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Batgirl Begins (dbspock/WendyTheRed)

She had picked up on his attitude about Harvey but didn't pry. It wasn't her business really. She looked at him as he laughed at her question and grinned, guessing right away why he had laughed. Still she was relieved in a selfish way when he said there wasn't another family but then she felt a bit guilty.

"Chicago..." she finished for him even as his question made her blush and look outside. "Not at the moment, no." She hesitated then decided to tell him part of her story. "I...thought you didn't care for years. We never heard from you. Then I found some of your letters. She had hidden them and never told me. It was one of the last straws along with...Darrell." The contempt in her voice a t the name made it clear she had an intense dislike of the man.
 
Jim was glad to see her grin as it indicated she hadn't been offended by his laughter, Though truth be told, he just liked seeing her smile as it meant she was happy. Of course, the smile didn't last long as the conversation took an unpleasant turn. Not entirely because of where Babs said she was living...he had met her mother in Chicago, so it wasn't real surprising she'd gone back. Nor because Babs response indicated she had had a boyfriend at one time, which leg Jim to wonder if she was a virgin, and if he had to have the sex talk with her. And truth be told, he wasn't surprised that Bab's mother had hid his letters from her...the surprising part was that they hadn't been destroyed.

"I never stopped caring about you." Jim promised her as he reached out with a hand and gently laid it on her knee, squeezing it for reassurance. "I never wanted you to leave. I didn't even know what she had planned until I came home to an empty apartment." Jim didn't want to bash his ex, but he wanted Babs to have the full story, so he related the events of the worst night of his life as calmly as he could. "When you never wrote back, I figured youi weren't interested in hearing from me, which made it harder to write the letters."

One didn't have to be a detective to pick up on the contempt in Bab's voice when she said the name. "Who's Darrell?" Jim asked.
 
She smiled as he tried to reassure her and it was her turn to laugh though there wasn't much humor in it."So we're both idiots who thought the other one didn't care..." She felt her eyes mist with happy tears and smiled at him. "Maybe we can both make up for lost time."

Her good humor didn't last after he asked about Darrell. She looked away, shrugging. "Mom's latest boyfriend. He's.... well, he'd have been at home on that bus." Her tone made it clear she didn't want to talk about him anymore but she said one last thing in a quiet voice. "I won't go back there. I'll live on the street first..."
 
"Yup...I'm an idiot." Jim was happy to accept that label if it put Babs in a good mood, but he wasn't about to paint her with the same brush. He squeezed her leg once more then nodded. "I'd like that." He told her. True, having a teenage girl suddenly in his life could be the equivalent of a wrecking ball to the bachelor life he had perfected, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

Jim frowned intently when Babs associated the mysterious Darrell with the bus. He didn't know the details of what had happened to her, but he did know she had wound up naked except for her shoes which was a very bad sign. It was clear Babs didn't want to talk about it, but Jim couldn't just let it go. "I still have some friends in the Chicago PD if you want to press charges." Jim offered, then shook his head adamantly at her next statement.

"That's not going to happen." Jim said firmly. There was no way in hell his daughter was going to live on the streets. "I'll talk to Harvey...Harvey Dent, a lawyer with the DA's office...tomorrow and see what paperwork we need to make sure I get official custody of you." That would, of course, require even more money Jim wasn't sure how to get, but he'd figure it out. He had to.
 
She smiled when he let her know he'd like to repair their relationship and she nodded eagerly in reply.

She was a bit surprised when he mentioned his friends in the Chicago PD but she shook her he's "Thank you but there's no point. There's no point and mom..." she paused briefly and couldn't hide the hurt in her voice when she continued "wouldn't believe it and would take his side."

She briefly looked intrigued when he said he'd talk to Harvey though less so when he clarified it was a different Harvey. Still she nodded then turned a thoughtful gaze his way. "I bet there's a law where it's illegal to deprive a parent of visitation rights without a good reason. You have like ten years of rights to catch up on. And I'm 16 maybe I can just apply to he emancipated? "
 
Jim returned her smile. He had no idea how to go about repairing a ten year rift, but he knew he'd do his best to make it happen. Even if his first efforts regarding this mysterious Darrell didn't seem to be doing much. "There's always a point in arresting someone who has committed a crime." Jim said firmly. He wanted to support Babs, but right now she was going against one of his core beliefs. "And it doesn't matter what she believes. All that matters is what the judge believes." But he wasn't going to push her into running away from him as well. If she wanted to pursue this, he'd be there for her.

"I don't think I ever really had visitation rights." Jim admitted. "Once she left, I couldn't track her down, so she could never be served the paperwork." It was a screwed up system, but it was what they had to deal with. He was forced to shake his head at her second idea as well. "You know Mom would never agree to that." Jim said, though truthfully he wasn't sure she would fight it. Or rather, she probably would fight it as a way of getting back at him. "And unless you have a steady source of income..." Which would certainly help Jim's money issues..."No judge is ever going to approve it." Jim reached out and squeezed her thigh again. "But don't worry about it. You aren't going back to Chicago, and you aren't living on the streets." He declared.
 
She heard the conviction in his voice when he spoke of justice and the courts. She looked at him, a bit of admiration in her gaze and nodded. "I know what you mean. I guess, I guess I'm just not used to the bad guys getting what they deserve. They certainly didn't on that bus." She smirked. "Well, until I punched one of them and kicked the other one onto his ass. Sadly, I don't think I got to do anyone to the one who grabbed my panties as I fled." She narrowed her eyes as she thought back. "I wish I had been able to give Harvey better descriptions so he could find them too. Maybe the one he captured will tell him who they are or something." She circled the conversation back around to Darrell. "I mean, if you think it's worth trying, I won't say no. I just think that the cops will say there's no proof and they can't do anything. You know? And really, most of what he did was...well. him being an asshole. Yelling at me, treating me like dirt. Stuff that sucks but isn't really cop stuff, you know?" She looked away, not clarifying if there was other, worse stuff.

She turned her focus back to him when he shot down her other two ideas though she debated the income part of it. "Well, I'm 16. I'll have to enroll back in high school of course, but maybe I can get a part time job? Maybe in one of those libraries you talked about. Oh! Or maybe there is something I could do with the GCPD? Like be a secretary or something?" Her mind raced as she considered possibilities. Her hand came down to rest gently on his as he squeezed her thigh, her lips curving once more into a smile. "I'm not worried. Captain Gordan is on my side."
 
"All too often they don't." Jim was forced to agree. "But that doesn't mean we just give up. One success in this line of work can save someone's life. That's why we have to keep fighting. And sooner or later people like that always get what they deserve." He grinned at her when she reiterated the fact she'd punched one of them and added the detail about knocking the second on his ass. His grin faded, however, when she talked about a boy grabbing her panties. That was a mental image he did not want in his head. But he could still do something about the identification part. "Maybe you can look through some mug shots sometime, and see if you can finger them." Jim offered, seriously doubting the captured one woudl turn on hsi friends. The last one who had tried that had wound up dead in his cell, a fact Babs did not need to know.

"I don't know if its worth trying or not." Jim was forced to admit. If all he did was yell at Babs, well, that wasn't against the law. "I mean...did he ever...touch you?" Jim wasn't talking about a hug or a simple reassuring squeeze on the thigh, like he had given Babs a few times already, and he knew Babs knew it. he didn't want to push if she didn't want to talk about it, but he had to know a bit more to see if it was worth a phone call.

"Yes, I'm sure High School registration will be part of it." Jim nodded, grateful that wasn't going to be a fight. "And if you want to get a job, you have my support." She had more than his support, as a second income, even a part time one, would help out a lot at the expenses he saw quickly adding up. "There are always openings." He said vaguely, not at all sure he wanted his daughter working for the GCPD, even as support, and being exposed to the kind of crap he saw on a daily basis. So he didn't specify where those openings might be. Or point out the fact that a part time income was a long way from the resources she would need to qualify for emancipation.

He did grin over at her when she said he was on her side. "Forever and always." he promised her.
 
She nodded along as he agreed with her assessment then listened seriously when he talked about not giving up and why it was worth the fight. Once again she thought back to how she'd been angered that no one helped and wanted to change that. To be a person who would help if she could. Thus when he mentioned mugshots she nodded without hesitation. "I'll do my best. I didn't get a good look at one of them, he was usually behind me, grabbing my hair and my..." She trailed off and cleared her throat, looking away in embarrassment. "But the one on the seat next to me I saw, he's the one I kicked. Maybe we'll get lucky and he'll have my shoe print in his chest when you get him. They were all just teenage boys, about my age, maybe a little older if that helps to narrow it down." She told him what street they got on as well, in case it was important.

She swallowed when he asked if Darrell had ever touched her. She looked away, trying to decide how to answer it. She didn't want to lie but she didn't want to give too many details either. "He tried, the night before I finally decided to run away. He cornered me in the bathroom and said something about how I was just a useless brat and should earn my keep and he put his hand up my skirt. He stopped because mom got home but I think if she hadn't, things might have gotten worse. I packed my backpack that night and left, after I tried to tell me and she accused me of...well...trying to get between them." Once more the hurt was hard to hide when she talked about her mother's reaction.

Perhaps to distract herself from this discussion or perhaps simply because she had an organized mind she latched on to the discussion about high school and a job. "So, we need to get my transcripts. I think you'll be happy with them. I was well on my way to valedictorian. Luckily it's summer so I didn't leave in the middle of a school year or anything so no problems there. Hmmm...as for a job, I really do like the idea of working in a library but if you have other ideas I'd love to hear them. I think if I worked at the GCPD people would say it was just because you're my dad." She rolled her eyes though she looked thoughtful. "Still, maybe being there would be reassuring. And it'd certainly be safe."
 
"I know you will." Jim hadn't spent a lot of time with his daughter...less than half an hour really if he thought about it....but his job had given him the finely honed ability to read people, and he was getting a real good read off of Babs. His senses weren't infallible, true, but he had a good feeling about this one. He arched his eyebrow a bit when Babs declined to mention just what body part the boy had grabbed, but it wasn't hard to guess. He didn't want confirmation though so he didn't address the issue. "Maybe." Jim said with a nod. "And yes...it helps. They are probably enrolled in high school, even if they rarely bother showing up in class. So that narrows it down a bit." The street didn't really help at all. It was Ghost Dragon territory, and Jim had already guessed that.

But it was Darrell he was more concerned with. Jim's hands tightened on the steering wheel when she told him a stranger had put his hands up her skirt. "That's worth making a phone call to Chicago about." Jim said firmly. "Yes, its hearsay, but people like that...you aren't going to be his first and only victim. Someone else will talk, and then someone else, and soon there will be a case against him." Optimistic? Perhaps, but Jim was damn sure going to try.

"I'm sure." Jim said with a smile, easily going along with Babs topic change. "And yeah, we have plenty of time to figure out the high school situation. As for a job...yes, nepotism is a problem we need to be careful of." Jim really didn't want his daughter having anything to do with law enforcement, so he was happy that she offered that up as an excuse. He couldn't help but snort a bit when she claimed the precinct was safe. There had been a bombing attempt on the building just last week, and that was just the tip of the ice berg. "Library sounds good." Jim agreed readily, then paused thoughtfully when she asked if he had any other recommendations. He glanced out the window and saw the 'Wayne Enterprises...building a better Gotham' sign. "Though I've heard Waynetech has a pretty good intern program. How are you with computers?"
 
She realized he wasn't going to let this thing with Darrell go. She got it but she had less hope than he did that anything would come up. Still, she understood his drive to see justice done and she wanted it to happen to. She nibbled her lip thoughtfully though as another potential complication came up. She knew she had to bring it up, in case he hadn't thought of it so she did, her hand squeezing his gently where it still rested on her thigh. "What if it makes mom mad and she fights harder to make me go back?"

She wondered how he'd react to the question or if it had already occurred to him and he was willing to risk it. She was glad when he went along with her topic change however and nodded along. She hadn't missed that he seemed to have a reluctance to have her work at the police station. She figured he was worried about her seeing criminals and hearing about some of the things that happened. Maybe he also thought the cops would tease him or even act like chauvinist jerks to her. She contemplated that but was distracted by his agreeing with the library idea. However, it was his next words that really caught her attention. "Waynetech? They're huge! And I am good with computers! Really good! I was actually the computer teacher's assistant at my old school and wrote a program that helped our librarian track the books better than the system he was using!" She decided not to tell him she'd also done some hacking as well. He probably wouldn't approve, even if she'd done it for good reasons. She blinked as it suddenly occurred to her, her skills might be helpful with the situation with her mom and Darrell. Maybe she could find some useful information out there somewhere.
 
"That's possible." Jim admitted. "But even the implication that Mom is seeing a sexual predator will raise a ton of red flags with the judge. No one in their right mind would send you into a situation like that, so I think it's well worth the risk. And I'll tell Paul to keep the investigation on the DL at first, until he can find another vic...witness. I can't see the harm in launching a low key investigation just to see what might be out there."

Jim chuckled softly at Bab's reaction to Waynetech. "You can't go a block in this city without running into the name Wayne." Jim declared. It was a bit of an exaggeration, but not much. He smiled broadly as she jumped on his idea. Working for Waynetech sounded FAR better than working at the precinct. "That's great, sweetheart." Jim said with a nod. He was a dinosaur with computers, so he didn't really follow exactly what she had done at her old school, but then, he wasn't the one she needed to impress. "How's this...maybe we can work on your resume this week, then you can come with me to the gala this weekend and hand Mr. Wayne the resume in person." Was it fair? Using his connections as a police Captain to get his daughter a possible interview? Perhaps not, but it wasn't like he was using his position to force Wayne to hire Babs. He just wanted to make sure her resume got the attention it deserved.

And truth be told...West Valley High was a known hot spot for the Ghost Dragons, and he didn't want Babs anywhere near the place. The job with Waynetech also came with a scholarship to one of the private schools in Gotham. He wasn't sure how well Babs would fit in there, but he knew damn well she'd be safer.
 
She nodded as he explained his reasoning for pursuing things with Darrell. It hadn't even occurred to her that even the accusation would make it harder for her to go back. The more she thought about it, the more she suspected her mother might not even fight it that hard anyway so she merely smiled at him. "Alright, it can't hurt to see what happens I guess. Just uhh...don't tell anyone about me? Here I mean. I mean, about what he tried to do. I know you'll have to tell some people like the cops in Chicago and stuff but I don't want people knowing who don't need to." Like many in her position, she felt some shame at what had happened even if it wasn't her fault.

She blinked as he talked more about the potential for a job at Waynetech, even if it was the internship. Her eyes widened when he mentioned the gala and meeting Bruce Wayne. She'd seen TV interviews with him and he was sometimes in online news articles as well. Still, like many girls in her position would, her mind immediately turned to, what for her, was the most important logistical problem. "Gala? I don't have anything to wear to a gala. I don't think your old workout sweats will work, even if right now they're the most amazing things I've ever worn."

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Do you have a computer at home? If not, I can use one in the library for the resume. if I have time maybe I can even write a small program or something to show what I can do and give it to him on a USB." Or check my server for one of the ones I already wrote. I can just download it and tweak it a bit. Maybe the one I wrote that can track a person by their online activities like checking in on Facebook. She thought, becoming absorbed in planning out how she'd impress Mister Wayne with her computer skills.
 
"That's right. It won't hurt anything." Jim promised, hoping he wasn't lying, but he couldn't see the harm in having a few questions asked. He frowned for a moment when she asked him not to tell anyone about her...it would be hard, if not impossible, to keep her existence a secret...but then she kept talking and he relaxed as he understood what she meant. That, he could do. "I won't." He promised. "And I'm sure Harvey will keep it a secret as well." Jim didn't trust Harve with a lot, but not to mention a teenage girl had almost been raped? Yeah, Harve would keep quiet about that even without prompting.

"And you look amazing in them." Jim chuckled, though he had the feeling under the circumstances Babs would have been happy if he gave her a plastic trash bag to wear. "But don't worry, we can rent you a dress." Jim would have liked to just buy her one, but he wasn't sure how much one might cost and didn't want to promise something he couldn't deliver. Thankfully her next request was a bit easier. "Yes, I have a computer. I'm old, but not that old." He teased her. He blinked at the rest of her statement. He knew what a USB was, and of course he knew what a computer program was, but he had no idea how such a thing would impress the CEO of Wayne Enterprises. But he was happy Babs was on board with his idea, and wasn't going to discourage her. "Sounds like a plan." He said with a firm nod.
 
She blinked when he mentioned Harvey, looking at him in a bit of confusion, then she realized he meant the DA, not the detective she had meant and she nodded. In truth, it hadn't occured to her to worry about the lawyer but she was still happy that her dad thought he wouldn't say anything.

She actually blushed a little when he said she looked amazing in the sweats. She looked down at them and then back at him, rolling her eyes in that 'you're silly dad' teenage girls are masters of doing. Still, she looked pleased at the compliment. "Maybe we can wash them and I can cut the sleeves off and cut the legs so they're shorts and use them to sleep in or something. Besides, I'll need workout clothes too. I was in track and field at my old school and I don't want to get out of shape, you know?"

His idea to rent a dress made sense though she noticed a slight worried look on his face. It wasn't hard for her to guess the reason and she made plans to pay him back for the expenses he'd have now as soon as she could. Suddenly, a job became even more important to her. She laughed at his retort about the computer and shrugged slightly. "Well, you're a bit of a dinosaur, so I wasn't sure." She decided to tease him back a little. She leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms as she thought. "This could be great. Working at Waynetech, living here. I like that we have a plan already dad. I'm determined to make it happen. Thank you for suggesting it and I'll do my best not to let you down."
 
"Well, we definitely need to wash them." Jim agreed with a laugh. "But no need to butcher my wardrobe. I'm sure they make sweats that are actually your size, and I have some old clothes you can sleep in for now." At least Babs didn't sleep nude, it seemed, so that was one headache they didn't need to deal with. "When we get home, we can make a list of clothes you'll need." Jim promised her, hoping it wouldn't be too extensive. Workout clothes wasn't an extravagance though as far as he was concerned. And yes, Babs did appear to be in excellent shape, but he thought it best not to dwell on that either.

"Hey...the dinosaurs predated me by at least a decade, young lady, and don't you forget it." Jim tried to use his best 'stern' tone but the chuckle he let out ruined the effect. He nodded at the rest of her statement. "Plans are good, but don't get too tied down to one. If this one doesn't work, we'll find something that does." Jim promised her as he automatically turned the corner to the street his house was on. It was a little tract house on the outskirts of town...not much, but it was what he could afford. At least the crime rate wasn't astronomically high. "Well, home sweet home." Jim said as he turned into the driveway of a little blue house. The front yard looked very nondescript, without so much as a flowerbed, but the lawn was neatly trimmed, though that was perhaps due to the blonde teenage girl, dressed in a purple V-neck shirt and brown shorts, who was currently mowing the lawn. She looked over as the car pulled into the driveway with a surprised look on her face, then gave a tentative wave.
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She shrugged as he said she didn't need to 'butcher' the clothes, her nose wrinkling slightly. "Well, considering the stains and stuff, I didn't think these held a lot of sentimental value for you. I think I'd look better in them than you would anyway, but yeah, they're kinda baggy on me." Her tone was teasing though there is perhaps some truth in spite of that. She grinned as he said not to go tied down on a plan and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, you haven't seen me at work yet. By the time we go to that gala I'll have memorized facts to impress Mister Wayne and he won't be walking out of there without my resume." Despite her normal shyness in social situations, she had a determination when it came to things like this. Things where she felt her intellect would carry her through.

She smiled as they pulled up into the house, leaning forward to look at it better as they pulled into the driveway. Still, her eyes were drawn to the teenager mowing the yard and she gave him a bit of a suspicious look when they waved at each other. It was almost jealous in a way, though in that innocent way of a girl not liking her dad paying attention to someone else. She snorted and looked back at the girl. "Who's that?"
 
"Who said anything about sentiment?" Jim looked at her like she'd just insulted him. "I'm just saying they are nice and broken in, and we can get you something nicer to wear." Besides, he still remembered the view she'd given him down her shirt when she bent over, and he didn't want that happening on a regular basis. "But yes, you look better in them than I do, but you could say that about my entire wardrobe." He pointed out, then grinned when she laid out her plan to ambush Mr. Wayne. "He won't know what hit him." Jim said with a slight chuckle, though secretly he hoped Babs wasn't setting herself up for a major disappointment.

Jim saw Babs lean forward, and made sure to pay attention to his driving so as not to get another peek down her shirt. Jim sighed a bit when Babs questioned him about Chloe, the last thing he wanted was teenage drama in the neighborhood. "That's Chloe Sullivan. She lives next door. She..." Jim trailed off a bit, not sure how much of Chloe's private life to share with Babs. "My job keeps me pretty busy, so I don't always have time to keep up with maintenance. So I hire her to help out from time to time."
 
She smirked at his reply but she nodded. Barbara herself hadn't really noticed how the shirt gapped around her neck yet but that was largely because after her earlier experiences the clothes practically felt like medieval armor to her. She grinned at his comment about Mister Wayne though she could hear a small bit of concern in his voice. She got it but in this, at least, she was fairly confident. "That's the plan dad."

He noticed the hesitation when he had been about to say something about the other girl. She looked at him briefly, then at her again and nods. She considers telling him she'll do those things but truthfully, she now has some new goals in mind and mowing yards don't fit those goals. She feels slightly guilty as she realizes she could save him some money but she senses he hires her for other reasons, possibly because the girl needs help so she comforts herself in that. "Chloe Sullivan. I guess my surprise at seeing her will be nothing to her surprise when she meets me huh?" She grinned at him and opened the door, grabbing her pack and stepping out next to the door, curious how this will go.
 
Plans were one thing...execution was another. Bruce Wayne moved in some rarified circles and it took a lot to impress him. Jim had only managed it when he'd save some Waynetech employees during one of the Ridler's stupid games. Jim hoped Babs wouldn't have to go that far. But he kept his reservations to himself. Babs didn't need her sole supporter in town to start undermining her. "That's the plan." He confirmed, though eh was more concerned what her reaction would be to Chloe.

But once again she impressed him. He could tell she sensed he was holding back on the whole Chloe thing, but Babs didn't push it. "Perhaps." Jim said with a slight shrug. He never really talked about his former family with Chloe...or with anyone...but he hadn't tried to hide it either. So he wasn't sure how much the blonde had pieced together. He climbed out of the car as well and waved at Chloe again, and the teen took it as an invitation to come over.

"I'm sorry, Li...Captain Gordon." Chloe quickly corrected herself after remembering Jim's recent promotion. "I didn't think you'd be home this early. I can finish it up later." She offered, but Jim shook his head.

"It's fine, Chloe." He assured her, then gestured over at Babs. "I'd like you to meet my daughter, Barbara."

Chloe blinked at the red head with a bit of surprise. "Your bigger than your pictures." She blurted out, then turned a shade of red. "I mean, nice to meet you, Barbara. I'm Chloe. But then you already knew that." Chloe blushed a bit more, and the smile faded from her face as she realized she was probably looking at the new lawn care specialist for James Gordon. "Oh." She said softly.
 
She watched her dad and Chloe speak. The girl seemed quite polite with him and clearly kept up with his career. She wondered if it was just common knowledge or if they spent a lot of time talking. Barbara blinked at Chloe's blurted words and glanced at her dad, quickly realizing that if he had any pictures of her they'd be when she was, at most, 4 or 5. She wondered when the other girl had had a chance to see them but when she looked back and saw the blush she smiled slightly, and tucked her hair back behind her ear as she hefted her pack on her shoulder, an impressive feat since the pack was almost totally empty other than her wallet, cell phone and charger.

"I knew that as of a few minutes ago yes. Dad and I haven't really had a lot of time to catch up. It's been a crazy day since I got into town." She blushed as she remembered some of the recent events and smiled slightly at the other girl. "It's nice to meet you too." She noticed the other girl's quiet oh and nibbled her lip, glancing between the two of them trying to figure out what was bothering the other girl. "My dad did tell me you're really helpful to him since he can't be around as much as he'd like to do stuff like mowing the yard." She let out a somewhat dramatic sigh. "I have to do stuff like get my transcripts for school, get registered at a school and get a job so uhhh...I guess I won't be able to do that stuff. It's good you're here to help him otherwise he'd probably try to talk me into it and I doubt I'll have time." It was really a wild stab in the dark on her part based on her own earlier musings.
 
Jim wasn't an expert in teen speak by any means, but at the very least the two girls appeared to be acting civil to each other, so Jim counted that as a win. Jim couldn't help but nod as Babs mentioned her crazy arrival, but Chloe didn't catch the hidden meaning. "Yeah, Gotham can be a crazy town." Chloe agreed as she watched the red head put the bag on her shoulders. "So are you visiting for a few days?" Chloe didn't see any bags in the rear seat...it looked like all Babs had brought was the backpack, which didn't look like it had enough for more than a day or two.

Chloe then blushed even redder as Babs revealed she'd been the subject of conversation. "Oh." Chloe said again, at a loss as to what else to say, until Babs announced she wasn't out of a job, which perked Chloe right up. "That's great! I mean...sorry you'll be so busy..." But Chloe didn't mean it, and she suspected everyone there knew it, so she tried to barrel on past that awkward moment. "If you want help registering with school, I could totally do that." Chloe offered eagerly. "I can tell you who all the best teachers are, and what classes are a waste of time." She then got a confused look on her face. If Babs was talking about school, she was going to be here a while. So where were her bags? "Do you need some help with your bags?" Chloe asked, giving Jim a confused look now. She'd just vacuumed the house, so she knew damn well the Captain hadn't rearranged anything to accommodate his daughter. So was her visit a surprise? Did people actually do that outside of the movies? Jim just shrugged lightly and kept his mouth shut. Any answers were Babs to give, not his.
 
Barbara listened to Chloe as she seemed to babble on a bit. She wondered if the other girl was nervous, maybe feeling threatened by her. She smiled slightly as she remembered her own feelings of only a few minutes ago. It was interesting to see things from the other perspective. She noticed Chloe's blush when she said she'd been the subject of conversation and thought back to her intuition that there was more her dad hadn't told her. She decided to put the other girl's mind at ease, casually saying "He didn't say much really. He told me you were neighbors and you helped him out with chores and stuff, oh, and your name of course."

Barbara nodded at the other girl's offer, though she did shoot a brief look at her dad before turning her gaze back to Chloe. "I don't know what school I'll be going to yet. I guess if you live next door, it might be the same one you do but I guess dad will have a better idea about that stuff. You too actually. If it's the same one, that'd be great!"

When Chloe offered to help with her bags she realized she was faced with a decision. The girl seemed nice but she didn't really know her and her brief time in Gotham had made her wary. She nibbled her lip and decided to be as vague as possible. "This backpack is it. I had some trouble with some guys called Ghost Dragons. They stole all my stuff." She motioned to the stained sweats she was wearing. "Things got pretty scary for awhile but I managed to get away. Anyway, Dad didn't know I was coming so.." She shrugged, not sure what else to say and not sure she wants to go into detail so she just adds "it's complicated."
 
"Oh." That seemed to be Chloe's favorite expression, but every time she said it there seemed to be a different inflection behind it. Now the word seemed to radiate relief that Babs didn't know much more about Chloe than Chloe knew about Babs. Chloe then shifted her gaze to Jim for a moment. Unless the Captain pulled some strings, Babs would be going to the same school Chloe was...but the Captain was keeping quiet on the subject, which in Chloe's experience meant he had some sort of plan in progress. But it wasn't Chloe's place to intervene in that so she kept her mouth shut for once.

Chloe screwed her face up in disgust when Babs mentioned the Ghost Dragons. "Ugh...those guys suck. I wish Batman would beat them all up." She said with conviction, then her eyes widened when Babs gestured at her ill-fitting outfit. "You mean they..." Chloe began to blurt out, then literally bit her lip. Babs clearly didn't want to talk about it, for obvious reasons, so Chloe didn't want to ask. Nor did she push further into the reason behind Babs sudden visit, knowing full well that 'it's complicated' was code for mind your own business.

So Chloe moved on to more practical items. She ran her gaze over Babs...it was hard to tell with the baggy sweats and all, but it looked like they were the same size, or close enough. "You can borrow some of my clothes, if it will help." Chloe offered. "And are you hungry? I could order a pizza or something." Chloe knew full well Jim didn't always take the time to eat, so she doubted he had thought to offer Babs anything either. The chagrined look on Jim's face clearly showed that Chloe was right.
 
Barbara found herself agreeing with Chloe's assessment of the Ghost Dragons and she couldn't help a small brag. "I did break one of their noses when I made my escape then Harv...uhhh..Detective Bullock arrested him and got my phone and wallet back." When Chloe started to blurt out her thoughts about what had happened Barbara blushed and shook her head. "No..they didn't uhh.." She looks at her dad then back at Chloe. "They uhh...took my clothes but they didn't...you know. They might have I think but I didn't give them the chance."

Barbara blinked at Chloe's offer and nodded eagerly. "I'll get them back to you once I get some new ones but, well, these sweats are heavenly after earlier but I'd love to have something that smelled less like a gym session." She smirked playfully at her dad only for her stomach to growl loudly at Chloe's next question. "I guess I am. I haven't eaten since, well, yesterday actually." She hadn't had much money when she fled her mom's place and had spent most of it on the bus ticket to Gotham so had not had a chance to buy a meal today.
 
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