Chapter Text
It's been hours and you're still unable to fall asleep. You decide taking a few laps around the manor halls might tire you out.
It's silent except for the occasional creaking of the old place shifting. Honestly this might be making you even more restless. This place makes your anxiety skyrocket at night, flinching at every squeaky, creaky shift of the old wood.
It's a little hard to not believe in the supernatural when you live in Gotham. With the surplus of myths, tales, stories of creatures that snap you up in the night. The myth that Batman is… you'll hear criminals describe him, unearthly strong, invisible, a shadow, all knowing, evil eyes watching from the shadows. Paranoia… But let's be honest, how many of those guys have already completely lost it? Be a fool to believe a word of it.
The background noise fades in your mind as you stop at the library doors. It's a cozy room furnished with plush furniture, silk curtains, long rugs, even portraits of its past residents, and a fireplace towards the middle. You decide to take a look at the books, you'd be a fool not to take advantage of it.
The room is dim, only lit by the moonlight that seeps in through the curtains. You run your fingers along all the spines of the books but stop at one. It stands out with its engravings. You pull it out to take a look but it only comes out so far.
You flinch when you hear a small *click* and to your surprise the shelf moves back. You're staring dumbfounded.It's a pitch black spiral stairwell, cold stone walls. Of course it makes sense. Creepy rich guy mansion of course comes with creepy passage ways.
Curiosity killed the cat but not peeking down there would kill you too. Plus it's not like you'd get caught. It's the dead of night and you're quiet.
You figure it can't be that long of a way down and there's probably a light somewhere at the end if not you still have your lighter. You step into the darkness, you feel the cold stone against your bare feet. Carefully you make your way down a few steps. Your path is somewhat lit by the faint moonlight behind you.
You soon lose the little comfort you had when you hear the entrance close up behind you. A deep foreboding sense settles in, but at this point you can only go forward. If there's an entrance there's an exit. Or at least you hope.
You continue stepping down the stairs one by one, dragging your hand against the wall to guide yourself. It's surprisingly not as musty as you thought, it just feels cold and rough. As you get closer to what you're hoping is a room you smell something potent, similar to gas or oil, yuck.
Despite not being able to see anything, it's still claustrophobic. You can feel a faint breeze against your face. Is it possible this place leads out...?
You take the last step into what looks like a giant cavern, you can barely make out anything but you're amazed by what you can see. Is it some kind of bunker or hideout maybe? You can make out the outline of a large desk, a workspace with boards nearby, technology and parts, unfinished projects. You can tell there's other areas further down but they're too far away to make out.
Its insane, what is this place?
Immediately you can tell something's wrong. You went too far, saw something you weren't supposed to, out of place. You're nauseous and hot, your skin is prickly and clammy...
Really… who the hell is this guy and what secrets does he hold…?
You pull your lighter out of your pocket, it takes a few times to light. It barely illuminates the space around you. Making your way to the workbench. Files sit there and you take a seat in the chair. You skim over them, unfamiliar names and pictures and just lots of words or numbers.
Picking up the first thing that catches your interest. A torn black mask… The kind you see the guy robbing the corner store wearing. Is this guy a goddamn criminal? Is he some kind of crime boss? Is that how he's so rich? Your heart races, brows furrowing as you think. Seems an ethical CEO was too good to be true. But this is Gotham… What'd you expect?
Then it hits you, this place sure doesn't look like it's abandoned. You even spot a cup of tea, it's still warm, evident by the small wisps of steam.
You then hear faint echoing footsteps slowly getting increasingly louder. Your heart skips a beat. You quickly put out your lighter before jumping to the first place to hide. Crawling under the desk. You feel partially scared and hurt because you were really starting to like him. But you're mostly scared, scared of what will happen if you get caught. You chew your lip nervously, brows furrowed intensely. He truly seemed different. A girl can dream….
You decide it's best to sneak your way out. The stairway isn't too far, and the footsteps have quieted. In the dark you quietly crawl your way, using the tables, workbenches and shelves as cover. You make sure your steps are quiet as you walk. Shuffling your way along the cavern floor, this place makes you feel small. Every small sound is echoed against the walls, spiking your anxiety every time you think you hear something.
You eventually get up into a crouching position, quickly making your way towards what you think is the exit. But your heart sinks and you gasp when you feel a pair of big hands grab you.
You instinctively shriek as the two hands grasp at your shoulders. You tense up and squirm, successfully slipping away.
A light flickers revealing glimpses of his face, concealed by a cowl with two little pointy ears.
You take no time in fleeing. You run towards the stairs, not looking back once. You don't stop once you've made it back, standing in the library. You're slightly surprised you weren't followed out. You take a moment to catch your breath. Your heavy breathing and your heart pounding in your ears is all you can hear for a moment.
You quietly make your way back to your room, creeping across dark halls.
You barricade yourself in. Immediately jumping into the bed, pulling the covers around you like a cocoon. It's your only current comfort after all. A thousand thoughts go through your mind but some weigh heavier. Who the hell is this guy? What secrets does he hide? Will he try to silence you...? Does he even care?
You feel safe wrapped up for now but you know it's a false sense of security. Quickly you're swept with a sudden wave of sleepiness, exhausted from all of tonight's snooping. This is a problem for future you.