Xander and I talked for some time, but the conversation ended shortly after. She received a call on her mobile, and she became frustrated with the person on the other end. I decided not to tease her about it. She paid for the meal, and we parted ways outside the diner.

As I entered my apartment, my own cell phone rang. Upon answering, I heard Nash's voice, telling me that I was on duty within the next hour.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Exhausted, with a headache. Nothing new," I replied as I picked my clothes out.

"I came by to check on you. I hope your door still works."

Confused, I went to check my door. "It still works, and it looks fine. I'll just patch it up a bit when I come home. How long am I working?"

"No idea."

"The joy of working as a detective," I murmured. I thanked him, told him I would be in within the hour, and hung up.

The cops were a chattering bunch when I arrived. I soon found out why they were so excited. Heading into the back, I spotted Nash, Bullock, and Murphy in the breakroom enjoying coffee. When I entered, Nash invited me over.

"Tew's getting a lecture from the Commissioner," he said in explanation for the cops' excitement.

"Tell me it's because he was a douche."

He shrugged. "No, he broke into someone's apartment last night without reason. After whatever happened at the warehouse, he found Bullock and I and insisted on coming along." He sighed. "I hate him. He makes the rest of us, real detectives, look bad."

"Who's apartment?" I asked curiously, even though I already knew the answer.

"Alexandra Eccleston, your suspect for the Sniper case."

"So far, she's not my suspect. She's Tew's."

"She's a nice woman," Bullock said. "Despite how much you hate Tew, you should probably humor him and interview her at some point."

"Do you think she's the Sniper?"

"Criminals can hide their true identities." Bullock shrugged. "Again, humor him regardless. His pride is going to be wounded after the Commissioner's through with him."

"Even if any of it was still intact, I was going to break it," I said, bitterly.

"What did he do at the warehouse?" Nash asked.

I hesitated, not knowing what to tell them. I wanted to get Tew into more trouble, but that would also give away Xander's identity. I played confused. "I…don't really remember. All I remember is falling and hitting my head."

Bullock and Murphy sighed in unison, both discouraged. Nash, on the other hand, continued to look at me, as if he knew I was lying. After a minute, he set his empty cup into the sink and left. Confused and determined to find out why he was acting this way, I hurried after him.

"Nash," I said, calling his attention, "What's with the look?"

He motioned me into his office, and warily, I followed. After closing the door, he said, "Tew told me that you fell off the catwalk. He claimed he drove you home."

"He didn't have a car unless he used a taxi."

"McKinley," he said, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. "I know Ms. Eccleston brought you home. She's working with Scarecrow." My eyes widened. "And obviously, you knew this."

I didn't know how to react. Blankly, I stared at him, my heart pounding against my ribs. After a moment, I wetted my lips slowly. "So…" My voice cracked, and he raised an eyebrow. Clearing my throat, I tried again. "So what do you plan on doing then?"

"Nothing," he said, plainly.

I couldn't believe it. Shoving my hands into my pockets, I asked, "What do you mean 'nothing'?"

"Exactly what I said. Nothing." Suddenly hating him, I narrowed my eyes, frowning. A smile curved onto his lips. "McKinley, criminals are attracted to one another, whether they are ex or not. Besides, I trust you."

"Trusting me has nothing to do with this," I blurted out, anger surging through me. Was he mocking me? "Once Gordon is finished with Tew, you should be going in there and telling him of my actions."

He shook his head. "I'm a criminal as well, McKinley." My mouth dropped. "You didn't suspect it, did you? We've met before you lost your memory, but I'm not going to tell you how. You have the mind of a detective, figure it out."

He walked toward his desk, passing me, and I stepped out of his way. As he seated himself, I turned and watched him, closing my mouth. How couldn't I have noticed? "Are you active?" I asked.

"On and off," he replied nonchalantly, shifting papers on his desk, clearing a space. "None of your concern, mind you. I'm not going to do anything to hurt you."

"Unless you already have."

He glanced at me, hearing the suspicion in my voice. "That is for you to decide." He returned to clearing his desk. "Whenever the Commissioner is done with Tew, he wants to see you next."

"You're kidding me."

He scoffed and looked up again, this time giving me a serious expression. "Not this time, McKinley."

I left him, swearing in my head. I disappeared into my small office, locking the door and sliding to the floor, hyperventilating. It was simply too much to take in after last night. Nash knew. And he was a criminal, active, didn't matter that he was supposedly 'on and off'. My head hurt…so…much.

I don't know how long I had been sitting there, rocking myself back and forth, but I choked on a shriek when someone knocked loudly on my door. Scrambling to my feet, I rubbed my face, taking a deep breath before opening the door.

The Commissioner stood in the doorway. "I'm sorry, McKinley," he said, "You're aware I wanted to talk to you?" I nodded, not trusting my voice at that moment. "You don't mind us talking here, do you?"

I shook my head. "C'mon in, Commissioner." He stepped inside, and I closed the door behind him. "Take a seat wherever."

He took the one across from mine, heaving a sigh of weary relief. As I walked around my desk to take my seat, he said, "I wish I hadn't accepted Tew. He's caused too many problems in this unit."

I shrugged, leaning back in my chair, hoping it would put me at ease. It didn't help much. "He's difficult to work with."

"If you want me to switch you onto a different case-."

I shook my head. "No, I'll stick with him. He annoys the hell out of me, but if I switch, I'll have let him won, which is not going to happen."

Gordon smiled. "I knew I chose right in putting you with him. Your temper keeps him in line."

"It's a swift and assertive reaction to bullshit. I don't swallow it." I cleared my throat. "Pardon my language."

He waved it off. "After what Tew pulled yesterday, I've taken back my permission for him to be here, temporally unfortunately, but you're free from him. That leaves you without an active partner for a bit. The Sniper case is on hold for the time being. I'm placing you as Hawkins's partner for tonight."

"What?"

"I know you don't like him either, but he shouldn't be as hard as Tew."

I sighed. "That's true. Tew is all up in my face constantly. Hawkins will eventually back down." Licking my lips, I asked, "Jason's still on the Joker case?"

Gordon nodded. "He'll fill you in." He stood, slowly easing himself off the chair. It always struck me with surprise of how youthful he could be, but the gray hairs and slow movement when he was amongst his cops didn't show that youth. Before he left, he asked, "Are you okay, McKinley, after last night?"

I nodded. "Whenever I remember what exactly happened, you'll be the first to know." Once he had left, I leaned back and put my feet up, focusing on evening out my breathing.

Five minutes later, I knocked on Jason's door. "You're coming to me?" he asked from behind me. I jumped as he reached around me and opened it. "It was unlocked," he said.

"You're a pain in my ass," I said, entering and then turning to face him.

He smiled. "Gordon's told you everything?"

"No, he said you'd fill me in." I narrowed my eyes at him. "So don't leave anything out."

He wandered over to his desk. "I'm sure you know everything about the Joker-."

"Don't start with things I know. What are we doing tonight?"

"I received information from a reliable source that one of the Joker's men will be at the Stacked Deck." Luckily, his back was turned or he would have caught my expression as I realized that I had heard the name of the place before. "You and I will be going undercover to catch this guy."

"Who is it?"

"A Bryan Dunte, age 25, 26, dark hair, brown eyes." Immediately, I thought of Bleak, and my eyes widened. Thanks to my luck, Jason still had his back turned. "We'll catch him, bring him back here, and try to get information out of him."

"You can do that part," I told him, to which he turned with a questioning look on his face. "Just no beating him to a pulp." He chuckled.

While we waited for the given time, I worked on my report from last night, having gone with Bullock and Nash to Iceberg Lounge and to the warehouse. It was harder than usual since generally there wouldn't have been anything for me to hide from anyone, except I was playing that I didn't remember what happened after my fall from the catwalk. Lying on my report bothered me, but I did it to keep Xander out of real trouble.

I avoided Nash during the waiting time, troubled by the secret he had given me. If I happened to spot him, I found myself watching him and whoever he was with closely, trying to discern if anyone else knew about him being a criminal too.

I had a strong sense of déjà vu when Jason parallel parked his car across the street from the Stacked Deck. I hesitated after I stepped out, keeping the car between me and the nightclub. For some reason, I felt that I shouldn't be there, something was going to go down.

"Babe, you coming?" Jason asked, smirking.

Instantly, I forgot the déjà vu. I slammed the car door and stormed around the vehicle. I nearly jabbed him in the eye with my nose. "We are not boyfriend and girlfriend. Do not call me 'babe', 'baby', 'sweetie', 'darling', or any other nickname you can come up with. The name's Janet, Jacob."

"That's not my name," he said, frowning.

"Oh, right. Let's give you the name of Lyle. It's a girl's name." His face darkened. "Here's a deal for you. I choose my name, you choose yours."

"Fine," he grumbled. Under his breath, he muttered, "Damnit, Janet."

Upon entering, I was greeted with the strong smell of smoke and alcohol. Music played in the background, throbbing throughout the building. I felt it vibrating in the floor, despite the volume not being as loud as it could be. Most of the patrons ignored the music, sitting at the bar and drinking or gathering together at the tables and playing games of poker.

I played my part along with Jason, allowing him to place his arm around my waist, resting his hand on my hip. I understood exactly how Xander felt having to play a part for Wayne; I could sense Jason's enjoyment in my struggle to keep myself from hurting him.

We stayed there for over an hour, dancing together and joining a few poker games together. I hated watching Jason lose all his money to the other players; it was like he had never played the game before. He tried using me as his lucky charm, but I kicked him enough times to give him a painful bruise, or more. Even though I was on duty, I drank a few glasses, just to ease my nerves and so that I wasn't as much of a bitch. I discovered how well I could hold my liquor and wondered if I was an alcoholic at some point in my past.

Jason finally spotted the man we were waiting for. When he pointed him out to me, sitting at a poker table with a girl in his lap, I silently heaved a sigh of relief. The man we had come for wasn't Bleak.

"Would you like to approach him?" Jason whispered into my ear.

I shook my head. "I'll catch him if he tries to run."

"Are you sure you can handle it?"

"I'm not even the slightest bit tipsy. Go do your job."

As he wandered toward the dancers – the long way to get to the wanted man – I noticed someone familiar amongst a group of men hanging by the bar. Without being too conspicuous, I turned to get a better look at him. He caught me looking anyway and ducked behind one of the guys' heads. In that same instance, I felt someone reached over me from behind and set something down in front of me.

When I started to protest and turn to face my personal space invader, they grabbed me, stopping me from moving. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," a cold voice said by my ear. My hand had been reaching instinctively for my gun at my side. "This is a gift to you, from me."

My blood froze. It clicked in my mind whom the man behind me was. Trying hard to keep my composure, I glanced at what he had placed in front of me. I blinked in surprise. It was a videotape.

"What is this?"

"A homemade video of your doctor's appointment."

"How did you get your hands on this?" I asked, hoping to distract him so he wouldn't do anything to me here in the nightclub.

"Hm, good question," he said, his hot breath washing over my neck. I shivered. "I knew something that a certain Hugo Strange didn't want revealed to the public." He clapped a gloved hand on my shoulder. "Don't turn around. Your partner is talking to the guy you want to catch. Don't tell anyone about the videotape. I got it for you alone."

"Quite a gift," I muttered before I could stop myself.

Oddly enough, he merely chuckled. "By the way, you're welcome," he said. Before I could ask what he meant, he withdrew. Instantly, I swiped the videotape and hid it in my jacket. Luckily, it just barely fit into the pocket inside.

Upon finishing stowing it away, a commotion started behind me. Our man was making a break for it and was fighting off Jason. He managed a good punch, causing Jason to release him, and he broke for the door. However, when he tried racing past me, I jumped away from the bar and tackled him from the side. He hit his head on the ground, stunning him, so I was able to swiftly cuff him before he could fight me.

The man spewed profanities the whole ride back to the MCU. He ignored Jason when ordered to shut his mouth, and silently, I laughed at the choice words he had for me. Jason took him through the booking process while I stood by, allowing him to do his job. I kept in mind that I was only his temporary partner; I hoped it only lasted for tonight, despite how much I wished I could be on the Joker case permanently.

Once the man was placed in the interrogation room, Jason took a breathalyzer and pulled me into his office to secretly test the alcohol content in my system. I argued with him, but I ended up taking it anyway, laughing in his face when it was still underneath the legal limit.

"I think you should go home," he said, plainly.

"Way to be blunt, Hawkins," I said, unpleasantly.

"You're on duty. You shouldn't have been drinking."

"I told you it was to play the part. Besides, I stayed underneath the legal limit, and I'm still functioning just fine. And, you can't say that my temper was worse because that's my normal temper."

"Strangely enough, you're nicer when you've drunken a bit," he said, watching me suspiciously, like earlier had been me being nicer only for the part, not because I would be pleasant company drunk.

"Not everyone is a mean drunk like you, Jason," I snapped. Too late, it hit me that I didn't really remember that bit of information, but now that I thought about it, I remembered a few times when he had been a complete jerk when he was drunk. He had even tried to hit me a few times, but I had been trained to defend myself so he didn't end up laying a finger on me. However, he still had the intent to hurt me, which didn't make his situation any better for him.

"I still think you'd be better off at home. There's nothing else I need you for my case."

"I can work on my own here."

"If you do, I'll tell the Commissioner you drank while on duty," Jason said, taking out his phone.

"What are we? In kindergarten, who's the tattletale?"

"Very funny," he deadpanned. "This is Tew's phone number. You can still work with him; the Commissioner only told him to stay out of the MCU for a day or two. He's probably out there working on his own, and I don't doubt Gordon would want you keeping an eye on him." Jason held out his phone on which the screen revealed Tew's cell number. I took out my own phone and saved the number.

"I guess I'll go tell the Commissioner what I'm doing," I said, turning and heading for the door.

"Don't worry about it," Jason said, grabbing my arm. "He wants to be there for the interrogation. I'll let him know for you."

"I'm not letting you do me a favor," I told him, bluntly.

"I won't consider it a favor then."

"Fine, but if you suddenly change your mind in the future, I'm kicking your ass." Without giving him time to reply, I left.

I waited until I was a block away from the MCU before I pulled out my phone and called Tew's number. It rang behind me, scaring me. I turned immediately to find Tew standing directly behind me.

"I guess I didn't have to call then," I said, narrowing my eyes at him while I tucked my phone back into my pocket.

"I saw that man slipping you that tape," he said. "I want that tape."

I realized it would be best not to pretend that I didn't know what he was talking about. Honestly, I never trusted anyone who said that phrase: I don't know what you're talking about. "It's not for you," I told him.

"It was given to my partner. I have every right to it."

I smirked. "Do you think it has something to do with the case? Because it doesn't. It has no connection to Sniper or any other criminal."

"Hand it over," he ordered.

"I don't think so. It's none of your business."

"I will have it. It's your choice whether we do this the easy way or the hard way."

"Lay a finger on me, and you'll regret it."

He raised an eyebrow. "Throwing around threats now, are we?"

"You started it. And there's a difference between the two of us. You threaten with only your authority. I threaten with the authority of the MCU. You haven't made any friends amongst them, Tew."

"I don't care about what they think. I'm taking that tape, McKinley."

I crossed my arms defiantly, debating knocking him unconscious right now so I could head home. He would run directly to Jason or to the Commissioner, and it didn't matter if I was the preferred detective; I would be suspended regardless. Though, if he did that, I had something held against him; the catwalk only gave out before he pulled the lever to drop it.

Tew held out his hand. "Be intelligent for once, McKinley. Give me the tape."

"No, you be intelligent. You take the tape from me, and I'll let everyone know the true reason why the catwalk gave out underneath me." He hid his disappointment well behind his anger. "Did you believe that I would have forgotten about our little adventure last night?"

"It was in your statement." His mouth curved into a sneer. "You're hiding something else besides what I did. Knowing you, you wouldn't give up the chance to tattletale on me unless you're hiding something else."

"Maybe I figured it wouldn't be good for our investigation. Ever thought of that?"

"I don't think so. I have a few theories."

"They're hypothesizes unless you can actually prove them. You can't just rely on your gut."

"Regardless, we both have something over the other."

I laughed. "Hardly. Keep telling yourself that."

"Give me the tape, and I won't say anything."

"How 'bout I don't give you the tape, and you prove yourself more of an idiot." He glared. I returned the gaze, refusing to allow any hints that he was correct show through my uncaring, mocking façade.

"Then, you're taking the hard way."

"Not really. If you want, we can both go skipping to the Commissioner to tattle at the same time. See who he believes?" I raised an eyebrow. "Sound good to you, Tew?"

"Never mind," he said, grudgingly. "Just drop it."

"Dropping it is good. Now, how 'bout investigating tonight?" Tew turned and walked away. In my head, I celebrated; I could go home now.

My apartment felt eerily quiet. Paranoid, I went through and checked every room and corner with my Slavic pistol leading – a gift from Xander to replace the Glock. Finding no one, I still hesitated to relax; something felt off, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I made myself dinner, smelling everything and making sure no one had attempted to add a special ingredient – not like it was guarantee that I'd catch a whiff of it.

After popping the videotape into an old VCR, I settled on the couch but stood up to open a window. I didn't know what had happened during my hypnotherapy session back in Arkham, but I knew that something had occurred. Settling down again, I pressed play.

The video began in a room located in the hospital wing. I sighed, feeling a wave of relief that there was something I remembered well enough. Within the room was Dr. Strange and Dr. Young – I subconsciously clenched my jaw at seeing her again – and me, tipped back and strapped to the chair, wires attached to my forehead and my left arm. The doctors settled down, preparing to begin the session. Dr. Strange explained about how they might discover the reason for my insomnia at the same time, to which I commented, Two for the price of one.

He instructed me to close my eyes and imagine a place of safety. This I remembered, closing my eyes and trying to picture being in a room, alone, in bed. Dr. Strange began to describe it: quiet, peaceful. I almost closed my eyes in reality, but I resisted, feeling the need to watch the video and see what exactly happened when I went under.

Within a minute, my body had completely relaxed, but my eyebrows had lowered, as if I was struggling to awaken. Upon Dr. Strange's command to awaken, I instantly knew that the me lying in that chair was not who I was now. In my mind, I called her the real Shadow.

Shadow opened her eyes and instantly jerked, blinking her eyes against the bright lights as she struggled against the straps. "What the hell?" she demanded. Strange and Young stood, but Young motioned Strange down as she approached.

"McKinley, you need to calm down," she instructed.

Shadow's eyes widened upon seeing her. "Raven?"

"If that is who you think I am, that's fine, but as you should remember, my name is Dr. Young."

"Whatever your name is then, where the hell am I?" Shadow demanded, angrily. Her eyes blazed, as if threatening to burn holes into Young.

"You are in the hospital wing at Arkham Asylum."

"What?"

"You are under hypnosis so that you may attempt to remember your lost memories."

"What are you smoking? I haven't lost any of my memories. As for hypnosis, that's not possible. I'm awake right now."

"If you remember everything, then who is your employer?"

Shadow's face tightened. "I'm not playing that game with you," she said, the distrust evident in her expression.

"Consider that as she does remember and that this isn't the conscious McKinley," Young told Strange. Shadow turned her head slightly, unable to move it farther, and spotted Strange. Young stepped closer, her face showing in the light, to which Shadow's eyes again widened and then narrowed. "That is my colleague Dr. Strange. He is – was – conducting the hypnotherapy. Currently, you are under hypnosis, and from how you're acting, this is you before you lost your memories."

"The hidden persona due to the injury to your head," Strange commented, scribbling notes down on his notepad.

Shadow stiffened, and fear flashed in her eyes for a split second before her gaze hardened. "Well, then, say I am under hypnosis. What do you want with me?"

"The conscious you doesn't remember anything past the time you awakened in the hospital," Young explained.

"Here?"

"No, in Gotham General. We have conducted this session in the hopes that we might retrieve hints to your memories, for the use of your conscious self."

"Sounds like I have a split-personality," Shadow deadpanned. "I can't just run everything off. This hypnosis thing should wear off at some point."

"That is true. Please, speak to the camera. Your conscious self will watch this later. And please, speak in code."

"Speak in code?" Shadow repeated. "How are those supposed to be hints?"

"It will give hints to guide your conscious self to remember. It is part of your recovery."

"That's a stupid way of doing it, but fine." She turned her head, facing the camera directly. "They referred to you as McKinley, so I'll address you likewise." She glanced over at Young. "Can I give a basic idea of her personality?"

"If you would like. Code words would help the best for her recovery."

"And now she's talking about you as if we're not the same person." Shadow rolled her eyes. "All right, grab a pen and paper. They want me to give you code words. Here they are. You ready?"

As soon as she said to grab a pen and paper, I bolted for my bedroom, snatching my Arkham journal and a pen I kept inside, coming just in time for her to start listing them.

"These are about you. I hope they help. A beaten car, poker, Five-of-a-Kind, recruited, paralyzing fear, hanging water, hawk." She paused, as if waiting for me to write them down rather than trying to think of other code words she could use. I prepared for the next line, purposely leaving a space between the words to signify her pauses. "Black bird," she began, her eyes shifting toward Young for a second before returning to the camera. "Field protector, question marks, living green, obese bird, flying rodent, furry pet, and scarred laughter."

Again, she paused, her gaze intensifying. "Unpredictable, alike, favorite color, recruited."

"You already said that," Young said.

Shadow shushed her without taking her eyes off the camera, off me. "A few things you should understand but not these doctors. Explain to them what they mean if you trust them." She paused and then said, "Trust bleak weather. Beware the hunter. Write this down. 'It is, and it is not. It is here, but it is not. It is this, and it is that. It covers the green-eyed one. It is vigilant, brightly colored, overseen by a personage of brilliance. It is guardian. It seeks the harmless being that exists in light and dark. Diligent, it comes, for fear of rivalry. It wants one thing, but wants not another. One it is; multiple it is not, but it is. The bird in is its preparation, unless feather plucked.' Remember."

"Was that a riddle?" Strange asked. He too was scribbling down what Shadow said.

Unlike him, I would understand what she was saying. My mind was buzzing even as I watched the video and listened to what she said, but I resisted the urge to explore, knowing that she had more to tell me still.

Strange asked Shadow to repeat the riddle; she ignored him. "Your ability is to use shadows," Shadow said, forgoing the code words. "It is your escape from this place. Use it."

"Stop," Strange insisted. "Only code words. She doesn't need to escape from here; we're trying to help her."

"Are you trying to stop her from remembering?" Shadow strained against the straps and then relaxed, her eyes locking onto the camera. "Watch and learn, McKinley," she said. Her eyes, which were originally blue, turned purple, and then she was gone. She reappeared a second later, knocking Strange to the floor and grabbing his notes from him. "What I said is for McKinley alone," Shadow yelled furiously, tearing the notes apart.

A gunshot went off outside. I jumped off the couch and ducked down on the ground, thinking someone was shooting at me. A second later, I realized it wasn't me, and I raced for the window, looking out. Another gunshot went off, but it didn't sound like a pistol. Slamming my window shut, I ran out of my apartment, following a hunch.

A third and a fourth shot went off as I progressed to the roof, a fifth one sounded when I came out onto the roof. I spotted the shooter – a sniper, actually – at the edge, her sniper rifle resting easily in her hands as she moved for a sixth shot.

"Ever heard of using a silencer, Xander?" I asked.

"I wanted your stalker to hear it coming," she replied, backing out of the sixth shot.

"Which one?"

"The one who was stalking me all day and then turned around and followed you home after you guys talked."

I thought of a moment. "Tew?"

"Yup, the son of a bitch being a peeping Tom over there. What were you doing that he was so interested in?" she asked, turning to face me, pressing her back into the low wall and putting her sniper rifle away.

"Watching a videotape I received on duty."

"What does he want with it?" she asked.

"I don't know, but he was demanding for it earlier."

Xander rolled her eyes. "Don't worry about him. If he didn't get it from you earlier, there's no chance he'll get it from you ever. I scared him off so he can't see it. Go back and enjoy it. I have to leave soon anyway."

I walked with her down into our apartment building, but then we parted on my floor. Returning to my apartment, I pressed rewind until I saw Shadow rip up the notes. Security was called in, grabbing Shadow and slamming her back down in the chair. She used her ability several times, trying to loosen them, but only ended up transporting all who held onto her. Now I understood why I was chained to the railing along the walls.

Before Strange regained control over Shadow by ending the hypnosis, she managed to mouth the words, "Watch out for Hunter."

Lordlink13: Getting this chapter up so fast was my surprise, but most likely, a good number of you already guessed it, or at least hoped for it. Read and Review.