I don't own anything to do with Batman. I do own Eleanor Black, her parents, her background, her dog, her friends Adam and Shauna, the NanoShift technology, Ashlynn Chiang, her henchmen, background and this plot. This fic doesn't go along with the movie, which is why Rachel doesn't know that Bruce is Batman, and this fic has NOTHING to do with my other Batman fics. It's rated T for violence, blood, language and drinking. Maybe some mild sexual content. Oh, and some REAL bitchy-ness on the part of Eleanor. I hope you enjoy this fic.

Reflection of His Enemy
Epilogue: Bright Lights; Big City


Rachel sat in her apartment, staring at the wall, listening to the constant whirring of the lights and the hot water in the pipes. She hadn't slept a full night since she'd come home from the hospital. There was a translucency to her skin and a vacancy in her eyes. She was afraid to be alone. She didn't want to be alone. Not even in her apartment. The dwelling, which had for so long before been her sanctuary, been the place where she came to relax, to get away from everything, only reminded her of being attacked; the plates, still-shattered on the floor and the broken cupboard doors and the other signs of the struggle still hanging around didn't help. And she didn't think the problem would be fixed by cleaning up the mess or moving to a different apartment. She was sure cleaning or moving wouldn't really help. Gotham reminded her of the Doppelganger, of being attacked. She needed to get away from the city, she need to be away until the city didn't scream danger to her.

She sighed. Rachel wished she could be as strong as Eleanor seemed to be in this respect. The younger woman seemed to be completely over the attack, and she'd been hit worse than Rachel. Eleanor was still attached to the city, it wasn't driving her away. It didn't seem to be a place of danger for Eleanor. Or, Rachel mused, it could be that Eleanor just had more to stay in Gotham for: her parents, her friends, her attachment to Batman… Bruce. Rachel sighed again and put her face in her hands, leaning forward, curling into a position of defeat. There had been a point in her life when she had been sure she'd marry Bruce someday, sure that she'd become Mrs. Bruce Wayne and raise a family. It had seemed inevitable that her and Bruce would grow old together. But now… Eleanor seemed to have taken that place. They seemed much closer now, more than they ever have before. After his seven year absence, Bruce had changed. He was incredibly different from when he left, from their childhood. Who Bruce was now seemed more fitting with Eleanor's personality.

On top of that, Rachel's parents had moved out of Gotham a while ago, into the country where they could live quietly and away from the darkness and crime of the city. There really was nothing left in Gotham for her to stay for. Yes she had friends, and yes, she had her job, but other than that, there was nothing. She had enough clout at the DA's office that she could likely get a job somewhere else anyway. Somewhere safer. Somewhere were she didn't feel as if her life was in constant danger.

She just needed to get away. Even if it was just for a little while.

It wasn't an easy choice to make. Rachel had been in Gotham her whole life, only moving to go to Harvard Law. She had come right back after graduating. Gotham was and always would be her home, but right then, she didn't want to be there. Maybe she'd go visit her parents for a while…

Adam stared at the computer screen, trying to process the numbers he was seeing. He had been at this for far too long; all the numbers were running together, and he wasn't sure if they were making any progress. Mr. Wayne had given them this project and wanted it finished as soon as possible, and that always meant incredibly long and extending periods of work. He didn't know why Mr. Wayne wanted this particular serum developed beyond what it was, especially after what had happened, but hey, he was the one in charge. There hadn't been much progress—at least nothing visible—and that was a little disheartening, but they'd push through. Blinking and rubbing his eyes with his hands, Adam stood up and walked back towards the mini-fridge containing all the usual sustenance he and Shauna kept for themselves. Said Shauna was currently asleep on the couch, sprawled out awkwardly, half her limbs hanging over the edge and the blanket tangled around her legs. Adam smiled to himself and pulled one of the canned energy drinks from the fridge. He returned to the desk before opening it, the popping noise echoing through the basement office the engineers had contained themselves too. He took a long drink and closed his eyes, leaning back in his chair to wait for the energy part of the energy drink to kick in.

He got less than that as the computer started beeping at him.

"What now?" he grumbled, sitting up straight and forcing his light blue eyes back on the screen. When he saw what was there, he gasped, coughed and then threw a book at Shauna. "Wake up, wake up! I think we've got something!"

Shauna fell off the couch and then pushed herself to her feet. She hated being woken up. "What-what-what-what-WHAT?!"

"Get over here!"

She scrambled across the room and launched herself into her normal seat on one side of the desktop. Shauna peered through her blurry-eyed vision at the screen. There was a light bulb moment as she understood what she was reading. "Adam! That's it! That's it! That'll work! Make another sample! We've got to get to the lab and then call Mr. Wayne!" She let out a joyous yell and slid off the desk to go stand in front of the machine they'd been using to make samples of the serum.

Adam pressed the necessary buttons before joining his partner in crime. The clear liquid dispensed into the syringe with the normal gurgling sound. He grabbed the glass syringe once it was full, holding it protectively in his hand as they hurried into the brightly lit room where the test subjects were residing—rats, lots and lots of rats. Shauna pulled one of the screeching rodents out of their cages and placed it on the table, pulling the strap around his middle. Neither Shauna nor Adam really liked the idea of testing on animals, even rats, but they had tried just running simulations and got nothing. The serum was too weird, too different for the computer to run accurate simulations. Rats had proved the ideal subject due to the way their rapid metabolisms reacted with the increased rate of the delivery system in the concoction; results appeared almost immediately in the little creatures, and that was perfect for the rush Mr. Wayne seemed to be in.

Avoiding sharp little teeth, Adam injected the rat and then deposited the syringe in the proper waste bin, already filled with other failed attempts as it was. He and Shauna hunched over to watch the rodent.

Nothing happened.

"Did it work?" Shauna asked breathlessly.

"I don't know…" Adam held a picture of a different coloured rat in the test subject. They had proved before that male rats felt threatened by the picture and when they entered that state, the serum would take over. "Let's see…"

The silence they entered was tense. Adam and Shauna stared as the rat twitched. Nothing happened for a few, long minutes. Then, the roots of the rat's fur began to lighten and take on the white colour of the rat in the picture. Shauna bit her lip to keep from screaming, and it was a good thing she did. The rat remained the exact replica of the picture for a few more long, tense minutes and then things took a turn. The rat screeched, louder and more high-pitched than before. His back arched the wrong way and a chorus of nasty cracks filled the room. The white fur darkened to a dusty blue and then further deepened to a familiar shade of turquoise. The rat's eyes bulged red and, with a final scream, fell dead.

Adam and Shauna sagged against the desk. "Damn it," Adam whispered. "We were so close."

"Just got to keep trying, I guess…"

"What does he even want this for?!"

"I don't know Adam! I don't know, but we've got to keep trying; we've got to get this right. Whatever he wants it fixed for, it's important. Did you see the way his face was when he told us what he wanted us to do?" Shauna sighed and pulled her glasses off her face, pinching her nose between her forefinger and thumb. Her auburn hair fell in front of her face and her shoulders fell. She was tired. Exhausted. "I hate this as much as you, Adam. But we've got to finish this. Mr. Wayne said he wanted it inside of three months. We've already been at it for almost five weeks. We're close—that's a good sign. We've got lots of time to fine tune this baby." She looked up and smiled, returning her glasses to their perch on her face. Some of her energy seemed to have reappeared and her body was infused with the vibration that was her natural state. "So let's get back at it."

Adam couldn't help his mouth from turning up in a grin. "Let's do it."

Eleanor tossed her duffel bag on her bed and started throwing her most comfortable clothes into it without even bothering to fold them or anything. The clothing consisted mainly of denim and cotton, so it didn't really matter. She wasn't planning on going anywhere fancy, so she'd wear wrinkly clothing. At the urging of her mother, she did pack one dress, one skirt and two nice shirts, but that was it. Also in accordance with her mother's persisting she packed her makeup along with her other toiletries. As Naomi cleaned the fridge and cupboards of all perishable foods, Eleanor moved about her apartment, taking with her anything she thought she might miss while she was gone: books, movies, pictures of her family and friends, her stuffed bat from when she was little… She packed her laptop, all necessary cables and her mouse. Her phone, MP3 player… Everything she could think off. By the time she was done packing, it looked very much like she was trying to take her life in Gotham with her on her temporary absence.

"Honey, do you think you have enough bags?" Liam asked with a sarcastic lilt.

Eleanor rolled her eyes and smiled. "When I have I ever packed light?"

Liam nodded in concurrence before lifting too of the bags onto his shoulders and heading down to start loading up the car. He and Naomi wouldn't be driving Eleanor; they had just come to see her off. As he left, Blaze started barking and jumping at the door. Eleanor sunk to the floor and scratched her dog's ears, calming him.

"Are you sure the hotel doesn't mind me having a dog there for a while?"

"Honey, they don't mind. Blaze isn't a loud animal normally, and we're paying enough that they shouldn't complain." Naomi scratched Blaze's other ear. "You're a good dog, aren't you Blaze?"

Eleanor laughed and buried her face momentarily in her dog's fur as she hugged him. "I just don't want them to kick him out. Blaze will be the only one I have to talk to while I'm stuck there all alone."

"That's just because you're choosing to not meet anyone else. You should join a gym or something. Meet some new people." Naomi smiled. "Didn't you say something about joining a martial arts class? Wouldn't this be a perfect time? You don't have to work. You can concentrate on taking pictures, relaxing and learning how to defend yourself for when you come back." The red-headed woman raised an eyebrow at her daughter's disbelieving look. "What? Like I'd think you were going to move to Metropolis. Honey," she said, moving to her knees so she could take her daughter's face in her hands. "Honey, I know this is your place. I just want you to take some time. I need you to take some time."

Eleanor placed her good hand on her mother's arm and smiled, leaning into Naomi's hand. "I know Mom. I'm just being stubborn."

'You wouldn't be you if you didn't fight for what you wanted."

"If I wasn't a little annoying, you mean?"

"Well, I was trying to be nice about it, but sure." Naomi laughed and kissed her daughter's brow, drawing her into a tight embrace.

The moment was interrupted as Liam reentered the room, Bruce in tow, a pleasant smile on his face. Eleanor got to her feet and met him halfway, slipping her one arm around him in an awkward hug, trying to ignore the almost tangible happiness radiating from Naomi. He returned the gesture a little less awkwardly before pulling back just enough to look down at her. "Ready to go?" he asked, brushing some hair out of her face.

She forced herself to smile. "As ready as I'll ever be I guess."

Eleanor pulled on her coat and grabbed her bag-like purse. After everyone was similarly bundled and Liam had the last bag in his hand, the five occupants stepped into the hall where Eleanor locked the door. As they headed to the elevator, Blaze stuck to his master's side, even after three and a half weeks of being reunited. Outside in the parking lot, Liam loaded the last bag into the trunk, and then hugged and kissed his daughter before starting up his car. Naomi took a little longer to say goodbye and even started crying despite the whole thing originally being her idea. Once all the tears had been shed, the hugs and kissed exchanged, Eleanor let Blaze into the back seat before climbing into the passenger side and settling back into the car. She kicked her boots off and crossed her legs; the drive to Metropolis was three hours at least so why not be comfortable?

"So you've got everything right?"

Eleanor pulled the small black phone out of her bag—the device she'd dubbed the Batphone—and waved it towards him. "I have this and all the other things you gave me and yes, I have everything else. All the normal stuff."

Bruce smiled. "Good."

Author's Note… So it's short, but it's just a kind of lead-in and a teaser of what's too come. Enjoy.

Thanks again to everyone who read and loved this fic. Here's some news:

I'm aiming to have the sequel up and running somewhere in the middle of Chances Are although, it could be up sooner, depending how things pan out for me with school and how much time I end up with. Right now, I'll be concentrating on Chances Are because it needs some love, and people seem to like that one too. But never fear, there will always be a Batman fic on the go from me. But anyway, here's a bit of a preview.

Joke's On You, a sequel to Reflection of His Enemy.

The Joker has escaped from Arkam Asylum again, intent on wrecking havoc on Gotham City and the Batman. But, upon his return to the city, he discovers the Batman has an accomplice and an idea starts to form in his head. Get a hold of the accomplice, get the Batman's identity, kill the Batman. Simple, right? Maybe if said accomplice wasn't completely devoted to the Dark Knight. The Joker gets his hands on this new figure in Gotham and to save her, Batman must enlist the help of others new to his city. With a bevy of new faces, what chaos will ensue?

Haha, that's all you get. I'm not telling you who all the characters are going to be, but this is going to be an adventure for me, writing many more characters than I ever have before. Wish me luck!

Cheers,
Batchild.