Mama Gotham

Bottles

It was when Alyssa Connors, Edward Nygma, and Oswald Cobblepot were fourteen that our story begins to go south,

Gotham High was nothing short of a bull pen. Alyssa imagined that they were being prepared for the harsh realities of the city they were living in – where you could look up assassins in the phone book – but that didn't mean she had to like it. The principal didn't even give her detention for her pranks!

"If I can keep the boys from dealing drugs, and the girls off the pole, I get a bonus." he had said.

Alyssa had to up her game, but even childish crime didn't come cheap. She needed money.

And therein lied her brilliant idea.

The boys both said she was nuts, but even they had to admit it was a pretty good idea, and they found themselves being pulled into it.

The bottles Alyssa had picked up at the bars up and down the street rattled as she pulled her wagon behind her. The recycling plant paid a nickle for each one; add that up with all the places throwing them away in Gotham and it wasn't a bad sum. Edward did the math and said they could make over a hundred dollars within a week!

"Hey girl! What are you doin'?"

Alyssa jumped, dropping the lid of the dumpster she had been holding up. The hard plastic banged into her head, making her wince. She straightened to look at the wide built man in a suit that looked to be in his early twenties.

"Who are you?" He demanded. clearly surprised to find a teenager in a dumpster.

"I'm Alyssa Connors, who the hell are you?"

"Butch Gilzean. What are you doin' kid?" he gave her the look any adult will give a misbehaving child.

Alyssa gestured to the wagon off to the side of the dumpster. "Bottles. Recycling center pays a nickle a piece for 'em."

"That right?" Butch raised an eyebrow.

"Yup. New bar just opened around here, so this thing is full of 'em." she said with the best innocent smile she could muster. The man looked fancy enough that he might write her off as a street kid, but he had been talking to her too long for that...

But he chuckled. "That ain't bad kid."

"Thank you."

"You know as it happens, I help run the place that just opened. You wanna come inside?"

"I can't drink." Alyssa frowned.

"I figured that, but I thought you might wanna clean up."

Alyssa looked down at herself, a day of dumpster diving had indeed ruined her outfit, but she hesitated. "I-I probably shouldn't...."

"I insist."

She gulped.

*******

The recently opened bar smelled horrible and did not have a very distinguished clientele. Though to be fair, the place had been open for about a few weeks.

Alyssa had met a few of the bartenders she got bottles from, but the woman Butch took her to meet was hardly run-of-the-mill.

"So you're the bottle girl I've been hearing about."

"Alyssa Connors mam." she looked everywhere but at the woman.

"Look me in the eye when I'm talkin' to you girl."

Jumping slightly, Alyssa did as told. She wasn't stupid, this woman was clearly not one to be offended. She was starting to worry she had stumbled across a front for the Gotham mob world...

"But where are my manners?" the woman smiled, the hostility in her voice suddenly gone. "I'm Fish Mooney. I run the place."

"P-pleasure to meet you."

"So I heard you and your friends have been gathering bottles from all the local bars. You've become the recycling plant's best customers."

"Its a living, mam."

"Oh, hardly a good one. You looked like a common street kid when you came in here. And I get the feeling that's not what you are, is it?"

"No mam."

"Hmmm." Fish smirked and sipped from the glass in her hand. "I'll tell you what girl, I'll start setting the bottles aside for you. You come by every Friday, and you won't have to dig through anymore dumpsters."

"...W-with respect, Ms. Mooney....you don't seem the type to do something like that for nothing." Alyssa said carefully, not wanting to set her off. But this was Gotham, no one did anything out of the good of their hearts, it was better to know what she was getting into.

But Fish only chuckled. "I like you girl, you're clever. And its always good to have friends in this city, wouldn't you say? If not friends...allies."

Alyssa gulped. "Of course."