(This is cut content from my last chapter for the Riddler. He had a scene, but I forgot to put it back in after I did some editing for the flow.)
For three days, The Riddler sat glued to his screen, fingers sore and cramped from a relentless barrage to his keyboard. He hadn't showered for three days, he'd been living off caffeine and quick snacks brought to him by either Echo or Query. One was always out looking into leads he found. His eyes lost focus, the computer screen blurred. A growl of frustration left his mouth as he slammed his hands down, pushing himself away from the screen. One cramped hand rubbed at his eyes, while the other searched for eye drops. He couldn't stop. He WOULDN'T stop. Damn the Joker for bringing the spitfire into the Rogues life. Damn the bastard who took their Chef. As his "dear friend" Jonathon had pointed out, all the Rogues were like children, they didn't like other messing with their toys. Edward, for all his smarts, couldn't argue that point.
She was a puzzle, and Edward loved his puzzles.
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I have lived so many lives. I've been a street rat. I've been in the system. I've lived with people who wanted a paycheck, and people who wanted a child. I've been alone, and I have been loved, and through all of it, I've kept my cards close to my chest. It was how I survived.
Maybe it's time to show my hand...
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"Ukhti, I have to go." Damien kept the pressure on her shoulder, trying to stem the blood loss, trying not to think about how despite the times he had covered by the blood of his enemies, that this time felt wrong.
"Get outta here, don't need anyone figuring out who you are. Don't need you getting grounded." The Chef's eye were slightly glazed and out of focus, she most certainly had a concussion, though she made a great effort in keeping her speech even. If he wasn't familiar with the signs, it wouldn't have been noticeable. Pride swelled, she was so strong. "Your ass is grass though, next time I see ya."
"I will explain everything." Robin. His heritage. His training. Everything. The sounds of running got closer, the voices of her people louder.
"Go!"
And he left. He trusted his Ukhti to be okay.
He trusted the criminals to keep her safe.
For now.
In the time between Damien fleeing, and the rescue party arriving to grab The Chef, Red Hood was gone.
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"Why did you do it?" The Joker laughed loudly at Batman, straight jacket snug. New orderlies maybe, who didn't know he could easily slip out no matter how tight they made it.
"I was lonely, Batsy. You'd been ignoring me."
"This was the longest you've gone with out chaos, what changed?"
"Aaaaw, you do care! Of course you do, it must have been boring without me!"
"This was extreme, even for you."
"Oh? Maybe I was bored, maybe I was depressed, maybe I was angry. Who knows? I certainly don't! My life is always multiple choice, which one do you like?" The Joker laughed harder as the frown deepened on The Batman's face. "All I know, Batsy, is I can't wait to play some more!"
The Joker knew Batman thought he meant him. His favorite person in the world was egotistical like that.
Batman may be his favorite person.
The Chef was more fun.
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The Chef tried not to snap at Gary as he carried her out of her prison. He was trying his best not to jostle her too much, but his bulky frame wasn't built to be delicate. Marcus was a silent presence, a shadow, gun in hand and ready to fire. As they left her prison and stepped into the night, a roar resounded from a huge crowd. The Chef recognized many bloodied and bruised faces from her diner, from her shitty apartment building, from the area surrounding her diner. Alexandera felt tears slide down her cheeks as the horde cheered louder when she raised her fist in the air. Kyle stepped forth from the crowd with a phone to his ear, a pair of bloodied knuckle busters across both his hands.
"We'll take her to the safe house."
"No!" All eyes turned to the Chef. "Take me to my diner."
And so they did. All of them, The Chef, her Boys, her Army.
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It was standing room only at Hodge-Podge. Some of her less rowdy regulars hung back in the kitchen, she trusted them not to fuck anything up, the rest mingling and celebrating in the lobby, or in the alley way behind the diner. The radio was turned up loud, booze passed from hand to bloodied hand. Her kitchen and bathroom sink was surely tinged pink from the clean up. Runners had left and shown up several times with food, fresh clothes, medical supplies and bandages, and all of this the Chef watched from her perch on the register counter. A new flask in her hand filled with scotch, and a plate of some take out next to her, nothing but crumbs left as she had practically inhaled the food. Marcus, Kyle, and Gary stood around her in a circle, an old tomato box full of the once hidden cameras in her diner, now found and destroyed. The ruckus dimmed down as the diner door swung open.
Riddler, Scarecrow, Hatter, Harley Quinn, Bob, Cobblepot, and an ancient looking man with a suit and briefcase brazenly walking through the front door. The crowd pressed against each other to allow space for the group to enter, While Bob hung back talking on the phone. Alexandera raised her flask in a lazy greeting. Hatter was the first to reach her, grabbing and pulling her close into a hug. The Chef hissed in pain, her shoulder throbbing despite her liquid pain relief.
"Oh Alice, dear Alice, your... your okay!" It was said with so much feeling, so much relief, that The Chef didn't have it in her heart to correct him this time. Jervis was pulled roughly back, leaving a small wet patch of tears on her shoulder.
"Get off her, she's injured." Dark eyes stared the Chef down, assessing her injuries, before meeting her own eyes, flickering briefly to that icy blue. "We're glad your not dead." The Chef snorted.
"Good to see you, too, Hyde." She held out a small vile. "It's empty, the dude pissed his pants." She chuckled with The Scarecrow, as Riddler stood to the side inspecting the box of technology.
"I'll take these, maybe find some more information." Riddler finally looked at the Chef, wincing as he took in her bruised cheek, swollen and blackened eye, the blood on her forehead. "Why hasn't she been tended to?" Edward began to remove his vest, ready to tend to her wounds.
"Boss wanted a drink first." Marcus tone was hard and clipped, he had yet to relax since finding her.
"Benny is here to tend to her, Edward, calm down." Cobblepot gestured to the ancient looking man as he laid his briefcase next to her, opening it up to reveal syringes, gauze wrapping, and a plethora of other medical supplies. "Luthor paid for his services, he's the best in our world."
"Lex? Huh." The Chef tugged her bloodied shirt off, leaving her sitting in her sports bra. Whistles came from the crowd, Jervis gasped and turned around, shouting at the crowd in his mad speech to stop looking. Scarecrow made no effort to hide his leering, and Riddler blushed, turning back to box of cameras.
"You're not surprised?" Cobblepot asked, never looking away from her face respectfully.
"Na-OW!" Antiseptic was applied to her wounds. "I figured he was... "down", when he mentioned you guys needing to be less conspicuous." Cobblepot nodded in understanding.
"He isn't exactly... affiliated, but he does have knowledge. We also do business fairly frequently."
"The bullet is still in your shoulder. We'll have to remove it." Benny's voice was whispery and silent. Harley snatched the vest still in Edwards grasp before rolling it up and handing it to Alexandera.
"Here ya go, Sunshine. Yer gonna need it." The Chef took a longer swig from the flask, before it was pulled away.
"Liquor will thin your blood." Benny the medic scolded. "Prepare yourself, I need to wash up." The ancient man walked away to the mens room. Bob came forward, sliding his phone in a pocket.
"Jay was caught, and is on his way to Arkham. Batman is following, most likely to interrogate." Harley let out a pitiful whine. "Waylon and Ivy have agreed to clean up the bodies."
"Who's Waylon?" The Chef smacked away The Scarecrows hand, as he reached for her wound, eyes locked on the blood leaking from the hole.
"Killer Croc." Riddler replied simply. "He... has a peculiar diet."
"Peculiar how?" The Scarecrow chuckled darkly at her question.
"If I'm Hyde, he's Hannibal Lector." Alexandera gave a small 'huh.'
"Oh... You know The Silence of the Lambs is a favorite of mine."
"Got a thing for psychologists that are clinically insane?" Dark eye's bored into the Chef's, to which she smiled.
"Sure do, Harley baby, come give me a hug!" Laughter echoed in the diner, as the bubbly blonde leapt at the chance for contact. Alexandera noticed that Marcus stiffened at the sudden movement towards her.
"Mr. J is gonna be so lonely without me!" The blonde blubbered, nuzzling into The Chef's neck.
"You know he'll be out in no time, he always is." Benny came walking back in, hands encased in gloves.
"Bite down on that vest, you'll need it."
"Haven't you anything to numb dear Alice's pain?" Jervis asked, facing the direction of the doctor, but hands over his eyes, trying not to peak at the partially disrobed Chef.
"No. Ready?" A wicked pair of large tweezers were pulled out. The Chef stuffed the vest in her mouth, and nodded. "Hold her steady." Marcus reached out first, firmly holding her shoulder, Harley held her around her waist. Words of encouragement resounded from the diner crowd
At first contact, Alexandera flinched and bit down hard, but as the tweezers slipped further into her skin, she couldn't stop the groan, or later, the muffled scream as the demented doctor wiggled around in her shoulder, searching for the bullet. She didn't know when her swollen eyes shut or when she grabbed the hand next to her, but when it was over, Riddler looked like he was about to cry from her tight grip, and Jervis and Deker had a tight grip on The Scarecrow, who was grinning widely struggling in their hold.
"Do it again, Doc! Make her scream again!" The Chef rolled her eyes, and with her good hand flicked him off, laughing slightly.
"Dammit Hyde, can't make a girl scream yourself, gotta rely on someone else?" The Chef teased as more antiseptic was applied to her shoulder, pain significantly less than when there was metal in the flesh. The grip Marcus had on her shoulder tightened.
"Baby, give me one night, and I'll be sure to make you lose your voice." The Scarecrow licked his lips, leering at her with a wolfish grin. The diner crowd made lewd comments, laughing at the banter. Edward sighed, rubbing his fingers.
"Alexandera, do you know who it was that kidnapped you?" The once jovial atmosphere diminished into silence.
"Called himself Red Hood, I called him asshole. It was the usual bullshit of 'I'm gonna be the big boss, all powerful.'. He had this place tapped and knew my contact with all of y'all." The Chef grimaced when a threaded needle passed by her gaze.
"Stitches. Steady her." Before the Chef could bite on the vest again, the needle threaded into her skin.
"GYAH! MOTHER FUCKING, BITCH ASS, CUNT!" Scarecrow once again began to struggle in the hold he was in as the Chef spewed profanities, the rest of the crowd hollering in good nature.
"Was there anything else? Anything that could identify him?" Edward pressed, coming to stand before her, holding her face as gently as he could to get her to meet his gaze. The Chef panted in pain.
"No-OW! Fucking hell!" She felt Edward run his hand through her dirty, greasy hair and appreciated the attempt at comfort, though it didn't work considering the repetitive stabbing in her arm. Finally the sound of scissors snipping the thread signaled the end of the torture.
"Any other injuries?"
"I don't think I wanna tell you." The Chef grumbled, eyeing the doctor warily.
"Any other injuries?" He repeated. The Chef sighed.
"I dislocated my thumbs to get out of the cuffs I was in." The Doctor quickly remedied that, and tended to her face.
"Alice, if you could do that, why didn't you try it sooner?" Hatter was doing his best not to stare from between his fingers, but the light blue sports bra, though stained in blood, kept catching his attention, if his blush was anything to go on.
"I'm not a fighter, I can scrap when I need to, but I couldn't exactly bulldoze my way out. Asshole got distracted, and I finally found my out. Didn't know he had a gun though." Gauze was finally wrapped around the wound on her shoulder, and she had instructions from the doctor. Don't lift anything heavy, kept it dry, don't do anything to reopen it, blah blah blah. Marcus finally released his grip, escorting the doctor to the door with Bob.
"Fucking hell. Hey Hyde, better be careful, I think that doctors scarier than you."
"Don't encourage him." Edward sighed tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "We need to get you home. You need a shower, and rest."
"You better not drug me again." The Chef leaned into the Riddler side, relaxing a bit, tired from the onslaught caused by Ancient Doctor Horrible.
"You can always stay with me, Sunshine, I don't mind playing doctor." Harley winked up at the Chef from her hold.
"Nah, the three stooges here can take care of me." The Chef looked into the crowd of diner patrons. "HEY!"
All eyes were on her again.
"Y'all are the craziest batch of idiots I could have ever meet, and I'm hella grateful. You've kept my diner open, and risked your lives to save me, so thanks." It was awkward but genuine, and The Chef could swear there were a few tears in some eyes. "Now as bartenders far and wide say, you don;t gotta go home, but you can't stay here. For the next three days, lunch or dinner is free, get the fuck out." The crowd filed out after saying goodbyes, or giving her a hardy slap on the back. Deker, Tazer, and Mouse went out back to tell the alleyway stragglers, giving their goodbyes. Kyle and Gary sheepishly shuffled in front of her.
"We're glad yer alive, Boss." And with a VERY awkward hug from the two that left the Chef snorting at their backs, they left, nodding to Marcus as he walked back in.
"I'm taking her home."
"Balderdash, we can care for Alice." Hatter had finally released Scarecrow, who was hovering in her personal bubble, poking her shoulder for reaction, to which she kept slapping his hand away. Edward was rummaging through the tech box, muttering to himself, distracting himself.
"I'm taking The Boss home." Something about the tone of voice made the Rogues watch him carefully.
"You were one of Jokers men, right?" Edward asked, hand still in the box.
"Yes." Hatter was the first to move, coming up to The Chef and hugging her again, more gently this time.
"We'll see you tomorrow morning, Love." Alexandera thanked the bruising on her face for hiding the heat she felt in her cheeks at being called "love". It had been a long time since...
"Call me if you have any nightmares, bitch." The Scarecrow stalked his way out dragging Hatter away from The Chef, glaring at Marcus.
"I'll get your things, Boss." Marcus walked past Alexandera and Edward into the kitchen, the door swinging behind him.
"What the fuck was that about?"
"Joker has a knack for hiring crazies. Crazies who are fiercely loyal. Him calling you Boss... Well, let's just say, Joker's men would die for him."
"So you're afraid of him?" The Riddler shrugged a shoulder before lifting the box.
"Not exactly. Once conditioned, Jokers men are nearly as unpredictable as the clown himself. It's more precautionary, if he were to fight, we don;t want you in the crossfire." Edward gave her along hard look, before scoffing, smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "You have a knack for instilling loyalty, Alexandera."
The Chef rolled her eyes, sliding off the counter to her unsteady feet.
"Loyalty?"
"All of us, from Rogues to ruffians, all came to your rescue, you, a simple chef. You could probably take over this city, overthrow the most powerful people in the underbelly in a single night. You're the only person who we know we can trust, your the only person we know won't sell us out. "
"You don't know that."
"Then call it a naive belief. I will see you in the morning." And Edward left, Marcus stepping next to her with a dufflebag.
"Marcus, that's not my stuff."
"Gifts from everyone." He steadied her when she began to list to the side as she walked. "Nothing illegal this time, Boss." He opened the passenger side door for her, and closed it for her, before dumping the bag in the back seat and hopping into the driver side.
"Marcus, you alright?" Marcus stayed silent, eyes locked on the road, radio off to listen for any trouble. "Marcus!"
"You lied."
"How did I lie?"
"You lied about the Red Hood guy."
"Again, how did I lie?"
"I don't know, but you didn't say everything." Marcus slowed for a stop light, and turned to watch The Chef. "You lied to protect him."
"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm not going Quinn."
"Why?" Now The Chef was quiet, as she sorted through her thoughts.
"I'm too sober to think." The Chef lift her good arm to run her hand through her hair. "He... He has his reasons for what he did, and I doubt he'll try kidnapping me again."
"He's a danger to your life."
"So is The Gallery."
"No, their not. Boss, The Gallery will fight for money and power, and sometimes just for fun. They have some rules, no hurting kids and the like, but there's nothing about saving a civilian. Boss, they care about you." Marcus's eyes softened into a look of worry. "Boss, does this Red Hood have blackmail on you?"
"No... But I do understand why he's doing what he's doing."
"How?"
"... I was an orphan, and I was betrayed by so many people I tried to consider family, people I did consider family. I just handled it better than Asshole." The Chef growled, tugging at her hair in frustration. "Dammit Marcus, when did I get so soft?"
"I don't know, but I hope it doesn't get you killed."
"I won't be dying anytime soon. Not with you lot hanging around." Marcus laughed as he pulled out infront of her apartment building.
"You're right about that, Boss. Come on, let's get you settled in."
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The romance is starting soon! Don't forget I have a tumblr page for Order! Ask me anything, give suggestion, your head canons, anything! The Rona has shown me how desperate I am for interaction!