Four years ago, he really hadn’t been legal.
He’d just turned nineteen, barely starting to find balance between nightly patrols and his daytime identity.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv4ea5uXGpY
His face still held traces of youth, and his voice hadn’t quite steadied the way it had now.
But how did Nora know?
Tim mulled it over.
She wasn’t a “research-type” writer—not the kind who cross-referenced dates or analyzed timelines.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJVPY3x5yA
Most of her work leaned romantic, even fantastical. Not logic-heavy at all.
Did she deduce it from photos?
From height ratios? Facial bone structure?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvPJaaVS2S2
Uniform updates? Timeline of field appearances?
He ran through a few technical explanations—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXEFItVChCE
but none of them quite fit.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPCQmM959tF
She didn’t come off as someone who calculated.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS33DhzZD2V
She was more like someone whose instinct hit so close to the truth, it made your scalp tingle.
Tim kept thinking.
His thoughts wouldn’t settle—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdLHErkrAb
like a jigsaw puzzle halfway done: some pieces jammed, others suddenly clicking together.
Wait.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwGVbFToGv
He was an adult now.
Would Nora… know?
Would she, one random morning with her coffee, suddenly realize—
that the character she once refused to write because “he’s a kid”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa4MR6AFKak
was now… of age?
Would she start writing about him?
He wasn’t curious about the content—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiMQuKm5Umw
No, this was just… a professional assessment.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZqxJiI8Bu
Yes, a risk projection, not personal interest.
And if she did start writing…218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQeOhVCnFRi
that would mean she’d been keeping an eye on him.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡevOSnYngva
Wouldn’t it?
Wait—no. Stop.
I should go to bed.
Tim loudly told himself:218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgd9l723B6o
It’s 3:42 A.M.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYllC4XgPR
I’ve already reviewed thirty-eight anonymous files today.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCaM4er1dG
If I don’t sleep now, I’ll misread intel tomorrow.
Why am I even wondering if Nora would start writing fanfic about me?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlkNy7hAdOc
Why do I… care?
No. This was professional anxiety.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1DMiKiJhMu
Part of Bat-Family information security protocols.
Yes.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNm4AHbrevs
Sleep. No more browsing.
Tim slammed the laptop shut—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡimIbJmE1Km
as if slamming the door on temptation itself.
The chair creaked behind him as he stood,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFHZz4mLa2T
feeling like someone who’d spent the entire night being silently stared at.
No one can know about this.
He walked toward the door, steps slow—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUeS33T2MZa
each one suppressing the mental image rising uninvited to the surface.
Finn’s future bride candidate…
was a top-tier Batman erotica author.
And not just any writer—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcekaJutmY
the kind who casually wrote things like,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsrBOYspOe
“He’s a kid. I don’t want to commit a crime.”
Just thinking about it made Tim feel like breaking into pieces.
If Damian ever found out—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwIzt5ImhA3
the kid would probably laugh himself breathless, then go ask Bruce:218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasiMeV85Vo
“So… what do you think of Finn’s teacher writing fanfic about you and… yourself?”
No.
This had to be buried in the night.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8JY8oCtJOp
No one in the Bat-Family could ever know.
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKX3s6CULe
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGL5Owfx7mm
Tim shoved the whole thing to the back of his mind.
Like stashing a bizarre dream into a folder marked218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMb73IvOpdu
“Low Risk / No Action”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwDDmMYWqzl
and quietly minimizing the window.
Looking back, he figured maybe he’d overreacted a bit to those green eyes.
That day she stood up and scanned him?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1eMbDg4pk
Maybe it had just been a teacher’s instinct.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTL9jJBnh2T
Maybe he had just been wound too tight.
At least now he knew her biggest secret.
He honestly hadn’t expected that inside her computer,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQOPt5HWQz
there weren’t blueprints for bombs, or surveillance tapes—
but instead—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiVGbdYRZtE
the entire archive of a legendary Batman fanfiction author.
A legendary Batman fanfiction author.
Just thinking those words gave him a mild headache.
Who would’ve guessed someone like that was hiding in a kindergarten?
Blonde hair. Green eyes.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡheOaYRTou1
Gentle smile.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgnQQylE05
Painstaking lesson plans.
And then at night, under an anonymous handle,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX12JvUXTJB
she’d write Nightwing until the man couldn’t breathe.
Still, Tim decided—he had to keep monitoring her.
It was a precaution. A professional assessment.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7OM3noWOgM
Lack of malicious intent didn’t mean lack of risk.
The better she was at writing…218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoYpusGHQh8
the more likely she might one day write something too accurate.
So he checked her system.
Installed a barely-there monitoring script—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbcmwuOicQ
so subtle it wouldn’t interfere with daily use.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHlXakhkvQ
It would only trigger if specific keywords were typed.
If anything questionable showed up,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uVkJVnWOP
Tim would be notified first.
Not automatically blocked.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxqLZauoXa
He’d assess it himself.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQLPb2BkDt
A baseline courtesy—to respect creative freedom.
This should be enough, he thought.
Leaning back in his chair,218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh05rqso9JE
he wrapped up the day’s backup logs218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡanY0PkTkVw
and turned to other vigilante data reports.
But unfortunately…218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbYpYCVUOrJ
Tim relaxed too soon.
Some things only happen right when you think you’re safe.
Like an alarm that hasn’t gone off in ages—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxz9EHqQvmy
only to explode in the middle of dead silence.
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANxbn3nZSG
One week later—
Tim’s computer lit up in warning.
Not a regular alert.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMczhUgvUR3
It was one of his high-priority personal triggers.
It popped from the corner of his screen—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWsMWid4Bdz
flashing red.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsRE9Uml4Xa
Loud system ping.
Tim reacted instantly.
Fingers darted to the trackpad on reflex.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIjbPG1p9RU
Eyes locked on the window as it expanded.
The monitored user had typed flagged keywords:
gun. black market. bullets.
Tim’s breath caught.
He stared at the words—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZnFkd7A7yv
blank for a second—then rapidly expanded the full input log.
Nora Virell218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhvFJAy4QNF
Search time: 11:42 P.M.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHgDhSayo8
Device: Personal computer.
Entered queries:
- “Where to buy bullets in Gotham right now”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyRDipKFNSS
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkIWHDUbNHc - “Black market weapon price list”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9h5Xqfk3tv
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZY2iJh7X36 - “Handgun usage tutorial”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbnXabIXAlX
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvBlbNeUhpJ
Tim stared at the screen—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuMi73E4ksG
and felt his chest begin to tighten.
Tim was thinking.
He didn’t jump to conclusions.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJB3rBMD9d
Not right away.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXoeoyAmGw
Like always, he mentally arranged all the possible explanations in rapid succession.
He tried to reason it out—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRwmCNWIfIL
because reason was the only shield he trusted when facing the unknown.
Could it be for a story?
He’d seen plenty of creators do research for plot accuracy.
Maybe she was writing a scene about a vigilante infiltrating the black market.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQm6NeJDzaq
Maybe a character was trying to stop an arms deal.
Something like that.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdDkEPAPB2
Trying to recreate that sense of danger.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdXJTsPXSs
Or exploring a character’s discomfort with firearms—how they reacted to pulling the trigger.
He’d read those kinds of stories before.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWdJMS5Em4
Some of them were frighteningly realistic.
But unfortunately—Nora proved him wrong.
She wasn’t just skimming scenarios.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmA2Rj1vf9
She wasn’t just dipping in and out.
She was seriously browsing.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMdCFsu6mB
Spending over thirty seconds per page.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KaCEeeNKM
Even bookmarking a few of them.
She was looking at firearm weights, manufacturing years, and production companies.
Her search terms included:
- “Glock old vs new model differences”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUhI3GUuZms
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCYfizuOnTE - “Small caliber vs large caliber”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Jh6oBd2HV
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhEmTIyy2so - “Civilian vs law enforcement firearm pricing”218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1CNo0Izfmi
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUU7KemEBWt
Those weren’t things a character needed to know.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3DCKOTYEd
They were the kind of details a gun user would want to understand.
Which meant—
Nora was already familiar.
This wasn’t her first time researching this.
She wasn’t gathering info for fiction.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0XPcvHK22z
She was evaluating—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa7rQj3WzcE
like someone deciding whether a specific gun was worth owning.
What does she need a gun for?
The question echoed in Tim’s head.
Not just surprise anymore—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrhuDsPBMBo
a rising, sharp anxiety began flooding in.
She’s a teacher. Finn’s teacher.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQo4AziLd9
She works in a kindergarten.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8UrxaeoIWD
Teaches kids to draw, tells them stories, shows them how to say “I’m sorry.”
What would she need a gun for?
For protection?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1qtDeoVuYr
For something else?
Where did she learn it?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMnpNVKIA1A
Has she been trained?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEtsYeTuhnH
Does she know how to use one?218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8iq24IORKK
Would she use it on someone?
Tim couldn’t let this go.
This wasn’t about artistic freedom.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF5CvU72nHP
This wasn’t just a passing curiosity.
This was a potential armed individual demonstrating suspicious behavior.
He needed to understand her threat level—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAJ46V3y5oU
and eliminate any possible risk.
That didn’t mean punishment.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAc3RSG2nW
But it did mean removing danger—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9gXI7v037J
before it ever had the chance to grow teeth.
Tim moved his fingers.
The keyboard’s backlight flickered faintly as the windows expanded again—218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY4bBOfXf3R
reconnecting to Nora’s online activity log.
His fingers hovered above the shortcut keys tied to his rapid-execution programs.
He had made up his mind.
His gaze was cold.218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZG6C1N6oZx
His tone unspoken.
This time—he was going to find out, personally.
What the hell is she planning?
218Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ04XaUTrRdv
and then Add to home screen.