Henlo, lovelies. Here is another chapter! I really just finished watching the rest of the movie from where this chapter ends TDK plot wise to figure out where to put in a filler chapter, and y'all...we almost done with To This Day. LIKE WHAT? It seems really surreal honestly, but I still have a whole sequel to do after this one that I hope I get a lot more consistent with. BUT STILL, holy fuck it's almost over!
Read, review, like, favorite, the whole shebang!
THIS CHAPTER WAS UPDATED AND PROOFREAD FOR TYPOS, GRAMMAR, AND PLOT/TIMELINE ISSUES AS OF 7/18/2020
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Anslee had settled in her room after the fiasco of what had happened earlier. Once she really let herself process what had happened over the past few days, she slowly began to let reality set in. She still had school. She still had to deal with stupid Nico Gargano. She still had to be there for the dance team as their captain. She still had to graduate high school and declare what she wanted to do after.
It seemed like the list of obligations and responsibilities didn't have an end to it. It's just what she needed on top of all the things she was already dealing with.
The seventeen year old reached over the edge of her bed to grab her book bag; an object amongst many others that had been retrieved from Rachel's apartment after the incident. Anslee knew it would only be a matter of time before teachers would start drilling her about catching up on her work. Despite the fact that she had just lost her mother and nearly her own life, teacher's had a boundary of how far they could take the pity card.
As she pulled the bag up on her bed with her, an exhausted sigh escaping her lips as she did so, the door to her room creaked open and a soft smiled face popped in through the crack.
"Miss Wayne, I'm sorry to bother you," Alfred spoke in a kind tone.
Ans shook her head, "I don't think your presence would ever bother me, Alfred."
"I appreciate that," the older man smiled a little wider, "You have a guest that would like to visit you if you're feeling up to it."
"Guest?" Anslee cocked a brow. She really wasn't sure who would show up to Bruce's penthouse to visit her after the past few days she's had. Surely any of her friends would have called beforehand.
"I'm up for it, Alfred, thank you," she spoke softly.
"I'll let her in, Miss," Alfred nodded in return before he pushed the door open.
Standing behind him was Jenni.
The blonde girl rushed in the room towards her best friend. She held out her arms wide and engulfed Anslee in the biggest hug she could.
"Oh, Ans, I'm so sorry about everything that's happened over the last few days," she spoke as she gave her best friend an extra squeeze in the hug.
Anslee hugged Jenni back and held onto her, "It's not your fault, Jen. I'm so glad you're here, I've missed having my partner in crime by my side."
"Of course," Jenni pulled away, and Ans could see tears in the girl's eyes, "I felt so bad I haven't been able to see you until now. My mom made me give you space and she wouldn't let me text you or anything. God I really can't believe all of this has happened.."
Ans gave the girl a halfhearted smile, "It's okay, it's not your fault. I really haven't been in the mindset to have visitors or anything until now."
Jenni nodded in return and reached up to wipe the tears out of her eyes, "I'm sorry about your mom, Ans.."
Anslee took in the words. It still didn't seem real to her that Rachel was really gone. All the words of sorrow and condolences she'd been given over the past few days just went in one ear and out the other. She didn't want to believe it. She didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to think about it. But she also knew that there was no escaping it.
"It's okay," Anslee muttered, trying to make it seem like every time she thought about Rachel her heart didn't ache.
Jenni reached over and placed a gentle hand on Anslee's shoulder, "It's okay to hurt and be upset. I'm not gonna give you the bullshit spiel about how she wouldn't want you to be upset, because she was the type of person who understood that people hurt and that it's okay to not be okay every once in a while. You know that better than anyone. Anslee, you are the most headstrong person that I know and also a giant butthead when it comes to showing your emotions. But it's okay. You're human. We all are."
Anslee genuinely smiled at Jenni, "This is why you're my best friend, Jen."
Jenni smiled back at the brunette, "I also came here to deliver some assignments from some of your favorite people from school!"
Anslee rolled her eyes, "Let me guess, Mr. Stephen Gatons and Mr. Nathaniel Houston are my two biggest supporters."
"Mostly Mr. Houston, he's been adamant about those speeches he scheduled to be done the days he assigned them. And he was also very serious when he said he wasn't rescheduling people...even if you literally almost died," Jenni frowned sympathetically.
"Shit, are you serious?" Anslee worried out loud, "I don't even remember what the stupid thing is supposed to be about, and I have to have it written in what..three days?"
"Well today is Monday, so technically you've got two days," Jenni unfortunately added, "And it's just a speech telling about things you've experienced or witnessed that have drastically changed your life."
"As if everyone around me doesn't already know every nitty gritty detail about all the drastic experiences I've had that have changed my life," Ans mumbled, "not to mention that it's a thing parents can come in and watch to see how their kids have "grown" and "matured" since they were kids. God, screw Mr. Houston for that. I'm literally going to be the laughing stock amongst these parents, I'm gonna look like an idiot up there."
"I'm sure you'll find something, Ans, and you're going to sound great when you give your speech. John was sorta telling me about his," Jenni spoke.
"John Blake?" Anslee looked up at Jenni.
Jen nodded, "Yeah, we're chem partners and he was just randomly telling me about how he didn't want to do his over how he was orphaned because he didn't want to make people pity him and then he went on to literally tell me his entire life story. I listened because it was really interesting, but really dark honestly. He's seen some shit."
"Really?" Ans asked in a small and concerned tone, "Do you think he'd mind if you told me?"
Jenni shrugged, "I mean I'm sure a few people around us heard him when he was telling me, and he seemed pretty open about it. I don't see why not."
XXX
Jenni had been at the penthouse for about an hour before her mom had texted her and told her that she wanted her home. After a quick goodbye, Anslee had actually left her room to find Bruce.
Surprisingly, she found the man in the same spot from earlier. The television was on and it looked like he was watching the screen avidly. It was some sort of interview
"How much are they paying you to reveal the identity of The Batman?" the interviewer asked a small blonde man by the name of Coleman Reese, who looked very nervous and skittish.
"What?" Anslee frowned.
Bruce looked back at her just as Alfred walked up to join the two in watching the interview.
"Uh..they aren't paying me anything to reveal his identity," the man spoke.
"Right, let's take the next caller shall we?"
"Harvey Dent didn't want to give in to this maniac!" an aggressive voice rang out over the phone line.
Anslee took a seat on the couch without moving her eyes from the television screen.
"Do you think you know better than him?" the voice demanded.
There was a pause before the Reese spoke, "I think that if we could talk to Dent today, he may feel differently, um..-"
"And we wish him a speedy recovery," the interviewer quickly cut him off, "'Cause God knows we need him now."
"What's going on?" Anslee looked over at Bruce worriedly.
The man looked over at the distressed teen, "He claims he knows who I am...don't worry about it, okay? It'll work out, I'll make it work out, okay?"
"But what if it doesn't? I'm not losing both my parents in the span of a few days, I can't go through that again."
"And you won't have to," Bruce quickly retorted, "Trust me on this, Anslee, please."
"Another caller," the interviewer spoke loudly, making the two avert their gazes back at the TV, "Who is this?"
"I have a vision of a world without Batman," a voice that will forever be burned into Anslee's mind spoke over the TV, "The Mob ground out a little profit, and the police tried to shut them down one block at a time. And it was so...boring"
His voice sounded menacing and taunting. It almost came out as an evil hiss more than it did words.
"I've had a change of heart, I don't want Mr. Reese spoiling everything, but why should I be having all the fun?" Joker taunted.
Reese's face went blank at the statement and he seemed worried.
"Let's give someone else a chance! If Coleman Reese isn't dead in sixty minutes, then I blow up a hospital."
The line went silent. You could hear a pin drop from how eerily silent it went for those few seconds. Reese had gone pale and was shaking.
Anslee's heart dropped to the pit of her stomach and her hands began to get clammy. Harvey was still in the hospital recovering from the wounds he had sustained that night in the warehouse.
"They have to get him out, they'll get Harvey out won't they?" the teen spoke in a panicked tone as she stood up. She could feel her heart rate beginning to accelerate and her ability to breath seemed to have just disappeared at that moment.
"Hey hey hey, it's okay, it's going to be okay," Bruce stood up and placed his hands on his daughter's shoulders, "Calm down, okay? They're gonna get him out and he's going to be okay, got it?"
Anslee nodded and took a deep breath as Bruce looked over to Alfred
"I need you plugged in, checking Gordon's men and their families."
"Looking for?" Alfred quickly asked.
Bruce let go of Anslee's shoulders and began to make his way to the elevator that would take him out of the penthouse.
"Hospital admissions," the man looked over his shoulder as he entered the contraption.
"Will you be wanting the Batpod, sir?" the older man asked.
Bruce adjusted his suit jacket, "In the middle of the day, Alfred? Not very subtle."
"The Lamborghini, then," The Butler confirmed with a grin as the elevator doors shut, "Much for subtle," he mumbled to himself.
Anslee was a bit in awe at what she had just witnessed.
"How do you find time to be cheeky in situations like these?" she asked the older man.
"Lot's of practice, Miss Wayne," Alfred gave her a knowing look before he began to walk out of the living room.
Anslee was hot on his tail as he walked out, "I'm coming with you."
"Interested in the family business?" the man chuckled as he continued to walk to a room that Anslee had never been before.
"Something like that.." she muttered as she watched the man scan his hand on a built in wall security system and then enter a lengthy password in order for him to enter.
A door opened and inside seemed to be a white lit room, and in the center of it were dozens of computer screens along with an array of other gadgets, It was like a smaller version of the cave beneath the manor.
/Before y'all come for me, I know this wasn't canon, but given the way I have manipulated the plot to fit my AU, I had to make this scene work one way or the other. So he now has a secret room in his penthouse, and if you don't like it then well idk why you're still here./
Alfred walked up to the main keyboard that controlled the computers and began to type furiously. In a matter of seconds, a few of the screens showed footage from security cameras across the city. One of them was a POV camera from Bruce's Lamborghini. The man was already speeding through the streets of Gotham at an ungodly speed, weaving in and out of traffic in order to reach his location.
"I can see O'Brien and Richards," Bruce's voice spoke from the computers.
Alfred was sitting in a chair, looking over at a computer screen to his left while he still continued to type things out on a different one.
"No immediate family member admitted to a Gotham Hospital," Alfred replied.
A minute or two had passed before Bruce spoke again.
"I saw Burns and Zachary," he spoke quickly.
Anslee, at this point, was looking over Alfred's shoulder, rapidly scanning the information that Alfred was pulling up on the officers.
"Nothing on them," she spoke loudly, not taking her eyes off the screen. If she was going to be there, she was going to help, "Wait, wait, wait, there's two people who do have immediate relatives. They're names are Ramirez and Berg!"
"Berg was inside with Gordon when they were trying to protect Reese from the mob outside the news studio. Send the information to Gordon," Bruce demanded as the sound of the Lamborghini's engine roared over the speaker.
"You don't think that Berg would try and kill Reese with Gordon there do you?" Anslee worried out loud.
"With the right triggers, yes," Alfred glanced over at the teen.
"I'm hot tailing Reese's police escort. They're stopped at a light and I just spotted Ramirez in a truck on the right side," Bruce spoke.
"What are you gonna do?" Anslee spoke.
"Just watch," Bruce spoke nonchalantly as the sound of the engine roared again.
Both Anslee and Alfred watched as Bruce sped past one of the police escort cars and lined himself up with the SUV where Reese was with the commissioner and the rogue officer.
"Dad, what are you doing? Anslee demanded quickly.
"Just trust me," He responded.
In a split second, the loud explosion-like sound of a car collision rang out in the small room where Anslee and Alfred were sitting. The truck that Ramirez was driving had t-boned the sleek blue Lamborghini, and ultimately, saved the lives of those who were in that black SUV.
"Are you alright, Mr. Wayne?" Alfred cocked a brow.
"Peachy, Alfred," Bruce groaned.
While the two exchanged their banter, Anslee had her eyes focused on one of the screens that was showing live footage of Gotham General. The hospital she'd been at just hours prior and the same hospital where Harvey had been recovering. She silently prayed that they got the man out of there alive and well. But all in a few short seconds, her hope began to dwindle to nothing.
"He just set off the bombs in Gotham General..he blew it up. How do we know if they got Harvey out of there? How do we know? Did they post a list somewhere or some sort of role call they can give families I mean come one!" the teen panicked out loud.
Please please please, just let Harvey be okay.