Nightmares are Unplanned

Daleville, Connecticut

9:09 P.M. EDT

The dreary evening evolved into night and everything was quiet. The team had taken up their vigil around the labs.

Aqualad had to wonder, though, if something was not right. This was the second time that the team had to guard the building, even if their previous mission there had gone well.

Batman had informed them that a vigilante had helped them during their previous mission and that half the team would investigate the aspiring heroine while evening lasted.

He wondered if the Nightingale was aproblem, if she was the reason for the second mission, especially if Robin and Zatanna had come to Daleville during the day to look for her.

But then again, the Shadows hadn't completed their contract. They hadn't stolen whatever the labs contained, so the possibility of Cheshire or another of the assassins returning remained in the air.

He wondered where Red Arrow was. The archer had been there that night and had helped them immensely. If there was still the possibility of Cheshire returning, then it was all too likely that Red Arrow was around. But where was the question.

It would be likely that he'd decided against remaining invisible on a second vigil of the labs, but Roy had yet to contact them either through their comm. link or link into their telepathic communiqué.

But all the same, it was likely that the archer was somewhere else in the small city. But where?

"Nah …. No … don't …. Br-Brian!"

Briana's eyes shot opened and her breath took up a rapid and rhythmic beat as she realized she was in the safety of her room.

"Just a nightmare. It was just a nightmare," she mumbled softly and rolled over on her side. Amanda was still asleep, that was good. Sometimes she'd sleep talk – well, sleep scream – loud enough to rouse her best friend.

The sharp sound of rain falling against the window was comforting and had a calming effect on her as she stopped hyperventilating. The night was black and none too welcoming, good it'd keep some of the Nightingale's troubles away for now.

She sighed as she looked at her wrist watch. It was at least fifteen minutes before her planned wake up call.

Get up, she ordered herself. Or the night's gonna start without you.

Briana hoisted herself out of bed. Already regretting going out on patrol. The weather hadn't improved in the least, if anything it was coming down more vigorously.

Quietly, she slipped out of her room and further into the sleeping orphanage. By then everyone would be sound asleep, with the exception of those who find it hard to fall asleep or Mr. Mathews who stayed up late to watch some late night program. Luckily, he wasn't in the habit of doing a bed check all that often. Even if he did, the man wouldn't be able to distinguish a sleeping child from a bunch of pillows.

The linens closet was down in the basement, a long trip through the orphanage. With all the risks involved, Briana wouldn't normally chance going there, but on nights when it was raining cats and dogs, she knew that a towel would be necessary when she arrived home from patrol.

She danced her way down each flight of stairs, knowing which boards creaked and which didn't. Before long, she'd retrieved the towel and headed quickly back to upstairs.

She closed the door softly as she reentered her room. She put the towel under her covers and lifted her mattress up. The Nightingale was about to go on patrol.

Briana mused over all the night's possibilities. It had had a lot in store for her on the previous one, so it would likely hold something just as dangerous and unknown to her as the previous one. She hoped that she could handle it, there was no telling if she'd meet her end or return to the orphanage safely this week.

She selected her uniform, bracers, whip, cowl, combat boots, and the pouch of bolas from the locker and set them on the floor beside her bed. She quickly changed out of her casual attire and had her black jeans and combat boots on in short order. Along with the long sleeved black and silver shirt, she would wear one of the few tank tops that she owned. It'd ward off some of the cold water that night.

Briana pulled her shirt and sweater over the tank tops. Her newly repaired gloves slipped onto her hand nicely, melding with her flesh perfectly, neither agitating nor comforting her wound. She secured her bracers on her forearms before she pulled on her cowl.

Only a few seconds passed before she pulled her hair underneath the mask and to check if her work was satisfactory.

Lastly, she strung her belt with her bola pouch around her waist and had her whip fastened to her belt falling just below mid thigh.

She opened the window quietly, and stepped onto the fire escape and shut it without a sound. Amanda would probably wake up anyway, but not in time to see her off.

Silently, she ambled up the fire escape, until she was level with the opposing building. With ease she leaped to the next building, stealthily going along her normal routine.

Oddly, tonight as she flipped and somersaulted over the gaping alley ways, she remembered what had started it all. What occurred the night of her first real crime fighting excursion.

Weird, tonight it almost the exact duplicate of it. Minus the rain though, she thought.

It'd been unplanned, but nightmares always were unplanned for.

"Why? Why it'd have to happen?" Briana sobbed into her legs, but no amount of asking could get her the answer. "Why he'd have to go and sh-shoot them?"

The autumn night air blow a cold wind through her black locks, leaving goose bumps on her skin, but it made no difference to her.

In a few more days, she'd turn ten, and leave single digits behind forever, but no one cared that it was the anniversary of her birth. It was just another unimportant date to everyone else, an unimportant day for the birth of an unimportant, unwanted, and often unwelcome little girl.

The only people who valued that date were gone, stolen away from her forever, and her hellish dreams wouldn't stop reminding her of that.

Those accursed dreams plagued her every night, and had done so from the first day she was alone and probably would continue to do so until she breathed her last.

The instant replay of when she lost everything had driven her onto the fire escape so late at night. A place where no one would see her cry, a place where she could retreat deep into the cowl of Brian's old hoodie one of the few comforts she had.

The navy blue sweater hold more comfort of her than anything else had for years.

"Why did we even have to go? If we didn't you'd still be with me." She heaved a sad sigh and wiped her tears on her sleeve. Briana stared out into the cold night as she could do for long hours on end. Maybe she'd end up catching a cold and Mr. Mathews would let her stay home, that wouldn't be so bad.

She looked out into the street below. Of course, she didn't expect anyone to be out at that time of night. No one did, but it was always nice to watch and let her thought sort themselves out.

"What the hell, man?" someone said rather loudly. Briana heard the sound of a trash can falling over following it.

She hadn't been paying very much attention to anything a moment ago, so she hadn't noticed that someone had stepped into the alley dragging someone with him.

"What's going on?" She squinted into the shadows below and quietly started to use the fire escape to go down in order to use the fire escape to get a better view.

Almost directly below the fire escape was a bulky man who looked drunk towering above a younger man of small, lean build. The younger man had on a red vest as he worked at a convent store and coward at the sight of the hulking figure above. The brave tone she'd heard earlier had vanished.

"What do you want?" he barely managed to whimper out.

"Give me your cash," the drunkard slurred.

"I don't got any," replied the younger man.

"Give me it or I'll – I'll shoot you." The threat resounded in the air and made Briana hope that he hadn't seen her. "Give me or I shoot!"

"No, don't, please, I've got a family!"

Briana felt her blood boil, an angry fired sprang from the dying embers in her chest. She didn't know what to do, but she could not stay hidden and watch another family go through what she had.

"Leave him alone!" she said, her voice sounded raspy and raw from all her crying.

The drunkard looked around confused and before Briana fully knew what she was doing she'd gotten under the fire escape and swung herself at him. She landed on top of his back and the drunk fell over hitting his head hitting the asphalt.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the would-be mugger wasn't going to get up.

"Who-who are you?" the man asked crab walking further into the alley.

"Nobody," she replied, shifting from one bare foot to the other awkwardly and wondering how she'd get back into the orphanage.

"Well, you gotta be someone. I mean not everybody can do something like that." He got up but stayed two or three yards away from her. "Are you an angel?"

Briana thought quickly, this guy wouldn't take 'no' for an answer.

"Ah … No, I'm a nightingale," she supplied, retreating to a nickname that her family had used when she'd gotten sick of adults always referring to her as "Precious angel," or something like that.

"Well, whoever you are, you're a hero," he answered and Briana's eyes widened.

"Don't tell anyone about this, okay?"

"No way am I gonna tell anyone about this. Who's gonna believe me? But you aren't gonna stop, are you?"

"Stop what?"

"Stop being a hero. I hope you don't. Daleville needs one, that's for sure and I'm sure the Nightingale is just the person for the job."

"I guess…."

Amanda awoke slowly when she felt cold splotches of a cold liquid hit her face.

"Wha …?" She opened her eyes just in time to see a figure close the window. Amanda shook off her sleep and saw the recognizable figure of the Nightingale climb up the fire escape.

"Darn it!" she mumbled into her pillow and cursed her luck. Briana had already left for the night. She wasn't pleased with that she'd missed the bird girl, Briana had been very solemn earlier in the evening, so who knows what she might be planning on doing?

Amanda hadn't like that. Sometimes she didn't know if Briana would come home safely. At least tonight she was certain that the Nightingale would leave the S.T.A.R. Labs to the proper heroes, but since Briana had taken time out of her school hours to do research on that trouble, Amanda had to wonder what could be more pressing that the Nightingale would voluntarily look into it.

Probably something just as dangerous and as worrying as everything else that had occurred, and Amanda wasn't looking forward to seeing what the byproduct of whatever endeavor that the Nightingale was undertaking tonight could be.

Travis sighed and looked around again. The alley beside S.T.A.R. Labs hadn't changed at all in the past minute. The trash bin was still in its place, and something invisible was pushing the rain off it. It was probably the Martian girl, whom he'd met last night.

Why'd I even decide to do this? It's not a wonder we give this kind of job to the rookies, it's boring to the thousandth exponent, Travis thought to himself as he took a sip of the black coffee that he'd bought earlier. Normally he'd bring a thermos of hot chocolate courtesy of his sister-in-law, but tonight he'd opted to drink something stronger.

The pelting rain almost lulled his to sleep a couple of times in the past hour. Thankfully, he wasn't one to sleep very well sitting up.

There had only been a few times he'd performed a stake out and they'd mostly been with his detective brother. Those few times had been nothing more than pulling some boring all night-er while looking of the Nightingale, who hadn't even shown up.

It was rather unfortunate for him that this time he didn't have a partner and the sidekicks weren't very talkative.

Is anything even going to happen? he wondered aloud for lack of anything better to do. Don't we have two of the culprits and haven't they been warded off for quite a while. Besides what in Daleville could they possibly want?

Travis heaved a bore sigh as other thoughts began to accumulate in his mind. He remembered what the personal cost was because of the villains' endeavors.

He didn't like reprimanding Stephen or anyone for that matter. Every person on the police force was a valued member. They brought something to the table that was unique and helpful. Every officer under his command was needed in Daleville.

Though he'd never tell this to the face of his officers, the Nightingale brought a lot to the table as well. He wished that he'd done more than just let her go after she'd saved Johnny from Scourge. If it happened again, if the chance ever arose to thank her, he probably would for saving both Johnny and Stephen's life.