#cassrae

Cassandra was a force to be reckoned with, lightning fast and twice as fierce. Before Raven could have a chance to register half of the group’s presence, the fight was already drawing to a close. The bat gave her last opponent a solid strike against the jaw, and then allowed herself to collapse to the floor.

With the room still, the mage finally began approaching the bat.

“She has an interesting… style,” Raven observed, gauging her spike in conflicting emotions after she settled onto the ground in apparent exhaustion.

“Seeing as this is your first time meeting, that has me a little worried,” Babs’ voice chimed in over the comms, “Batgirl’s an excellent combatant, as you’ve no doubt surmised. Honestly, anything I could say about her would be an understatement of her skill. She’s good. Insanely good. ‘Interesting’ doesn’t even begin to cut it-”

“Who…” the bat’s voice cut through the room icily, making Raven pause. 

She had barely turned her head from the ground, glaring up at the witch and gauging her. Raven lifted up both hands, palms open and facing the vigilante, what she hoped would be interpreted as a universal sign of peace. 

“I am a friend of your friend, Oracle... Or at the very least one of the ‘good guys’,” she tried to smile, though she feared it would come off as forced.

She could pick up a flash of anger, undercut with a dash of betrayal, and did her best to project an aura of calm.

“Are you hurt? I’m here to he-”

“I’m fine,” Batgirl snapped.  

Raven’s met her rebuff with her own glare before making a clear show of tapping her comm again. 

“She’s refusing my help.”

Babs’ sigh was one teetering between relief and exasperation. 

“I feel better at least knowing I’ve got eyes on her… Look something’s come up with my Birds, can you keep watch and keep her there until I can get Robin or… until I can get someone to you?”

Raven glanced at Batgirl’s prone form still glaring up at her. 

“I think can handle that… or I could-“

“Fantastic, check back in a bit!”

“-teleport… us to you,” Raven finished half-heartedly as she heard the line go dead with a distinct click. 

She chanced a look at the bat once more, before sighing and taking a seat beside her. The bat made a small grunt as she rolled to her side, keeping the witch in her line of sight, and sizing her up.

“So… Oracle said you’re good at fighting.”

The bat continued to glare. They stared for a beat. Then another. Raven stood up and began to pace the room.

A part of her welcomed the silence, as hostile as it was.

Something caught her eye as she paced, a container clearly spilled sometime during the bat’s fight. The drugs contained within were thrown askew, and as she glanced back at the bat, she noted how blown her pupils were. Then, finally, the minute glances that wavered back and forth. Raven started to put the pieces together. She wasn’t glaring at the witch.

“Batgirl… can you tell me what you’re… seeing or hearing right now?”

Her gaze flitted back to Raven, eyes going wide as if finally perceiving her.

“... There’s a good Batgirl… and a bad Batgirl… They were… arguing.”

Raven nodded as she picked up a capsule of the drug. Oracle had given her a debrief two weeks ago on a few of the most popular choices of late. This one must be a Soul variant. She pocketed a few samples, then made a decision.

“I’m going to take you back to the Clocktower, Batgirl. The trip is… some find it unpleasant. But I assure you, you will be safe.”

“What-” Before she had a chance to ask, Raven’s cloak overtook them both, the shadows of the warehouse swelling before giving way to the faint light of Oracle’s monitors.

“A little warning is appreciated, Raven!” Barbara called over her shoulder before addressing one of her Birds on the comms.

Raven chose to ignore her, and helped Cass settle on the couch. She was shaking her head, half-heartedly attempting to shrug off the mage’s help.

“You don’t… the bad Batgirl was… she took over-”

“Obviously, you haven't seen my bad side yet,” Raven huffed with a slight smile, “Rest now, bat. May your mind be at ease.”