A/N: Next Chapter up! Mischievous Mama Kayne mode activated. 29 comments! This one got up way later because the 10th comment came in while I was on the road trip, and then my cat passed away, and then I broke my wrist looking for her before she died.
When Kayne woke up, the sun was bursting through the tree line and on to her face. Seven am, her mind instantly thought while looking at the sun. She rolls over and stretches before pressing one of her many pillows into her face. She lets her self sink into the big mattress to rest a little more.
Sooner or later the scent of pancakes came wafting in from under her door. It started out soft and tempting. Fifteen more minutes and it became enough to pull her out of bed. She sluggishly throws her thick blankets off of her to shimmy out of bed.
Kayne stretches before groaning and heading over to her dresser. She looks through her dresser quickly before grabbing a big hoodie out.
"I think Alfred maybe doing this on purpose." She mutters out loud as she pulls Bruce's black Nike hoodie on. It was huge on her but a few rolls of the sleeves fixed that. She buries her arms in the pouch and shuffles out of her room.
She walks down the hall and straight down the stairs. Following the scent of food, she wanders into the kitchen.
Alfred stood by the stove with a griddle and a plate stacked full of pancakes. On the actual stove are some pans holding sizzling bacon and scrambled eggs. "Good morning Ms. Kayne, and welcome to your first day back breakfast." Alfred greets with a smile. He pats her head before grabbing a kitchen towel.
He opens the oven and pulls out a tray of muffins. Kayne squeals, and reaches for a muffin. Alfred slaps at her hand in a scolding manner. "Not until the table is set, and Master Bruce is here." He tells her, shaking his finger at her.
She groans and opens the utensil drawer to pull out the forks and knives. She grabs napkins and heads off to the dining room. With a small laugh, she pulls a kidnapped muffin out of her pouch and pops it in her mouth like an apple.
She walks around the table placing the correct thing in the correct place until three chairs were set. Kayne finally takes a bite out of the muffin. When she pulls the muffin away from her mouth and hand reaches out to snatch away her muffin. Her fingers rise up and push down harshly into the inner elbow of the arm in a pinch-like grip.
The arm collapses in as she shoves herself back into the chest of the thief to push them back into the table while her left hand reaches up to take the muffin back. "Kayne!" Bruce growls, his back slamming into the table. "Yes?" She asks innocently, spinning away from him as she takes a bite from her muffin.
Bruce sticks his foot out to curl around the leg she was balancing on to spin and trips her. His arm wraps around her waist as she falls while his other one steals the muffin back from her outstretched hand. Kayne squeaks and thrusts her hand up to block the muffin from his mouth. Bruce glances down at her in slight amusement before dropping her.
She falls to the ground with a thump as Bruce takes a bite from the muffin. With a huff, she sweeps her leg around to pull his legs out from underneath him.
She quickly jumps on him as soon as he hits the floor to reach for the muffin. She grabs it before sitting on Bruce's chest. She blows a raspberry at him before finishing the muffin.
Someone clearing their throat get Kayne's attention at the doorway. Her head snaps up with a sheepish smile after swallowing the last of the muffin. Alfred stood in the doorway with a reprimanding look.
"Please try and not to act like a pack of wolves after the bone. We have plenty more muffins that I specifically told you not to eat until the food was served." Alfred orders before going back into the kitchen.
Kayne was sure he wanted to roll his eyes somewhere in there. Bruce quickly pushes Kayne off like a dog does a fly. "Oomph." Kayne huffs, hitting the ground again. "Come one let's help Alfred set the table." Bruce offers while stretching out his hand to help Kayne up.
She takes it and is lifted of her feet before placed back down. "Mr. Superman aren't you?" Kayne jokes with a smile as she pushes the kitchen door open to grab six plates to balance carefully on her arms.
"Superman has nothing on me." Bruce quips with another smile. He grabs the rest of the plates Kayne didn't grab and follows her back into the dining room. Alfred followed close behind with the cups and drinks.
Kayne starts setting the plates carefully around the table as Bruce and Alfred start pouring drinks. Kayne takes a seat in her chair as Bruce takes the seat next to her like always. Alfred sits across from her with a smile.
"First home cooked meal at home that I've had since October. It feels… good. I feel like everything is going to be alright" Kayne says as she tucks in for breakfast with her napkin draped on her bare legs.
Before she would have flinched at showing anybody her legs because of her scars but now she didn't care. She knew she wouldn't be judged and she knew she was loved.
"It's called happiness and I'm glad my meal impresses you." Alfred replies with a smile. Bruce nods to Kayne with a small smile before asking for the pancakes. She passes him the pancakes before filling up her plate with muffins, bacon, eggs, toast, and a few pancakes.
She quickly eats it almost to the point that it would be called inhaling. "Slow down Kayne. Your food isn't going anywhere." Bruce points out, not even half way done with his own stack of pancakes.
"Oh, sorry. Still not used to having food on demand I guess. A luxury that I'll never get used to." Kayne murmurs, nibbling on the only thing left on her plate; bacon.
"It's okay, but take it slow. I don't want to have to see you in the hospital again any time soon, please." Bruce soothes, taking a bite from his pancakes.
Kayne nods while picking at her bacon. She gets up and stacks her plate with any of the empty serving plates to take to the kitchen. "I'm washing them Ms. Kayne." Alfred calls after her.
"No." Kayne calls back, sticking the plates in the sink. She fills up the sink full of warm water and soap. While waiting for it to fill up, she plays with the bubbles foaming in the sink.
She grabs the sponge and soaps it up when she feels the sinks is full enough. She rolls up her sleeves and sets to work scrubbing the dishes. She gathers all the pots, pans, and dishes used to cook the food once she was done with just the plates and utensils
Bruce walks in and takes the soaking sponge from her hand and places it on the counter. "Dry off, I want to give you something. An almost early Christmas present you can say." Bruce brides, leaning against the counter while sliding his hands into his sweatpants pockets.
"Alright." Kayne agrees, reaching for a towel to dry her arms and stomach. She couldn't seem to keep the water in the sink. She quickly pats down the sides of the sink to clean up her little spills.
"Is that my jacket?" Bruce questions, tilting his head to look at it while she was cleaning the counter. "I think so. It just appeared in my drawer. I think Alfred wanted to give me more things to wear." Kayne guesses with a shrug.
"Oh well, I may be a vigilante but I can never stop Alfred from doing what he wants." Bruce sighs, with a shrug. Kayne sets the towel aside and looks at Bruce. "What's the something?" She asks eagerly, bouncing on the platform of her feet.
One of Bruce's hands leaves his pocket holding out a small phone. He drops it in her outstretched hand. It's wasn't a flip phone, or even a touchscreen.
"I know you are going to sneak out and doing something sooner or later. So I got you a track phone. It's really hard to trace except if you know the number which I do. You can call and text on it so you can talk to me if needed. I added my number and I'm sure your genius mind can fig- umph." Bruce started explaining but was interrupted by Kayne hugging him.
"Thanks Dad." Kayne thanks with a smile when she pulls back. She looks down at the phone with a smile. Her face glowed with happiness like she was given the key to the world. She felt like Bruce trusted her now and it made her feel that alright feeling all over again.
"I'm going to go get dressed." She says before quickly runs out of the kitchen with glee.
Bruce glances after her with a slight smile before turning to finish the dishes with Alfred's help.
Kayne bolts up to her room and shucks her clothes. She glances at the giant window wall. Yeah I'm going to have to talk to Bruce about curtains there, Kayne thinks as she walks over to her dresser.
She pulls out a pair of rainbow winter leggings and tugs them on. She tugs on a long-sleeved, black, wool knit dress that went to her knees. A pair of thin, worn socks is slid onto her feet along with black fur boots that had no heel. She fits a black scarf around her neck to cover up her scar after combing her hair out.
Her new phone slides into a long jacket's pockets that she found in her closet that Alfred set up for her. She never really liked looking in there because it was full of expensive stuff that Bruce bought for her to wear at parties, gatherings, etc.
The jacket was long and black. It ended at her knees and buttoned securely around her chest. She also found a bland looking purse that could actually almost pass for a mini duffel bag. She threw all the little things she needed in it along with a wad of cash. She slides on her driver gloves that she robbed with.
She didn't put the jacket on but in turn threw it over her arm as she left her room.
"Dad, I'm heading out." She whispers while stepping down the stairs. Nobody replies to her whispers as she slinks into the garage.
Kayne giggles as she takes in the garage. Rows of expensive looking cars were parked inside the open garage that just had Kayne's hands itching to try and drive. She couldn't decide which on didn't look like a billionaire owned it so she grabbed a random set of keys on the board.
She glances at the set of keys and clicks the unlock button. Lights shined at the end of the lot dragging her eyes to a black Dodge Charger. Kayne's jaw dropped as she quickly flicked the lights off the garage and walked over to the pretty car. "Oh yes, you are a very pretty car, aren't you?" Kayne purrs, dragging her finger along the hood.
She slides into the front seat while tossing her jackets into the passenger seat along with her bag.
Kayne adjusts the seat so she could actually reach the gas and brakes. Then she adjusts the rearview mirror so she can actually she something worth seeing. After that she sticks the keys in the ignition and starts the cars. Carefully she places it in reverse, and backs out of garage. Once she's cleared the garage, she puts it in drive and bolts of down the road.
She smiles as she hears the engine purrs under her. It was good to be back behind the wheel of a fast car.
Her happiness was interrupted by a ringing noise. The dash screen said 'Phone Ringing: Press Answer' She shrugs and glances down at the wheel quickly to see a picture of a phone on the steering wheel. She presses the button as she pulls out of the Manor driveway.
"Kayne, what the hell are you doing?" Bruce's voice asks calmly as she turns onto the stretch of highway leading to the bridge. "Well, I am driving but if you mean why I'm driving then I'll answer saying I have a few errands to run." Kayne answers with a smile.
"How did you even know where the garage is?" Bruce questions with slight annoyance.
"I searched the house the day you decided to invite a crap ton of people in to the house to decorate for the Halloween party. I have to say you have a nice choice in cars." She replies with a smirk. She told him that day he would regret making her the guest of honor. Well, she found her revenge.
"I know. Now what errands are so important to you had to steal one of my cars and bolt off. Do you even know how to drive?" Bruce demands with slight confusion.
"Uh huh, I know how to drive." She explains as she slams on the brakes at an intersection where a guy cut her off. She holds up the finger as she honks on the horn.
"It doesn't sound like it. You keep ignoring my question." He tells her with concern in his voice.
"It's alright. Some jackass just pulled in front of me. Apparently he's color blind and can't read because he just missed a Stop sign." Kayne comments airily as she keeps driving on into town.
"Kayne…" Bruce drawls in his father voice.
"Listen Dad, I have to go into town to get presents. Not only that but I've left some families with out food for two months. That's bad. Christmas is coming and they need something. So I'll be a bit, ok? But I promise I'll be back safe and sound." Kayne interrupts with a serious tone to replace her flippant one.
She looks behind her quickly to see if she could change lanes.
Bruce was silent before she heard him sigh. "Give me a call every half-hour, ok?" Kayne reasons, as she turns to down a shady street to stop in front of a burnt down apartment building. She puts the car in park as she waits for Bruce's reply.
"Alright. If you don't answer I'm going after you, Ok? If something's wrong just answer and hang up, and I'll be there faster than you can blink." Bruce says, trying to sooth himself more than Kayne at this point.
"Alright, dad. Love you and talk to you soon." Kayne bids with a smile. "Be safe and I love you too." He replies hesitantly, not really wanting to get off the phone. She clicks the phone button on the steering wheel before turning off the car.
She shrugs on her jacket and puts on her ear muffs. The snow was everywhere. She was surprised she could actually drive that fast without sliding off the road. Kayne grabs her purse and steps out of the car. She closes the door and locks the car before stepping on to the curb.
A group of teenagers around her age were smoking close to the burnt down apartment. They whistled at her and crowed at the 'rich girl'. She flicked them the bird before walking away. She slides through the alleyway, and up the old fire escape. It was rickety, but like hell was she diving in any window with a dress on. No.
She climbs through the broken window she usually dove through and walks down the stairs. "Ariel!" Kayne calls with a smile. Squeals, and crashes were heard down the hall way. A dozen kids ran through the hallways and barreled into Kayne. She fell to the ground with a crash.
"Hey! I need to breathe little ones!" Kayne coughs with a smile. The older kids filled in with little smile on their faces. Kayne manages to shuffle up, but two kids still wrapped their arms around her legs.
"Oh my goodness." Kayne breathes as she gives the older ones hugs by reaching over the little ones. "Good to see you guys." She murmurs.
"Sissy!" Pamela calls affectionately, walking down the hall in flats with a worn blouse, a black skirt, and worn apron. Her red hair flared all around her, and she didn't both to hide her slightly tinged green skin as much anymore. Lily was tucked neatly at Pam's hip dressed up in a blue dress and barefoot.
"Sissy!" Lily mimics Pam with a smile raising her arms in the air gesturing for Kayne to hold her. Kayne reaches forward carefully and pulls Lily in for a hug. "Aw, hey sweetheart. You're looking much better." Kayne greets, littering kisses on Lily's neck and cheek.
Lily giggles and pushes Kayne's faces away with her tiny hands. Kayne relents and places Lily on her hip so she can reach to hug Pam. "I can say the same about you." Pam comments with a smile. "How was Mr. Doctor's office?" She questions, glancing at the kids.
Kayne nods, getting her lingo. "It was alright. I stayed longer than I wanted to. You know how I feel about Mr. Doctor's office. But we can talk about that later." Kayne says, eyeing the little kids. Pam nods and claps her hands. "Alright, room need to be cleaned or else Sissy is going home." Pam orders, hands on her hips.
All the kids run off in a hurry, freeing up Kayne's legs. "My room is clean!" Lily cheers with a smile, clapping her hands. "Show off." Kayne comments, jiggling Lily in her arms. "Hey, how about you get some leggings, shoes, socks, and a jacket on. Then I can take you out, ok?" Kayne brides so that Lily can leave Pam and her to talk.
Lily worms her way out of Kayne's grip and bolts off. "Be careful!" Kayne calls with slight worry. The kid knew what she was doing but Kayne still worried.
"Alright, so how did you escape?" Pamela asks, turning to Kayne. Kayne holds up the keys to the car, shaking them for emphasis. "Good girl. So how was your stay at the hospital?" Pam praises, turning to head down the hall to the make-shift kitchen.
Kayne pulls out a chair and gestures for Pam to sit. She accepts the seat and gestures to the chair in front of her for Kayne to sit in. Kayne pulls her dress out from underneath of her to sit. "Well, it was long. I went through physical therapy for most of my stay. I put a doctor into a coma, briefly. I have full strength in my legs back. The food sucked, and the stay was tiring." Kayne concludes, explaining her stay quickly.
"That sounds great and awful. I'm sorry I couldn't be with you but I have these little ones to look after. I trust your… father kept you company?" Pam asks with slight bitterness. Her red eyebrow raised in question.
"He slept on the couch the entire time. He felt it his duty to feed me whenever the chance presented itself and all in all he made me happy. He watched me like a hawk and stood by my side for therapy so another doctor incident didn't happen again. It is almost a complete turn around since I first met him. Before he would never be seen with a smile on his face, but he cut my hair and watched a kid's movie with me yesterday." Kayne explains, trying to get Pam to like him a bit.
Pam didn't by into it that easily. "Yes, I noticed the haircut! I love it, but I'll miss your old hair. I liked combing it out after a long day of you finding us food and clothes. You saved so many people that year." Pam points out with reminiscence in her voice. She smiles and brushes her hand through Kayne's hair.
Kayne sighs and leans in to Pam's touch. "What do the kids want for Christmas?" Kayne questions, turning the subject around.
Pam pursues her lips in thought. "Most of them want books and toys. Some of the boys need clothes. They've going through growth spurts. Also coats would be nice. This winter hasn't been kind to me and our family." She answers.
Lily comes bursting in through the door decked out in winter clothes that seemed a bit too small for her. "I'm ready!" Lily sings songs, hopping into Kayne lap. "Fantastic! Where's your car seat?" Kayne beams, catching Lily.
Lily pouts and crosses her arms. "I don't want to sit in the car seat." She protests while staring down Kayne. "Tough, where is it?" Kayne responds, patting Lily's leg. Lily grudgingly gets up and takes Kayne to the rickety closet where Lily's old car seat was. Kayne scoops it up and takes it back to the kitchen.
Pam was standing up, waiting for Kayne. "See you later and be safe ok? He is still out there, and I don't want him laying a single finger on you. He gives me the creeps too." Pam bids, leaning in to kiss Kayne on the cheek. Her hand squeezes Kayne shoulder before going to check on the other kids.
"I'll bring back takeout and I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M." Kayne could only respond.
She didn't really want to think about the man with the painted face. It gave her the shivers each time. He had planted a seed of doubt in her last time she saw him, and she didn't want to water it any more with thoughts of what he said.
A tugging from her jacket pulls her out of her thoughts. She glances down to see a concerned Lily. "Are we going Sissy?" Lily asks, tilting her head to look up at Kayne. "Yes sweetie, let's go." Kayne answers, shaking the bad thoughts out of her mind. She puts the car seat on her hip and grasps Lily's already outstretched hand with her right.
Kayne escorts Lily out into the living room and helps her up the steps to the window. Kayne instructs Lily to wait outside the broken window while she climbs over it. When on the other side she sets down the car seat and reaches over the hazardous glass to grab Lily to pull her over safely.
They make there way down the alleyway carefully and head to the car. Kayne pulls out the keys from her bag to unlock the backseat of the car. The teenagers were still hovering by the car smoking god knows what. Kayne eyes them warily but pretends to ignore them.
She opens the backseat, bends over and installs the car seat gingerly. She huffs and inches back out of the car to grab Lily and put her in. Lily shoos away Kayne's helping hands to buckle herself in independently. "Alright, alright." Kayne finally submits, throwing her hands in the air the third time Lily shoved Kayne's hands away.
She slides out of the backseat and shuts the door. Kayne puffs a bit of hair out of her face while walking around to the driver's side.
Suddenly she was flipped around and slammed against the car. "Hey baby, how you doing?" a boy asks, cigarette stuck between his lips. The tainted air blew into Kayne's face much to her disgust. "Get off me. I have a child in the car." Kayne hisses, her hand slowing moving into her jacket pocket.
"She won't see a thing. Your windows are tinted." The boy replies with a smirk. "Besides what can a pretty little rich princess like you do about it? Pop out another baby?" he adds, his hand taking the cigarette out of his mouth and breathing a direct stream in her face.
Kayne holds her breath and looks away. She doesn't bother to correct him that tinted windows can be seen from the inside but not the outside.
"Don't look away from me!" The boy growls, grabbing her face with his hand in a painful grip. Kayne comes up to grip his wrist in a bone-breaking grip causing him to drop the cigarette bud with a scream. Her other hand slides out of her pocket, knife with it and buries it just above his hip.
She twists and pulls the knife out as she pushes him to the ground. "Princesses can do more than just pop out babies." She spits, getting in the car and driving off. She doesn't even glance in the rearview mirror. She knew he would live.
Kayne closes the switchblade as she stops at a stopped light two blocks away. Ugh, I'm going to have to wipe the blood off of that later, she thinks disgustedly. She sheds her ear muffs, scarf and bag throwing them in the passenger seat.
"Where are we going?' Lily pipes up from her playing with her own fingers in the back. Kayne chuckles as she shakes herself out of her anger.
"First we are going to a store that hopefully has the presents I am looking for and then to a supermarket, sweetheart. We need to get food and Christmas presents for your brothers and sisters. Then if you want we can get hot chocolate, ok?" Kayne answers, plucking her gloves off as the car warms up. "It's across town so it will be a drive."
Lily nods, and kicks her feet in excitement. "So, tell me the alphabet?" Kayne questions, getting on to the highway ramp. Lily smiles and starts singing the alphabet.
Kayne smiles, and glances at Lily's happy face through the rearview mirror. The light turns green and Kayne hits the gas to swerve on to the highway ramp. Three police cars drive under the highway heading the directions she just came. Kayne drums her fingers on the steering wheel in annoyance.
She takes her hand off the wheel to search around in her purse for her phone. She carefully types in a number and presses talk. The phone connects to the car and rings over head. "Sis, what's up?" Amaranth, the oldest boy, questions from the other line.
"Hey Am, listen. I may or may not have stabbed someone outside your house. Police are taking the wimp to the hospital so I need you guys to lay low." Kayne replies, switching lanes on the road.
"Gotcha." and the line went dead.
Kayne rode in silence with Lily in the back still playing with her hands like they were dragons. She couldn't take it so she started to sing. "Dancing bears, painted wings." Kayne sings the first verse.
"Things I almost remember." Lily murmurs back.
Kayne smiles before continuing on with the lullaby she would sing to put Lily to sleep. "And a song someone sings. Once upon a December."
"Someone hold me safe and warm." The memory of Bruce holding her to sleep, or watching over her in the hospital when she would cry.
"Horses prance through a silver storm. Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory." The night she almost died. When everyone swept their partners away on the dance floor with Bruce's face screaming in pain as someone dragged her away.
Kayne hums the break as Lily slowly drifts to sleep in her car seat.
She wouldn't think about the likely hood of Bruce dropping her like a rock. Nope, she wouldn't. He knew she didn't blame him for what happened. None of it happened because of him...
He knew that right? He wouldn't just leave her to protect her, would he? If she got hurt again, he would stay with her like he did before.
One day she was bounded to get hurt again, just look what happened this morning! She could have been injured if the dumbass didn't take it like such a weenie…
What if he hurt her? What if they ganged up on her and jumped her? More importantly, he wouldn't blame himself would he?
'No. Stop it, Kayne. Don't think about it. You know he will stay. He loves you and you are his daughter.' She assures herself, shaking her head before singing to distract herself.
She flips through some songs in her head before finding the exit she needed. She pulls off and heads straight for the entrance, cutting a bunch of cars off that honked in frustration. She parks the car in front a jeweler that was downtown.
She turns off the car and pulls on her scarf and jacket. Kayne turns around in her seat and places her ear muffs on Lily. Lily doesn't stir in her car seat as Kayne unbuckles her. Kayne gets out of the car with purse in hand and goes around to the back to pick up Lily. She holds her so the hood of the jacket covers Lily's face from the cold.
Kayne carefully locks the car with one hand as she steps on to the curb and in to the jeweler with bars over the windows.
The door beeps to signal an entrance causing a man with an expensive looking suit, way above his pay grade, to turn around. He is bald with diamond sapphire ear piercing and sharp eye brows. He looked like a brand new mob batch.
A TV was mounted on to the wall and was playing the news. Four rows of glass containers held all expensive looking accessories and jewelry. Cameras were everywhere, and Kayne could see the two guns hidden. One in the man's jacket that was supposed to be unseen, and another behind the counter in front of her.
The man looked at her with disgust. Kayne sighs and walks up to the counter. "I'm sorry ma'am we don't sell anything that you can afford." The man starts off with a smirk. "Why would you say that?" Kayne questions with a hushed tone so she wouldn't wake Lily. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"You're young with a child and obviously with another on the way. Bring your pimp back here and then we can talk." The man purrs back, taking care of some papers behind the counter.
Kayne stiffly smiles and turns to look at the news. "Miracle that the poor Wayne girl made it through surgery isn't it?" She hums quietly with her lips pursued.
The man glances at the news where it shows Kayne being escorted to the car. The news reporter talked through out the video playing over and over at different angles.
"The adopted daughter of Bruce Wayne himself was released from the hospital just before Christmas after saving a house full of hostages from a robbery by The Joker himself that broke out during October. Nobody knows how she did it but she did. Rumors say it's because she has a soft spot for children as seen here with a little boy. It's unsure if she has any siblings but who knows. By the looks of it, I would assume so."
"Oh, never mind. You are just a rich girl with fifteen minutes of fame spotlight on her. How did you end up here?" The man sneers, setting his papers down while leaning forward with his gun peeking out of his jacket.
Kayne holds here expression carefully before placing her purse on the ground, freeing up her left shoulder. "Careful, I wouldn't speak to me that way. If you want to pull the 'I have friends in high places' then I'll say this." She whispers with a smile.
With one quick lash of her hand, she jabs the man in neck the before twisting her arm to slam her elbow in his face while slipping her hand into his jacket to grab the gun. The lash to the neck crippled his right arm into collapsing and moved his head closer to Kayne. The elbow to the face stunned him long enough for Kayne to point the revolver at his temple.
"I am the higher place. I'm having a bad day and I don't want to make it worse with scum like you. Now do I have to clean up the mess here and go to another jeweler or are you going to pull your head out of your ass and serve this little rich girl?"
Kayne stares down the man who quickly fumbled to apologize. "Be quiet, I don't really want to hear it. I have a headache and if you wake up my sister there will be hell to pay." Kayne sighs, shifting wiggly Lily in her arms as she shushes her back to sleep.
"Yes ma'am, I apologize. My name is Leo, and how may I help you today?" Leo, the rude attendee requests, and completely focused on her. He hushed his voice so that it matched Kayne's own hushed tones. Kayne nods and unarms the gun with a flick of her thumb. With one click six bullets laid on the counter. She then tosses the gun to the side across the room.
"I need a ring." Kayne starts, and then quickly adds. "Custom made" when he reaches for the ring boxes. "I'm paying in cash too. It's going to be a size 9, and I want it to be a black gold band. It will be engraved with, nil desperandum; aut viam inveniam aut faciam."
Leo quickly scribbles it all down, and waits for any further instructions. "Next thing I want made is a cane and I want it inscribed with the same thing. Surprise with the make and finish as long as you make it durable. I'm paying in cash so give me the total." She instructs, waiting for him to finish writing the rest down.
Leo coughs up the total and Kayne reaches into her purse to pay half of it forward. "You get the other half when it's done." Kayne answers, zipping her purse shut. "I'm sure your connections can drop the things of at Wayne Manor with no problem before tomorrow, yes?"
The man nods, and Kayne leaves.
She places the still sleeping Lily in her car seat before getting back in the car to drive off. Between getting back on the highway and leaving the store, Lily started waking up. First words out of her mouth were demands for the alphabet song.
Not even ten minutes into the drive and six songs of the alphabet, both English and Spanish, Kayne's car phone rang. Kayne looks at the dash startled only to see Bruce's number. "My dad's calling. When the car beeps scream hi, ok?" Kayne tells Lily. Lily eagerly nods and waits for Kayne to answer the phone with the steering wheel.
"Hi!" Lily screams, causing both Bruce and Kayne to flinch. "Hey Dad." Kayne greets after Lily settled down, and she regained her hearing. "I see you picked up a child. At least tell me they aren't in the front seat." Bruce replies with a grunt.
Kayne stares at the microphone with slight annoyance. "She's in the backseat in a car seat. Plus her name is Lily. Lily say hi to Dad, again." Kayne answers, getting off the ramp and driving three lanes over with a lot of honks and beeps.
"Don't, no, its ok. Hi Lily." Bruce immediately interrupts. Kayne smiles as Lily waves at the invisible Bruce.
"Where are you at?" Bruce questions with the sound of shuffling in the background. "You tell me. You are most likely tracking me as I speak." Kayne answers, turning into the parking lot of the supermarket.
Bruce sighs, and replies "I need to make sure the tracker works."
"I'm at Wal-Mart in the parking lot about to park in the seventh slot in, I think, the third row." She answers, turning to pull into a parking spot.
"Spot on." Bruce rumbles as Kayne sets the car into park. "I know." She states, turning to grab her things. She pushed the dirty switchblade into purse pocket to zip it up. Lily suddenly threw her ear muffs off and at Kayne.
"Hey, love! It's not okay to throw things. Repeat it." Kayne states, picking the ear muffs off the floor.
Lily pouts and murmurs, "It's not okay to throw things."
"Good. If you throw it again, you know I'm not going to be happy." Kayne replies, handing her the ear muffs. "Now put them on its cold outside."
Lily grudgingly puts the muffs back on over her ears.
"Well, that was awkward. Do I get to do that when you do something wrong? Kayne, it's not okay to attack doctors. Repeat it." Bruce teases.
Lily looked at Kayne expectantly, waiting for her to repeat it. Kayne scoffs, and repeats it reluctantly, "It's not okay to attack doctors."
Bruce laughed abruptly. "I didn't actually expect you to repeat." He answers.
"She did, and if I want that to be effective I have to go with it. Thanks Dad. Hold on, I need to step out of the car." Kayne points out, grabbing the phone from her bag to place it on handheld mode.
"Alright I'm back." She answers, tucking it between her ear and shoulder as she steps out of the car. She comes around and opens Lily's door as Lily is unbuckling herself.
"Didn't take that long. What are you planning on doing after you go shopping?" Bruce asks the sound of whining coming from his side of the phone. He's probably on the computer. Kayne places Lily in a cart and pushes it to get inside quickly.
"I don't know. Drop Lily off but it's Christmas Eve. I may take her out for hot C-h-o-c-o-l-a-t-e." Kayne spells out carefully. She watches as Lily's face contorts in thought trying to figure out what Kayne just spelled.
"Ah. Well stay safe and if anything wrong happens, just call or come home… Please." Bruce adds at the end for emphasis of his order. Kayne enters the warm store and breathes in relief. "Alright Dad. I shouldn't take long but call if you ever get worried. Love you and talk to you soon." Kayne replies, placing her purse in the basket now that they were inside.
Lily immediately ripped off her ear muffs and put them in Kayne's purse. "Love you, bye and whatever else goes into all that." Bruce bids before the line beeps in ending. Kayne tosses her phone in the opening of her purse before shucking off her jacket and tossing it in the cart too.
"You can take yours off to sweetheart." Kayne points out as she pushes the cart into the boxed food section. Lily shimmies out of the sleeves of her old jacket and lets it pool around her seat.
"What do you want to eat? Lasagna or Alfredo or what?" Kayne questions, looking at the hamburger helper boxes.
Lily holds up two fingers eagerly. "Both!? Alright, why not?" Kayne exclaims, before shrugging and grabbing some boxes that looked good. She tosses them behind Lily and into the basket. "Let's get some stuffing boxes, and some whatever this is. It looks Christmas-y I guess." She hums, grabbing some food boxes off the shelves and lined them up neatly in the cart.
"So, what else?" Kayne asks, pushing down the aisle.
"Cookies." Lily instantly replies.
"Maybe later." Kayne answers while turning down the canned food aisle.
"Now." Lily snaps with a pout.
"I said later, so I mean later. If you keep acting up no cookies." Kayne instructs with a stern look.
Lily huffs but nods with understanding. "Green beans and veggies?" She in turn replies, gesturing to the row. "Why not?" Kayne says, grabbing an assortment of veggies in cans.
"Alright to the bread section. Maybe we can even buy some turkey or chicken, sound good?" Kayne questions, moving down the aisle with ease.
"Turkey, Turkey, Turkey!" Lily sings with a smile. "What sound does a turkey make?" Kayne inquires, pulling the cart to a stop in front of the bread. A tap on her back pulled her away from Lily clucking.
She turns to see the flaming red hair of Barbara Gordon. "Hey, you are Bruce Wayne's adopted daughter, right?" Barbara asks, holding her hand out to Kayne. Kayne took it carefully and shook it. "Yes that's me. You must be Barbara Gordon, the commish's kid. You're the gymnast, right?" Kayne greets, pulling her hand back.
Behind her, Lily was grabbing things of the shelf and placing them in the cart. Kayne sees her and grabs her out of the cart. "Go look at the toys, ok? Pick some out for your siblings. Don't be selfish or stingy." Kayne orders softly to Lily. It doesn't take a second for Lily to bolt of to the toy section a few aisles over.
"Yeah! I was thinking about quitting but watching you do what you did at that hospital made me agree to Olympic training that my coach offered me." Barbra answers, watching Kayne get up from a crouch.
Kayne looks at Barbra with a shocked expression. "Olympic training? Wow, that's a big one. I wish you the best of luck. I didn't think I held much influence over anyone." Kayne replies with a shake of her head.
"Are you kidding? You're a hero! You're the biggest thing… Well, best biggest thing that happened since before Batman disappeared!" Barbra inputs with a grin bigger than New York.
"Wow, um, thanks." Kayne says with a small smile that felt weak.
Barbra seemed to sense her awkwardness so she changed subject. "Are you Christmas shopping? Do you know what you're looking for? I can help if you need anything." Barbra smiles, easing the tension a bit.
Kayne's shoulders drop in relief. "Please? I've never really done this before except last year and I'm buying toys for about a dozen children. I've somewhat got the food but as you can see Lily did most of it." Kayne accepts, gesturing to the cart somewhat reluctantly.
The cart held what they just put in there plus Lily's extra like pop tarts, marshmallows, and graham crackers. Little gummy fruit snack were tossed in too.
"Yeah, of course! It looks like you got most of it, but maybe you can buy some pies or cakes for dessert? Also maybe a bird or two?" Barbra suggests, glancing down at the cart in amusement.
"That's what we were going to get once we got some rolls." Kayne mumbled sheepishly, turning to push the cart down the aisle while plucking so bread rolls of the shelf.
Barbra follows with a smile on her face. Kayne listens as Barbra chatters down the aisle to the bakery section. She suggested to Kayne to get the meat after everything else. Barbra may have been younger then Kayne but they were almost eye to eye thanks to Kayne shortness. Thankfully, Kayne was the one that was slightly taller.
Barbra's clothes finally came into view for Kayne since they started chatting, or since Barbra started chatting. She wore a long jacket but with a shiny leotard underneath and sweatpants.
Kayne raised her eyebrow at it but didn't say more on the subject.
When they got to the bakery section, Barbra helped pick out a few nut free pies just in case someone was allergic to something. She also grabs a cake and places it neatly on top of the boxes. Together they organized the cart more to fit in the wave of toys they both knew would come.
When done, they both walked to the toy section to find Lily on the floor crying and a small boy smirking down at her. "Lily!" Kayne squeaks, rushing over to her to help her up and shush her.
The boy looks up startled at Kayne's sudden appearance and feigns tears. "She hit me!" The boy whines, holding his arm. Lily stutters out a quiet, "He pushed me to the ground because he wanted the toy."
She gestures to the remote control car lying at Kayne's feet. "Why would you push a girl for a toy?" Barbra growls at the kid.
"She hit me though!" The kid answers, ignoring Barbra's question.
Barbra stares daggers at the kid as Kayne shushes and rocks Lily while kissing her head and hands. "What hurts? Tell me what hurts." Kayne whispers, kissing Lily's fingers one by one.
Lily gestures to her pigtails. Kayne tilts Lily's head to see a small cut on her scalp that was starting to bleed a bit.
Kayne's eyes widen as she turns to the kid with fierceness. The dad of the little turd decides to round the corner then. "Joey, are you oka-? Oh my god, get away from my son! What did you do to him?!" The father demands, running to the boy that was unscathed other then a few alligator tears.
"Your idiotic son pushed down my sister causing her to slam her head on one of these shelves for a pointless toy. We did nothing but I'm sure I would love too." Kayne hisses with a barely suppressed anger.
"It's a boy's toy. Why would she want it? She's a girl. Besides you should have watching the little rat. She shouldn't be alone anyway. Someone could take her, but obviously you wouldn't care." The father sniffs condescendingly, picking up his son.
"Excuse me?" Kayne begs, eyebrows rising with. She passes Lily off to Barbra and Barbra takes her quickly before backing off to take her to the cart.
"You heard me." The father snaps but with less umph.
Kayne takes a step towards the father with fury.
"You ignorant monstrosity of a creature. Why the hell would you ever say that about a little girl?" Kayne emphasizes.
"What gives you the smallest balls or the needs to make up for not having any by saying that? Is this what you hope your little boy becomes? If so, just stop reproducing because you are causing this generation to be a hazard to society." Kayne argues, eyes narrowed and continues before the man can protest.
"My little girl did nothing but look for toys for her siblings so they can have a Christmas that they've never had. She has a handful of brothers. Even if she didn't she could play with that car if she wanted to and no one, not even your spawn of Satan, could stop her. She has the rights to play with whatever the hell she wants.
Second, if you so much as hint to any mother, sister, aunt, or guardian of any child that they don't love their child then you won't have to worry about me. They will be the one's you have to worry about. I honestly feel sorry for your wife because she married, or didn't marry by the looks of it, just about the ugly soul in the history of mankind. Have a shitty day." She finishes off becoming aware of Barbra staring her down.
Barbra was honestly the only reason Kayne hadn't grabbed the car keys and stabbed this man in the neck. Lily too if she wanted to have more resolve.
Kayne stares the man down before he turns around and leaves. Kayne shakes her head before heading back to the cart to put a Band-Aid on Lily's head. "Spawn of Satan? That was a good one, Clarisse." Barbra murmurs lowly with a smirk.
"My name's Kayne." Kayne says without glancing up from putting the Band-Aid on Lily.
"I know. I'm just referencing-. Oh never mind." Barbra attempts but stops when she realized Kayne wouldn't get it.
Kayne ignores Barbra while wiping away the last traces of blood with a tissue she found in her purse. "All better?" Kayne asks.
Lily nods and hugs Kayne's neck. Kayne pats her back reassuringly.
"So is she really your sister?" Barbra questions, picking up the knocked over toys off the floor.
"By Family, not by blood. So it doesn't really make a difference." Kayne replies with kindness in her tone as she carefully pulls Lily out of her seat and sets her on her feet.
Lily scrambles to show Kayne the toys she found for her siblings. "I like them. I'm sure Amaranth would love that Barbie doll but sadly I think the book out weights the doll. Alright, help me pack up." Kayne answers as Lily brings up an armful of toys.
"The dolls can come but the accessories can stay. They already have some come in the box. We don't need more little things for your mum to pick up." Kayne points out as Lily hands her some boxes.
Barbra helps place some crayons and such in the cart before straightening up and hugging Kayne. "It's great to see you, but I've got to go. I told my mom I was going to the bathroom about twenty minutes ago. See ya." Barbra bids and leaves before Kayne can do anything.
Kayne stands there stunned for a little while before Lily tugs on her dress hem to get her attention. Kayne looks down to see what Lily was gesturing at. "Last thing we are getting and only because it's a book set." Kayne settles, grabbing the books and placing them in the cart before doing the same to Lily.
"Maybe we can just grab some of those pre-cooked turkey things I saw walking in. They smelt delicious." Kayne inquiries while pushing the cart out of the aisle to the check out where she saw said turkeys.
"Turkey!" Lily smiles while making clucking noises. "Yep, turkey and mom doesn't have to cook it." Kayne answers with a big smile as she places two containers of pre-heated and cooked turkeys that smelt delectable. "To check out!" Kayne sings, maneuvering her way to an empty check-out space.
She places all the items on the conveyor belt before pulling up to place the bags into her cart.
"You have a cute little sister." The cashier compliments with a smile as he scans the items. Kayne smiles back and nods her thanks. Lily kicks her feet to get Kayne's attention. "Yes, sweetie?" Kayne asks turning to Lily.
"Coco, Coco, Coco!" She sings in reply. Kayne drops her jaw. "You want hot coco? It's the middle of the day, Hun!" Kayne gasps, feigning utter disbelief. Lily keeps up her song for hot chocolate with urgency.
"Alright, alright. How about we got to the park and drink so hot coco? Maybe even make a snowman. That sounds good?" Kayne questions, nodding her head. Lily smiles and shakes with excitement.
With that on her mind, Lily practically rushed Kayne out the door as soon as the cashier gave Kayne her receipt. Kayne barely had time to thank the man because Lily was motivating Kayne to get out the door.
Kayne crumbled the receipt up and placed it in her purse before rolling out the door. She makes her way through the parking lot to stop at her car. She pops the trunk, and starts moving items carefully into the trunk before filling it completely up. Then she moves on to filling up the passenger floor board, and the back seat up.
She barely manages to fit Lily in before replacing the cart back to the store. She sighs in relief as she jogs it back to her car with her breathe visible in the air. She tugs the jacket around her as she gets into the car.
Kayne had already turned the car on to get the heater going so she quickly close the door and shucks of all the unnecessary clothing before rubbing her hands up in front of the heater. "Warm back there, hun?" Kayne asks, looking in the rearview mirror.
Kayne gasps, not believing what she saw, and turns around quickly. Lily was just sitting there mimicking her hands by rubbing them together. "Yes, I'm warm." Lily smiles while answering.
Kayne shakes her head while pulling a hand through her hair. Just the imagination but I swear, no, just me going crazy, Kayne thinks. She throws her head back into her headrest with a groan.
"Ok, let's go get some hot chocolate. I think I have some money that I can think about spending after that hectic shopping spree." Kayne recommends, putting the car in reverse before pulling out and getting on the road towards Robinson Park. It was reasonably close to where Pam lived so it would be easy to take Lily home with her new presents.
They pulled in through a coffee shop drive thru first to buy two hot chocolates; one small and one large. Kayne held them with one hand as she pulled into the park. She unbuckles her seat belt and glances to look at the weather.
She gasps, pulling her arm up to cover Lily but with a blink everything was alright. What she saw was gone.
Kayne shakes her thoughts out before jumping to the ringing of a phone. She swiftly rummages through her purse to look for her phone before answering it and bringing it to her ear. "Hello?" She greets breatheless.
"Kayne, hey, I'm so sorry I didn't call for our thirty minute mark. I was watching the news and got caught up." Bruce answers with relief in his tone. "N- No problem." She smiles back with a slight stutter. "You okay?" Bruce questions with sternness in his voice.
"Yeah! Yeah, I just had to dive for my phone and it was underneath a lot of crap." Kayne answers, placing the hot chocolate down safely before shimming her jacket on.
"Alright, if you say so. Listen, a storm is supposed to be coming in soon. I'd give it an hour tops. So expect to see you home soon." Bruce replies using his Dad voice.
"Ok dad, I'll be home soon. I'm just taking Lily on a walk through the park. Then I'll be home as fast as I can." Kayne explains to Bruce as she gets out of the car. The cold wind had picked up and was easing on to the harsh side.
"Well, stay safe. If anything bad happens and you can't call me to hang up again, break your phone. It automatically send help to me, got it?" Bruce warns, staring at the news.
"Yeah, yeah alright. Lily say 'bye' nicely." Kayne instructs, opening the door and crawling over the food to get to Lily. "Bye nicely!" She yells in to the phone. "Smarty pants." Kayne grumbles before saying her goodbyes to Bruce and hanging up.
Lily helps unbuckle her car seat before sliding out of the car. Her hot chocolate was already in hand. "You sneaky thief!" Kayne giggles when she realizes the cup was no longer in the carrier. She throws the carrier away after grabbing her cup out of it.
Lily skipped ahead of her while gingerly sipping the hot chocolate. The weather cooled down the hot chocolate to a reasonable degree.
"Lily, please be careful! Don't slip or go far away. I need to see you." Kayne orders, strolling on the path. She watches leisurely as Lily skips around in the snow.
Kayne takes a deep breathe and lets it out slowly. The warmth of the hot chocolate filled her and kept the warmth in her finger tips. She rolls her fingers along the cup of the container. Her gloves stuck a bit and squeaked. They were still reasonably new so the stiffness didn't surprise her.
Kayne stops by a bench and sits in plain view of Lily who was following a butterfly. She sets down her cup and takes off her ear muffs. She takes off the scarf quickly, closing her eyes briefly.
Suddenly a weight next to her makes her eyes slide open as she sets the scarf down. She turns her head before jumping up while blink her eyes rapidly. Her cup knocks over spilling into the melting snow.
When she was sure the smiling man wasn't another hallucination like the others, she lunged forward and wrapped the scarf around his throat twice before pulling from behind the bench. "You shouldn't have come back." Kayne growls, tugging enough to cut off his air supply.
His gurgles sounded almost like laughter. He tries to speak but Kayne doesn't let him.
His gloved hands had stayed by his side until now as he holds up a hand in surrender. One single solitary pointer finger held up.
Kayne relents a small amount to let him breathe. She couldn't tell how much oxygen he lost from her actions because of the paint on his face but he sucked in the small amount of air she gave him. "You have 10 words to tell me what you needed before I kill you." Kayne whispers in his ear.
"Happy Birthday." He spits out with a smile.
"It's was yesterday so not good enough!" Kayne growls, about to pull the scarf ends in the opposite direction to kill.
Joker holds up his hands again while trying to calm his laughter. Eight fingers were held up on his hands. "Lily." He manages to cough up.
Kayne's eyes widen as she looks up desperately for Lily to see her gone. "LILY!" Kayne screams in terror. "Sissy, I'm coming!" Lily's voice comes from the distance in front of her past the swing set. Kayne's relief is cut short when she sees two goons in Lily's direction.
They grabbed her and pulled out two knives. Lily's screams pierced the air, breaking Kayne's heart bit by bit.
"Call them off. CALL THEM OFF!" Kayne's voice drops in pitch to a snarl.
"How do you know we aren't hallucinations?" Joker answers relaxing into the bench.
Suddenly he disappeared under her touch, and the scarf held nothing to kill. The goons vanished into the trees. Kayne looks around before running towards Lily. Lily breaks the swing set line and ambles towards Kayne. Her breathe of relief is cut short when the Joker appears behind Lily with a knife.
Kayne shakes her head to clear the image but a hard body presses in to her with their hand on Kayne's throat and a real knife on her lips. "What feels real isn't always real." A voice whispers into her ear. A laugh pierces the air as Lily continues for like nothing is happening
"Merry Christmas." He breathes in her ear before the weight is lifted. Suddenly Kayne was seeing double of everything. Kayne didn't want to risk it.
"Lily, sweetie, come on. We are leaving now!" Kayne calls, causing Lily to jog a little to swing into Kayne's waiting arms.
Kayne eases Lily onto her back with out hesitance and runs out of the park. "What's wrong Sissy?" Lily questions, holding on the Kayne by second hand nature.
"I just-. I don't like the clouds. A storms coming in you know." Kayne excuses, tears stinging her eyes as she rips open the back door to the car. Lily crawls around Kayne's shoulders and down her stretched out arm to rest in the car seat. Lily quickly buckles herself in.
They hadn't piggy backed like that in a while but they only did it on the run. Lily knew something was wrong. It must be the storm.
Kayne closes the car door and pries open her's. She slides in and closes the door before locking it. She shoves the keys in the ignition and peels out of the parking lot. She blinked rapidly trying to keep the hallucinations and tears back.
Don't think about it.
Don't think about him.
Don't think about the words.
Don't think.
Don't.
Just.
Don't. She repeats over and over in her head.
Taking the back roads, Kayne made it to Pam's in about fifteen minutes. Lily went ahead and called the older kids to help with the packaging.
Pam even came out to help. She didn't help much though, other then worry over Kayne with a passion.
She pulls Kayne aside and hugs her when she noticed her red eyes and red-tipped nose. "I'm just cold." Kayne supplies when Pam looks at looks at her curiously.
"Bullshit. I know you Kayne. I know you like I know my other children. It was him, wasn't it?" Pam fires off, her eyes flaming with anger and motherly concern.
Kayne just looks at the ground and nods. "That bastard! What did he do to you?" She hisses, pulling Kayne chin up to examine her.
Kayne pushes Pam's hand away gently. A clap of thunder rumbles through the air.
"He drugged me." Kayne murmurs, looking away. "He knew that the blood transfusion replaced my special blood, and he took advantage. I saw him hurting Lily. I just-"
Kayne takes a deep breathe, looking away. She bites her lip trying to hold off tears. "I just can't think straight right now. He told me Happy Birthday. It was the first thing he said. I knew you were going to say it when I got back, but he was the first person to tell me Happy Birthday. It hurts me to know he is inside my mind and fucking with it sideways. Bruce never even hinted that he knew yesterday was my birthday. Nobody has that much knowledge of me except you… Did you tell him?" Kayne rambles before snapping her steely gaze on Pam.
Pam goes from understanding to taken aback. "Sweetie! You know I would never stoop low enough to spill any thing about you to that thing." Pam assures, rubbing Kayne's arms comfortingly.
Kayne shakes her head. The paranoia was like a fist to the face. She groans before slamming her head into her palms. "I've got to go. I've things to do. Merry Christmas Eve, Pam." She bids before walking over to the car. She hugs the entire little batch good bye, and then the older ones.
"Kayne…" Pam says, walking up to the car where the door was open. Snow starts falling in slush.
"Yes?"
"Happy belated Birthday sweetheart." Pam offers with a smile, sticking her pockets in her tattered skirt.
Kayne can't even put up a weak smile but she nods her thanks.
She closes the door before speeding off. The drive to Wayne Manor was much shorter, taking less than five minutes with the speed Kayne was going. The double vision was leaving her and the whispers flew from her mind.
She pulls into the garage to find two packages left neatly outside the garage. Bruce and Alfred's presents had arrived. Kayne scoops them up in her arms and places the key on the key ring. She closes the garage door and heads to the living room.
"What's this?" Kayne asks to Alfred in the middle of the living room. Boxes littered the area, and a giant ladder was leant against the stair banister. Kayne shivers, she would hate to fall off that.
"The Christmas tree. Master Bruce has asked that you both put it up together tomorrow since it is already dinner time in a few hours." Alfred answers, setting down a box of ornaments.
"Fantastic, I'm going to wrap presents. Call me down for dinner." Kayne replies, jogging up the steps. She rampages through her purse, looking for a tissue.
"Alright! The wrapping paper is in the closet two doors down from your room. Tape is included-" Alfred starts but it gets blurred out with loud whispers.
He doesn't love you.
He'll leave you.
He doubts you.
You are just baggage.
He thinks you're the monster here.
The words kept pouring in.
Glitches of the Joker leaning up against the hallway, sitting on the table, standing in the middle of the hallway, or even walking right beside her filled her mind.
His lips moved but it was always the same thing.
Kayne blinks trying to clear it away, trying to walk normal as to not raise supscion. She grabs the paper and tape but it was starting to get overwhelming. The voices were getting louder, and the hallway was suddenly split.
Kayne covers her ears and bolts to her room while locking the door. She throws her purse and leans heavily against the door. The sound of rain washes over Kayne causing her to focus a little more.
All the Jokers disappeared except one, he stood towering over her. His hand brushes against her red cheeks from breathing so hard. Her eyes were glazing over. The Joker smiles and leans down to whisper in her ear.
Happy Birthday, Kay.