Knight of Gotham: Ragged Reaper

CHAPTER I

In the days after the battle in the underground, Lucius had set up the entire relief effort and began fiercely endorsing an increase in police presence, with me at his side. Even better, Dick and Barbara began having frequent phone conversations, and Dick as a result had returned to his usual, humorous self. From what he told me, the therapy I'd anonymously paid for was apparently helping her out. Brittany and Adriana's transition to the Gordon family was going relatively well, considering the fate of their father was still rendered murky. Harvey Dent was buried in a plot right next to his sister, also paid for anonymously by me. Things were finally looking up. But then again, I still knew that Joseph was active. One morning, I woke up peacefully for the first time in a long time, getting my cane and walking into the kitchen. Dick wasn't in there, so I walked back into the hall, hearing him talk to Barbara over the phone. He and Barbara were mostly engaging in small talk, occasionally going off on random tangents. I said to myself, "It's all good, then." I knocked on the door, saying, "Hey, Dick, I was looking at making something involving bacon this morning. You up for that?" "Is American Psycho a dark comedy?" Dick said in response. I said slowly, "I, uh, I haven't seen American Psycho." Dick sighed and said, "Yeah, Bruce. Bacon's good." "All right," I said, nodding. I walked into the kitchen, preparing breakfast.

Not long after, Dick walked into the room, asking, "So, what'd you come up with?" "Well, I took some biscuits we have, and stuck cheese and the bacon inside of them," I answered. I brought the platter holding the food over to Dick. He picked one up, biting into it. I set the platter in the middle of the kitchen's island, looking at Dick and asking, "So, how's the whole 'relationship' thing treating you?" "Pretty good," said Dick, "I think I'm ready for the commitment." "All right, that's all well and good," I said, picking up a biscuit, "But one thing: no sex." Dick grimaced and said, "Come on, dude! Why do you have to go from lighthearted and smash…uh, bang…uh, AND JUMP RIGHT TO THAT?!" "Because you are a teenaged human male," I said, "I'm just taking precautions. And besides, my room is right next to yours." "I GET IT," said Dick, "No sex. That's a promise." "Keep it," I said, "Or I'll find out." "Let's just not right now," said Dick, covering his face with his hands and sighing heavily. "Okay, I just needed to let you know," I said, smirking, "And now that I have, I have to tell you something exciting. Batgirl's costume is complete." "Really?" asked Dick excitedly. "Uh-huh," I answered, "I sent the design to Lucius a few days ago. He had more time to work on it than he did with yours or mine. Barbara's going to meet us there." "How?" asked Dick, "Won't her parents be a little suspicious?" "It just so happens that her school is having her write about someone she thinks is an influential businessman," I answered, "She chose Lucius." Dick nodded, saying, "Good." We finished breakfast and headed over to Lucius' house.

Once there, we knocked on the door. A few seconds later, Barbara answered, asking, "What took you so long? We've been waiting for you guys!" "She's right about that," said Lucius from inside the house. "Well, you know, you can't rush perfection, or however it goes," said Dick. Barbara stuck out her tongue for a second, saying, "Yeah, right, Dick." "I can't even tell if that was an insult or just my name," said Dick. Barbara laughed lightly, punching Dick in the arm. Dick rubbed his arm, saying, "Wow. Have you been working out, Barb?" "A little bit," said Barbara, "I bet I could take you down." "We'll have time for that later," I said, "But right now, we're not sparring." I looked at Barbara and finished, "Right now, the focus is on your suit, young lady." Barbara smiled widely, leading Dick by the hand and saying, "Come on! It's this way!" "I already know where it is, Barb," said Dick, laughing. They headed down the stairs to the gigantic lab, with Lucius and me following. Once inside, Lucius said, "Wait up! I'm not as fast as I used to be." "Me neither," I said, smiling. Lucius went up to Barbara, saying, "All right, there's a place for you to change over there. It'll be right inside." Barbara nodded excitedly, running over. Dick said, "She's cute when she's excited." I rolled my eyes and said, "Give me a break, man." Dick smirked, and we heard Barbara squeal in excitement.

A few minutes later, Barbara walked out of the changing station, saying, "Introducing…Batgirl!" The suit was exactly how she designed it, though Lucius had added wrist-mounted grappling hooks, like on mine. She asked, "What do you guys think?" "I think you're going to make the bad guys realize their locked-away fear of girls," answered Dick. Barbara turned towards me, expectantly. "What he said," I said, gesturing towards Dick. Barbara finally faced Lucius, who said, "I think my work here is done. Use it well." "I'm going to do exactly that, Mr. Fox," said Barbara, grinning. "Now, I can't reiterate this enough," I said, "You're going to stay back when we're in the field for now. I know you can take care of yourself, but we don't need another…" I trailed off. Barbara's smile had vanished, and she'd begun to fidget with her hair. "You know," I finished. Barbara nodded hastily, and Dick walked over to her, taking her hand in his. I walked over to her and put my hand on her shoulder. I said, "I'll keep you safe this time. Me and Dick both." Barbara looked me and Dick in the eyes in turn, nodding. "Thanks, Mr. Fox," she said to Lucius. "It was a pleasure, Miss Gordon," said Lucius in return. I gave her some space, saying, "The suit can stay in the Batcave, if you want." "Sure," said Barbara, "It'd be easier to hide it that way. I'm going to go change back." She walked back over to the changing station, and Dick sighed heavily.

"I wish she didn't have to go through that," said Dick, "Her mood just flipping like a switch when she even thinks about it." "Neither do I," I said, "But after all these years, living with myself, I know it's a part of how we process things. Before we cope, we have to fully come to terms with what happened. I was just like she was for years." "Well, what about me?" said Dick, "It didn't take me that long." "It's different for everyone, I guess," I said, shrugging, "So you have to keep in mind: if you really are willing to commit, you'll be willing to help her through this, no matter how long it lasts." "You're right," said Dick, sighing, "I just don't know if I can." "You'll learn," I said reassuringly. Barbara walked back to us, carrying the suit. Barbara kissed Dick on the cheek and said to me, "I'll be here for a little bit longer, Mr. Wayne. I really do want to complete that homework. Do you mind taking this to your place?" "Not at all," I said. Dick took it, saying, "I'll see you later, Barb." "You too, Richard," said Barbara. Dick hugged Barbara. Eventually, we left. As we headed back home, Dick was staring out the window. "You two will be fine," I said, "You're both too strong to let anything get in your way." "I wish I was as sure of it as you are," said Dick, melancholy. We didn't say anymore.

Jonathan Crane had an incredible mind. It was all he valued, really. He was a rather thin man, but that didn't bother him. He didn't believe that looks and power were all it took to get ahead. He didn't have the same hang-ups as Bane. Instead, he believed that a studious mind was what it took to unlock the secret to anything, and so that's how he was. A PhD at age twenty-four, he was unstoppable. His students thought of him as a strict, but amiable professor. He was engaging when he spoke, and his lessons weren't nearly as dull as his students might have thought previously. He was a bit odd, however. He walked around with a cane for no apparent reason. He had no limp, and no back problems. And yet, he still went everywhere with it. The students had also tested him in other areas. Once, they tried to determine his sexuality through several volunteers of both genders flirting with him. He showed no response to either gender, much to the students' dismay. But that didn't stop Zoe Feldman from trying. Zoe wasn't what you'd call a diligent student. She was more likely to be in a boy's dorm than in class, and as a result her work was rarely turned in on time. And without fail, it was of most questionable quality. So one day, while Jonathan was grading papers, including hers, she walked in.

It was getting late, and almost no one was around, so Zoe had no inhibitions concerning what she was wearing. Jonathan heard his door clack open to reveal Zoe with a trench coat. Jonathan sighed and rolled his eyes, saying, "Zoe, I already graded your paper. You didn't turn it in on time, and you barely did the work. You can't change that." Zoe said seductively, "Oh, really?" She shed the trench coat, revealing a tight crop top and inappropriately short shorts. Jonathan said sarcastically, "Real nice. Get out. I'm not in the mood for this." Zoe leaned over the desk, asking, "Are you sure about that, Professor Crane?" She attempted to reach towards Jonathan's crotch, over his desk. Suddenly, Jonathan grasped her wrist tightly, and his voice turned completely emotionless, even more terrifying than when he was mad. "I told you I wasn't in the mood, Zoe," he said quietly, "You just don't listen, do you?" Her eyes widened, realizing something terrible was about to happen. Jonathan reached for his cane, which was resting nearby. He flipped open the top like a lighter, saying, "This is why I don't go anywhere without this. Who knows when I might need to use it? Too bad you won't remember this…well, consciously, anyway. It's pretty cool." He stood up, still holding Zoe captive.

He pressed a small button on the side of the cane, releasing some kind of gas. He let Zoe go, and she backed up quickly, inhaling the gas. "What'd you do?" she asked frantically. "The gas you just inhaled is odorless, colorless, and tasteless," answered Jonathan, "Don't worry, you won't die. You'll need therapy, though. What's your worst fear?" Zoe didn't answer. "You want more?" said Jonathan, holding up his cane. "S-spiders," said Zoe, terrified. "How common," sneered Jonathan, "I was hoping for something more. Oh, well. I guess it'll be interesting enough." Zoe looked on at Jonathan, terrified. Suddenly, his face exploded into the writhing underside of a spider, and his hands fell off. They began making sickening crunching noises, as did his gut. His hands turned into spiders, and a spider's head came out of his stomach. He began speaking. His voice sounded like an inhuman screech, a demonic groan, and his regular voice had been put together. "Interesting," he observed, "I wonder what you're seeing?" Zoe began screaming frantically as the two spiders on the ground began skittering towards her. She crawled backwards, still screaming. "And…" said Jonathan, trailing off. Zoe suddenly fainted. The hallucinogen would pass when she woke up. "That was kind of short," said Jonathan, disappointed, walking over to Zoe. He checked her pulse. She was fine. "Good," he said. He stood, cracking his neck and saying, "Disgusting little whore." He took his cane and walked out of his office and called 911 as Zoe twitched in fear, even in unconsciousness.