𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒂 | 𝐛𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐧𝐞 (𝙜𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙢)

𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟯

Blood.

Screaming.

Selina didn't wait to see Eularia's reaction. There wasn't any time for any of that. She grabbed her arm and ran. That had most definitely sounded the alarm. They would be searched for. Patti's footsteps were deafening, the noise ringing in her ears. Her heart was beating so loudly that she could hear it, and Eularia was sure that Selina could, too. Selina jumped on top of a crate, pulling Eularia after her. Patti was getting closer. Much too close for comfort. The clicking of her gun made Eularia shake. It was just like the night Bruce's parents died. She didn't want to die, with the pitiful life that she'd lived. Eularia hadn't made the least bit of an impact on the world– or even Gotham. Not even a tiny dent. How pathetic.

Clack.

Selina's necklace had unclasped from years of wearing, the metal failing to work. It fell to the ground, making Patti glance up.

"Well. You are very naughty little girls." She said, raising her loaded gun. They lifted their hands in surrender.

Jim Gordon tackled her, knocking her out in the process. He looked at the girls, putting on a kind face his

"Hi." He began. "What are your names?"
"Why is that your business?" Selina retorted, out of breath.

"I'm sorry about 'Lina." Eularia tried for a shaky smile. "I think we're both in shock." With some help from Gordon, Eularia managed to get off of the crate.

"Jim!" Another voice shouted. Gordon turned in their direction. Harvey Bullock was holding his S&W 10 to the man's back.

"Where are the kids?" Gordon asked. "Where are they?"

Meanwhile, at Wayne Manor...

"Alfred, can you help me find something?" Bruce was digging through files.

"What is it you need help with, Master Bruce?" Alfred watched what he was doing over her shoulder intently. "Are you searching for someone?"
"Yeah." Bruce nodded. "Someone that goes by Lara."

"Do you know her last name?" Alfred took on another box of files, flicking through them. "Or if Lara is a nickname?"

"I don't know..." He mumbled, looking down. He really barely knew anything about "Lara," who'd saved sanity, if not his life.

"That's alright, Master Bruce. We will figure it out. Would you be able to recognize her if we found her picture?"

"Yes." Eularia was unforgettable. From the way her ash blonde hair whipped around in the wind, to her silver-gray eyes that bore into one's soul.

"Is this her?" Laradora Illian. Brown hair and green eyes. Not even close.

"No." Bruce said. "She has light blonde hair and gray eyes."

"What about this one?" Arialue Cephen. Grayish-blonde hair and gray-blue eyes.

"Close, but not really. Her hair is like the ash from a fireplace, maybe a shade higher." Bruce sighed wistfully. "And her eyes are as silver as the shining night star."

Alfred raised an eyebrow. "Of course. I shall continue my search."

Bruce returned to looking. He paused, going back to the previous one. That familiar gaze...

"I found her."

Alfred sat next to Bruce, scanning the file. A few criminal records, but nothing too big in a place like Gotham– stealing, pickpocketing, scamming, that sort of thing. One thing caught his attention. Missing since the age of three... There was no known record of her after that.

"Eularia." Bruce smiled. "What a pretty name."

"Are you going to find her?" Alfred asked. "The streets of Gotham are a dangerous place–" He was interrupted by the sound of the television opening. The words "Breaking News" flashed across the screen.

"This is Cassian Delroy, coming at you from GNS. Lately, a strange series of events have been happening in the shadows of Gotham. Street kids have been disappearing for weeks now, and taken to a strange place for unknown reasons." The screen showed pictures of the bus that brought them there.

"They were drugged with ATP, a fast working knockout drug. They were all armed with guns, but thankfully, no one was fatally injured. And that concludes the summary for today's breaking news."

Bruce shut off the TV.

"I need to know if she's okay!" He went for the door. However, Alfred stopped him before he could get very far.

"A call to the police station will do, Master Bruce. There's no need for you to go there yourself."

"Fine."

Back at the police station...

"Go get Detective James Gordon." Selina was sprawled across the bench. "He works here."

"Police are very busy people–" The officer said.

"Go get him." Selina insisted. "Or..." She smirked. "I'll say you touched me."

"Excuse me?" He furrowed his brow, staring at her in disbelief. That was quite the bold statement from a thirteen-year-old street rat. Eularia was clinging onto her tightly, her eyes darting around warily.

"I'm gonna scream in three seconds." Selina raised an eyebrow cockily. Eularia held up three fingers, putting one down for every second that passed.

Three.

Two.

On–

"Alright, alright!" The cop came back with Gordon following him.

"I got it." Gordon said. "Hello again, young ladies. How may I help you two?"

"We need to talk." Selina replied.

"So now you wanna talk, huh? Okay, it's alright– Selina, is it?" Gordon glanced between the girls.

"She prefers 'Cat,' though." Eularia piped up quietly. "And I go by 'Lara,' Mr. Gordon." She added.

"Cat, Lara. You're Macky's friends?"

"Yeah, we know Macky." Selina carefully wiggled her arm out of Eularia's grasp, leaning forward.

"Those bastards nearly got you twice, huh? You're quite the survivor." It wasn't just a compliment, it was the truth. Eularia had gotten caught for her lack of alertness, something neither she nor Selina would let happen again.

"You have no idea." Selina scoffed. She hated it when people assumed things about her. "Suppose I had something you really, really wanted. If I gave it to you, could you get me out of here?"

"What do you got?"

"I've been watching you." Wow, 'Lena. Eularia rolled her eyes. Gee, that doesn't sound suspicious in the least.

"You're a friend of the boy. You're not like the rest of these crooks." Selina tilted her head at the other cops.

"That boy? Bruce? What do you mean you're watching me?" She ignored Gordon's question, instead coming to pick at her nails.

"The Mario Pepper guy was a patsy, huh?" She smiled smugly. Now that really caught his attention.

"What makes you say that?"

"Could you? Could you get us out?" Eularia asked, hopeful. She didn't want to go back to the streets or stay in juvie.

"It's possible." That was all it took to convince Selina.

"I saw who really killed the Waynes. Saw him as clear as day."