once belonged to her mother, and was one of the only things of her that Helena had left. With any luck it wouldn't get damaged during the night's…"activities".

"So what's the plan exactly?" Jason asked.

"We crash this place" Helena replied matter-of-factly. "Make sure this ring is out of business for a while"

"How do we do that?"

"By entering you into this. You get inside, get what you can on these people, and then we strike when they don't expect it"

"So I have to be the mole then?"

"Yes. But there's something else you should know…"

As Helena said this a female voice rang out on the intercoms: "And we have a knockout! Sportsmaster scores another victory in the ring! I don't think Electrocutioner's getting back up again anytime soon…"

Jason's eyes widened as he heard this. Sportsmaster was a former member of the League of Assassins, and Electrocutioner was a an independent hitman.

"Now I see why you were reluctant to take this place on…" Jason noted. "It's supervillain cage fighting"

"Most of them don't have superpowers" Helena said. "Usually it's martial artists and the occasional punk on a diluted version of the Venom Bane uses. Nobody you can't handle"

"Actually gorgeous there is one guy there I might not be able to handle, and they just blasted his name over the intercom"

"Sportsmaster? He's been this place's reigning champion for a while now. But he's never taken anyone you couldn't beat"

"It's not just that. Sportsmaster was one of my teachers. He'll recognize my fighting style anywhere and blow the whistle on me in an instant"

"But you just said he was only one of your teachers. Can't you use a style other than the one he taught you?"

"He'll recognize me if I use Shiva's style too. Remember he was in the League way longer than I was. Those are my two main styles beautiful. Without those I might not be able to beat him…"

"Well with any luck you won't be going up against him right away. Roulette will probably start you off against some of the lower-tier people, nobody you can't handle, even if you hold back"

"So let me get this straight: you want me to become entertainment for these people and hold back so I don't kill anyone or blow my cover?" Helena nodded wordlessly in response.

"...alright, and even if I say yes, Red Hood's not any cockfight's rooster. I don't suppose you have something else for me to wear?"

Huntress smiled. "As a matter of fact I do"

-X-

"Someone's here to see you boss"

Roulette's raised an eyebrow at this and looked up from her computer at the massive bald man in front of her. Roulette was the kind of person who did not like to be disturbed, and was also not one for letting just any old person come and see her in person. She knew how to put on a show but when it came to dealing with people on a personal level she was considerably less inclined to be accommodating.

"This had better be good"

"It's a woman who says she's got someone you might be interested in seeing in the ring"

"Oh really?" This improved Roulette's disposition considerably. She was also eager to talk where her business was concerned, especially when it came to the prospect of having a new face in the ring. The crowd always ate newcomers up, even when they didn't last more than one round.

"Bring her in"

The bodyguard nodded and stepped to the side. Helena came in and Roulette frowned upon seeing her. Right off the bat she could sense something about this woman that she didn't like. Perhaps it was just the way she carried herself, but Roulette smelled trouble. Only the promise of a potential new face in her ring kept her from ordering her men from throwing the woman out forthwith.

"My men said you have someone I might be interested in. I take it you mean a new fighter in my ring?"

Helena nodded. "Yeah. He's one of the best fighters I've ever seen. He'll make you some money if you give him a shot"

"Now isn't that a sentence I've heard before" Roulette shook her head. "Eh, it's no skin off my back. You want to give your man a shot, I'll allow it. I'll make some money either way. Who is this mystery man anyway?"

"Right here" Jason said, choosing then to make his "dramatic entrance". He was wearing a long tan brown trenchcoat over his usual body armor, and had taken to covering his face in bandages in place of his distinctive red helmet.

"Hush? Well now this is a surprise. I didn't take you for being the cage fighting type"

"Things change" Jason replied in the best gravelly and vindictive voice he could manage, which was rather easily done he found. He was already vindictive, and against the same man no less. Deciding he needed to say more, Jason added: "My endeavours don't fund themselves. If I need to participate in a few brawls to make ends meet, so be it"

Roulette raised an eyebrow in response to this but said nothing further, instead scanning "Hush" before turning her gaze back to Helena. "And who is she? I thought you were a loner Hush"

"I am. She's a temporary ally. Nothing more. Our interests align for now. She wants to be a part of your game and I need money. So we work together to achieve our goals"

Jason had only met Hush once before, but he had gotten a solid enough grasp of his speech patterns from just the one time. He was deceptively formal, and clearly thought very highly of himself at the expense of others. Between that and again, his being just as vindictive as Jason was, it was a simple matter for Jason to slip into the role, even with acting having never been one of his strong suits. But he had some experience in it all the same. As far as visual cues to his identity went, with the distinctive red helmet gone most people would have never been able to tell the difference between him and Hush, as they both dressed in black body armor with some red bits sprinkled throughout. And for someone who had never seen Red Hood up close or even in person, Jason knew Roulette would never be the wiser.

Indeed she finally nodded and said: "Alright Hush if you want a shot in my ring I'll give it to you. You can fight against Electrocutioner tomorrow. But you'll forgive me for thinking you may be in over your head"

"Duly noted" Jason replied, maintaining his Hush voice. Truth be told there were some much more colorful responses he could have given and also would have loved to have given, but as they needed to get into the ring, Jason decided to play it safe with the least hostile but still in-character response he could manage.

Following this Jason and Helena were led out of Roulette's office, and as they exited, Jason was finally able to break his disguise and speak to Helena as himself: "Gotta admit, didn't ever think to try something like this"

"That's probably because you'd never think to disguise yourself as the thing you hate so much"

"Real astute analysis" Jason replied sarcastically. "Can't say you're wrong though. And this plan is working. Can't say I mind pretending to be that scum Hush but it's a small price to pay if this works"

"Indeed. Remember, the next fight's tomorrow"

Jason smiled. "I'm looking forward to it"

Author's Note: Took me awhile to decide who Jason would pose as while cage-fighting. I'm glad I settled on Hush, as it really is the best possible choice I feel.