He didn't return for a long time after that. Lilli didn't know how long exactly but it was enough for hunger pains to start sinking in. Was he going to starve her? Her body had adapted to limited food during her time in Arkham City but Edward fed her on a regular basis. She hadn't realized it but her body slowly normalized and the sudden lack of food had her stomach twisted in pain.

In an attempt to keep her mind off her hunger, she stared at the ceiling and tried to find patterns in the cracks. She found a flower, a mug, George Washington, and a stain that looked eerily similar to her Uncle (he wasn't actually her uncle, he just insisted that she called him uncle) Dobson's beard. Yet her thoughts soon turned to food and she found herself desperately wishing that Edward would walk through that door with a bowl of beans or something.

Lilli rolled over onto her front, attempting to will away the stabbing pains in her stomach. She curled up into a little ball and squeezed her eyes shut. It will pass, it will pass, she told herself. It will pass. A human could survive up to three weeks without food, she reminded herself as if that could reassure her. But it brought another problem to her attention: she didn't have any water. And that would kill her first.

The door opened and Lilli jumped up. Edward stood in the doorway holding a bowl and a bottle of water. At the sight of the food, she straightened. "Edward?" She asked, uncertainly. She hesitated to walk over to him. What if he was still angry with her? She searched his face for any clues but only found an impassive look.

Edward walked over to her and without a word, knelt down and held the bowl and bottle out to her. She reached for them, trying to discern the meaning behind his blank expression. But the moment she had the food in her hands, he stood abruptly, spun on his heel, and strode out the room, slamming the door behind him.

She didn't even question the interaction before she put the bottle of water of the bed next to her. She shoveled the contents of the bowl (beans and rice) into her mouth, relishing in just having food again. Lilli didn't stop to taste, she just ate until there was nothing left. Then she unscrewed the cap on the water and took a large gulp. By then, her senses came back to her and she slowed down. She took another swig and screwed the cap back on.

But a horrible thought struck her. What if that was the only food he was going to give her? She just ate it without thinking. Lilli stared at the small rice grans left in the bowl in horror. Her stomach rolled dangerously and she blanched. She got up and bolted for the small bathroom and made it just in time to vomit.

She rested her forehead against the cool seat and let out a sob. Her esophagus burned, her stomach clenched in agony, and her dinner floated in the toilet. If this was rock-bottom, she had sunk far deeper than that.

Not for the first time, she wished to go home. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in her own bed, under blankets and surrounded by fluffy pillows, with Ludwig snuggled up beside her. Tears dripped down Lilli's cheeks and into the toilet, making soft plops when they hit the water.

"I can't do this," she found herself whispering to what had been her dinner. "I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't do this..."

-x-

The awful revelation she had came true. Edward did not return and her hunger intensified. She had the sense to ration her water but it did little to settle the churning in her stomach. To keep her mind off her lack of food, she started pacing the room. Sometimes, out of desperation, she would try to test the chain's strength and attempt to break it but she'd tire and slide down the floor. Other times, she walk the room and run her fingers over the rough wall thinking about nothing and everything.

But even that lost its luster and Lilli flopped down on the mattress to do another round of I Spy with the walls. She was just making out a cluster of squirrels when...

"Do you remember when you were eight years old, Beanie?" Her father asked. Lilli rolled over onto her back on the mattress. She glanced at her father standing in the corner but said nothing. "We went to Grandma Betty's house. Do you remember Grandma Betty?"

"Yes," Lilli replied. She never forgot Grandma Betty who taught European History 302 at Brown University back in the sixties. Her field of specialty was French history and she was the reason why Lilli's middle name was Antoinette.

"This was shortly before her Alzheimer's diagnosis," he continued. "But we went to her house for a family dinner. Once dinner was done, as we were waiting for dessert, she took us into her library to look at all of her history books. I think she wanted to start you on French History so you'd learn to appreciate Marie Antoinette before the general history books tainted you or something. She was always defensive of Marie Antoinette." He sat down at the edge of the bed, like he did when he read to her as a child.

"Uh-huh," Lilli yawned.

"She started telling you all about her and Louis XVI and I swear to God, the moment she mentioned Marie Antoinette, you looked up at her with wide eyes and said, "Wasn't she the lady who said "Let them eat cake?"

Lilli chuckled as her father laughed heartily.

"The room went dead silent though I had some troubles hiding my chuckles. But there you were, eight years old and staring up at your grandmother who could recite the French Monarchs all the way back to Clovis I in her sleep. And trust me, there was a twitch in her eye and a vein popping in her forehead. And she said, "Queen Marie Antoinette did not say that. She has never been recorded ever saying that." And she said it so sternly, you'd think we were all her students."

"That sounds like Grandma Betty," Lilli replied. When Grandma Betty died and they cleaned out her study, they found all of her lectures and old papers from her years of teaching. "Was there a point to this, Dad?"

"It was just one of my favorite stories from when you were a kid. I will never forget the look on your grandmother's face; she was so insulted. She cornered your mother before we left, asking her what we were teaching you. She wanted us to bring you over to her house every Saturday so she could teach you true history, whatever that meant. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's before that happened."

"Mhm." Lilli closed her eyes and tried to bury her head under her pillow. She didn't really remember that event because they never saw Grandma Betty that often. They always went to Grandma Margaret's instead. But trust her father to bring up a story like that—

Lilli's eyes shot open and she sat up. The corner of her bed was empty. Oh god, was she dreaming just now? She was dreaming, right? RIGHT? She stared at where she saw her father in horror. Panic mounted in her chest and she jumped up. However the chain had twisted around her ankles and she fell to the floor.

She didn't move for a long time, just stared at the pillar. She didn't believe it would come to this, she thought she was stronger than this. But she imagined—had a conversation with—her dad and she knew the signs. She knew what hallucinations led to.

For a moment, she closed her eyes and sent a desperate prayer to anyone who'd listen before sitting up. She perched herself on the bed and composed herself as best she could. Taking a deep breath, she spoke to the room, "Edward? I'm sorry for the things I said. I'm—I'm willing to try and make th-this relationship work. So please Edward," she begged. "Please come back."

Silence hung in the air as she turned her eyes to the door, waiting for a sign for anything that he heard her—and forgave her. Her ears strained over the ringing in her ears and she heard the faintest of noises. She looked at the door eagerly and waited. But he never came through. Oh god. Lilli brought her knees to her chest, buried her face, and cried.

-x-

Edward watched his Lilli cry though the camera monitor. His heart cracked in two to see her in such pain but he restrained himself from going to her. This was a lesson she needed to learn and when she learned it, he would go back to her.

He reached out a finger and dragged it gently down her curled-up body. Hopefully this would be the only lesson his Lilli would have to learn. He hated having to be so cruel. But sometimes a cruel hand is needed, he reminded himself. Some of his most important lessons left scars upon him but he still prevailed. He became better than everyone else because of it. And he knew she would too. It was only a matter of time and judging by what he just saw, it wouldn't be much longer now.

-x-

That concludes chapter twenty! I wanted it up last week but then life got busy. And it's another short one but they'll get longer, I promise.

And last chapter I told you I plotted everything out and there have been some people asking me if this story was going into Arkham Knight. I will be going to Arkham Knight in the sequel. Yes, there is a sequel planned because I will end this story after the events of Arkham City. So when the Arkham City plots starts, know that that is the end game for this story. It's not coming soon, I can tell you that so don't worry. But it will end eventually.

Reviews, favorites, and follows are love! See ya in chapter twenty-one!