Chapter Text
Ryan has just left another mud filled forest that connects to the river where the trophies were lost. She didn’t find anything that resembled the description Luke gave her for Clayface’s mud. She has a couple of additional places she can look, but it’s a quiet and somewhat boring task. She knows it’s important to get these trophies off of the streets, before they do more harm and to keep Renee at bay, but the last few days have been so intense and hectic that she could really use some time to disconnect.
She slides into the driver’s seat of the batmobile, and picks up her phone to text Mary and find out if she wants to get a drink - she can hunt for mud tomorrow. When she opens her texts, she sees that the last one she received was from Sophie. It was the selfie they took for Jordan. She lingers on the face pressed against hers in the picture. Sophie’s eyes are bright - a golden brown - and her smile is warm. She genuinely looks happy, and Ryan’s smile mirrors hers, with a lightness that would suggest they weren’t just discussing something heavy minutes before.
Again, Ryan finds herself wondering how Sophie does it. No matter what Ryan has been going through, she has been able to help her find moments of peace and laughter. And that’s really what Ryan could use right now.
Ryan cell: Did you and Jordan find something to wear tomorrow?
Ryan puts her phone down, not expecting a response. It was after 11PM on a Saturday night, and she was sure Sophie wasn’t just sitting by her phone with nothing to do. To her surprise, Sophie responded.
Sophie cell: We did, actually.
Sophie sends her a picture of a dark blazer with floral print. It’d been a little while since Ryan saw her in any kind of blazer. She liked getting to see Sophie’s style more these days, but she had to admit that she had a soft spot for that look too.
Ryan cell: That’ll look good on you
Sophie cell: 🥰 I’ll send you a picture of me and Jordan tomorrow.
Ryan cell: Looking forward to it
Sophie cell: How’s patrol?
Ryan cell: I’m over it.
Sophie cell: Want to come by?
Another surprise from Sophie. Ryan did not expect her to be home right now. And, surprising herself, Ryan is glad about it.
Ryan cell: I’m about 15 minutes away.
Sophie cell: I’ll be up. The patio door is unlocked.
Ryan cell: On my way.
~~~~~
Ryan lands on Sophie’s balcony, and lets herself in through the patio door, as Sophie instructed.
R: “Hey!”
S: “Hey, I’ll be right there. Just opening a bottle of wine.”
Sophie looks over her shoulder and smiles before returning her attention to her task. She is standing at the sink, screwing the opener into the cork, wearing a pair of structured and cuffed black shorts and a chiffon, white, low scoop-neck tank. Ryan takes off her gloves and the cowl and places them on the kitchen table, and then drapes her cape over the back of a dining chair. She slowly enters the apartment, taking it in as she looks around.
R: “This is nice.”
S: “Thanks. Here.”
Sophie walks up to Ryan and hands her a glass of wine, and then she takes a seat on her couch. Ryan remains standing, but has a sip of her Pinot.
R: “You look great. Were you heading out?”
S: “Just got in when you texted…”
R: “Oh?”
S: “Yeah...from a date…with Riley.”
R: “Ah, Riley... How’d that go?”
Ryan looks around the apartment, trying not to seem as curious as she is.
S: “I don’t think it’s going to work out.”
R: “Why not?”
S: “I’m just not that into her.”
R: “Because of Deja?”
S: “Eh, I never even texted her back.”
R: “Love ‘em and leave ‘em Sophie Moore. Who knew?”
This catches Sophie off guard and she laughs into her drink. Ryan finally takes a seat opposite her on the couch, suddenly feeling more relaxed.
S: “I’m not that bad, am I?”
R: “Nah. I’m not judging. No shame in having a little fun. But, I am a little curious...”
S: “I can tell. You’ve been keeping pretty close track of my dating life lately, Ms. Wilder.”
Ryan can’t argue with that, so she just moves forward with her question, instead.
R: “Is that what it is? Are you just having fun, or are you out there looking for something serious?”
S: “I don’t know. I think I’m just living. I’ve spent my life planning out every move, and doing exactly what I thought I was supposed to do next, to the point that I ended up divorced in my twenties. I’m trying to be present for a change, and see what happens when I get there.”
R: “That makes sense. How’s it working out for you, so far?”
S: “It’s different…not always comfortable, but that’s not a bad thing. I’ve been enjoying some of the surprises.”
Sophie smiles, meaningfully, and Ryan grins back, before taking another drink from her glass. She can relate. Sophie is definitely full of surprises, including the ones she brings out of Ryan.
S: “What about you? You talked about wanting to date the other night?”
R: “I did, didn’t I?”
S: “So…?”
R: “So, I think you’re right. I can’t just date anyone. I tried that with Imani, and that didn’t work. I don’t like having to keep so many secrets, feeling flaky, or trying to explain why I’m busted up or unavailable. It just makes me look bad, feel guilty, and it doesn’t feel fair to them.”
S: “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you should have to be alone, either.”
R: “And I don’t want that. I like the idea of having a partner. Someone who really knows me, and is a part of my life.”
Sophie’s phone vibrates. Ryan had never told Luke where she was going, and after a while without an update, he checked in, but her comms were off. Naturally, he looked for the batmobile’s location, and was confused because their leads for the mud were nowhere near Sophie’s apartment. He knows Ryan doesn’t keep her phone on her when she’s in the batsuit, so he texts Sophie.
Luke cell: Is Ryan with you? Is everything okay?
Sophie looks at her phone, and raises an eyebrow, before reading the text aloud.
R: “Shit. I never told him I was done patrolling for the night. He’s probably freaking out.”
S: “What do you want me to tell him?”
R: “I guess you can tell him I’m fine…”
Sophie raises both eyebrows.
S: “You know he’s going to have more questions.”
Especially after he caught them flirting the other night. Did either of them have the answers?
R: “I’ll deal with him. I should probably head out, though. It’s pretty late, and you do have a big event tomorrow. Don’t want to get in the way of your beauty sleep.”
Ryan gets up without waiting for a response. She’s having a good time, and can see them talking all night, but she meant what she said. She knows tomorrow’s event is important to Jordan, and therefore to Sophie, and she doesn’t want to be the reason Sophie is tired the next day. She redresses in her cape, cowl, and gloves, and walks towards the patio.
S: “I’m glad you came by.”
R: “Me too. Goodnight Soph.”
~~~~~
Ryan wakes up to a knock on the door before the sun has fully risen in the sky. She pops up, on instant alert, because they never get visitors they aren’t expecting, especially this early in the morning. She rushes to the door, and with a gruff voice still thick with sleep, she asks who it is. It’s a delivery service.
She opens the door, and receives a package that she has to sign for. She thanks the man, shuts the door, and walks to the counter to get scissors for the box, because it’s addressed to her. Inside is a framed article from the Gazette. It’s a feature story about Ryan as the new CEO of Wayne Enterprises. There’s also a card and an envelope in the box. The envelope is an invitation to the 30 Under 30 press junket, and the card is from Marquis, taking credit for getting her into the event.
She is torn between being agitated at his persistence and in awe of the article. Little Ryan Wilder who was teased for her love of superhero comics, and that needed to be saved by a kid when she was captured because no one else would bother to look for her couldn’t have dreamed that this could be her future one day. Becoming the bat was one thing - it was a gift, but also not entirely far fetched for her. However, being celebrated as an up and coming CEO was beyond her wildest imagination.
Ryan’s first instinct was to tell Sophie. She was excited that they’d both be there together, and wanted to let her know. She knew it was early, but she hoped Sophie had decided to stick to her early morning workouts, so that she wouldn’t be interrupting her.
She sat the framed image down to take a picture of it, and texted it to Sophie.
Sophie cell: Ryan!! That’s so awesome!!
Ryan cell: Thanks, Soph! Too bad you already have a date. Guess I’m going solo. 🤭
Sophie cell: That would have been a tough choice, for sure. 😅 You know I’ll be there supporting you, too, though!
Ryan cell: I know 🥰
Sophie cell: This is exciting. I’ll see you soon! 🤗
Ryan admitted to herself that she was only kind of joking about the fact that she would have asked Sophie to come with her. In truth, she was glad to know Sophie would be there. This was a really big deal for Ryan, and knowing that one of her biggest cheerleaders, and the person she’d counted on the most lately would be in the room made her feel even more confident about going.
~~~~~
The invitation to the press junket wasn’t the last surprise Ryan received that day.
The 30 Under 30 event was filled with chaos. In addition to Jada Jett trying to sink Wanye Enterprises as a lesson to Ryan for ignoring her warning to stay away from Marquis, Jordan survived a near death experience caused by a Black Glove Society attack using Mr. Freeze’s Liquid Nitrogen. Ryan also saved Sophie and Alice from almost being burned alive by the same undercover group. And, at the end of the day, Sophie offered to let Alice stay with her because the improper care she was receiving at Arkham was putting them all at risk.
After trying to ruin Ryan’s image and have her CEO title stripped from her, Jada Jett sent Ryan a dinner invitation at her mansion. And again, the very first person she wanted to tell was Sophie. She couldn’t picture anyone else being able to help her get through the night the way that Sophie could. An activity that had the potential to cause Ryan a lot of emotional strain required the presence of the only person who’d been able to level her feelings out, and pull her out of the deep end.
Ryan had received an alert from Renee Montoya that a possible Batman trophy was used to kill a man. She went to Sophie’s to pick up Alice, so they could investigate the crime scene before the GCPD claimed all of the evidence. When she landed on the balcony, the door wasn’t unlocked like it had been for her a couple of nights ago. When she was let into the apartment, she filled them in on the night’s activities, and then sent Alice off to get ready to come with her.
R: “Cute pajamas.”
Sophie grinned at the compliment.
R: “You lock the patio now?”
S: “I think having a trained assassin and serial killer sleeping on my couch has me on high alert.”
R: “You’re definitely taking one for the team right now.”
S: “I try to do what I can.”
R: “Want to do one more thing?”
S: “Anything you need.”
R: “Jada invited me to her house for dinner tomorrow night. God knows what I’m walking into…I’d feel better if you were there. Come with me?”
S: “Of course! We can do a little recon. Maybe bug the place, and see if we can find out what her involvement is with the Black Glove Society.”
R: “That’s a good idea. I hadn’t even thought of it as a chance to do some digging.”
S: “Well, that’s what you’ve got me for.”
Alice walks out, grumpily.
A: “Thanks to you, I missed the end of the movie! Let’s get this over with.”
Ryan smiles at Sophie, grateful for her, as always.
R: “I’ll text you the details. See you tomorrow?”
S: “See you tomorrow!”