"Bane," Ann began, trying to explain. She hurriedly pulled up her pants, her thoughts running a mile a minute. She couldn't believe that he found them, but at the same time wondered how she thought he wouldn't. He always seemed to find her when she wondered off.

"Am I not enough?" He accused, his voice with an edge that Ann had never heard from him before.

"Bane, it's not what you think..." Ann stood to try to meet his eye.

"Miss Todd," Bane cut in, knowing he was hurting Ann deeply when he used her stage name, "I'm going to have you taken back to the room now. From there, two armed guard will be at your door at all times, since you have such a pension for ending up in places you shouldn't..."

"Listen to me!" Ann interjected, her dignity being torn to shreds. Bane just took her arm and lead her to the door none to gently. Ann struggled against him, not used to Bane using this much force on her, but this only resulted in a tighter grip, strangling a small cry from Ann.

Upon hearing this, Bane released her immediately as if she had burned him.

"I need you to believe me!" Ann sobbed out, scared and desperate. Bane reached for her again, but Ann tried to dodge out of the way. Bane, of course, was far faster than her and caught her at an angle, sending her into the wall behind her. But he didn't let go of her right away; he held her there, only slightly painfully at first but then steadily grew more intense with the more pressure he applied. He just stared at her, watching her reaction go from wincing to actually crying out in pain.

"I hope you realize that I have been extremely patient with you," Bane towered over her, his voice low and warning. "You think I wouldn't do anything to hurt you, that your womb is just so precious to me that you can do whatever you want. Have I been mean to you?"

Ann didn't answer, thinking it was a rhetorical question.

"Answer me," Bane growled.

"No," Ann answered simply, looking at the floor.

Suddenly, Bane quickly drew up on her, forcing her against the wall not only with his hand but with his whole body. A shiver ran through Ann and she wasn't sure if it was from fear or arousal. She felt sick thinking it, but being interrupted in the middle of really great foreplay doesn't exactly leave one satisfied. She craved to be touched more, but refused to allow Bane to know.

"Bane?" Ann said in a whisper, not knowing what he was going to do.

Without a warning, Bane dragged Ann away from the wall and threw her on the same sofa he found her on before. Landing with an 'oof', Ann stared up at Bane in surprise and fear. This was the first time Bane had ever been truly rough with her and she didn't know how to handle it. She definitely wouldn't be able to survive if he became violent.

But instead, he just climbed on top of her, his huge body filling her line of sight. Ann refused to back down and stared him in the eye, attempting to keep a neutral expression on her face, but that failed when Bane used one hand to flip her over.

"Was it nice?" Bane asked, breathing down her neck. "Did it feel good, Barsad doing that to you?"

Ann refused to answer, not knowing the correct way to go. It did feel good, but how does she say she was imagining Bane the whole time?

"Tell me," He growled again, a hand clamping on her hip painfully.

"Yes," Ann admitted.

"My poor little mouse," Bane hummed, but with the hard edge to his voice, both hands on her hips now. "Hasn't been kissed since before her capture. And how long was that? A month? Poor Ann."

One hand slipped under her and into her shirt, resting firmly on her breast. It was a place that Bane had never touched before and feeling his warmth against her in such an intimate place made her softy groan into the cushions.

"Did he touch you here?" Bane demanded to know, as if it was his property.

"No," Ann said indignantly, "and neither have you before."

Without a word, he took his hand away. Ann was startled when Bane didn't even bother undoing her pants before forcing them down her legs.

"Bane, wha.." Ann started.

"And here?" Bane asked again, using both hands to cup her still-pantied buttocks, pushing her forward on the sofa with the force of it.

"No," Ann answered again.

"Only here?" Bane's hands slipped from her bottom and one hand slid down to touch her womanhood, still slightly wet from the days events.

Burying her head in the sofa, Ann answered, "Yes." in such a muffled tone that Bane flipped her back over onto her back and demanded to be answered again.

"Yes," Ann said again looking him in the eye, "and my lips."

Saying no more, Bane ripped off her underwear, tearing the fabric in two. Ann became frightened again, unable to control the fear in her face. Bane, of course, noticed.

"Oh? Is my strength only turn you on when it's not against you? Shouldn't this get you moaning like a wonton, like when I took you against the door? You had watched me nearly kill Batman, and yet you could hardy wait for me to fuck you."

As he spoke, Bane began rubbing her, playing with her, feeling the still-wet parts of her. When he touched them, he withdrew and inspected his fingers for a second before looking at Ann and, again without warning, shoved his fingers in Ann's mouth.

Ann tried to cry out loud, the sound was muffled. Tears sprung into her eyes, but she realized he wasn't hurting her just yet- he was waiting. Slowly, not quite sure what to do, Ann ran her tongue over the digits, coating them in her saliva and tasting herself. When he was satisfied with that, he took his fingers back and placed his hand back at her entrance.

"Bane, I don't..." Ann started, wanting him to stop and listen to her. But when he played with her again and slipped in one slick finger, she couldn't hold back the noises she made. She screwed her eyes shut and grasped at the ends of the sofa as he toyed with her.

"You're mine," Bane growled in her ear, silencing her, turning her over once again so her bottom was in the air, presenting herself to him. She didn't even hear him undo his pants, but his fingers were replaced with something much larger. "I can do with you whatever I want."

Ann didn't know what to do or say. Bane had just verbally claimed her, but she didn't know quite how she felt about his methods of communication.

She didn't have much time to think about it either. Bane pushed himself into her with such force that she actually did whimper in pain, her body not quite ready for his girth. He was going much too fast too, pounding into her as if she were actually a plaything.

And she was, Ann realized in those moments, she was Bane's willing plaything. She let him do anything to her, any day, and she was letting him to whatever he wanted to her now.

Bane pulled out of her for a quick moment, only to flip her on her back again like she was a rag doll. He slid back into her easier this time. He gripped her hips painfully again, no doubt leaving big finger-shaped bruises. His eyes were shut now, breath frantic. Ann felt like she was being thrown around without concern, and, if her loud yelps and groans were any indication, she was loving it.

But then, Bane brought one of her legs over his shoulder to open her up more and he pushed in just a little too far, making Ann reflexively try to push Bane away. Of course she couldn't move him an inch, but he did stop long enough to open his eyes and stare down at her. His eyes were clouded with desire, something Ann had never seen in him before, but his voice was even and commanding.

"I said," Bane started, thrusting one quick thrust for emphasis, "mine."

He wasted no more time in making sure she knew this, resuming his movements. He jerked his hips quickly and Ann could feel the coiling in her belly, a warning sign that she was about to finish, and quickly too, but there was no way of knowing how close Bane was. He had his eyes closed again and, if Ann was quiet enough, the noises that were coming out his mask definitely sounded like groans. When a particularly loud one came, that was all Ann needed to push her over the edge.

With her orgasm, her arms shot out, gripping Bane's shoulders and arched her back high off the couch, releasing a long, low groan. At that noise, Bane stopped again and opened his eyes, looking down on his now-lucid captive.

"Did he make you do that too?" Bane asked and even though the last thing Ann wanted to think about right now was Barsad, she answered him.

"No," She said lazily. Ann just wanted to sit in her orgasm, but Bane wasn't letting her.

"Good," was all Bane said before beginning again with such speed and ferocity that the previous minutes seemed like child's play. Bane grunted and groaned, filling every last inch of Ann, seeking his own orgasm. Ann didn't care if he was infertile or not in these moments, she was just happy to be in the arms of this man.

This affection grew in her in moments, almost overwhelming her. She would later blame the post-coitus glow or the events of the day had rattled her up, but she wasn't even worried about it then. Instead, she took her hands from his shoulders and placed both of them on his cheeks, cupping his face. Her fingers brushed over the leather straps of his mask, but found his soft skin to be a good juxtaposition to the roughness of the leather.

Just then, Bane drew nearly all the way out of her, but only for a second before he slammed back in, shuttering as he spilt himself inside of her. Finally, Ann though as she went to relax. She looked up at Bane, who was still inside of her, and gave him a small, satisfied smile.

"Do you forgive me?" Ann asked, not exactly expecting an answer.

Without saying anything, Bane slipped out of her and quickly buckled himself up, back turned to her. This wasn't what Ann was expecting, she was expecting a satisfied man that was trying to prove a point, but Bane hardly ever does what she expects.

"Explain yourself," He said simply, throwing Ann off guard. How could he go from rooting her like an animal to demanding she give him an explanation.

But she had to explain to him what happened. He had to believe her, he was giving her the opportunity. That's all she could think about as the words just tumbled out of her mouth.

"I was walking back with Barsad and he was acting so strange but then he told me all of this stuff and I just didn't know what to do. It wasn't what it looked like..."

"Oh?" Bane interjected, sounding much to calm for the situation. "I must be completely mistaken in what a whore looks like, writhing about for any man." Bane's words cut deep and his eyes steeled up, causing Ann to tear up. But when he said that, he reached out and touched her face gently, stroking away a tear that got loose. That just added confusion to her list of emotions, along with hurt and anger. And to think, just seconds ago they were experiencing the most intimate part of their relationship.

"Bane, that's not even fair!" Ann tried being louder to make him pay attention to her. She pulled up her pants and scrambled to her feet, wincing with the slight pain of their union, and placed herself in front of his as if she could stop him at all. "Listen, Barsad said..."

"Barsad would never betray me like that," Bane said. "It must be the Gotham air getting to him."

"Listen to me Bane!" Ann screamed at him, tears clouding her vision. "I was told I was going to be killed!"

That seemed to be the thing that finally made Bane pay attention.

"What do you mean?" And although it was said with such intensity, Bane didn't exactly sound angry, just demanding.

"Barsad told me that Talia said you were infertile, but if I didn't get pregnant then I would be..." She coughed a little, not quite sure how to say it"...gotten rid of. They tracked my cycle and I would, you know, conceive if I had...we had..."

She coughed again, hoping that Bane had gotten her point well enough. But yet, he still just looked down at her, calculating but, at least to Ann, not as angry.

"I'm so sorry," Ann continued, mind still foggy from her orgasm. "You know I wouldn't...Barsad wouldn't..."

"I'll take you to the room myself," Bane said, not giving her a moment to collect herself before walking towards the door. "I've learned I can't trust you in the company of other men for long."

The words were scornful, but the tone was much lighter than before. Ann didn't know if he had forgiven her or not, but he wasn't sending her away. And they did just have really great sex, so maybe he was in a sedate state of mind.

He already made it to the elevator and, having already pressed a button, didn't look as if he was really waiting up. Ann scrambled after him, running her fingers through her hair as if fixing her hair could fix the mistakes she's made.

Ann stood awkwardly next to Bane on the ride down, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She looked up at his face only once, but he just looked ahead with an unreadable expression.

The doors dinged open on their floor and Bane exited before Ann, his pace quick, boots stomping against the ugly hallway carpet. They passed two men in red scarves, the men that Ann figured were close to the operation, and Bane barked at them "Follow us." They did so without a word, wearily eying Ann. If these were the guards that Bane was talking about, Ann wondered why he was willing to take two men off of the field, but she said nothing.

Once they were outside of their room, Bane opened the door but did not go in. Instead, he all but pushed Ann inside. He looked in at her, filling the doorway.

"I will return shortly. In that time, get yourself cleaned up," His voice was back to being cold and Ann wondered if it was partly for show or if she had been imagining things before. "Should you try to leave, you will be shot. The same will happen to any other lover that comes by."

With that, he slammed the door, rattling the whole room once again. She heard him talking lowly to the men outside of her door, but didn't catch any of it. When she heard his boots trail away, she walked to the door and opened it a crack. Standing right next to the door was one of the men. He looked out the corner of his eye at her, but did nothing more.

Shutting the door again, Ann leaned against it for a second. She wondered where Bane had gone. To talk to Barsad? To talk to Talia? What if Talia lied and blamed Barsad? What if Barsad was lying all along?

No, she shook her head at that one, if there was one thing she had learned about that man, it was the loyalty he held towards Bane. She didn't know why so many people held such this deep loyalty to him, but they did.

Running her fingers through her hair again, Ann pushed herself off of the door and walked into the bathroom. 'Any other lover' he said. As she wet a washcloth and put it to her face, she wondered what he meant by that. As she was whipping away the lipstick, she knew he meant Barsad on one hand, but wondered if he included himself in that category. Ann snorted to herself, she doubted Bane even really cared, but then remembered the stormy look in his eyes when they were fucking. He called her his.

She then decided she needed a brush and went to her duffel bag, which was still in the entryway. As she squatted down to rummage in its contents, there was a soft rumble of voices just outside her door. Stalling in her actions, Ann tried to strain to hear what they were saying from where she was.

Figuring that if they didn't want to her to hear, they wouldn't be talking right outside of her door, she edged closer as quietly as she could. Pressing her ear to the door, she was able to hear the guards clearly.

"...don't blame her much. I doubt Bane's gentle," One voice said in a distinctly American accent. Ann blushed, thinking of the pain her lower region was still in.

"Shouldn't have gotten caught though," The second man, French, added. "She choose well though. Barsad? Probably the only man here who wouldn't be killed for it."

"Probably doesn't help he is a lot better looking than Bane..."

With that, Ann left the door. She didn't agree that Barsad was better looking then Bane, but she couldn't deny that he was good-looking.

She went back, found her brush and another set of clothes. The ones she was wearing weren't even twelve hours old yet, but they were a bit tainted by the day's events. She instead chose a skirt, something she hadn't been in since her capture, and reveled in the comfortableness. Walking back into the bathroom, she thought it couldn't hurt to look a little nice. After all, she figured, she was ruffled up from both men, hair sticking out every which way. A quick fluff of her hair, a layer of mascara, and the same lipstick was what constituted for 'looking nice' at the moment, the duffel not carrying much that she needed.

When she left the bathroom this time, she could still hear the men talking outside of her door. They were laughing now and talking much louder, so Ann only had to stand next to the door to hear, which she figured was far less invasive.

"She can do whatever she wants, you know," The Frenchman said and Ann thought, at first, that they were still talking about her. "Being Ra's al Ghul's daughter, she can do whatever she pleases. She could fuck every last one of us and we couldn't say a word, not even Bane."

"She's beautiful, but man, she's scary," The American continued. It was becoming obvious that they were not talking about her, it sounded much more like Talia. But who was Ra's al Ghul? Why does being his daughter even matter?

"She was raised in the same pit that Bane was, of course she's scary," The Frenchman countered. A pit? Ann thought. She didn't know when it happened, but her ear was now pressed against the door.

"Being imprisoned as a kid, I guess you gotta be," The American concluded and Ann swore she could hear a slight southern accent. She wondered briefly where Bane picked up his men, but that wonder was quickly squashed by the much bigger discovery of finding out that both Bane and Talia were once imprisoned, and Talia as a child.

"You know Bane was just a child, too, when he was sent there. Wasn't even a criminal then," The men were gossiping and Ann was lapping up every second of it, desperate to find out more about Bane's life before Gotham, before anything. If he was raised in a prison called 'the pit', it made complete sense for why he thought certain ways, like not knowing the difference between rape and consensual sex.

Ann was broken from her train of thought when the men cut themselves off, suddenly going very silent. Ann pressed her ear to the door harder, thinking they might have been whispering, and was considering getting a glass to hear better when she finally heard the reason for their silence.

"Where's Bane?" The normally melodic voice of Talia was hard and stiff, demanding an answer.

"He went to talk to Barsad, ma'am," The American answered, his tone much more formal.

"What?!" Talia all but screamed. "When did he go?"

"About ten minutes ago, ma'am," The guard said again in the same even, formal voice.

"Oh God," Ann could hear the panic in Talia's voice, "He's going to find them!"

There wasn't another word before Ann could hear the sound of Talia running away, towards the staircase.

Find them, she said. Ann had already figured that Talia had lied to both her and Barsad, but had also assumed she was the one to send Bane up after them. They were together beforehand, after all. But now Talia made it seem as if she wanted Barsad and Ann to go uninterrupted, even expecting them to still be at it. If it was even true that Ann was in a conceiving state, then Talia meant full well for Ann to give birth to not Bane's baby, but Barsads.

But why? Did she really just want to drag Ann through the mud that much, hurt Bane that much, that she just set this up?

She didn't have much more time to think about it, because as she was sitting there on the floor right next to the door, Ann heard the distinct sound of Bane's footsteps, stomping closer and closer to the door. If it was true what the guards said, that he did go to Barsad, then he must believe her now.

Ann quickly stood up, only having time to straighten her skirt before the door opened. Bane seemed surprised to see Ann that close to him, his eyebrows shot up, but he quickly composed himself. He shut and locked the door, only to push past her and sit on the bed, his back facing Ann.

"Bane, we need to talk," Ann said, everything she had learned fighting to be thought about first, talked about first.

"I agree," Bane complied, but said no more. Ann realized that Bane was giving her the opportunity to speak and she took it.

"You were born in a prison?" She asked first, that being the very first thing that came to mind.

"Not born," Bane explained. "I was sent to serve my father's term, just at a very young age."

"And Talia?"

"She was born there. Her mother was kept away from the rest of us, until the lock to her cell was left open one day. I managed to save Talia," He wasn't a man of many words, but this was the most explanation of his life he had ever offered.

Ann came close to him and stood beside him, not quite sure of how to say the next part.

"And you know she set me up?" Ann asked, desperate to know if Bane believed her.

"I do." It was so simple, so emotionless, that Ann wondered if he was angry with Talia at all, or if his loyalty to her prevented that.

"What are you going to do?" Ann needed something, anything from him about this. Talia tried to force Bane away from Ann in an incredibly cruel way and Ann wanted some justice for it. After all, isn't that why Bane said he was here? To bring justice to Gotham?

"I don't know." That answer wasn't even close to what she was looking for, but she has learned recently not to push Bane.

"Are you really infertile, Bane?" Ann asked, seizing her opportunity to gain answers. He looked up at her through the corner of his eye.

"You are dumber than I thought if you think that they wouldn't at least check to see if I was capable of breeding before they send me to do so," Bane drawled, "I'm not so sure I want my children to have your genes."

He was joking, Ann knew, but his revelation made Talia's betrayal even deeper. He had to know that.

"Who's 'they'?" Ann kneeled in front of Bane like a chin listening to a story. His eyes followed her down and when she was still again, he reached forward and trapped her child between his thumb and forefinger tenderly, treating her with amazing gentleness compared to before.

"The League of Shadows," He said as if that explained anything. "The very organization that you are bearing a leader for."

In that moment, Ann realized that they had coupled during the time that she could conceive and he rightly assumed that she was now pregnant, which she agreed she probably was. But that thought was pushed aside when his words finally settled with her.

"The League of Shadows?" Ann pushed, hoping to get more information. But instead, Bane's eyes flickered down to her lips, with the untouched new lipstick.

"Why do you wear these paints when you know I can't enjoy them?" Bane questioned her, eyes never leaving her lips. A stab of guilt hit Ann and she realized she probably made a mistake in putting it on, reminding him of the situation he found her in.

"I'm sorry," Ann said, expecting that's what he wanted. He just looked at her critically for a moment before taking his thumb from her chin and whipping it across her lips, spreading the lipstick out. Ann realized what he was doing, he was trying to mess her lips up the way that Barsad had.

"You know," Ann started softly, hoping that he wouldn't take it the wrong way. "You can do it for real." At first, she didn't think he understood what she was trying to say, he just kept that critical look frozen on his face.

"Close your eyes," Bane's answer finally came. Ann obeyed, shutting her eyes and leaning into the hand that held her. She heard a couple clicks and then the sound of Bane's breathing became no longer metallic, but natural. The hand on her chin tilted her face up and then, in a moment that made Ann's heart soar, a pair of lips descended on hers.

There was something strange about them, something that didn't feel quite right, but for the most part, they were soft and plump, just seemed to be cut in fourths. She wondered if it was from the scars that lead up his back.

It was a very chaste kiss at first, their lips hardly touching, but Ann wanted to show him that whatever was wrong with them didn't bother her. Without really thinking about it, Ann flung her arms around Bane's neck, pulling him closer. He could have easily broken away from her, but she felt him let her take the lead. She tilted her head, gaining a better angel to his lips and deepening the kiss. Her tongue slipped out of her mouth and licked his bottom lip, hoping to gain entrance. She felt his lips parting slightly.

"I hope I'm not interrupting something," A female voice cut through their moment. Bane pushed Ann away and before Ann could even open her eyes, he already had the mask back on his face, clasping it shut.

"Talia," Bane said, without the usual softness he had when addressing her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came here to watch," Talia said, not moving from the spot on the wall that she was leaning on.

"Watch what?" Ann demanded to know, anger at Talia rushing though her veins. The woman seemed to feel Ann's anger and attempted to stare her down, to make Ann relent like she always does, but the kiss from Bane empowered her, even more so that Talia witnessed it.

"Why," Talia started, feigning innocence, "I just want to watch the next ruler of my organization be conceived, of course."

"You lying bitch," Ann spat. Talia just admitted right there that Bane was capable of conceiving and she was playing a nasty power game with them, one that Ann would be damned if Talia won.

"What did you say to me?" Talia demanded rather than asked, eyes growing wide. "I am the one that brought you here, I'm the one that can make you go away…"

"No, Talia," Bane cut in, stepping between them. Which was probably for the best, since both women looked like they were about to go at each other's throats-a fight Talia would most definitely win.

"Excuse me?" Talia question her long-time protector, looking at him like he had just offended her in the greatest way possible.

"When you brought her here, you said she was mine," Bane explained slowly, never once looking at Ann. "And so, it is not your choice, but mine."

"Oh yes, yours," Talia hissed out through gritted teeth. "Just like your men, who follow my orders so readily."

"Talia, you should go," Bane suggested calmly, far calmer than Ann was feeling. Ann wanted to rage, wanted to claw at Talia for bringing up Barsad to use him against Bane, to hurt someone who saved her life.

"Well," Talia said in too calm of a voice, a smile breaking out across her face, "good thing the bomb is going off any day now. We'll see how loyal she is to you when you're dead when she can't even be loyal to you when you're alive."

With that, Talia twirled around and left, leaving the weight of her words behind her.