p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Penguin gripped the sliver of wood in his hand, now the only remnant of the destruction of his beloved Lounge. emIt's strange, /emhe thought with a crooked smile, emthat such a small splinterwould be worth so much./em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"While he had been privy to the original formula developed by Friitawa and Crane, this new variation seemed to be something new entirely; seemingly combining the original formula with the finalized genetic experiments she had used to 'cure' herself, creating an effective combination that mixed the benefits of both the Scarebeast and her serum without their weaknesses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"If it weren't for her obsession with fear and predilection for unethical experimentation on humans, he could see her potentially making billions on this serum, enough that she could potentially buy even someone like Bruce Wayne out of business with money to spare. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Shaking his head, he stowed the shard in his pocket. "I'm here, Friitawa. Where are ya?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I'm right here, Cobblepot."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Friitawa slowly slinked out of the shadows, her form blended into the rusty red of the walls, almost invisible under the yellow-orange lights. "I knew you would come."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""This better be worth it," he grumbled, crossing his arms. "I didn't come all the way 'ere just to be taken for a fool."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Indeed," Friitawa said, opening the door in front of her. "Follow me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"The door opened up into a huge cavern containing what looked like an underground city. It looked abandoned, with a few buildings ruined and caved in from falling rocks. However, Penguin could make out several intact buildings as they passed, including a textile manufacturer, a jeweler, a candy shop, a butcher shop, and even an occult store./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Wot is this place?" he asked, staring at the archaic drugs in the drug store, some of which contained ingredients that would be considered illegal in the modern day. "It looks like something out of the turn o' the century."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""You're close," Friitawa replied, before running her hand over wall. "This was the original Gotham City, built more than 100 years before the Gotham we know of today. It was originally called Wonder City, before the officials of Gotham buried it and it became the ruins you see before you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a click, a wall rolled away, revealing a hidden room. Inside was filled with numerous blueprints, each depicting Gotham City's major structures pinned to the walls. On the table was a blueprint of the city, with an outcropping showing where Arkham Asylum connected to the mainland./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Please, have a seat," she said, gesturing to the nearby chair./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a huff, Cobblepot shimmied into the seat, his legs barely touching the ground before he lowered the seat into a more comfortable position. "I must say. I didna expect ya to be throwing your lot in with Al 'Ghul and his gang. Did Jeremiah Arkham not satisfy you, dear girl?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She laughed. "On the contrary, old friend. Jeremiah's services was more than satisfactory," she replied, sliding a shot glass towards him as she poured a bottle of wine from underneath the table. "However, I am not one to look over an opportunity when it presents itself. Ra's merely gave me a better offer."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"The Penguin held the shot glass in his hand, taking sips from it. Merlot. She had good taste. "So, ya went from being second in command to a mere lap dog. I don't see 'ow emthat/em is much of an opportunity. What did Ra's offer you that could be better than wha' emhe /emdid?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Friitawa grinned, taking a sip. "It may seem that way at first glance. But I know a secret that he is keeping, a secret that would ensure that the fear I inflict will last for eternity."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Does it have anyt'ing to do with that hulking brute you gave me earlier?" he asked, downing his glass as he poured himself another shot./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""It might," she said cryptically, taking more sips from her glass./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""And nothing to do with your dwindling life, I see."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She gripped the glass harshly, causing it to ring where her fingernails pierced the glass as she glared at him, red eyes gleaming./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I take it that I hi' the nail o' the head," Cobblepot remarked, watching with amusement as Friitawa seethed./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""My cure had unintended side effects, yes," she admitted, her eyes sharply sliding onto his. "It would have been remedied if it were not for that little rat. Had I known that she would be compatible, I would have gutted her instead and left her body to the crows. But this is not about her."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a swish of her coat, she took an envelope off of a nearby shelf, handing it to the stout man. "Instead, it's about this."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Taking out his monocle, he pushed it up to his eyes as he examined the contents of the envelope, a necessity now that one of his eyes was encased in a glass bottle. "Whot is this?" he inquired, taking out a note with a chemical equation on it and a map./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Do you remember the vial I gave you a few days ago?" When he nodded, she continued. "I want you to reproduce it and send it to the locations marked on the map. I don't care how you reproduce it, as long as it is delivered by the date and time indicated in the margins."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""And whot do you plan on doing with it once it's delivered?" he asked, hesitating./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She only gave him an eerie grin./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""You'll see."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Silence greeted them as Jonathan flicked on the lights to their hideout, supporting Becky as she leaned against him. He sympathized with her exhaustion; the aftermath of the first transformations were always the worst, in his opinion. emAt least she will have the benefit of resting where/ememshe can be safe, /emhe thought. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Happy Birthday, Becky," he said softly, turning towards his room at the other end of the hall after he guided her to her door./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Wait," she murmured, eyes half closed as she desperately tried to stay awake. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What is it?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Can I sleep with you?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"His face blanched, cheeks burning red as he gulped, stiffening in shock. "I-I thought it wasn't until the second date that couples sleep together," he stammered, trying to pass off his nervousness as a joke, but failing miserably. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He was no prude, of course. He knew enough about the female anatomy from his time in medical school that nothing about the physical aspect of sex was unknown to him. The offer to have someone sleep with him wasn't unknown either, as he had been propositioned by a couple of prostitutes before, back when he had first started his criminal career and was still learning the ropes. However, despite their provocative actions and clothing, he hadn't felt a spark of attraction towards them at all. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Even Ivy, despite her use of her famous "lust dust", had only provoked a minor feeling in his pants while every other male was slobbering all over her. Which was one of the reasons that he and Ivy had never gotten along, as both of them considered the other too dangerous to closely associate with for long; she because even the minor feeling of that arousal made Crane incredibly uncomfortable with being around her and the pheromones she exuded and he because Ivy couldn't control him like she could the other men she encountered, which, in her eyes, made him unpredictable. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Yet with Becky, he felt incredibly attracted to her, to the point of distraction, which both irritated and confused him. Irritated, as it distracted him from rational thought, and confused, as he had never felt like this before. There were perhaps inklings of it when he was in high school with Sherry Squires, but those had been quickly dosed when she had humiliated him in front of his entire school while mocking him with her real boyfriend, Bo Griggs. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"And the less that was said about Friitawa and her betrayal, the better. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"It was perhaps one reason that he had tried hard, probably too hard, to win Becky over to his side that fateful night 6 years ago, after he realized that she had more in common with him than he thought. In hindsight, he had not made the best first impression, both before and after he had made the first offer. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Trying to kill someone usually put a damper on those kinds of things./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"To say it was an anomaly for her to join him again 5 years later was one thing, but it was a downright miracle that she decided to pursue a relationship with him. So, for her to even posit the offer of sleeping with him sounded like a dream come true, almost too good to be true. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She laughed tiredly, rolling her eyes. "Not like that." emNot /ememyet./em "I…" she paused, looking down at her hands as she shuffled her feet slightly. "I just don't want to be alone right now."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"His eyes softened in understanding and he relaxed, taking her hand in his as he placed a kiss on her brow. "Of course," he said with surprising gentleness as he guided her slowly to his bedroom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She giggled a little deliriously at the black and orange color scheme of his room. From the blankets of his bedroom to the lamp on his desk was colored orange, giving it a feel between "Halloween forever " and being inside a warm fireplace./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What?" he asked, bemused. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""It's nothing," she said, covering her mouth with her hand her giggles at bay. "I take it orange and black are your favorite colors."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Well, what else did you think it would be? Yellow and brown?" he asked teasingly, chuckling as she lightly shoved him in response. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Honestly, I thought at least yellow would be your favorite," she said, stifling a yawn as she ducked into his bathroom to get dressed. "Seeing as it's the color of fear, and all."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Not everything is about…" he was about to say emfear/em when the words caught up to him, and he nearly choked. Where had those come from? Had he really been about to admit that fear wasn't everything to him?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"No. No. He had just had a slip of the tongue. Nothing more. He still believed in fear. He had to. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"If he didn't, then what was there to believe in?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He shook his head, looking up as the door opened and Becky stepped out, now dressed in her blue pajamas. "Your turn," she said, smiling as she observed him blush a bit as she slid onto the right side of the bed. He was so cute when he blushed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, before grabbing a long-sleeved orange night shirt and black sweatpants and hastily changing. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Do you have anything that isn't Halloween colors?" she wondered, giggling slightly as he stepped out of the bathroom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I have a emfew/em things," he defended, pouting as she laughed at his petulant expression, pulling back the covers to slide in beside her. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I'm surprised you want to sleep beside me. Last time this happened, you leapt back like I had bitten you," she said, wrapping her arm around his side. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, his hand brushing against her cheek. "Last time, I was still in denial."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Denial about whether you liked me or denial that you cuddle in your sleep?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""For the record, the cuddling was a fluke," he huffed, giving her a quick kiss before turning off the lights. "Goodnight, Becky."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She smiled at him, before closing her eyes. "Goodnight, Jonathan," she mumbled, already drifting off to sleep. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, letting out a soft sigh of contentment at her sleeping form. Rolling over, he nearly let out a muffled scream of fright as he saw his doppelganger once again looming over him. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"strongspan style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I see that you've ignored my advice," /span/strongspan style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Scarecrow said, tutting as he looked at his clipboard. strong"I did warn you that this would cost you. And once again, she has to pay the price."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What did you do to her?" he growled under his breath, careful to not waking the sleeping woman beside him. Thankfully, she only mumbled a little bit, curling in more on herself. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongMe? Nothing." /strongthe figure replied with a chuckle. "strongAbsolutely nothing. I couldn't have predicted what would happen to her more than you could. I am you just as much as you are me, remember? Or did you forget about that like you forgot about my warning."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What do you want?" he hissed, shifting himself so that he blocked Becky's sleeping form from the phantom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongWant? Want?!"/strong The doppelganger laughed hysterically, the sound seemingly echoing despite the insulated space. "strongYou already know what I want. And yet, you do nothing. Are you blind to what is starting to happen? Or did you not pick up on the hints when you were exploring the Asylum?"/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Hints? What hints?" Crane asked, confused. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"At this, the doppelganger threw up its hands in exasperation. "strongMust I spell out everything for you? Think back. What did you overhear from Dr. Young? How about the formula that you found in the library? The body you found in the morgue?" /strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What does any of that have to do with…" he stopped, paling as it finally clicked in his tired mind. "No. No, they would have nothing to gain from those experiments. Even emthey/em wouldn't go that far."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongAnd yet you thought the same about Linda once upon a time," /strongthe phantom reminded him, the syringes on his right hand tapping on his arm as he crossed them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Jonathan rubbed his eyes. He could've sworn there hadn't been a glove there before. "I'll see what I can find tomorrow. Just let me sleep."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Scarecrow grinned. "strongVery well. I will leave you for now. But I must warn you. The countdown has begun, and you'd best not let it run out."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Crane didn't hear the rest as his vision faded to black as he was pulled into slumber. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"While he had been privy to the original formula developed by Friitawa and Crane, this new variation seemed to be something new entirely; seemingly combining the original formula with the finalized genetic experiments she had used to 'cure' herself, creating an effective combination that mixed the benefits of both the Scarebeast and her serum without their weaknesses./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"If it weren't for her obsession with fear and predilection for unethical experimentation on humans, he could see her potentially making billions on this serum, enough that she could potentially buy even someone like Bruce Wayne out of business with money to spare. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Shaking his head, he stowed the shard in his pocket. "I'm here, Friitawa. Where are ya?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I'm right here, Cobblepot."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Friitawa slowly slinked out of the shadows, her form blended into the rusty red of the walls, almost invisible under the yellow-orange lights. "I knew you would come."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""This better be worth it," he grumbled, crossing his arms. "I didn't come all the way 'ere just to be taken for a fool."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Indeed," Friitawa said, opening the door in front of her. "Follow me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"The door opened up into a huge cavern containing what looked like an underground city. It looked abandoned, with a few buildings ruined and caved in from falling rocks. However, Penguin could make out several intact buildings as they passed, including a textile manufacturer, a jeweler, a candy shop, a butcher shop, and even an occult store./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Wot is this place?" he asked, staring at the archaic drugs in the drug store, some of which contained ingredients that would be considered illegal in the modern day. "It looks like something out of the turn o' the century."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""You're close," Friitawa replied, before running her hand over wall. "This was the original Gotham City, built more than 100 years before the Gotham we know of today. It was originally called Wonder City, before the officials of Gotham buried it and it became the ruins you see before you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a click, a wall rolled away, revealing a hidden room. Inside was filled with numerous blueprints, each depicting Gotham City's major structures pinned to the walls. On the table was a blueprint of the city, with an outcropping showing where Arkham Asylum connected to the mainland./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Please, have a seat," she said, gesturing to the nearby chair./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a huff, Cobblepot shimmied into the seat, his legs barely touching the ground before he lowered the seat into a more comfortable position. "I must say. I didna expect ya to be throwing your lot in with Al 'Ghul and his gang. Did Jeremiah Arkham not satisfy you, dear girl?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She laughed. "On the contrary, old friend. Jeremiah's services was more than satisfactory," she replied, sliding a shot glass towards him as she poured a bottle of wine from underneath the table. "However, I am not one to look over an opportunity when it presents itself. Ra's merely gave me a better offer."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"The Penguin held the shot glass in his hand, taking sips from it. Merlot. She had good taste. "So, ya went from being second in command to a mere lap dog. I don't see 'ow emthat/em is much of an opportunity. What did Ra's offer you that could be better than wha' emhe /emdid?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Friitawa grinned, taking a sip. "It may seem that way at first glance. But I know a secret that he is keeping, a secret that would ensure that the fear I inflict will last for eternity."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Does it have anyt'ing to do with that hulking brute you gave me earlier?" he asked, downing his glass as he poured himself another shot./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""It might," she said cryptically, taking more sips from her glass./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""And nothing to do with your dwindling life, I see."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She gripped the glass harshly, causing it to ring where her fingernails pierced the glass as she glared at him, red eyes gleaming./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I take it that I hi' the nail o' the head," Cobblepot remarked, watching with amusement as Friitawa seethed./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""My cure had unintended side effects, yes," she admitted, her eyes sharply sliding onto his. "It would have been remedied if it were not for that little rat. Had I known that she would be compatible, I would have gutted her instead and left her body to the crows. But this is not about her."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"With a swish of her coat, she took an envelope off of a nearby shelf, handing it to the stout man. "Instead, it's about this."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Taking out his monocle, he pushed it up to his eyes as he examined the contents of the envelope, a necessity now that one of his eyes was encased in a glass bottle. "Whot is this?" he inquired, taking out a note with a chemical equation on it and a map./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Do you remember the vial I gave you a few days ago?" When he nodded, she continued. "I want you to reproduce it and send it to the locations marked on the map. I don't care how you reproduce it, as long as it is delivered by the date and time indicated in the margins."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""And whot do you plan on doing with it once it's delivered?" he asked, hesitating./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She only gave him an eerie grin./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""You'll see."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Silence greeted them as Jonathan flicked on the lights to their hideout, supporting Becky as she leaned against him. He sympathized with her exhaustion; the aftermath of the first transformations were always the worst, in his opinion. emAt least she will have the benefit of resting where/ememshe can be safe, /emhe thought. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Happy Birthday, Becky," he said softly, turning towards his room at the other end of the hall after he guided her to her door./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Wait," she murmured, eyes half closed as she desperately tried to stay awake. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What is it?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Can I sleep with you?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"His face blanched, cheeks burning red as he gulped, stiffening in shock. "I-I thought it wasn't until the second date that couples sleep together," he stammered, trying to pass off his nervousness as a joke, but failing miserably. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He was no prude, of course. He knew enough about the female anatomy from his time in medical school that nothing about the physical aspect of sex was unknown to him. The offer to have someone sleep with him wasn't unknown either, as he had been propositioned by a couple of prostitutes before, back when he had first started his criminal career and was still learning the ropes. However, despite their provocative actions and clothing, he hadn't felt a spark of attraction towards them at all. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Even Ivy, despite her use of her famous "lust dust", had only provoked a minor feeling in his pants while every other male was slobbering all over her. Which was one of the reasons that he and Ivy had never gotten along, as both of them considered the other too dangerous to closely associate with for long; she because even the minor feeling of that arousal made Crane incredibly uncomfortable with being around her and the pheromones she exuded and he because Ivy couldn't control him like she could the other men she encountered, which, in her eyes, made him unpredictable. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Yet with Becky, he felt incredibly attracted to her, to the point of distraction, which both irritated and confused him. Irritated, as it distracted him from rational thought, and confused, as he had never felt like this before. There were perhaps inklings of it when he was in high school with Sherry Squires, but those had been quickly dosed when she had humiliated him in front of his entire school while mocking him with her real boyfriend, Bo Griggs. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"And the less that was said about Friitawa and her betrayal, the better. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"It was perhaps one reason that he had tried hard, probably too hard, to win Becky over to his side that fateful night 6 years ago, after he realized that she had more in common with him than he thought. In hindsight, he had not made the best first impression, both before and after he had made the first offer. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Trying to kill someone usually put a damper on those kinds of things./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"To say it was an anomaly for her to join him again 5 years later was one thing, but it was a downright miracle that she decided to pursue a relationship with him. So, for her to even posit the offer of sleeping with him sounded like a dream come true, almost too good to be true. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She laughed tiredly, rolling her eyes. "Not like that." emNot /ememyet./em "I…" she paused, looking down at her hands as she shuffled her feet slightly. "I just don't want to be alone right now."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"His eyes softened in understanding and he relaxed, taking her hand in his as he placed a kiss on her brow. "Of course," he said with surprising gentleness as he guided her slowly to his bedroom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She giggled a little deliriously at the black and orange color scheme of his room. From the blankets of his bedroom to the lamp on his desk was colored orange, giving it a feel between "Halloween forever " and being inside a warm fireplace./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What?" he asked, bemused. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""It's nothing," she said, covering her mouth with her hand her giggles at bay. "I take it orange and black are your favorite colors."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Well, what else did you think it would be? Yellow and brown?" he asked teasingly, chuckling as she lightly shoved him in response. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Honestly, I thought at least yellow would be your favorite," she said, stifling a yawn as she ducked into his bathroom to get dressed. "Seeing as it's the color of fear, and all."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Not everything is about…" he was about to say emfear/em when the words caught up to him, and he nearly choked. Where had those come from? Had he really been about to admit that fear wasn't everything to him?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"No. No. He had just had a slip of the tongue. Nothing more. He still believed in fear. He had to. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"If he didn't, then what was there to believe in?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He shook his head, looking up as the door opened and Becky stepped out, now dressed in her blue pajamas. "Your turn," she said, smiling as she observed him blush a bit as she slid onto the right side of the bed. He was so cute when he blushed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, before grabbing a long-sleeved orange night shirt and black sweatpants and hastily changing. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Do you have anything that isn't Halloween colors?" she wondered, giggling slightly as he stepped out of the bathroom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I have a emfew/em things," he defended, pouting as she laughed at his petulant expression, pulling back the covers to slide in beside her. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I'm surprised you want to sleep beside me. Last time this happened, you leapt back like I had bitten you," she said, wrapping her arm around his side. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, his hand brushing against her cheek. "Last time, I was still in denial."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Denial about whether you liked me or denial that you cuddle in your sleep?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""For the record, the cuddling was a fluke," he huffed, giving her a quick kiss before turning off the lights. "Goodnight, Becky."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"She smiled at him, before closing her eyes. "Goodnight, Jonathan," she mumbled, already drifting off to sleep. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"He smiled, letting out a soft sigh of contentment at her sleeping form. Rolling over, he nearly let out a muffled scream of fright as he saw his doppelganger once again looming over him. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"strongspan style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""I see that you've ignored my advice," /span/strongspan style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Scarecrow said, tutting as he looked at his clipboard. strong"I did warn you that this would cost you. And once again, she has to pay the price."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What did you do to her?" he growled under his breath, careful to not waking the sleeping woman beside him. Thankfully, she only mumbled a little bit, curling in more on herself. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongMe? Nothing." /strongthe figure replied with a chuckle. "strongAbsolutely nothing. I couldn't have predicted what would happen to her more than you could. I am you just as much as you are me, remember? Or did you forget about that like you forgot about my warning."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What do you want?" he hissed, shifting himself so that he blocked Becky's sleeping form from the phantom. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongWant? Want?!"/strong The doppelganger laughed hysterically, the sound seemingly echoing despite the insulated space. "strongYou already know what I want. And yet, you do nothing. Are you blind to what is starting to happen? Or did you not pick up on the hints when you were exploring the Asylum?"/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""Hints? What hints?" Crane asked, confused. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"At this, the doppelganger threw up its hands in exasperation. "strongMust I spell out everything for you? Think back. What did you overhear from Dr. Young? How about the formula that you found in the library? The body you found in the morgue?" /strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""What does any of that have to do with…" he stopped, paling as it finally clicked in his tired mind. "No. No, they would have nothing to gain from those experiments. Even emthey/em wouldn't go that far."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;""strongAnd yet you thought the same about Linda once upon a time," /strongthe phantom reminded him, the syringes on his right hand tapping on his arm as he crossed them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Jonathan rubbed his eyes. He could've sworn there hadn't been a glove there before. "I'll see what I can find tomorrow. Just let me sleep."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Scarecrow grinned. "strongVery well. I will leave you for now. But I must warn you. The countdown has begun, and you'd best not let it run out."/strong/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria;"Crane didn't hear the rest as his vision faded to black as he was pulled into slumber. /span/p