#tall!jazz

“She’s not from high society but has been invited as a guest with that group of people - that’s Arkham’s new director and her assistant, so she must know them. It would be a matter of cross referencing the guest list with Arkham’s staff and-”

“Yeah, yeah. You could also walk up to her and ask her to dance.”

Jason finally looked away from the towering figure of that woman. Dick’s smile was so bright he regretted humoring the conversation.

“I don’t dance.”

“What if she wants to dance?”

He would dance, of course. If that meant having her arms around him, he would dance.

But he didn’t say it. He sipped his champagne and turned back to watch her walk away from the group she had been in and gracefully weave between the other people towards the food table.

“Go! This is your chance.”

Without looking back, he gave his flute to his brother and made his way to where she was browsing through the selection of fancy foods and stupid canapés, her lower lip between her teeth.

“If you want recommendations, I suggest the mushroom stuff. They added a bit of lemon juice and that really makes a difference.”

Why the fuck was he babbling about food?

She seemed to find it funny, though, since she giggled.

“Oh, thanks! I don’t really go to events like these and I wasn’t sure what to try.” She picked up the thing he suggested and took a bite, testing if she liked it. Her eyes lit up as she chewed. “It’s good!” The tall goddess stuffed the rest of the canapé in her mouth and happily chewed. Once she swallowed, she turned to properly look at him, her hand extended. “Thanks! I’m Jasmine, by the way.”

Fitting. She also smelled like flowers.

He took her hand, taking note of her long and pointy black nails. It was unusual to see these if you weren’t in the goth scene.

“Jason,” her grip was firm and strong. Good. “I hope you are not getting bored to death, because I always do at these things.”

She politely smiled before going back to picking more food to eat. She started to pile them in a plate she had on her other hand, one after the other. Was she this hungry? He didn’t blame her, the party had been in full swing for a while and some people even arrived earlier to mingle. That’s why he always wanted to be late, less chances for social interaction.

“These are good too,” she moaned, biting on a fancy cheesy… something. Jason hadn’t tasted those yet. “Wanna try?” She offered when she saw him looking at her.

Jason looked at the canapé she extended to him, one corner bitten and with faint lipstick smudges, and decided to jump for it.

He bit on the offered food, eyes fixed on hers, his lips barely brushing her fingers.

Jasmine blushed, entranced, until she jumped as if she just realized she was staring at his lips.

“Um…”

Did she notice he was hitting on her yet?

“So, what do you usually do for fun at these parties?” She went back to eating her selected assortment of foods. “Dancing?”

“Among other things.” He nodded. “Others prefer to flaunt their riches and brag about business deals.”

Jasmine snorted. “Well, I don’t have either of those, so…”

Maybe it was how she didn’t care if she spoke with her mouth full, or how her lipstick was almost completely rubbed off, but he found it adorable.

“Wanna dance, then?” It was out before he registered his words. He refused to glance at his brother, who was probably watching, and give him the benefit of being right about the dancing thing.

That’s how he ended up dancing with an Amazonian goddess. It wasn’t that bad, the dance was easy and he could really focus on her arms around him and how her touch made his skin burn. She smiled down at him, not bothered by the looks some people were throwing at them.

“For a big guy you really dance well.”

He made her do a twirl, successfully pulling her into his arms and then twirl back away with the rhythm of the music.

“Dancing with those heels cannot be easy either,” he looked down at her feet, where indeed her five inch heels should make dancing difficult. He loved that she wore heels even though she could probably tower over everyone in the room without them.

“I have practice and good balance control,” she said with a smirk. Her smile was so kissable.

“Oh? Is that so?”

Jason took advantage of the last twirl and when he caught her, he dipped her as far as he dared. Her dress had a heart shaped neckline that accentuated her chest as she curved her body with the movement, indeed her balance making it a smooth transition even though she wasn’t expecting it. He couldn’t look away from the exposed skin, his eyes traveling from the soft curve of her bosom-

Okay, maybe he should stop reading Austen before bed.

“My eyes are up here.”

He blushed at being caught, quickly setting her back on her own two heeled feet. At least she didn’t look angry.

“I know I’m tall, and it doesn’t help when my boobs are at people’s eye level.”

“It helps that such a pretty dress highlights your chest area.”

He should really think before he opens his damn mouth. Really. One does not simply speak to a pretty lady about her boobs like that. He was a gentleman, he at least wanted to ask her to dinner before bringing up her boobs.

Jasmine laughed. “I like your honesty. Is refreshing.” The music band was starting another song. “Do you wanna continue dancing?”

He didn’t want to, but if that extended his time with her-

“I could really use a breather, if you don’t mind.”

He nodded. He would follow her anywhere she wanted.

Conversation came easier as they made their way past the groups of people dancing and talking and shaking hands, and Jason gradually felt more relaxed. Jasmine was pretty, tall, strong and very smart, and she liked to talk about anything and everything. He listened as she rambled about some movie she had seen recently, apparently a remake, and that conversation somehow was related to a Disney Princess analysis she did for college, and that she was still pissed off about her professor not giving her full marks for it.

It was around the time she was listing the reasons that said professor shouldn’t be allowed to teach anymore that they finally got outside to the pretty balcony that overlooked a well kept garden. It was bright tonight, the moon almost completely full, and the way its rays hit her was almost magical - maybe he was being a big sap and his judgment was clouded, but her skin glowed under the moonlight.

“Ah~” She sighed, taking in the cold Gotham’s night air. “Feels nice.”

“Yeah.”

“It’s so beautiful here. The garden looks so pretty at night.”

“Yeah. So pretty.” He wasn’t looking at the gardens.

Quiet was fine as well for him. He watched as Jasmine basked under the rays, eyes closed, showing the makeup she had on her eyelids. It was shimmery, highlighting her teal eyes when she had them opened, with a few layers of mascara to show off her long lashes.

It was a shame that she didn’t have more of that pretty burgundy lipstick, it looked good on her.

“My eyes are up here.” She smiled.

He had been caught staring at her lips. He looked up at her teal eyes, mesmerized with how they reflected the moon.

Beautiful.

Jasmine blushed and looked away. “Thank you.”

Oh shit, he said that out loud. “Um…” Time to improvise. “I wanted to… Well, if you want to, but If you want to meet? Outside this place.”

She looked amused. “Are you asking me out?”

“Yeah? For coffee, maybe?”

Her smile was wide, with many white teeth. She seemed to glow more than before.

“I’d love to!”

They exchanged numbers and continued talking about anything and everything, coming back inside once the cold became too much to be comfortable in. The food table was always at reach, and Jazz seemed to always be munching on tiny food. He didn’t comment on it, but made a note about it.

“And then Danny decided to be a little shit about it, and hid my books-” She stopped mid phrase, glancing up as if her name had been called.

“Everything okay?”

“It’s just… I thought I heard-” She looked at the ceiling, then at the door, then at the floor-to-ceiling windows at the back. “Jay?”

She sounded tense. “Yes?” He glanced around too, just in case.

“Please know I really enjoyed my time with you.”

That was ominous.

“Ok?”

“Also I may have been followed here by people that want me dead.”

“Ok???” He pulled out his phone to text the others, in case there was a threat. He didn’t need to be sneaky since Jazz, as she insisted to be called, was distracted by… taking off her shoes?

Just as he managed to text a “we have a situation” in the batfam group chat, Jazz put her shoes in his hands.

“Hold these for me? They were expensive and I don’t want to lose them.”

He was confused, but nodded.

The lights went out, a cold breeze sneaking into the room. Someone started screaming, and soon panic filled the otherwise peaceful party. His first instinct was to grab Jazz and run for it, but she wasn’t where he last saw her.

The breeze quickly turned into a full on gale, the noise taking away the voices of the screaming guests. His eyes adjusted a little to the change of lighting, the moonlight coming from the windows enough to guess the shapes of people and tables as Jason moved around them towards the nearest exit, ready to rush to the Manor and suit up in record time.

Someone else screamed, but it didn’t sound human - it was a weird pitch, and had static noises overlapped, like it was coming from a broken radio.

“Where is the Princess?”

There was a growl. It didn’t even sound human either.

Lights came back on, just in time to see-

It was a giant wolf, he was completely sure about that, the thing that tackled the floating figure wearing armor. The wolf moved with the speed and agility expected in a creature of its build, its size not at all a burden as it jumped to the next floating glowing person. The other creatures, around fifteen or twenty of them, all wearing armor, withdrew their swords and screamed a battlecry before lunging at the wolf.

He was about to wonder how on earth a wolf sneaked into the party venue, when he noticed that the wolf was wearing clothes - a dress he had been looking at the whole night.

He glanced at the heels still in his hands. It wasn’t difficult to make the connection.

He wanted to freak out, he really wanted to freak out at the knowledge that he had been trying to flirt with some kind of werewolf - not the weirdest thing he had ever seen, mind you - but in that moment he witnessed how one of the floating armored people just… phased through a wall and came back from the ceiling.

Ghosts, was his first thought. Made sense - floating, phasing through walls, glowing and wearing old timey clothes.

But Jasmine wasn’t a ghost, and yet her attacks ripped through the armor pieces like butter, although that may have more to do with her sharp claws.

Jason gulped, entranced by the display. She was efficient and quick on her feet, she was used to this. She was also used to fighting with that form - she used her claws to pin down one of the soldiers and her big maws to chomp down on their heads, ripping apart the bodies like they were nothing.

It was brutal. It was beautiful.

“Jason!”

He turned to find Tim on his left. He looked nervously at the fight, one hand grasping his arm to drag him away.

“We have to go. Bruce is on his way to the cave.”

This made him snap out of it. Whatever was happening here, Batman shouldn’t be involved.

“No. No, wait.”

“We have to move!” Tim tried to pull him harder, but Jason planted his feet firmly on the floor. He looked around, finding that the room had been completely evacuated with him being the only ‘civilian’ left.

“I know what’s going on.”

This made his brother stop. “You do?”

He licked his lips, unsure of what he should say. Jazz didn’t explain anything, just that these people wanted her dead and had followed her there; but they called her ‘Princess’, so something else must be going on.

“Yes. I know who the wolf is.”

Tim narrowed his eyes, glancing at the heels still in his hands. Tim didn’t see him with Jasmine, he was sure, but he could see the gears spinning behind his eyes.

“Fine, but you have to deal with B later.”

“Deal.”

With that, he was left behind with the fight still going on. Jasmine noticed him standing there, watching, and rushed to his side with a few powerful leaps, picking him up with one arm and pressing him against her body in time to leap away from a green blast.

“Why are you still here?” Her voice was distorted, deeper, a rumble coming from deep inside her chest. He could feel the vibrations through their clothes.

“Why do they want to kill you?”

“No time to explain!” She jumped again, the sensation not unlike being launched upwards with the grapple. “You have to go!”

“I can help. Throw me.”

“What!?” A growl weaved with her voice. It was the wrong moment, they were dodging the attacks from the soldier ghosts; but he couldn’t help but feel the shiver at the sound of her voice, at the sight of her sharp canines so close to his face.

“There are a lot of them and only one of you. I can help.”

“Do you think you can punch a ghost?” She confirmed they were, indeed, ghosts.

“I’ve punched worse things.”

Jazz jumped behind a turned over table and held him in front of her for a moment. He felt his face warm at the sheer size of her claws (paws?) under his arms, the sharp points barely digging on his suit jacket. He now had a chance to properly see her face, the long snout full of dangerous teeth, the same teal eyes he had gazed upon under the moonlight, the ears twitching and moving, hearing sounds that were outside the human range.

He wanted to touch her, check that the fur in the same shade of orange-red as her hair was as soft as it looked like.

“Let me help you.” He extended a hand, placing it on the side of her face. It was very soft.

Jazz leaned into the touch, a loud purr blooming in her chest.

“Alright. Are you ready?”

“Throw me in, chief.”

She found it funny. Her laugh was beautiful even in this form.

Jazz jumped from their cover, her grip secure around him as she got ready to launch him at the closest ghost. Jason had one last chance to enjoy her closeness before he was thrown like a ball at high speed at the unsuspecting soldier.

They clearly didn’t expect him coming, and he used that to his advantage, especially when his fists successfully made contact with their bodies.

It became a dance, not unlike the one they had a while ago - Jazz would literally rip their armors off, rip some limbs as well if she could, and kick them in his general direction before jumping to the next one.

Could ghosts be killed? He wondered, seeing them recover from torn heads and limbs like nothing. In any case, he didn’t hold back, deciding to roll with it and improvise like he always did. It was an easier job after he stole a sword and started stabbing and cutting until they didn’t bounce back as easily as at the beginning.

Soon, one of them, probably the leader, did the smart thing and called for retreat. They left as quickly as they came, leaving him and Jazz alone in the thrashed and empty ballroom. At least he got to keep the cool ghost sword.

“We should go.”

Jazz nodded. “Batman will be here any minute.”

There was something in the way she said his name that it made him turn to look at her. She was still in wolf form, her dress ripped and stained with green blood from her attackers.

“I assume you don’t want to stay and chat?” She shook her head. “Take me with you.”

She was so expressive even in this form. “Why?”

Why, indeed. He tried to think of an excuse, a valid reason why he had to accompany her wherever she was going, but in the end the answer was way simpler.

“I want to be with you.”

She didn’t blush, he wasn’t sure she could while in this form, but she awkwardly looked away. “Ok,” her voice was small. Cute. “I have to explain anyway.”

She had to explain, but he also had to explain a few things, especially if he was supposed to do a report on what happened and why he knew her. Bruce wouldn’t let it go, he was positive.

This was going to get so messy come morning, but for now, he wanted to go back to enjoying the moonlight with this woman.

The wolf woman chuckled from deep inside her chest and opened her arms. “Hop in, hot stuff.”

He rushed it, eager to get back close to her, grabbing her heels from where he threw them before the fight and securing his grip on the sword before letting her pick him up like he weighed nothing.

It wasn’t until they were soaring over the gardens, thanks to a powerful leap from the balcony, that he didn’t see the others completely suited up arriving at the venue. They saw him as well, eyes big and mouths open at the sight of the giant wolf in a cocktail dress carrying him away into the night.

He waved at them with the sword, just to be a little shit.

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