1(800) Adoption Papers NOT needed! Its a two for one special! ( 1POV Version )

~Lets Get Ready to Rumble~ the Pre-show

" Let me go with little- wing," says Dick and continues in a knowing tone, " just in case you lose his control, he's going to need someone to hold him down."

It's just something about how he said it takes me by surprise. How he said he needs someone to hold him down, reminds me of how someone would talk about a rabid animal. Not a person. I look at Jason and see him not being too happy about that comment.

" It might take more than just you; I'll go with you as well. Tim and Damian go with Danyal," orders Bruce.

"  I think it would be best for Damien with you, too," I interject, " If by chance Showenhowers Is here, it would be better if we were separate."

Damian crosses his arms, and his mouth is pointed down into a slight frown, " You wish for us to fight separately?" 

I wince at his words, as he sounds hurt.

I explain, "It would be better if we weren't together. They may have seen what I really looked like while I was brainwashed; I don't remember everything from that time. We look enough alike that if they saw you, they could think you were me," I try to sweeten the deal, "  if it is them, this could help you get intel. They'd be more likely to attack me than anyone else here."

" You wish for both of us to act as bait," he says, scrutinizing me.

"Would you do it for a Scooby Snack?"  he stares at me as if I've lost my mind, " a bat snack? A Robin's snack?" I wait for an answer, but all I get is silence before asking seriously, "Do you have a better plan?"  

The glances at one another shrugs, and continued silence was answer enough.

So we split off in different directions. I can't help but look over my shoulder every once in a while, hoping to see Damian or the others not too far behind, but they get easily lost In the crowd. Tim and I travel in silence, content walking in circles, people-watching. I try to observe others' eyes but not to catch them. None of their eyes have an inhuman sheen or a radiating glow, but that doesn't mean something isn't going on. Some, like Spectra or Amorpho, can look human when they want to; who knows, maybe others can too. I run into the side of Tim as his pace slows.

He turns to look at me, and I give him an apologetic look. He shoves his hand into his pocket and takes out his wallet, " you up for some games?"

A wide grin forms on my face, " I thought you'd never ask."

He looks at me a little weirdly, and when I raise my eyebrow at him, he says, "Sorry. It's still weird seeing an expression like that on Damien's face."

" Well, it's my face, too, so you should get used to it," I say blandly.

He scratches the side of his face and says awkwardly, " Sorry, I didn't mean anything by it,"  but I can tell he wants to say more.

We play a couple of rounds of that basketball game, where they have the really big prizes, but no one ever really wins before he gets the guts to ask, "Is there any way to stop it?"

" Stop what?"

" The possession– overshadowing thing?"

" There's a couple of ways, but it's nothing you could do naturally,"  I say, grabbing his attention as I info dump, "The Fentons, while they were shitty scientists, weren't that bad at inventing. So I spent quite a few years in–"  I say shakingly, trying to think past the cages and ectoplasm stains, " –the lab, working on inventions with them."

We walk in silence for a few moments, with me unable to look at him as I push past the memories until he asks, "Do you think you could recreate the inventions?"

I try to smirk at him, but it feels more like a grimace, " I probably do it in my sleep. I would have to modify it, though. While it keeps anyone from overshadowing you, it is also quite obvious when using it."

" What do you mean?"

" They designed it to act as a belt, called it the Specter Deflector, that thing is gotti, and I doubt anyone would be willing to wear it as it is. All of my regular rogues can identify it on-site. If any of them travel to Gotham to cause some trouble, it would be pretty obvious if you had it on."

" Would you be able to make it more compact? It sounds advanced how would you change it?" Tim asks with the enthusiasm of a puppy.

" It's not that advance,"  I try to deflect, " it shouldn't be too hard. A lot of the stuff they made was with cheap parts that they found in scrap yards or broken appliances on the street. If I use proper parts, I can make it a lot smaller, most likely like a bracelet or something of the sort, for everyday wear."

"Is that all you would do? Or would you do anything else?"

"There are a few other modifications I'd make, just to make it better for friendlies."

" What do you mean?" he asks, his eyes big with worry, " it has side effects?"

I nod, " Those with ectoplasm in their system will get a really big shock just touching the person. It doesn't matter if they were trying to overshadow them or not. It's helpful in identifying those with ectoplasm, but it can also put a target on your back." I put my hands in my pockets, trying to seem casual as I say, " Not many know about ghosts, and those who do are normally hunters. Even peaceful ghosts could attempt to attack you if they think they might be in the line of fire."

" Wouldn't it be better to just try to modify it so it doesn't attack you or Jason?"

" While maybe helpful for the two of us, it wouldn't tell others. Nobody deserves to be attacked on the basis of what they are. Also, think of it like this, what if you're actively trying to go after the ghost, it'll alert them that you're there. putting you and the civilians in more danger."

Tim's face pales as he hurridly tries to apologize, saying, " I wasn't thinking of it like that. I just meant it would be good to know if they were a ghost or not. Not as a method of attack."

I eye him wearily. Batman and the birds are known for their contingencies. Talia and Ra's ensured we were aware of that.

"If you were to wear it, or Jason, would it be the same?" Tim asks with a weird expression on his face.

"  I'm not sure about Jason,"  I confess, " after the.. incident happened When going around like this,"  I say, gesturing to my human form, " it felt uncomfortable to wear it, but  it wasn't outright painful–."

Tim cuts me off, "You say that like that isn't the fact now."

" That's because it isn't. Over time I got stronger, so it had more of an effect. I can't even touch it without getting electrocuted. If Jason were to have one of the Fenton's models, it could cause him some discomfort, maybe even some slight pain, as his ecto signature isn't very strong, but I don't want to risk it."
We go to play a couple more games before we have to meet up with the others. Tim is quiet the whole time, silently reviewing the information I've given him. We try different ones until an unnatural crackle sounds off in the air, like the start of a 1950s intercom. A husky voice reverberates through the lot, "Welcome all Ghouls and Ghosts to Circus Gothica, the world's only nightmare circus! Come join us into the unknown at our next performance, starting in 15 minutes. Join us while you last," they say as another crackle sounds, marking the end of the announcement.

Tim drags me off last minute to one of those concession stands to get a couple boxes of popcorn and some water before we make our way to the big top.

Tim looks at his water questioningly, "Hey, random question does holy water work on ghosts?"

" I don't know. I've never seen anyone try that before."

He gives me a shit-eating grin, "Don't you think it's time to find out?"