Mad Jyhad

Evening came too quickly. The yellow and black fish had returned and were trying to save the burning igloos. They wanted to put out the fires; they kept slipping on the ice. Fish don't make very good firemen. But I have to admit that the little dears did their best.

Still tired, I dragged myself out of bed. Dick glared as I left the bedroom and for the first few minutes I tried to ignore it. Finally, I asked. "What?"

"You know damn well what you did!"

"What are you talking about?" I asked. I knew earlier that he was angry. But exactly why was still a mystery. There were three possibilities as far as I knew.

"Bruce doesn't normally act that way!"

I should have known.

I can't put into words how much that hurt. He did not trust me. I felt betrayed even though I had suspected as much. Perhaps betrayed isn't a good word...disappointed might be better.

"I did not dominate him."

Dick's scent made me feel ill. The bitter smell reached for me, wrapped around me and smothered me with its oppression. He didn't believe me. The green and red bands were back and twisted around each other. Were the green ones jealousy? Or were they disgust?

I had to get away, away from his distrust, away from his glare, away from my own feelings. I turned from him and crossed the floor in seconds flying out the window before he could call to me. As my lines connected with the buildings I felt the air rush under me, a comfort, as close to flying as I was ever likely to come.

As I had discovered very few vampires could actually fly, but we could come close, jumping to unnatural heights and running so fast that our feet hardly need to touch the ground.

The sharp cold wind would have taken my breath away had I needed to breathe. I consciously stopped my respiration, no sense in breathing if I didn't have to. There was no one I needed to talk to as I swung through the city, not caring where I was going.

It was a little lonely.

I had patrolled solo many times but this time it was different. Perhaps because I knew the chance of flying by Nightwing was diminishing every day.

I glanced up at the stars and sighed. At least they would never abandon me. Despite the occasional snide remark, they still cared. They twinkled down on me and seemed to be waving. I smiled at them and whispered a soft hello.

I was hardly aware that I was following the same path that Niculaie had recently taken me on. Snow still blanketed the streets and sidewalks below me, perverted now, a parody of what it had been. No longer white and pristine it had been turned into black mush. Tainted, unclean, diseased. It reflected the true Bludhaven. It was a reflection of what I felt inside.

I landed on the roof of the bar. The snow crunched under my feet, untouched by the taint of filth down below on the street. The moon above it sparkled and reflected making the night seem brighter than it had any right to be. Under my feet I could feel the thump of bass as music played inside. The snow glittered like tiny little stars. Changing patterns as I moved my eyes. Beautiful. Too beautiful to look away, I tried to still my movement, so I could pinpoint each little twinkle. So very beautiful...

A crunch of snow under foot startled me. I whirled around and saw nothing. At first...

"You are young yet, control will come."

I turned around again and would have gasped had I not been in shock.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, dear boy."

Jolly Jones, the Malkavian on the Primogen council. He still looked very average. His suit was of a dark brown color, not expensive but not exceedingly cheap. He could have been an average Joe coming off work from some nondescript office somewhere. Getting a drink before heading home.

I turned away lifting my hand to throw my line when he spoke again. "Stay, Timothy, or do you prefer Robin?"

"What do you want?" I asked warily.

Jolly Jones sighed heavily as he came to stand beside me. "What do I want? I want many things...I want a wool sweater that doesn't itch. I want to watch an entire movie at a theater without some snot nosed kid talking through it. I want to get the recipe for the Bloody Marys that they make downstairs. I want to be able to eat solid food. I want many things. But tonight, I want to talk to you!"

Jones leaned against one of the chimneys and drew out a cigarette from his coat pocket. "You smoke?"

"Only in the daytime."

The older vampire laughed. "Don't we all?"

Jones puffed quietly as he looked across the rooftop. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Hm." Noncommittal true, but he made me nervous.

"You have to be sure to look away often. You will find yourself entranced otherwise. That can be dangerous." He tapped the cigarette watching as ash flew in the air. "Never know when someone might be waiting for you to be distracted..."

"Is that a threat?"

"No, advice."

As he shifted I turned to face him. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"This fucked up mess we seem to have gotten ourselves into." Jones tapped more ash onto the pristine snow marring the brilliant beauty. A small hiss escaped as an ember flew off the end and landed.

"And what mess is that?" I was afraid to say anything more. Afraid to ask too many questions, letting him know more than I would gain from him. I knew too well how easy it was to get information and I didn't want to give him any.

"You're a brat, you know that?" He smirked.

My silence wrung a sigh from him as he finally threw the cigarette into the snow. A sharp hiss drew my attention for a second before the sound finally died abruptly. He put his hands into his pockets and turned to face me. "I mean, you brat, that we are both in the shit now! Your fucking Sire fucked up and fucked us by *getting* fucked up!"

I sneered as he cursed my Sire and considered taking a swing at him. But insanity doesn't equal a death wish and I knew that it would be a bad idea to take on an older vampire at this point.

I chanced a look over the side of the building calculating my chances of jumping off the side without actually breaking something. I may not perceive pain exactly like I used to...but even a vampire can't run on two broken legs.

"Don't even think about it, kid!" He snickered as he walked back into my line of vision. "You wouldn't get too far. I'm older and faster!"

"What do you want from me?" I backed up a step.

"Ah, see, that's the thing. You were created for a purpose. Your Sire got himself killed before he could present you. Your Sire had permission to create you and the Prince of Gotham has been waiting for you. But since all this shit started..." He sighed heavily and rubbed at his head.

He sighed again. "Niculaie did what he thought was right...I suppose...but the fact that you have been introduced as a Gangrel? This isn't going to be easy. If the Scourge finds out that you are not what you say you are...they will kill you! And now I can't introduce you as anything BUT a Gangrel! Do you understand?"

"Not really." Why would he want to claim me?

He groaned and beat his head against a chimneystack. "A bat? No, you are a brat! You are a BRAT!"

"Look, kid! We've GOT to get this thing back on track! We can't do that without YOU! You were created to get us out of a bind! But your Sire, he screwed up big time. He was supposed to bring you back to the clan's haven. THEN he was going to introduce you to the Prince of Gotham. You were supposed to go about business as usual pretending to still be Robin the Boy Wonder until the Sabbat made their move! Instead, your Sire took off without grabbing you and taking you with him because the 'stars' weren't aligned right or some shit. As a result you were declared dead! No one is going to believe that you were just kidnapped!" Jones paced back and forth across the roof ranting, kicking the snow up into the air with every step. His voice never rose yet it carried a lot of weight.

"Batman does..." I didn't mean to interrupt him. I glanced up at the stars and they twinkled brightly at me, apparently in approval.

He swung back to me and gaped. "He thinks you were?"

"Yeah, I mean my parents know I'm dead and all. Not that I'm a vampire or anything but Batman thinks that I'm working undercover to infiltrate a cult of vampire wannabes."

"You are kidding!" He continued to gape.

I shrugged. "The power of denial can be a wonderful thing."

Jones closed his mouth with an audible click. "That could work..."

"What could work?" I was so tired of being in the dark! I just wanted to know why I was there and what was going on! Couldn't someone clue me into the plot? Maybe hand me a script? No, of course not, that would have been too easy!

"This could work! If Batman believes..."

I leaned against the opposite chimneystack and sighed. With a hand I motioned for him to continue. Above me the stars winked in amusement. I'm glad SOMEONE was amused because I sure wasn't!

"You have to get back to being a 'super hero'. You have to act like nothing has happened. Maybe you can tell Batears that the 'cult' wants you to, and you are playing along. The important thing is that you make an appearance in Gotham soon. I'll be there soon myself. My Sire is the Prince of Gotham." He stalked past me.

"What is it that I'm supposed to do? Why was I created?" I finally asked as he passed me for a fifth time.

"The Sabbat intends to take control of Gotham. They plan to use a super criminal. One that was put on the 'don't-you-even-dare-think-it' list. They have Malkavians that are more than willing to do the deed. Malks are just as divided as all the other clans, some side with the Camirilla and some with the Sabbat." He waved it away dismissively.

He stopped in front of me and laid his hands upon my shoulders. "They intend to turn The Joker!"

"The Joker? But he would..."

"Destroy the Masquerade! But The Sabbat doesn't care! They want Gotham and they think that not only can they take it but they also think that, with the Joker's help, they can take over most of the majitieities on this coast. Apparently, his little 'Last Laugh' when he thought he was dying impressed them!"

"He would never work for them...he would use them! He's...insane!" I knew Malks were insane but it never occurred to me they could be stupid!

"I never said these guys were smart..."

I jumped. I had not said anything. It was almost like he was reading my mind. "You don't seem too insane, at least, right now. I thought we all were supposed to be..."

"Loony? Raving nutters to the last man? Hmm, we ARE crazy, all of us. Some of us crazier than others, but crazy doesn't equal stupid as you know. The idiots that intend to turn the Joker not to be counted. Nor does it imply that we all act like clowns..." He smirked. "But it doesn't hurt if others think that we are just harmless idiots..."

"People let their guard down...they don't watch what they say...they underestimate..." I smiled. Yes, I could see where acting the part could be of use.

"To be honest though, most of us don't acknowledge our little...insanities...some try to maintain that they are perfectly sane..." Jones sneered. "But, our insanity is the price we pay for our powers...our abilities that no other clan can claim..."

"I don't know much about Malkavian abilities...I'm being trained by a Gangrel and a Human."

He reached out and squeezed my shoulder again. "Now you are being trained by a Gangrel, a Human, and a Malkavian. But for now, tell no one that we've talked. Go! And make your presence felt in Gotham. Let it slip that you've been out of town but are back now. Act as close to human as you can. It might actually work to our advantage that 'Timothy Drake' was introduced as a Gangrel. Fly little bird, fly away home. My Sire waits for you in Gotham. Go to Lestat's Asylum near the Gotham University campus. There will be a back room much like The Alley Bi's. It is where he holds court."

Nodding, I backed away. "I understand. I will go."

He smiled as he lit another cigarette. "Go! Batears and Nightbird wait for you at home."

Jones snickered as I glared back at him. "Lighten up! Nightwing told Batman that you were meeting your contact. The irony of it all, huh?"

"How did you know...?"

"We pay for our abilities with our sanity, kid. You understand more than you want to admit right now." His smile turned sad as he reached out and patted my shoulder. "Listen to the stars in your head, kid. They don't often lie."

"You hear the stars too?" I asked him in wonder.

He smiled. "We all do...sort of...in some form or another... some of us don't always believe them. Some never hear directly from them and instead have to hear it second hand from another source."

"Like the snow?" I asked.

"Something like that." He giggled.

Slowly, he pulled me to him as he wrapped his arms around me. "You haven't fed tonight. Drink before you go. Let it make you strong...don't worry, a blood bond won't happen from one time."

I didn't want to. At least not at first, but the Hunger was stronger than my sensibilities. Strong arms pulled me up as my own automatically came around his shoulders. In the chill of the night air his arms still held the heat from the bar. I found myself burrowing into his embrace, inhaling his scent as my teeth found the sensitive skin under his ear.

Nipping lightly I shuddered as tiny droplets of blood erupted from the small wounds. Lapping gently I felt him gasp as one of his hands reached up and twisted in my hair. He pushed my back against the chimneystack as I rubbed against his body licking the hollow of his neck.

Clouds crossed the moon and it grew darker as small flakes once more began to ascend whispering words of encouragement to both of us.

His erection ground into my hip as he lowered his mouth to my neck. I heard him faintly murmur, "Lovely, brat!"

With a groan I wrapped my legs around his waist and threw my head back as his teeth pierced my throat. Wave after wave of pleasure filled my head as a nonexistent ocean roared in my ears. His hand still in my hair he pulled my head back as he mouthed the wound causing my own erection to throb in time with the pull at my throat.

His other hand found its way to my ass and squeezed me hard. I jerked against him wanting more friction between us, wanting to feel his body against mine. I heard the moaning as he began to thrust against me before I realized that I was the one making the sound.

"Sweet, brat!" he groaned as he pulled me away from the wall and lowered me to the snow-covered roof. The cold snow penetrated my uniform, chilling me, but I didn't care. The cold did not bother me.

His lips caught mine as I once again wrapped my legs around his waist. My moaning grew louder as his hand found its way inside my uniform. "Beautiful, brat!"

In a haze I heard his words as he began to kiss me in time to the strokes of his hand. Between kisses he hissed out words of affection and appreciation. "Beautiful, lovely, wonderful, sexy, sweet..."

I arched my back, thrusting into his hand as he bit into my neck once more. The bliss of his hand and his mouth upon me nearly drove me over the edge. He pushed me flat against the snow and tilted his own head till my mouth was near his jugular. His free hand once more found my head and pushed me toward his throat.

Sharp teeth sliced through soft skin and an endless loop of pain, pleasure, and bliss began. I lost awareness of where I ended and where he began as we each fed off the other as he continued to thrust against and caress me.

I whimpered as he took his teeth from my throat but sighed as he began to lick the bite, healing it slowly as I continued to drink from him.

Sparks flew before my eyes as my world exploded in pure pleasure, coming in his hand.

Panting, I released my grip and he kneeled above me smiling. "Beautiful brat! I would keep you if I could!"

I smiled as I stood up a little self conscious of the stain on his pants as well as on my uniform. I had not been the only one to reach completion.

"You have to go! Change before you go home. One of your old uniforms is still at the bus station in the locker."

I stared up at him in shock and he smiled before he dropped a light kiss upon my head. "We kept watch for a LONG time before the final decision was made to turn you."

I nodded and pulled out my line. "I'll go to Gotham soon."

"I will be in Gotham; I will not leave you completely by yourself. I will teach you. You may never be completely mine, but you belong to me in part...I was your Sire's sire. Beautiful brat, look for me at Lestat's Asylum!"

He gave me another peck on the lips before disappearing down the fire escape faster than the human eye could follow.

His words still echoed through my head as I flew through the night first to the bus station then back to Nightwing's apartment.

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