One's first appearance at a high society party was a big deal among Gotham socialites. It was an announcement from an heir or heiress' parent that their legacy was secure. It was a chance for future suiters to begin planing their courtship. But most of all, it was a day all eyes in Gotham would be on a new face.

None of the Wayne boys had been particularly interested in their introduction to society. They had dragged their feet through the nights. Cassandra, however, was not her brothers and Father.

She had seen pictures of the luxurious galas in the papers and on TV and had heard stories from passing conversations at school. Dick had told her it was kind of like the story of Cinderella. Cass was enamored by the idea and was almost overly excited about her own night of glamour.

"I don't get why the party has to be here. You didn't host any of our introductions to society." Tim pointed out as he let Dick fix the collar of his tux.

"It's tradition for heiresses to make their debuts in their own home." Bruce explained simply. "In other words, Bruce wants to control the night as much as possible." Dick stage whispered, to which Bruce rolled his eyes.

Dick wasn't wrong. The boys had more or less shown up out of nowhere in the Gotham social scene. But Cass had wanted her party and in her own way begged Bruce until he'd really had no other choice. At least by hosting the gala at Wayne Manor, he would have a say in when it was all over.

Jason gave a catcalling whistle as Cassandra appeared at the top of the stairs. The elegant light purple dress that Bruce had had made especially for her swished around her ankles as she came down the stairs. Her silvery kitten heels tapped daintily with each step. Stephanie and Barbara had even come over earlier to help her do her hair and make-up just for the occasion. She was radiant. The very model of what an emerging heiress should be.

"You look beautiful." Bruce praised, kissing the top of her head as she reached them. Cassandra smiled did a twirl, so the skirt flared around her ankles. "It is like princess." She beemed.

"Those poor boys." Jason smirked as he extended his arm to escort his sister to the ballroom. Cassandra took it, and the Wayne family made their entrance to the party.

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The boys had given Cassandra the rundown of how these galas worked. Granted, since this was merely a family-friendly social gathering and not a fund raiser, there was considerably less shmoozing, but of course, small talk had to be made to keep up appearances and relations.

Cass stifled a yawn as an old woman rambled on about her own introduction to society. The woman was talking to Jason more than Cass, but still, it seemed rude to wander off into the crowd. Plus, Cass wasn't quite sure how to go about this kind of socializing.

While there were guests around her age, they all seemed to be clustered off into their own groups. Many of the girls had given her snooty looks when she walked past while the boys seemed to pay her no mind whatsoever. Was this what all these parties were like? It was no wonder her brothers complained.

As the old woman bid them good night, Cass was about to go find Bruce and tell him the party could be over when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to find a dark-haired boy giving her a somewhat crooked smile.

"Hey. Hi. It's Cassandra right?" He asked quickly, the words tumbling from his mouth. He seemed nervous. No, uncomfortable. Maybe both. "I heard you may not speak English or was it that you just don't talk at all, but I thought I'd give this a shot and-"

"And what?" Jason asked in a protectively interrogating tone. Cass expected the boy to run, but instead, the tension seemed to leave his body. "Hey, Jason. It's me, Flynn Edmonds. We hung out at a few of these parties before they shipped me off to boarding school, remember?"

Jason gave Flynn a nod of acknowledgment before glancing between him and Cassandra. "You wouldn't mind if I took your sister for a dance, would you?" Flynn asked, pulling at his collar as if the nerves were starting to return. "She can speak for herself." Jason prompted, and Cass smiled.

"I would like to dance." She told Flynn, gladly accepting his hand as they made their way to the dance floor.

III

Flynn was an heiress' dream. He was a graceful dancer who didn't try to get handsy. He asked her about herself and seemed genuinely interested when she spoke. Surprisingly, Cassandra didn't mind the stares from the other guests. It was nice to have witnesses to her perfect evening.

After a while, Cass excused herself to go to the ladies' room while Flynn went to get himself a drink at the refreshments table. "Had enough lover boy?" One of Flynn's friends asked as he and his crew sauntered over.

Flynn rolled his eyes as he poured himself some punch. "Look, I asked her to dance. Can I be done now?" "No way man." One of the other boys laughed. "She's your date all night or until she finds you out."

"She won't figure it out," Flynn reported with certainty. "You were right. She's... not like any other girl here." The other boys snickered. "She almost never looked away from my eyes. It was creepy." He explained, shuttering at the thought of Cassandra's knowing glances. "And the way she talks...."

"I heard she was mute." One of the boys interrupted. "Nah, they said she was just dumb or something." Another chimed in.

"Whatever she is, it's just weird. Like she knows words, but she has to think real hard to get them out in the right order." Flynn sighed before downing his drink. "I should go. She's gotta be looking for me by now. Next time we do this, I better get more than a measly hundred bucks." The posy all slapped Flynn on the back and dispersed into the crowd.

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Little did the happy-go-lucky gamblers know, someone had been eavesdropping on their conversation.

Tim's fist was clenched so tightly he could feel his nails digging into his palms. Cass, despite her hardened upbringing, was so patient and kind. How could anyone be ok with taking advantage of her the way these boys were?

"We need to find Cassandra." Damian muttered from beside him. "She needn't waste any more time with that trash." "And tell her what?" Tim huffed, fighting to hold back the venom in his throat. "That her date is a shallow jerk? She'll be crushed. We can't be the ones to ruin her big night."

Both boys stood quiet for a moment, weighing their options. "Grayson says it's it our responsibility as siblings to look out for each other." Damian pointed out softly, and Tim nodded with resolve.

Cass would forgive them for being the bearers of bad news, but neither of them would be able to live with themselves if they let their sister get hurt.

III

Cass took the news surprisingly well once Tim and Damian found her. Even so, she wouldn't take their word for it. She wanted to hear it from Flynn.

"He is different." She insisted when the boys tried to tell her to ditch him. "Maybe he has reasons." So she sought her not-so-perfect date out and found him on the side of the ballroom surrounded by his friends.

"Ready to go again Cassandra?" Flynn asked, and for a moment, Cass was tempted to forget her brother's warnings and carry on with her magical evening. "I hear you dance with me as joke." She stated.

The group went quiet, and Cass silently hopped this meant that Damian and Tim had simply misheard or misunderstood. Until Flynn's friends began to laugh. "She'll never guess, huh?" One of them gaufed. "Pay up Edmonds." Another cackled.

Cassandra ignored their jeering and kept her eyes on Flynn. He was the only one who didn't seem to find this funny and kept his head bowed as if he was ashamed. "Cassandra..." He started only to stagger back as a seemingly dainty fist collided with his jaw.

The gang of boys all moved to charge, but luckily for them, Bruce put himself between them and his daughter. "What is the meaning of this Bruce?" A man demanded as he raced over and began helping Flynn to his feet. Mr. Edmonds no doubt. "I'd hardly believe you invite my family here to be physically attacked."

"Cassandra?" Bruce prompted. Cass never attacked unprovoked, and even if she had been, she knew better than to do so in front of civilians. "He lies to me." Cass explained, completely remorseless. "He is nice to me for bet."

"So you hit him?" Bruce asked. Cass nodded, suddenly wondering if it had been wrong to do so. But then she felt Bruce's hand on her shoulder. "Good girl." He smiled, and her heart swelled with a bit of pride.

"You can't be serious Wayne." Mr. Edmonds snapped. "So the girl's first dance was a sham. That hardly warrants an assault on my son."

Bruce glared fiercely at the man. "If you, Joseph Edmonds, can condone your son's taste for the mistreatment of a young lady's feeling in own home, then I see no problem with the condonation of my daughter defending herself."

Mr. Edmonds sputtered incomprehensibly for a moment before grabbing his son by the arm and dragging him out of the hall. As they disappeared through the doorway, Cassandra caught Flynn's eyes one last time, and for a second, she saw a morsel of regret.

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With mood properly killed the gala came to an end. The Wayne family performed their final duties of seeing their guests out the door before heading up to their rooms to get out of their evening wear.

Cass let out a silent sigh as she kicked off the shoes that had pinched her feet for the night and let herself sprawl out across her bed. The night had been nothing at all like what she'd hoped for, and right now, all she wanted to do was forget about it.

A knock at the door roused her from her thoughts and after a beat, Alfred stood in the open doorway. "Master Dick wishes to know if you feel up to a quick patrol of the city." He reported. Cass shook her head. The night had been long enough and she was ready for bed.

"Very well Miss Cassandra." The old butler replied. "Before I leave you to your nightly routines, I was given this note to pass along to you." Alfred handed Cass a small slip of paper before nodding his good night and leaving her alone.

Cass turned the note over in her hand. It had clearly been written in a rush, and there was a drop of blood on the corner. Slowly, carefully she unfolded it.

'Cassandra, I think you broke my jaw, and I deserve that. You should know that even though I took a bet to do it I really did want to dance with you. Maybe call me so I can make it up to you? –Flynn (732)-930-1939

Cass refolded the note and tucked it away in her nightstand drawer. Maybe it hadn't been the night she'd had in mind, but she would remember it forever nonetheless.

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A/N I've been planning this one for so long and I'm kinda proud of the way it turned out. By the way, I bet none of you saw the little easter egg I hid. Have fun trying to find it ;D