On Your Rooftop, Spoiling Your Crime
Night settled over Gotham City like a thick, oppressive wool blanket, more scratchy than it was comforting. As the last rays of the sun faded away into night, the few citizens of Gotham who had even a modicum of common sense scurried away into their homes for the night and wouldn’t be seen until the sun rose early the next morning.
Stephanie Brown was not one of those people. I’ve already died once, she mused as she slid the eggplant colored hood over her head, so that one could barely make out the black mask that covered her entire face. If one got a good enough look, they would see a pair of light-reflecting white lenses eerily staring back at them. What’s the worst that could happen to me after that? She could, of course, die again, but Stephanie’s flame burned too brightly for her to think of something like that happening again. If anything, she’d learned from some of the biggest mistakes she’d made, and she wouldn’t be repeating them if she could help it.
Especially not after the way her mother had reacted when Stephanie had arrived on her doorstep, alive and well. Crystal Brown had nearly had a stroke that night, and Steph wished that she’d planned that particular reveal better. It had taken a lot of hospital tests and like to convince her mother that the Blackest Night had indeed brought Crystal’s own daughter back to her, and not a zombie or a hollow or something equally scary.
I wonder how I would react if my own daughter... Stephanie didn’t follow through with that thought. The fact of the matter was that Stephanie did have a daughter - one she’d given up for adoption a couple of years ago. Well. More than that, considering my time as a corpse. It was not a decision that she regretted - Stephanie would never have been able to provide a stable life for the girl - but one which still haunted her. It had been hard enough giving up a puppy when she was five years old. Giving up something that was her own flesh and blood...
So not the time to think about this, she thought as she took a grappling hook out from her belt. Mom would be so angry if she knew I was doing this. Crystal had made it clear to Steph in no uncertain terms that she was not to gallivant around town as the Spoiler anymore. Stephanie had reluctantly agreed.
Then, two nights ago, she’d been walking home from her part-time job at Gotham West Mercy hospital when she’d inadvertantly stumbled upon a hold-up in process. Unable to stop herself - Stephanie had pulled up the hood of her sweatshirt and sprung into action. She’d disarmed the thugs, saved the girl, and done a good job. It was at that moment that she’d realized that, no matter what, she wouldn’t be able to stop being Spoiler. Please don’t hate me, Mom. I can’t help it. She fired the grappling hook and took to the skyline, the rush and exhilaration washing away her doubts and worries. God, but I missed this.
Which is why she was here, now, swinging through the rooftops of Gotham City, patrolling for crime. She wasn’t looking for anything big or major. Not yet. Baby steps. Baby steps and learning. She was taking all of the martial arts classes she could, and and she was schooling herself on criminology as best she could. This time, Stephanie wasn’t doing it to stop her father’s crimes, or the catch the eye of a certain Boy Wonder. This time, Stephanie Brown was doing this for reasons far better than that.
Like the person whose shrill scream ripped through the ambient nighttime noise of Gotham City. It was, Spoiler knew, not the only scream that would tear through the night in Gotham City, but it was the one she was closest to. Which is why I tell them that Gotham needs more heroes.
Spoiler dropped into the alleyway, aiming it so that she’d land directly between the thugs and their victim, and timing it so that they’d be caught entirely off-guard. What Spoiler hadn’t been counting on was the victim - a nurse from West Mercy - screaming in terror at her arrival.
Gotta do something to protect my ears from that, Spoiler thought as she ducked a punch from the oddly-familiar looking thug holding a knife. Still, the scream was preferable to the other thug yelling, “It’s the Huntress!”
“Really?” Spoiler asked, as she came up back up. She stopped the punch by slamming her arms around the thug’s arm and twisted enough for it to hurt. “The Huntress?” She lashed out with her leg and kicked the knife out of the other thug’s hand. It twirled a few times in the air, it’s blade reflecting the silvery light of the moon, before embedding itself in a trash can. “She wears purple. I wear eggplant.” She slammed her head into her victim’s head, realizing why they looked familiar to her. These were the same two chuckleheads she’d run into a few nights ago. “It’s a fine but clear difference.”
Spoiler released him and let him crumple to the ground.
She turned to the nurse and said, “Run,” which the nurse did all too willingly. Let’s hope she doesn’t know Mom. That could end ugly.
The second thug, unfortunately, started to take off after the nurse. Nnngh. I don’t think so. She pulled a bola out of her belt and tossed it at the man. It whirred through the air and caught him between the legs, bringing him down. “You got away easily when that girl fought you two nights ago. Not so tonight, buddy.” She used her grappling hook to bring him back before handcuffing both him and his friend with handcuffs from her thigh belt.
“H-how did you know?”
“The cops will be here in...now,” she told him, hearing the sirens coming closer and ignoring the question.. “Tell your friends the Spoiler’s back.”
“W-who?” he asked.
Spoiler closed her eyes and shook her head. Story of my life. “Nnngh. Never mind. Tell ‘em it was Huntress.” She pointed her grappling gun up, ready to fire. “Just remember, though. I’ll be watching.” And with that, she took off into the night, glad that she was able to save someone’s life, and annoyed that even after everything she’d been through, most people still didn’t know her name.
Gotta work on changing that up.
Stephanie Brown was not one of those people. I’ve already died once, she mused as she slid the eggplant colored hood over her head, so that one could barely make out the black mask that covered her entire face. If one got a good enough look, they would see a pair of light-reflecting white lenses eerily staring back at them. What’s the worst that could happen to me after that? She could, of course, die again, but Stephanie’s flame burned too brightly for her to think of something like that happening again. If anything, she’d learned from some of the biggest mistakes she’d made, and she wouldn’t be repeating them if she could help it.
Especially not after the way her mother had reacted when Stephanie had arrived on her doorstep, alive and well. Crystal Brown had nearly had a stroke that night, and Steph wished that she’d planned that particular reveal better. It had taken a lot of hospital tests and like to convince her mother that the Blackest Night had indeed brought Crystal’s own daughter back to her, and not a zombie or a hollow or something equally scary.
I wonder how I would react if my own daughter... Stephanie didn’t follow through with that thought. The fact of the matter was that Stephanie did have a daughter - one she’d given up for adoption a couple of years ago. Well. More than that, considering my time as a corpse. It was not a decision that she regretted - Stephanie would never have been able to provide a stable life for the girl - but one which still haunted her. It had been hard enough giving up a puppy when she was five years old. Giving up something that was her own flesh and blood...
So not the time to think about this, she thought as she took a grappling hook out from her belt. Mom would be so angry if she knew I was doing this. Crystal had made it clear to Steph in no uncertain terms that she was not to gallivant around town as the Spoiler anymore. Stephanie had reluctantly agreed.
Then, two nights ago, she’d been walking home from her part-time job at Gotham West Mercy hospital when she’d inadvertantly stumbled upon a hold-up in process. Unable to stop herself - Stephanie had pulled up the hood of her sweatshirt and sprung into action. She’d disarmed the thugs, saved the girl, and done a good job. It was at that moment that she’d realized that, no matter what, she wouldn’t be able to stop being Spoiler. Please don’t hate me, Mom. I can’t help it. She fired the grappling hook and took to the skyline, the rush and exhilaration washing away her doubts and worries. God, but I missed this.
Which is why she was here, now, swinging through the rooftops of Gotham City, patrolling for crime. She wasn’t looking for anything big or major. Not yet. Baby steps. Baby steps and learning. She was taking all of the martial arts classes she could, and and she was schooling herself on criminology as best she could. This time, Stephanie wasn’t doing it to stop her father’s crimes, or the catch the eye of a certain Boy Wonder. This time, Stephanie Brown was doing this for reasons far better than that.
Like the person whose shrill scream ripped through the ambient nighttime noise of Gotham City. It was, Spoiler knew, not the only scream that would tear through the night in Gotham City, but it was the one she was closest to. Which is why I tell them that Gotham needs more heroes.
Spoiler dropped into the alleyway, aiming it so that she’d land directly between the thugs and their victim, and timing it so that they’d be caught entirely off-guard. What Spoiler hadn’t been counting on was the victim - a nurse from West Mercy - screaming in terror at her arrival.
Gotta do something to protect my ears from that, Spoiler thought as she ducked a punch from the oddly-familiar looking thug holding a knife. Still, the scream was preferable to the other thug yelling, “It’s the Huntress!”
“Really?” Spoiler asked, as she came up back up. She stopped the punch by slamming her arms around the thug’s arm and twisted enough for it to hurt. “The Huntress?” She lashed out with her leg and kicked the knife out of the other thug’s hand. It twirled a few times in the air, it’s blade reflecting the silvery light of the moon, before embedding itself in a trash can. “She wears purple. I wear eggplant.” She slammed her head into her victim’s head, realizing why they looked familiar to her. These were the same two chuckleheads she’d run into a few nights ago. “It’s a fine but clear difference.”
Spoiler released him and let him crumple to the ground.
She turned to the nurse and said, “Run,” which the nurse did all too willingly. Let’s hope she doesn’t know Mom. That could end ugly.
The second thug, unfortunately, started to take off after the nurse. Nnngh. I don’t think so. She pulled a bola out of her belt and tossed it at the man. It whirred through the air and caught him between the legs, bringing him down. “You got away easily when that girl fought you two nights ago. Not so tonight, buddy.” She used her grappling hook to bring him back before handcuffing both him and his friend with handcuffs from her thigh belt.
“H-how did you know?”
“The cops will be here in...now,” she told him, hearing the sirens coming closer and ignoring the question.. “Tell your friends the Spoiler’s back.”
“W-who?” he asked.
Spoiler closed her eyes and shook her head. Story of my life. “Nnngh. Never mind. Tell ‘em it was Huntress.” She pointed her grappling gun up, ready to fire. “Just remember, though. I’ll be watching.” And with that, she took off into the night, glad that she was able to save someone’s life, and annoyed that even after everything she’d been through, most people still didn’t know her name.
Gotta work on changing that up.