Chapter Thirty One
-Athena's POV-
After returning to Wayne Manor after a quick class at my "prestigious" ballet institute, I decided to get some training in.
"Being girly sucks sometimes," I told myself, taking out my bun, "I need to beat something up before I become as fake as those ballerinas." The cave was dark -- as it always was -- and covered in bats. I walked from the elevator shaft to the loft that held the training. Looking over the edge, I felt a strong urge to jump and explore the caves. I mean, I hadn't even began to explore this house, so why not start with the caves? Training could wait.
I plunged off the side and dove into the darkness below. Quickly grabbing my grappel gun, I shot myself up into a little crevice above the Batmobile and Bruce's other cars. The caves seemed to stretch endlessly in every direction. I had no idea which way to go. Grabbing my flashlight, I began to climb across the rocks, going right.
All over the roof of the caves, there were bats. If I made a single rock fall, the bats would wake up and I would be swarmed. So, I quietly made my way across the cave walls using climbing claws I had made when I was with Talia. After climbing about half a mile, I ended up directly above a waterfall. I dropped down and managed to get my footing before going over the edge.
Strange, I thought to myself, why would Bruce keep this waterfall in here? I looked down over the edge, carefully. I couldn't see the bottom or where it ended. It was just a deep, deep waterfall. Behind me there were still more mass of cave. But, I was fixed on this. I put my flashlight in my mouth and grabbed a smoke bomb from my hidden belt. Pulling off the pin, I tossed it. I listened closely, but I never heard it hit surface or explode. That means...
I tucked my flashlight back into my belt, took a few steps back, and raced off the side of the waterfall. Usually, normal people would be scared of the uncertainty that the bottom of this cave held. But, then again, I wasn't normal. I had lost the fear of dying years ago. I never really had anything to live for.
Just as I expected, I landed in cold, dark water. From where I was floating, I could see a small flicker of light coming from the end of the long expanse of tunnel I had found myself in. Instead of trying to climb back up the waterfall, I decided to follow the light. When I had finally gotten out, I found myself in Gotham Harbor. Pretty cool setup for Batman, I had to admit.
The way back to Wayne Manor was easy to find from the harbor. I had to move quickly when flying past buildings though, since I wasn't in my Nightingale uniform. I was pretty sure some people saw me. A group of Girl Scouts seemed pretty impressed to see a ballerina flying through the sky. Well, more of a brown ballerina. My costume was covered in dirt and cave residue.
"Hello Master Victoria," Alfred greeted me as I climbed down from the skylight in the living room.
"Morning, Pennyworth. I'll clean up that mess I made after I take a shower and take care of this," I tugged at the brown leotard.
"Oh no, it's my job to take care of the laundry and messes. You should be at the Watchtower, shouldn't you?"
"Probably, but I took a day off. The caves beneath this house go on for years."
"Oh yes," Alfred chuckled, "and Bruce has explored every inch of them." Alfred began cleaning up the dirt I had laid out on the carpet and couch.
"Wow, he must've never gotten laid in college." Alfred laughed loudly and nodded. "Take it easy, Al. I'll be going out later."
It felt nice to be clean again. I fitted myself in a pair of shorts and tank top then hopped on one of Bruce's motorcycles, which I had claimed to be mine. I knew that my newly-made friend wouldn't be on duty either, so I decided to take a turn at her house.
"Oh, Nightingale! Come in," Artemis kindly pulled me inside her apartment. She had moved to Central City recently, and honestly I didn't see the appeal. The city seemed to be pretending it was innocent when it has as many villains as Gotham trying to turn it to ruin.
"Is Wally here?" I asked, looking around at the small apartment.
"No, he went to stay with his parents for a while. We agreed that he should spend some time with his blood family since his return." Did we agree or did he tell her that?
"Well, I wanted to take you up on that offer, to be friends," I sat beside her, "I don't have any 'girlfriends' yet, and I need someone to talk to." To be honest, I wanted Artemis's trust. It had been almost four months since I came to Gotham, and the Team was still uneasy about me. Even if I saved their teammate, they might still be suspicious. I needed a wide range to move around in. If I was going to be going out at night to inspect the Black Sharks and report to the Joker, I needed a large amount of people to not think twice about it. Especially not to get Bruce suspicious. If he found out that I was tracing him, he would get the whole gang after me.
"Um, okay. I was kind of the same way when I first joined the Team. What's up?"
"Something happened last night. Something that might make things on the Team awkward..."
"You slept with Dick?"
"What? How did you know?" I sat back, shocked.
"Oh please, ever since you were on this team you two have been making googly eyes at each other," Artemis smirked and rested her chin on her hands, "spill the details."
"Okay, well, I didn't sleep with him so ha. It was right after we got back from the party. We were arguing about something and then one thing led to another and his lips were on mine. I think he made the first move." I felt my face start to burn in embarrassment, something that rarely happened. I covered it with my hands and turned away.
"Mmm, I see. You and Dick are an item now," Artemis smiled, "and you want me to help you with your relationship."
"No!" I shouted, laughing, "he's not my boyfriend. And we do not have a relationship." Artemis had a smug look on her face that made me feel awkward.
"Whatever, was he good? Was little Dicky a good kisser?" She chuckled and raised her eyebrows. I shook my head and covered my face. It felt good to have someone to be your friend. I couldn't believe myself, but I had to admit it. I really liked being a normal girl with normal friends.
"Let's just say I had to stop him from kissing me, but it was very hard to stop," I smirked. We both laughed hard.
After a couple of story exchanging and becoming closer, I hopped back on the bike and headed back to the Manor for dinner. I didn't want to be back at Wayne Manor, but I guess I needed to pick up my costume anyway.
It was quiet except for the sound of the TV on. I sat beside Tim and smiled. "How was school?"
"Fine," he answered, chewing on granola bar, "the kids there are really dumb, but whatever."
"Everyone is dumb," I said, going to find my costume. I headed down to the caves and pulled off the clothes I was wearing. If only Tim was home, then it didn't matter anyway. I grabbed my Nightingale costume and leaned down to pick up my swords, which were on the floor. As I stood back up, I had the feeling someone was watching me. Turning around slowly, I saw him standing in the threshold of the cave. My face turned red as Dick's eyes burned on my skin. Quickly pulling up my costume, I shoved passed him to go back up.
"Hey," he said, grabbing my arm.
~~~Yay, probably maybe will have another chapter up within today or tomorrow. I haven't updated enough sorry. But, yeah, the romance is getting real! Remember to vote, comment, and follow if you aren't already!~~~~~~~~
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top