Intoxicating Desires | T. Al Ghul ✔

[41]

It felt as if he was drowning in a thick green sea that was swallowing him up. He struggled to come up to the surface, his hands flailing to reach out and hold onto something but there was nothing in his grasp.

At last, the water cleared and he was jolted awake, gasping for breath.

Two guards were positioned at the entrance of the room he was kept in and the second he sat up, one of them left to inform Talia that he had woken up.

He looked around that room, his mind a hazy green that had not yet cleared up completely. He tried to recall where he had been earlier, what had happened to him, and who he was but there was nothing in his memory whatsoever.

It seemed as if everything had been erased. No thoughts, no memories, nothing existed in his brain.

Shakily he stood up, deciding to leave because deep down, his instincts were warning him that he was in an enemy's grasp and had to free himself. But as he reached the door, his path was blocked by the guard at which he retaliated.

He had pushed the guard up against the wall, an unnatural strength coursing through his veins and he would have choked him too if not for the voice that made him stop.

"Jason, put him down."

He paused, feeling that name was somewhat familiar. He turned to see who had called out to him and saw Talia Al Ghul although he didn't recognize her.

"Let go of him," she coaxed, gently prying his hands away from the guard that seemed to be gasping for breath under his strong grip. "Easy, dear, you are safe. No one is going to hurt you."

The woman felt vaguely familiar and he wracked his brains to recall who she was but couldn't. She led him back to the room that he was about to leave, dismissing the guards.

"Who are you?" He asked at last, his voice raspy from the constant screaming the night he had been revived.

"Sit down first," she made him sit down and gave him a glass of water.

He hesitated to accept it because he was still not sure where he was and felt extremely uneasy due to the effects of the pit that hadn't yet faded completely. His head was spinning and it hurt so his hands reached up to his throbbing temples.

"Jason, my boy, I have no intentions of harming you," she spoke in that soft gentle voice again, "I only want to help you. Drink this."

Reluctantly, he swallowed the contents of that glass and slowly, the pain subsided. She sat on the chair by the bed, closely observing him. He was feeling drowsy so he laid down on the bed, head tilting to look at the woman who he still couldn't recognize. 

It seemed as if he had seen her once or twice but wasn't certain about it. So far she had been gentle to him and kept assuring him that she wasn't going to hurt him. He didn't know whether he could trust her or not but it didn't seem like he had much of a choice right then.

"But who are you?" He asked, flecked blue eyes looking up at her questioningly, "why can I not remember anything? Who am I?"

"All in good time, dear," she stroked his head, treating him just like she would sometimes treat Damian, "my name is Talia and you can consider me a friend."

"Talia?" 

He had heard that name before just like he had heard the name she was addressing him with. But nothing made sense anymore, it was all being consumed in a thick fog as sleep began to overpower him again.

"You must rest so that you can heal fully," she gently stroked his head, "close your eyes and go to sleep. When you wake up, you will begin to remember better than you can now. Everything will be alright."

The rest of her words faded into incoherence as his eyes were dropping shut. Slowly, darkness engulfed him once again and he felt he was drowning in a void that had no end.

His eyes dropped shut at last as he drifted off to sleep induced by the medication Talia had injected into him while he had been talking to her. He hadn't noticed that as he had been too disturbed and occupied in trying to figure out what exactly was going on and why he couldn't remember anything.

She hoped that when the effects of the medication would wear off and he woke up again, he would be somewhat more stable than before.

She knew he was dangerous and the Lazarus Pit had heightened his senses as well as his strength. He didn't remember anything at the moment but when he would finally start remembering, it would hit him worse than a storm.

And that was the time Talia had to look out for most because he would be at his worst. He could hurt himself or hurt them as a result and in both cases, Ra's could end up deciding that it was a mistake keeping Jason with them.

She checked the time, deciding to drop by after an hour or two to check up on him. So as she stepped out, she reinstated the guards at the door.

She was informed that Ra's wanted to meet her in the throne room so she nodded, making her way there.

The gates were opened to let her in and she saw her father sitting on his High Chair as usual. She bowed her head in respect then upon his approval, she climbed the steps to sit on the chair beside him.

"How is the boy?" Ra's asked, knowing she was coming from Jason's room.

"I have put him to sleep. He is still unstable," she replied, "but I am sure after a few doses, he will be fine."

He nodded, "you know you are responsible for him. I will not interfere as long as the boy does not cause any damage here."

She knew exactly why he was saying that. Batman's second Robin had quite the reputation for being violent and the Lazarus pit could have heightened his violent tendencies as well. 

"I know, Father. I will make sure that he doesn't cause any trouble for you."

"Good," Ra's seemed content with that response.

On the other hand, Talia was thinking that trouble was something she could hardly avoid being caused to her father due to all she had in store for him. Jason could merely serve as a distraction while the actual plan involved Deathstroke and was much deadlier.

Still, she knew better than to destroy things with haste. He would wait patiently for the right time and then put everything into action. Until then she would have to resume that act of being the perfect daughter and the perfect heir so that Ra's would not be able to suspect her true motives.

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