I Saw, She Saw

Part One

It was a nothing day at Brixton Academy, spring fever had set in, the windows were opened to let in the breeze and the kids weren't paying as much attention as they knew they should have been. But it was Friday afternoon and it was just too nice out to trouble your brain about calculus or the Norman Conquests. Seriously.

Two hours and seventeen minutes left.

The time dragged and a few lucky classes managed to convince their teachers to let them have class outside under a tree, knowing that nothing would get done but what the hell.

A hour and thirty-six minutes left.

“Man, why can't they just let us go?”

“Because then we'd have to make it up by coming in on Saturday or something.”

Dick Grayson was sitting in Senior English, pretending to read The Monk's Tale by Chaucer but really wondering if he and Bruce would be going after Catwoman again tonight or if Bruce would be out on his own. No matter what he said, Dick knew he had a thing for her, even if she was a criminal and he privately thought it was kind of funny, so long as it didn't go anywhere. Cripes, she'd even hit on him a few months ago. Sure, she said it was just to get Batman's attention and make him jealous but, c'mon—tacky much?

The loud clanging jarred him out of his daydreams and he got to his feet with the rest of the class; another fire drill, no big deal, happened all the time.

Everyone stood around out in the parking lot or on the lawns, chatting, wishing they could just leave and wondering what was taking so long. Usually they emptied the school, made sure everyone was out and then they could go back inside.

Then the fire engines arrived, sirens blaring, lights flashing.

Dick turned to Steve Malloy, “That's unexpected. Maybe there really is a fire or something.”

“Doubt it, probably just another practice run.”

“Maybe.” But Dick knew that Steve was probably wrong, the town was under pressure to save money and this would cost gas and time.

That's when the kids saw it, the black smoke just starting to curl and rise from the back of the building. The fire fighters drove the large engines over the lawns and the baseball diamond, pulling up by the storage rooms, unrolling their hoses and having at it. The police, arriving just after the fire department, kept the students back, “C'mon, you kids stay back, let us do our work. I said stay back!”

Fifteen minutes into the afternoon's entertainment, Dick started smelling chemicals burning, the thickening smoke billowing with a sickly yellowish green adding into the black.

The smoke seemed to mostly be coming from the storage room; it was spring and the maintenance people were going to spread fertilizer on the fields over the weekend. The chemicals were toxic when burned and there were at least a dozen fifty pound sacks back there along with gas cans for the lawn mowers and God knew what all else.

He ducked behind the Erlinger's van parked next to the woods in the last row of the student parking lot, making his change to Robin in record time then racing around the far side of the building in time to tell the fire chief what they were fighting. “Change to foam to smother the flames; the water may not put out what's burning and the run off will make more of a problem than you already have—besides, it's being contaminated by the chemicals.”

The firemen were pros and reacted fast to the new information, containing the fire and having it under largely control in about twenty minutes.

“Thanks, Robin—we weren't sure what was stored in there and no one around seemed to know. You were a big help today.” The Chief shook his hand. “What are you doing outside Gotham's limits? I thought you stayed close to home over the river there.”

“Usually, but a nice day like this I like to take a ride, y'know how it is.” Not adding, 'And I go to school here, thanks.'

The man smiled, “A young man's fancy turns to love on a day like this, I guess I'm not too old to remember that. You go on and have yourself some fun, you earned it today, son.”

Yeah, sure. He still had to finish The monk's Tale before Monday and write a paper on the thing. Party-on.

But—with the fire problem solved and with the school needing to be aired out and cleaned, the announcement was made that the kids could leave; anyone waiting for the school van should go to the usual spot and it would be along at it's regular time, as would the parents picking up their children. No one was to go back inside for any reason because of the fumes and they'd be informed if school was on or not Monday, depending on how the cleanup and inspections went. Meanwhile, everyone should have a nice weekend.

Back in the parking lot, having taken the long roundabout way through the woods to avoid being seen, he changed back to his school clothes. He'd just gotten his sneakers back on when he looked up and saw the girl standing there, openly watching him.

“Hi, Dick.”

He jerked around, startled. Britney, Bethany, Bridget—whatever—was standing there, a girl he barely even knew the name of, let alone actually knew. She had a knowing smile on her face, her posture relaxed.

“You have any other secrets or is this is, Robin?”

“This isn't what you think.”

“Uh-huh. And since we all know that you live with Bruce Wayne that pretty much puts paid to what he does in his spare time too, doesn't it?”

“You're jumping to a conclusion; I told you, it's now what it looks like.”

She smiled. “Right, whatever you say; how is it?” She watched him trying to come up with something she might buy but was coming up blank, she'd caught him red handed. Finally he just looked at her.

She had him, she was about to claim the biggest jackpot in the history of jackpots.

“I thought so.” She let him twist in the wind for a long minute. “'Tell you what, you go your way, I'll go mine and when I think of what it is you can do for me I'll let you know. Sound fair?”

“It sounds like blackmail.”

She made a face. “Blackmail? That's harsh, Dick, really harsh. Let's just say that we're going to have an arrangement, okay?”

“Such as?”

“Such as you do what I want and I don't go to the press and sell my story for a gabillion dollars.”

“It's your word against mine—you really think that anyone will believe you against me?”

She smiled again. “Oh, I know you'd get all your friends to back you up, all the Titans and the Justice League and all those famous big-shots you hang out with. You're right; but I also have this:” She held up her cell phone, camera lens prominent. “'Kind of takes away that whole 'your word against mine' thing, doesn't it?”

Shit.

“Well, alrighty, then. You have a good weekend, okay? I'll see you around, Dick.” She gave him a friendly wave and started off, smile still on her face, then stopped. “You know what? On second thought I could use a ride home, you have your car here, right? That nice Porsche Boxter Bruce gave you for your last birthday? You don't mind, do you?”

“Sure, I'm parked over by the street lamp.” He'd play along of now and see what she wanted.

For now.

TBC
 

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