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A rat scurried through a puddle deep enough it could drown in it and Steph wondered if it would be worth it to trade places. She watched the rat for a moment until it had scampered out of view, before continuing.
This was her third hour of searching. The rain started up after the first and hadn’t relented since, a steady, unending drum beat on the pavement that drenched Steph down to the bone.
Her scavenge would probably be easier if she took to the rooftops, but Hong Kong wasn’t Gotham. Here, it wasn’t normal to have vigilantes leap from roof to roof. It wasn’t normal to have vigilantes period , but now that everyone sensible had gone to bed nobody noticed one walking their streets in search of a second.
Cass had been in Hong Kong for five months. Steph hadn’t heard from her in three.
But Barbara had scoured CCTV footage from across the country and texted Steph a perimeter and sent one of the remaining BatJets to her home, so here she was.
Preparing to tell her best friend that Batman was dead.
Part of her didn’t want to find Cass, mainly because she didn’t know what she would say. She didn’t know how to make her feel better when she hadn’t even processed it herself.
Steph wasn’t even in Gotham when it happened, she’d been on another coast entirely to visit her grandmother in California. She watched the national news broadcast with her mom, and they both cried but for very different reasons.
Crystal cried for Batman.
Steph cried for Bruce Wayne, and Dick Grayson, and Barbara Gordon, and Jason Todd, and Tim Drake, and Cassandra Cain. Maybe she even cried for herself.
Not even twenty four hours after arriving on Gotham soil, she was setting off to Hong Kong and… well. That wasn’t a schedule conducive to grieving and processing.
She’d seen the others once, cooped up in the Belfry with swollen eyes and shredded lips. Tim had been the one to ask if Cass knew. Jason suggested Steph tell her.
"She likes you more than any of us," he’d said. "You can rein her in if need be."
Steph really hoped that wouldn’t be necessary.
~*~
It took another half an hour before her search became fruitful.
Turns out Cass still fought like poetry in motion, and Steph was only too happy to sit back and watch her make short work of a handful of honest to god ninjas. They all moved like dancers, but Cass was the prima ballerina so to speak and the fight predictably ended with everyone else at her feet.
"Spoiler," she said, not even looking up.
Her voice cut through Steph as she straightened up and stepped into the red light emanating from the neon signs lining the streets. She wasn’t really surprised Cass knew she was there, but it didn’t make it any easier.
"Cass," she said.
At the sound of her name, Cass finally looked over and tugged her mask up. Her bangs fell in her face with a quiet splat , soaked even through the fabric.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
Steph sucked in a breath and blinked. "I need to tell you something, okay? I know you wanted to be left alone but it’s… Please, just listen."
Cass narrowed her eyes but nodded, and if it was a cue Steph started crying. She pulled her mask down so Cass could see her frown, so the tears could better carve a path down her cheeks.
"Something really bad happened," she began, voice coming out as a stammer. "It— Fuck. Bruce died, Cass. R’as Al Ghul killed him… I mean I wasn’t even in the state I don’t know the details just what the others told me but…"
She stopped herself and pressed a hand over her mouth, desperate to stop the rambling stream of insensitivity spilling out of it.
"I’m so sorry Cass," she said after a moment, still muffled by her hand and a broken sob.
Cass hadn’t moved, except for to make fists with her hands. Steph let her own fall to her sides to mirror her, helplessly. Her tears were close to hysterical now, aching sobs accompanied by hiccups and choking and snot, and Cass was still as a rock in a storm.
"Do you understand what I’m saying, Cass?" Steph asked, a little sharper than she wanted to. "Bruce is dead. Your father is dead. Batman is dead , are you listening?!"
She turned away and dragged her hand through her wet hair, before pacing back to Cass. She was still motionless, but her eyes were fixated on every movement Steph made.
"Cass please say something," Steph begged, practically choking on her tears and all the things she still wanted to say but couldn’t figure out how to.
Cass moved so much slower than usual as she sunk down to sit on the pavement and tipped her head back, letting rain hit her face then slide down her cheeks. Steph hesitated half a second before sitting beside her.
"Batman… dead?" Cass asked, voice scarcely a whisper. She placed a hand on her heart, on the bat she wore on her chest.
Steph bit her lip on a fresh wave of tears and nodded. "I’m so sorry."
Cass swallowed and stood up before walking into the middle of the road. She went still, staring at the sky, before she screamed.
It was angry and painful and heartbreaking and the absolute worst thing Steph had ever had to hear. Cass screamed and screamed at the sky, like the stars are what had taken her father away, until it tapered into sobs.
Steph jumped up and caught her before she hit the floor, but only managed to slow her descent. They both ended up on their knees in a puddle as the weight of grief dragged them down.
"I’m so so sorry," Steph repeated, over and over as she cradled Cass’s shaking form.
Cass grasped desperately at Steph’s cape and sobbed against her shoulder. She wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that, just that time passed and it grew a little lighter, and Cass got up to her feet.
"Where are you going?" Steph asked, scrambling to stand up.
Cass sighed, tired and heavy, and pulled her mask back down. "Home."