“Almost… Got… It,” Jason grumbled as he picked at the lock. Roy and Nathan stood there, being his guard. Nathan looked at Jason with confusion, and spoke up.

    “Uh, why are we here? What could we even find on the person?” Jason turned around, and stood up. Roy smirked, and Jason replied.

    “They could have left some kind of footprint. Something we can use,” he said as he opened the door. Dumbfounded, Roy and Nathan walked forward. Jason said that he unlocked it while he talked with Nathan.
    The group heard footsteps, and Jason ordered them to be quiet until he saw who it was. Chloe, Rachel, and Max had finally arrived. Roy walked out, saluting the girls. Jason hugged Max, and gave her a comforting smile. Chloe looked at Rachel, then at Jason.

    Just then, Nathan sheepishly stepped out, and shyly waved at the group. Chloe got angry and went to punch Nathan, but was stopped by Roy.

    “Nathan wants to help,” Roy said. Jason looked as Max, who was glaring at Nathan.
    “It’s gonna take awhile to adjust, I know, but with what happened to Kate earlier, and the incident on Monday, I’m giving him a chance,” Jason agreed. “Besides, I promised to help him with his issues. I don’t go back on my promises.”
    Chloe told Nathan that if he tried anything funny, no one would find his body. Nathan nodded his head furiously, and the group began walking into the main office.

    “Alright, gang,” Roy stated in a cartoonish voice, “Let’s split up and look for clues!” Jason glared at him, and punched him. Roy laughed and began going through the computer, hacking into it.
    Chloe and Rachel were looking through files, while Jason lock picked the door to Wells office. He and Max were going to look through there. Nathan stood by Roy as he hacked into their systems.

    After 15 minutes, everyone reconvened in the main hall, and went over everything they had found. Jason then said that they should check the rest of the school.

    “What about a midnight swim?” Rachel suggested. Max and Chloe agreed, while the boys didn’t much care.
    “We’ll keep working,” Jason said. “Max, you deserve a break. Go with them.”
    The group went to the pool building, and went their separate ways. Roy stood guard, and Nathan and Jason went into the boys locker room to talk.

    “Nathan, sit. We need to talk,” Jason said. Nathan sat across from his new found friend. “I know you’re really fucked up, but I want to help you. I know your father… isn’t the kindest person on the block, but that’s no excuse for the gun. Still, you need training. I can give that to you. Let me help.”
    Nathan looked at him, and replied, “Jason, I’m not sure that you should train me with a -”
    Roy cut them off, and told them to keep it down. Jason called back to Roy, telling him to keep an eye out.

    “As you were saying, Nathan,” Jason said.

    “I’m just really fucked up. Mentally,” he said.

    Jason nodded, and told him everything. Nathan’s eyes widened, and then understood.
    Just then, Roy ran in, told them to get the girls, and escape. Jason ran out, and have them the warning.

    They quickly vacated the pool, and dressed even quicker. Jason knew their time was short, so he thought a distraction was in order. He ran to the other side of the pool, and ignited a smoke grenade. Jason knew this was a risk, but he did it anyways.

    The group regathered as the smoke filled the building, setting off alarms and alerting the fire department. He told everyone to go get rest for tomorrow. Nathan and Roy went to their dorms, while Max, Chloe, and Rachel went to Chloe’s house to bunker up. As for Jason, he went home, but didn’t sleep. He decided once again, Arcadia Bay needed its vigilante.

    Jason put on his armor, and went on his first run as the Red Hood since April 21st. He looked at the damaged helmet, and put it on. To his surprise, it still worked. This will have to do for now, Jason thought. He opened his window, and jumped out of it, landing on the roof closest to him. He ran across the tops of the buildings when he saw some members of a local gang harassing a girl. Jason smiled underneath his red helmet, and jumped down.

    “Give us what we want, bitch,” one member said while holding a gun to her head. She shook with fear as she said that she doesn’t have it. The man grew impatient, and then punched her across the face, injuring her severely. The other members laughed as he then made an advance towards the downed girl.

    “Not on my watch, fucker,” came a robotic voice from the shadows. Everyone stopped dead in their tracks, scared. They had all heard the stories of the masked vigilante, but never thought he was real. The Red Hood came out of the shadows, and spoke again.

    “Pick on someone your own size,” he said. He drew his dual pistols, and fired them, dropping the members instantly. The girl looked up in fear, but he put his weapons away and removed his helmet.

    “Hey, it’s gonna be alright,” Jason said to her. She looked at him with fear in her eyes, but believed him. Jason told her to call the cops and tell them that the Red Hood was back in town.

    That morning, Jason woke up and headed over to Two Whales once again for breakfast. He told everyone that he would be there if they wanted to have breakfast, and they all replied with a yes.

    He walks into the diner, and says good morning to everyone present in the establishment. Jason then walks over to the booth they had yesterday, and sees Nathan sitting in front of it. He notices him, and gives Jason a short smile and a nod of the head.
    “You’re early, Nathan,” Jason says as he looks down on the boy.

    “Yeah, I always come here. It has good food.”

    Jason gestures for him to sit with everyone else, but he politely declines surprisingly.

    Jason gets the booth, and Rachel, Chloe, and Max walk in. He asked Roy if he was going to be there, but he never came or replied.

    “Guess it’s just us four,” Chloe remarks as they order their food. Max looked out the window and thought about Kate. Jason could tell she was worried so he placed his hand on hers. Rachel nudged Chloe, and the couple in front of Jason and Max smiled devilishly. He shot them a look, and they stopped.

    “Max, it’ll be okay,” Jason assures her. Max turns towards him, and gives him a weak, yet warm smile.

    “Can we go see Kate?” Max quietly asks. Everyone, including Nathan, looks at Jason as he says yes. Nathan gets up, and shyly walks over to their table.

    “I… I want to apologize to Kate,” Nathan shakily says. Rachel, Max, and Chloe look surprised, while Jason says that he can.
    Outside the diner, Roy silently watches Jason, and walks away. He was going to get answers from the man who did this while the others attempt to figure out who he is. Roy gets on his bike, and drives over to Blackwell for the truth.