Wingman

"...So what does any of this have to do with me?"

"I need a wingman."

"What's that?" Jason looked confused.

"When a fighter plane goes on a mission, another plane usually flies alongside it for support. If the attack fails, the lead plane retreats while the wingman covers it," Roland explained. "If necessary, it takes the enemy down with it."

"...So you want me to go down with the enemy, is that it?"

"Enough talk. Clear the runway, start your engines, and let's go!"

Jason rolled his eyes and followed Roland.

"Are you sure this is where you want to be?" Looking at the glittering, opulent building before them, Jason felt out of place. "This is the rich part of town. You're not lost, are you?"

"Underestimating me, huh?" Roland glanced at Jason. "I have a feeling I'll meet a lonely, pretty girl here."

"I have a feeling you're going to crash and burn here." Jason's mouth twitched.

"Shh!" Roland suddenly gestured for silence. "Listen closely."

"To what?" Jason asked blankly.

"The piano." Roland closed his eyes. "So sweet and melodious. You can tell just from the music that a lonely young lady must be playing it."

"How can you possibly tell?"

"Haven't you heard the story about the musician who found someone who truly understood him through his music?" Roland headed toward the sound.

"Never heard of it." Jason shrugged. "I think you're fantasizing again. It'll be hilarious if the pianist turns out to be a man."

"Not a chance."

They reached a lavishly decorated restaurant, where someone was playing the piano in the lobby.

It was a dark-haired girl with skin so fair it was almost translucent. Tall and slender, she wore a little white evening dress, her delicate, pale fingers dancing nimbly across the keys.

"What did I tell you?" Roland shot Jason a smug look.

"...I think you're celebrating too soon." Jason pointed at the tall, handsome man beside the girl. "She's taken."

"No!!!"

"Saying no won't help." Jason teased him. "Unless you want to fight Gotham City's number one playboy over a woman."

"Gotham City's number one... Bruce Wayne?" Roland rubbed his eyes. "So that's what the guy really looks like."

"The way you said that... Have you met him before?"

Of course I have. He smashed right through my church window, Roland thought. Then something occurred to him. "Isn't this guy filthy rich? Hurry up and get our people to sell him flowers. Charge him triple... No, five times the price!"

"Right!" Jason raced off.

But shortly after Jason left, a girl in a green trench coat and an emerald-green face mask approached. She carried a basket of roses, clearly another flower seller.

Damn it, competition stealing our business? Watching the girl approach, Roland immediately went on alert. He straightened his clothes, stepped in front of her, and said, "Child, have you heard of God?"

The flower girl froze. What was this about?

"God is love, sister. I'd like to borrow a little of your time to tell you about our Heavenly Father and Savior..." Roland launched straight into an improvised sermon to buy Jason some time.

Don't blame me for playing dirty. That's just business! Roland cackled inwardly.

"Sorry, Father, but I have other things to do. I don't have time for this." A dangerous glint flashed through the flower girl's eyes before she took Roland's hand. "Perhaps we can discuss it in private another time."

Who'd talk about Jesus when we're alone together? We should talk about... Wait, is she trying to seduce me? Before Roland could react, he felt a sudden sting in his hand, followed by an enchanting flash of green before his eyes.

Roland's head grew foggy. His thoughts stopped, and he began walking toward that green.

Seeing this, the flower girl paid Roland no further attention. She walked into the restaurant and asked Bruce Wayne in an affectedly sweet voice, "Hey, handsome, would you like to buy a bouquet of roses for this pretty lady?"

"Sure." Bruce took out a banknote and handed it to her. "Keep the change."

"Thank you." The girl nodded, placed the roses in Bruce's hands, and left with the money.

Jason returned with one of his underlings just in time to see it. He cursed under his breath. "How did someone steal our customer? What the hell was Roland doing?"

"Boss Roland seems to be over there." The boy pointed in the direction Roland was wandering, looking utterly dazed.

"What the hell is he up to?" Jason was baffled. "And why are you calling him boss?"

"You're our boss, and he's your boss. Of course I'd call him boss too."

"What are you talking about..." Jason rolled his eyes. "Keep selling flowers. I'll go see what he's doing."

"Okay."

Jason trailed Roland, watching him head into increasingly deserted surroundings until he entered a desolate garden.

"What's going on..." Sensing something was wrong, Jason didn't follow him inside. Instead, he ran to a nearby tall building and looked down into the garden.

There was no telling how long the garden had been abandoned. Thick vines covered even the railings, and the large trees along its edges blocked Jason's view of what was happening inside.

"What kind of place is this? You could have sex out here without worrying about anyone peeking..." Jason suddenly realized something. "Is that really what he's here for?"

But he soon discovered he was mistaken, because he saw Bruce Wayne enter the garden too.

Bruce's reputation as a playboy was well known throughout Gotham, but no one had ever said he had any interest in men.

Roland gradually came to his senses, only to find Bruce Wayne trussed up in vines like a parcel.

"What's going on?" Utterly confused, Roland tried to move, only to discover that he, too, was bound in vines.

"Hello there." A red-haired beauty walked up to them.

She wore a strapless, high-cut leotard, long gloves, tall boots, and bright green tights, looking stunningly seductive.

"What a pretty girl. What's your name?" Roland asked, wriggling in his bonds.

"Pamela Lillian Isley," Bruce said calmly. "So it's you."

"You two know each other?" The name sounded vaguely familiar to Roland.

"She used to intern at Wayne Enterprises," Bruce said.

"That certainly was an unforgettable experience." The beauty smiled. "Not only did you fire me, but you used the nondisclosure agreement I signed when I joined to stop me from continuing my own research after leaving Wayne Enterprises."

"Capitalists really have no humanity when it comes to exploiting their employees." Roland gave Bruce a contemptuous look, then said, "But I haven't done anything to you. Why did you tie me up too?"

"You held me up for ages just now. Have you already forgotten?"

"Could we call that a misunderstanding?" Roland asked earnestly. "Take these vines off me. I can help you bite Bruce!"