Trouble is a friend | Batman and Jo

[jek]

Jo was thrown off balance; her back connecting with the brick wall of the alley way with a loud thud. The most Eastern section of Gotham was known for it's population of low life's but, she was pretty sure she'd hit the jackpot with these guys. Smug, tall, and drunk. Not the best combination to be sure. The first man was a big burly guy with a thick handlebar mustache and breath that smelled of whiskey and coke. All she wanted was for him to stop pissing on the car. It was a fair request seeing as though it was her prized 2005 mustang. It was an unmarked police car, but it was a police car all the same.

It was a known fact that criminals didn't like cops. It was also pretty clear that cops didn't like criminals. So, when Jo first asked the man to step away from the vehicle he noted the strict tone in her voice and immediately got defensive. Not to mention quickly stashed the bundle of coke into his jacket pocket. He looked as if he was going to run at first; make a dash for the chain fence and try his luck at scaling it before Jo had a chance to catch him. But, he looked her up and down and realized he'd never make it there before she was hot on his tail.

So instead he did the logical thing and tackled her. He was two-hundred and fifty pounds of pure meat and the sound of her small framed body slamming into the pavement was not a pretty one. Wrestling for a moment, she managed to get to her feet and sent a heel kick into his side. Reaching for her piece she was pulled from behind by a smaller man with big hands and a tattoo of a skull on his right arm. This is about when she was thrown off balance and pinned to the brick.

There were several slurs called at her, none of which could be deemed polite in any manner. Hours spent in the precinct's sparring ring had taught her a few tricks and now was the perfect time to implement them. Reaching for what was either a switchblade or a gun at his side, Jo knew she wouldn’t get another opportunity to act. She leaned her left shoulder back, drawing the man forward as she hooked her free arm on his other shoulder. Gaining some momentum she pulled him down into her knee quickly before using her heel to repel him. He stumbled, hand still fumbling for his weapon, cursing under his breath.

Jo backed away from the two men, bracing herself for whatever they might do. She sensed she was getting dangerously close to the chain link fence and knew this was not the most strategic of moves. Just as she was reaching to her belt to retrieve her gun she noticed a large, dark shadow fall upon the alleyway. It was jagged and oddly resembled a.... bat

[royskopp]

The two thugs also noticed the shadow that fell across their victim and assumed the same thing. They looked up, faces full of terror... and saw that it was nothing more than a bin bag caught upon the spiked chain metal fence. The two criminals breathed a sigh of relief over their narrow escape.

"You know... you know, I actually thought that was Batman." one of the criminals said.

"You were meant to..."

The new voice was deep and belonged to only one person. Both criminals screamed in fear and felt a powerful hand grab both of them before they were hoisted up into the sky, where they seemingly disappeared. For a moment the only sound that could be heard were their screams, followed by a few gunshots, more screams... then silence. Everything was quiet... as if the whole of Gotham were waiting to see what had happened to the two would-be criminals.

Then, without any warning, the two criminals came back down again. This time they were suspended just above the ground by the use of a rope. Both of them were unconscious, one of the criminals had a black eye and the other was missing a few teeth. The two of them hung there like a broken piñata. Then the clattering sound of gun parts hitting the floor... first the bullets, then the empty clips, then the guns themselves.

And then, once again... silence.

[jek]

Jo watched the events with an expression that can only be described as numb. She was neither frightened nor joy-filled as the two men were hoisted into the air and then whipped back down. If anything she was shocked. His voice was deep, darker than she had imagined. Jim spoke of him often in the break room over a cup of coffee. Everyone seemed to agree about the Batman, everyone seemed to have their story about him, but, Jo never did. Until now that is.

He was tall, shrouded in shadows, and black. Very, very black. Seeing the men unconscious gave her relief but, also managed to rustle up a feeling of incompetence. A Detective that couldn't protect herself against a couple of mangy thugs? Now that was just sad. The truth was she would have thought of something. She'd been trained and practiced everyday with Ronnie down at the gym. But, having the masked wonder show up and bust her out of trouble just made her feel like a petulant child.

"Show off." she mumbled under her breath, her hands finding a home on her hips. She gazed around the alley looking for the dark figure. He'd disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. She called out "Thanks." What else were you supposed to say? "I could have handled myself thank you, next time leave em to get stabbed or shot. It's fine. She wondered how he had found her. It had to be a coincidence, from what she'd been told he had pretty damn good timing. Guess she could check that off as a yes in the Dark Knight's file. Jo kept a file on everyone from villains to heroes. It didn't matter to her, she liked to know who people were and what they were doing. Although she doubted the Batman was as bad as everyone said.

Jo walked over to the roped criminals and unhinged her handcuffs. She didn't want to sound ungrateful but, if he was going to knock out two very large men, the least he could have done was help drag them to the car. Jo snapped the metal around the first criminal and began lifting him towards the vehicle. "It's fine. I got it." she mumbled. God, she really needed a cup of coffee and some sleep couldn't hurt. With all this FBI nonsense she was working double shifts almost everyday.

"I hope these FBI clowns don't have your tights in a twist." she looked around the alley one last time, unsure if the Batman had gone or was merely sticking to the shadows.