As always,I'm trying my best and I still own nothing.

Bruce Wayne

—

It had been three days since she had seen him last and she had just gotten to the point where she didn't blush when she thought of him. Not that she thought of him often.

Who was she kidding she did think of him often.

Anyway she was walking home from the grocery store on Thursday, literally one block from her apartment, when she felt the auras coming out of the alley she just past. Normally she wasn't out during this time of night but she had stayed late at the school to grade reports and forgot about her need to go to the store until it was already starting to get dark. The store was only three blocks up from the subway and two from her place so she decided it was better to be quick than be hungry.

All she could think about as the hands came up behind her was that she needs to stop assigning reports and she just knew that this was going to break her eggs. She didn't even scream as they pulled her back into the alley. She did, however, scoff as they made her drop her bag.

It had been two big men that pulled her back to one man in a scarecrow mask as he leaned against a dumpster.

"What about this one boss? What do you think she'll be afraid of?" One of the goons chuckled as the other forced her to step closer to their boss.

None of them noticed her lack of struggle and the fact that she only raised an eyebrow to the boss. Nor did they notice her look up towards the figures now scaling down the buildings.

Scarecrow had just released his gas when the two masked figures appeared from the shadows. Both the caped and non caped fighters quickly take out all three of the bad guys while also making jokes and threats back and forth.

The one in blue and black spandex approached her first slowly raising his hands in a universal non threatening gesture and a low even voice. "Ma'am, please don't panic we are just here to help. Can you tell us your name?"

Scoffing the one in the cape just rests his elbow on one of the knocked out goons heads, "Normally they're too busy screaming by now to be any real help."

Slowly turning to look at him she gives him a little glare, "So sorry to disappoint you Damian but it seams that neither of us are quite normal."

His eyes go wide under his mask, "Miss Higurashi how did you know it was me?!"

"Because as I just said, neither of us are normal. Now," she dusts off her coat and picks up her discarded grocery bag. "Be a gentleman and walk me home. But while you're at it call your father. It seems that I need to speak with him again."

Damian is quickly by her side and offering to carry her bag before glaring back at Nightwing, who is holding his sides and laughing at Damian's expense.

After a few tears were shed and his laughter had died down Nightwing called Bruce with the report and request. Five minutes later he looked up and saw Batman jump across the alley towards the building Damian and Kagome were headed to. He chuckled a bit again, this time at Bruce's expense, and hoped that he got to actually meet this woman soon.

Meanwhile, Damian was waiting on the roof of Kagome's building for Bruce to show. When he did show up Damian just told him what apartment to go to and wished him luck before promptly leaving to continue patrolling.

Bruce quickly descended the stairwell and found the right door before stopping to take a deep breath. He didn't have time to fully exhale before the door opened to reveal a very irritated woman. Following her in though he couldn't stop himself from taking in the sight of her as she lead him into the kitchen and busied herself with preparing cups for tea before turning back around to him.

"Okay, I can understand how you and that other gentleman can go around doing what you do. But how could you let Damian do it too ?" She pauses to sigh, "He's still a child. I can get that things happen and he would know about everything but how can you knowingly let him go out there. That part I don't understand."

He has to stop and reprocess her questions, "Damian is the strongest of my children. He was literally born for this." He sighs and pulls down his cowl to run a hand over his face, "well not this exactly but this is the better use of his skills. His grandfather is the leader of a league of assassins and his mother knew all about me when she chose to carry on the title. Damian has been training to be the top assassin in the world since before he could even remember. So believe what you want but this is the better of the two. This way he won't kill anyone, I don't want him living with anymore of that. And besides, like you said he has a lot of pent up feelings so this is his healthy release."

Kagome opens her mouth to respond and the kettle whistles cutting her off. She directs Bruce to sit at the bar as she hands him his tea and sits beside him. "May I ask how you got involved in all this? I haven't lived here long but I know enough to know that as Batman you were the first to do what you're doing in this city."

"You are correct about me being the first. But you're not the only one with questions, so I propose a trade of question for question. That way we both get the information we seek."

She ponders for a moment before agreeing, "That seems like a reasonable request."

He smiles and takes a sip of his tea before turning to face her again, "Now for starters, how did you know it was us? Or how did you figure out that it was Damian?"

This time she smiles, "Well other than the fact that I have heard him speak in my class and he was definitely doing more talking while fighting than he ever has in the classroom I do still know his voice." She gives a light giggle, "I would have known it was him though even if he didn't say anything, I'm a practicing miko, or priestess. I learned to read and identify peoples auras when I was younger so it became an unconscious practice to keep track of people by their auras. I knew he was there even before he scaled the building, the same as I knew it was you while you were on the rooftops. Now can I hear the story about how you became the great Batman?"

"Yes, although I don't know how well you'll enjoy the story." His smile had fallen as he looked at the tea in his cup, "When I was around Damian's age my parents had taken me to the theatre. Walking back to our car a masked man approached trying to rob us. It all happened very fast but something had startled him and he ended up taking my parents lives as well as all their money and the jewelry that my mother was wearing." He looked down surprised as her hand came up to cover his gloved one on the table. "A part of me died that night as well. And from then on I have dedicated my life to protecting this city and its people."

There is a moment of silence between them as she interlaces their fingers. "None of us are ever truly proud of how things started but we can grow proud of how we become and the lessons we learned to get there."

"I need you to know that I've never had anyone learn all of this so calmly, especially not in one night."

Laughingly she explains, "Yes well, you probably never had to explain to anyone taught by actual demons before." She pats the top of his hand, "Now it's time for my backstory." Leaning back in her seat she begins a very summed up version of her own story after she turned 15.

One and a half cups of tea later

"So I'm sure that you can understand why, of all possible places, Gotham City is the only place I could want to teach. It can be a lot of things but boring is not really one of them."

He leans on his hand and looks at the clock on her oven. "I know at this time of night I should bid you goodnight and let you get some rest for your school day tomorrow but I honestly have so much more that I want to know about you."

"Okay so ask one more question then be on your way, I'm not the only one that has to work tomorrow you know."

"Yes, but I own the place I can go to work whatever time I want, or better yet just reschedule everything and not go at all."

"I'm sure you could but that wouldn't make you a very good role model for your children now would it?"

"You may be more correct about that than I want you to be."

Sliding out of her seat she begins leading him to the door. "I am absolutely correct, I already know. Now what is your last question?"

"Have dinner with me."

"That's not a question."

He leans against the door frame and pulls his cowl up to it's rightful place, "Please have dinner with me? Surely I'm not just one of your student's parents anymore?"

She leans up and softly kisses his cheek, "Pick me up tomorrow night at 7." She takes a step back and opens the door before pushing him through , "And you better not be late Mr. Wayne."

With that she closes the door and goes about getting ready for bed all the while thinking about him all over again with a blush on her face.

—

I love you all and hope you enjoy this. I'm trying to be mentally better, it's just hard. Anyway you know what to do RR and I hope y'all have great weekends.