Nightwing: Heartache

Part 47: Set Visit

February 2, 8:13pm
Hollywood

Everyone held their breath. Gretchen Goode watched the playback, taking her sweet time deliberating. She watched it again. She finally looked up and smiled. "Let's do it one more time."

The entire cast and crew held in their collective groan but started resetting the shot. For the twenty-fourth time.

Ben, the forty-three year old man playing the villain, offered Willa a hand up from her position on the ground. "Sorry, Willa, my costume got caught in your hair that last time."

Willa rubbed the back of her scalp but smiled, "it's cool, I've got hair to spare."

"This is ridiculous," Ryder muttered under his breath. "Twenty-four takes? Is she insane?" He asked as he stalked back to his mark.

No, Willa wanted to answer, but she is a supervillain bent on world domination. This whole exercise was entirely pointless. Gretchen Goode had forced another month of reshoots, which was ridiculous because the film came out soon. So while they were all doing press, they also had to come back for reshoots that would never see the light of day. And somehow, all the reshoots were Willa's scenes. Gretchen Goode was just trying to torture her, or make her collapse from exhaustion, whichever worked.

"Hey, guys," Mick announced, "we've got to get some new bulbs for the lighting rig, so let's take ten."

Everyone sighed, walking off set. Willa went over to her chair, where Artemis was reading a book. But she wasn't alone anymore. Dick and Tim were chatting to her, making her laugh about something. Dick noticed Willa first, like always, and smiled in greeting. Willa couldn't keep from smiling if she tried. "What are you two doing here?"

Tim turned and smiled and Willa gave him a hug. Dick shrugged, "I heard Granny's been running you ragged recently."

Willa smirked. Sure, he had heard it straight from Willa's mouth. She was so tired she practically took his head off the other day for eating her last slice of carrot cake, and it wasn't unusual for her to come home, sit down, and pass out on the couch, leaving Dick to have to put her to bed. But, sure, he had heard.

"And Tim needed a break from Jason," Dick clapped Tim on the shoulder.

Tim scoffed, "ugh, that guy is such an asshole."

"Be nice," Dick warned.

Tim rolled his eyes, "yeah, yeah, death, torture, brainwashing. But he's such an asshole."

"We're working on it," Dick told Willa and Artemis. "We're all one big happy family."

Tim snorted. Willa tried not to laugh. Personally, she hadn't been back to Dick's apartment since meeting Jason. Well, meeting the real Jason.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?" Dick nodded his head for Willa to follow him a few steps away. They both leaned against the wall, hidden by the shadows of the studio sets. "So, the Wayne Foundation fundraiser for the Taos Youth Center is this weekend-"

"Oh, shoot," Willa slapped her forehead, "I knew that. It's on my calendar, but it slipped my mind."

Dick half smiled, "you don't have to come. You signed up months ago, before..." before they had been publicly linked and Dick outed as Nightwing. "You don't have to come. It would probably cause a lot of questions by nosy people and you're staying out of the public eye until the premiere. I just wanted to let you know you're off the hook." She wasn't the only one laying low. Dick hadn't been out in public since the rumors started about his identity and they had avoided talking about Willa would do at the premiere when people asked directly. During press, she was allowed to issue a series of banned questions, but during live broadcasts it would most definitely be brought up.

Willa played with the sleeve of her costume. "I actually had a thought." He raised his eyebrows for her to go on. "No pressure or anything, but I was thinking... what if you came with me to the premiere?"

If Dick had been eating he would have choked. "What?"

"I think we should poke fun at the Nightwing rumors. It's like high school, when people start mean rumors about you, the best way to take their power away is to laugh at them. I don't want to bring more attention my denying it and I would never confirm it, so I think we should have fun with it."

"And how...?"

"I'll come to the Wayne event, but I won't interact with you. I don't think we should exchange more than pleasantries. We'll just say nothing, act like everyone else is crazy for being weird. It's rich people, they're awful but they would never commit a faux paus like questioning us in public. And M'gann can pose as you across town."

Dick nodded. That part was planned ahead of time. Dick was only attending the fundraiser so M'gann could be 'Nightwing' at the same time, both seen publicly at the same time. People would probably call the bluff, but it would cast doubt on the rumors being legitimate.

"And then you should come to the Shadowblaster premiere with me," Willa finished. "Don't walk the carpet with me or anything, but you'll get noticed, believe me. I'll make all my answers about Nightwing jokes, like the whole idea is ridiculous. Evan is also coming, so you can meet him too."

"Your ex-boyfriend?"

She smacked him in the ribs, "ex-fake-boyfriend. Plus," she leaned in, "if we do this, no one will be talking about Gretchen Goode. It'll take all the attention away from her or Lex Luthor."

"You're sure?"

She smiled, "it's just the right amount of petty and I love it. What do you think?"

He hesitated, "I don't want a lot of attention."

"You won't arrive with me, walk the carpet, or do any interviews. You'll barely be visible, but it'll be enough. By not making a big deal about all these rumors, we take the power back."

"And you're okay being linked to me so publicly?" He meant him, Dick Grayson, not Nightwing.

She tilted her head, "as long as you are."

"Then it sounds like we have a plan."

They shook on it and rejoined Tim and Artemis. Willa had to get back on set before Gretchen found another reason to keep her until 3am. Again. Tim was watching the shot being set up and Artemis was reading her book. She didn't look up, but she smirked and shook her head when Willa and Dick rejoined them. Willa pecked Tim on the cheek, catching his goofy grin before starting to jog back to her mark.

"Will," she turned at Dick's call. He grinned, "I-" he mouthed the other two words.

'Me too' she mouthed back. She came back on set with a spring in her step.