Chapter Text
Once I was able to get past that freak of a teacher I was able to get on with the day. When lunch rolled around I once again made my way to the computer lab. As I walked in I was surprised to see Sam sitting with Barbara.
“So, have you ever met him?” I heard Sam ask.
“No, but I saw him from a distance once. I was in the squad car, and he was outside talking to my Dad after Killer Moth tried to take over the Governors Ball last year.”
“I read about that; didn’t Moth try to trap the Governor in a giant cocoon or something?”
“Yeah, he’s one of the more… extravagant people Gotham’s had to deal with. But he’s also kind of a moron so it’s fine.”
At this point I sat down at the table with the two of them, and Sam turned to me and smiled.
“Hey Carrie, Barb’s just telling me some stuff about Batman.”
“There isn’t much I can really tell. My Dad doesn’t like me to get super involved in his work stuff so he tries to keep things as under wraps as he can. I had access to his GCPD account not long ago, but he realized and locked me out.”
Sam raised his eyebrow. “Wait how’d you get into that? Don’t they have a bunch of security measures there?”
“Sure, but if you know what you’re doing, it isn’t hard. Plus my Dad only has like one password that he uses for practically everything. I could get into his Netflix or life savings with that thing.”
The three of us continued hanging out and talking like this for a few minutes. It was kinda nice having Barbara there, somebody genuine and kind, instead of just Sam and I competing to see who can be the most sarcastic asshole. Eventually the conversation turned toward the weekend.
“Barbara, Carrie and I are having a marathon of Basil Karlo movies this Friday if you wanna come. It’s gonna be really fun.”
“Who’s Basil Karlo?”
“He’s Sam’s favorite actor,” I explained. “He was like the king of B movies back in the 80s and 90s. The kind of sh*t they still play at midnight to a bunch of drunk college kids at the local theater. But then like 15 years ago they announced they were gonna remake his biggest hit “Dread Castle”. He tried to get in on it but was told he was old news. He went nuts and showed up on set with a gun and shot the star and director.”
“Jesus christ,” Barbara exclaimed.
“Yeah,” Sam continued, “but it gets worse. He got away and hid out on an old production lot for a few days. When the police finally tracked him down and found him, he had taken a box cutter and carved up his own face. He was shouting on and on about how now his face was perfect.”
I nodded. “He’s been locked up in Arkham since then.”
“So, Sam, why is it you love this guy?”
“Watching these movies back now is fascinating. Like in “The Terror” he played a psycho called “The Clayface Killer” and at the time people thought he was just acting, but now you’ve gotta wonder how much of it was his real personality.”
Barbara shook her head. “It’s crazy what this city can get people to do.”
I nodded somberly. “Yeah, no kidding.”
Lunch ended soon after, and I spent the rest of the day thinking over two things. One: How Dr. Crane’s creepiness was still getting to me. I could hear his chilling voice in my head clearly talking about fear, and how pointless hope is. And two: How I was gonna convince my Mom to let me go to a party on Halloween. The final bell rang signaling the end of one of the most miserably boring days I’ve experienced in awhile.
I quickly found myself outside of the gates of the school and on the streets of Gotham. Though it was sometimes terrifying, I loved this part of living here. The skyscrapers stretching endlessly upwards, the hundreds of people walking everywhere, even the sound of cab drivers yelling obscenities at each other had its charm. My mom always had to work later during the week meaning she allowed me to take the subway home by myself. According to her, crime rates were lowest in the afternoon. I’m not sure where she got that info or if it was at all accurate, but it meant I got at least a little time to myself, so I just chose to believe it.
I headed to the station, took the subway two stops, and returned to my apartment. I had beaten my Mom home so I used the time to myself to prepare for my new plans on Wednesday. At least as long as I could convince my Mother.
In my room I opened up my closet and looked around for anything I could use as a potential costume. I dug through the clothes pile I had built up on the floor, throwing aside a shocking amount of shirts with cartoon characters on them and socks without a partner. Once I reached the bottom of the pile, I sat back and sighed, not thoroughly impressed with my options. That was until I glanced over to the corner of the closet. Sitting there was an old domino mask I had worn for some school play a few years ago. Pretty sure I was supposed to return it to the costume department, but for some reason I snuck it out. I leaned over and picked it up before putting it on my face. Surprisingly it still fit well, forming around my eyes and nose perfectly. As I looked at myself in the mirror I was suddenly hit with inspiration. I grabbed the Batman shirt I wore last night and quickly stood up and rushed over to my desk. I pulled out a needle, thread, and some scissors. My Mom had taught me how to sew when I was younger and she was constantly having to patch my clothes because I had been playing too rough.
“Ok, I think I can make something work,” I said to myself.
I walked out of my room and headed right for the closet where we kept extra bed sheets and stuff. I grabbed an old black sheet from the top shelf and took it to the living where I sat down and got to work. I cut pieces off the bottom edge of the sheet to create a wing effect when I spread it out. I then got to work with the needle folding in the sheet around neck level and sewing it to create a hood. I slipped my head through the hole and flipped the hood up over my head. Combined with the Batman shirt and the mask it made for a somewhat solid costume. Not totally identical to The Batman’s but clearly inspired in a way that I loved. I put on some of my black leggings, my gray converse, and a pair of black fingerless gloves that I had to finish it off. Except for one thing. The hood was missing an important element. I grabbed some of the triangle scraps I had cut out and sewed them into the hood making makeshift ears similar to the ones seen on Batman.
“Now it’s perfect,” I said with a smile.
As I was looking it over, I heard the front door open. My Mom walked in, and I went over to meet her.
She looked me over and smirked. “What is this?”
“It’s a costume.” I paused and thought over my next words very carefully. “I was invited to a Halloween party this Wednesday.”
I saw her pause and her expression became much more serious. “Robin, you know how I feel about Halloween. I really don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be anywhere but here on Wednesday.”
“I know Mom, but there’s gonna be lots of other people there and it’s in a good part of town and…”
“It’ll be a prime target for some crazy nutjob to attack. Remember last year when the Joker attacked that TV station during the Christmas telethon and held all those people hostage.”
“Yeah and I remember Batman showing up to stop him before anybody got hurt. Just like he alway does.”
“But we can’t just rely on Batman, Carrie. We have to be careful. I can’t lose you like we lost your father.”
“You talk about him like he’s dead.”
“He may not be but that doesn’t mean he’s ever gonna live a normal life. This city and the terrible people in it go to him. That’s why I’m so protective of you. So I’m sorry but this Wednesday you’ll be here with me.”
I shook my head before promptly turning around and marching to my room. I stopped in my doorway and turned back to her.
“It doesn’t even matter if Batman stops these guys or not. You’re just gonna live in fear regardless. You always will.”
I slammed the door as hard as I could, making the room shake. It was rare for my Mom and I to fight like this, but it got bad when we did. I pulled the hood off and threw it across my room before falling down onto my bed. I layed there for almost 20 minutes until I heard a soft knock on the door.
“Can I come in Robin? I just wanna talk.”
I didn’t say anything. I guess she took that as a yes because the door opened. The bed bent a little bit as I felt her sit down next to me.
“I can understand why you’re so mad. I remember when I was your age I wanted to go to this midnight movie with your Dad and my parents told me no. I tried sneaking out my window to meet him but they were waiting for me. I was grounded for like a month,” she said with a laugh. I still didn’t react so she continued. “I was thinking it over, and as long as you’re not out too late I guess it would be okay for you to go.”
I turned to face her, “Really?”
She nodded, “Yeah, what you said to me is true. If we just live in fear then we really are letting them win. But I do want Sam to go with you, and I want you home before midnight.”
I leaned up and pulled her into a hug. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. I know you’re just trying to keep me safe.”
“It’s okay Robin. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
She held me for a few seconds before giving me a final kiss on the head and leaving the room.
------------------------------------
The next day at school was more of the same. I told Sam about the party and he agreed to come, meaning when Wednesday rolled around, we found ourselves on the Gotham City subway on the way to Darcy’s neighborhood. Almost everybody on the train was in some sort of costume, including a guy dressed as a clown, which seemed kinda insensitive to me. Like dressing up as Charles Manson or something. There were even a couple other Batmen on the train who nodded at me when they saw. Sam was dressed like a basketball player which he admitted he phoned in but it worked nonetheless. Once we were at the right stop we headed out and walked the few remaining blocks to Darcy’s.
Now, I already mentioned that the Zimmer’s money paled in comparison to the Wayne’s and that was definitely true, but it was also very easy to forget that when standing outside of their Mansion. It was absurd to think that only Darcy and her Dad lived in a place bigger than my entire apartment building. The whole place was spotted with decorations ranging from plastic skeletons and ghosts to a big fake spider hanging from the front wall. There were a bunch of kids either already there or heading inside, all of them in costume.
I glanced over at Sam, “You ready?”
He nodded, “I’m not gonna get any less sober standing out here.”
I laughed, and we both headed inside. Immediately I was hit with the booming bass of some song I didn’t know along with the visual of dozens of Gotham Prep kids crowded around everywhere. I’m not sure how it’s possible to crowd in a place this big but they were managing to do it. Sam led the way, pushing past people at the entrance until we found ourselves in a more centralized part of the house. There were some people dancing, some just talking, and even a couple practically making out in the corner. I saw some people glance at me as if they couldn’t tell who I was in costume which was honestly pretty cool. It made me feel a sense of confidence in a way. Like people weren’t judging me like they typically would.
“I’m gonna go find the kitchen,” Sam said to me, practically having to yell. “Do you wanna come with?”
I shook my head, “No, I’m gonna see if I can find Darcy. I’ll text you to meet up a little later.”
He agreed and headed off in one direction while I went another. I knew if I found just one of the cheerleaders the others probably wouldn’t be far away, so I kept on watch. Eventually after walking through a ton of various rooms I spotted them all gathered around a couch. Most of the girls had a boy on their arm, but Darcy was sitting by herself laughing at some story another girl was telling. She was wearing a purple bodysuit with a black belt and as my eyes scanned upwards I realized exactly who she was. On her head she was wearing a pair of similarly colored cat ears and it hit me.
“Holy sh*t she’s Catwoman. And I’m Batman. Oh god no this can’t be really happening. She’s gonna think I planned this like a creep or something,” I thought to myself.
I almost bailed on walking over to her, but before I could, she spotted me. Unlike everybody else she, seemed to recognize me past the mask because she immediately stood from the couch and walked over.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” she said. “You look awesome.”
“Thanks, you too.”
She shrugged, “I mean I know she’s like technically a wanted super criminal but she’s cool. Plus she never actually hurts anybody. She just steals from people who probably deserve it.”
“Yeah, like last year when she stole that Jade Falcon Statue from the Cobblepot estate. I actually heard that Batman tracked it down but didn’t return it because there’s rumors that the Cobblepot’s son is into some shady business and he…” I paused when I realized I was going on a very nerdy rant. “Sorry.”
“No it’s fine,” she said with a genuine smile. “I think it’s cool you know so much about this stuff. So many kids around here seem to think Batman’s either some kind of demon or a psycho just one bad day away from turning but I think he’s cool. Plus he makes for a pretty badass Halloween costume.” I was happy for the mask because I think it disguised at least a little bit of the blush I had creeped up as I laughed at her comment. She turned back to her cheerleader friends for a second before asking, “Do you want to go get a drink with me?”
I had not been planning on drinking at all tonight. After all, I was lucky my Mom was letting me go out at all. If I came back smelling like booze I could kiss that privilege goodbye in the future. But it was hard to resist Darcy, especially in the moment so instead of the “no” I should have said I simply nodded.
She led me through the house past even more of my drunk classmates, very few of whom I even knew anything about, until we reached the kitchen. There was a wide variety of alcohol and mixers along with a huge bucket of shooters. I wasn’t particularly familiar with any of it.
“What do you want?” she asked me.
“Whatever you’re drinking is fine.”
She nodded and made two drinks for us before passing me one of them. I took a sip and flinched slightly as the taste hit me. I saw Darcy smirk before reaching over to pour a little bit more soda into my cup. We hung out in the kitchen for a little bit just casually talking and having fun. Talking to Darcy was easy. She was funny and quick witted and she made an actual effort to listen to me, especially when I was screaming over the music. I don’t know how much time passed, but eventually another girl from Gotham Prep came over and told her something needed her attention.
“I’ll see you in Psych tomorrow,” she said to me as she walked away.
All the nerves I had felt coming in had completely disappeared at this point leaving me feeling incredible. I pulled out my phone and texted Sam trying to see where he was. He replied saying he was back in the living room we first entered so I headed back that way. When I got there I was surprised to see him leaning up against a wall talking to Barbara.
“Hey Carrie,” Sam called over to me. “I told Barbara we were gonna be here tonight and she talked her Dad into letting her come.”
“That’s not totally true,” she said with a smile. “More like I hacked our doorbell cam to play blank footage on a loop and then just snuck out the front door.”
“Well it's more or less the same thing.”
I looked between the two as they bantered and smiled. It was clear even though they only recently started hanging out that there was something there. Even if they didn’t realize it yet. The three of us hung out and danced for a while until I noticed the time. 11:30. I really needed to get going.
“Hey guys, I’ve gotta get back. My Mom’s probably sitting at home just staring at the door waiting for me to get home.”
Sam nodded and turned towards Barbara, “Ok, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
I immediately grabbed Sam’s arm and pulled him away. “Absolutely not. You are going to take her home and make sure she gets there safely.”
“But I thought I was supposed to take you home and make sure you got there safely?”
“I’ll be fine. You just need to worry about her.”
“If you say so.” We both turned back to Barbara who clearly heard every word we just said. “Sorry Barbara, I totally meant to say that to Carrie, not you.”
I rolled my eyes and said goodbye to the two of them before making my way out of the house. I walked down the street of Darcy’s fancy neighborhood until I got to the station. It was surprisingly empty considering the time but I wasn’t complaining. When I got on the train there was only one other guy in my car and he was at a pretty comfortable distance. Though I couldn’t tell what his costume was supposed to be. He was wearing a red hoodie and pants and had this black makeup drawn around his eyes. He had this writing tattooed around his bald head that I couldn’t read. He was definitely creepy, but like I said, at a safe distance. Still, I gripped the mace in my pocket carefully.
When the train started I closed my eyes briefly thinking over how incredible the night had been. I was gonna thank my Mom a hundred times when I got home. And I couldn’t wait till…
“Halloween is said to be the day the bridge between the living and the dead is weakest. Making it easy for spirits to cross over.”
I opened my eyes at the sound of the voice and looked over at the guy. He was staring straight forward with a blank expression. He spoke again.
“It’s said that any life lost on Halloween will live an afterlife of eternal bliss because of its sacrifice on such a holy day.”
I didn’t say a word. Interacting with creeps like this always seemed to make things worse.
“I hope the others I blessed with that bliss tonight are grateful.”
I thought over what he just said and quickly put together what he meant. I stood from my seat and walked over to the door of the subway car. But when I went to pull it open, it wouldn't budge. I looked down and saw some kind of lock crudely put on the door trapping me inside. I spun around and saw the man stand from his seat, his expression still indifferent. He turned his face to finally look at me and said.
“Promise me you’ll be grateful.”
He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a hunting knife. I could see dried blood already present on it and I felt like I couldn’t move. Like a deer in headlights I watched him slowly move row by row towards me never changing his expression to look anything but bored. As he got closer I remembered Dr. Crane’s words from class.
“True fear isn’t something that can be countered by either. If your mind has convinced you so greatly that something you’re scared of is real it’s too late to fight it or try to escape. It simply accepts its fate.”
“No,” I said to myself. I refused to just accept what this guy was going to do. I glanced out the window and could see the next station only about 30 seconds away. Once we stopped and the doors opened I could make a break for it. I just had to keep him down till then.
He came another row closer and I pulled out the bottle of mace spraying it directly in his face. He screamed out in pain, his first show of emotion, before stepping backwards and throwing his hands up to his eyes. I then took a step forward, planted one of my feet and used the other to send the strongest kick I possibly could against his torso. He fell back even further but not before blindly swinging his knife around. It didn’t come close to me but it did cause him to hit his hand really hard against one of the metal poles. He once again yelled and dropped the weapon.
It was risky, but I gripped the seats on both sides of the aisle and used my gymnastics skills to lunge over his downed body, putting me right in front of the doors as the train stopped. They opened up and I rushed into the station yelling for help as I did so. None was to be found as this station was just as empty as the last one so I just simply ran. I glanced back and saw him also exit with his eyes trained directly on me. Glancing back was a mistake though and when I refocused in front of me I bumped up against a train map and fell to the ground. I scrambled to stand back up but he had managed to gain a good bit of ground. I was gonna have to fight again. I spun around just in time to see him raise the hunting knife above his head about to stab it downward. I for a moment felt that hopelessness Dr. Crane described as I saw the knife glint against the lights of the station as it descended.
But not a moment later I heard a distinctive sound of something flying through the air followed by the knife clanging to the ground. I also saw my attacker grab his hand in pain. I backed away and looked around trying to figure out what just happened. I got my answer when I looked to the floor and saw a batarang lying on the floor of the station.
“It’s only fitting for a demon to come out on a night like this,” the man said with a laugh.
I looked around trying to figure out where he was. And then like a living shadow he descended from somewhere above landing between me and the psycho. He stood boldly not even flinching as the psycho brandished his weapon.
“The only demonic thing is those rituals you set up, Julian,” I heard him say. His voice was cold and emotionless just like I had always imagined it.
“Oh, Batman, I was just helping them cross over to the other side. You’ll understand and be grateful once you’re in their position.”
He lunged forward at Batman and tried to stab him but Batman easily grabbed his wrist, stopping his entire assault. Then with a simple twist I heard Julian’s wrist snap and another pain scream rang out. Batman raised his other fist and collided it against the freaks jaw sending him tumbling to the floor. Once he was out, Batman turned to me. I looked up at him mouth agape like a complete idiot.
“Are you okay?” he asked me.
I nodded, completely unable to form words in the presence of Batman. I watched him put a hand up to the ear of his cowl.
“Jim, I found Calendar Man. His reign of terror is over tonight.” He brought his hand down and turned back to me. “The police will be here shortly. They’ll escort you home. I’ll be taking this one to Arkham.”
He picked up this so-called “Calender Man” and reached down to his utility belt before pulling out his grapnel gun. I watched in amazement as he fired it at a nearby building and was effortlessly pulled up and out of sight. I looked down and saw the batarang he left behind. I crouched down and picked it up, pocketing it as I heard sirens and saw red and blue light approaching. I looked up to the night sky one more time.
“Thank you.”
