"This is the most terrifying place I have ever been to in Gotham," Scarlet pointed out quietly, looking up at Arkham, "And that is seriously saying something."

"I know," Jonathan sighed, "Isn't it wonderful?"

"Remember, Scarlet," Annabeth grabbed her hand, "Stay with Hunter after eleven, okay?"

"Yes mom," Scarlet whined, "Can we go now? It's cold out here." She abandoned her parents out front and walked in, following the rest of the crowd. And immediately regretted it.

The room- a lobby, she presumed- was nothing but white in simplicity. White walls, white chairs, white ceilings and floors. There were no decorations up, but an older lady stood in front of a hallway, beckoning people to come to her.

"Welcome," she greeted; her attire was professional, and her grey hair pulled back into a tight bun, "My name is Mrs. Gibbert; I am the director of this fine establishment. I will warn you now, and this is the only warning you get: The lot of you are allowed in the auditorium, and the a-joining room; there will be no inmates present tonight.

"Arkham," she continued, stepping aside, "Would like to thank you for your continued funding and support. Please, abide by the rules, or we will have to remove you from the premise; and really, they are just there for your own protection. Please enjoy your night."

"Wow," Jonathan mused, catching up to Scarlet and walking beside her into the hall, "I was a much more amazing director."

"Well, are you just full of commentary tonight," Scarlet teased, looking around the auditorium they were rushed into; this place, even as cheesy as it was, made Scarlet feel much better.

Old, cheap decorations littered around the fall; paper bats and pumpkins, a plastic skeleton in the corner, and up by the stage- holy shit.

"Oh my god," Scarlet laughed, trying to keep it together, "Dad- check out their Scarecrow!" Up by the stage an old, straw scarecrow with a lopsided grin and an old stray hat that looked like it made its way out of a thrift store.

"Well," Annabeth mused, standing beside a shocked Jonathan and an over-amused Scarlet, "They aren't scared of you any more, darling; you are like the boogeyman these days, it seems."

"How dare they-" he sputtered, angry, "How dare they- I- I will make them afraid once again!" That got the short attention of the some of the wealthy around them, but not by too much.

"Calm down," Annabeth laughed, patting his arm, "Of course you will, dear; your terrifying. You and Scarecrow will have all of Gotham groveling once more."

"I'm going to go get punch," Scarlet laughed, leaving them. She walked over to the small concession stand and was reaching for the bowl when someone cleared their throat beside her. Turning, she couldn't help but stare; a dashing young man with dark hair stood beside her in a nice suit and a plain, black mask on, "Here you go, Madam."

"Thank you," she took one of the cups in his hand, a small blush on her face, "But who am I thanking, exactly?"

"Richard," he smiled, taking hold of her hand and kissing it gently, "Richard Grayson."

"Nice to meet you," Scarlet smiled, "I am Eleanor Jones."

"It is a true, pleasure," he stood next to her, looking out over the party, "What brings a fair young lady like you to a nasty place like this?"

"My parents wished to attend," She sighed broadly, "Frankly, I could care less of parties. And, pray tell, what brings a dashing young man like you to a nasty place like this?"

"My adoptive father," he copied her sigh, "He has donated to Arkham for many years; it is custom to attend. But he hasn't attended in nearly a decade, so he has left that task to me."

"Well that isn't very fair," She laughed, stopping when a beautiful woman walked up to her and her new companion, looking about Scarlet's and Richard's age; she was dressed in a gorgeous, long glittering silver dress that showed off all her assets, "Dick; I can't even leave you alone for one minute. Where is my punch?"

"Ah," Scarlet flushed, "I'm afraid he might have given it to me; I apologize."

"Not your fault," She sighed, waving a hand in dismissal, "This idiot has a weakness for beautiful women. My name is Barbara, Barbara Gordon."

"This is Eleanor Jones," Richard introduced, giving Barbara his punch while getting more for himself, "She isn't too excited about being here, either."

"I can't blame you," Barbara rolled her eyes, "My father insists on us coming; he doesn't trust the guards here, say they slack too much for his lacking."

"Gordon," Scarlet mused, smiling, "Isn't he a cop?"

"Yes," she groaned, "Trust me when I say, having a father for a cop is not a walk in a park."

"Try having Bruce Wayne," Richard joked.

"Bruce Wayne?" Scarlet gasped, "Your father is Bruce Wayne?"

"Adoptive," he corrected, waving a finger, "He adopeted me; like, eight years ago, maybe? Right after he lost his previous adoptive daughter, Ester."

"Oh," Scarlet forced a smile, "I have to go; I think my parents need me…" Scarlet excused herself, keeping down her panic and trying to look casual; there was no way that Richard didn't know of Bruce being Batman.

To be honest, she had completely forgotten that Bruce donated to Arkham; looking back on it, she had forgotten a lot of things about Gotham.

"It's time," a voice whispered suddenly in her ear, causing her to freeze, "Relax, Scarlet, it's just me." The person pulled back and lifted the black mask slightly, "Hunter."

"Duh," he kissed her cheek, "Come on, we have to get into costume." He pulled her towards the restrooms, and in the crowd Scarlet caught a glimpse of Richard, watching her with a slightly wistful expression.

"Too bad," she mumbled under her breath. Richard was kind of cute, but with her about to be identified as a rogue, and him possibly helping the Batman, it wouldn't work. Scarlet parted from Hunter, who gave her a small kiss on the cheek, and went into the girl's restroom.

She found her outfit (stashed behind the potted plant? How cliché.) and changed in a stall. Now, she was starting to feel terrified; what if she fucked up somehow? What if she wasn't good at being a rogue, a villain?

"No time to wonder, dear!" A voice called from outside of the stall.

"Mom?" Scarlet questioned back, "What are you doing here?"

"I had to change too," she explained while Scarlet stepped out of the stall, wearing all black in an outfit similar to Scarlet, "And you were taking a while; so you are wondering if you can do this?"

"How did you know?" Scarlet questioned, "Did you ever question if you were ready?"

"Oh," Annabeth laughed, "No. I was born into the mafia, Scarlet; this life is the only one I have ever know."

"Okay," Scarlet sighed, "How much longer until-"

A scream erupted from the party room, and Annabeth gave a grin that slightly unnerved Scarlet, "Oh, it looks like it is time. Your father has begun."

XXX

The room was in chaos; people were attempting to get out, but thugs and goons blocked the exit. The police and guards were unarmed, courtesy of the thugs, and herded into a far corner of the room. In the front, next to the stage, stood Jonathan-no, Scarecrow- in all of his former glory.

Intimidating, undoubtably giving a twisted grin below the potato sack mask; his arms spread wide, giving a gleeful laugh, "Oh, how I've missed this."

He walked forward, the only sound of present was his dress shoes hitting the ground, "It has been too long, my dear Gotham. Forgive me for my absence, but I had to tend to personal matters."

He leaned in slightly to one of the nurses, "Boo." She screamed and flailed backwards, cowering with the other.

"Oh," he sighed wistfully, "A proper reaction. You have all forgotten the true meaning of Halloween, it seems, in my absence. Can anyone tell me what it is?" He paused, turning, "No one? How about you? No? Hm…. And you? Nothing."

He stopped dead, and turned his eyes to Scarlet, "And how about you, dear?"

"Fear," She answered, loud enough for everyone to hear, "Halloween is about fear."

"Wonderful," he purred, slinking over to Scarlet and Annabeth, "Gotham, meet my darling daughter, Scarlet Crane."

Instant muttering broke out, fear in everyone's faces.

"Oh god, another Crane?"

"She is just like her father…."

"What does this mean? Another Scarecrow?"

"Oh yes," he laughed, "Another me. Mixed with a DiCario. If there is a god, you better pray to him for mercy."

"Because we are back," Annabeth continued, grinning, "And we aren't going anywhere, Gotham." She pulled on her mouth cover, to block out fumes, and Scarlet copied her action. She took a few steps back, and watched the crowd nervously stir.

Suddenly, she caught the eye of a man- at the edge of a crowd, staring straight at her with pity in his eyes. Richard Greyson was frowning, watching Scarlet and keeping her eye contact; there was subtle disbelief on his face, as though he didn't want to believe that this was happening.

Before anything else could happen, there was an explosion that rocked the room from the other side of Arkham. Jonathan let out a loud laugh, and soon his laughter was joined by someone coming their way, "Here comes my Puddin!"

Harley came skipping in, carrying a huge ass gun and both hyenas on leashes, "Oh Puddin!"

"Mask on or get out, Harley," Annabeth cautioned. A look of understanding dawned on her face and she let out a small, "Ohh, I should get to finding Mr. J then. Bye Cranes!"

As soon as she was out, a small hiss sounded in the room, and a thick, yellow smoke poured from the ceiling. Screaming came from all the partiers, even before they inhaled the gas. Scarlet watched what followed with wide eyes.

After everyone was done either screaming their heads off, or attacking the one another, or both, Annabeth led Scarlet out of the room, rushing outside and towards the car. Jonathan followed them closely.

After dodging several guards, and escaped patients, they made it to the car. Annabeth was breathing hard, a drunk grin on her face that matched Jonathan's when he pried off his mask; Scarlet sat in the back, a small, self-satisfied look about her when they pulled away from Arkham.

She had done it.