Marie felt like she was sinking. She couldn't open her eyes, all there was was the dark that surrounded her. She drifted down farther into the void, her mind blank, her emotions completely gone. It was almost peaceful, this numbing state she was experiencing.
Something brushed against her, and she twitched, wondering mildly what it was. It came back, and bumped into her side. She tried to move away from it, but it stayed against her. A glint of agitation bubbled inside her. Surely there was enough room in this dark eternity for whatever this was to move away from her. She tried to move again, but this time the entity wrapped itself around her. Surprised, she fought to open her eyes, and managed to crack them open as whatever was wrapped around her brought her roughly upward. She gasped at the red eyes that glinted in front of her, and she struggled to get free, tearing something away from it in her hand as she did.
She heard a light growl, and the creature let her go.
...
Marie woke up startled, the feeling of being dropped into her bed awaking her. She checked her hand where she'd held onto that something she'd ripped from the creature, but all there was was a tingling feeling. A sudden pounding in her head made her groan, and she touched it gingerly, feeling bandages. Her eyes opened fully, and the light of the hospital room making them water painfully.
"Ooooh, you're awake..." a slightly familiar voice said, and Marie turned her head to see a boy in black clothing sitting at a chair near her bed. He smiled at her as he stroked an orange cat that lay in his lap. "Well," he went on. "You're not really awake yet, not really."
"What..." Marie muttered in confusion. Her voice cracked from lack of use, and she coughed.
"You're in a coma!" he said gleefully. "You're in the closest mental state that any human can get to Limbo. Isn't that fun?" he asked. Marie's eyes knitted, still confused. She was in a coma? Who was this person? She remembered the voice that had spoken to her at the club that night. It was this person's voice, she realized, and she remembered hitting her head hard against the dance floor. Was that the reason for this coma? And how was this person able to speak to her if she was in one?
"Are you...an angel, or something?" she asked quietly. The figure's black eyes widened greatly before he burst into a fit of laughter. The cat on his lap hissed and jumped to the floor as he rolled in his seat, gripping his sides. The laughing finally got on Marie's nerves, and she frowned. "What's so funny..," she mumbled. The person finally decided to control himself, and he wiped away gleeful tears as he adjusted his tie.
"What's funny," he said as the laughter died down to giggles. "Is that you thought of me of all people to be an angel..." Marie blinked, and looked up to the ceiling.
"I'm so confused..." she said.
"What's there to be confused about?" he asked.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I'm Klarion, the Witch Boy." he replied. "And this," he gestured to the orange cat, "is my dear cat Teekl. Don't be fooled by her mild appearance. She can be quite deadly when ordered..."
"The Witch Boy?" Marie asked. "What are you, a Super?" she asked. He cocked his head to the side.
"Super as in a pursuer of Justice and enemy of evil? No." He rest his chin on his slender hand. "I'm the evil that everyone goes after." Marie regarded him. He was a few years younger than she was, she could tell, and he seemed scrawny. He didn't look at all menacing or evil. He actually looked a bit like a brat.
"You don't seem so threatening as you claim..." she said. "Just saying..."
"Is that any way to treat someone who's been searching a whole year for your soul?" Klarion asked. Marie stilled.
"A whole...year?" she asked, and he nodded. She huffed. "You're crazy, guy..." she said. Klarion gave a look of agitation, and he snapped his fingers. At first Marie didn't notice anything, but then she glanced at his cat. She slowly sat up as se noticed it become larger, it's limbs lengthening and its head changing shape. Her mouth was agape by the time it was done shifting into the humanoid it had become. Teekl looked at Marie, and bared her fangs at her, hissing loudly. Klarion gave a sly smile at Marie, knowing he'd gotten his point across.
"Heel, Teekl." he said, and the humanoid morphed back into it's original form. Marie was shaking now, unbelieving of what she had just seen.
"I'm dreaming...or I've gone insane..." she said shakily. "I've gone nuts. I'm sitting in a cell in Arkham right now..."
"No, not nuts. Just in a coma." Klarion said, regaining her attention.
"What did you do?" she asked. "Did you pull me out of that void? Were you that...thing?"
"Ouch, so cruel..." Klarion said, feigning hurt. "That was my Horigal state. Rather nasty to look at but effective when sniffing around for souls in Limbo. You were nearly a lost case when I found you. You're lucky I brought you back before your soul was twisted into one of the disgusting monsters that reside there, then I never would have been able to fix anything."
"Why did you bring me back?" Marie asked.
"Simple." Klarion said. "Because I was bored, and frankly I haven't had so much fun with a girl since Abigail Williams." He grinned, and Marie slumped against the headboard.
"Great. I've become nothing more than entertainment for some little kid."
"Hey, I might appear young, but I'm actually waaay older than you." he said, crossing his arms. "Don't go telling everyone that."
"I don't think I'll be telling anyone about any of this..." Marie said, mostly to herself. "You were talking about souls..." she asked, and he nodded. "Is there a God?" the smile he gave was disturbing.
"Do you want the truth, or what you want to hear?" he asked.
"So he doesn't exist?" she said.
"Are you sure that's not what you wanted to hear?" he asked. "Are you sure you want God to exist, what with all of the evil you've committed, and the people you've hurt, just for a bit of cash that you never got anyway?"
"Then he does?"
"I never said that..." Klarion said, stretching. "The whole subject of God bores me. I'll tell you for sure that there is good and evil, and that there is definitely a Hell, though it varies for each person. But I can't and won't say that there is some deity that watches over everything we do. But if there is, then he's sicker than the worst criminal isn't he, allowing all of this chaos to continue without so much as answering a child's smallest prayer. That's why I do what I want, knowing that if God really existed and really cared, I would have been stopped years ago. Are you following?"
"I guess..." Marie said.
"Good." Klarion responded. "Now, even then I hate it, we have business to discuss." he said.
"What kind of business?" Marie asked.
"Well," Klarion leaned back into his seat, "I did bring you back from living the rest of your life as a vegetable on life support..." he said. "Payment will be in order."
"What do you want?" Marie asked.
"Weeeell," he tapped his chin in thought. "You did provide me entertainment when I thought I was going to die from boredom, so I won't make the price steep." he thought for another moment, and his eyes lit up with an idea.
"You'll just have to owe me a favor." he said.
"What kind of favor..." Marie asked, her eyes narrowing. He shrugged with an innocence she couldn't believe.
"Just any old favor, when I feel like making one. You could be fifty before I think of something. Maybe I'll even forget about you, who knows?" he said, and stood up. "You'll be waking up any minute now, so I'll be leaving." he made his way to the door, Teekl following close behind. "Oh, and Marie?" he said.
"Yeah?"
"Try not to be so depressing. This is a second chance at life. Take advantage of it while you can, hmm? Have fun, rob banks, blow up buildings. Go nuts." he said, and was out the door before Marie could say anything back to him. She looked down at her hands.
"Go nuts...huh..." her eyes became heavy then, and they slowly began to close. As soon as they shut though, she opened them again, and was greeted by the same hospital room she was in before. The only difference was the person in there with her, sleeping on the small couch in the corner. It was Timothy.
"Ti-" she coughed, her voice once again raw from lack of use. She touched her throat, and brushed her hair. It was longer than it was when she went to that club. Much longer, she noticed, as she looked down to see the ends reached the middle of her upper arm. Had it really been a year? She looked over to Timothy, and noticed he was taller, a little more built. His face was more angular, showing some maturity. "Shit..." she croaked, and cleared her throat. "Timothy!" she managed to yell without her voice breaking, and the sleeping teen jolted awake.
"Who? Whozzat? Is visiting hours over?" he asked groggily as he rubbed his eyes. He looked around the room for a doctor, and froze when his eyes landed on Marie as she looked right back at him. "Marie?" he asked, then jumped to his feet and ran to the door, opening it and calling for a doctor. He walked back toward her then, gripping her hand and smiling. "I told them you'd pull through!" he said as a doctor rushed inside.
"Mr. Wayne, what is the reason for...oh my god..." the doctor dropped their clipboard to the floor and reached for a phone, quickly dialing a number and bringing it to their ear.
"How long have I been out?" Marie asked Tim. He hesitated.
"Uh...over a year...It's February..." he said, and Marie nodded. "You're taking that better than I thought you would." he said, and she smiled.
"Well, I'll probably break down into a mess later, but right now I just want to get the hell out of this hospital..."
"I can understand that." he said. "No one thought you were going to make it. After you hit the ground, Mask shot you," he tapped a spot on the side of her head, "right there. You're lucky you're alive right now, not to mention even talking normally. It's a friggin' miracle." Marie touched where he had tapped, and felt a small scar. So Mask had shot her, huh? A surge of anger filled her, and her brows furrowed.
"Where is he?" she asked. He was quiet. "Where is Black Mask?" she asked again, with more force.
"He's not in prison..." Timothy said, and sighed. "Look, that night at the club, you attacked him first, so he was saying what he did to you was self defense. Obviously, the shot to the head after you were knocked out didn't apply, and he was facing charges. He was wanting to charge you as well, and you were nearly sentenced to Arkham Asylum once you recovered, but Bruce intervened. He said he'd have the charges against Mask dropped so long as the charges against you were dropped as well. Mask agreed, and he's still out there."
"Are you serious?" Marie couldn't believe it.
"Mask would have been out of Black Gate in a matter of hours anyway, with his influence. We were only focusing on your freedom and safety when we made that deal." Tim said.
"You and Mr. Wayne did so much for me, Tim. I don't deserve such luck." She held his hand as tightly as she could. "Thank you so much..."
"I'm just happy you're awake again. It's kind of boring having one sided conversations." he said. Marie managed a small laugh. "I have to call Bruce. He's gonna go nuts when he hears this." Timothy pulled back and grabbed his phone from his pocket as more doctors walked in and checked Marie's vitals. Marie was registering what Timothy had said.
"Go nuts..." she murmured. That was the second time she'd heard that today.
...
"So, I'm sixteen now?" Marie asked as she was being lead outside Gotham General Hospital the next day. She was in a wheelchair, and Timothy pushed her towards the limo waiting for them. "I missed two Januaries." Marie continued. "And my birthday is January fifteenth. So I'm sixteen, right?"
"Uh, yeah. That's right." Tim said. "And I'll be seventeen this coming June."
"Jeez..." Marie whistled. "I have a lot of new music to catch up to..." she said.
"That reminds me." Timothy said, and he placed a small pink gift bag on her lap, and she picked it up.
"What's this?"
"A welcome back to the real world present." he said as Marie pulled out the item hidden inside. It was an I-Pod.
"Holy shit." Marie said, tapping the screen and watching the device come to life.
"Thought you'd like it." he said. "And I stuffed it with all the hippy music I could find, and some other stuff I thought you'd like."
"Timothy, you didn't have to-"
"I wanted to, Marie." Tim said, cutting her off. "It's what worried friends do when they get excited, ha." the reached the limo, and Marie stood up from her wheelchair, even as Timothy argued.
"I can handle climbing into a car, Tim." she said as she sat down on the leather seats.
"You haven't walked in over a year."
"Which is all the more reason to practice, isn't it?" she said. Timothy shook his head as he folded the wheelchair and placed it in the trunk. As he settled into the limo, Alfred up front revved it to life and soon they were all headed to Wayne Manor, where Bruce had informed Marie she'd be staying at least until she was better.
"Then, after that, you're welcome to stay or go. Whichever you prefer." Tim said. "But we'd rather you stay. You have a lot to catch up on, and we'd like to make sure your safe from, well, you know..."
"You think Black Mask might come after me?" Marie asked.
"I'm not saying that." Tim said. "But there's always a possibility."
"Stop that talk at once, Master Timothy." Alfred said from the front as he drove. "Miss Booker needs to rest, and bringing up old enemies won't help in that process."
"It's okay, Alfred." Marie said. "I'm done resting anyway." they neared a light just as it turned yellow, and Alfred began to slow down. Marie leaned forward. "You should go faster so we don't miss it." she said, and he chuckled.
"Safety first, Miss Booker."
"Ah, no fun." she said, and slumped back in her seat, crossing her arms childishly. She blinked, and sat up. Where did that come from?
"You're just ready to do all sorts of things, aren't you?" Tim said with a smirk. "Is 'get into car accident' first on your agenda?"
"Heheh. Yeah." Marie said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Just a little adrenaline rush, I guess."
"I wouldn't blame you. Being cooped up in your brain for a year must get boring." Tim said, and Marie socked him in the arm.
"No making fun." she said.
...
"This will be your room, Miss Booker." Alfred said a while after they arrived to the manor. They were on the second floor, and he opened one of the mahogany doors to reveal the largest bedroom Marie had ever seen. The walls were a light violet, and the large bed had a floral scheme to its covers. An oak dresser and wardrobe was against left wall alongside a vanity, and two french doors opened to a small balcony outside.
"Uh..."
"The white door over there leads to your bathroom, and clothes are located in the dresser. They may be too large, but we'll get you a proper wardrobe this coming weekend." Alfred said.
"Woooow..." Marie walked inside, almost afraid to touch anything and ruin its perfection. "I can never repay you for your kindness..." she muttered.
"Your comfort is all we ask for." Alfred said. "At three o'clock, Master Wayne has requested you visit him in his study. I'll leave you here to freshen up until then." he said, and left the room, closing the door behind him.
Marie walked over to the vanity and took in her matured features. So much had changed in two years, and it seemed like no time had passed at all. Sighing, she checked the wall clock. She had three hours before she'd go see Bruce. She looked at the large bed.
The last thing she wanted to do was sleep.
...
"Are you adjusting well here so far, Marie?" Bruce asked later as she took her seat in front of his desk. Books covered the walls around them, and a large computer sat on his desk. A grandfather clock was in the back corner, and seemed older than half the house.
"Uh, yeah. Thank you so much for allowing me to stay here." she said.
"It's my pleasure, I assure you. I should be thanking you for waking up and putting Tim's mind to rest. He's been on edge ever since we received that phone call. In was a hard night for him..."
"He never told me..." Marie said, looking down at her lap.
"He'd be pretty upset if you found out." Bruce said. "He likes to act tough, you know."
"Yeah, I know." Marie said, smiling. "But he can't hide how much he cares."
"No matter how much he tries." Bruce said. "Now as for why I called you here, besides to welcome you."
"Uh-oh. I knew there was a catch." Marie said, slumping her shoulders slightly.
"Not a catch, just one request." Bruce said. "I don't want you going after Black Mask." Marie's jaw set, and he sighed at her silence.
"I know what it's like, having a loved one gunned down in front of you. You feel helpless, like you should have been able to do more. But what you need to realize is there was nothing you actually could do."
"There was a lot I could do..." Marie said sadly, but Bruce shook his head.
"You'll realize one day. This guilt takes time to fade."
"It'll never fade..."
"It seems so, yes."
"It won't!" The sudden exclamation came from Marie's lips before she could stop herself. She covered her mouth in surprise. What was that sudden anger? Bruce was silent, and she took a deep breath. "You may not have been able to do anything, Bruce, but I really would have." She wrung her hands, biting her lip. "I...was working for Black Mask..." Bruce stilled then, and Marie was sure right then that she wouldn't be in his house for much longer. "I'll pack my things and be out of your hair soon. I'm sorry-"
"Don't move." Bruce said. Marie paused.
"Are you going to call the cops?" she asked.
"No." he said. Another surprise. "I want to hear your side of the story before we make any judgments here." he leaned back in his seat, and waited for her to begin.
"Uh...okay..." Marie said, and leaned forward. "It started...I guess two years ago..."
...
By the time she had finished, Bruce had a stern look. But it was caring. She swallowed, waiting for him t finally speak.
"Marie..." he said. "You've aided in many...many...criminal acts. Though I understand your intentions for the money were pure, you still committed countless crimes to attain it..."
"Yeah..." Marie said. "Now are you going to call the police." Bruce shook his head.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because I believe in second chances." he said. "I believe that we all make mistakes, and should sometimes be given the opportunity to prove ourselves. I want you to promise me some things though." he said. "I want you to put the past behind you. Don't dwell on that time. Cherish your mother's memory instead of reliving that horrific event. And especially..." he leaned forward, placing his elbows on the desk. "do not go after Black Mask. Understood?" he asked. Marie hesitated before nodding.
"I'll...do my best..." she said.
"I know you will. You're a good kid, Marie. Don't throw your life away over trash like Mask." he said, and she nodded. "Now that that's done, I want to take you somewhere this weekend." Bruce said.
"Where?"
"Your mother's grave. We'll go there this Sunday so you can pay your respects. I understand you never got the chance. We can take you there any time you wish afterward, as well." he said.
"Oh...thank..." Marie was in tears then, and quickly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Bruce handed her a tissue, and she took it.
"Don't be afraid to cry here. If you ever need someone to talk to, we're all here for you. We've each had our share of grievances, and know what it's like. Don't hesitate to ask our help if you need it."
"Thank you, Bruce..." Marie said. "Thank you so much..."
...
The next Sunday, Marie walked down the graveled path of the graveyard just behind Bruce and Timothy as they made their way to her mother's grave. She was dressed in a black blouse and skirt, and her hair was up in a neat bun. She held a single rose in her hand. A suggestion of Bruce. Once they reached the grave, Marie noticed plowers in font of it.
"I bring her flowers every week..." Timothy said.
"She would have loved you." Marie said quietly, and walked up to the headstone. It was simple, reaching up to her hip. A stone carnation was carved into it as well as an epitaph reading, 'Here Lies Sherry Booker, Beloved Mother'.
"I didn't know what else to have put there." Bruce said.
"It's perfect, thank you." Marie said, and knelt down. She placed the rose on the grass. "I'm with the Waynes now, mom..." she whispered. "Can you believe it? They're giving me a second chance. I'll be good, I promise. No more crime. No more Black Mask. I'm gonna be a surgeon just like I said I would. So don't worry about me, okay? Don't worry. I'll see you another time. I love you." she stood up again and straightened out her skirt before wiping away any stray tears. "I can go now."
"Are you sure?" Bruce asked.
"Yeah. I'll be coming back here a lot, though." she said, and lead them away from the grave and back down the graveled path.
They didn't notice, as they moved away, the rose that was once a brilliant red, begin to wilt, until all that remained was a brown and shriveled memory.
Somewhere, someone chuckled darkly...