Chapter Text
When Remus’ boots stepped onto the gravel outside of the Mafloy Estate, it was already light outside. The early-morning sky contrasted with the ebony-filled skies that Remus was used to being out in.
It had finally stopped raining, the weather settling for big dark clouds in the air instead. In front of the tall black gates that stood strong in front of the Malfoy Estate was a swarm of press.
Each person was from a different news channel, some holding cameras, others holding long sticks with a microphone attached on the end. Everyone stared intently at Peter Pettigrew.
What appeared to be the entire Knockturn City officials stood beside him, each with a sullen expression. Narcissa Malfoy stood to the side of James, sobbing into a handkerchief. Her silky blonde hair was in a messy braid, a trench coat over her Witch Halloween costume she still hadn’t had the time to take off yet.
“Tonight, an innocent boy lost a father. A loyal woman lost a husband. And I lost a dear friend. Mayor Malfoy was a man of bravery who took a stand for our beloved city.” Peter spoke on a stand with many microphones resting on stands, each with a different news channel’s logo.
Remus watched from across the street, standing beside a news channel’s van. Peter looked up from one of the reporters and made direct eye contact with Remus. The short man’s jaw clenched before quickly looking back out at the cameras.
“We at the KCPD will not rest until this devastating act is brought to justice. We will continue to follow every lead and investigate every detail until this cruel killer is locked up in the Lestrange Asylum.” A few police officers standing beside him nodded, their heads bowed down slightly.
Remus walked away from his place next to the news van; he stepped into a dark alleyway where he changed out of his suit. He could never be seen in his suit when driving back home. It would be all too obvious to his hidden identity.
He shoved the heavy suit into his backpack before walking with his head held down to his motorcycle, which he had left in an alleyway just one street down. When he made it to his bike, he quickly grabbed his helmet and closed it over his head, shutting the shield over his face.
The words of Peter Pettigrew rang out around the city’s digital billboards over Knockturn’s center. Towering skyscrapers stood around the center, the buildings holding multiple digital billboards that displayed all different types of ads. Most of them, as of now, had live footage of Peter’s press conference airing; people stood around the ones closer to the ground watching intently.
A few others had Lily Evans’ face, the bold blue text, “A real change.” Beside her face. Remus felt his motorcycle hum to life as he straddled it. It was his favorite way of transportation; fast, sleek, disguising.
Remus turned the handle and kicked off the ground, gliding through Knockturn’s empty streets. He didn’t know exactly where the overwhelming sense of relief came from when he rode these streets. Nobody knew who he was when he would do so. He wasn’t Remus Lupin, the poor orphan. Or Batman, the masked vigilante. He was nobody.
The cold wind blew against Remus, the sleeves of his hoodie billowing around his arms. He knew if he didn’t have this helmet on, his hair would be pushed back by the sheer force of the wind.
As he drove over the Knocturn bridge, the dark blue waves crashing below it, Remus allowed himself to think. To think about everything that had happened that night.
The gang. The mother and son. The robberies. The mayor being murdered. A new killer on the loose, nobody having any idea who could be next. Or if there even was a next. It could have been a one-time thing. Someone having an episode and acting on impulsive thoughts. But something deep in Remus told him that wasn’t the case.
The cipher, the code, the protesting words written all around Malfoy’s office proved Remus’ gut feeling. It was all so calculated, planned.
It wasn’t very long of Remus being zoned out on his thoughts before the Lupin Tower came into view. The tall skyscraper stood out from the others, with the dark paint unlike the other buildings around it that were painted gray or white.
Lyall’s father had planned the architectural building for Lupin Enterprises. But it was meant to serve as a welcome to Knockturn visitors or inspire them. Remus lived in the penthouse on the very top floor. The floor below it was where Lyall’s old bodyguard Charles and the housekeeper Meredith lived. They were all that Remus had left after his parents were killed. Charles taught him to fight, and basically everything he knew about weapons.
And in the hidden basement of the skyscraper was where Remus returned to do any Batman-related things. Where he left his motorcycle, where he went over the cases he had discovered. It was where he learned to fight and where Charles created his suit.
The sky was painted in a rosy shade of pink, and every now and then a car would pass him. No matter the incidents that happened, the night would always pass and morning would come again.
But daytime didn’t feel as comforting in Knocturn City as it would in any other city. Perhaps somewhere in the middle of nowhere, in breathtaking mountain scenery, the sunlight beaming up from the sky would be a sign of comfort. That something was guiding them.
But here, the sunlight felt like the calm before the storm. If that could even be considered calm. There was something in the air, anticipation. Of course, crime still occurred in the daytime. But it wasn’t nearly what it was once the moon rose. Knockturn City had, on average, forty days a year when the sun actually came out from behind the clouds. Those other three hundred and twenty-five days were just dark clouds and sprinkles of rain.
Remus drove out from the bridge and down a hill that would bring him to surface level with the basement of the Lupin Tower. He readjusted his grip on the motorcycle’s handle, his gloves making a squealing noise against the wet surface.
The ‘basement’ of the tower would just be described as an abandoned, failed floor. But if someone with knowledge of what was underlying went to the very back of the abandoned garage-like room. There was a gate that opened at the recognition of Remus’ bike. The black heavy gate entrance opened slowly, and Remus pulled through.
The ‘Batcave,’ as James liked to joke about, was a large, high-ceilinged basement. It wasn’t modern and polished like the rest of the Lupin Tower was. Large concrete pillars with bright, harsh lights lined the room, maybe about four on each side. And despite that, the room was incredibly dark.
There were a couple mystery water leaks with a few drops falling every few minutes that no one would ever be able to fully address. Dust lined a lot of above-head-level areas, and there were a few steel shelves packed with miscellaneous equipment abandoned after investigations.
Remus parked his motorbike in one of the corners of the room, the vehicle corner. Remus’ Batman car sat there, left in its exact spot from a past investigation a few weeks ago. A black tool chest was opened on the concrete floor with screwdrivers, along with a fuel can next to it. Remus turned the ignition off as he unmounted the beast; the pur of the motor came down to a soft buzz. As he pulled his helmet off, he could feel the beginnings of a migraine coming.
Placing the helmet on the ground, Remus stepped away from the corner and to the computer bank that occupied a space right between two marble spiraling staircases. The staircases stuck out like a sore thumb, white and polished, a vast difference from the dusty and rough concrete walls. Between them were two big sturdy desks that each held two large monitors. This is where Remus came after gruelling nights to go over the events of said gruelling night.
There were a couple of scattered keyboards across the desk, and about a million questionable cords going in different directions. The blue light from the row of monitors painted the cave in cold colors as files, photographs, and maps covered the screens.
Remus ran a hand through his burgundy curls, pushing them back from his face, which left them to begin to curl around his ears. Once he was satisfied with it, he leaned his head back and reached his fingers up tentatively, removing a pair of contact lenses from his eyes, which were secret cameras that recorded everything Remus witnessed as Batman.
His copper eyes quickly blinked back the sting from touching his eyes as he placed them down onto the small globe-shaped Lens Reader. A television with the Knockturn City News Channel playing buzzed lightly in the background as Remus stood focused, watching footage from that Halloween night. The fight in the subway. The police watching. Marlene McKinnon. The card. Peter Pettigrew.
The hours went by; Remus wrote in his journal the events from the night. He knew deep down that this wasn’t a one-time killing. There was way more to come. It was only the words from one of the news anchors on the television that brought him out of his concentrated bubble.
“Unbelievable breaking news last night, Knockturn City. Our mayor, Lucius Malfoy, was found brutally murdered inside his home by an unknown murderer.” A male voice wrung out. “This killer still hasn’t been found, but the KCPD has initiated a city-wide manhunt for this monster. However, this is not the first time Knockturn has been shaken by the murder of a political figure. In fact, in a chilling coincidence, it was eighteen years ago exactly when renowned philanthropist and former mayoral candidate for Knockturn City, Lyall Lupin, alongside his wife, were murdered during his campaign. It was a devastating crime that remains unsolved to this day.”
Remus stared at the television, his heart rate beating just a few paces faster. He could never place his finger on why he still felt this way at the reminder of the death of his parents. His attention was diverted by the sound of footsteps coming down the grand spiral staircase. Remus looked up and noticed Charles walking down. He wore his usual attire: dress pants and a fine, tailored white button-down.
Charles was the closest thing he had to a parental figure after his parents died. He was always harsh, but just as caring, and it shaped Remus into who he was now. Charles was older now; sometimes he needed a cane if his knee was acting up a bit. His hair was gray, but his face remained the same. Plus a few wrinkles. As Charles made his way towards Remus, he glanced at the television.
“I’m sure you’ve heard of what happened.” He hummed, not even having to glance at Remus to know that he did. Remus just nodded silently before looking back at the computer screens. The video from Remus’ lens of the crime was projected onto the screen. Lucius’s taped-up head with bolded words across it. “Oh god,” Charles murmured with knitted eyebrows as he watched.
Remus fast-forwarded to the card; it could be seen clearly in the hands of James. Remus paused and rotated the frame before screenshotting it; the printer made a loud whirring sound as the image started to print. He grabbed the paper and began to highlight letters on it.
Charles looked back and forth from Remus’ hands working on the paper to the screen. “The killer left this to the Batman?” He pressed, his eyes narrowing.
“Apparently.” Remus sighed.
Charles scoffed, shaking his head disapprovingly. “You’re becoming quite the celebrity. Why is he writing to you, Remus?” The man grumbled.
“That’s what I’m trying to find out,” Remus responded, setting down his pen and pressing play on the video again. “Go get some rest. Have a shower. Our accounting friends at Lupin Enterprises are coming for lunch.” Charles told him, that dutiful-filled voice coming out as he placed his cup of tea on the table.
“Here? Why?” Remus turned around from the screen, looking down at Charles and crossing his arms.
“Because I couldn’t have gotten you to go there!” Charles exclaimed, his voice rising.
“I don’t have time for this.” Remus gave an exasperated sigh, but his tone was just as monotone as ever.
“It’s starting to get serious, Remus. It won’t be long before you have nothing left.” Charles muttered.
“I don’t care about that stuff.” Remus interrupted quickly.
“You don’t care about your family’s legacy?” Charles challenged.
“What I’m doing is my family’s legacy. If I can’t change things in this city or have an effect, then I don’t care about what happens to me.” Remus said, leaning back against the table tiredly.
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Charles said.
“Charles, stop. You’re not my father.” Remus returned with raised eyebrows. He watched Charles visibly back down, his eyes looking away from Remus.
Remus looked at the computer for a moment before pushing away with a sigh and walking away from it. From Charles and the unavoidable conversation that seemed to follow him everywhere. And from the mess of a case he would have to deal with later. He paced the marble staircase that led to a more modern elevator. One that fit the rest of the tower. Remus pressed the ‘54’ button, which led to his penthouse.
It was a few silent moments to himself before the elevator stopped with a ‘Ding!’ and the doors slid open. He took a step inside the penthouse; the huge windows displayed that it was already morning. He walked through the fancy corridors that hadn’t ever fit Remus’ taste. But he was far too tired all the time to care. His boots hit against the polished marble floors. The gray textured walls were lined with portraits. Pictures of long-passed family members and official documents.
Remus took a left down one of the corridors and opened the black doorknob; the door creaked open to reveal his bedroom. The windows that went from the floor all the way up to the ceiling were blocked with black-out curtains; only a small sliver of sunlight filtered through.
His king-sized bed sat in the center of the room, the red sheets freshly changed and done up by Meredith. Remus’ room had unfortunately always been very bland; he hadn't had the time to exactly customize it. It just fit the aesthetic of the rest of the penthouse. His eyes were starting to feel heavy as he moved to his closet and changed into a pair of gray sweatpants, not bothering to choose a shirt to pair it with.
Tossing his previous clothes into the hamper, he stepped over to his nightstand, grabbed the glass of water and a few Tylenols, and took them. Hopefully the migraine would be gone by the time he woke up. He then tentatively slid into bed, pulling the heavy comforter over him; he was asleep before his head even hit his pillow.
— ᨳଓ .
Remus pulled a black hoodie over his head as he strode out of his bedroom. He had awoken from his sleep only an hour ago, then taken a long, hot shower. The memories of the previous night played over on repeat in his head. The memory of that small boy, staring at Remus like a deer in headlights.
He concluded that that specific memory tugged on a string in his heart because of how much it had reminded him of himself. Of the worst day of his life, when he lost the two most important people in his life in a matter of minutes. But as soon as he let himself dwell too much on the thought, he told himself to think of what was important. There was a killer out on the loose; nobody knew when he would strike again.
His footsteps echoed up around the corridor walls as he made his way to the dining room. Charles sat at one of the vintage chairs beside the great chestnut colored table. The table that Remus and his family gathered at every night. Where they would share laughs and his mum would tell a young Remus all the crazy stories of when she was younger.
Charles looked up from what appeared to be a few papers, pen still in hand. On the table was a tray with a few cups of tea and coffee; Remus didn’t hesitate to grab one of the coffee cups. Being Batman came with the frustrating bit of doing all his work in the evenings. He slept in the day, ran around the city at night. Therefore, caffeine was his most useful tool.
“What have you got there?” Remus nodded his head towards the papers in front of Charles. Remus instantly recognized the paper; it was the screenshot he printed earlier of the cipher. Charles was trying to solve it. Remus took a few steps closer, looking closely at the paper.
“The cipher from yesterday. Quite elusive actually.” Charles adjusted his framed glasses up his nose. The paper consisted of dozens of lines filled with unrecognizable symbols, probably made up by the killer. There must have been hundreds.
Charles also had the picture of the card the killer left him. “He lies still. That only left us with H, E, L, I, S, and T. So I’m looking for any other letters to see where it leads.” Charles moved his pen across the paper to show where he was highlighting the letters on the cipher. “Interesting,” Remus muttered, looking up at the window before the table; the wall was all glass windows, looking out onto the city.
Clicking footsteps came up from behind them. “Mr. Windsor, the accountants are here.” The familiar voice of Meredith rang out. Meredith was a housekeeper of the sort around here. At least that's how she started, but once Remus’ parents died, she became less of a housekeeper and more just helping keep things settled around the penthouse. She, like Charles, was there for Remus during the toughest times. She was older, like Charles; her white hair curled at the ends on her shoulders. Meredith gave Remus a small smile.
“Good morning, Remus.” She said politely. Remus returned a few words to her.
“Thank you, Meredith. You can go see them in.” Charles said, and she nodded before walking back to the phone that connected to the front desk on the first floor.
The afair with the accountants was long and grueling. Remus hated any communication with those bores. It might have just been the fact that he hated remembering he was a Lupin, and that he still had to do the fancy, proper things that came with it. He didn’t even speak to them much; Charles did the talking for all important things.
When they left, Remus and Charles found themselves back in the Batcave. The cipher stared back at them from the screen; this was just the cipher, not the ones Charles had highlighted. A sea of bright white letters. It looked like it was leading them nowhere.
Remus felt frustrated; ciphers always annoyed him. Was this even important? Was this for him? Was this meant for the police? Would they even get anywhere with the hundreds of random symbols on one sheet of paper?
Remus pressed his lips together, staring up at the ceiling as Charles leaned in closer to the screen. “Do we not have all the pieces of the card the killer gave? Was there something we didn’t find?” Charles said, lifting his glasses and rubbing his wrinkled eye. Remus looked down at the screen again, his brain searching fast.
“What if this is the whole key? Ignore the symbols we don’t have letters for.” Remus told him. Charles seemed skeptical before moving to the keyboard, pressing a few buttons that highlighted the symbols they had found on the same sheet.
With each button pressed, the symbols became brighter while the ones not identified became darker. “I don’t understand how this would help; it would leave most of the cipher blank-”
Charles’ words cut themselves off as the word “DRIVE” appeared, made by just the placement of the symbols they had. Charles’ eyes widened in exasperation; he and Remus looked at each other.
“Lucius was the mayor. He probably had a few cars in a garage somewhere.” Remus muttered after a moment.
— ᨳଓ .
The Knockturn skies were slowly turning to wisps of tangerine as the sun lowered. Remus stood outside a tall beige-bricked building, wearing his full Batman gear. The building was only a couple of blocks down from the Malfoy Estate. It had the same style as the house, due to the fact that it was owned by Malfoy.
Remus recognized the building; he had seen it in the background of press conferences and seen a lot of important figures walk through these doors. It also held all of Lucius Malfoy’s vehicles in the basement. Remus got this information from James, who was taking an awfully long time to show up.
Remus was about five more minutes away from just going in himself when he saw the familiar figure of James come jogging up the street. His curly brown hair was a mess as per usual, his glasses strewn on his face.
“Sorry I had you waiting, Peter had me in his office for hours. He’s pissed about last night.” James admitted, his words pausing every few moments because of his panting. After a minute, he finally caught his breath and stood up straight.
“Pissed because I was there?” Remus muttered, his eyes focused on the traffic down the street. He was more looking for any pieces of crime going on. If anyone was behaving suspiciously, but he didn’t have time to focus on that stuff now.
James nodded, his lips puffing out before speaking, “Oh, definitely. Says he has every right to arrest you for being at the crime scene.”
Remus scoffed, shaking his head before turning back to James. But Remus really couldn’t find it in himself to care about Peter Pettigrew and how petty a commissioner he was. It was almost dark out, and thunder was beginning to crackle loudly.
“We’ve got bigger things to worry about.” The pair strode through the tall glass doors that led them to the front desk. The room was small; it only consisted of the desk, an elevator door, and a few couches. It had a very similar style to the Malfoy Estate: brown walls and marble floors. A lady with black hair sat there, staring intently at her computer screen. She hadn’t even noticed them until James made a point of clearing her throat.
“Sorry! Exhausting day,” She chuckled, finally looking at them. Her eyebrows rose at the sight of Remus. Of the tall, heavily geared figure. She blinked a few times before setting her attention on James, deciding he would be the better one to speak to.
“How may I help you today?” Remus noticed the named badge pinned to her chest that read, ‘Emmeline.’
James dug his left hand into his pocket before pulling out his certified KCPD badge and flashing it to the woman; the gold star glistened from the overhead lights.
“I’m with the Knockturn City Police Department. Due to the murder of Lucius Malfoy, we need to search your basement floor.” James spoke professionally, his voice differentiating from his usual unserious behavior.
Emmeline blinked up at him, shocked. It took her a moment to gather her words. “I- Uh, yeah sure. It’s just where all his cars are. All of the car doors are unlocked. You can go on.” She sighed before sinking back into her chair and going right back to what she had previously been doing on the monitor.
Any other day, a secretary would’ve called security or asked for a warrant. But Emmeline’s boss was murdered yesterday; Remus didn’t have to take a wild guess to figure her job was probably in jeopardy.
Remus led the way to the elevator, hitting the button that called the elevator to their floor. “Thank you, have a nice day, ma’am,” James said quickly as he stepped into the elevator with Remus and the doors slid shut.
They stood in silence, the sound of soft humming present as the elevator traveled down the floor. The door creaked back open. The room reminded Remus of the Batcave, dark and lit by only a few high-powered ceiling lights.
This parking garage was huge, starting from the first row, it was lined with hundred-thousand-dollar cars. Mustangs, Ferraris, a Rolls-Royce, Porsche, and plenty of others. What would a person need so many cars for in this city? It was more common for citizens to not have cars because of how bad traffic usually was.
“Damn, guess it’s pretty good to be mayor.” James gasped, walking through the lines of cars, his eyes transfixed by them.
Each car was clean and pristine; nothing seemed to be related to the brutal murder of the mayor. “Remus, are you sure this isn’t a leap? Drive could mean anything.” James inquired under his breath.
“Trust me. Just look for anything out of the ordinary.”
It was a long line of cars on each side; they walked for a bit, staring at each car closely for anything that would not fit in with the cleanliness of the others. At around the center of the vehicles, James pointed at a rusted carpentry tool stabbed into the tire of a Mustang.
“Does that fit your narrative of out of the ordinary?” James hummed. Remus took a few steps towards the bright turquoise car and knelt beside it. He gently pulled the tool from the tire; there was what appeared to be rust on the two blades.
Remus handed James the tool as he pulled a Black Light from his belt. The car door was unlocked, just as Emmeline told them. Scanning the seats and driver’s wheel, there were no fingerprints or any other signs of someone being in there. Remus sat in the driver’s seat, leaning over to check the passenger's seat.
When he found no luck there, he moved his hand to the glove box, clicking the lever that caused it to slide open. He stared inside it for a long moment, his eyebrows knitted together. “What is it??” James pressed. Remus set the light down before reaching in; he slowly held up a USB port with a chain attached to it. Connected to the chain was a singular thumb. Sporting dried-up blood as well. “Thumb. Drive.” Remus uttered, staring at James.
“Jesus Christ.” James hissed, rubbing his face out of pure disgust and astonishment.
Remus stepped out of the car; they both closed the doors and hurried back to the elevator, where there was a small table with wheels. James placed his briefcase down onto the table and opened it; his laptop sat inside. James pushed the USB into the input port.
“DEVICE ENCRYPTED” appeared on James’ homescreen, which was a picture of him and Lily on a beach. They looked a few years younger; James was really tan, his glasses not on his face, but a huge smile present. Lily stood next to him, her left hand held up, flashing a diamond ring, her other arm around James’ neck.
Remus read the message on the screen and looked at the drive in the computer; it needed a fingerprint. He slowly lifted the bloody thumb that was no longer attached to the drive. “Try this.”
James stared back at him with utter disgust in his eyes; he almost looked queasy. James shook his head, scoffing as he reached in his pocket to slide his gloves on. “This guy is just hilarious.” James hissed as he hesitantly took the thumb and pressed it against the drive. The message immediately went away, a loading symbol showing.
In just moments, dozens of pictures started to pop up on the screen, covering the photo of Lily and James. James carefully set his thumb down before leaning into the small laptop screen.
The pictures consisted of zoomed-in, almost paparazzi-type photos of two people. A tall, blonde-haired man with hair reaching past his shoulders. He was looking to the side cautiously, like he didn’t want to be seen. Lucius Malfoy. And next to him was a shorter, younger man; he had neat, short black hair, and he was pale. Remus did not recognize the guy; he looked determined, his hands shoved into his pockets. Remus noticed the black-haired man had a cut on his face, dried-up blood around it.
“Who’s the guy?” Remus questioned, observing the pictures further. It was dark out, and they were walking out of a dark building located in what looked to be an alleyway. There were a few people around them who looked equally as suspicious as they did.
“No idea. But that’s the Raven there, Barty Crouch Jr.” James pointed at a man in the background. He was about the same age as Remus was, with black hair with a few red streaks in it. He had a cocky grin on his face, appearing to be pulling on a coat. “Orion Black’s right-hand man.”
There were many pictures, each showing different angles of the same scene, giving more detail as to who was there. But Barty was walking near them, like he was tagging along. “I know who he is,” Remus murmured; he recognized the guy from past crimes Remus had dealt with. Remus figured he probably had business in dealing with Dreammist.
On the side of James’ laptop screen, notifications started spamming with his email. “Shit! All these photos are being sent from my email. ‘The Daily Prophet’, ‘KCPD station’, ‘Knockturn City News Channel.’”
James groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he stood back up straighter. “Peter is going to kill me.”
Remus ignored James’ frantic words, his mind racing. “He lies still. About him?”
“Could be.”
“Where is that?” Remus asked.
James focused back on the main picture they had been looking at. “Looks to be the Cauldron Lounge. It's beneath the Grimmauld penthouse, where Black holes himself up.” James grabbed the computer and shut it. “It's impossible to get in there without a warrant.” Remus didn’t respond, just nodded his head at James’ words.
— ᨳଓ .
The smell of cigarette smoke and weed filled Remus’ nostrils as he waited for a car to pass so he could cross the street. The ebony skies brought with them heavy rain that left stepping on the ground feeling like trudging through puddles.
The Cauldron Lounge was located below a creaky train track, a harsh squeal echoing through its surroundings as a train flew past at high speeds. A dark, solid building stood in front of Remus; it was identical to the photos he and James had studied only hours before.
Remus patted his rough black pants’ pocket, feeling the folded paper, which happened to be the pictures of Lucius and the unrecognizable guy. He was still fully suited up. He had to be for what he was about to do to get in this lounge.
The entrance of the building was a steel door. Remus pounded his hand against it, wondering if people even opened this door. Remus looked over his shoulder; nobody was around him.
The door opened a few moments later to reveal a stoic man. He had slicked-back ebony hair, an earpiece in his left ear, and a walkie-talkie on his belt.
“Know who I am?” Remus rasped, not breaking eye contact with this man.
“I’ve got an idea.” The man was guarded, his eyes narrowed. Behind him were flashing red lights and the sound of loud club music.
“I need to see the Raven.”
The guy scoffed, crossing his arms in front of his torso. “Got no idea what you’re talking about, man.” He took a step back from the door and slammed it on him.
Remus stood there, stunned. He didn’t know if he would have to break down the door, break a window, or keep knocking until he answered again. After only a second, the door opened again. It was the same man, but this time he was with a guy identical to him. They were wearing the same outfit and everything.
“What’s the problem, Rabastan?” This new guy questioned, tilting his head to the side when he saw Remus in his full gear. It was clear he found it hilarious. “Says he wants to see the Raven,” Rabastan muttered, both he and his brother snickering.
“There ain’t no Raven here.”
“That’s what I tried to tell him.”
Rabastan’s brother took a step closer. “Listen to me, you freak. Get out of here and don’t come back. Or that little suit will get all full of blood.”
Remus stared at these guys, finding them to be utterly stupid. The music going on in the lounge cranked up. “Mine or yours?” Remus grumbled. Rabastan’s eyebrows raised; he hesitated before stepping forward and punching Remus in the jaw.
Remus reacted in record time, grabbing his arm and punching him to the side of the head. He kicked his ankle, which caused him to fall to the ground, his head banging against the pole railing. The twin brother stared at him before walking forward. Remus grabbed his shoulder before he could do anything and threw a hard fist into his stomach. He quickly bent over with a groan. Remus shoved him by the back of his neck onto the ground.
Remus wasted no time waiting to see if they would get up; he stepped over them into the club, not bothering to close the door as he marched in. There was a short metal staircase that he stomped up. As the stairs ended, people were standing there, staring at him. Most of them had drinks in their hands and were wearing small outfits.
The music playing pumped through Remus’ veins, “GET HIM!!” Screamed one of the twins as they forced themselves up from the spot they had theirs handed at. But Remus continued shoving through the crowd.
“Where is security!? I saw that whole thing happen.” A woman shrieked next to him. Remus quickened his pace; he didn’t have time for all these fools. As he walked further in, he got out of the dark corridor where people stared at him.
Instead, there was a ginormous club space. It was packed with people in every square inch. People were dancing on each other, jumping up and down. The red lights flashed along with the music playing. There were two floors, a balcony around the edges, and a huge open space in the middle with barriers guarding it that overlooked the downstairs and the double amount of people there. Three small, wide pillars had a few strippers on each, dancing with each other and people cheering below them.
The room was insane, sweaty, and loud. As Remus marched through it, he could feel the floor vibrating beneath his feet. There was another long staircase that led from the balcony downstairs. As Remus stepped down the first step, someone grabbed his shoulder, which he spun on immediately.
The security guard hit his elbow into the side of Remus’ head. Remus reached for the hand on his shoulder and shoved him off of him. He pushed the guy into another security guard running up the stairs. Remus lifted his foot and stomped against one of the men’s chest, both of them went tumbling down the staircase. The security guards kept coming up on him; Remus threw hard punches at each of them, getting a few of his own at him too. They all fell easily; he used his usual technique of a couple of punches to the head, and they were out on the ground. One guy came up from behind him and jumped onto his back. Remus knelt and rolled him off the pole next to him, which led to the flat ground on the bottom floor.
Remus followed one of them down the wide staircase, punching one as a new guy came up to him, a metal bat in hand, and smacked it against his head. Remus grabbed the previous guy and threw him against the new one. He used the hand that was holding the bat and crushed it against a pole nearby before snatching the bat from his hand. He pressed the bat quickly into the man’s stomach and sent him tumbling down the rest of the stairs.
Behind him, a woman’s voice screamed, “Put the bat down or I’ll blow your head off right here!” Remus spun around from his spot. A woman with huge curly hair and a wicked look on her face stood there, a gun clutched in both hands, pointed at Remus’ face.
Remus was panting; she was about to pull the trigger at any second. The first thing Remus could think to do was lift the bat and throw it at her face. She shot the gun at the same time, but the bullet hit the metal bat instead.
At the same moment, a bullet went off right above where the woman fell. Remus twisted and spotted Rabastan and his brother above him next to the railing. Rabastan racked the end of the gun for the next bullet as Remus reached into his belt and pulled his grappling hook; he shot it at Rabastan’s foot. The four blades sank into his ankle, and he howled out with pain.
Remus heard a pair of footsteps coming down from the stairs, and he turned, his fists ready. “Whoa! Whoa! Calm down, love.” Exclaimed a man standing before him. “I hear you’re looking for me.” The man had a large, cocky grin on his face. Remus knew that this was Barty. He was a few inches shorter than Remus; he looked to be probably the same age as himself. Barty had messy jet-black hair and bright hazel eyes; he wore a pair of baggy jeans with a big black belt that made quite the statement of him trying to display wealth.
Barty’s eyes looked Remus up and down, a smirk on his face. “You’re quite everything they say you are. So mighty.” Barty snickered, laying a hand on Remus’ broad covered shoulder. “Why don’t you come with me? Let’s… talk.” Barty nodded his head away from the crowd.
Remus exhaled a deep breath, letting his arms drop. He spared a look behind him as he began to follow Barty; all the men Remus had just fought glared at him. Remus figured the only reason they didn’t run after him to punch him was that Barty was at his side.
The two shuffled through the large crowd. These people probably didn’t witness the fighting; every one of them looked wasted, all dancing exaggeratedly to the deafening music. Barty took him through a door hidden next to a staircase, which led to a bar. After another glass staircase, they stepped down a hall that led to what Remus assumed was Barty’s office.
The walls were basically windows, overlooking the grouped-up people still on the dance floor. In the room were a few sofas and a desk. Upon walking through the door, Barty leaned against his desk, crossing his arms over his chest while fixing the sleeve of his tight maroon shirt.
“Now,” Barty set his hands down on the table behind him. “You gonna tell me what was so important you had to beat up half my guys?” Barty hummed teasingly; he seemed pretty impressed with Remus despite his words.
Remus sighed, moving to face Barty. He dug down into his back pocket and unfolded the pictures. He held the pictures out; Barty watched Remus for a moment before standing up straight and taking the photos, holding them close up to his face to look at.
“Who is he? The guy with Lucius.” Remus pressed, looking at the photos before reading Barty’s face. His eyes showed a spark of recognition before pulling the pictures away and setting them onto his lap. “Not too sure, man. May have been near them, but that doesn’t mean I was with them.” Barty shrugged.
Both men’s attention was caught by the sound of clicking footsteps coming down the hall. Remus turned his head, and his eyes landed on a pair of tall black boots; Remus instantly recognized them. Remus grabbed the photos from Barty’s hands and flipped to the second picture. There. Those exact boots in the corner of the photo.
Barty was looking at Remus with an inquisitive expression before looking up to the person who had just entered the room. Remus shifted his gaze from the picture to the stranger. Standing before the pair was someone Remus had never seen before; the person had long, shiny dark curls to his shoulders. And Remus couldn’t lie to himself about the fact that this stranger was gorgeous. His cheekbones sat high on his face, and he had an air of confidence to him.
This guy looked almost stunned to see Remus, eyeing him up and down quickly, probably judgingly. Remus noticed dark eyeliner around his deep blue eyes. Of course, it was usual for people to be shocked by Remus’ presence. He was a towering, looming figure suited in black gear.
“Nothing to worry about, love. Mr. Vengeance isn’t as scary as he looks.” Barty spoke; the boy blinked a few times harshly, seeming to remember what he was meant to be doing before walking over to Barty. He was carrying a round silver tray and held it up to Barty.
On the tray were two cocktails, along with a thick brown envelope, a rubber band around it. Barty’s hand went for the envelope first; he looked hesitantly at Remus before at the envelope, stashing it in his pocket and grabbing three packs of what Remus noticed to be Dreammist. Barty placed them on the tray.
Meanwhile, the mystery boy kept glancing at Remus nervously, reaching a hand out to place the drinks on Barty’s desk. While waiting for Barty, the boy adjusted the sleeve of his maroon fishnet sweater that fell off his shoulder. Beneath that, he wore a black tank top, both paired with black cargo pants.
Remus held the eye contact; he was never one to back down from it. As Barty placed the packets onto the empty tray, the boy looked down at Remus’ hands and noticed the pictures. All zoomed in on Lucius and his mystery friend. As Remus watched him, he noticed this boy in front of him, and the one in the photograph looked very similar.
They didn’t look like they could be the same person. Almost like siblings. From the way the guy was staring at Remus with contentment, Remus knew that he knew something. “Thanks, love.” Barty hummed; the jet-haired boy smiled tightly before standing straight and walking out of the room.
With that, Barty stood up from his seat on his desk and grabbed the rest of the pictures, holding them out for Remus to take. “Sorry, man, I couldn’t be of help,” Barty said. Remus detected an air of fibbing in his voice. He knew a lot more than he was letting on.
“Tell me who he is.” Remus hissed, pointing back at the man in the photograph. “And why was he with the mayor?”
Barty looked at the picture and smiled. “Oh Christ, I didn’t realize that was the mayor.” Barty snickered. Before he could let out another word, Remus grabbed him by the front of his shirt and shoved him against the glass wall. Behind Barty, the glass cracked all over. If Remus put any more pressure on him, it would shatter completely.
“Don’t lie to me!” Remus snapped. Barty stared at him with fear and severe distaste for Remus. He narrowed his eyes at Remus. “Watch your fucking ass, Batman. Do you know my reputation?!” Barty snarled, his hands reaching up to grasp at Remus’ shoulders and push him away, but he had no luck with that.
“Yeah, I do. Do you?”
Barty was silent for a few painstaking moments, pissed at Remus’ words. Finally, he let out a loud, annoyed breath and spoke, “Look, I just run the club. It’s none of my business what anybody does here.” Remus stared at Barty for a moment, reading his expression for anything. Remus got distracted when he noticed out of the corner of his eye someone through the glass staring at him, quickly walking away when he saw Remus notice. It was the boy from before.
Remus took another glance at Barty before letting go, turning away from him. One of the glass walls looked out onto the bar; Remus saw the boy hurriedly speaking to a woman behind the counter, then walking away quickly.
Remus took it as his time to leave; he began to step away from the entire situation determinedly. He wouldn’t get anything from Barty. “Let me know if I can be of any more help, Mr. Vengeance!” Barty called arrogantly.
— ᨳଓ .
Sirius stepped through the tall steel doors that acted as an exit from the club; he pulled his black trench coat on tighter around him. It was pouring out, which brought the chilled wind. He needed a taxi quickly.
He had recognized that guy with Barty. He was all over the news, Batman. Seeing it on the television screen made him laugh; how stupid was that guy? But seeing him in person was a different story. He was tall and extremely muscular; Sirius couldn’t imagine how the man looked beneath the suit.
But most importantly, Sirius saw pictures on Barty’s desk. Of Regulus. What had Regulus done with the mayor that required a man like Batman to be inquiring about? He needed to get home to Regulus, to warn him.
In fact, Sirius had warned Regulus a long time ago when he started hanging around Lucius Malfoy and Barty Crouch Jr., especially when Regulus told Sirius he had started to sleep with Barty. Sirius looked down both left and right of the street; he noticed a yellow taxi beginning to drive up.
He waved his hand exaggeratedly, hoping desperately someone wasn’t already in it. But thankfully, it stopped right in front of him. Sirius opened the backseat door and sat in, closing it quickly. “Where to?” Sirius told the woman the street his apartment was on, and the car drove off.
Sirius reached a hand up into his curls, which were pretty tangled after a long night tending to the bar. Thankfully, Dorcas let him go. She had only recently started to take a liking to Sirius. After a whole year working together, that is.
Lost in thought, Sirius was jolted into reality when his phone began to ring. He dug in his bag and pulled his phone out. A picture of Regulus appeared; it was him calling. Sliding his thumb across the screen to answer, he held the phone up to his ear.
“Siri! There are pictures of me on the news. With Malfoy!” Regulus was distressed, yelling. He sounded close to tears. Sirius was taken aback. “The news? What are they saying?” Sirius asked quickly. Regulus usually kept his cool very well and didn’t panic easily. So the fact he was yelling and probably crying by now was deeply concerning.
“They’re saying I have to do with his death! That I might have had a motive to kill him!” Regulus let out a sob from the other line, “We need to get out of this city, Sirius. Tonight. Do I go now?” Regulus exclaimed, his words fast and stumbling over each other.
“No, no. I’m almost home. Wait for me. We’ll get out of here, okay?” Regulus wasn’t speaking, just mumbling nervous remarks. “Regulus?” The line disconnected. Sirius looked out the window and noticed they were going under a tunnel, where the Wi-Fi connection usually went out.
“Goddamit.” Sirius hissed under his breath, shoving his phone back into his bag and pulling his bag over his shoulder. His emotions were now heightened, quickly turning to look out the window; thankfully, they were pretty close to his apartment. The rain was beginning to lighten up, but the skies were still dark with large angry clouds in them.
But little did Sirius know as he stared out the window that there was a man who had been tailing the taxi on a motorcycle. A man in a helmet covering his face and black clothing covering his entire body. It was Remus.
Only a few minutes later, the taxi parked right outside Sirius’ building. Sirius murmured a thank you as he handed the driver a twenty-dollar bill and practically jumped out of the car. He pulled his coat’s hood over his head and ran inside the dingy building, walking right past the building owner, whom he would usually stop by to chat with.
The elevator opened as Sirius walked up to it. Stepping inside, he pressed the button with the number ‘10’ on it. He let out a frustrated sigh and leaned against the wall. Usually he was much more carefree and had better energy. But since the mayor died, things had been a shitshow for him.
Everyone at the club or bar was aggressive, especially the higher-ranked people. Sirius could only deal with so many middle-aged men screaming in his face before he lost his cool.
The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. Sirius bolted out of the elevator and to his and Regulus’ apartment. He dug into his bag for a moment before grasping at his keys and unlocking the door.
Their apartment was a wreck. Usually it was nice and clean thanks to Regulus getting annoyed if it wasn’t. But they both were so distressed as of late that it was the least of their concerns.
They shared a two-bedroom apartment; they actually got pretty lucky with it considering their budget for it. They never grew up with much money, especially after their mother passed when Sirius was just 15 and Regulus was 14.
The living room and kitchen were conjoined and were placed before a large wall that was just a window. That was a common theme in housing for Knockturn. The lights were dimmed, and Sirius spotted Regulus sitting on the black sofa watching the news, crying. There was a small brown cat in Regulus’ lap, Cookie.
They both had a problem with cats; there must’ve been about eight in this apartment right now. Regulus jumped up when he heard Sirius’ footsteps, letting out a breath of relief when he realized it was just his older brother. “Look!” Regulus gestured to the television.
Sirius dragged his eyes away from Regulus’ tear-stained face to the television. There, on the Knockturn City News Channel, was a picture taken of Regulus and Lucius. Both looking suspicious as hell. Regulus had that big cut on his face that was still healing even now. The picture was the same one that Batman was showing to Barty.
Above the picture were the words “Potential suspect for the murder of the mayor.” Sirius groaned at the sight, rubbing his eyes without trying to mess up his eye makeup.
Sirius moved his gaze to Regulus and watched him for a moment; the boy was shaking. “Well, what happened? What’s the context of that photo?” Sirius asked, bending down to pick up the Siamese cat at his feet, Bella. This was the first cat Sirius had ever had; the two definitely had an emotional bond. She started to purr the moment Sirius had her in his arms, rubbing the side of her cheek across his forearm.
“Nothing bad! I didn’t do anything! The club was closing, so I walked out with him. He offered to drive me and Barty home.” Regulus spoke quickly, pointing to a portion of Barty that could be spotted in the background of the picture. Sirius could tell Regulus was lying to his face.
The police would be after Regulus; he would be blamed for this murder. “Reg, I told you to stop hanging out with these losers!” Sirius hissed. He was annoyed, scared, and sad for Regulus all at the same time. But it was his job as his older brother to tell him I told you so but also to protect him.
Regulus just nodded his head quietly; his tears were beginning to dry up, finally beginning to think rationally. “We need to leave. Preferably tonight.” Sirius said, placing Bella back on the ground and looking at Regulus expectantly. Bella meowed his protest before prancing away to a scratching board.
“I can’t! Lucius stole my passport.” Regulus gripped the black sofa.
“Excuse me?” Sirius was baffled; this was news to him.
“The last time I saw Lucius, we were with Barty, and I had told him that you and I had plans to move soon.” Regulus sighed, “When I got home, I saw my passport had disappeared from my bag.”
Sirius didn’t even know what to say. They were planning on going to France. They both were already fluent in French because their mother taught them. If Regulus had no passport, they were going to get nowhere. Moving states wouldn’t save them.
“God, Regulus,” Sirius grumbled, running his fingers through his hair out of frustration. His mind was searching for a plan.
It took a few moments of pacing back and forth, but he soon thought of one. “Regulus, I need you to stay here. Be careful, and if anyone comes in, then you need to hide.” Regulus stared back at Sirius with contempt before nodding. “I’m going to get your passport back. Start packing.”
With that, Sirius walked away and to his own bedroom. His room was small; his bed had a pile of clothes on it. His LED lights were still on, painting the room in a dark purple. He headed for his closet first, pushing his boots off and unbuttoning his jeans.
He pulled his sweater over his head while leaving his tank top on, discarding it on the floor. He grabbed for a black article of clothing and pulled it on. It was a sleek, fitted black leather bodysuit that stretched from his legs to his arms. Sirius zipped up the silver zipper on the front that ended at the high collar.
Sirius reached up to the top shelf and grabbed a knitted mask and a small black bag. The mask was something he bought as a joke at his friend Mary’s shop. Sirius was an avid shopper there because of all the cat-themed items. The mask was a small black hood that covered his eyes and over the top of his head. The head part had two small pieces pointing up to almost imitate cat ears.
The last thing Sirius did was grab his boots from before and slide them back on. He didn’t have much time to perfect anything. As he pulled the bag up his shoulder, he walked to the window beside his bed and slid it open.
The base of his boot hit the rickety black metal wires of the fire escape; it was something he did often. This was something he did often when he wanted to get away with small things. Sirius quickly stepped down the staircase, which had creaked below his weight, before stepping on the city’s sidewalk as if nothing had happened. The rain had cleared, leaving a chilly wind coming at the city.
Remus Lupin stood on a rooftop adjacent to Sirius’ apartment building, a pair of binoculars in hand. In truth, he had witnessed the entire thing. And he also knew how creepy he seemed for doing this, but he was a lead. Remus watched the boy from the club walk to a small garage beside his apartment building. After a few moments, a dark-clothed figure drove out on a sleek black motorcycle.
Remus couldn’t help but smirk to himself as he shoved his binoculars into his backpack and began to pull his Batman suit back on.