Selenophile || Batman

the savior

"At night when the stars light up my room
I sit by myself talking to the moon.
Trying to get to you
In hopes you're on the other side talking to me too.
Or am I a fool who sits alone talking to the moon?"
—Talking to the Moon, Bruno Mars.
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"What do you see?"

The little girl shifted awkwardly under her mother's stern gaze, shuffling closer to the balcony's railing. Cupping the cold metal in her hands, she rocked forward on her toes, peeking outwards; but instead of staring down at the multiple lights flickering below, she craned her head back, turning her gaze upwards, sea green eyes meeting Gotham's miserable graying skies.

She had never missed the sun so much, she suddenly realized.

"Nothing," Valentina answered honestly, continuing to stare at the mass of dark clouds. "I see nothing."

A hand fell on her head and the girl blinked, a bit surprised as fingers weaved into her dark brown locks. Then the hand tipped her head forward, causing her gaze to dip downwards instead. The bustling traffic in the street below suddenly clear in her vision as she heard her mother click her perfectly manicured nails on the railing.

"Opportunities." Her mother spoke fluently in Spanish, weaving her fingers down her child's hair. "There are so many opportunities in this city."

Valentina propped her chin on the cold railing, still standing on the tip of her toes, as she peeked upwards again, hating the foreign sky and the cool wind biting her skin. She missed the bright happy sun, the warm smiles of her grandparents, the cheerful laughter of her cousins, the love and warmth of her home—she missed home. Her real home. Not this empty, silent apartment she had been made to step into yesterday night.

The words left her lips before she could think them through: "I wanna go back home."

She held her breath, wincing as the fingers combing through messy locks halted. Her mother's warm hand withdrew and Val chewed on her bottom lip, turning her head meet her mother's cold stare, pinning her with a withering glare.

"This is your home," the woman said solemnly.

"But Mamà—"

"And you will learn to like it. Am I clear, Valentina?"

The girl stepped back from the railing, swallowing the lump stuck in her throat as she nodded, her chest suddenly numb. "Yes, Mamà," she answered firmly.

Valentina patiently waited for the warm hand to return atop her head, for fingers to weave through her chocolate locks with affection once more. Yet the woman beside her merely hummed, pleased as she folded her arms behind her straight back, proudly looking ahead again.

"Good girl."
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Shouldering her bag, she stepped into the alleyway, glancing around cautiously before she began trudging downwards. With golden eyes she peered up at the moon hanging so high up in the sky, a strange force tugging her ahead as she pushed forward, her sneakers lightly thumping against the cracked concrete below.

"I know what I'm doing," Valentina assured herself, not entirely sure how she ended up walking through Gotham's streets at night in the first place.

Halfway through the alley she suddenly hesitated, thinking it better to return home; but another glance towards the sky quickly changed her decision, the soft, cool voice breathing near her ear once again, urging her to continue her journey. Tightening her grip around the strap of her bag, Val began stalking forward, listening to the faint voice guiding her around, and inwardly hoping she wasn't going to regret this all later.