Lamented And Assured [Flashback][Bull&Babs}

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Harvey pulled up to Gotham High School in his black Cadillac. He would have brought the fairlaner out to pick up Babs, but it was a bit of a mucky and rainy fall day and it always shines best on a nice clear day.

He had the window down so Barbara could see him clearly enough. The Commissioner left int eh late morning to hop a plane to DC for a conference of some sort there. He'd be gone for the rest of the weekend and asked Harvey if he wouldn't mind putting Barbara up for a couple of days while he was gone. So Barbara would already know Harvey was picking her up today.

He was parked on the curb, casually looking up every so often from his phone and a small black book in his hand. Once he finally spotted her in the wave of high schoolers leaving the building he flashed his blinkers a couple of times to get her attention. Had it been a nicer day he would have been blaring something. As a matter of fact, a few students passing by his car gave looks, nods and comments amongst themselves as approval as they could hear the bass vibrating within the car. Harvey lowered the volume and rolled the window up once Barbara neared. He pressed the button to unlock his doors and got out, whipping around to open the door for her.

"Hey there, Lil' Bit. Here, give me your book bag."

Harvey took the book bag and opened the backseat, leaving it there for her and then shutting her door. He whipped back to the driver's side and got back in. He pulled the car from park to drive and began rolling forward, keeping mindful of all the idiot teenagers darting across the street and only causing more headaches for parents trying to pick up their kids and teenagers with their own cars trying to get the hell out of here.

"So, I got your weekend bag in the trunk, yer dad brought it to me at work this mornin', so all your stuff is there. You hungry yet?"

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Babs started outside with two of her closest friends, comparing the scores they had gotten on their literature exam. While both of her friends sulked at their low grades, the redhead was smiling uncontrollably at the A that marked the top of her paper. Though at the time the news had turned her cheeks red, their teacher informed her that she had received the highest grade out of all of her classes. Her friends did not understand how she did it with all of her extra-curricular activities and competitions. She was only sixteen and well on her way to graduating high school a year early. Her answers in regards to graduation would be answered as soon as she met with her guidance counselor the following week.

The trio of girls gossiped and chatted for a couple of moments, each expecting for their respected rides to pull into the school. While her two friends eagerly waited for the college-dropout boyfriends to come in their beat up cars, Babs was excited to have Harvey pick her up rather than the typical Gotham City police car she typically was escorted around in. Within moments of stepping outside she noticed the signature black Cadillac and beamed, waving her friends ‘good bye’ and wishing them a pleasant weekend. She smiled warmly as he came to greet her, “I think you’ve won the best ride award.” She teased him, noticing the looks and attention she was getting from his ride.

Tossing her backpack at him, she didn’t bother to warn him of the four text books, three folders and AP Binder that it contained before it was a little too late. Climbing into the car, she couldn’t deny the cool feeling the accompanied riding around with Harvey. She was actually both excited and anxious for this weekend, but she would break the new to him a bit later at one of the highlights she had planned. “Awesome, and yes! I’m starving! We should get hot dogs!” She paused for only a brief moment before firing off another question. “Do you work at all this weekend?”

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"Heh, well, if you want I can take you out in the Fairlaner if the weather clears up over the weekend. We can ride with the top down, an' all that. I don't remember if you've ridden in it before. If you're real good might let you borrow it for senior prom when that hits."

Harvey kept his eyes on the road, glancing over to Babs every so often while they talked.

"Hot dogs it is then, I know just the place for 'em, too."

Once Harvey managed to get clear of the school traffic and out of the school zones he upped his speed and made a right eventually.

"No, your Dad wanted me to be off so you wouldn't have to be on your lonesome, but if something big and bad enough happens I will have to go in. So lets hope this city'll take a break from being a handful this weekend."

Within just a few minutes, they neared Harvey's home, but he pulled over at a little shack that looked like it could barely hold thirty patrons inside it. Once he parked and shut the engine off he whipped out and around to open her door and used his coat to shield her from the rain that decided to pick up between him picking her up and them getting to the little hot dog shack they were stopping at.

Once inside the doors the place was pretty basic. They served hot dogs of all sorts and styles. He usually went for a simple kraut dog, but today he might be getting something a little more elaborate.

"Best dogs in Gotham, princess."

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“Seriously!? You would let me borrow it?” She asked, her blue eyes lighting up at the statement itself. Only a sophomore, senior prom still loomed in the distance, but it didn’t stop both she and her friends from discussing it as if it were the next week. Well, for some of the girls in her year anyways, some of the more developed sophomores managed to find dates for the spring prom and would be sporting their poufy dresses and flaunting their invitations amongst those who were not invited. Though she hadn’t mentioned it to her father and substitute mother, Momma Bull, that she was one of those lucky girls attending, she feared their reaction.

“I don’t know why but I have just been craving a good Chicago dog all week. “ The news that Harvey would be off all weekend left her little room to actually go on her date, making her wonder if he would be as overprotective as she imagined. Who knew, perhaps he would be just as laid back as her approached now and she was simply over-analyzing it like she typically did. “Sounds good!” She eased into her next sentence carefully. “I have a date on Saturday; he said he’s going to pick me up around seven.” She tried to sound casual, though butterflies were fluttering endlessly in her stomach.

When they reached their destination, her face lit up. The building didn’t look to elaborate, but that didn’t mean that they didn’t have food fit for a king inside of its four walls. She unbuckled her seatbelt, her smile only growing at the sound of one of her all-to familiar nicknames. “Awesome! I am starved. What do you typically get here?”

[Deleted]

"I'd only let you borrow it if you drove without any accidents up to that point and I thought you deserved it."

Harvey thought about what kind of dog he might want today. Something covered in chili sounded good. He was digging the idea of chili today very much.

"I think I'm going to go with something slathered in chili and onions today."

He turned his head to her at the mention of a date.

"Date? With who? Give me the names of his parents so I can run background checks on all of them."

He was smiling, but he was dead serious.

"Typically, I get a Kraut dog or a Gotham dog."

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Babs giggled at her self-claimed family members comment, allowing her jaw to drop exaggeratedly at the statement. “But that could take years!” she teased, elbowing him playfully in the ribs – or at least attempting too. She adored their relationship, though the little redhead was oblivious to the actual effort that he went through to help her father raise her. In her opinion, Harvey was the ‘cool mom’ that she never had, earning the well-deserved nickname: Momma Bull.

“That doesn’t sound bad actually. I think I am sticking with a classic Chicago dog though.” She followed alongside him into the joint, hoping that he might casually disregard the mention of her planned date on Saturday evening. A red tint played on her freckled cheeks and the blush that had crept onto her face was not going anywhere anytime soon. “Oh, just-this boy. He’s really nice, his name is Jeff, he’s on the basketball and golf teams, and he’s a senior.” She commented, impressed with how cool Harvey was being about it.

Raising her eyebrow at his order choices, she looked up at him somewhat confused. “Wait- what’s a Gotham dog have on it? Why is this the first time I am hearing about this? This is clearly an issue” She asked a dramatic inflection in her voice as she looked up at him bewildered. While she hadn’t always been a resident of the fine city, she felts as though she was accustomed to its traditions and quirks nevertheless. The fact that she had no idea what the Gotham dog contained almost made her ashamed to call herself a Gothamite. Surely Momma Bull would be able to remedy that in no time.

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Harvey gave her a sideways glance before stepping forward in line.

"A senior? Well, look, you're smart, you're savvy, I don't gotta problem wit' it, but he even tries to get fresh wit' ya I'll give 'em a dose of my fists."

Harvey meant every word of it, but he'd leave it at that. Honestly, when Harvey was her age he was a horny ball of hormones and bad lines. He knew exactly what being a teenage boy was like. Not quite a child and not quite a man with all these... things he wanted to do to girls. He shuddered at the memories of teenage wasteland and sighed. Those were days, while good, he could look back on with little sympathy for his younger self, he was a shit head.

"Its got onions and cheese that smells." Harvey chuckled at the thought and shook his head.

"Gotta keep it light, Chicago sounds about right, actually."

Once they took their turn they got their respective dogs and sodas they would sit at Harvey's preferred little table in the corner. Harvey had always been a messy eater, but these days he was finally getting napkins and their usage.

"So, what's on the schedule with this date? Whatchu plan on doin?"

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A hot sensation hit her freckled face as she blushed at his comment. “Momma Bull-“ She started, shaking her head as she giggled nervously. “Don’t worry about it; I don’t think he is going to try anything. We are just going to the movies.” Babs tried to justify. “We’re going to the release of that new horror movie, so I am sure there will be way too many witnesses around for his taste.” The teen was quick to follow up with flashing him a wide smile.

Her stomach growled as they stepped up to order, she scanned the menu to find the classic hotdog that she was craving. The delectable aroma caused her mouth to water instantly. “Oh! Do they have fries here?” She asked quickly, “I had to work on the homecoming float today and I didn’t have the time to eat lunch today. I could eat this entire cart!” She exaggerated.

Once they had ordered, Babs followed her self-claimed family member to the closest table wafting in the delicious smells from the food in her arms. The moment they sat down, she didn’t hesitate to take a large bite into her hotdog, chewing happily as sat it down only to reach for a napkin. Finally swallowing the large bite, she took a long drink of her cola before replying. “Well, I don’t know exactly. I know he wants to go to the movies but I am not sure what he has planned for after. I know some of the guys on the team are going to have some kind of get-together later that night, but I am not sure if he plans on taking me. That’s not really my thing.”

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Harvey just shook his head.

"That's the oldest trick in the book. You take a girl to a horror movie so when things get all scary and gross she buries her head into your shoulder and then boom, arm around her shoulders and then lip lockin' time! But fine, just remember to call me if you need me to come get you for any reason."

Harvey gave her a glance before he put in their orders, fries included. Once they got all settled and seated he dug into his own food, slowly though. He was in no rush. He had the weekend off, he was not in a hurry to get it over with any time soon. Not to mention, with Barbara going out for a date this evening it would actually give him a little time to enjoy some solace at home before she returned. He did look forward to having the company though. It was rare he was afforded the opportunity to play host or mother for that matter. He gave her a stern look at the mention of the "get-together" after the movie.

"I don't think going to a party with a bunch of football players is a wise decision, but if you do go don't you dare let anyone pour a drink for you and don't you dare let your drink out of your site. Also, don't drink alcohol, please. I'm sure you're dad would hang me if you were out at a party drinking. Seriously, please, don't go to it, but if you do don't be an idiot. I know you're not an idiot, so don't go be one just because you're surrounded by a bunch of them, capiche? The collective IQ of young men seems to dwindle the larger the sizes of their groups get."

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Her cheeks full, she chewed the savory bite of Chicago dog while rolling her eyes at Harvey, though she smiled the moment she could at him. “Oh come on that might have been how it was back in your day…” She teased with a small giggle, elbowing him playfully in the side as they sat on the spray-paint covered table that they had settled with. “But don’t worry. If anything bad happens I will call you first….or maybe Batman. I don’t know it is a tie.” With a wide smile to let him know she was only joking.

Recently, her father had been so consumed with his work that he didn’t particularly have the time to pick up on the tiny details that Babs informed him when she was going somewhere. She was both amused and kind of comforted to know that Harvey cared so much to worry. While she was convinced that her skilled trainings in martial arts would be enough to hold any handsy boy at bay, it still felt good to know someone cared.

She giggled again before grabbing a couple of fries and dipping them into a small collected pile of ketchup. “It’s not a party, Bull. I’m only sixteen, you know I can’t drink. It's the law“ She sent a wink in his direction, but it was practically a fact that most high-school kids in Gotham strived towards some kind of buzz on the weekends. Her smile only wavered for a moment when he seemed like he genuinely didn’t want her to go, but Babs wasn’t sure how to respond. Instead, she did what she usually did in such situation: change the subject. “So how’s everything at the station? That new guy working out?”

[Deleted]

Harvey gave a bit of a bear like growl under his breath and just began to eat. He took a pause and a sip of soda and sighed at her.

"Yeah yeah, back in my day. Tell me all about it, Punky."

Harvey gave her a skeptical smirk and leaned back a little, idly holding his hotdog in one hand and soda in the other.

"Look, I just worry about you. I know you're smart and got a decent head on your shoulders, but it doesn't matter. I think your dad and other people that care about you still worry that you while you have the capacity to be good and do smart things, everyone's got the capacity to do dumb things. Look at me, I still do dumb shit all the time, but I got enough years on me to know things, and all that."

Harvey finally got into his food again and gave her a bit of a furrowed brow on her insistence that she would not do any of the things he told her not to do. He finally gave a nod. He trusted her to make the right choices, but at the mention of Batman he growled a bit again. You ever wanted to get a grunt, growl, or groan out of Harvey you knew to mention Batman. He waved the thought of the dark knight off and stayed focused on his food.

When he eventually finished his first hot dog he leaned back again and had a few fries. He wiped his mouth of any mustard and looked at her again.

"Which new guy? There's one about every week, or at least, that's how it seems."

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After taking a large sip of her own soda and insuring there was no food left in her mouth, she stuck her tongue out at him exaggeratedly. “Me? A punk? Pshh, that’s all you, dude.” She replied with an undeniable grin before diving back into her hotdog, struggling to get her entire mouth around it but not even bothering to apply her manners at this point. With mustard lining the corners of her mouth, she did quickly wipe it away as she chewed – compared to her father’s cooking, this was an amazing meal.

She chuckled at his comment. “Thanks Momma Bull, I know you worry. It’s one of your many jobs.” Sending a smile his way, she followed up with a shrug. “Don’t worry too much though, I would call you before I let anything bad happen – but I swear this isn’t that big of a deal. I have to worry about the senior girls more than I do guys, they don’t seem to like me too much.” Not like she let it bother her, she didn’t like them to much either, but girls were manipulative and conniving – something she needed to be aware of.

Babs racked her brain trying to think of the guy’s name, considering her remarkable memory it didn’t take her very long. “Dad didn’t say his name; he’s the one that’s fresh out of the academy. Dad calls him ‘quirky’” She giggled.

[Deleted]

As Harvey was about to dig into his second hot dog, he stopped at the word 'quirky' and that look of realization washed across his face.

"Oh! You're talking about Bivins. He 'a alright. I don't know how long he'll last. I think your dad was trying to be nice by only calling him quirky."

Bivins was very fresh, figuratively and literally. He was a million words a minute and nervous. He was quickly made a detective, though, that had to count for something. Everyone in MCU had taken to calling him the whiz kid and other similar little nicknames. He did have great strengths when it came to digital forensics. Any criminals trying to be all clever and anonymous on the net was quickly identified through Bivins' prowess in all things internet.

Harvey dug into his dog a bit before taking a pause.

"Why so curious?"

[Deleted]

Maybe Babs knew the name of the guy she was talking about, but wanted to seem a little less obvious in her intentions by playing dumb. When the name finally surfaced, the teenager had to do everything in her power to prevent the blush appearing on her lightly freckled fact from becoming as red as hair. She tried to hide any surfacing reactions to the news that he was not doing so well. The young commissioner’s daughter considered him to be pretty cute, though she would never reveal that to Momma Harvey.

“Really?” She asked, attempting to shrug it off. “I think you guys need a fresh new face around there. I am sure that he will catch on soon.” She smiled and took another bite of her hotdog, finding herself almost halfway finished with the massive morsel and nearly full. However, it wasn’t long before Harvey called her out, causing the blush to quickly resurface; she wiped away the condiments that lingered on the corner of her mouth as she attempted to shrug it off. Reaching for her large soda in attempt to buy herself more time, she took a lengthy sip before causally continuing. “Oh, no reason really. Just thought I would ask you how everything was going. I feel like I haven’t seen Montoya since the Policeman’s Ball. She doing alright?”

[Deleted]

Harvey wondered why Babs even cared, but then again, she was a sweet girl. He could only imagine how Jim had to pick and choose what to tell Babs about his work days each day. Harvey was smart enough to not tell her more than he should, but any time something concerned her father it was Harvey who would come pick her up from school to take her to see her dad in the hospital or what not. Sometimes Harvey realized it must have not been easy for Jim to raise a daughter on his own, but then again, Harvey thought he was about the luckiest guy in the world. Harvey would love to have one of his own, but alas, he's never knocked anyone up... that he knows of.

He finished his hot dog and took a long drain of his soda, perking a little at the mention of Montoya.

"She's alright. If you want, and if she isn't busy this weekend, we could go do something with her this weekend. Her mom makes killer tamales. They usually have cook outs and gatherings over the weekend. I'll see if I can get us in."

Harvey had been around Renee's family many times. They were unruly, loud, and passionate. Harvey could see why Renee was so cool and so talented at keeping Harvey and his temper in check.

"I'll text her, actually."