The Sidekicks

Chapter 7

The first word that springs to mind when standing in the Batcave would probably be "Cavernous". The second word being "Damp", the third; "Dark". Possibly "Eerie". All in all, it wasn't very pleasant. I stood there waiting, still in my workout clothes , making me feel awkward and slightly under dressed. A chill ran up my spine. I wasn't necessarily cold, but this place gave me goose bumps, and not in a good way either. I shivered and rubbed my arms, trying to get rid of the strange feeling. I jumped slightly when I felt something being put over my shoulders. Tim was giving me his leather jacket. He helped me slip it on and I whispered a thank you.

"Don't worry. We'll find her." He said as he rubbed my shoulders, trying to warm me up.

I smiled at him meekly and he returned it before walking back to the computer set up where Bruce was typing rapidly. I walked off to the side, taking in all of my surroundings. All the gadgets and gear. It was actually quite impressive, but then again, of course it is. Bruce has the money to do this. It looked more like an extravagant hobby than anything else, but I knew it wasn't. He took this very seriously. I walked over to a tall glass cabinet that held the Batman suit and gazed at it. It struck fear into the hearts of criminals and they didn't even know the man behind the mask. I honestly pity the poor soul who tries to mug Bruce Wayne in an abandoned alley one night. I'd like to see the look on his face when he gets his arse handed to him by a seemingly defenseless rich guy. I chuckled at the thought and moved on. I walked up to the Robin suit and moved closer to the open cabinet. I stared at it. My gaze roamed along the ridges of the armoured suit and stopped on the R on his chest piece. I reached out and ran my finger over it. I noticed scratch marks all over the rest of the suit and wondered how much of it was actually my doing. I realised that I now had both of my hands on the chest piece. I dug my nails into to see if it would leave any scratches but it didn't.

I wonder if this is strong enough to stop a bullet?

With my hands on the suit, I couldn't help but think that I've been in this position before. I looked up into the darkness of his hood, where his face would have been, and thought about that moment on the roof. I tried to remember the feeling of his lips but for some reason I couldn't. I bit my bottom lip and let my arms fall to my sides while my gaze fell to the floor. I looked over to where he was standing and looked straight into his eyes. He held my gaze for a moment before staring at his shoes. He pulled his hands out of the pockets of his jeans and crossed his arms over his chest, resuming his previous activity of staring at the monitors in front of Bruce.

I watched Tim just stand there. He stood perfectly still and focused on the monitors. His face settled into a determined frown. I have never seen him this serious before and it's strangely attractive. Not that I don't like our flirtatious exchanges, it's just that this stern, pensive demeanour is a really good look on him. Even his stance was serious. His arms crossed over his chest and his feet apart made him look very intimidating, even without his leather jacket (which I was now wearing). The fit of his t-shirt helped as well, I suppose. The fabric strained slightly against his well-built torso and clung to his muscled arms. The sight was enough to make a possible threat cautious... or any girl weak in the knees. My gaze slowly travelled up his firm torso, past his neck and up to lips, which had already formed a slight smirk. My eyes widened and shot up to meet his. His smirk grew as my felt my face heat up, if it wasn't for my skin tone, I probably would have been as red as a tomato. The sudden sound of Bruce's deep voice breaking the silence made me jump slightly.

"It's going to be difficult to get a lock on Selina's location." He frowned at the sight of my slightly flushed face and gave Tim a questioning glance before continuing. "It might take a while but I am working as fast as I can. You can go home in the mean time. I'll have Tim let you know if anything comes up." I nodded.

"It might still be dangerous." Tim gave me concerned look before turning to Bruce. "Maybe I should stay with her, just in case they're still looking for her."

Good lord, not this again.

I shot Tim a glare. "I can handle myself."

Tim's face fell and he moved to speak but Bruce spoke first. "I'll feel a lot better knowing that you're more than just okay, Mia." I sighed, but allowed him to continue. "Selina loves you and I need to make sure that you're taken care of." I nodded in understanding and he nodded back before turning to Tim once more, his face losing any hit of sadness. "Tim, get suited up. We need to be ready when the time comes." Tim nodded and Bruce moved back to his workstation. "As soon as I get the location, I'll send it to you and meet you there. Mia, I've already asked Alfred to call you a cab, it should be here soon."

Tim moved towards me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I'll take you upstairs." I nodded and followed him to the exit.

We walked in complete silence. The place was huge and we went through so many doors. He would open them and, like a gentleman, allow me to go through first. I would then thank him and walk through, stopping just out of the way to let him pass and continue to follow him. I found it annoying after going through three doors and it was becoming quite tedious. Frustrated, I grabbed his hand to stop him. He stopped suddenly, making me almost crash into him, and looked at me quizzically.

"I know you're trying to be a gentleman and all, but would you please stop allowing me through first because I have no idea where I'm going." I smiled nervously and he chuckled. "I'll just follow."

"Okay, just close the door behind you." He turned and started moving again.

"Why are all the doors closed anyway?" I asked.

"I dunno. Bruce has this thing about keeping the doors closed."

"Oh." Was all I managed to say.

We finally came to the top of the main stairs that let down to the front foyer. Tim trotted down the stairs while I took it slow, allowing myself time to admire my surroundings. The place was absolutely beautiful. Large paintings hung on the walls and there were a few potted plants here and there. It looked cosy but something told me that it could also be lonely. I made it down the stairs and was met by an older man, who I assumed to be Alfred.

Tim stood next to him and spoke up. "Alfred, this is Mia. Mia, Alfred."

Alfred smiled warmly and inclined his head. "Alfred Pennyworth, at your service."

I returned the smile and gesture. "Amelia Richards."

"I've heard a lot about you, Miss Richards." He had a knowing smile on his face as he looked at Tim out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh?" I smirked at Tim who was rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "All good things, I hope."

"Indeed." A quick honk from a car horn interrupted our conversation. "Ah. That must be your cab." Alfred led us to the door.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Alfred." I said, inclining my head once more.

"The pleasure was all mine Miss Richards. I do hope to see you again soon." He bowed slightly. "Take care."

I smiled at Alfred before following Tim out to the cab. He stopped just short of it and gently took my hand in his.

"I'll meet you at your place." His tone was soft and his face full of worry as he gave my hand a reassuring squeeze before opening the cab door for me.

"Your jacket..." I started to remove it but he stopped me.

"Keep it." He must have seen the confused look on my face, because he shook his head lightly before adding, "For now."

I slid into the car and he closed the door behind me. He sent me a small smile and shoved his hands in his pockets and started up the steps towards the large manor. I gave the driver my address and he sped off, back to the chaos that used to be my apartment.

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I climbed out of the cab and was greeted by a dramatic change in weather. I ran into the building, getting pelted with rain along the way and ran up the stairs to my apartment. I stepped through the front door and sighed. I was soaked to the bone. My clothes and hair were sopping wet and started clinging to my skin. I closed the front door and tried to pull my tank top off. The operative word being "tried". It clung to places that it shouldn't have and I struggled to get it free. It finally let go and I grunted in frustration as I pulled it over my head and flung over to the couch. I ran a hand through my wet hair and looked around the trashed room. It was a complete mess. There were only a few things broken but most of the mess was made by things being toppled over or displacement. I began to tidy up but it wasn't long before I heard someone on the fire escape. I slowly made my way over, checking for any danger along the way but found Robin instead. I laughed at the thought...
There was a robin outside my window.
How quaint. I open up for him and he slipped in, landing silently and stood in front of me. His eyes traveled down my torso and he cleared his throat before looking away and rubbing the back of his neck.

I looked down and realised that my clothes were still wet and clinging to my body. "Oh, come on, Tim. What's the matter? You've seen me in a skin-tight leather catsuit. How is this any different?"
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He looked at me out of the corner of his eye and scratched his head. "Well yeah, but..." He cleared his throat again. "I, err, haven't seen... this much skin... Because your catsuit covers you from head to toe. Almost literally." He let out a chuckle after managing to tear his gaze from my wet form.

I stared at him with wide eyes and suddenly became self conscious. "Oh... I should probably change then."

​​​"Wait, weren't you wearing my jacket?" He asked, turning to face me.

"Yes but it's too big for me so the rain still got in. It ran down my back." I grabbed his jacket and held it up. "I'm sorry that it got wet."

"It's okay." He smiled warmly.

I smiled back and I felt my face heat up slightly, I don't even know why. "I think I need a shower. I'll be right back." I started to walk down the hall, but turned around. "Um... Make yourself at home?"
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