Disclaimer: Batman and all related characters are the property of DC and Warner Brothers.

Twisted Reflection

Chapter 8

By

Y. Honey

Becky sighed for the third time that morning as she stared at her breakfast, oatmeal and diced fruits with honey, before distractedly eating some of it. Michael noted this and wondered if something was wrong, or more wrong than usual, that is. The young man was quite aware his girlfriend had certain propensities that tended to scare the crap out of him from time to time and while he only put up with her quirks because it was convenient for him, that didn't mean he was cold enough to ignore Becky when she was feeling down. After all, he needed her healthy and happy if he wanted to use her as an asset when he eventually pursued a political position.

"What's wrong?" he asked when she sighed for a fourth time.

"Nothing," she answered, avoiding eye contact with him.

"Are you sure? You've been this way since you came back from visiting your mother and that was three days ago," he pointed out. "You're normally not this absentminded, Becks. Something happened there, didn't it?"

The redhead felt slightly upset. Mike wasn't usually this inquisitive and it bothered her. But… he was her boyfriend so she knew it was only natural that he worried. She, however, was not going to tell him about her date with Jonathan Crane or how much she wanted to see him again. It was a good thing that they had started exchanging emails again, as they had prepared an answer in case something like this happened.

"You can tell me, Becky," he insisted.

"Professor Rance died recently," she said, lowering her eyes and trying to look sad. "His son told me when I was in Accord."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Mike reached for her hand and gave it a warm squeeze. "I know you cared for him. I didn't know he had a son, however."

"Yes, he… well, he asked until he found my mother because…" she made a pause. "You won't believe it if I tell you."

"Try me," he invited.

"Well… professor Rance left something for me and he asked his son to deliver it. It wasn't anything valuable, just an old photo of me in the classroom. I'm smiling in the picture. He said I looked happy and wanted me to have it."

"Oh. Can I see the picture?"

"I don't have it," Becky replied. "John said he'd send it to my mother after he had it framed."

"John?"

"Professor Rance's son, his name is John," she provided, not noticing her voice cheered up a little when she mentioned him.

"I… see," Mike said. Unlike Becky he did notice the change on her tone of voice and that bothered him; the last thing he needed at this point was a rival who would distract his girlfriend from being the perfect accessory for his career. "It seems this John left you with a good impression."

"He's a nice person," she smiled. "He said he had to go back to Chicago the following day, you know? His children are cute by the way, a shame you weren't there to see the pictures."

"Oh, he's married and lives in another state?" Mike's worries evaporated and he smiled again.

"Yes, what did you think?" she smirked, "Jealous again, Michael?"

"With a girlfriend as pretty as you, anyone would be jealous."

She smiled at the comment and resumed eating, in a better mood now. Becky, however, did notice Mike's compliments failed to affect her as they normally did; they now felt, in fact, irrelevant. She remembered instead the way Jonathan had looked at her in the restaurant and recalling the moment he told her she looked good, she smiled and sighed again.

…

"Did you two read the Gazette?"

Michael and Becky stopped and turned to look at Veronica, the receptionist. She was a couple of years younger than them, and was notorious in the office because most men agreed the black-haired woman was so attractive she would do better working as a bikini model than as a secretary.

"Not yet, why?" Asked Becky, eyeing the newspaper Veronica held in her hands.

"It concerns you both," the secretary said, showing them a photo of a handcuffed Jonathan Crane on the front page. "Batman captured the Scarecrow last night!"

"Hey, those are good news!" Mike said, "Don't you think so Becky?"

"Yes…" the redhead replied without a lot of enthusiasm. "Can I borrow the Gazette?"

"Sure thing, Ms. Albright, you can keep it, too."

"Thank you," the young lawyer grabbed the newspaper, nodded at Mike and went into her office, closing the door behind her.

"She seemed… disappointed they captured that lunatic," Veronica observed.

"Nah, it's just the impression. Becky hates that guy's guts. Besides, the Scarecrow killed Jerome Cotton and that caused her trouble with the press, particularly one very nosy reporter. I'm sure she'll be celebrating this later," Michael said. "Anyway, about that other thing…"

"We're still doing the McDougal trial thing?" Veronica asked.

"Yeah… we should work on it tonight, too" he winked. "You know what I mean?"

"Oh yes, I do," she nodded and smiled at him. "I'll help you with the documents you need."

…

In her office, oblivious to what Michael was doing, Becky Albright read the article describing the way Batman had captured the Scarecrow. Apparently, Crane had attacked a bunch of teenagers in a slumber party they had organized, killing most of them except for three. The Gazette was kind enough to provide pictures of the survivors, and Becky spent a few minutes studying them. Survivor one was Lindsay Morgan, a pretty girl with glasses who seemed lonely and shy. Number two was Jack Williams, who looked like the annoying, horny jock type Becky detested and number three was all around pretty and popular girl archetype Heather Darling, whom just by the picture alone Becky could guess was the biggest bitch at school.

According to the article, Heather had invited her friends, including Lindsay, to a party at her house but at some point the Scarecrow appeared and murdered most of the teenagers. Becky frowned when she reached the part of the article describing the way Lindsay had used a camera to hit Crane in the head, distracting him long enough for the Batman to take him down.

"My poor Jonathan…" she whispered, her fingertips tracing the black and white picture of Crane. "Did you do something as stupid as this just to get caught and take the blame for me?"

The redhead felt a pang of guilt which was quickly drowned by admiration. Jonathan did as he promised and allowed himself to be caught so her reputation remained clean. He'd take the fall for what she had done.

"Thank you," she murmured as she closed the newspaper. "Thank you, Jonathan."

…

Two weeks later

Becky rolled her eyes as her boyfriend left the kitchen, still telling her (for the tenth time that day) how important this game was for the undefeated Gotham Knights and how if they won they would set a record against the Metropolis Rockets or something like that. She wasn't really interested in sports, so she just shook her head and continued working on the snacks she was preparing. Many of their coworkers were about to arrive so they could watch the game in their house. Becky had opposed to having a bunch of men drinking beer, swearing and screaming in her living room, but Mike had taken her out for dinner the night before so she couldn't refuse when Michael asked if he could have his friends over for the game.

"Honey, do you know where my Gotham Knights shirt is?" Mike called from the bedroom. "I can't find it!"

"I think you put it in the guests' room," she said. "Or maybe it's with all the dirty clothes, I don't know."

"Ok, thanks!"

Becky didn't reply and finished preparing the snacks, putting them in the freezer so they'd be fresh by the time the game started. She frowned at the massive amounts of beer in her kitchen and tried to think of an excuse that would allow her to escape her house for a few hours, because she was not going to spend her afternoon bringing beers and snacks to Mike's friends.

It was then that someone knocked at her door.

"Becky, the door! If it's one of the guys just tell them to wait in the living room!"

"I heard it, Michael," she said. "Did you find your shirt?"

"No, I'm still looking for it!"

Not looking forward to the rest of the day, Becky opened the door expecting to see one or two of their friends from Wayne Enterprises' legal department but instead she found a tall teenager. She seemed different from the picture in the Gazette but Becky recognized her. Standing right in front of her was Lindsay Morgan.

"Hello, Ms. Albright," the teenager greeted. "My name is Lindsay. I was hoping we could talk."

"I know who you are," the redhead said, confused by this unexpected visit. "Mike, dear, I need to go out for a bit, will you be alright on your own?"

"But the guys…"

"This can't wait," she insisted, her tone of voice carrying behind the implication she was going to do what she wanted regardless of his opinion.

"Ok, fine," came the reply, "just please try not to take too long."

"Well, now that that's settled, let's go out and talk," Becky said as she stepped out of the house.

…

Michael spied from the window and saw Becky walking with some girl. Since it was not another man he decided it wasn't important so he continued looking for his shirt. He had emptied the closet already and found no trace of it. That is when he noticed Becky's box of private stuff. He had always wondered what she kept there, and the fact she refused to show him the contents of the trunk every single time he asked only helped fuel his curiosity. Under normal circumstances, Michael wouldn't have considered opening the box an option, but since he was a little annoyed that Becky had left the house before their friends arrived and most likely wouldn't be there to help him serve the snacks and drinks, he thought a look inside that stupid box was compensation enough.

Smirking mischievously at his idea, Mike went to the kitchen and located Becky's spare keys. He went back to the room and quickly found the duplicate that opened the box. He snorted in disappointment as he looked at the contents of the wooden container; just a bunch of old clothes. Thinking that maybe she had something else, he looked under the first layer of old skirts and sweaters and then he found the sack and the books and the letter.

The letter was a congratulatory note signed by the Scarecrow, and the books had all been authored by Crane… one of them even had a note handwritten by that madman! Sweating and not feeling excited about the football game anymore, Michael opened the sack and a cold chill ran through him as he saw the contents: A horrible costume made of burlap and straw and two cans of, he guessed, The Scarecrow's fear gas.

"Oh shit… this could be really bad…" the young man said as he hurried to put everything back in its place. "But on the other hand… I'm sure she doesn't want anyone to know what she has in this box… I could use this as leverage in case something goes wrong with her…"

…

Outside, Becky and Lindsay walked in silence; despite the apparent eagerness the teenager had exhibited at first, none of them had yet uttered a word. The redhead took advantage of this to discreetly study Lindsay. The teenager was slightly taller and way curvier than she was, and her demeanor was the opposite of what her picture in the newspaper indicated. This was not a shy teenager afraid of people; Lindsay was overconfident and haughty, as her revealing crop top and skirt proved.

"I expected something different," Lindsay finally said. "But here you are: wearing a sweatshirt and pants… Ms. Albright, you look… I don't know… normal."

"And that is a bad thing, why?" Becky asked.

"You and I are supposedly the same, I thought you had changed, too," the younger woman explained. "But no, it seems you didn't take advantage of the help he offered."

"He?" Becky knew quite well who Lindsay talked about, but wanted to know what the teenager would respond.

"Doctor Crane, of course."

"I don't understand, what help?"

"He helped you face your fears, didn't he?" Lindsay stated. "And I'm sure you changed because of that. I changed. Well, I was sure that you'd changed, but now… I don't know."

"You're not making any sense," the redhead said stopping at the corner, looking at the girl and not liking the expression on her face. There was something odd about it that she couldn't place.

"Oh, please, Ms. Albright! Don't play dumb!" Lindsay laughed, arms stretched out. "We're both Scarecrow survivors! The people from the Wayne Foundation sent me here when I asked for help dealing with my experiences with Doctor Crane! They said talking to you would be a good idea!"

"Well, it seems surviving the Scarecrow is the only thing we have in common now," the young lawyer observed. "I thought you were shy and quiet, at least that's the impression I got from the Gazette article."

"That was before," the teenager said, invading Becky's space so their faces were almost touching. "Now I am better. Stronger and completely free! And it's all thanks to him!"

"You seem to be very… appreciative of Professor Crane," the redhead said, surprised that she felt a tug of jealousy in her chest. Frowning, Becky couldn't help but wonder if Jonathan would be attracted to big breasted teenagers. He wouldn't be so shallow, would he?

"Yes. Why shouldn't I be?" Lindsay smiled crookedly and crossed her arms, pushing her breasts up as if flaunting them to the rather average-chested lawyer. "I can understand what his therapy was all about. Sucks he's in Arkham now, but his treatment worked well!"

"I… see," Becky's jealousy vanished at those words, replaced by an uneasiness she had only felt once when watching one of Harley Quinn's videos on the news. It was then she understood why this teenager was unnerving her: Lindsay felt a little bit like Harley Quinn.

"Anyway, I finally met you so… phase one, complete!" Lindsay said as she started crossing the street. "I'm sure you have to go help your boyfriend find his shirt or whatever. I'll see you again soon, Ms. Albright. Bye!"

…

The next morning

Becky was jogging as she normally did, taking advantage of the nice park near her house. She was about to complete her first lap when she saw her leaning on a tree. Lindsay. The redhead frowned and went faster, ignoring the teenager. By the time she circled the park and passed by the tree again Lindsay was gone, much to the relief of the young lawyer.

The following day

Rebecca started her car and wished that Michael hadn't left the house so early, because she didn't like to deal with morning traffic alone and having Mike with her was always a nice and welcomed distraction. When she reached the corner of her street, Becky saw her standing there: Lindsay. The teenager waved good bye as the frustrated redhead accelerated.

The same happened for the next three days. Every single time Becky left her house to jog or to go to her office, Lindsay was there. The teenager would show up again in the afternoons and sometimes, Becky had seen her walking half a block away from her when she had to go to the convenience store the other side of the park.

The redhead, currently walking back home from said convenience store was starting to tire of seeing Lindsay's smirking face everywhere and was actually beginning to considerate extreme measures to get rid of her would be necessary. She entered the park and, just as she expected, Lindsay was standing there, by the fountain, smiling.

"Hello, Ms. Albright!" the teenager said and approached the lawyer, "fancy meeting you here!"

"How long have you been waiting?" Becky said, not stopping to chat and forcing Lindsay to follow her. "Don't you have friends or parents or anything else to do?"

"My parents don't mind if I visit you, really," Lindsay said. "They think talking with you is therapeutic. And I used to have a boyfriend, but he's missing. Nobody's seen poor Jack in a while…"

Becky didn't like Lindsay's tone of voice when she mentioned her boyfriend. Not one bit. For a moment, the redhead imagined Lindsay had stabbed Jack in the heart and was boasting her crime, but she forced herself to forget the idea; this teenager didn't seem to be capable of that. Regardless of what Lindsay could or couldn't do, though, Becky was fed up with her stalking.

"Besides, you are far more interesting than Jack!" the teenager said linking arms with the redhead. "I could…"

"You could stay the fuck away from me before I slap a restraining order on your ass!" Becky snapped and unlinked her arm from Lindsay's, too upset at the undesirable contact and finally losing control. "I'm sick of seeing you every time I leave my house, I've had enough!"

The teenager frowned and for a moment it seemed she would react violently, but she was smiling again almost instantly. "I guess I've been too persistent, haven't I? I just wanted to learn more about you, Ms. Albright. To learn how you lived after your experiences with Doctor Crane. Fine, if this troubles you then I'll stop. You won't see me around again unless something important happens… would that be alright?"

Becky sighed, feeling relieved Lindsay was being reasonable… or too afraid of the restraining order. "Yes, that's fine. If it's something urgent I guess… I guess in that case it would be alright if you look for me, but only then. Do you understand?"

Lindsay nodded. "Yes, got it."

Not waiting for a reply, the teenager turned and walked away, heading for the bus stop east of the park, leaving a rather annoyed Becky Albright behind. Minutes later, when she was on the bus, Lindsay smiled.

"You had the chance to make me stop permanently but you didn't. You're weak, Ms. Albright. You're not worthy, and that is all I needed to know… Phase two: complete."

…

The green sedan stopped in the designated area for visitors of the Asylum's parking lot and the woman took a few minutes to calm down before she got out of her car. She couldn't stop looking at the large construction looming in front of her. Arkham. Now that she was here, she had to admit the building was far more imposing and sinister than what she imagined by looking at pictures. She now understood why the building had gained such a horrible reputation.

Becky finally got out of her vehicle and straightened her clothes. No use staying in the car after asking the Wayne Foundation to arrange her visit to the asylum. She took in a deep breath and started walking. She was met at the main doors by two orderlies and none other than her old 'friend' doctor Albert Morrison. The man seemed even larger than three years before, and Becky had to admit that here, in Arkham, doctor Morrison didn't look like the friendly psychiatrist she was familiar with.

"Hello, Ms. Albright, long time no see," the tall doctor greeted. "I never thought I'd see you here, and to be honest the reason for your visit is also quite… odd."

"The reason why I'm here is indeed far from normal, Doctor Morrison," Becky admitted. "If you don't mind, could you please leave the pleasantries for later? I really don't want to be here any longer than I have to."

"You really shouldn't be here at all," the doctor disputed. "Who knows what he'll do when he sees you?"

"Well, I guess we'll find out, don't we?" the redhead stood very still, waiting for the doctor to move. Finally, after almost a minute, Doctor Morrison sighed and stepped aside.

"Follow me, we'll go to security first," he indicated.

"Thank you, doctor," said Becky as she followed the psychiatrist. "I appreciate that you're the one overseeing my visit. I trust you."

…

She sat in front of a window, on the other side there was a small room with a chair and nothing else. Two, then three and then five minutes passed until the door on the adjacent room opened and he entered, escorted by three orderlies and Doctor Morrison. Her heart started beating faster the moment she saw him and she had to make a conscious effort to appear calm and disinterested.

His left brow went up when he saw her, and he seemed quite puzzled when he sat on the chair. He allowed the orderlies to chain him to his seat, limiting his movement as much as possible.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Albright," he said once the orderlies retreated to the door of the room, where they stood still, listening and watching. "I hope you don't mind that our conversation isn't private; it seems good Albert has trouble trusting my good judgment. Anyway, what brings you to lovely Arkham?"

"Jonathan…" she slid to the edge of her seat and pressed her hand on the glass, feeling the need to be closer to him burning strong inside of her chest. She immediately realized this would be suspicious, so she leaned back and did her best to look offended. "I need some information about one of your patients, mister Scarecrow."

Crane chuckled on the other side of the glass, finding the way she had remembered not to appear interested in him extremely appealing. He was ready to play the part too, and so he did. "Well… I would normally refuse, but considering you are such a brave little mouse, I shall indulge you. Which one of my patients are we talking about, Ms. Albright?"

"Lindsay Morgan," Becky said. "Tell me about her."

The Scarecrow grinned and also leaned back on his chair. "Lindsay Morgan is…"

0-0

Notes: Lindsay appeared on Joker's Asylum #1: Scarecrow; published on 2008, it tells the tale of a shy and bullied teenager (Lindsay) being invited to a slumber party organized by the popular girls, who only want to prank her. Unfortunately for the popular girls, Lindsay brings a 'friend' to the party: Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow.

Since it was revealed at the end of that book that Crane actually succeeded in corrupting Lindsay I thought it would be fun to bring her to the story, because I needed a certain type of character and I didn't want to use Fright, since having Friitawa around would mean addressing the Scarebeast, which is something I am not going to do as I rather ignore that as I believe it's just too… silly.

Thanks for reading this chapter.