Ch. 13
Laurie tiptoed around in her room, afraid she would disturb her mother. Her mother, who had become grief-stricken after the first Crimebusters meeting half a year ago had taken up drinking sometime between then and now. Laurie was shocked -- her mother had never been the drinking sort. When she was younger, she had heard snippets of conversation here and there between her mother and her old friends. It seemed back in the day, Sally had loved to drink. Laurie was worried that she was reverting to her old ways, and worse. It seemed like her mother was hardly ever around now. She would drink and sleep or drink and fall into despondence about the past. Or worse, she would cry and then push Laurie away if she attempted to comfort her mother. Laurie really didn't know what to do.
Laurie wanted more than anything to tell Rorschach, but at the same time she didn't want to burden him with the details. Rorschach had made it pretty clear to Laurie that he strongly disliked her mother. Laurie couldn't help but feel a little protective of Sally. Even if she didn't agree with some of the things her mother did, she was still her mother. Laurie didn't want to give Rorschach another reason to hate her mother on top of everything else that was going on.
The second Crimebusters meeting was today. Well, first really, since the other one had technically never commenced. Uncle Nelly seemed to have finally come around and he was even more optimistic than before. After how the first meeting went, Laurie was afraid that her mother would somehow ruin this too, so she sneaked out of the house dressed as Nightshade this time. Rorschach was waiting for her, holding what looked like a garment under his arm.
"What is that?" Laurie asked him, suspicious.
He held it up to her. It looked like a jacket. She gave him a querulous glance. Rorschach often expected her to read his mind. Sometimes she did, but his mind usually ran in odd directions and oftentimes it was hard to get anything through with him, especially when he was in one of his moods. Laurie folded her arms and looked at him expectantly.
"In case you dressed in the unseemly clothes," he explained.
Laurie couldn't help but laugh at that. Of course if there was anyone who was more traumatized by the previous incident than she, it was Rorschach.
"Thanks but no need," she told him, feeling especially endeared towards her friend. She reached around him to squeeze his shoulder. Rorschach looked at her hand then at her. This simple response made her feelings for him well up and bubble over.
"Aw, Rorschach," said Laurie, moving her other arm over to give him a brief, tight hug. "You're such a good friend, you know that?"
Laurie pulled away, judging Rorschach at arm's length. He had gone silent, and the patterns on his mask were swirling lazily, not really giving her anything to gauge his reaction with. She felt a little foolish now -- she didn't mean to embarrass him or offend him in any manner. She had just spoken to truth. He was his best and only friend, sad as it was. He and her mother were all she had in her life.
"Drugs. Again," he said, finally, then shook himself as if from a deep slumber.
Laurie laughed and smiled at him. Rorschach quickly moved out of the way as if she would hug him again. That made her laugh even harder as they made their way inside the building. Ozymandias, Nite Owl II, and Captain Metropolis looked up as they entered.
"Hi," said Laurie, blinking. "Are we early, or the only ones?"
"The only ones," said Captain Metropolis. "The Comedian declined, and Dr. Manhattan is too concerned with other matters, I'm afraid."
"Oh." Laurie felt guilty. She hoped that the Comedian hadn't been driven away by her mother's threats. It seemed silly to think someone like that would be afraid of her mother. Then again, her mother could be quite frightening at moments. No, the Comedian had talked to Laurie a couple of times after the incident. She knew he wasn't nervous about coming back here. She also felt slightly disappointed that Dr. Manhattan couldn't make it. He was a celebrity of sorts, and she had always wanted to see the indestructible man; America's super-powered hero.
"If we're all here, before we start..." Nite Owl II gestured to a camera he must have set up. "Why don't we take a picture? This is what Hollis did back in the day when they started the Minutemen."
Laurie sighed. If Hollis had jumped off of a building at some point, Nite Owl II would have, too. Nobody complained, however, including herself. They stood together with Captain Metropolis in the middle -- Ozymandias, Nite Owl II (he set the camera to auto), Captain Metropolis, Laurie, and Rorschach. Laurie wondered how the picture would turn out.
"All right, why don't we get started?" asked Captain Metropolis. He began talking about promiscuity, drugs, and campus subversion. Laurie felt as if they had become caught in some sort of bizarre lecture.
Rorschach leaned close to her, the brim of his hat brushing against her head. For a moment, Laurie felt nervous, certain that he was going to kiss her and in front of everybody, no less.
"Soon he's going to tell us he's tricked us and he's trying to make us join Ozymandias and Nite Owl II afterall," he whispered.
Laurie had to stifle her giggles. This close, she could hear that he was laughing softly too. They looked at each other for a second, but it seemed longer, somehow.
"Ahem," said Captain Metropolis. "Do you have any questions?"
"Uhh--," Laurie felt herself blush. It didn't help that Rorschach wasn't making any attempt to move away from her. She was all too aware of his hat, so close to grazing the top of her forehead, but she didn't want to move away either. "What do you think will help us clear out the streets?"
"Ah," Captain Metropolis brightened. "That's where you all come in. The Minutemen were made obsolete, made to feel useless, but the costumed avenger has made its comeback. It's time for us to emerge once again into this new era where they need us even more desperately than before. We will band together; the new Crimebusters united in our front against villainy."
Laurie thought he sounded like one of those old hero comic book characters from the 30's. She looked at Rorschach, who shook his head.
"I for one think it's a fantastic idea," said Nite Owl II. "Ozymandias and I have been cleaning up out there, and the more we show the imperative to team up with one another the better it will look to the public."
"That's just for looks, though," said Laurie. "I think working in pairs is a great idea, but at some point with too many people, it's going to get messy. Big numbers aren't always a good thing."
"Also, how much of this is merely for the public eye?" asked Rorschach. Laurie was surprised he had spoken. "All this seems like just an attempt to control our image. It didn't work for the Minutemen, and it certainly isn't going to work for us."
"I don't think Nelson is suggesting that we all participate in a weekly photo shoot," said Ozymandias. "We just need a place to get together once a month or periodically. We go out, fight, reconvene and compare reports, notes -- that sort of thing. Efficiency is the key word, I think."
"Well, if that's all there is, I don't have anything against it." Laurie looked at Rorschach, who nodded.
"So are we all in?" asked Nelly, who seemed as if he was going to cry with excitement.
"Yes Nelly, it looks like we are," laughed Nite Owl II.
And thus concluded their first official meeting of the Crimebusters. Kind of disappointing, really.
"I don't like the name Crimebusters," Laurie told Rorschach as they left the building. "It makes us sound like we're coming apart at the seams."
"It doesn't have to be our official name," said Ozymandias. Laurie was annoyed at him for eavesdropping.
"How is your search for Moloch?" she asked, changing the subject.
"We're making progress. I heard the Comedian was also tailing him."
"You know how he and Moloch have been rivals for the longest time," said Nite Owl II to Ozymandias. He turned to Laurie and smiled at her.
"Well, you guys can stop tailing us, because we're going to be on our way." Laurie smiled back, but she really wanted to punch Nite Owl II in the face. She wasn't entirely sure why, though. She saw Nite Owl II turn to Ozymandias and say something to him that she couldn't hear. Ozymandias shook his head, but he was still watching her and Rorschach. She studied them with curiosity as the two men parted and went their separate ways. Were they not working together anymore?
"So, my crime fighting friend, where are you taking us tonight?" asked Laurie.
"Found info on one of Moloch's vice-clubs. Should investigate."
"Okay," said Laurie, frowning. "So, uh, when you say 'vice-club', do you mean the same kind of vices the Twilight Lady is guilty for?"
Rorschach snorted a little.
"No," he said, softly. "Drugs, mostly."
"Oh, good." Laurie was relieved. She wasn't keen on storming a bondage club. She wasn't keen on storming a drug den either, but the latter seemed better because it didn't involve scantily clad women in bondage. She knew Rorschach became irrationally angry in the presence of the likes of these women and she matched his feeling with equal nervousness.
Rorschach and Laurie had only been walking for five minutes when an idea struck her.
"Wait," she said. "How were you able to find the time to look up this... vice-club? It was barely into the evening when we had the Crimebusters meeting. And we hadn't been searching for information yesterday."
"Out of costume," he told her.
"Oh." Laurie looked at him. Then she frowned and looked away.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"...What?"
"I wish we could, I don't know, see each other out of costume, that's all."
"That is highly inappropriate."
Laurie frowned at Rorschach, confused, until she realized what he was saying.
"No," she laughed. "Save your perverted thoughts to your self -- you know what I meant."
"Yes."
"Yes? That's it? Can't even tell me your name?"
Rorschach looked at her, but he didn't give her anything else, not even an answer. Laurie shook her head.
"Fair enough," she said, with a sigh. The pair walked on in silence. Laurie worried about her mother. She wondered what to expect when she got home. Rorschach stopped her, pulling her out of her thoughts. Laurie looked up to hear breaking glass and shouting.
"Is this the place?" asked Laurie. Rorschach nodded. He took the lead with her following closely. A man on fire ran by screaming, startling Laurie.
A figure was thrown out of the window in a building up ahead. Rorschach and Laurie watched for a moment to assess the situation before it all became apparent to them when the Comedian stepped out the door. A man was running out at the same time, trying to get past him. The Comedian was carrying a rifle -- he brought the heavy butt of it down onto the back of the man's head. The man didn't even make a sound as he fell, rolling down the rest of the way. The Comedian turned to the man he had thrown out the window and kicked him hard enough to break something -- Laurie could hear it even at this distance. Rorschach began to cautiously approach the scene, Laurie behind him. Two men ran out the door and the Comedian punched one man's teeth out. He grabbed the other man and shook him as if he were nothing more than a five-pound sack of potatoes.
"Hey," the Comedian said, looking in their direction. "Moloch's club -- pimps and drug-dealers. Looks like everyone's having fun on this side of the street tonight!"
Laurie looked up at the building and just realized that its interior was burning up. There were still people inside, all clambering over each other to get out. Bodies flew out the window while others tumbled out of the door. Laurie had a feeling that the fire hadn't been an accident. Suddenly she didn't feel very well.
The Comedian dropped the man he had been shaking to aim and shoot at someone who had managed to cross the street. He stepped on the one he'd dropped, causing the man to scream.
"Moloch!" shouted the Comedian. He paused to light a cigar, then looked up again. "Come out, Moloch, or your friends are dead!"
"I-Is he hiding somewhere?" asked Laurie. From this angle she could see the man's face and his eyes were staring out at her. The terror in his eyes had twisted them into something so alien she couldn't tell if he was even alive anymore -- or just dead.
"I dunno," said the Comedian, shrugging and laughing. "Probably not."
Laurie felt cold. She looked away when the Comedian shot the man in the back of the head.
"Playing hard to get, huh -- well I can wait," he said. He stepped over a burning body and shot twice more into the distance. There was a scream at the second shot. He smiled, then snarled shortly before he shouted up into the air as if Moloch was hiding there, somehow. "You know Moloch, you're really starting to piss me off here!"
"Do you need assistance?" asked Rorschach, as if he had discovered him pruning hedges in a garden.
"Nah, you kids take care of yourselves," replied the Comedian. "No drinking and driving -- curfew's midnight, you hear? ...Moloch!"
Laurie looked at the carnage around them and had to keep from vomiting.
"Uh, Rorschach, I... I think I need to go home," she told him.
Rorschach nodded.
"You all right?" he asked her.
Laurie nodded, but it was more because she was afraid she would lose it if she opened her mouth to say anything else. She waved to Rorschach and left, unable to even look back at the scene that was playing behind her. Glowing light from the rising flames lit up the streets in an eerie light. Laurie kept imagining ghosts in every shadow leaping out at her for failing to save them. But they were bad people -- she wasn't supposed to save bad people, was she? But did even the wicked deserve to die like that?
Laurie rubbed at her eyes. Amidst it all, what bothered her the most was the way Rorschach behaved as if what they saw was perfectly acceptable. Would he condone such violent murder if she had been one of them? Laurie didn't want to think too hard about that. She shook her head as she returned home, mind a blur. She looked up, surprised to find her mother in the kitchen. She had to pause for a moment before she remembered that she was home early.
"Hi Laurie," said Sally, smiling.
"Hi, uh... I didn't expect to see you," Laurie admitted.
"I know honey; you never seem to be home anymore."
Laurie wanted to correct her, point out that it was in fact her mother who was mostly absent. But tonight, she didn't feel like arguing. The image of burning, screaming people had been branded into her mind's eye and ear.
"So, how did the meeting go?" asked Sally. For a moment Laurie had absolutely no idea what she was talking about.
"Oh, uh--it went great," said Laurie. Then she realized something. "How did you know about the meeting?"
"Nelly called me to tell me about it," smiled her mother. "He told me it was great, too."
Laurie wondered why her mother had to ask her a question if she already knew the answer.
"Well? What happened?" asked her mother, eyes bright and eager for interaction. "Tell me everything dear. Did you catch any bad guys?"
"No, no... We didn't do anything," Laurie finally managed. "The Comedian--"
Laurie covered her mouth, but it was too late. Her mother's face had already gone dark.
"Oh?" said Sally.
"N-Nothing--look, Mom-- I'm really tired," said Laurie, searching her mother's face for sympathy. But Sally was already reaching for the key to the liquor cabinet.
All Laurie could do was watch helplessly as her mother resumed her new drinking ritual. Suddenly, terribly enough, the idea of being outside with the burning people seemed to be the better option.
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To be continued...