Adult-FanFiction.org : Comics

The Penguin and the Raven	By : AsylumWritings Category: DC Verse Comics > Batman Views: 500 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Batman/DC Comics, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
- 13
They tortured every inch of me
Then expect me to forget it
They thought that they would finish me
But I pull through every time
Vengeance is Mine, Alice Cooper
I climbed out through the ropes, wiping some blood off my face. Every muscle in my body hurt, and I was pretty sure I’d split my lip at some point. But I’d won, and that made the pain feel less bad.
“You did good out there.” Butch said, handing me my drink bottle. “The boss is going to kill me when he sees your face.”
“You know I won’t let that happen. But you know he’ll be worried if he finds out that I’ve been coming here.” I pulled my hair out of the bun, running my fingers through it.
“Come on, I want to get home before he does.”
“Here, put this on your lip.” He snapped one of those instant cold packs, handing it over.
I did as I was told, following him to the car. My lip was sore, and I was concerned that the swelling wouldn’t come down. I didn’t want Oz to worry about me anymore than he already was. I needed this, the feeling of strength I got in that ring, it made me feel like all of my troubles didn’t exist.
The drive home consisted of me alternating between icing my lip and wondering if Oz would notice. As we pulled up to the apartment, I turned to Butch.
“Is it bad?” I asked, pointing to my lip.
“Well, he’s gonna notice.” He looked my face over. “Just tell him you got hit by the punching bag.”
I nodded, getting out. “I’ll see you soon.”
I headed up to the room, hesitating at the door. There was a good chance Oz would see straight through the lie I was going to have to tell, and he would be upset.
Stepping inside, I hoped he wasn’t home. But when I heard the shower running, I knew that I wasn’t going to be lucky enough to have some time to think. I walked into the bedroom, just as he was getting out.
He didn’t notice me yet, so I lay down on my front, my chin in my hands, watching as he wrapped a towel around his waist. As he turned to walk over, he finally saw me and smiled.
“How long have you been back?” He asked, pulling a suit out of the closet.
“Long enough to see everything I’m interested in.” I bit my lip. “How was your day?”
“What happened to your lip?” He pulled his pants on, then knelt down in front of me.
“Ended up on the wrong end of the punching bag.” I lied. “I probably deserved it, I’d been hitting it for a while.”
He was silent for a moment, looking at me curiously. “What aren’t you telling me?”
I could only hold his gaze for a moment, then I looked away. I didn’t want to keep lying to him, but I was worried he was going to be upset that I had lied at all.
“What is it?”
“I… have been down at the boxing ring downtown twice a week for the past month. I’ve only fought a couple of times, but…” I hesitated when I saw the look in his eyes.
“Why?” He asked, in that calm, angry way.
“Because I want to. It helps me deal with everything.”
“No.” He shook his head, a hurt look on his face. “I don’t care why you’ve been there. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I…” I took a deep breath, unsure how this was going to go. “You worry about me so much, and I didn’t want to make it worse.”
He stood up, putting on his shirt. When he didn’t reply, I realised I’d messed up.
“Oz, I’m sorry.” I whispered, sitting up and hugging my knees. “I should have told you. But you’ve had so much on your mind, I just didn’t want to add to it.”
“And you thought I wouldn’t notice?” He tied his tie, not looking at me.
“I don’t know what I thought.” I got up, walking over to help him, but he pushed me aside.
“I have to go to the bar.”
I watched him leave, beginning to cry. I’d really fucked things, and I felt like I needed to give him space. So I put some of my stuff in my duffel bag, and left a note for him.
I’m sorry. I love you. I wrote, placing it on the kitchen bench. Then I headed back to my apartment.
“Shoot him.” He said, turning away from the man they had tied to a chair. “He had his chance.”
He walked through the bar, picking up a drink on his way to the office. He was angry that she’d kept her fighting from him, that she hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him. It wasn’t her decision if he wanted to worry about her.
As he sipped his drink, he realised he’d done the same thing to her too. When she’d asked why he’d come back to Gotham, he’d avoided the question. He still hadn’t told her the full reason, and he wasn’t sure why.
He tried to call her, more than once over the course of the night, but she didn’t pick up. He stopped trying after a while, assuming he’d see her when he got home.
After the second call from Oz that I ignored, I turned my phone off and lay on my bed for hours, looking up at the ceiling. My lip was hurting again, as was the rest of my body, but my heart hurt the most.
My bedroom door opened, and Molly walked in, sitting down beside me. She looked really nice, like she was going somewhere super fancy.
“I’m going out with Danny.” She began. “And, uh… Oz is at the door. He looks pretty crestfallen to be honest, and he obviously wants to talk.”
“I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Okay, sweetie. I’ll tell him to wait on my way out.” She left the room.
I stood up, stretching for a second before walking out to the front door. Opening it, I saw Oz leaning against the wall across the way. He did look upset, and I was feeling guilty.
I stepped back to let him inside, unsure where to start. Closing the door, I hesitated when I felt his hand on my back. I turned back to face him, leaning against the wood.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered, wrapping my arms around myself. “But I see the worry in your face all the time, and I just thought that if I told you, it would make everything worse.”
He took hold of my face, standing close but not touching me in any other way. I blinked away tears of guilt, but held his gaze, waiting for him to reply.
“You… frustrate me, so much, sometimes.” He whispered, resting his forehead against mine. “I wanted to be angry at you, but I just… can’t.”
“Oz…” I began, wanting to kiss him but also wanting to hear what he had to say.
“Shh, love.” He moved his hands to my waist, pressing a kiss to my cheek. “You make me stronger, and I don’t want to lose that. Until I deal with Maroni, I am going to continue to worry about you, and you can’t stop that. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop you from doing things you enjoy.”
“So… you don’t mind if I keep fighting?”
He shook his head. “As long as you have Butch or someone else there with you, just in case. You can do whatever you want, I just want you to come home safely, that’s all.”
“I love you.” I wrapped my arms around him, resting my head against him.
He pulled away, leaning down to pick me up. He carried me into the bedroom, placing me onto the bed and lying down beside me. I snuggled up to him, realising something.
“I haven’t had a craving since that party.” I whispered.
“That’s good.” He ran his fingers through my hair. “I’m glad it’s getting easier for you.”
He listened to her breathing as she slept. He could feel his phone buzzing in his pocket, but he didn’t want to wake her, so he gently lifted her off. Walking out of the room with a quiet sigh, he answered the call.
“What is it?” He asked, standing in the kitchen.
“The GCPD has Maroni and Tommy Bones. They’re going to move them to Blackgate in two days.” Butch replied. “Our contact says that we could possibly make a move when they are doing the transport. When can you come in?”
“I’ll be there in a few hours.”
I really didn’t want to be awake, but I could feel Oz softly running his fingers over my arms and I liked that more than being asleep. Opening my eyes, I looked up at him with a small smile.
“How long was I asleep?” I asked, yawning.
“A couple of hours. I didn’t want to wake you yet.” He traced a couple of the scars on my arm.
I was silent for a moment, thinking about what happened to me, and whether I would would ever really feel safe again. That vengeful feeling was still sitting there, inside of me, as it had been since I’d been rescued.
“I wanted to kill him.” I sat up, gently pushing his hand off me. “No… I still do.”
“Maroni?”
I nodded. “And that asshole Tommy. Every time I look at my scars, I worry that I’ll never be safe again. I’m so angry, Oz.”
“I know, love.” He pulled me into his lap. “The GCPD has them, but we can get them when they do the transfer.”
“What?” I felt my eyes go wide. “When did that happen?”
“I got a call from Butch an hour and a half ago. I need to go in to see him, but I wanted to wait until you woke up.”
I turned in his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck. “Do you have time to wait for me to get ready so I can come too? I’ll be quick.”
“Go ahead.” He kissed the top of my head.
I walked into the closet, quickly changing into something nice enough. I couldn’t be bothered doing my whole face, so eyeliner and some lipstick it was for that evening.
When we made it to the bar, instead of going to the office, Oz lead me to the back room. Butch and a few others were waiting, including Slade, and I felt my body tense.
“I’ve got you, love. Just relax.” He whispered in my ear, gently squeezing my waist. “Come, sit down.”
I sat down beside him, listening as they discussed what they were going to do. It was hard to understand what they were saying, because all I could think about was finally getting the chance to end it. The conversation felt like it was going on forever, and I was starting to get edgy. I just wanted to get on with this.
Finally, they were finished, and everyone left the room to go prepare what they needed. I played with the straw in my drink, watching as they all walked out.
“Are you sure this will work?” I asked, playing with the buttons on his shirt.
“Fairly sure. Wednesday morning, Butch, Slade and I will bring them to the warehouse for you.” He tugged at the zip on my jacket, pulling it down. “Everything will be fine.”
“This isn’t distracting you from your plan, is it? I don’t want you to do this if it messes things up for you.”
“I own most of the city, Bee. If the things I did for you were a distraction, I wouldn’t be where I am now. Stop worrying.”
- 11
- 12
- 13
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The Penguin and the Raven