Teresa sat at the front of the lecture hall, desperately trying to stay awake. She had spent the greater part of the last night studying for the Calculus final she would be heading to after this class, Introduction to Formal Logic. If the class itself wasn't a fascinating brain tease for her mind, she surely would have sought refuge in the back corner and been snoozing on top of her calculus textbook right this second.
She grinned as her grey-haired and bearded Professor strode across the front of the room stroking his beard. There was no final per se. They had all handed in a paper at the beginning of class that argued for or against something from a list of topics he had given them a few weeks ago. Teresa had chosen to take on the issue of sanity, as in, was there really such a thing as normal and insane? This hadn't been a research paper, purely an exercise in arguing from a purely formal logic viewpoint and Teresa had enjoyed it immensely. If her class schedule could fit it, she planned to take the follow-up course that was being held two semesters from now.
"I can see all your brains shutting down as we wind down our final lesson," the professor boomed, his voice carrying easily without the need for a microphone. "Just remember, the ability to reason surely and soundly is a rare trait in your fellow man. If you fail to use it and practice it, it will surely whither and atrophy as a plant without water."
"Truer sentiments were never spoken!" an arrogant voice called from the back of the classroom.
The Professor looked up towards the back and as one the class turned to see who the speaker was. A tall thin man with red hair, a green bowler hat and coat and a cane in hand trotted down the stairs. Teresa's pulse tripled and her hands began to sweat. She had watched enough five o'clock news reports to know who that was sauntering down the stairs. Her eyes flew to the exits as the other students began to stir. Even as her eyes flicked from one to the other she saw big green themed henchmen slip in front of each door, large guns in their hands.
Oh shit I am about to become the five o'clock news she thought as the Riddler strode to the front of the classroom. She held her hands together tightly in her lap as the red-haired man came even with the Professor.
"What is the meaning of this?" the Professor asked, eyebrows bristling and his body tensing. If the Professor was scared, he didn't show it, which was more than Teresa could say about herself. She forced herself to take slow breaths even as the young man who sat next to her, Curt Rollins, began to hyperventilate. Surreptitiously she snaked a hand under the lecture hall's desk and grabbed one of his. He started and looked at her. Teresa didn't return the look but she squeezed his hand gently, hoping to calm him. Now was not the time to be drawing attention to themselves. Her hand's pressure seemed to calm him slightly and his breathing became more normal.
As she sat, the Riddler's question mark shaped cane snapped in the Professor's chest. "Why I have just come to this fine institution of learning to see just how well the lessons of logic are being handed down to our youth. A sort of final exam you may say." He chortled, his view turning to the thirty or so students in the lecture hall. "If one of you can answer five of my finest riddles, I shall salute this institution as one of true learning and you may all be on your merry way to enjoy a summer of frivolity. If not well..." Teresa saw the guns shifting in the henchmen's arms and she quietly gulped. "But surely, it won't come to that. Now, do I have any volunteers?"
A terrified silence descended on the room and Teresa wished she was sitting anywhere other than in the front row. The Professor strode forward, placing himself between the Riddler and the students. "I will answer your riddles," he said, shoulders back and glaring at the grinning Riddler."
"Oh no no no!" the Riddler said, shaking his head and wagging a finger. "I am here to test your students, not you!" He sighed and reached a hand into his coat. Out came a semi-automatic that he pointed at the Professor's head. Screams echoed through the lecture hall and Teresa felt her breath catch in her throat. "I will count to five before I blow the Professor's considerable brain matter all over the front row. Now do I have any volunteers?"
Without even thinking, Teresa shot up hands planted on the desk in front of her to keep her balance. "I volunteer," she managed to gasp out. The Riddler turned his gaze towards her and it took all of Teresa's will power not to shudder as his blue eyes pierced her brown ones. "Well, well, thank you very much Miss," his eyes glanced back to the Professor's desk and caught the seating chart. He flipped it over and glanced at it. "Tomlin," he finished. "Teresa Tomlin. It is Miss, is it not?"
"It is," Teresa answered, her voice sounding distant to her ears. Her mind, while still wildly frightened, recognized the peril she was in. She could not panic. She must not panic. Fear is the little death she thought, again forcing herself to breathe in and out slowly. She saw the Professor grind his teeth together and he flicked her a worried glance. She managed a small smile and a nod to him. The Riddler eyed this with amusement, never taking the gun off the older man.
"Let's begin then, shall we?" he asked, flashing her a manaical grin.
Teresa nodded, heart thudding in her chest, hands moist with sweat. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Curt scoot marginally closer to her and warmth flooded her. It wasn't much but it was as much a show of support as she could expect under the circumstances she supposed.
"I begin and end in e and I hold only one letter," the Riddler said, cane idly twirling in his hand. "What am I?"
Teresa took a breath. Riddles weren't straight formal logic. Not really what this class was meant to address. But they did hold a logic all their own, hiding things in the obvious. She thought rapidly. The obvious that wasn't. A letter could mean a letter of the alphabet. But it could almost mean something you mailed... "An envelope," she said after a few seconds pause.
The cane never stopped its idle twirl, and the Riddler's lips twisted in a sardonic grin. "Very good!" he said, his tone full of condescension. "It is good to see your brains have not entirely shut off for the summer yet!" An eyebrow raised above his green mask and Teresa shivered slightly. "Let's go for number two then? If you have it, then you want to share it, but if you share it you no longer have it."
Teresa barely had to pause for that one. "A secret," she said, the word bursting from her mouth. She bit her tongue to keep from remarking on how that was a very old riddle indeed. She had a feeling it would help neither her nor her Professor's life span.
The Riddler nodded, cane still twirling. "Indeed, it is true. Secrets and riddles are very closely allied like that. Now, let's see..." His face twisted in pretend thought and it was all Teresa could do not to stare at the gun pointed at her Professor's head. "What is greater than God? More Evil than the Devil? The rich don't want it, the poor have it, and if you eat it you die."
Teresa felt all her thoughts freeze up and her hands tightened involuntarily on the desk. Do not panic! her mind screamed. Remember, fear is the little death. Focus! She felt the Riddler's amused gaze on her, and his amusement angered her. She let the anger wash through her, let it wash the fear away. He wasn't nearly as smart he thought he was. Now, the obvious in the hidden. What was greater than God? Nothing her raised Catholic mind automatically answered. Her thought processes paused and she ran down the list of questions. Oh. Oh! Her gaze lifted to the Riddler's taunting one. "Nothing," she said confidently.
The cane abruptly stopped twirling and came to a rest on the floor with a sharp rap. As it hit the floor Teresa noticed a red light begin to blink on the side of it but Riddler paid it no mind. His eyes narrowed and Teresa did her best not to flinch back. "Aren't we the clever girl?" he said, a dangerous undercurrent to his words.
I don't think I was supposed to get that one right Teresa thought, watching as his focus on her became laser sharp. So glad to have fully caught the attention of the super villain...
He jerked his head at a couple of his henchmen. They came over and covered the Professor and the Riddler stuffed his gun back in his suit. "Boss," one of the henchmen said quietly, nodding at Riddler's cane.
"Not now," Riddler snapped. He stepped over to the front of Teresa's desk and put his hands down on it, leaning forward towards her. He was a good six to eight inches taller than her and his gaze bore down into hers. "What tastes better than it smells?" he asked, the words coming out rapid fire.
Teresa bit her lip and closed her eyes, eyebrows contracting, thinking. She knew he wouldn't give her long to answer. Tastes, tastes, the hidden in the obvious. What tastes... Or rather, what did one taste with! "A tongue," she said, with as much confidence as she could muster.
The Riddler's face darkened and Teresa was well and truly frightened. She had gotten four of five right. One more and they were supposed to go free. But judging from the look on the Riddler's face she had a feeling she was screwed whether she got the next riddle right or wrong.
"What asks but never answers?" the Riddler said, every word a practical snarl. Teresa felt her breath coming faster and she started to close her eyes again. "No!" the Riddler said, a hand lashing out and grabbing her chin. He forced her to look up at him and she felt herself begin to tremble. "What is the answer, Miss Tomlin?"
Teresa felt her brain misfiring and knew for certain she was going to die. An odd calmness came over her at the thought. Well, if she was going to die, she might at least try to get the answer right. She'd feel better about dying if she knew she'd beaten the Riddler at his own game. Asked but never answered... Some might say a philosopher but she felt they hardly fell under the "what" category they were more of the "who" category. That suggested something that wasn't human. Wait, "what" vs "who" and not human. "An owl," Teresa said clearly, despite her trembling.
There was a long moment of silence. Isn't this the part where Batman is supposed to swoop in and save us? Teresa thought as the Riddler squeezed her chin even tighter. Then, abruptly, he let go and turned away from her. "Let them go," he said in a quiet voice.
The two henchmen by the Professor looked at each other quizzically and then back to the Riddler. "Boss?" one of them queried.
"I said let them go!" Riddler roared, startling both men.
Both men started but stepped away from the Professor. Slowly, the other henchmen began to move towards the doors. Teresa held her breath, barely hoping this was true. Then the Riddler turned back towards her and her breath caught in her throat again. This was it. He would let everyone else go but he was going to shoot her dead for her impertinence before he left.
His hand didn't move for his gun though. He brought his cane up and jabbed it at her. "You and I will meet again," he said. Then he turned from her and followed the two henchmen that had been by the Professor out the door. When the door swung shut on them, Teresa collapsed into her seat, head in her hands, even as the room around her burst into the noisy exclamations of her fellow students.
A gentle arm around her shoulders caught her attention and she looked up to see Curt right next to her. "That was awesome," he said quietly, eyes full of worry.
Teresa gave a weak laugh. "Yeah, awesome, just the word I was looking for."
"Are you all right, Miss Tomlin?" the Professor said, leaning over the desk.
Teresa nodded as the doors burst open again and she jumped as did Curt. Police SWAT units poured down the aisles and Teresa sighed. "Better late than never I guess," she remarked as the units scoured the room.
Thirty minutes later Teresa was still seated at her desk as a large detective named Bullock in a rumpled suit finished taking her statement. "Good thing this whack job is so obsessed with riddles," he said shaking his head as he put away his notebook. He turned to her and although he looked the part of a bungler, Teresa could see a sharp mind behind his gaze. "You probably shouldn't stay alone for the next couple days though. Do you have some friends you can room with?"
"I was going to visit my parents after class today. They can put me up for a few days."
"Good," Bullock said turning to briefly scan the room. He turned back to her tipping his hat back. "And I don't want you to worry, we'll have this nut job back behind bars in no time."
Teresa nodded and stood up, her book bag clutched in one hand as she made her way out of the classroom. She walked up the aisle to the doors, eyes darting every which way. As she emerged from the class, she took a step back as someone suddenly moved next to the door.
"Just me," Curt said, holding up his hands. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay, after yknow..." he rubbed the back of his head.
Teresa's heart slowed. "Yes, I think so," she said. She began to walk down the hallway and Curt fell in step next to her. "I'm going to go stay with my parents for a few days I think, though."
He nodded. "Good, good," he said as they passed through the doors leading outside. They walked down the sunny path towards the quad for a moment in silence. "You know, I just realized I am really late for my Calculus final," Teresa said, laughing as she checked her watch.
Curt laughed in turn. "No, it's okay, the University canceled the rest of the classes and finals for the day because of the, ah, incident," he said. He held up his phone. "I just got a text on their alert system. Says they'll contact us about finals later."
"Good," Teresa said, because, she was sure of one thing, she would not be able to differentiate anything to save her life. The twosome walked past a banner advertising the Double Diamond Exhibit that was currently showing at the University's museum. Something about twin blue diamonds that used to belong some Duchess or other in England, Teresa thought flicking a glance to the banner as she passed. She had thought about going to see it after finals today, but that plan was nixed for now.
"Um, do you have a car? Like, uh, do you need a ride?" Curt asked as they passed the parking garage, blushing furiously as Teresa looked up at him.
"I do have a car, but it's back at my apartment," Teresa said, choosing to ignore the blush. "It's not far off-campus so I usually just walk."
"Oh," Curt said, at a loss for words.
"Would you mind walking home with me, though?" Teresa asked, reading the unspoken request in his words. "I think I'd like an escort."
Curt smiled. "It would be my honor."
The two of them chatted amiably about classes and sundry little niceties as they walked. Their recent experience with death up close and personal bubbled below the surface but was not touched on. It was too real to focus on for now.
After about fifteen minutes of pleasant chatter, Teresa and Curt walked along the blacktop parking lot of her apartment complex. A black wrought iron fence surrounded the complex, giving an aura of security that Teresa knew all too well did not exist or at least so said the bottle of mace in her book bag.
"Hey, listen," Curt said as they walked up the steps of Teresa's building. "Are you going straight to your parents?"
Teresa shook her head. "I need to pack a few things first and take a shower." She rubbed her hands against her jeans self-consciously. "I've been doing a lot of sweating recently."
"You don't say," Curt said, grinning at her. "Well, would you like to go get something to eat or some coffee or y'know something..." he said, sticking his hands in his pockets and rocking on his feet.
Teresa cocked her head and grinned in return. "Why not? I'm up in apartment C," she said, pointing up the flight of stairs. "Come back in, let's say, an hour and a half? Should give me enough time to shower and pack."
"Great!" Curt said, bouncing on his heels. "See you then!" He tossed her a wave and headed back out across the parking lot.
Teresa watched him, her grin never leaving her face. Then, with a sigh, she turned to the stairs and began to trudge up them. Perhaps today wasn't going to be totally awful after all. Inserting the key in the lock, Teresa opened the door with a grateful sigh and tossed her book bag inside.
Teresa roomed by herself so she was rather surprised to see a shadow rise over her as she turned to lock the door. That was all she had time to register before she was engulfed in broad arms, a hand clapped over mouth to silence her screams and an arm wrapped around both of hers as if she was no more than a twig.
"I did say we would be meeting again, did I not?" a familiar voice called from her small living room.
Teresa was dragged back, her heels digging in the linoleum trying to find some purchase against the green clothed goon who held her. All she managed to do was create some impressive black scuff marks as she was dragged to her living room.
The Riddler lounged in her battered green arm chair, his light green suit contrasting nicely with the dark green fabric. "Such plebeian tastes," he said tsking, rooting through the book shelf next to the chair. "Harry Potter? What are we, twelve?"
Teresa strained against the arms that held her, but there was no give. All she could do was glare at the man in her reading spot. Another henchman, looking bored, stood in the room looking out the window.
With an exaggerated sigh, the Riddler raised himself up from the chair. He picked up a small notepad that looked like it had been scribbled on a great deal and stuck it in his pocket. Then spinning his cane in his hand Riddler advanced on her and poked the question mark end against Teresa's chest. "You and I have unfinished business. It has been a long time indeed since anyone has passed one of my Riddle challenges. People are usually too busy mewling about how they don't want to die and oh please won't I let them go!" He clung to his cane with a fake piteous look as he said this.
He regarded her with an air of seriousness that belied his playful banter. "I would like to know if today was a fluke or not. Or if you somehow cheated," he said, spitting the last word. He flung his hands in the air. "If there is one thing I hate it's a cheater. Especially black caped, pointy eared, thuggish ones," he continued with a small shudder. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle and a cloth. "So, I am here to invite you to participate in another round of riddles!" He uncorked the bottle and covered the top with the cloth, carefully pouring the liquid onto it. "Of course, it's more of a demand than an invite..."
Teresa's fight or flight instincts kicked into high gear as the Riddler approached her. Bracing her left foot quickly on the little stand that held the reading lamp next to her chair, she kicked her right foot as hard as she could into the Riddler's chest. The lamp fell off the stand and shattered on the floor as the Riddler stumbled back into her small bookcase, knocking the various small knickknacks and a small stack of current reading material off the top. The Riddler fell ungracefully on his rump, his little bowler hat askew on his head and his notepad and a pen falling from his pocket.
"You are going to regret that," he growled, as his other henchman helped him off the floor. Teresa felt herself shoved to her knees as the man holding her knelt on top of her pinning her in place. She tried to scream for help when he removed his hand but the Riddler forced the cloth over her mouth and nose. His other hand grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked forward as she tried to turn away. "We're going to have fun before you die," he muttered as the cloying scent from the cloth worked it's way through Teresa's system. The room began to spin and the last thing she saw was the Riddler's demented grin before blackness took her.
Teresa's whole body felt heavy as she tried to open her eyes. "This is why you were late pulling out?" she heard a low guttural voice growl. "Why you were late meeting us back here?"
"She must have cheated! There is no way she could have answered those riddles! It was a matter of honor!" This voice was familiar, full of self-importance and a nagging whine. She had grown to despise it over the last few hours.
"Honor be damned!" the other voice growled back. "If she bothers you that much, just plug her between the eyes and be done with it!"
Teresa finally forced her eyes opened and then quickly wished she hadn't. Standing in front of her and slightly to her right was the Riddler and another more well-built man, though by no means a muscle-head. His two-tone suit and blue scarred face gave away his identity fairly quickly, though Teresa had no idea why Two-Face and the Riddler were working together.
Teresa looked around her as the Riddler went ram-rod straight and glared at Two-Face. She was bound to a wooden chair, arms pulled back behind her and wrists bound together with another swath of rope around her waist. More disturbing were two wires emerging from the top of her shirt and two more from the bottom of her pants legs. She tested her bonds gently but found no slack to work with. At this the two men finally glanced her way and Teresa went stiller than she had ever thought possible.
"Oh, good, you're finally awake," the Riddler said. He hooked a chair behind him with his cane and dragged it over.
Two-Face put a heavy hand on the Riddler's shoulder. "Eddie, this is stupid."
"What, like you and your incessant need to flip that little bauble?" the Riddler asked, swiping Two-Face's hand off his shoulder. Two-Face glowered at him and leaned forward. "Good side up and you can have your fun," he said, shoving a silver coin in Riddler's face. " Scarred side and I shoot her and you for good measure."
The Riddler gulped. "Okay, Harv, take it easy," he laughed uneasily as Two-Face tossed the silver coin in the air. Riddler and Teresa both watched it with equal nervousness as it came down. Two-Face snatched it from the air and slapped it down on the top of his good hand. He uncovered it and growled something to himself. "Have your fun," he muttered, walking away.
Teresa let out a breath she hadn't known she had been holding as the Riddler wiped off his forehead with a small kerchief pulled from his jacket pocket. Then, he dragged his chair in front of hers and sat down in it, one leg crossed over the other with an air of exaggerated relaxation.
"So, doubtless you've noticed these," he said, gesturing to the wires coming from Teresa's shirt. "Those are hooked to a car battery located behind you," he said, pointing with his cane. Teresa tried to twist her head to follow but was held too firmly in place to turn far enough around to see. She felt the cane tap the side of her head and direct her gaze forward back to the Riddler.
"You'll just have to take my word for it," he said, with a grin. "You see, every time you get an answer wrong," he tapped a button on his cane. A jolt of pain shot through Teresa and she felt as if her nerves were on fire. A small scream escaped from her before she could clamp her mouth shut. The pain stopped as suddenly as it had started and Teresa sagged, panting slightly.
"The voltage goes up every time it goes off, as does the duration," the Riddler said, twirling his cane. "Let's just say you don't want to get any answers wrong, hm?"
"How many do I have to get right?" Teresa managed to say between gritted teeth.
"Until I say we're done," the Riddler said, raising an eyebrow.
Meaning not until I've been fricasseed to death Teresa thought, staring at him. Her mouth set. Fine then. She was going to drag this out as long as possible. If she was very lucky, she might even provoke him into shooting her instead if she lasted long enough. A girl could dream.
Idly she wondered if Curt had ever showed up for their "date". She felt bad about standing him up but she was sure he would understand if he knew why she had missed it.
"Let's start with an easy one, shall we?" the Riddler said, leaning forward. "A rooster lays an egg on a roof. Which way does it roll off?"
Teresa took a slow breath in and let it out. Fear is the little death she thought again, bringing up her earlier mantra. And if she wanted to avoid the true death for as long as possible she needed to remember that. She analyzed the question in her mind, ignoring the second half for the first. Wait a second she thought. "Roosters don't lay eggs," she responded as calmly as possible.
The Riddler grinned and nodded. "Very good!" he exclaimed. "Let's move on to something more challenging."
The riddles and taunts came rapid fire after that. Teresa forced herself to remain in a state of calm, taking each riddle apart as if it was just another exercise in logic from the class she had just finished. She viewed them as if from a distance, as if she wasn't hooked to electric death, and they became just a few interesting brain teasers.
By the time she had answered the tenth riddle, Teresa wondered if the Riddler was going to have the self-restraint to wait until she got a wrong answer. His finger hovered over the button set to electrocute her and he was frowning to himself, all displays of jollity gone. He had taken off his coat and loosened his tie as he had become more and more aggravated, hat now lying on the floor where he had knocked it three riddles ago.
When did I start measuring time in riddles? Teresa thought as the Riddler opened his mouth to deliver his next question. A sudden loud thump and a cut off yell made them both look up. The Riddler was standing up, snatching his hat off the floor and jamming it on his head as Two-Face strode back over to them.
"Got a Bat problem," he growled. He glanced down at her and grunted. "Looks like your little obsession might come in handy after all."
Oh, was Batman here? Teresa's heart rose at the thought. Was she about to be rescued by the Caped Crusader? That would be awesome! Almost awesome enough to make up for the gun Two-Face was now shoving against the back of her head as the Riddler stepped behind her. She heard something click behind her, as if a dial was being rapidly turned. Oh that cannot be good she thought, knowing that's where the battery was supposed to be.
A green suited henchman suddenly came skidding into view on his back, his eyes rolled up into his head. He lay still, breathing shallowly, when he came to a halt near the chair Riddler had been sitting in.
Teresa followed the path the man had slid along back to its source. If she squinted, she could just make out a caped and cowled figure emerging from the shadows at the other end of the room.
"Don't come any closer," Two-Face called. "Or I unload two slugs into the back of her head!"
"And I unleash enough voltage to barbecue a cow," the Riddler taunted from behind her.
Teresa watched as the Batman stood, surveying the three of them. She knew with certainty that even if he surrendered to these two that they would not be letting any of them go, and she'd be getting those two slugs and/or barbecuing anyway. "Don't," she managed to say before Two-Face clocked her in the back of the head. She gasped as stars danced before her and the sides of her vision blackened momentarily. I will not pass out! she thought fiercely as she fought through the pain.
"What's it gonna be?" she heard Two-Face say as she struggled to look up.
To her horror, Teresa saw the Batman slowly raise his hands. "Smart move," she heard Riddler say and she could practically see his smug smile as he said it. Two burly men in suits, she guessed they were Two-Face's crew because of the lack of green, came forward and each grabbed an arm.
Two-Face kicked over the chair Riddler had been sitting in and the two henchmen dragged the Batman over to it and bound him to it, arms behind his back as Teresa's were.
"Well, well, two diamonds nabbed and two nuisances shot," Two-Face said, moving over to Batman and leveling the gun as his head. "Lucky twice over."
"No, no," Riddler said, moving forward. "You can't shoot her yet, I'm not done," he said, jerking a thumb back at Teresa. He grinned. "Besides, I have a better idea."
Two-Face sighed and turned towards Riddler without lowering his gun. "What idea?"
The Riddler hopped back over behind Teresa and she heard him dragging something on the floor. He emerged with more wires trailing him. "What better way to rub it in your face," he said, grinning at Teresa, "how sub-par your mind truly is if your insufficiency kills not only you but Gotham City's would be savior."
"I am not sitting around for another hour while she shoots down your riddles one at a time," Two-Face growled grabbing a fistful of Riddler's coat and shaking.
The Riddler reached up and steadied that hat on his head and sighed. "You said I could have my fun."
"And you've had it," Two-Face said, pulling him close.
"Look, Harv, she's not answering this next one, believe me," he said, grinning widely. "Come on, it's not like they're going anywhere."
Teresa's gazed flicked from the two arguing men to the two henchmen who glowered in front of Batman, to the Batman himself. The Batman was watching the Riddler and Two-Face closely and if Teresa looked at him carefully she could see his arms moving very slightly and rhythmically.
He's trying to get loose she thought. Well, he was the Batman, if anyone could he could. She'd just have to give him as much time as possible.
The two men finally drew apart, some sort of compromise reached. The Riddler hooked up the Batman who watched with narrowed eyes but said nothing.
"Right then," Riddler said with a flourish. He twirled and faced Teresa, snatching up his cane from the floor where he had lain it and planting it on the ground with a determined tap. "The final riddle! Answer this, if you can," he said, smiling down at her with all the warmth of an icicle. "How is a raven like a writing desk?"
Teresa struggled not to let her jaw drop. That riddle was rather famous for not having an answer. In fact, having no answer was the whole point. She sucked in a breath and looked up into the Riddler's dancing blue eyes. "Let's put a time limit on this one, shall we?" he said. He narrowed his eyes. "Ten seconds."
Teresa looked down and thought rapidly as the Riddler began to count down. Okay, okay just try and find some way the two things are related. Uh, both have the letters N, E, and R in them? No, that's too pedantic if true. Shoot, uh, wells, ravens are related to crows... The number "five" reached her ears and Teresa tried to keep her breathing steady as she felt her pulse surge. Um, ravens, ravens, Poe wrote a poem about one. The number "three" came with a taunting lilt as Teresa suddenly lit upon a very important word. Wrote! He wrote a poem about a raven! And where does a writer write? A writing desk! "Poewroteonboth" she said, all jumbled together as the Riddler reached the number one.
She cringed as he stopped and stared at her. "What did you say?" he demanded, stepping closer to her and glaring down.
"Poe wrote on both," she said, unable to keep a small tremble out of her voice.
There was silence in the room, so still one could've heard the proverbial pin drop. Teresa watched as the Riddler actually started to go red in the face. "You- you," he sputtered, shaking with an incoherent rage. And then he was upon her, grasping her by the shirt and lifting up and shaking. "You cheated somehow."
Teresa saw her death in his eyes, knew there were no more riddles coming. "No," she said, trying to keep him off-balance for just a few seconds longer. "Just smarter than you."
He growled and threw her back down, her chair rocking back briefly and then coming down, still upright with a thump. "Oh no," he said. "I have loads more where that came from."
"No, you don't," Two-Face said coming up behind him and shoving him out of the way. He lowered his gun at Teresa's head and she heard it cock back. "We are done."
Unable to look her death in the face, and slightly ashamed of it, Teresa lowered her head and closed her eyes. She heard the roar of the gun go off, but as it did she also heard several yells. She felt something whizz by her right arm and wing it slightly, but there was no explosion of pain in her head. Looking up, Teresa saw Batman had indeed freed himself from his bonds and had laid out Two-Face on the floor with an impressive bruise coming in on the good side of his face.
She watched in awe as kicked free the Riddler's cane from his grasp and followed up with a beautiful haymaker to his jaw. The Riddler sprawled out with a groan on the floor and did not get up.
One of the two remaining henchmen tackled Batman at this point, but with a quick pivot and twist one henchman was thrown into the other where they landed in a twist of legs and arms. They did not get up. No one else burst into the room. The Batman was victorious.
"Wow," Teresa breathed, looking at the carnage before her. If she had not been bound, she might have been moved enough to applaud.
"Are you all right?" the Batman asked, moving over to her. He swiftly disconnected the wires connecting her to electric death and she breathed a sigh of relief.
"I've been better," she admitted as he moved behind her and used what looked like one of his batarangs to cut her free. As the ropes fell away she brought her arms forward and rotated them. Gingerly she stood up and then immediately sat back down as a wave of dizziness washed over her. No one's pointing a gun at me and now is when I pansy out? she thought, leaning over the chair. To her surprise, she wretched and then vomited on the floor in front of her. She spit the foul taste out of her mouth as she felt hands gently probing the back of her head. She hissed slightly when she felt pressure on where she had been clocked with the gun.
"Look up," she heard Batman say, but with none of of the belligerence she had heard from Two-Face or the Riddler. Gritting her teeth against the sudden pain and dizziness Teresa complied as best she could. The Batman shone a small light in her eyes, that Teresa assumed he had pulled from his all purpose utility belt. "It looks like you have a concussion," he said, putting the light away. He cocked his head as sirens filled the air. Nodding, he pulled the chair he had been bound too over and sat in it across from her. "Just listen to my voice," he said, as her head swam. "Try to stay with me."
"Okay," she said, looking down at the floor again. "What were those two working together for anyway?" she asked.
"Riddler's hostage taking earlier was a distraction. Once the campus locked down, Two-Face and his gang, who were already in place, were able to walk straight into the Double Diamond exhibit and make off with everything in there."
"Oh," Teresa said. "Right, makes sense. Geez, two crimes, two diamonds, he must have been thrilled." She put a hand to her forehead trying to force her scattered thoughts together. "I am really glad you were able to track him."
"Actually, you have your friend to thank for that." Teresa looked up slightly feeling concussed and confused now. The Batman watched her closely -In case I pass out and clonk my head yet again she thought wryly- and continued. "Curt. When you didn't answer the door for your appointment earlier he got worried. He found the door open and called the police when he saw signs of a struggle."
"I don't think they make thank-you cards for that but I will certainly try to find one," Teresa remarked and she thought just for a second she saw the ghost of a smile on the Batman.
"Anyway, the Riddler dropped a notepad at some point." Teresa flashed back to when she kicked the Riddler into her bookcase. "So he did," she agreed.
"It was from here," the Batman said, gesturing around them. "The Fixodyne toothpaste factory," he finished, seeing from her look that Teresa had no idea where "here" was.
"Lord, that two in one stuff?" Teresa groaned. "That's an awful lot of twos." The sirens sounded close now, almost like they were outside. The Batman stood up from his chair and walked over to her.
"Try not to move your head too much," he said, as he lifted her up.
Teresa was about to protest that she could walk but realized, no she really couldn't, not without projectile vomiting onto the floor again. As they left the factory, Teresa saw what looked like a bread crumb trail of unconscious henchmen. "You really are a one man army, she said more to herself than anyone else. But she thought she saw the ghost of a smile again as they crossed outside.
Somehow, despite the practical line of police cars outside the Batman managed to flit through the shadows until he found the person he wanted. "Detective Montoya," he said to a Hispanic woman in a black shirt, tan pants, and a holster vest.
She started slightly and turned towards them. "The kidnap vic?" she asked pointing to Teresa.
"Yes" Batman said. "You'll find the diamonds inside the factory along with Two-Face and Riddler." He set Teresa down on the front seat of the police cruiser and she looked up at the person Batman had called Detective Montoya. She was regarding Teresa with a steady look now. "Is she okay?" Montoya asked.
"I am right here," Teresa said, slightly annoyed. "And perhaps a trifle... loopy." She leaned against the seat and sighed.
"Concussed," Batman answered as Montoya grinned and leaned down to look at her. "She was hit fairly hard in the back of the head. Keep her conscious if you can."
Montoya nodded and turned to an officer behind her who was already on the radio calling for paramedics.
Teresa heard the sound of what sounded like pressurized air going off and she turned to see the Batman grappling away up to the rooftop. "Thank you!" she managed to call off as he disappeared. She frowned. "Do you think he heard?" she asked Montoya as she leaned against the door next to her.
"Trust me, I think he knows," Montoya said.
Luckily Teresa's concussion wasn't too terrible and she only ended up staying overnight in the hospital. That didn't stop her parents and Curt from stopping by and then her parents practically drowning Curt in tears and hugs when they found out he was the one who called the police.
Even better, when Teresa tried to pick up the paper work for her stay the next morning, she found out that the Wayne Foundation had picked up the tab. Apparently there was a section of the charity solely devoted to crime victims. "I'm not going to argue," Teresa said, laughing as she took her discharge instructions.
"I wouldn't either," the nurse said. "What about all those requests those reporters left?" she asked Teresa, pointing to the small pile underneath her discharge instructions. "What are you going to do with those?"
"This," Teresa said, tossing them in a trash can as she left. She heard the nurse laughing behind her and she shook her head gingerly. Like she was going to do anything else to antagonize the riddle obsessed madman who had kidnapped her.
Teresa waved to her parents, who where waiting for her just outside the hospital. She did know one thing she was going to do when she got home. She was going to use the phone number Curt had given her last night to wrangle herself a lunch/dinner/coffee/whatever date. And possibly find a thank-you for calling the cops card.