Batman: Death at the Circus
A/N: I'm back! So this takes place roughly one month after Batman Begins, and one year before the events in The Dark Knight. This is a story I've been thinking about ever since I saw The Dark Knight Rises.
Read, review, and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Batman or from Batman Begins; I only own the characters that I created.
CHAPTER ONE: CIRCUS! CIRCUS!
It was a warm summer day in Gotham City, and the city folk were excited for both the upcoming 4th of July events and the circus; at that very moment, a long caravan of long-haul trucks, vans, pickups, and other types of vehicles were making their way across Gotham Bridge and toward Wayne Park, one of the biggest parks within the city limits.
In one of the vans, a fifteen-year-old girl with wavy brunette hair and hazel eyes had her face pressed against the window, watching as the tall buildings drew closer and closer, and she could feel the excitement building up inside her at the same time.
"Diana, sit down, honey," her father, John Grayson, requested. "We'll be across the bridge soon."
"Yeah, sit down, squirt," said her eighteen-year-old brother, Richard Grayson, tugging on the back of her shirt, so that she fell backward onto the seat, and grinned when she swatted at his hand.
"Don't call me squirt, Dick," Diana protested, sitting up and fixing her seatbelt while scowling at her brother. "I'm not that short anymore," she added proudly, having grown four inches in the last month.
Richard grinned and missed up her hair, making her squeal in protest. "You'll always be a squirt to me, sis."
"Ok, behave you two," Katherine Grayson scolded, "or else you both will be confined to the fairgrounds the whole time we're here."
Eyes widened at the threat, and the siblings quickly obeyed, making their parents smile; neither of them wanted to pass up a chance to explore the city with the other kids, and, maybe, catch a glimpse of the mysterious Batman.
"Sorry, mom."
"Sorry."
John chuckled and kissed his wife's hand as they entered the gray city.
Two hours later, the last vehicle in the circus troupe pulled into the massive roped off field, and soon everyone was out and busy getting set up; as the circus folk worked, several additional cars: two police cars and two limos pulled into the nearest parking lot, and a small group of people got out.
These were the selected delegates for the city: Mayor Anthony Garcia with two aides, Police Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb with Detective Gerard Stephens and Lt. James Gordon, and billionaire play-boy Bruce Wayne with his faithful butler, Alfred Pennyworth.
The group walked along a pathway that led to the fairgrounds, where an iron fence was being set up to replace the rope, and the gateway was already set up; inside the fence, Roberto the strongman was helping with the setup of the dunking tank when he saw the representatives heading his way.
"Hey, boss!" he called up to John, who was currently on top of a tall pole and hooking up lights. "We've got company!"
John waved down to the strongman and then launched himself off the pole, did a flip midair, and landed on his feet, bowing as the group clapped and the circus folk cheered. "Thank you, thank you."
"That was impressive," Mayor Garcia commented, "and I'm sure your upcoming performances will be even more impressive."
"I can assure you that they will be, Mr. Mayor," John said confidentially.
"Call me Anthony, I insist," said the mayor and then he did the introductions. "These are my aides, Smith and Jones. This is Police Commissioner Gillian Loeb, Detective Gerard Stephens, and Lt. James Gordon." He then wrapped his arm around Bruce's shoulders. "And while this young man needs no introduction, I'll do it anyway: Bruce Wayne and his faithful butler, Alfred J. Pennyworth."
"A pleasure to meet you all," said John, shaking all of their hands, including Alfred. "If you'll follow me, I'll give a tour of the circus to give you an idea of what you'll see during the performances."
The final stop of the tour was the big top tent, which had three large wooden rigs on the ground, and in the central ring, a rehearsal was going on high in the air on the trapeze; high above their heads, Katherine gracefully leapt from the platform, caught the bar, and swung through the air.
"Impressive," Bruce commented, watching as Richard caught his mom's arms and swung her onto his swing. "Your family?"
John nodded. "Yep, my wife Katherine, my son Richard, and on the opposite platform is my daughter Diana."
Bruce watched as the girl in question leapt from the other platform, catching the trapeze and swung through the air several times before letting go, flipped twice, and was caught by her brother so that all three of them were on the same trapeze.
The group clapped and one-by-one, Katherine, Richard, and then Diana all dropped off the trapeze, flipped, and landed on the net below; they rolled off, and joined John.
"Sweetie," he said to his wife, "this is the delegation from Gotham. Mayor Anthony Garcia, his aides Smith and Jones, Police Commissioner Gillian Loeb, Detective Gerard Stephens, and Lt. James Gordon; and this is Bruce Wayne and his butler Alfred Pennyworth."
"A pleasure to meet you all," said Katherine politely and smiled at Bruce. "It's been a long time, Bruce."
Bruce raised his eyebrows. "Do I know you?"
Katherine chuckled. "Not really, but I'm actually a native of Gotham," she explained. "My maiden name is Pearson."
"Of course," said Bruce, "your parents are Philip and Julia Pearson. Philip talks about you still."
"I'm sure he does," Katherine agreed, "and I'm sure that my mom is still angry with me for running off."
Bruce chuckled. "Well, she's still making an impact at social events…at least ones I've been to since returning to Gotham last month."
While they talked, John introduced his kids to the group and explained of how it was traditional for the older kids of the circus to take a tour of the city once everything had been set up, and always with adult supervision; while arrangements were being made for the tour, John went over the Wayne Foundation fundraiser plans with Anthony and Bruce and how much money would most likely be raised during the five performances for the next five nights.
When the group left to head back to their responsibilities and activities, John and Katherine walked back to their trailer together.
"Should I be worry about Bruce way stealing you away?" John teased and Katherine laughed, lightly swatting his arm.
"Of course not," she responded. "I'm perfectly happy with you and our kids."
John nodded. "Honey, I noticed that you've set tickets aside for your parents," he told her. "I'm guessing that you're planning on inviting them?"
Katherine sighed. "I want to, and I really want my mom to meet Richard and Diana; plus, if I can mend fences, then my dad won't have to sneak away to visit like he has been for the past nineteen years."
"Agreed, our beautiful children need to know both of their grandparents and not just their grandfather," said John, kissing his wife's cheek. "So, do I need to sneak out to drop a note at their house?"
Katherine nodded. "No, I got a call from my dad, who confirmed that my mom will be at her favorite department store at the Gotham City Mall today."
"And that just happens to be where we'll be sending the kids right?" John guessed and his wife smiled sheepishly. "Oh, you can be so sneaky sometimes."
Katherine laughed. "Well, it's a trait that I get from my dad, who ruled at hide-and-seek when I was a kid, and him being a former marine has rubbed off on my bit."
"More then a bit," John corrected as they entered the trailer. "Like your dad, you are fearless when it comes to heights."
"And I'm quite the sharpshooter, too," Katherine reminded him. "And thanks to him, I'm still the reigning champion of Laser Tag."
"For now," John teased. "But I'm taking you out tomorrow to finally beat you."
"You're on."
Meanwhile, Richard and Diana were with the other older kids on one of the buses heading into the city and toward the Gotham City Mall; when they arrived, the adults passed out envelopes filled with money to the kids with instructions to not spend it all, and to be back by the entrance by 4:00 pm.
The kids split up into groups and headed out to explore the mall, and Diana went with some of her friends up to one of the upper levels to explore the department stores.
"Let's go into this one," said one of her friends, pointing to the entrance to the Bloomindale's Department Store.
"Nah, that place is too expensive," said another friend. "Let's go elsewhere."
Diana glanced over at the window displays, where there were several dresses, including a strapless yellow gown that actress Zoe Naylor had modeled at the Alex Perry Celebrates 10 years of fashion. "Actually, I think we should go in there, too." And headed for the store surprising her friends, who quickly followed.
The inside of the store was filled with the latest fashions, various merchandise, and also had fantastic sales; Diana walked through the store, pulling out a piece of paper from her jeans pocket and glanced at it.
"What's going on, Diana?" her friend asked, spotting the paper. "What're you doing exactly?"
Diana didn't say anything as they went up to the next floor, where there were more dresses and over a dozen fitting rooms being used; she led the way to an area where elegant women business suits were on display and duck behind a display and her friends joined her.
"Diana, what're we doing up here?" her other friend hissed. "What's on that paper?"
"Instructions of how to find my grandmother," Diana answered, peering around the display to where two older women were busy looking through racks of business suits. "I have a note from my mom that I need to give to her, and I'm already nervous enough as it is since I've never met her before."
Diana's friends exchanged surprised looks when a tall slim woman with white hair and grey eyes entered the area and one of the employees greeted her as "Mrs. Pearson"; the girls watched as Julia was escorted over to a display of new business suits, selected several, and then led her into the nearby fitting room.
"Okay, if that's your grandma, how're you gonna get the note to her?" her friend asked.
"Like this." And Diana slipped behind a nearby display and did so again when no one was looking, and her friends watched, surprised.
Barely a minute later, Diana managed to slip into the fitting room area, ducking behind a rack of clothes that were waiting to be put back on their respective racks and watched as the employee left one of the rooms and went back out into the store; once she was certain the close was clear, Diana came out of her hiding place, moved quietly to the fitting room and slipped a white envelope under the door before hurrying away.
Inside the fitting room, Julia Pearson was trying on a cream-toned business suit when she heard a faint whispering sound, turning she noticed the envelope on the floor with her name written across the front in neat handwriting; frowning, she bent down, picked it up, and then opened it to find a folded piece of paper inside, along with two photos.
Taking it out, Julia unfolded the paper and began reading the contents:
Dear mom,
If you're reading this, then it means that my daughter, your granddaughter, Diana, was successful in delivering it to you; I admit this isn't how I would do things, but I know that you still resent the fact that I ran away from home and joined the circus. I love my life, my husband, and my children, and I am hoping that you and dad will come to one of our performances while we're in town for the next five nights.
There are tickets waiting for you both at the ticket booth at the front entrance for each of the following nights; I truly want to see you again, mom, and I want both Richard and Diana to know their grandmother. If you are willing to accept me back into your life and accept your grandchildren as well, then please come as I truly miss you both.
Your loving daughter,
Katherine Pearson Grayson.
Julia read the note several times and then pulled out the photos, which were of Richard and Diana, both wearing their circus outfits and smiling brightly. 'Oh, sweetheart,' she thought as her eyes started to itch with unshed tears, remembering the argument she'd had with Katherine the night before she'd ran away nearly nineteen years ago, 'I miss you, too.'
She carefully slipped both the note and the photos back into the envelope, which she then placed inside her purse, thinking; yes, she truly missed her daughter and did regret the fight they'd had, and God knew that Philip had been pressing her to mend fences and get to know their grandchildren before it was too late.
'We'll go tonight,' Julia decided, 'and we'll arrive early so that I can see Katherine before the performance. Now, if I was my granddaughter, which store would I be in? Hmm.'
"So, how is it that you've never met your grandmother before?" Diana's friend asked as they left the food court with ice cream and were now heading for a nearby music store to look at CDs.
Diana shrugged. "All I know is that only my grandfather has ever shown any interest in getting to know both Richard and myself, but that my grandmother still resents the fact that my mom joined the circus and married dad."
"Sounds like she has some serious anger issues."
"I guess," Diana admitted as they finished their ice cream and headed into the store. "My mom's hoping that they'll come to the show while we're in Gotham," she added as they went to the show tunes section to see what was on sale that they could buy.
As they explored the CD selections, Diana almost jumped out of her skin when a hand touched her shoulder, and she spun around to find Julia standing behind her. "Oh!"
"Hello," said Julia briskly, "you must be my granddaughter Diana. I'm Julia Pearson, your grandmother."
Diana went numb with shock, not having expected this, and struggled to form words, much less an entire sentence. "Um…ye…hi?"
"I'm sorry for startling you," Julia apologized and held up the envelope. "I found this and I want you to know, that I and your grandfather will be coming by the circus later, to both see you, your brother, and your parents before your performance tonight."
"Uh, sure, I'll let them know," Diana promised, flushing.
"Good," said Julia and she walked briskly away, leaving behind a trio of stunned girls.
Diana blinked and looked at her friends, spooked. "Okay, did that just seriously happen?" and her friends numbly nodded. "Wow."
A/N: And that concludes the first chapter, see you all next week for the next one. R&R everyone!