Teen Titans Roster Day Off (7)

A Scuffle

Marcia Bradly

This was a disgrace. It was supposed to be an honor, everyone knew the legacy of the Robins. The side kicks to the greatest heroes of the century, Batman. There had been four in told, as though every 15 or so years he'd replaced them.

That at least made sense, as the old Bat got older he would need young blood to keep up with the hazards of the job. But I had to get the youngest! I couldn't get apprenticed to Nightwing, nooo. After the Original went on the run, Nightwing took one look at me and said "You should think about time off! Get out there and to 'normal kid stuff'!"

LIKE HELL!

"I'll be honest, I never understood the whole clown aesthetic!" I coo'd, chatting with the young man, "I mean if your feet were actually that big, it would be one thing but it seams soo much like over-compensating! This is where you dumped the dolls?" While Robin went on his little play-date with that alien-girl, I was doing the real work. The tall, thin man who wore the ridiculous outfit had led me away from the fair to an alley with about six or seven dumpsters in it.

"Yeah!" he fidgeted as we talked, I made people nervous and that was kinda on purpose. "The bins would have been emptied ages ago though!" he finished.

"Not what I'm here for, according to the news those things are vicious. I'm following a trail!" I alternated modes, putting a hand on the man's chest and giving him a sincere look. Or as sincere as I could be. "It was very nice of you to show me here personally! Oh, how could I repay you!"

Again the fidgeting. I couldn't tell whether this guy was a bad guy or not, yes he'd been checking out my sweet 14 year old ass the entire walk, but that wouldn't necessarily mean he'd act on it. Should I beat him up anyhow? Probably. Did I have time?

Probably not.

"Yeah, it's really not a problem luv, those things chewed through a shit tonne of profit! Any idea who made them?" Okay, so small talk check, he could have left at this point and hadn't.

"The inscrutable Machine made the dolls, but they also breed, and this doesn't seam like their M.O." I shrugged, checking for drains, escape routes etc for literal lost threads. What even was I searching for here! Maybe I'd have more luck at one of the other sites. "Aren't they incredible though, one doll could stip an innocent girl like me completely nude in seconds!"

Giving him an eye, I tossed off the jacket. "So, did you escort me here for a reason or..."

O M G .... HA HA HA HA HA! "My God, you just turned completely red!" The laughter bubbled out of me as I got a clear confirmation, the clown looking panicked and embarrassed as shit. "It's okay, you can run away now. I'm not some predator!" I laughed, his face had literally gone as red as the fake nose!

"I um, I'm sorry if I gave..." He hesitated, then first stumbled, and ran from the alley.

"Note to self!" I declared as through for a fourth wall. "Not every creepy clown is a pervy clown!" I picked my jacket up.

"Note to the little girl. Picking up strange men in dark alleys is never a good idea!" The cut in of a deep male voice threw off my grandstanding. Throwing on my jacket and leaping to a place atop one of the dumpsters, I took stock. Actually the alley was brightly lit from a high sun, there were clear exits at either end and a fire-escape exit above me.

"Show yourself!" I demanded.

He did. So polite of him, a thug of a character, about 25 to 30 years of age, dressed mostly in leather, brandishing a pair of knives of all things and wearing sunglasses. "Seriously, if your a villain then you need a better aesthetic. If you're a criminal you clearly don't know who I am!" I mocked.