The Unbreakable Duo

Chapter 1

A pair of eyes fluttered open, revealing icy grey orbs. The pair of eyes belonged to a little girl no older than six. It was not unusual for the little girl to wake up to hear the shuffling of feet and hushed whispers in a few rooms over. But a smoke alarm ringing through the thin walls of the apartment was a foreign sound.
The girl let out a yawn as she got out of bed and walked to the door. There was a little bit of smoke seeping in under the door into the room. Right as she reached out and grabs the door handle, a searing pain radiates through her hand as she pulls back. She could already feel blisters forming on her hand as she grabbed some wrap from her nightstand. She wrapped both her hands. The little girl took a deep breath before pulling the door open and walked into the hallway that was engulfed in flames.

The little girl walked down the hallway towards the living room. As the fire kept getting worse, more and more smoke filled the air causing the girl to cough now and then. Once the girl reach the living room she saw a pair of feet poking out at the end of the coach.

The little girls' eyes widened as she ran over and dropped to her knees next to the woman. Much to her surprise, the woman was barely clinging to life. The woman clutched her stomach where there was a crimson liquid stained her shirt. The woman raised her hand and rested it on the girl's cheek before a sad smile formed on her face.

"It's all going to be alright little one. But I need you to do something." The woman said softly as she swept away a tear that escaped from the young girl's eye. "I need you to go to your closet and grab that bag I packed for you and get out of here. Can you do that for me?"

The girl nodded her head yes and spoke in a voice that was barely above a whisper. "I don't want to leave you."

"I know but you must." That was all the woman said before her hand dropped to the ground limply. Several more tears made their way down the girl's cheeks. But she had no time for crying, the building was burning down and she needed to get out of there.

Wiping the tears away, the girl got up and ran back down the hallway. She ran into her room just in the nick of time to miss being smashed by the ceiling collapsing behind her. The flames had followed her into her room as she went to her closet and grabbed the bag. As the girl pulled the bag on her shoulder and turned to leave, her light fixture fell and some of the ceilings collapsed effectively closing her in.

Meanwhile outside...

Sirens were blaring from different first responders. Groups of people grouped nearby to watched; while others watched in horror as their home was consumed by flames. A group of people with capes stood amongst themselves talking to a police officer who had a full head of grey hair and glasses.

A man who dressed like a back scanned the crowds of people outside of the building and noticed that not everyone had made it out. There was still a foster mother and a foster daughter in there. Without a second thought, that man ran towards the burning building. There were shouts from his team, but he ignored them and ran inside. The man hoped that he would get there in time.

With each passing minute, he more concerned got because he had yet to find the pair. But as soon as he got to the second to last floor, he could hear coughing and soft yells for help. So he followed the coughing and yelling and ended up at the last door in the hall. He tried to open the door but something was keeping it from opening. There was more coughing and fewer shouts for help and the man knew he had to get in there soon.

He was racking his mind for any ideas until one hit him like a ton of bricks. Which nearly happened, but he moved out of the way in time as the bricks fell making a hole in the floor as they went. Looking back at the door the man dressed as a bat threw three bat-a-range at the door joists causing it to fall forward, and leaving enough room for him to slip by some fallen debris. The man followed the sound of coughing, and when he finally stepped in front of an open door he could see lots of fallen debris but behind that was a little girl curled up in the corner of the room holding onto a duffle bag.

The man sighed in relief knowing that the girl was still alive. The building shook as the flames continued to consume it. The man moved towards the pile of debris and started moving pieces out of the way. When the man had moved enough debris out of the way, he knelt next to the girl and put a hand on her shoulder. Her head shot up and looked at the man. Her icy grey eyes had tears rolling down from them, and they were such a contrast to the blazing red and orange flames.

He smiled weakly at the girl and asked, "Where are your parents? What's your name?"
"I live with my aunt. And my name is Ella." She softly responded as another tear rolled down her cheek.

"Do you know who I am?" He asked and the girl looked up at him and once again, nodded and mumbled in broken english, something along the lines of 'your Gotham's dark knight, your Batman.' 

As she looked at him with her sad icy grey eyes, he could feel them piercing deep into his soul. "That's good. I'm going to get you out of here now." He told her and once again she nodded. Lifting her onto his hip, he turned to walk out the room when she tapped on his shoulder. He looked at her confused but when she pointed at the duffle bag, he understood and grabbed it. Glancing down at it to see some kind of symbol that looked familiar.

The building shook again and the little girl clung onto the man as he walked back through the collapsing building.

With each floor they went down, the more unstable the building became. Once they reached the main hall on the main floor, the building started collapsing without a care who it takes with it. And just as the man ran out of the building, what was left completely gave way.

The man walked over the group causing all the caped crusaders to turn and look at him. He set the little girl down and waited for the girl to move away but she stayed right next to him. The group was amazed by the girl's actions because it wasn't every day they saw the dark knight let a kid stand so close to him. There was silence among them that was interrupted by a clearing of a throat with a little giggle following.

"Batman, who's this?" A woman asked with a small smile as she stepped forward, looking at the little girl.

A smirk crossed the mans face before it disappeared. "That's for me to know and for you to not." That man said also watching the girl as she studied all the people watching her.
As they continued to watch each other, all but two hadn't noticed the a police officer and a female social worker walking up to them.
"Excuse me, but we need to take her to the orphanage now." The social worker said with a forced smile.

The little girl looked up at the social worker before speaking up. "I don't want to. I want to stay with him." The little girl said confidently as she motioned to Batman, shocking everyone by her words.

"Little girl, I don't think that's the right decision. Batman is very busy man ." The social worker tried to reason with the girl, but was clearly at a loss for words. The little girl the turned to said man and looked at him like a lost puppy.

The man sighed and kneeled down to eye level. "If you go with the nice lady, I'll make sure I come get you." He whispered.
"And what about my stuff?" The girl asked referring to her black duffle bag that so happened to blended in perfectly with the mans clothes. The man smiled at the girl, it was clear that not much got past her.
"I'll keep it safe until I come get you." He answered.

"You promise?" The girl asked raising an eyebrow, still skeptical about the mans words.
"I cross my heart." Batman answers as he made an 'x' shape over his heart.

The girl smiled a little before turning to the social worker. "Okay fine, but lady I'm not sitting in the back seat." She said walking over to the woman, who looked completely stunned by the little girls words. She quickly got her composure back and lead the little girl to a basic black car before opening the door for the girl.

With one last look at the caped crusaders, the little girl climbing into the passenger seat and buckled up. The woman scurried to the drivers side and climbed in and the cars engine came to life. Batman watched the car drove away, his gaze not leaving the car until it disappeared.
A few seconds pasted before Batman turned around only to be faced with his team staring at him in shock.

"What?" He asked in his normal ruff voice, causing most of the group to look away from him.

A man in a red and blue suit stepped forward with a knowing look on his face. "So, B, what's your plan?"

"Keeping a promise, that's my plan." Batman said as he walked away.