Daughter of the Red Hood

Prologue

The sound of a storm raging outside thundered and echoed through the small cabin as a young teenager slowly opened his green eyes with a groan. The teen hazily glanced around before slowly sitting up from the warm bed he lay in. His gaze then landed on a small crate that acted as a table next to him with a bowl of steaming soup, bread and a glass of orange juice. As the teen stared at the food in front of him he realized how hungry he was. Just as he shifted in the bed to start eating a voice suddenly broke through the silence of the cabin.

"Hello."

The voice startled the teen, causing him to go into defensive mode. He swiftly grabbed the spoon for the soup and held it up threateningly as his eyes landed on the figure the voice belonged to. A young girl with striking red hair that was shaved on one side slowly stepped out of the shadows.

"It's okay, I won't hurt you." the girl said quietly as the teen looked her over as the girl's unique purple eyes stared at him innocently.

Deeming the girl as non-threatening the teen slowly lowered the spoon but kept it close just in case. Seeing him lower the spoon the girl slowly walked over and sat across the makeshift table from him as she set another bowl of steaming soup in front of herself.

"I was gathering some medicinal herbs from my garden when I spotted you." the girl spoke as she quietly sipped her soup. "You looked pretty banged up so I brought you inside. You've been asleep for three days but don't worry, I've been treating you the entire time. You should eat your soup while it's still warm.

The teen stared at the girl in front of him before turning his gaze to his meal. Slowly he took a sip of his soup before he greedily began to slurp it down, occasionally taking bites of his bread. The girl smiled softly at the mysterious man she'd rescued before she returned her attention to her own meal. The two ate in silence for a few minutes as the teen then took notice of one important thing.

"Hey kid, where are your parents?" the teen asked between mouthfuls.

The girl paused mid bite before slowly lowering her spoon.

"My father left before I was born and my mom, well..." The girl tightened her grip on her spoon. "She died, along with the rest of my village a few months ago. Some raiders came one night and they..."

The teen didn't need to hear anymore. Almost impulsively he set his un-occupied hand on top of the girl's and gave it a gentle squeeze to which the girl happily returned.

"I managed to escape and hide here. I've lived here ever since."

The two were silent for a moment before the teen spoke. "Don't worry kid, if those guys ever come back...I'll protect ya."

The girl looked up at the teen and gave him a soft smile before they went back to their meal.

"Oh, by the way, I never introduced myself. My name is Ryder. What's yours?"

The teen was quiet for a moment before he answered.

"Jason. Jason Todd."