Chapter 4: Introductions Lead To Small Talk


Several people looked up as the door in the hideout slammed, wincing slightly. The boss had gone on a date with the woman they knew as Wraith and if his reaction was anything to go off of, it hadn't gone well.

"I'm not surprised," someone snarked. "She looked like high-maintenance trouble the second she walked in."

Mystery's head snapped up and she glared darkly around the room, quelling the small bit of laughter that had started up. Instantly everyone refused to meet her eyes, save for the ever-silent mercenary known as Phantom and of course Kwiz Kid, who was glaring along with Mystery. The two teens finally exchanged a look and rose from their respective seats to go into the Riddler's "office", Phantom trailing along in their wake.

"Boss?" Mystery asked at the same moment Kwiz said "Sir?" They exchanged another look, one of utmost annoyance that the other would dare play suck-up, before attentively looking back at their shared mentor. Riddler was bent over his desk, hands white-knuckled as they gripped the edges, and he worked his jaw in a tense way as he looked back at them over his shoulder.

"Be honest with me for a moment?" He asked, and without waiting for a response he went on. "The dichotomy that is Guen Pendragon. Seen for but a moment, but more than able to make a strong first impression, wouldn't you say? What did the two of you think of her?"

"She's…different." Kwiz answered, shrugging.

"I like her," Mystery interjected, "a lot."

Riddler looked over his shoulder at her and gave a small, fleeting smile of approval. After a second or so his smile disappeared in a flicker of frustration as he walked around and sat behind the desk, seething a moment.

"She walked out on me little more than halfway through our lunch date, with barely an explanation or warning! One minute things seemed fine, then the next she cut me off and just up and left."

He punctuated the point with a thump of a hand against the desk and the two teens exchanged a confused look. True, there had been some tension between the winged woman and Mr. Nygma when they had met her, but they genuinely had feelings for one another didn't they? What could have happened to make Guen just run off so suddenly?

There was a slight shuffling behind them and they glanced over their shoulders a moment. Phantom was shifting her weight from one foot to the other as though the thread of conversation was making the mercenary bodyguard uncomfortable. They didn't think on it however and quickly turned back to their mentor.

Little did the other three realize Phantom was being made uncomfortable by the discussion. She was respectful enough to take issue with other people speaking against this "Guen Pendragon" but otherwise she was nervous. She had been acting as a bodyguard for Mr. Nygma for a few months now, and while she said very little, especially about herself, she feared her own feelings were blatantly obvious. The Riddler was beyond intelligent, funny in his own clever way, charming… and he treated her more like a person than a hired accessory. Bodyguards were to be seen and not heard as a general rule, but Nygma would talk to her and at times ask for her thoughts and input on matters. And spending that time around him made her happy beyond anything she had ever felt before. She had thought the rumors mentioning he had a girlfriend were merely empty words—after all, nobody working under Nygma save Rook had ever actually seen this woman—or else that the relationship wasn't all that serious.

But then Guenhivyre Pendragon had walked in and created waves in her wake. And Phantom felt like a lead weight had dropped into the pit of her stomach.

What chance do I stand of him ever noticing me now?

That single thought threatened to engulf and overwhelm her, and it was with no small measure of relief that she answered the door when there came an insistent rapping at it. She had barely swung the door in when another woman entered, a stranger whose severe haircut, ageless face, and heavy overcoat combined in such a way she looked as if she'd stepped out of an old film noir piece. Dogging the woman's footsteps was none other than Rook, looking alarmed and a bit sheepish.

"I'm sorry, boss!" He managed to stammer out as the woman approached the desk with a placid expression. "Sh-she just showed up and sorta… let herself in. We couldn't stop her."

The Riddler looked up a moment and a flicker of recognition crossed his face as he and the stranger made eye contact.

"Ahh, Sofia," he said with a bit of a drawl and a challenging sneer. "I always knew you'd come back."

"Did you?" She asked in a disinterested way, imperturbable boredom a perfect mask on her face. Her olive-green eyes swept across the room, assessing and categorizing without appearing to really see anything that was there. Phantom knew the look; she'd been trained to evaluate her surroundings upon entering new environments, though for her it was from a mercenary standpoint. This woman seemed to simply take in everything like she was filing away the information to store in her head for later use. Phantom tensed slightly beneath her body armor. Did this Sofia present a threat…?

"Of course I did!" Riddler said triumphantly. "You can't resist the chance for an intellectual challenge, a mental sparring partner, or the thrill and gamesmanship that comes with running in my circles!"

"What a deduction." She said in a toneless way, her face betraying no emotion whatsoever about his remarks. Phantom glanced over at Rook, who shrugged a bit helplessly. Apparently he wasn't sure what to make of this either. She looked to Mystery and Kwiz Kid, unsurprised to see them also watching the stranger suspiciously.

"Are you saying that's not why you're here?" Riddler went on, prompting Sofia to smile in a sort of mockingly-sweet way.

"Now when did I say that?" She asked innocently. "I've barely said a word in edgewise and already you're making insinuations based off casual remarks. Whatever is that about, Edward?"

"Considering the circumstances under which you left, why else would you be back?" He retorted, before a suspicious look came over his face. "UNLESS you're here to spy on me!"

At this Rook finally reacted, shifting and fixing his boss with a flat stare. Sofia merely shrugged.

"Does it really matter one way or another?" she responded. "Given you're already suspicious of me and I've been yet granted access to this base? If I'm here as a spy, there's probably little I could accomplish without you hovering over my shoulder. If I'm returning in hopes of acceptance back into a circle in which my abilities excel, then we can consider this a trial period to ensure my loyalty toward your aims is validated."

Tense silence followed this declaration. Rook and Mystery looked to the Riddler for guidance and Riddler looked at the woman called Sofia, who met his gaze levelly. Phantom looked between them both, unnerved beneath her façade of calm, and was surprised when she realized Kwiz Kid was also glancing between his mentor and the mysterious stranger with a calculating expression. Finally the silence broke when Riddler smiled thinly and extended a hand in offering.

"Welcome back to the fold, Phoenix."


There weren't many individuals who could truly make Wraith cringe away with guilt when they spoke; she wasn't a woman who could be so easily intimidated. Fewer still were the number of individuals who could accomplish that effect without actually speaking a word to her, and unfortunately two of them were with her at that moment. One shared her personal head space; the other was busy silently looking over her in a fussy manner.

"Look," she said at last, "Would it help if I apologized to you both?"

The Plague Doctor looked up with a sharp jerk of his beaked mask, and Wraith wasn't entirely sure she wanted to know what his actual expression looked like. In her head, Guen seethed red-hot with anger, hurt, fear, and a sense of personal betrayal. Wraith cringed again in anticipation of the impending explosion.

What, you think a little apology is just going to gloss this all over?!

Wraith gritted her teeth, already feeling cowed.

Uhh, kinda yes, kinda no? She answered hesitantly. She was given the impression of an enraged glare and cringed again, trying to rapidly press on. Look Guen, I am sorry. I didn't know; you know I just tend to block everything else out if I get into a fight. It's just part of how I am… how we are. Had I not blocked everything else out, I'd have backpedaled right away.

There was a tense mental silence and without warning, Wraith felt her wings puffing up against her control. A spike of panic launched through her. When Guen got upset she usually retreated and gave Wraith command; never before had she—even unintentionally—tried to take control back. Granted, ever since Milo, Wraith had never before blocked out Guen's voice she was onset with a panic attack.

I know. Guen finally said somewhat moodily, and their wings started to relax. I know you didn't mean it; you couldn't help it, I guess. Harpy eagle DNA, harpy eagle instincts. Seriously though, next time? Try to listenwhen I'm panicking. You were fighting that guy and when you went to grab his wrist and he countered…

Wraith remembered the weird sense of electricity on the contact, coupled with the shudder she hadn't intended. Guen had panicked but Wraith had shut her down and out and kept trying to fight. She couldn't entirely help her response to an adrenaline rush and they both knew it. But still…

When he countered, you had a panic attack and I didn't listen or pay attention to your signals. Wraith finished. I'm sorry, Guen… I'll try better for both of us next time.

She got no response beyond the impression of begrudging placation and after a moment, the tension left her. Wraith sighed in relief as her muscles relaxed and she started paying attention to the Plague Doctor's continued examination of her. He was an oddity, and even saying that was an understatement. He didn't trigger her or Guen, which led her to question what his gender actually was, but he did give her that eerie sense of something otherworldly, inhuman. At first this had frightened Guen and set Wraith on edge, but in the past two months or so, both personalities had come to like and trust the enigmatic being since that initial encounter.

The Plague Doctor slowed to a pause as if sensing her thoughts and waited expectantly.

"We're okay. For the time being. Er, with each other, that is. Guen and I are." Wraith explained. When he didn't so much as budge, she added, "Sorry, P.D. I know, I know. I disobeyed the doctor's orders."

After a moment he gave a small, somewhat accusatory nod. But that was all and as he resumed his fussing, she noticed he had relaxed a bit. With a slight internal sigh, Wraith allowed all of her exhaustion to creep up on her. At least Guen and P.D. had been forgiving.

With a tiny mental nudge she reached for the part of her that was Guen, and the two slipped between, trading places as Wraith decided to rest.

"You're tired."

The words felt strange upon Guen's ears as she resumed control. It was odd enough to hear the entity called the Plague Doctor speak. But it felt stranger still to hear that casual observation. She shook her head slowly.

"Wraith's the exhausted one." She countered.

"She is part of you. You have only one body and one mind. You are tired." He argued back calmly. She started to speak only to realize her mind hadn't quite thrown together a counter-argument, and simply closed her mouth again with a sigh as she hung her head. Alright, aside from the points he made being valid, she was having trouble thinking. He was right; Guen was tired, whether she liked admitting to it or not.

"Alright," she said at last, "I'm tired. But I'm not exactly in the mood to nap right now. I'm not about to collapse or anything, am I?"

There was a shake of the masked head.

"So is there anything else I could do for a while instead of napping? Maybe something that will keep me awake but won't be too strenuous or dangerous? What do you recommend, sir?" She asked politely as he strode to a small table and started writing on a piece of scrap paper. For a long moment the only sounds puncturing the silence were the gentle scratching of pen against paper and the soft ticking of the wall clock. Something about the rhythms made Guen want to lie on her side and nod off, and she had to fight to stay awake. But then at last the Plague Doctor laid down the pen and brandished the paper at her insistently. She took it and glanced down, taking a moment to decipher the slanting, spidery handwriting. There appeared to be an entire list of instructions she was to follow, many of which she knew would aggravate Wraith to no end. It was at the bottom of the page where she finally found the advice she wanted in that instant, though it wasn't quite what she was expecting.

Take a walk.

She had to ponder it for a moment. Take a walk? In Gotham City? The only reason she didn't ask her mysterious doctor was this was his recommendation was due to the fact he had already gone. Encounters with him in the past months had shown the Plague Doctor had a habit of appearing and vanishing as abruptly as Batman, and Guen was finally used to the eccentric entity. Still she had to question why he thought a walk would do her good; even in this nicer part of the city, chances were high she could encounter some kind of danger.

Oh well, she thought with a bit of a sigh. Doctor's orders, I guess.

Standing, she took a glance at the window and thought longingly of gliding down to the sidewalk. Probably better to avoid that though, in the event she spooked the non-hostile residents or made a total idiot of herself. Still, the Plague Doctor had ordered her to stop "ghosting" when they'd first met, so gliding sounded like a welcome change. She had secretly enjoyed being able to turn insubstantial whenever she so pleased, and the convenience it had allowed her. And yet the last time she had attempted to use it, she felt like she was being ripped apart from the inside.

It would be a while before she could "ghost" again, if at all. So what harm would a little gliding to the ground do? After all, what P.D. didn't know wouldn't kill him, right?

It occurred to her that those last few thoughts were rather Wraith-like as she strode to the back deck and positioned a foot on the edge of the railing. At least being on the third floor of the apartment had one upside, and Guen took full advantage of it as she carefully stretched her wings open. A breeze wafted through her feathers and she let out a small shiver of delight. When her wings had first budded and fledged, she'd hated the things; they were something alien, different, and not natural. And yet now they were as much a part of Guen as Wraith was. Caring for the two extra limbs could be a hassle, that was true, but her wings were what made her her. And now as another breeze moved between her feathers she knew that it was good conditions for gliding. This wasn't a sense she could explain, but she just knew it was.

Alright, enough wasting time! She scolded herself. Let's get this walk in before the rain comes or something.

One experimental flap of her wings… two…

She sprang, launching herself from the deck and unfurling her wings to the sides. Air moved through her feathers as they created a heavy drag, slowing her descent. Small flaps with the edges of her wings gave her just enough height and distance to soar gently to the sidewalk and she touched down on the pavement, skipping a few steps as she folded her wings and worked to restore her balance. Somewhere a dog started barking wildly.

"Oh, fudge bucket." She muttered. If a dog saw her and spooked, chances were somebody also saw her and got spooked. Yin was not going to be happy, even if she was trying to be nicer. Gritting her teeth and hoping for the best, she turned to the side to look for the dog.

It was running straight at her.

Out of instinct she froze, but even so she realized the following second just how small the dog was. No taller than her knee, it had floppy ears and a random assortment of black and brown spots. A mutt most likely, and a very vocal one at that. The little dog ran straight for her, barking the whole way and trailing a leash behind it. It came to a stop a few feet from her and continued to bark, angling itself in such a way it was clearly afraid.

"He-hey, little guy." She said gently, holding up both hands slowly. "It's alright, I'm not gonna hurt you."

The dog gave a few uncertain barks in its high, puppy-like way, then paused with a small whine as its ears rose fractionally. Guen bent her knees slowly, crouching down level with the animal and extending a palm for it to smell. It gave another bark, backed up a few steps, and then barked again.

"It's okay," Guen put on the most reassuring voice she could. "It's okay."

The dog gave an uncertain whine but inched forward, watching her hand and lifting its ears a little higher. After a few seconds had passed it sniffed her fingers and licked her hand tentatively.

"See?" she said, unable to keep a smile from her face. "Friends."

"Yap!"

She glanced up from the dog, surprised by the voice.

"Yap!"

A young man around her age was running toward them. He seemed around average height and build, but his gray hoodie and sweatpants were so baggy she couldn't be sure. A long, thick, curly ponytail of red hair trailed behind him, and so many more curls framed his forehead and the edges of his face Guen half-wondered if he'd stepped out of some 80's hair salon advertisement.

"Yap, you menace!" He grumbled in exasperation, slowing down as he neared them. The dog turned, wagging his tail happily as his master knelt down and gathered up the leash, but the young man looked up at Guen. "I'm so, so sorry! He usually doesn't get away from me. I'm really sorry if he bothered you!"

Guen looked at him, and without warning found herself reflecting that up close, he was rather cute. Like any redhead he was somewhat pale, and a faint spattering of freckles marked his nose and the higher part of his cheeks. His eyes were a deep, brilliant shade of blue framed by shocking blond lashes, and they were watching her somewhat nervously for a response.

"No," she answered automatically. "He's fine, he wasn't a bother. Just startled me, that was all."

"Sorry about that," he repeated as he extended a hand to shake. "I'm Lonnie, by the way. Lonnie Machin."

Instinctively Guen curled a little tighter in on herself, wrapping her arms around her sides as she looked away from the offered hand.

"Erm, sorry. I don't really shake." She murmured. After a second, she attempted an apologetic smile, not wishing to offend. "I-I'm Guen."

Lonnie smiled back at her, a quirk of the corner of his mouth that revealed a dimple in his left cheek. Guen swallowed, feeling her face grow warm. He was really cute.

"Nice to make your acquaintance, Guen." He said, checking Yap's collar and leash to make sure they were secure. "You like dogs?"

"Yeah," she said, standing up straight again. "Never had one, though."

"Why not?" Lonnie asked curiously as he also straightened up, wrapping the leash around his fist. She gave a small shrug, unable to think of a response. There was a logical reason why she'd never had a dog of her own, but her brain wasn't bothering to put words to it. No, she had gotten lost trying to listen to Lonnie's voice; something about the sound of it was vaguely familiar. As she tried to think of what it could be, Lonnie flushed and pointed to himself.

"D-do I have something on my face…?" He asked uncertainly. Guen rapidly shook her head. Idiot! She'd been staring!

"Oh! N-no, sorry. I didn't mean to be rude!" She said, starting to recede into her rapid-fire chatter that still surfaced in awkward moments. "I just… you seem kind of familiar. Have we met before?"

"I couldn't rightly say, I mean…" He flushed and glanced down, trying to hide a shy smile. "I think I'd remember meeting such a lovely lady with wings."

Guen stiffened a bit and as Lonnie looked up and saw this, his face fell.

"Oh, s-sorry. I didn't wish to offend." He began to say, but she waved him down.

"It's fine; most people don't know what to make of a woman with six limbs when they first meet me anyway." She said with a small chuckle. "Actually, you're probably the first person who hasn't stared like I've got some fatal, disfiguring disease. It's kind of nice."

He relaxed and began to smile again. "Well, I'm glad to shake things up for you then." He remarked. "Are you headed anywhere? I could—I mean we, that is, Yap and I—could escort you there to make up for earlier."

She shook her head. "I'm not going anywhere special," she replied, rolling her shoulders in a shrug, "just walking. Uh…but you're um, welcome to…to join me, if you want?"

The words were out of Guen's mouth before she had fully thought them through, and a second too late she wished she'd bitten her tongue.

I don't know this guy! Her brain started to scream at her. Guen, don't be an idiot; it's not safe to just go walking around this crazy city with a complete stranger!

Lonnie's face brightened and his smile became a little broader.

He's a cute stranger, her thoughts supplied most unhelpfully, He has a dog, and he looks like an 80's glam rock child. I'm not getting a bad vibe from him, just the déjà vu sense we've met before. Besides, I've never met a guy before—a normal guy—who doesn't stare at me because of my wings. It feels nice to be able to relax a little around someone.

She felt some nagging guilt concerning Edward but shut it down. After that disastrous lunch, she deserved to talk to a gentleman. And besides, as with the Plague Doctor, what Eddie didn't know wouldn't kill him.

"Why thank you!" He said, beaming as the two of them fell into step together and he coaxed Yap along. "Not every day I get to go on an evening stroll with someone new… or quite so dog-friendly, for that matter."

Guen let out a small laugh and glanced down at the little dog, who looked up at her and wagged his tail in a hopeful way.

"Well," she said, clasping her hands behind her back as they walked, "helps when the dog is as small and cute as your little friend here. You said his name was Yap? How long have you had him?"

"Few years now," Lonnie answered, smiling affectionately down at his pet. "He just followed me home one day and we've been best buds since. Guess we just knew we needed each other."

"Aww, that's so sweet."

And so they walked on, pursuing idle chatter and small talk conversations for a while as the sun started to sink and the evening grew cooler. Lonnie, it turned out, was surprisingly intellectual and open about his thoughts and opinions with her, as well as polite and engaging, taking every opportunity to prompt her to share her own thoughts and opinions too. Guen found herself growing quite comfortable around him the more they talked; she wasn't sure when she had last smiled so much. They were just starting to run out of ice-breaker topics when a thought occurred to her unexpectedly.

Yin had told her the previous day to find someone to talk to, someone who wouldn't judge her based on her condition and how it came about. She couldn't carry the weight of the burden without talking to someone. Lonnie was a complete stranger for the most part; she had no guarantee whether or not he would be judgmental, but at least he would probably be honest.

"Hey, um…" she began awkwardly. "Could I talk to you about something, Lonnie?"

He paused, looking at her skeptically. His brilliant blue eyes, full of laughter and delight since they'd been talking, flickered. Abruptly he seemed much older, far more serious, and Guen had the strange sense of déjà vu again as she met the intense gaze.

"Yes." He said with a tone of quiet patience.

"It's a secret." She explained, again slipping into her rapid-fire babbling as she looked down at her feet. "I haven't told anyone yet. Not my friends, not my family. Not even my… whatever-he-is."

"You have a boyfriend?" Lonnie asked, a strange note in his voice.

"Ugh, something like that? It's complicated." She sighed. "Only a few people know about this, and the only reason they know is because they figured it out themselves, not because I told them."

For a long moment neither said anything.

"Big secret." He finally remarked, and as he caught her eye and winked, a faint smile flickered over his face. "I won't tell anyone, I promise."

She gave a small nod, unwinding marginally.

"I…" Words seem to fail her without warning. Would she even be able to say it, now that she had someone to tell? This was what she had been afraid of.

Again there came the intrusive memory of those hateful dark eyes, of blood and pain…

Guen shook off the sensation of phantom agony, wanting it all to end.

"Yes?"

Lonnie's kind, patient prompting brought her sharply back to reality. Some of the ghost sensations clung on, but she focused on those blue eyes that waited for her to speak. She chewed the inside of her cheek. It was now or never; if she didn't say it, she never would.

"Somebody hurt me," she began in a low voice, "badly. I wanted to die because of what he did to me. Sometimes… sometimes I still do. I've thought about it a lot. More than a lot, really. Every second I'm totally by myself I keep wondering what would happen… what would happen if I climbed one of the skyscrapers or Gotham Bay Bridge with my wings pinned to my sides and just… jumped?"

Her one-man and one-dog audience had gone silent. Guen kept her eyes on the ground as Yap moved closer to her and nudged her leg with his muzzle. Large, loving brown eyes looked up at her with the concern and compassion only dogs and puppies could accomplish.

"But that's not all there is to it." She went on. "He left behind more than just physical and emotional scars."

"You're… you're pregnant?" Lonnie whispered in a gasp of shock. Guen nodded and a second later his tone went cold and deadly. "Was it this boyfriend of yours? Did he do this to you?"

"No!" Guen said quickly, giving a small jump. "No, no. No, it wasn't Eddie."

Lonnie made a non-committal hum, looking unconvinced, and she pressed on hurriedly.

"No, it was someone else. He's… he's locked up now. He can't get to me again. But..."

"But it still haunts you."

She bit her lower lip and nodded.

"And nobody really close to you knows about this? Even your boyfriend-whatever-he-is?" Lonnie murmured. She shook her head silently, and after a moment he spoke up again. "So…why tell me? Please, don't get me wrong! I'm humbled you're choosing to confide in me but… we barely know each other."

"Exactly." She replied, looking up into his confused face. "We've just met. So you can be brutally honest with me about what you think."

He appeared hesitant to respond, and for a moment she wondered if she had overstepped her boundaries. But then at last he appeared to reach some sort of conclusion and opened his mouth to reply.

"So what do you think you're going to do then?" He asked. "About the…the baby? Do you not want it?"

There seemed to be an odd catch in his voice. Was he going to judge her based on her answer to his question? Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all…

"I'm not sure." She answered at last, hoping he would hear the sincerity in her words. "Sometimes I want to forget that I'm pregnant at all. Other times it's all I can think about. Either way I never really can forget it, you know? But… I still just don't know. It'd be easier if I were of one, sound mind."

"Beg pardon?"

"Sorry, it's complicated." She waved it off again. "I just… don't know right now."

"Fair enough." Lonnie remarked, slowly nodding his head. "Can't really blame you for feeling that way. I mean, you didn't ask for this, but it was just sort of thrown on you."

She had nothing to say to that but simply knelt down again and started petting Yap. For a rugged, ungainly-looking little dog, he was surprisingly warm and soft. He responded enthusiastically to her attentions, tongue lolling out of his mouth in a canine smile as he half-jumped into her lap.

"Are you…planning on telling anyone else?" Lonnie asked after a moment. She shrugged without looking at him.

"Won't exactly be able to hide it before long, will I?"

"But that's not the same as confiding in somebody before it becomes obvious."

"True…" she admitted. "I guess I'll tell some of my friends before long. I just needed to tell someone without any kind of bias first, I think."

Awkward silence fell between them as they both avoided direct eye contact and focused on Yap. The little dog was all-too delighted with the attention and before long he started barking again, tail wagging. Sighing, Guen got to her feet, feeling a bit of a headache coming on.

"Well… thanks. For talking to me." She said, and even as the words left her mouth they sounded lame. "It's been a pleasure making your acquaintance."

Dusting off her front, she turned and began walking back in the direction of the apartment.

"W-wait a second!" Lonnie blurted out, scrambling to his feet as she looked back. A slight flush rose in his cheeks and he scratched the back of his neck self-consciously as his mouth worked soundlessly a moment. Guen tensed automatically. He wasn't going to ask her for her number, was he?

"Do you… do you ever go to any concerts?"

She tried to refrain from sucking in a breath. He couldn't be serious

As if to better explain, he rummaged in the pocket of his hoodie and withdrew what appeared to be four or five tickets.

"I, uh…" His blush darkened. "I've got these. Some friends and I were going to go next week but one of our friends canceled on us. Er, I don't know if Naomi Darkholme's music is your thing—"

Guen's jaw dropped against her will.

"What? Nuh-uh, are you kidding me?! You know who Naomi Darkholme is?!" She gasped hoarsely, turning back to face him completely, feeling a bit awestruck. There was no way, no possible way—

But no, there was no mistaking the way the redhead's face was lighting up with delighted excitement. Even as dark as it was getting outside, she could clearly see the matching dimples in his cheeks as he grinned.

"Are you for real?! I feel like nobody in Gotham knows who Naomi is!" He said breathlessly, stepping a bit closer.

"Uh," Guen exhaled a short, stunned laugh, "she's only the best indie underground angry-Goth-rock solo singer this side of Central City! I love Naomi!"

"Have you heard her cover of Sombrero's '13 Chapters'?"

Guen's eyes widened. "She did a cover of some pop song?"

"Yes! And it sounds awesome; SO much better than the original!" Lonnie replied, his hands flying about in his enthusiasm. "You've got to look it up when you have the chance!"

"Oh, believe me, I'm going to!" She promised with a chuckle. "I can't pass that up!"

"So, uh…" Lonnie glanced down at the tickets in his hands, suddenly shy again. "I know we just met today and all, but… I mean, if you have any time next week and you wanna go…"

Her laughter died down as she regarded him, thinking. He was still little more than a stranger but he'd been nothing except polite and friendly with her all through their walk. He didn't know anything about her "job" or Wraith, but he was nonetheless asking her to hang out.

What's going on, Pendragon? Who is asking you to hang out?

She held back a groan. She hadn't felt her other personality wake and become alert. But even as she wondered when this happened she felt the unmistakable sensation of another set of eyes looking through her own.

Oh… There was definite surprise in Wraith's voice. Oh, he's cute. Why's he asking you to hang out? What's he holding?

"How would I get ahold of you to let you know?" she asked, deliberately avoiding Wraith's questioning. Lonnie gave a small shrug.

"Concert's next Friday evening. I walk Yap every Monday and Wednesday afternoon around here. Meet up with me and you can tell me then?" He suggested, and in spite of herself she grinned.

"Well, if you're walking your handsome friend, I think I can manage to swing by and talk again." She answered wryly, and he grinned back, eyes sparkling.

"Excellent!" He beamed, fidgeting with Yap's leash as he returned the tickets to his pocket. "See you next week then?"

She smiled and said nothing, turning and resuming her walk back to the apartment with a bit of a spring in her step. P.D. was right, she said to herself as much as to Wraith. I guess taking a walk did me some good after all.

And overhead, perched on a low-hanging gargoyle, a single figure shifted. His gaze behind the binoculars went from the winged woman to the young man with the dog. Then he lowered the binoculars…and wondered.


Thrill was an unusual sensation, Aaron decided. It was equal parts excitement and terror. He knew, because it was exactly what he was feeling at that very moment.

It was getting late, and before long the hideout would be shut down and everyone would be heading away. Granted, he very much doubted that if he had been left behind in the place anyone would really notice. Still, there wasn't any point in focusing on being bitter about his lot in it all; he had some investigating to do.

A quick glance around showed nobody was watching, and he inched down a darkened hall, looking around the corners as he went for extra precaution. He was certain the object of his investigation had come this way.

And sure enough, there she was. Sofia Masque, the woman Mr. Nygma had called "the Phoenix", was huddled near the emergency exit. And if Aaron wasn't very much mistaken, she was talking to someone on her cell phone. The sensation of thrill spiked in him. What was she doing? Mr. Nygma had mentioned earlier something about her being a spy, and Sofia had neither confirmed or denied it, not really. Was she actually a spy, then? Was he catching her in the act? Was she slipping information to someone? He inched closer, straining his ears in hopes of catching anything she was saying.

"—don't know what he's thinking. This is not the sort of method of management I'd agree with," she was saying. There was a slight pause before she went on. "Well yes, I know that. I'm just not saying it's actually efficient, because it's not. …yes, I know that's my job, but that doesn't mean I can't complain about blatantly obvious issues that show a lack of actual intelligent thought when implemented."

Aaron hesitated, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Was she really spying or what she just talking to a friend or something? It was hard to tell and he felt suddenly unsure of his deduction.

Just my luck, he thought unhappily.

Then without warning, Sofia turned and caught sight of him. For a long silent moment the two studied one another, and then Sofia pressed a finger to her lips. Without really understanding why, Aaron found himself mimicking the motion and nodding consent. Then without a word, he spun on his heel and walked away, thinking about what had just happened.


A/N: And here's the part where I awkwardly confess that "Naomi Darkholme" is technically a self-insert background character, at least visually. I'm not an underground angry goth singer, no matter how much my teenaged self wished she would be. Just felt like throwing that out there for future reference.