A/N: LET IT SNOW LET IT SNOW LET IT SNOOOOOOW! All hail Winter Storm Thor! I'm buried up here in Pennsylvania, so no work today! Or the next three, for that matter! MISS ME GUYS?! I'm working almost daily and I feel like crap, as to that effect. But nevertheless, despite this pesky little hiccup-I wanted to get word out any way I could, and since for some strange reason the site is being buggy, I wasn't able to work on this anywhere near as much as I would've liked. Still...so many reviews!
I love you guys so much! *Cries*
Now, this chapter might be a bit confusing consider I haven't done something like this in awhile. With good reason! My job has been beating the living hell out of my as of late! This was REALLY had to write with being tired from work; exhausting, actually. But I'm proud of it, and I hope you enjoy it as I finally get some rest.
This story was birthed from the idea that I've been rewatching Batman Beyond. Classic show. Wish we had more like it. And then I remembered, hoh crap! I already had a fic on it! So as part of my update spree...
...happy belated spring! Sorry if its short, but hey, I'm back, folks! Yes, the chapter title has everything to do with the idea of raising in a card came...irony, no? And yes, I took great pleasure in my efforts to recreate a certain scene in this...all hail the Prince! Trust me, you'll know what I mean when you read it...
Aaaaaand one last thing. This Naruto? Batshit CRAZY when it comes to combat. If you've forgotten, I suggest you reread the last few chapters!
"Pot, meet kettle."
~Melanie.
Raise
I. Hate. My. Family.
The thought brought with it a small trickle of annoyance and more than a little sorrow as Melanie-Ten-dutifully worked at the wires. Her body shifted impatiently beneath King's gaze, trying not to let her anxiety show as she worked to disable the rooftop alarm. Her mind remained decidedly elsewhere, a silent clock ticking down in her head. Too long. This was taking too long!
She had less than an hour now.
Nearly an hour until she was supposed to meet with Naruto. Sixty minutes until he swung by her house and found it empty. Sixty minutes until he gave up on her, just like the rest. Like the others. Her hands bunched a knot around the wires, tearing. Ten wanted to believe this time would be different-that she might actually be able to have a life here. Never had she wanted something so badly as this. Her heart clamored for something she would not want, should not have, and yet she didn't give a damn.
Naruto was different than the rest; he understood, he knew what it was like. He was a way out. An excuse to put this life of crime behind her and lead a new life, a good life. Or at the very least, one better than stealing simple trinkets related to insipid card games.
All this from meeting that boy.
Melanie found herself wanting to believe it the moment he looked at her, saw the pain in those eyes. It was the pain of a life not well lived. A life worse than the one she knew. He'd had to scrape and fight and claw his way to become who he was now, and that gave him character. He was a better person than she could ever hope to be. Something she could aspire to.
Ha, as if he could help her! Like a fool, she'd agreed, despite what her family might make of he was nice and he cared and...and...and...
'Damn. I'm falling way too fast for this guy...he's probably using me, like the rest.
Part of her felt foolish for taking him at his words at face value; the other half, well...the other half wondered if maybe it was for the best that she'd been pulled out on this heist instead. Perhaps someone as filthy as her was better off with her family; with King, Queen, Jack and Ace...
She heard a distant booming noise of a sound, like rolling thunder. But that was impossible. The night was cloudy, but there had been no sign of rain. No, the thunder must be coming from somewhere else. Melanie took a small step backwards, frowning as she left her her task. Something was wrong.
"What are you doing?!" King snapped at her, red eyes narrowing. "Get back to work."
"I thought I heard something." she said. "Maybe...maybe we shouldn't do this."
"Its just your imagination." her mother sighed back. "Stop making excuses to go see that boy and do your job, dear."
"You don't know him! And this has nothing to do with-
In a flash a blade found her throat, the edge pricking against the neck of her costume. When King spoke, she wanted to spit in his face.
"Don't ever argue with me again."
Don't do this, Ten. Don't do that, Ten. Always don't, don't don't!
Melanie felt her frown deepen into a scowl, her eyes darkening thunderously. Was this the life she wanted to live? Always taking orders. Pulling off these grand, exoribiant heists, constantly on the run? No. No, she didn't want to wait for her King, as mother always told her to do. She was tried of watching, waiting, letting happiness pass her by. She wanted a life like that, family, friends, maybe even kids someday...
Now the thunder was louder than ever. Drawing even closer, closer, the very roof seeming to tremble like her conscience. She'd had enough.
"Ten, are you listening to me?!" Melanie heard her father's voice, as though from a very great distance. "Get back to work!"
"No." she shouted! "Never again!"
"What?!"
"I! QUIT!"
Naruto was a master of theatrics.
Oh, he could be perfectly stealthy when he wanted to, but sometimes, more often than not, the situation called for a bit of...dramatic flair, if you will. Silently assassinating the criminals of Gotham worked wonders on a number of people, but when those numbers were stacked against him, he found that shock and awe tactics worked outright miracles. After all, look what the Bat had done!
For years, he'd been a terror to the criminals of Gotham, a phantom of the night. Fear incarnate. Seldom taking lives, always saving them. All that with a great deal of skill and just a bit of theatrics.
When facing the Royal Flush gang, and potentially someone very dear to him, Naruto felt those theatrics were called for. Kurama seemed to agree.
"You're overthinking this. Hit them fast and hard and be done with it. Then we can see the wench!"
'Hai, hai, whatever you say...and you're assuming she's not up there.' He raised his gaze to the skylight above, muscles tense. He hadn't been entirely truthful when he'd promised to meet Melanie at her place. Shinobi were always suspicious, and that suspicion had led him straight to his targets. And her, if she was with them. With every fiber of his being he prayed she wasn't, but still...
Infiltrating the building ahead of time proved woefully easy, now he had only to wait. Really, they went after anything having to do with their ridiculous card motif. How could they not come here?
"Come now, our luck can't be THAT bad...
Naruto started counting down on his fingers.
'Sakura.'
"That was before-
'Selina. Kyle.'
"Urk. But just one doesn't
'Poison Ivy.'
"Okay, okay, you've got me there...fate hates us. But she can't hate that much...right?"
'If she does, I want you to take over. I...I don't think I can handle killing a piece of my heart like that again.'
...you really care about this girl, don't you?"
'Stupid, right?'
"Maybe. But why have me do it?"
Naruto didn't answer. Instead he donned the mask, hiding the upper half of his visage behind the hardened ceramic. Yoko looked upward, and then took off at a run up the side of the building. The alarms started to wail almost immediately, just as planned, but he kept running, kept moving...
...until all hell broke loose.
I quit.
Melanie's words rang out there, mockingly. King was furious!
"Quit! No one walks away from the Royal Flush Ga-ack!"
Her hand lashed out like greased lightning, slapping the blade away with a contemptuous palm. Pain arced up her elbow as it bit into her arm, eliciting an agonized cry. King's-her father's-shocked, dismayed visage was the sweetest thing she'd ever seen, his curse lost in the roar of thunder. It was much too close now, far too close and she could feel her very teeth vibrating-
Below!
That was her only warning.
Then a black and orange streak exploded through the roof at their feet, shooting up from the very building itself, the very dome that the massive Ace had been preparing to grab. Time seemed to slow, shards of broken masonry and sundered steel shooting in every direction. A masked face rode the running body, the fox-like features of the helmet lending it an odd, kitsunesque appearance. She thought she saw something-were those tails?!-swaying behind him, but he was gone again before she could get a good look.
To her right, King went down with a bloody gurgle as a knife lodged itself in his thigh, sword clattering away and out of his grasp.
"C'mon now, drawing a sword on a lady?" a deep voice thrummed out of the half-mask; it sounded like a slow moving avalanche, burying everything in its path. "Now that's just fucking rude." Melanie bristled. She knew that voice. It was different, distorted, but she knew it. No.
Dread gripped her heart and began to squeeze. It couldn't be him; it just couldn't...
In the next instant, Queen went down, an unseen gust of wind sweeping her into a grapnel line. Yoko laughed, slamming her down into the roof with enough force to pulverize the poor woman's face. He raised her up a moment later, preparing to toss her from the roof entirely. His body was still a blur, still moving to stand, still in motion when Jack rose up behind him, knife flashing out for his neck. Melanie cried out-
Crunch.
The dagger shattered harmlessly against the man's back, leaving her brother clutching a crumbling hilt. Yoko turned, towering over the poor fool, a dark shadow swallowing him whole. Thunder crackled again, lightning coursing through the skies. Illuminating the fear in his eyes. Yoko frowned, his voice a deep rumble of displeasure. "You call that a knife, little man? That is not a knife." Those eerie orbs narrowed, his arm moving back, hooking around the giant weapon she'd only glimpsed until now.
Drawn was a massive weapon, its curved edge harkening back to a guillotine give sword form.
"This is a fucking knife." A pause, considering. "Well, this here Head Cleaver's actually more of a fuck-up-your-day kinda thing, but you get the point, no? Now," In an impossible motion, still clutching Queen's face in his opposite arm, still holding her aloft, he cut down.
Hard.
A bloody trench opened in her older brother's jest, a savage crosscut standing out sharply against his pallid white uniform. He hung there for a moment, swaying on his feet, as though his body couldn't quite decide that whether it wanted to fall or simply keep standing. Then the blood erupted; a shower of gore spurting across his killer, and Jack crumpled like a wet paper bag. Sprawled out at the Fox's feet, he did not rise again.
"One down." That bloodied visage turned away from the dying body to regard King, ignoring her completely. Queen was tossed aside, her broken face rudely greeting the ground as he sent her to join Jack. A stained sword was leveled in their direction now, still dripping with lifeblood.
"No so royal now, are we?"
King scoffed, glancing at her. "Hardly. Ten, deal with him."
Melanie shrank back as that gaze snapped towards her, when she saw those fangs. She suddenly felt like a little girl caught in the eyes of an apex predator. Her body inched backwards. One step. Then another. Those cold, soulless orbs told her all she needed to know; if she stood against him, she'd be skewered like a pig on a spit. She saw his mouth move, mouthing the word "Don't" to her, clear as day. Remarkably, she listened, ignoring the instinctive urge to fight for her family, a family that didn't give a damn about her.
"No. Hell no! I told you I quit-
"THEN WHAT GOOD ARE YOU TO ME?!"
The unexpected backhand send her sprawling. Things happened very swiftly after that.
"Fucker!" The angry snarl that followed rooted her when she tried to rise. A wall of red energy ripped from the blond, physically bowling her father over, knocking him head for heels. The blond stormed after him, blade trailing sparks across the steel roof as he stalked his prey. King scrambled upright, shouting.
"Ace! Kill him!"
Yoko nimbly ducked as a hulking shadow fell over him, nearly swatting the sword from his grasp. "Oops! Almost forgot about the big guy!"
Shouldering the blade once more, he stepped into the fray. Into Ace's swing, flowing like water around the hard blow. An uppercut did little more than nudge the large man, whereas the ensuing counter nearly flattened the masked assailant, such was his suprise. Fists collided, man and machine grappling with another for a long moment before the android gained the upper hand. Massive palms closed around each of the masked man's wrists and began to pull, trying to tug him apart.
King smirked beside her, confident the problem had been dealt with.
"You were saying?"
Then the newcomer did something very strange. Blue eyes flashed red, locking on Ace's faceless facade.
"Ahhhh...I get it." He mused, You're not human. Let me ask you something then; has a machine such as yourself ever experienced fear?"
The bot squeezed harder. He only laughed.
"Quite a grip you've got there! Alright then, if you're that determined to hold on to these arms," Instead of trying to break free, he jumped, got his legs under him, and kicked into the giant's chest. "Then I suppose the least that I can do...is take yours!" Booted feet planted themselves firmly upon that flat plane, still stuck in the goliath's grasp, pushed. With a supreme effort he brought both arms back in, until the droid was forced to fight just to keep its grasp on its victim.
The laughter grew louder as the bot began to physically struggle against the madman. "Yes, that's the spirit, android!"
"Never say die!"
Muscles strained, and then something-several somethings-exploded all at once.
There could be no other word for it. Melanie blinked and Ace was suddenly missing both its arm, the hulking giant spitting sparks at the elbows where his limbs had once existed. He staggered backwards, his blank face somehow managing to convey all-too-human shock, perhaps even a bit of distress. Fingers tightened, forming a point. Then that point became a claw, clutching something. A sphere of some sort shot forward, snapping and snarling as it swelled to roughly half the size of his head.
The masked man cackled. "Here it comes! A little going away present for you!"
The giant closed on him, trying to crush him down with its weight. One word was uttered.
"Rasengan."
With a keening shriek the spiraling sphere tore through Ace's chest, disemboweling the android. His heavy body crunched to the ground with an audible thud, still twitching. A booted foot put the bot out of its misery not a moment later, ending its spasms.
"Weeeeeeell, would you look at that?" He hummed grinding his boot down into the shattered circuits, "Fresh out of the factory with no warranty and already broken; what a pity. AH! Nice try, I see you there. Stopu!" His gaze snapped to King, creeping for his sword. Too late, the old man got a hold of it and came up swinging. So did the Fox.
Swords collided, the giant Head Cleaver smashing against the smaller blade. Parry. Riposte. Block. They danced together in a steel circle, swords crossing, cutting, colliding. He was good, Melanie thought. Whomever he was, he was very good, even more skilled with a blade then her father. Always one foot forward, always attacking with those devastating, one handed swings. He was laughing now; a wild, happy cackle, modulated to a darkened delight as he kept chopping.
"What's the matter?! I thought you were going to teach me a lesson?!"
Chop.
The giant cleaver swung down, ringing both blade and the man behind it like a bell. A death knell. A single crack formed in King's steel.
Chop.
From beneath it swept, slapping the smaller sword away as though it were little more than a stick. Another crack etched itself into the blade.
CHOP.
Now it swung from the east, its jagged edge biting into a hastily raised hilt. Three cracks now. Four.
CHOP!
His fourth and final swing crashed down like a falling meteor and dropped the King, forcing him down on bended knee as he desperately tried to hold an unsuccessful block. Then those four cracks became large fissures, breaking the blade like so much glass. Unimpeded, the Head Cleaver kept moving, taking both blade and the arm behind it in one neat slice. Blood spurted again, but this time, there was only silence.
King groaned, physically fighting not to drop to the other knee.
"Just who do you think you are?!"
"...your end.
Behind the white mask, she could've sworn his face purpled. A hand lashed out, cratering-literally-her progenitor's unsuspecting visage.
"Bored now. Sleep." Melanie felt a touch, just a touch of that same, suffocating prescence from before; then her father collapsed, foaming at the mouth. This time, he did not rise again.
Handy trick.
"And then there was one."
When he turned to her Melanie knew. She didn't know how she did, it was simply there. The way he held himself, that voice, the distinctive colors of orange and black, wrapped up in those robes and cloak. He probably didn't know, but even so, she desperately readied herself as he swarmed towards her. Everything screamed for her to fight, for her to defend herself.
Instinct kicked in-
-and something else kicked it the hell back out.
Melanie found herself in something akin to an out-of-body experience as she watched herself get pounded every which way by the masked intruder; as though she were nothing more than a child. She felt the pains, felt the force push her body in the decreed direction, but in her shock, she couldn't process any of it, much less counter. A punch to her right cheek was immediately followed by one to her left, which flowed into yet another strike to her stomach, and to that a chop to the now-exposed back of her neck, summarily sending her to her knees only to be blasted backwards by the merciless headbutt to her face once there.
As such, she was completely unprepared for what came next.
"Now," he growled. "Lets see if I was right."
A hand closed around her mask, ripping it away; exposing her face to the world, another slamming her down against a coolant vent. Those golden locks came tumbling down her shoulders, her blue eyes widened with a touch of fear. Because she could see the eyes, those scarlet orbs swimming into hers like blood; deadly, deathly, terrifying...
"Ah, Mel..." that sad, sweet voice murmured. "Shoulda known you were too good to be true."
Her face exposed, she stared helplessly up at him. "I don't suppose I could convince you to let me go...?"
Silence was her answer.
"Look, I-" When she tried to speak again, his mouth covered hers. She yelped and jerked away. "S-Stop! What're you doing?!"
A finger pressed itself to her lips.
"Hush, you." Before she could protest the mask slid away with an audible clack of noise. Retracting, it revealing a familiar whiskered face and bright blue eyes. "We all have our own secrets." Melanie's heart stopped. It simply ceased to beat. It was him. Suspecting was one thing, but seeing, seeing him, changed things. Was it wrong that she suddenly wanted to kiss him? Mel's eyes darted back to the massacre, to the prone forms of her so-called "family" and that desire only increased. Then she remembered what-who!-she was looking at.
Blue eyes widened slightly, despite her own observations. "Naruto?! What-
"Surprise." he chuckled, nuzzling her nose. "Told you I had a night job."
"I...you...w-what the hell's going on here?!" The words came out in a soft, squeaking series of stutters as his lips took hers. "I, mhmm, okay, wait, just wait, stop." Her body wanted nothing more than to give into those soft, gentle kisses, but her mind said otherwise. "Stop!" she bit his lip, drawing a small hiss of surprise. "You're distracting me! How did you know about me?! About...this?!"
"Just figured it out tonight." His hands spread out before her, empty. "In my line of work, it pays to be paranoid." Her eyes fell at those words, stinging.
...so you never trusted me to begin with."
"Nope." he deadpanned. "Trust, unlike love, is earned, not freely given. Can you blame me?"
"No. I suppose you're going to turn me in now, aren't you?" It hurt to look at him now; something physically ached deep inside of her-throbbing at the thought of life in prison, a life without him. Without her Light, she'd fall back in to darkness. Without him she'd be alone. She was so distracted she failed to notice the crooked smile, that wicked glint in his eyes.
...I think you could persuade me otherwise, miss Walker."
Blue eyes bulged.
"Wait, wha-
When he moved to kiss her again, this time, she didn't resist. Couldn't. All rational thought ceased to be.
The clouds chose that moment to open up.
Rain came pouring down all at once, the pitter-patter of fresh droplets swiftly soaking them to the bone. Melanie barely even noticed.
Even wet those lips were like fire against her own; warm, implacable, and she yielded immediately. Hands closed around waist, arms wrapped around her hips, crushing her to him as her hands found the flat pane of his chest, snaking upward, wrapping around his neck. Yes. Her small hands tugged at his coat, drawing him closer, savoring the feel of his mouth on her, his body to hers. She rocked into him as the kiss intensified, gasping when a hand sought her sensitive bits, uncaring for the attention they would eventually draw if they lingered here. It was like cloud nine.
And it ended all too soon when he pulled away
"Don' stop like that," she whined. "Its not fair."
He stepped away, leading her by the hand. When he paused at the edge of the rooftop, her heart lurched. No. No no no no no he couldn't go now...
"Do you trust me?"
The question caught her flatfooted. Melanie eyed the hand uncertainly. "Um...
"Do you trust me?" he asked.
Yes, she did. She realized that now, as she squeezed his hand.
"Yes."
That boyish grin flashed out like lightning in the rain.
"Good. Because I'm about to fly and I REALLY didn't want to drop you."
"Wait, fly, you didn't tell me you could f-OH MOTHER OF GOD!"
Her words turned into a terrified yelp as he gathered her up in his arms and leaped straight off the roof!
A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaaand there we go! Back in action, baby! Perfect way to end the chapter, I think. I figured Melanie deserved a happy ending; now she can actually have one with her jackass family firmly out of the way for the moments. Tbh, I was rather tempted to outright kill them and be done with that, but then I realized she wouldn't take too kindly to that. Naruto might be nuts, but hey I gotta keep the other characters erm, in character, after all. So, in the end, I settled for maiming the ever-loving SHIT out of them.
Melanie's happy little romance continues next chapter, as she gets a new suit, new name and some new skills of her own! Any good ideas for a Superhero name, folks? I COULD just outright let her become the new Batgirl, but I'm not sure how ya'll would feel about that. Lemme know!
So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review, Would You Kindly?! And of course, enjoy the preview!
(Preview)
Batman grunted in surprise as an orange-black blur interposed itself between him and the girl.
"Sorry, bat," the masked man replied quietly, his mouth curving into a thin line of annoyance. "I can't let you arrest her. We've got...history. Hmm? You actually made me bleed for once." He reached down, plucking the batarang from his wrist. Blue eyes narrowed as he beheld the thin trickle of blood there. A lone drop of scarlet splashed out onto the mausoleum floor. Terry frowned.
"You sure you wanna do this, bub?"
Yoko-Naruto-grinned, raising his arms.
"Let's find out."
Then he hit Mcginnis so hard he saw stars.
R&R! =D