The next evening, Tim was seated at the long dining table in Wayne Manor, having dinner with everyone.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvqlDQ975J
He deliberately picked a seat at an angle, trying to keep the bruise on his cheek hidden in the shadows.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6bMMxiHijV
But it didn’t work—Jason spotted it right away.
“What happened, Timmy?” Jason asked, holding his son in his arms with a raised brow. “Did a woman hit you?”
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJErKkjymJ
Tim pursed his lips and didn’t answer.
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe22bbfYU2j
Finn was in the middle of being placed into his high chair by Jason. When he looked up, his eyes widened.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmZ3r78hTdq
“Uncle! Your face—what happened?”
Tim tried to dodge, but the child was already leaning out of his seat.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOn4YcBOu9
“Uncle, crouch down! I’ll blow on it for you—”
With utter seriousness, Finn cupped Tim’s cheeks in his tiny hands and gently blew on them.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHvDWMcD9QZ
“Pain, pain, fly away…!”
Damian froze, struggling to keep a straight face.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnIyENyqYuD
Stephanie couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing. “That probably works better than Alfred’s ointment.”
Tim sighed and sat back down, while the rest of the table erupted in laughter.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPQJrASoz4
Except for him, no one really cared where the bruise came from.
He chewed his bread with a blank expression—he had expected this.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiuyPOM1WiM
And he had no intention of explaining.
Finn picked up his kiddie fork and stabbed a piece of pumpkin, but halfway through eating it, he stopped and turned his head.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJ8y7jATwk
“Grandpa,” he tilted his head toward Bruce, “do you have Batman’s phone number?”
The entire table fell silent.
Bruce almost choked on a spoonful of soup, coughing lightly.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPSxw2j3NW
“Ahem… Why do you ask, Finn?”
Everyone’s attention now turned to the four-year-old.
Finn frowned, visibly upset.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxrjymv0H9Z
“Ms. Nora didn’t come today. The other teachers said her house got broken into, so she took the day off.”196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtvnso90m7K
“I think she must be really sad…”
He spoke softly, poking at the mashed pumpkin with his fork.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTJQIeOslYM
“So Grandpa,” he looked up, more serious this time,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAp18VUHuV
“can you ask Batman to catch the thief for her?”
Tim "Thief" Drake lowered his head, thinking about his unbearably adorable nephew—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqjoEJhKi2u
and desperately wished he could bury his face in the mashed potatoes and disappear.
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ065DiBcnAc
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSebq1VmEf8
Tim sat at his computer, writing down everything he had on Nora in his encrypted folder.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxN125bU70
He opened the private page only he could access,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxM5A5doDQ
created a new file, and titled it: Nora V.
Below were a few concise categories:
- Writing (Batman-related fanfiction, pen name Nightnest)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8HSlYjgAkx
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsXQRuxANlf - Preschool Teacher (legitimate, clean record)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wq0tGyHml
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoIrd91fRHV - Minimalist Lifestyle (inconsistent with disaster prep supplies)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPs6sc3BrLf
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCZpYh6DbF - Emergency Supplies (food, water, filters, backpack, sleeping pad)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJIF0EV0qBb
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxJxI2P24QW - Firearms (research history, models, manufacturers)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn7xxb3sbo8
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkOjBu90aK - Combat Techniques (Highly concerning)196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ERHtJy0JV
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPMPjfV3sSk
Tim paused, staring at the list with a deep frown.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwUGjvLu7Lk
—It didn’t make sense. This combination couldn’t form a psychological profile.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkBWGERpk6X
It was like someone had forcibly stitched together a “character setting.”
He anxiously stared at the screen.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnO1OeEtw0D
He didn’t like this kind of unclassifiable presence—this unpredictable variable.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEIQ8jLaUfF
There was nothing contradictory about Nora, and yet, she didn’t match any known behavioral models.
He took a deep breath and moved the “firearms” section under “emergency supplies.”196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Wu8hDRtHl
Because if that entire guest room really was part of her survival prepping plan,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdzaETZn2w0
then researching guns could be a logical extension—a necessary defense for the end of the world.
Still, he typed out a note:
Suspect possesses moderate to advanced familiarity with firearms. Continued monitoring of actual firearm usage recommended.
But it wasn’t just about the gun.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡskiMHraVGJ
It was her fighting style.
That was the part Tim couldn’t let go of.
In the Bat-family, combat followed a system.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrvzNRtmh5k
Even someone like Jason, who’d gone rogue, still showed traces of Bruce’s original techniques.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvt3OjYyNtz
The form might’ve drifted, but the foundation was still there—like a sword that had gone crooked, but still learned its first cuts in a dojo.
But Nora wasn’t like that.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0glTNOMBr
Her every move looked like it came straight from the streets.
She had no form, no discipline—only intent.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡruhbAAoZoC
She climbed walls, flipped mid-air, punched—all aiming directly for vital points.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxlU0m3Idbv
She didn’t care about style, or about hurting people. She just wanted to take you down.
Tim gently touched his still-swollen cheek—he had no desire to go through that again.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwInLNz4mr
He typed another note:
Likely exposed to life-threatening combat. Unorthodox training. Goal: neutralization, not traditional fighting. Avoid direct confrontation if possible.
After a pause, he added one last line:
These are not skills a preschool teacher should possess.
Then he saved the file and closed the encrypted folder.
As the screen dimmed into dark mode, his own reflection appeared faintly in the glass—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3gV4J89A3R
the bruise still visible on his face.
He looked at the man in the glass, and a single sentence surfaced in his mind:196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLjZy4x5Idt
—"Who the hell is she?"
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwTppwCuEit
Because of last time’s failure,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcN9QrfbC71
Tim decided to hold back this time—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWcaKXJrvI8
to wait for the right moment.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Jlzk0iuaB
He knew he’d already spooked her.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1GMyHcztpL
The signs were there.
Finn had been gloomy for an entire week.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Exhpw956g
He didn’t want to draw, didn’t want to play games,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡka16NUG3pU
and even his favorite snacks—he took a single bite and said, “I don’t want it.”
That’s not normal, Tim thought.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X2iQV3c3m
Four-year-olds don’t suddenly change like that.
Then came the decisive piece of information:196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaihek4j9wV
Ms. Nora was moving.
She had taken a week off, stating the reason as “handling personal affairs related to moving.”
And—she didn’t report it to the police.
Tim drew a line in his notebook.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CBOrLSc8r
Moving house + not calling the cops =196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNHXAzB8HkH
She didn’t want anyone seeing that room.
She didn’t trust the police.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYAa0thl7V
Or perhaps, she didn’t want any official agency to find out about her prepper stash.
It was also possible she had long since grown used to handling everything on her own—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg9bTWw16qW
He’d seen that pattern before,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr6NMyfFXd5
in war zones, in disaster areas,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ20pJ0Kawym
in places where staying alive mattered more than obeying the law.
And just as he was thinking that—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVn2nTppret
the perfect opportunity came.
His sister, Leila, received an invitation from an old friend—196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWo4JA2nptk
to board a luxury cruise in the Mediterranean for an entire month,196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeejtROKD5d
performing while enjoying a long vacation.
Leila hadn’t wanted to go.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdEI1NBkEa
She always treated performing as a career, not a pleasure trip.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqIaHx5Ldx
Besides, she had a child to care for.
But Jason had other ideas.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaazDuYSZkP
With that damn persuasive tone of his, he told her they finally had a chance to “leave Gotham behind”196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡckaeoE2iB6
and “live like an actual couple for once.”
“This is the one thing I’m begging you for,” Jason said to Leila.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEqFk1awFj
“For four years, you’ve been Finn’s mom.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7IbRTKTrS
This time, just let me be a husband for one month. Please?”
And that’s when Tim got Leila’s message:
“Timmy, I’m counting on you to watch Finn.”
Tim stared at the message, then leaned back in his chair in silence.
It sounded exactly like a script—handed to him by fate.
One month.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNh6BtgDnXS
An entire month.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1kOm1Xsj4
Finn would be in his care.
He looked down at the planner on his lap.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsgr9Xxj9ML
His finger rested on that long, blank stretch of days.
—Here it is, Tim thought.196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfj2FOnqF6
The perfect chance.
196Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxo9XUfOB9q
and then Add to home screen.