The Bane of Our Existence [The Dark Knight Rises]

5: Or I Will Kill You

                Bría repelled down the side of the cavern, landing on the concrete below and detaching her harness. She was dripping sweat and her forehead was covered in ash and grease from the welding. The hard work made her muscles ache, something she loved the feeling of. It had been a week since she had officially gotten her hands dirty, taking Bane's offer to work for him. She did not ask questions, and in fact she did not see Bane often. He allowed her to leave the sewers to return to her home, but her home was becoming less and less of a place of comfort. It was here, in this crime-riddled cavern in the sewers that welcomed her more than anyone had since she left prison.

She removed her gloves and tossed them in a pile, then took off her goggles and wiped her brow with the back of her sleeve. The grime came off, mostly, but she did not care how she looked. Many of the men lived in the sewers, sleeping on canvas cots with ratty old blankets. After a long day of work, they were not as uncomfortable as they looked, and she'd fallen asleep on one once for a brief nap.

She was done her tasks for the day, whatever her tasks were going to lead to she did not know for she did not ask -it was safer not to ask questions. Walking down the poorly lit tunnels, she nodded to a few men who held guns at their hips, waiting for a reason to blast someone. Though there was always the sense of discomfort, she briskly made her way to an exit- she always chose a different one when she left as to not cause suspicion if anyone up top saw her coming and going over the last week.

Passing another check point, she averted her gaze from the sentry that stood there. As she walked past him, she felt his eyes on her body. A chill ran up her spine and she pressed forward, close to the end of the tunnel now. He grabbed her wrist tightly, pulling her back with a fierce yank. When he was close, his cigarette breath in the air between them putrid, he slithered his hand up to her breast and smirked, revealing yellowed teeth.

"You walk by me every damn day, and don't even give me a look, like I'm nothing," he growled.

She stomped the top of his foot with all the force she could muster, but his boots were thick and protective. It only enraged him further, and he pushed her hard against the concrete tunnel walls. She groaned when her head came in contact with the wall, vision blurring slightly. He brought his hand up, covering her mouth. She bit down hard on his exposed flesh and he recoiled, shouting obscenities at her and then bumped into something hard.

He turned to look, seeing Bane.

"Bane!" he exclaimed.

Bane looked at Bría, their eyes meeting and the blood dribbling down from her lower lip telling him everything he needed to know. She did not need to say a thing. Bane looked down at the sentry, his hand resting on his shoulder. The sentry looked at the massive hand, and then he knew. Bane gripped his head and twisted forcefully; no normal person could have done it, but Bane snapped the man's neck and he crumpled to the ground.

Bría would have screamed, but the concussion was making her fuzzy.

"Are you alright?" Bane asked mechanically.

She nodded but her head fell and she stumbled. She reached out and grabbed Bane's arm, to which he was forced to assist her. An obvious discomfort fell about his demeanour, but he helped her walk back through the tunnels. She was brought somewhere she'd not seen before, and suspected it was where Bane slept. Flopping down on the cot, she leaned forward and wiped the blood from her lip.

"Fuck," she muttered, "I need..." she shut her eyes tight, trying to think of the word.

"Take these," he handed her two pills and a bottle of water.

She stared at them, trying to identify what he was giving to her. The last thing she needed was a blood thinner, but she could not tell what it was. The pills looked so small in his giant hands, and when she did not take them from him, he crouched in front of her and stared incredulously as she simply opened her mouth. Popping them in, he tore the cap off of the water bottle and helped her drink. Managing to get her to swallow the pills at last, he placed the bottle on the ground beside the cot.

Bría knew it was a minor concussion, and so she lied down to get the rest her brain needed. She'd be fine after a few hours of rest, and she simply watched as Bane faded out from her vision.

When she woke, she had no concept of time but suspected not much had gone by, she rose from the bed with a weary head. Confused by her surroundings, she tried to piece together what had happened, her hand on her head as though it might help ease the ache. Shakily she walked towards the door, and found herself in amongst the other cots. Walking through that section, she came out at the cavern, looking around. Bane walked in from the tunnels that she had been leaving through before, with the corpse over his shoulders. He dropped the body on the ground and waited until every single person was looking at him.

"You do not touch her!" Bane called out, "Or I will kill you."

He turned and saw her, their eyes meeting, the understanding and trust between them growing. 

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