Here we go once again! Orion here. I'm happy to see the story making as much progress as it is, and the views certainly help in tha tmatter. I just wanna thank all you readers for taking time to read through this work. I'm putting a lot of time and effort into making sure these chapters come out, and I will certainly try and keep up that momentum. Until next time, please enjoy!

Vicki was stewing in her new office. Well, 'office' was something of a stretch. It was basically more of a supply closet that Monroe cleared out, shoved a tiny desk in, and gave to her as a 'reward' for her 'initiative'. She almost scoffed at the words, not for the first time considering murder. Unfortunately, it was still illegal, especially in front of witnesses. That and, sadly, Monroe was still paying her bills.

Damn it! This should have been it! She had done what was, by all accounts, impossible. An interview with Bruce Wayne! That should have given her something, anything really! A bit more recognition, a chance to maybe climb the ranks towards the Gazette.

But no. Monroe had taken it upon himself to get credit for the article. Sure it had her name plastered on it, but he was already strutting around, telling everyone that he was smart enough to get Vicki into that damn Wayne Haunted House.

Of course, given that Vicki was so gracious to cover the event in the first place, Monroe was 'nice' enough to give her a meager raise, telling her to 'keep up the good work'.

Good work. Good work?! You would tell someone that when they found a spelling issue right before a paper was going to be sent to print. You'd tell a person that when they brought in a box of cheap donuts for people to enjoy, not when a supposed rookie had managed to get her hands on Gotham's Prodigal Son and get a quote from him!

And instead of trying to use the actual damn interview like she wanted to do, he just brushed that off and had Vicki writing that stupid puff piece article. Something to get the readers of this damn magazine invested. Even then, that should have meant more for her. But what did she get? Nothing but a little pat on the back from a slimy little—

Taking a deep breath, Vicki tried once again to cool herself off. She couldn't afford to get angry at Monroe. Not when she was barely getting back on her feet. Sure, she could maybe complain, but there was one good thing that came out of all this.

She still had the notes. The actual interview that she had conducted. Not the barely usable drivel that she had snagged at the manor, but the actual, good questions that Vicki had snagged when the pair had arrived at the Gala.

Sure, the rest of Gotham's elite were honestly easy pickings when push came to shove, and it was easy enough to see how they ticked. She had dealt with the type before, and honestly some of the people that Wayne had directed her way certainly opened the door to some potential sponsors.

But Gotham's Most Eligible Bachelor? The man who no one had any real ideas about? His words were practically a gold mine. Of course, if there was one thing that Vicki had learned through all of this, she had to make sure that Wayne was telling the truth.

With nothing else but spite and her laptop, it was finally time to start fact checking her interview. Wayne might have certainly been all smiles and charms, but that didn't mean Vicki could trust him for this sort of thing. Hell, it probably meant she had to be extra careful making sure that whatever she could publish was actually verifiable.

He claimed to have left the city when he was fifteen, but stayed in the United States for a couple of years. Something about needing to get away from the city, trying to figure himself out. She couldn't exactly blame him, really. Witnessing your parents getting gunned down and staying in the city it happened wasn't exactly good for anyone's health, and it was probably his best bet to leave.

Honestly, any rich teenager would likely have made headlines, especially with what was basically an endless budget, but Wayne was different. Wherever he ended up going, he was able to stay out of the public eye, only appearing in the briefest of photographs, or small mentions of him being spotted, more often than not by trashy, headline seeking magazines. Almost like the one she was working for—focus. Vicki had to focus.

Regardless, she was almost impressed with the way he operated. Almost like a ghost. Out of sight, out of mind.

By the time he was seventeen, however, Wayne was traveling the world. Exactly like he claimed to have been doing. That was where things had gotten interesting. The first picture certainly made Vicki roll her eyes. Partying at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Because of course he was. But that wasn't the only time he was spotted.

It took some digging, but Vicki found Wayne appearing in the oddest of places. Museums, universities, libraries. But it didn't stop there. Throughout that year in particular, it almost seemed like Wayne was hopping from one European country to another.

England, where someone snagged a picture of him at Cambridge.

Italy, Venice especially, where he was spotted at an art museum.

Germany, where he was apparently listed as a wealthy investor for an engineering university, with records verifying he was there for a number of weeks.

At one point, he even ended up in Switzerland. That one wasn't surprising, if Vicki was being honest. As cliché as it was, rich people tended to go to Switzerland for its banking. She certainly had traced a number of people's accounts back in Metropolis, and it wouldn't shock Vicki if Wayne had one set up as well.

A pattern was slowly starting to form, however. Beneath all the partying and debauchery that Vicki had come to expect from a trust fund kid, Wayne clearly had something in mind. In all the headlines, there was the moron that was partying at the top of the Eiffel Tower. But away from them, when you had to do some actual digging, there was someone who was honestly using his money for something useful.

By the time he was twenty however, something had shifted. Or maybe his focus had changed. It certainly made Vicki pause, and she had to make sure she wasn't imagining things.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me."

At some point, Wayne had apparently found his way over to Asia. Whether it was for the culture or the food, Vicki couldn't be sure. What she was sure about however? The picture that she had found of Wayne waving around what was clearly an expensive samurai sword. He had the same dopey grin that she had first seen on his face, back at the restaurant. Acting like a fool with no care in the world. The people around him cheering and waving drinks.

A bit more digging, and Vicki finally was able to figure out what this was. Some sort of business party, with a theme surrounding samurai. The sword in question? A very good-looking foam replica. Glancing back at her notes, Wayne had mentioned meeting up with some business partners in Japan at one point.

From there it was certainly far more difficult to actually pin Wayne down in a single area for long. Small, apparent sightings on private yachts and planes, small mentions of him somehow ending back up in Europe again. And by twenty-five, he was back home, having flown in from England, back in Gotham.

Here, Vicki could certainly see that the man looked exhausted. All the pictures, the press swarming him. It was almost a miracle that people even knew that he was arriving, yet somehow it had happened. Everyone was lining up to see Gotham's lost billionaire, wanting to see what to expect. But no matter what people were asking him, Wayne remained silent, just waving everyone off and entering a car, speeding away.

After that, things were relatively silent. He would pop up for a board meeting or two throughout the year, but no one was able to really get in touch with the man. At least, that was until Vicki had struck gold on Halloween. But just because the public hadn't been able to see Bruce Wayne.. That didn't mean that his company wasn't the same way. Vicki was proud to say that an idea popped into her head. It was going to take some work. But first? She had to take an extended lunch break. Monroe owed her that much at least.

She had to admit, while most of Gotham City was dirty in a way that Vicki felt she had to shower every time she stepped outside, the buildings that Wayne owned were damn near spotless. They were sleek. More modern in comparison to Gotham's dark, uncanny architecture. Even the smog that was cascading above couldn't be smelt the moment she stepped into one of them.

Vicki was sitting in a café, munching on an overpriced muffin and sipping on an equally overpriced cup of coffee. This building in particular was one of the headquarters, thankfully only a twenty-minute walk from the Gazette. And while she was certainly taking the perks of getting a snack, her real reason for visiting?

WayneTech was certainly in the spirit for hosting things, because it seemed that a tech demo was opening up. All for the public to catch the latest in what the company had planned out. And while Vicki certainly wasn't the most technologically savvy person around, there was one thing that she had noticed in all her research.

The Wayne name had its fingers in almost all the pies that were in Gotham. Infrastructure, charity fundraising and homeless shelters, even advancing medical research. But the area that had really started booming once Bruce Wayne had returned to Gotham? The tech industry. Technology was slowly becoming more important in this day and age. Scratch that, it was important. And for some reason, Wayne wanted it to keep going.

So yeah, Vicki was curious. Hell, maybe if she was lucky she could snag a sample or two. Anything was better than nothing at this rate. Soon enough, she was walking through the building, following the crowds once more. For the moment she wasn't here as a reporter, because that would lead to a few questions she didn't want to answer. No, for now, she was just another face in the crowd, gawking at all the fancy gadgets that WayneTech was ready to throw out.

To be honest? It was sorta impressive. Vicki, more often than not, caught herself staring at the phones that were on display. Leagues above anything she had seen at Metropolis, and given the sort of tech that LexCorp had been throwing out when she was still able to get into those events, that was saying something.

"Geez. Wonder how much it'll cost to get my hands on some of this."

"You kidding? It's WayneTech. It'll probably cost an arm and a leg if we're lucky."

While Vicki was certainly impressed with what she was seeing, it was clear that some people were not. She kept walking around, trying to spot something, anything really that would have stood out. A story to tell, a piece of technology to check through. And then she passed by a monitor, showing several images. A woman's voice echoed across the now playing video.

"Welcome to the WayneTech Expo. To the left, you can take a look at some of the newest prototypes submitted by our hardworking scientists. From cell phones to laptops, to our new and top of the line medical technology."

Vicki found herself staring at one of the new smartwatches. It was honestly a nice design. Eye catching but simple. And judging by what they could do? She would have killed to have one of these on hand, but at this rate that wouldn't be likely.

"Here at WayneTech, we make it our mission to bridge the gap between a hopeful today and a better tomorrow. We're doing our part to make the city a safer, brighter place."

That would certainly be the day. A 'safer, brighter place'? Vicki certainly tried to hold back the scoff she felt as she poked around at some of the phones, trying to compare what made them all different.

Gotham was just… dirty. There was no other way to describe it. The air, the city, none of it felt safe, not even her crappy, rundown apartment. Compared to Metropolis, compared to anyone. And that wasn't even counting what the people did to one another. All the murders, the attacks, anything that might have convinced a person to just up and ditch the city.

Vicki was so caught up in her head that she hadn't realized she had wandered away from the technological show, and towards the pharmaceutical section. At least that's where she would have gone, had she not almost collided with an older woman. Quickly catching herself, Vicki silently cursed and stepped back.

"Christ, sorry about that, just stuck in my own thoughts a lot I swear…" she quickly said, her focus on the older woman, hoping that she hadn't fallen or tripped. Thankfully she hadn't, and had taken Vicki stumbling into her with relative stride.

"Oh please, it's alright. I know for a fact these things used to get a bit hectic. Granted, I haven't been to one of these in some time," the woman replied with a brief chuckle. Vicki, always the curious mind, glanced at her. The woman wore a fairly nice matching green shirt and skirt. Casual, but professional. She had a few wrinkles on her face, with salt and pepper grey. But something she had mentioned caught Vicki's ear. Familiarity. Maybe it was a thread to follow up on?

"Oh, you've used to come to these expos? When was the last time you showed up to one of those?"

The older woman let out a tired sigh, the look on her face showing… regret? Or maybe melancholy.

"God, the last time I was at one of these conventions… I think Thomas was running the company." She muttered, eyes wandering over towards the medical tech on display.

Thomas? Vicki's brain was running overtime now. Surely she didn't mean…

"Thomas Wayne? You knew him?"

"You could say that. His work with the Wayne Foundation helped fund my clinic. God… it really helped." The woman replied, trailing off for a moment before shaking her head. "Here I am reminiscing about a good man with a stranger. I'm sorry, I never caught your name."

"That's because I never gave it. I'm Vicki, and uh, sorry about running into you. Literally." She said, offering out a hand. The older woman took it, chuckling once more.

"Believe me, that's honestly the most polite greeting I've had in this city. A pleasure to meet you Vicki. I'm Leslie. I hope you don't mind my rambling, but these trips to Wayne buildings always bring up memories." Leslie said, glancing towards a podium.

"Oh please, it's no trouble at all. I'm actually new to the city, and I always just hear about anything that Wayne Enterprise offers." Vicki said, waving off Leslie's concerns. "Honestly this city is just…"

"Hell?" Leslie blandly asked, smirking at Vicki's own sheepish look.

"I wouldn't exactly go… that far."

"Dear, I was born and raised here. There's no need to sugar coat it. But I suppose if you are curious about the better parts of this city… well this is certainly the best place to start." Leslie said, gesturing off to the side. Her face faltered for a moment, as a picture of… Bruce Wayne appeared on a nearby monitor. He was all smiles and charms, clearly reading out some prepared speech for investors and interested people alive.

"... Goodness. He looks just like Thomas," she quietly muttered, one of her hands moving over her mouth. Vicki wasn't sure whether her joy or pity was winning out now. Joy because she had clearly found someone who would be a good source of info on Wayne. Pity because the poor woman looked absolutely devastated upon seeing him. Even if they had just met, the look certainly had elicited something from Vicki.

"I'm sorry um. Leslie, right? Are you alright?" Vicki gently asked.

Leslie was shaken from her stupor, and she sighed.

"Oh it's nothing. Just an old woman's regrets is all. But there's no place for that here," Leslie said, clearing her throat. Trying to move past what had just happened. Not that Vicki blamed her. "But you mentioned you were new to the city, right? Well. If you ever need any help, please don't hesitate to stop by. My clinic is open most days and nights, and you never know when it might come in handy," Leslie told her, offering Vicki a card. One that she definitely took, trying to not look desperate as she did so.

"Oh, really? Thanks. Here's to hoping I won't, but I do appreciate the offer," Vicki said, giving Leslie a weak chuckle.

"Here's to hoping. I'm going to grab some refreshments. It was nice meeting you, Vicki. Please, take care," Leslie said, before turning and walking off in another direction. It took a bit for Vicki to pointedly not notice the tears forming in one eye. Instead, her focus went down to the card, reading over

Doctor Leslie Thompkins, M.D

Thomas Wayne Memorial Clinic

Park Row

Shaking her head, she quickly checked the time and cursed. Her lunch was almost up, and it was a decent walk away. As Vicki quickly marched out of the WayneTech building, she pocketed the card, already making notes about it and Leslie herself.

It was something. Better than something. But was Vicki really prepared to find out more about Wayne from a woman grieving? Vicki had always prided herself on sticking to her guns, maintaining morals in the face of everything thrown at her. Most of her was so sure of it, but a tiny part nagged at her. The angry, bitter portion that wanted to get something back from the world.

That part scared her.

Next Chapter: 6th February