Autophobia: Fear of Abandonment

Crane kept his finger on the switch so that the two girls could hear him laughing. He barely laughed in public, but this was just too ironic to not appreciate. He took delight in their disgusted, fearful faces. He guaffed as he watched the Wheaton girl fall backwards and scoot away, the sheer terror on her face. He cackled as he saw the Mandelson girl collapse back on the floor. He had gotten to them, he had shown them both his truly awesome power. In one night, he had killed the mob princess and the rising star of the Gotham police department. Nobody was safe, he killed regardless. He looked over to Nygma to share the merriment with his cohort, as it was this sort of chaos and panic that Edward took joy in.

The Riddler however, raised an eyebrow from behind his mask; something was troubling him. Crane raised an eyebrow and took his finger off the switch.

"Are you alright Edward?" He asked. Despite his damaged, cold voice, he still somehow managed to convey concern. Edward's nostrils flared a bit.

"How dim must that Wheaton girl be?" He asked slowly, "Surely it would make more sense to take your gloves off to check a pulse?" Crane shrugged.

"She's hardly a genius. She fell so easily into Catherine and mine's trap after all!" He proffered. Nygma looked at him questioningly.

"Thought she had a degree?" He asked incredulously. To have a degree meant that you had to have an inch of intelligence...right? To this, Crane sniggered again.

"Not necessarily." He explained coolly, "I spent my degree submerged in my studies, but the general student population indulge in such inane activities and possess no idea of intelligence. Catherine for example, spent three years behaving like a right buffoon. The stories she has told me! Waltzing into her block in first year to announce to everyone that she hated them and wished that they'd die slowly and painfully. Answering a question her lecturer posed her with "I like banana milkshake" because she was too hung-over to think of a proper answer. Or hugging him when drunk? People's common sense seems to go down when they get to university. The idea that they're intelligent is misguided." He smirked behind his mask. Edward Nygma, for all his vanity and egotism, had never received a university degree, working in the fairground instead before moving into a life of crime and that fact often manifested itself in Nygma's drive to prove himself better than the members of the Rogues Gallery such as Crane, Ivy and Harley (though to be fair, he had been quite sweet to Harley before 'the incident'). This drive often did extend to Crane's companion Catherine Adams, who Nygma refused to believe was smarter than his own daughter Shyera, even though Catherine was the one with the degree. Despite his friendship with Nygma, and his general respect for his adopted daughter, he couldn't help but admire the way Catherine could so easily tap into the girl's mind and inner most insecurity. Sometimes, he had to wonder if she carried on baiting Shyera for her own enjoyment, or his. All he did know was that it was memories like that that made him almost wish that she was there in the room with him now.

Eddie looked back to the screen, drinking in the horror on Chloe's face. For half an hour, the girl had been trapped in her deepest nightmare, and the results were...interesting to say the least.

"What did you and Catherine do to her?" He asked suspiciously. He had seen Chloe writhe on the floor, screaming : "NO CRANE! STOP! I DON'T WANT THIS! NO GRIFFIN! I'M NOT...NOT...I'M NOT LIKE..." and so on. This intriguing enigma needed answering. Unfortunately, Crane didn't deign to give an answer.

"Those two are the only ones who've overcome their nightmares. I think we should start the next challenge without the rest." He drawled coldly, much to Edward's surprise.

"Now? What about the oth..."

"Then they'll just miss out on this." He interrupted coldly, "I'm only interested in one."

"Excuse me?" Edward demanded, sitting up sharply, "What the hell is going on tonight Jonathan?" Crane turned to him slowly.

"An experiment of humanity, fear and a question I have been begging ever since I started having those ridiculous 'sessions' with that child."

"Chloe Mandelson is the reason for tonight's entertainment?" He practically squawked, "The girl you knew I wanted is the reason for everything tonight?"

"Now Edward, I didn't know that you wanted her. To be honest, I thought that you were still whining about Quinn..."

"Careful."

"When Catherine told me that she would plan an escape but make sure you took it, I just assumed it was because she was sick of you..."

"But..but really she wanted me out of the way so that you could have your fun with MY property..."

"What on earth are you talking about Edward?" Jonathan asked exasperatedly. His damaged tone clearly expressed his boredom at dealing with Nygma's mood swing, "She was my therapist..."

"Catherine! That bitch saw that I was interested in her. When did she tell you mmm? I'm not as stupid as she thinks I am, I know that you two somehow meet secretly when you're both in Arkham. She reports everything to you. Did she convince you to process Chloe because she saw that I wished to speak to her huh?"

"She did tell me of the times you'd wait by your cell every time she'd leave my sessions. I must say Edward, fixating on someone is not healthy, I keep having to tell Tech that."

"And you were aware of the actions Cat would take?" Nygma practically snarled, leading to Crane sighing irritably.

"Catherine is aware of the consequences of following her own agenda instead of mine." He replied coolly, "Hopefully she is reflecting on such behaviour now at Arkham." Nygma smirked, reaching for another Ferrero Roche. He often worried that his old friend had gone soft since picking up the neurotic young Cat Adams, but flashes such as this confirmed that Jonathan Crane was still very much, the cold hearted killer that was Scarecrow. He bit into the nutty chocolate shell, letting his tongue run over the orgasmic treat slowly, taking in its richness. However, something wasn't right. He stopped chewing and thought.


Lisa pulled away, scooting backwards to give herself as much space as possible from the dead woman. Chloe collapsed back down to the ground, throwing up. She had seen death tonight, she had seen Sophia Falcone shot in the head, but it hadn't affected her like this. Her mind spun. What the hell had she just seen? It had been a month since she had last seen Crane and Psyche separately, why was she still tortured over memories such as that? She had so nearly succumbed to them, for months, she had listened to Crane, feel empathy towards him. After all of it, after her sucky childhood and pig of a father, there was somebody who cared. On top of that, Psyche, that strange lunatic in the solitary confinement ward had been more supportive than her cold mother had ever been. Was it wrong to relate to them? Was it wrong to...to do what she had done?

"Chloe."

Chloe jumped in shock, her thoughts interrupted by the chubby girl with a thick fringe who was beginning to rise, looking intently at the door which had mechanically swung open.

"Chloe." She whispered again, "I think they want us to go through there."

"Bu...but the others?" Chloe looked around at the others desperately. None were awake, but all were screaming. Del Torro was the most animated.

"NO! I'M BURNING! IT HURTS! IT HURTS...PLEASE!" Lisa walked over to her and kicked her hard with her boot.

"She's out of it." She said stonily, "I'm guessing they'll all be like this..."

"I'd listen to the liar if I were you Miss Mandelson, if you were to stay in here, you would be in rather a large amount of danger of suffering the way six million others did before you."

Chloe and Lisa looked at each other, their mouths open in disgust.

"You're a monster." Lisa spat viciously, Chloe yelped a little. Lisa had become immune and numb to her surroundings, like it had been found in German citizens during the second world war. She had become numb and apathetic to the horror around her, and as a result, she had gotten brave. It was so different to scared Lisa, it was frightening. The tension in the room was thick and suffocating.

"Correct Miss. Wheaton." Scarecrow announced, "At least that's what my lawyer calls me, and he must be right if I pay him that much. But I digress. You two are to leave this room and go on to the next challenge without the others. Stay, and you'll receive a dose of zyclon B. Go however, and they might live..."

"What do you mean 'might' Crane?" Chloe asked desperately. Did she want to die? Did she want the others to die?

"Why, Schrödinger's Cat my dear." He explained coolly, "if you stay in this room, these girls will die but so will you. There's no two ways about it. If you carry on without them however, there is a chance that they may live, or I'll still press the button. This way however, your conscience is clear, they can be either alive or dead in this reality, and it'll make the horror of death less intense to you...The choice is yours of course, but make the decision fast, you're on a clock."

Lisa and Chloe looked at each other in horror. Could they face it? Could they take that chance and hope that Crane wouldn't kill the rest? Lisa began to shake.

"I don't want to die Chloe." She whispered desperately, "Let's go! We don't know these girls, I'm not going to die on the off chance this psycho might not kill us!" Chloe shivered automatically. Could she really leave these girls to their fate? Her mind raced, stay and die, or leave and live?

"Would I be like them if I left?" She thought desperately. In her mind, a conversation with Psyche.

"How can you put up with Crane?" She asked Griffin, sat at her desk in her temporary office. It had taken a lot of organising, but she had managed to convince Leland that it was constructive to her report on Crane to also interview Griffin. Leland had dug her heels in at first, but then something happened. Griffin had revealed to a guard the whereabouts of where the mayor, going against Crane and the Joker. Clearly, Griffin was the key to understanding Jonathan Crane, leading to Chloe's request instantly being granted. Griffin smiled.

"You mean why am I still associated with him when I should fearing for my life right now?" She asked playfully. She was different to Crane, with Crane's sessions, he was so cold and silent. With Griffin however, she never shut up. "Ah, he'd never hurt me. Crane's loyal to those in his circle. Once, he ran back into a burning building to save Harley Quinn...he'd never hurt me."

"I don't want to die Chloe." Lisa grabbed her arms and squeezed hard, shaking uncontrollably. Chloe seized her shoulders and stared at her hard. She had decided, the girls who hadn't come out of their nightmares, they could take their chances, but Lisa and her needed to stay together. She seemed so childlike and scared again, and Chloe needed to protect her from herself.

"We'll go." She said reassuringly, "Rosie's dead, I'm not letting you die." She would get Lisa out of there, Lisa was the only one to know what she had gone through, Lisa had been pulled into Crane and Griffin's dark games as well; they had to stick together.

"Come on. She said standing up straight and heading for the door. At the asylum, she was the psychiatrist, she was in charge. She wouldn't let this be no different. Lisa smiled and followed her nervously. Chloe took a deep breath, looking at the dark corridor through the door, she psyched herself up. Crane's cruel words from the last session they had ever had, but she would show him, she would survive just to spite him if needs be.

"Fuck you Crane." She whispered angrily, marching through the door.

Crane smiled from behind his mask. Chloe Mandelson was rebelling against it all. Clearly, not losing her mind over her darkest memory (after all that she had confessed to him when she was meant to be interviewing him, he was quite flattered that him and Catherine featured at all) had given her an inch of bravery. She thought that she was in control of the situation? He would see about that.

Chloe stepped into the darkness , shivering slightly. Her heart wasn't racing as fast as it had earlier, clearly the fear toxin was beginning to wear off. She turned to Lisa who was still stood in the room, looking out nervously.

"It's fine Leese, nothing's out he..." She began to say confidently. Unfortunately, she was cut off suddenly. The light from the room disappeared as the door mechanically slammed shut in her face. Chloe and Lisa both screamed loudly, the girl trapped in the room began pounding on the metal door desperately.

"CHLOE!" Screamed Lisa frantically on the other side of the door, "Chloe help me!" Chloe froze, hearing the bangs on Lisa's side. It was a deafening sort of bang, not as constant as if she was pounding with her fists on the door. She clearly now was ramming her shoulder against the door.

"Crane!" She screamed into the dark, "Let her out. Let her out now." Again, Crane clicked on the intercom.

"Please continue Miss Mandelson." His voice informed her. She gasped unintentionally, his voice had been damaged beyond recognition since her last session, even though in theory, he sounded like Angela Lansbury, he still terrified her.

"I'm not leaving her!" She replied, trying to sound strong, like he had make her feel in their sessions, but her voice cracked. It was too confrontational. No matter how brave she now felt, she was forgetting that she was talking to the man who could kill her with a flick of a switch.

"Oooh, what should I do?" She thought desperately, she had already made up her mind to leave the rest and take Lisa, but could she leave Lisa?

"Please continue Miss Mandelson." Crane repeated mechanically. That was it, no mockery, no sarcasm, just those four words. Chloe shook vivaciously and without control. Give her turning into Psyche, make her Crane's pawn. Anything but this.

"Will you kill Lisa?" She whispered painfully. Would the one girl who knew what Crane and Griffi...Adams...whatever Psyche was! She couldn't let her die.

"Please continue Miss Mandelson." It came again. Perhaps if Chloe played along, Lisa would be spared. She had to be spared...right?

"I'll be back Leese." Chloe promised. If she remained, then surely Crane would kill both her and Lisa. Surely if she backed off, nothing would happen...right?

"You know Johnny's quite rational most of the time right?" Griffin chuckled from across the desk, "So many people ready to condemn him. Though manners do go a long way with Hannibal."

Psyche's words buzzed around Chloe's head constantly. She had believed every word that came from Crane's girlfriend, the woman had nestled under her skin and invaded her mind. Crane was a psychotic murdering bastard, but Griffin was always so friendly, so warm to Chloe.

"Jonathan loves talking psychology with you Chloe." She smiled kindly to a blushing Chloe.

"Does he? I mean...Miss Griffin, please..."

"Call me Elizabeth Chloe, you're Jonathan's favourite pupil..."

"Tell me how you and Crane benefit from your partnershi..."

"He thinks you have great promise as a psychologist. Think he often wishes I had your flair..."

Psyche had admitted to Chloe that Crane saw her as his equal in Psychology. Well, alright, she'd play his game. She'd play his game and she'd beat him at it.

"I am asking you respectfully Dr. Crane." She declared formally, "Don't kill the girls in that room and I'll carry on."

"Please continue Miss. Mandelson." Came her only reply. Chloe nodded.

"I promise you Lisa." She banged on the door hard to get the girl's attention, "I promise that I'll find a way to get you out of there.

"CHLOE! PLEASE DON'T GO!" She screamed frantically, resuming ramming herself into the door to break it down. Chloe shuddered. Even if she could get Lisa out, would Lisa, in all her childishness and weakness she had shown tonight, mean that she would actually survive? Perhaps she was safer in that room. Maybe, just maybe, Griffin would be right, and Crane wouldn't gas all of them with deadly poison. What purpose would that serve him? None.

"He won't hurt you. I promise." Chloe whispered through the door. She had been Crane's therapist, but she'd never given him a reason to want to kill her like others were known to do...right? She turned round, took a deep breath, and gingerly took a few steps down the long, dark, sinister corridor to what would more likely than not, be something directly aimed at her. She shivered as she remembered the last time she had seen Crane. It may have being a good idea to not tell Lisa exactly what happened.

Somewhere, a pipe leaked, causing the water to slowly drip onto the floor. The effect echoed throughout the corridor, causing Chloe to jump in shock. Placing a hand on the wall shakily, she gasped for breath.

"Stop imagining things." She commanded herself in her professional tone. One more step in front of the other, then another. She couldn't let fear rule her life. Crane and Psyche had taught her that.

Suddenly, a sinister hissing rang through her ears. It was coming from...from the room she was locked out of.

Screaming. Pure, unrestrained fear coursed out through the door and into Chloe's skull. Her mouth dropped open in horror and spun round back to the door. She had been wrong. Crane really had released poisonous gas into the air. He actually was going to kill the girls.

"LISA!" She screeched, clawing at the door, "You bastard Crane! You absolute bastard!"

"GET OFF ME!" Came a hysterical blubber from the other side "GET IT OFF MEEEE!"

Chloe gasped. It was Crane's fear gas, not poisonous as she had first feared...as he had led her to believe. He had gotten into her head again, just pre-empting her fear, but her thought process too.

"Hang on...that's not like Crane...that's like...Griffin!" She almost screamed the last part. Was Elizabeth Griffin there as well? Impossible! She had come from the asylum today! She had looked into Griffin's cell and seen her unconscious (nobody dared go inside, and those who did dared not look at her face lest they drop down dead on the spot. They merely made sure that she was still functioning and left). Was Griffin there in the room too?


Inside the computer room, Nygma turned back to Crane. Had the girl just screamed out Cat's alias? He looked to Crane angrily.

"I thought tonight was just you and me?" He huffed jealously. Crane turned his gas mask towards him.

"Of course, a study of how logic and reasoning are affected by fear." He replied simply.

"Then how come the bitch who betrayed yours and the Joker's plans, who's in a coma and not here is constantly BEING MENTIONED?" He yelled the last part. Crane sighed.

"Because she was the one to help concoct this scheme before we thought of using riddles and bringing you in." What was this? Psyche's hallmark was included in this as well? Edward put his hand to his forehead. Clearly what was going on between Jonathan and the bitch wasn't as clear cut a break up as it seemed. It was a mysterious riddle, and one which was driving Edward insane.

"So why take all these girls Jonathan?" He demanded, "Why choose them on the basis that all of them have wronged Cat and then, not take her with you when you broke out? Why is she in a coma right now? Have you come to your senses and cut ties with her after all these years? Why do you constantly switch from indifference when her name is mentioned to talking about nothing but her? I don't understand. TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!" To this, Crane slowly pulled his gauntleted glove off, took down his hood and undid his mask. Nygma stared into the ravaged, scarred face of Jonathan Crane. His hair was getting too long again, and his skin was yellowing and stretching over his face, as if he hadn't eaten in days. There was barely any trace of the handsome human who had so proudly walked the halls of Arkham all those years ago.

"That's a lot to take in Edward." He smiled arrogantly, "I'm afraid you'll have to ask again, one at a time. I've tried to be honest with you, you knew the hypothesis of tonight's proceedings, though I'm sorry you seem to be confused. Now, what do you want to know first?"

This calmness drove at Edward madly, now wasn't the time for the bastard to be so calm, how dare he act like this! He screamed wildly, pointing a finger at the screen where Lisa was now on the floor with everybody else, but with her eyes wide open and scrapping at her body, screaming frenziedly.

"Why the hell is she screaming louder than the rest did the first time they were sprayed?" He commanded frantically. To this, Crane snorted slightly, satisfied at the question.

"Placebo effect the first time." He said coolly. Nygma's eyebrows flew up in shock.

"You mean last time you didn't actually?"

"Oh no. Something that has always troubled Catherine and I: do I create the fear, or do the victims create it themselves? I must say, the results are...satisfactory."

"That's...brilliant!" Nygma exclaimed. Crane truly did have control over the girls completely, the idea was absolute genius (if he did say so himself), "But how is Catherine involved in this? How come..."

He was cut off however; all the screens began to flicker fuzzily before being completely snowed up. Lisa's screams were cut off, all images of the various challenges snowed under by the malfunctioning screens.

To say that Jonathan Crane isn't exactly known for his calmness when things went wrong is an understatement. Now was no exception.

"What the hell?" He screeched angrily. In his damaged voice, he didn't sound sinister or scary, he actually sounded rather funny, though Edward knew better than to laugh at that moment in time. His face crumpled into a disappointed frown.

"How strange." He commented, rubbing his chin. The night was going so well, how unfortunately improbable that the computers would crash.

"The doors are mechanic!" Crane yelped, jumping up nimbly from his seat, "Think about it! Mandelson could escape! Nothing's stopping Wheaton fro..."

"My dear Jonathan you can't!" Edward declared, rising from his seat, "You're not in costume! Imagine how the image would be ruined!" Crane raised a perfectly shaped black eyebrow up at this.

"And what do you suggest Edward?" He sarcastically asked coldly, "That you go and check?"

"Well, I am well versed in those escape routes dotted around the course. Besides Jonathan, that gun you've kept besides you this entire experiment must be a suggestion that you've ah...planned for some sort of hiccup."

Crane stroked the gun to his side, sighing.

"In case something went wrong with the girls and they broke into this room." He muttered bitterly, angry at himself for even daring to think of such a variable. In his head, Nygma was forming a plan. And he needed to jump on it.

"I'll go and keep the Mandelson girl busy." He declared, grabbing his golden cane, "She and I have unfinished business." Crane snorted slightly.

"Play nice Edward, there is still a night in front for her. I haven't gone to all this trouble to have you break her." To this, Edward clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

"My dear Jonathan, you mistake me for the Joker." Suddenly, Crane's look darkened.

"No, I just know what a man is capable of doing when he confronts a girl he thinks has betrayed him."

"Catherine was unworthy and a temptress." Nygma declared dramatically, in a sort of 'I told you so' crucifix pose (in his head, he probably thought that he looked sympathetic. All Crane could think? He looked like a right prat), "I knew that she would betray you one day, I just hope you made her pay."

Crane stayed silent as his companion left the room, eyes fixed on the blank, fuzzy screen. On hearing the door closed, he sighed and punched in the codes Tech had given him onto the keyboard, smiling in satisfaction as all the screens lit back up. Time for the secondary experiment, and for this, he had a front row seat.


Mwhahaha cliffhanger! Apologise to Decepti-Kitty, I decided this bit would be a good place to leave off. All you Riddler fans, get ready for the next chapter, the scene you all wanted to happen is coming up next.

Schrödinger's cat is a meta philosophical experiment. Basically, if you put a cat in a sealed container with a canister of gas which more than likely will leak, is the cat dead as soon as you close the lid. Think of it as being both alive and dead because you can't see it. It makes my head hurt and thought that it's something Crane would put in (simply the ultimate Operation Mindfuck minus John Leslie to quote Frankie Boyle...anybody outside the UK youtube him with Operation Mindfuck, so controversial yet so funny).

And now we start explaining this story. See what I mean when I say nothing's what it seems? What's going on with Crane and Catherine? What happened in Arkham with Chloe and the two of them?...WHAT IS WITH EDWARD'S FASCINATION WITH GREEN?...ok, that question won't be answered, but it is something I've always wondered lol.

I'm quite proud of this chapter, I stuck in a very famous psychological experiment. If anybody knows which experiment I have eluded to in this chapter, stick it in your review and the winners will win an air guitar :P

Thanks to Rawhide for the news at your job, that's put a smile on my face ever since. Don't forget to fb me pics of her sometime xxxx

Merry Christmas to all my readers and fans, hope you have an amazing day tomorrow and Santa brings you all lots of presents (I'll settle for what I asked for on my birthday, but if nobody got me Cillian Murphy or Matt Smith wrapped in a bow then I doubt anybody will now). Sigh, though I will settle for people reviewing as a present from my readers Love you guys.

Artemis out (to watch TV and drink a lot of wine with the family. Ah, Christmas traditions xxxxx)