Disclaimer: I created Batman way back in the day, but never trademarked the character and thus will never profit from his name.

Author's note: Longest chapter so far, but I think it needed to be. Of course that's what I think or it wouldn't be so long. Today I'm Captain Obvious.

Oh and WARNING, there is some sexiness. If you read anything that offends you just use that Men in Black mind erase thingy. Though I doubt anyone who's read up to chapter 10 of this story would mind sexiness.

----

Amanda stood by Katie's living room and watched the police drive off. In a way they were right. Katie was not missing according to the language of the law. But she is missing, Amanda thought. Even when saying goodbye to Katie on her birthday, Katie was somewhere else.

Amanda approached the bathroom and wiped away a speckle of blood from the doorknob. Even if the Katie I know hurt herself she would never leave a bloody mess in her wake. She's not only missing, Amanda thought while wiping another spot on the doorframe. She's hiding. How am I supposed to find someone who doesn't want to be found?

Confused and brokenhearted Amanda returned to her apartment, no longer interested in going for a run. She acknowledged the two men smoking by the entrance to her building with a nod. It was a big place and there were always people smoking by the entrance.

"Hey, can you let us in? We're visiting someone but we're locked out." The man who addressed her was shorter than her and scruffy with an oversized army green sweatshirt and faded baseball hat. His friend was a few inches taller, everything shaved but his eyebrows.

"Sorry," Amanda shrugged, unlocking the door. "Building policy – you can only let your own guests in."

"Good then," the bald one said.

"I'm sorry?"

"We're your guests, Amanda."

Amanda tried to slip through the door without letting them follow her, but the taller one grabbed her arm.

"Aww Mandy, don't be a rude hostess."

Amanda finally made it past the door and tried to close it, crushing the man's wrist in the process. He let go of her and forced the door open, following her into the lobby.

"Help! Somebody, please!" Amanda's ribs ached from screaming so desperately. She reached the third floor and ran down the hallway, calling for help as she went.

The injured man shook his arm out in the lobby while the other ran after Amanda. He paused at the third floor then ran down the hall, following Amanda's voice.

Amanda banged a left at the end of that hallway and flew down another, not screaming this time. She pushed open the first ajar door she found and shut it quietly behind her. She locked it and put her finger to her lips, requesting silence from the family eating eggs and bacon around their dining room table. The little girl cautiously put a forkful of scrambled eggs into her mouth and chewed slowly.

"Call the police," Amanda mouthed.

The woman she presumed was the mother tightened the belt of her robe and grabbed a phone.

"Someone broke in. They're chasing me," Amanda told her.

Multiple cruisers arrived within minutes, only capturing the man that followed Katie upstairs. Back at the station the police wondered what correlation, if any, there could be between Amanda's earlier call and this one. After the first hour of questioning, Amanda made a troubling connection between events as she waited for a secretary to return with coffee. When she told a detective a few minutes later, he quickly pressed his intercom button and called in several others. "Now that's an interesting little theory you've come up with," the detective said with a mustachioed smile. "I hope I'm wrong, though," she responded, observing the little cloud the creamer made as she poured it into her mug.

-----

"You're oddly quiet," Crane commented.

"Spacing out," Katie replied, rubbing her eye with the heel of her hand.

"And that's it?"

"Yup."

"Well perk up, would you? You're making me uncomfortable."

Katie laughed through her nose. "Sorry, I'll work on it."

Crane let go of Katie's neck several hours before, but she still felt the ghosts of his fingers. After he released her throat and kissed her, Crane kept Katie's face in his hands. He held his breath and studied her face, focusing for several seconds on each feature. Katie blushed and watched his eyes, not sure what he was doing but liking it anyway.

"You nodded."

"Yes," Katie whispered, feeling her blush deepen.

"Yes," Crane repeated, his eyes on her lips. "Tell me you won't try and leave."

"I won't."

"You want this."

"I do."

Crane moaned through closed lips. "I hope you like a little mystery, because I'm still not divulging many details about this trip." Crane popped the "p" at the end of the sentence, his lips staying parted, turning into a smile.

"Then I won't tell you what I actually did with the pills."

"Ouch," Crane said, wincing in pretend pain. He bit his bottom lip and smiled again. "What do I need to do for you to give me some?"

"Let's play hot or cold."

"Explain."

"You look for them, and if you're close I'll tell you you're warm, and if not, then cold."

"That doesn't sound fun."

"What if I told you they were somewhere on my body?"

Crane reached back and wrapped a hand around her ankle.

"Cold."

He sighed and ran his hand up her calf.

"A little warmer."

He watched his hand climb up her thigh.

"Warmer…"

His hand stopped on her pocket.

"Hot."

Crane slid his middle and ring finger into Katie's pocket, grazing the fly of her jeans with his thumb. He found one pill and rested it on Katie's stomach, then repeated the act and found the other.

"I'll let you have them," Katie said, "but you can't use your hands."

Crane repositioned as much as the cab of the truck would allow, his shoulders touching the insides of Katie's thighs, his chin resting on the button of her fly. He put his hands under Katie's hips, showing her he wouldn't try to grab the pills from her stomach.

"So how are you going to get them?"

Crane kept his head still and strained with his tongue, making little grunting noises. Katie giggled, causing the pills to roll a little closer to Crane. He looked up at Katie and stuck his tongue out again, purposely missing the target, licking the little bit of skin revealed between the top of Katie's pants and bottom of her shirt. She laughed and squirmed, and Crane caught the pills on his tongue before they rolled off of her.

"If I administered medication that way from the beginning, might you have reconsidered escaping?"

"Without a doubt."

"If only I thought of this earlier."

"No sense for regrets now. Onward we go, driver."

"Onward where?" Katie asked. She took a seat behind the wheel and fixed her hair.

"Regardless of what you say, I'm troubled by your friend's call. I'm changing course slightly…which I suppose doesn't matter much to you since you didn't know the direction in the first place."

"Refrain from thinking out loud and simply tell me where we're going."

"How much longer can you stay awake?"

"It hasn't even been a day yet. If I had some caffeine I could go for a good amount of time. But only if at the end of it I will be able to eat, shower, and sleep somewhere that's not creepy."

"Sleep, maybe. And I packed a few edible items. Shower, not yet. We just have one quick stop around here and then you can sleep once we ditch the truck."

"You know, I just realized something. Every time I ask for more information your answers leave me all the more confused."

"Mission accomplished, then."

Katie shook her head and drove off, finally able to head to the next stop without pulling over. Crane was true to his word. They only stopped briefly at a boarded up gas station. Crane left Katie in the truck, no longer concerned she would take off without him. Katie purposely avoided looking at what he returned with, keeping her eyes on her lap while Crane added the item to their growing duffle bag.

"Last stop for the day: truck disposal." It didn't take Katie long to figure out where Crane was guiding her. The moment she got her license she borrowed her brother's car and drove the hour out to the coast. It never ceased to take her breath away. Beaches, dunes, cliffs, and canals – more water than roads. During the summer the tourists flocked, but this time a year it was mainly locals. During high school she came home at all hours of the night, her mother assuming she was in the city partying. Instead she was reading by the ocean or walking barefoot, almost always by herself. The mere thought of the area relaxed her. She couldn't wait to smell the salt air.

They drove quite a ways until Crane found his desired location. They climbed out of the truck by an isolated area on the cliff. In the summer couples and families were gathered in droves to take pictures, but right then it was just the two of them and some gulls. "Take the bag and leave the engine running," he told Katie. "Find two very heavy rocks of equal size."

"How heavy?"

Crane rolled his eyes under closed lids. "Very."

Katie went off in search of "very" heavy rocks, looking out over the cliff more than at the ground.

"Do it quickly," he called to her.

"Do it quickly," she mumbled to herself. She came back a minute later with a rock that required both arms to carry.

"That might be too big."

"Of course," Katie groaned. She dropped the rock and went off in search of its mate.

When Katie returned the truck was parked at a different angle and Crane was working hard at scraping something off of the driver's side doorframe. He ignored her until he was finished. "Hand me one." Crane put the first rock on the floor of the driver's side, then put the other next to it.

"Oh," Katie said after handing over the second rock. "This can't possibly turn out well."

"Ye of little faith."

Katie wanted to back away but she was too curious. She looked over Crane's shoulder as he carefully rolled one rock onto the break while simultaneously rolling the other onto the gas pedal. The truck revved and Katie couldn't help but take a few steps back. Crane opened the driver's side window and closed the door. He reached through and put the vehicle in drive, backing away quickly. When it stayed put, he smiled contentedly. He checked the steering wheel's position and opened the door again, crouching below it. "Ready?" he asked Katie.

"I…guess."

Crane held both hands above the rock on the break. He waited a few seconds, said something to himself Katie couldn't hear, ducked, grabbed the rock, and backed away as quickly as possible.

The truck hesitated for half a second before driving itself 200 yards up the road, then through the whitewashed wooden fence that defined the line between the road and the steep side of the cliff. Katie ran after the truck and arrived at the broken fence just in time to see the truck meet the rocky waters far, far below. Crane joined her and looked over the edge.

"Damn water. I wish it hit the ground and exploded," Katie said to Crane disappointedly.

They stood together and watched it sink.

"Ok, that was satisfying," Crane said after the last air bubble broke the surface. "Now take your boots off."

"Can I wear your shoes, then?"

"No sole prints and no time to waste."

Katie pulled her boots off while hopping over to the bag. She picked it up and walked quickly beside Crane. He led her past the point where vehicles could travel, heading down towards the shore.

"Hold up, hold up," Katie said, stopping to brush jagged pieces of rock and shell from the bottom of her foot. "Fuck that hurt." She followed Crane's gaze and looked over the side of the cliff towards the horizon line.

"Serene," Crane said.

"I love it here."

"We need to stay somewhere until it gets dark again."

Katie thought over a few possibilities before the most appealing one came to her. "Perfect spot, right near by, follow me."

She headed towards a favorite reading spot of hers. They came to a beach, relieving Katie's feet of rock-induced pain. She practically skipped as they got closer. Under a wide, long dock was a cavern in the rock, accessible only by wading through a foot of water. Seeing the spot again gave her chills. Crane had chills too, but from the freezing water.

The tide stopped just in front of the cavern, which was as wide and long as a king-sized bed. Katie embraced the dry sandy ground as if it were a beloved friend. She rolled onto her back, arms and legs spread as if she were about to make a snow angel.

Crane ducked and sat down, not able to stand in the small space.

"This is what I'm talkin' about," Katie sighed. She sat up and looked out on the water. Minutes later she looked behind her. Crane was on his side, asleep using a sweatshirt for a pillow. Katie crawled behind him and laid in the same direction, her stomach against his back. She put an arm around him and her lips to his neck. In his sleep Crane nuzzled into Katie. She felt euphoric, never wanting to leave that moment in time, falling asleep with a smile.

---

"And so you had no idea that Dr. Saunders knew him prior to his incarceration?"

Dr. Desai sunk further into the cushions of his living room couch. "None whatsoever," he said, surprise still in his voice. "Was it more than just a student-teacher relationship?"

"Doesn't appear to have been at the time."

"Then why wouldn't she have disclosed their prior association?"

The detective erased something on his notepad and wrote over the spot. "Just one of the many things we're trying to figure out."

"Even so, I don't believe she would go with him willingly, if that is in fact where she went."

The detective looked at Desai sympathetically. "But you wouldn't have believed she knew him previously if I didn't tell you."

Desai shook his head, his eyes wet. "I don't understand any of this. This isn't like Katie."

"I'm sure it feels that way, Dr. Desai."

Desai closed his eyes and put his thumb on his right tear duct, the ring finger of the same hand on his left. He held them there for a few seconds, then wiped his hand on his thigh and sat up straighter. "What can I help you with?"

"Accessing the asylum, her records, her notes on him, your accounts of their interactions, things like that. We'll have you come to the station first. Why don't you follow me in your car and we'll go now."

"Can my wife join me?"

The detective looked to his right through the leaded glass doors that partitioned the living room from the foyer. Desai's wife's silhouette paced back and forth. "She can come with you to the station, of course."

Desai nodded. "Thank you. I appreciate you coming in person to speak with me."

"Not a problem. Before we go you need to know, though, that the truth is…we have good reason to believe regardless of how she left, she's willingly going along now."

"No, she-"

"Very strong evidence. Don't react now. Think about it in the car. We'll talk at the station." The detective excused himself, letting Desai's wife know she should drive her husband across town.

---

"Why didn't you stop them then, sir?"

"I could have chased them or saved a man's life. I chose the latter," Bruce Wayne told his butler. They were in the depths of a dank cave, a seated Bruce shuffling and reshuffling papers spread across a desk. His British butler Alfred looked over his shoulder.

"What about saving the girl?"

Bruce looked up at his butler. "Trust me, Alfred. She was more than happy to be with him."

"How can you be so sure?"

Bruce returned his attention to the desk. "The weather was bad and I was on the roof, but I was able to hear some of what they were saying. I believe a direct quote would be, 'yes yes, harder, don't stop, oh god harder'." Bruce looked back up at Alfred.

"That was too much information then, wasn't it?"

Bruce chuckled. "Just be grateful you weren't there to hear it."

"I'll thank God for that daily." Alfred walked over to another table and studied some of the objects on it. "Do you know where they are now?"

"Yes and no."

"Well it can't be both."

"I know their destination but not the path they're taking. I'll track down one of the girl's friends tonight before heading that way. Bring her along."

"What good would that do?"

Bruce held a picture of Katie and Amanda with both hands. "We'll just have to wait and see."

"Ah, pretty girl," Alfred said, standing by Bruce once more. "That wouldn't happen to be part of your motivation for bringing her would it, sir?"

"Of course not." Bruce replaced the picture and took another. Amanda held a sparkler in each hand and stood in front of a beach bonfire, all of the twinkle and flame reflected in her deep blue eyes. "I can't believe you would say such a thing."

"You're right, I'm being foolish. A girl that attractive would never take an interest in you."

Bruce spun his chair around. "And why not?"

"I don't know," Alfred said, heading towards the elevator. "I suppose you'll just have to prove me wrong."

"I'm terribly offended," Bruce called after him.

Alfred pulled a lever and the elevator began to rise. "You're also terribly single. Don't bring this girl just to get a closer look."

"I would never."

The elevator was almost out of sight. "Of course not."

Bruce laughed silently and held up Amanda's picture. "Be helpful. Don't make a liar out of me," he told the picture.

---

Amanda walked quickly to the train, finally leaving the police station just after suppertime. She zipped up the "GOTHAM PD" sweatshirt the police had given her, still clad in her tank top and shorts upon arrival. She put the hood on and blasted her headphones, trying to push thoughts of Katie out of her head if only for a little while. She took a short cut between two large office buildings. It was a less savory route, but one she took all the time back in school. Between songs Amanda heard a voice from somewhere in the ally. She turned the volume down and listened closely, regretting turning down a police escort home.

"Amanda," a voice called, bouncing off the damp brick walls.

She took off her headphones and walked faster, more and more annoyed with her choice to head home alone. She inhaled in order to breathe a sigh of relief as she reached the end of the ally.

"Amanda," a rough voice called again.

Amanda held her breath and froze.

"Up here."

She looked up to her right, the side of a figure illuminated by a street light several yards away.

"Um…can I help you?" Amanda asked as if greeting a customer.

"You can help me help your friend."

"Who are you?" Amanda strained to see some kind of detail.

"She's assisting Crane in his escape. You might be the only person who can convince her to stop. If she doesn't, she'll be considered an accomplice."

Amanda's legs tensed, ready to run if necessary. "What do you know about any of this?"

"More than you. Do you want to help?"

"I want my friend back."

"How well do you know her?"

"I thought I knew her very well."

"Close?"

Amanda relaxed her legs. A few tears finally escaped after building throughout the entire day. "Like sisters." She blinked through the tears and the figure was gone. Moments later blinding headlights appeared down the ally behind her. She backed up against one of the buildings, the back of her hand shielding her eyes, a trashcan on either side of her. The car accelerated rapidly and sped down the ally, breaking suddenly in front of her. Its roof retracted.

Amanda approached the vehicle as if it were a sleeping bear. When she could finally see the driver, she nearly lost bladder control.

"I won't hurt you," he said in response to Amanda's uneasy expression.

"Batman," Amanda said, dropping her headphones.

He waited for her to complete a thought, but all she had to say was "Batman". He refrained from smiling. "Come with me."

Amanda bit the tip of her tongue and stared at him.

"Come with me, Amanda."

She continued to stare, her knees stuck together like magnets.

"For the sake of your friend."

"Right," she nodded, staying put.

"Amanda," he snapped.

Amanda took tiny steps towards the vehicle and stopped. "How-"

"Climb."

Amanda tried to get in the vehicle, slipping in the process and awkwardly landing in the seat. The windscreen and roof closed quickly and the car took off even faster. She watched the city whiz by the small windows. Her knees were still pressed together, her feet a foot apart with toes turned in. She kept her hood on and blocked the left side of her vision. The situation was already bizarre enough, and nearly every time she was extremely uncomfortable she would burst out laughing. If she looked at him she knew she would first snort, then giggle, and then laugh until she couldn't breath – the same thing she did at her grandmother's funeral.

"It's a long drive – sit back."

Amanda snorted. She leaned forward further and covered her mouth with both hands.

"I'm sorry if I scared you."

Amanda kept her hands on her mouth and giggled.

"Are you crying?"

Amanda sat back. "Sorry, I do this when I'm nervous. Today is so messed up. God, all the weird events in my life combined don't add up to today. If we find Katie I'm going to kill her." She finally stopped laughing, but she couldn't stop smiling. Then she began crying. Crying and smiling. "Wake me up. Please, please, please. This isn't happening. Oh my god I'm in Batman's car. I'm going to throw up."

"Do you always speak your inner monologue?"

"No, only when I really shouldn't."

Once they hit the highway Amanda wasn't sure where they were headed. She originally came to Gotham from out of state and never ventured much further than city limits. She pulled her hood further into her face and thought about all the other things that should have happened that day. "So, uhm…Batman," she said after several minutes of silence. "My kids in class really look up to you. Give them some crayons and paper and they just start drawing…you."

"What would they think of you joining me on a quest to save your friend?"

"A 'quest'. I'm on a quest. Insane." She pinched her lips together with her fingers. "Why can't I just shut up?" she asked through them.

"You don't have to shut up."

"Ugh, I'm talking your ears off." She laughed again. "Do you carry a gun?"

"No, why?"

"Because someone should shoot me. I'm so embarrassed. I'm not usually this…obnoxious."

Batman looked at Amanda. She felt him looking and held the side of her hood back enough to peek an eye out at him. "I certainly hope not," he said.

Amanda grabbed the strings of her hood and pulled it completely closed, all but her nose hidden. "Katie is dead."

Batman sped up to well over 100 miles per hour. "You're entertaining."

Amanda smiled inside of her cotton cocoon. "You're Batman," she laughed quietly.

---

Crane awoke, his entire body feeling like a fresh bruise. He could tell the sun was setting from the orange water under the dock. Katie's nose was against the nape of his neck, her warm breath in stark contrast to the brisk ocean breeze.

"No no, a little more," Katie protested when Crane nudged her awake.

"Not right now."

"My stomach's rumbling."

"I'm sure there's an abundance of fish in these waters. Go catch yourself one."

Katie rose to her knees and groaned. "It hurts."

"What hurts?"

"Everything."

The tide had receded. Katie clumsily followed Crane down the beach.

"I'd love to live on the beach some day," Katie commented.

"It's certainly a nice thought."

"Yeah?" Katie said, catching up to Crane. "I never thought of you as a beach person."

"What kind of person am I, then?"

About a thousand descriptions cycled through Katie's mind. "Deranged."

"Hmm. I think I like that adjective."

"Which shows exactly how deranged you are."

"So what does that make you?"

Katie shifted the bag onto her other shoulder. "A woman in love with a crazy."

"I don't think I liked being referred to as 'a crazy'."

"But you are a crazy. You're a crazy little man."

"I definitely don't like being called a little man."

"It's not my fault you're petite. Elfin. Diminutive. Wee."

"It's worse to be attached to an elfin crazy man than to be one. I can't help what I am. You chose me, however."

Katie wondered if they were just walking or if there was a destination. "If I could help loving you, I would."

Katie said the words lightheartedly, but Crane was surprised by how much they stung.

"No come back?"

Crane said nothing.

"Jeez, I'm sorry."

"You were only speaking the truth. Who would choose this situation unless they felt like they had no choice?"

Katie stopped Crane with her hand against his chest. She dropped the bag and held his waist. "I have a choice."

"Katie," Crane began. He put his hands on her shoulders. "You don't have a choice now. You can't go back."

"Of course I could," Katie said, wondering how true her words were.

"You're too deep now."

Katie pulled away from him and left him with the bag. "I could go if I wanted to."

"And where would you go?" Crane called, his feet still in the same spot.

Katie walked faster.

"Where would you go now, Katie?" he yelled to her.

"Home!"

"And where is that?" he asked, finally making Katie halt. "I'm your home now, Katie."

Crane couldn't read Katie's body language from so far away.

"Yes, my dear. You had a choice once, and I think you chose wisely. But don't delude yourself into thinking you have a choice anymore."

Katie didn't move closer to or further from him.

"You go 'home', then," he said, approaching her. "I'm sure the police would be very interested to hear why you helped me when I came to you and why you stayed when I made you come with me. Your boss will love it when he finds out you never told him I was your professor. Your best friend will be elated that, because of you, two men bombarded her at her apartment. I can just imagine how proud your mother and brother will be of you. And even if none of that bothers you," he said, stopping just a few feet from her back. "Even if you're fine with all of that, Katie – you would miss me so much you would ache. You're empty without your little crazy man, aren't you, honey?"

"Stop it!" she screamed tearfully.

"The diminutive, deranged love of your life."

Katie fell onto her hands and knees, crying so hard her sobs became silent, loud and throaty, then silent again. She dug her fingers into the sand and let herself fall onto her forearms. She cried harder and harder, her eyes, nose, and mouth all running. When she ran out of sobs she collapsed, screaming and heaving into her arms. Everything hit her.

Crane stood, observing her breakdown. "Surely you already thought of everything I just said."

"Does it look like I had?" she screamed into her arms.

"Maybe you shouldn't have nodded, then."

Katie rolled onto her side and looked up at him, annoyed how good he looked in the setting sun. "I am empty without you."

"The truth hurts."

Katie sniffled. "I still loved how my life was."

"Without me?"

"You're not everything."

"All those things are dead to you now. I know I'm not your everything. I don't intend to be everything to you. I want you to be equally as passionate about wanting this," he said making a sweeping gesture to the ocean.

"The water?"

"Not the water." Crane laid on top of Katie and wiped her face with his thumbs. "You should own the world."

"I don't want the world. Being a part of it is enough."

"Not good enough for you. Everything is beneath you."

"Or so you think."

"Everything is beneath you," he repeated, kissing her.

"Why do you have to say horrible things to me before you say nice ones?"

"All I ever say is the truth." Crane kissed Katie, the wet sounds of caressing lips and tongues louder to their ears than the crashing waves.

"It's not completely dark out yet," Katie said.

"Not quite, why?"

"We should go back to the little cavern until it is."

"It's too far."

"It's a tenth of a mile away."

Crane hastily undid Katie's pants. "There's no one for miles and miles."

"Crane-"

"I can't wait." Crane quickly undid his own pants and pulled them down to his knees. Katie tucked her thumbs under the hips of her underwear, but Crane pushed aside the bit of fabric obstructing his path and thrust into her. It took him a few moments to be able to form words or phrases, and his lips opened before he thought he had anything to say. "You're my home, Katie."

Katie hugged him to her and shuddered. "You're not everything, but everything is nothing without you," she whispered into his ear.

"We're getting on a plane tonight."

"To where?" Katie asked, her voice vibrating as Crane hastily slipped in and out of her.

"Somewhere to spend a little time before we're prepared to go back to Gotham."

"What are we going to do there?"

"Make something special before we grace Gotham with our presence."

"Like sweet, sweet love?"

"Don't be funny while we're doing this. Let's just stop talking altogether," Crane said breathlessly.

"But what if I want to tell you how fucking good this feels?"

"Uhm…that I will allow."

Katie whispered into Crane's ear little naughty things that made him purr, but the feather-light touch of the tip of her tongue on his earlobe made him buck into her. This time she stayed quiet and enjoyed his climax, capturing the moment to relive in countless future daydreams. She bit his cheek lightly when he finished and kissed the faint tooth marks.

Crane tugged his pants up and laid next to Katie. They let the sun set on them, both no longer conscious of the chill in the air. They were also unaware that two familiar faces were headed to the airport as well, one of them veiled by a black cowl.

---

TBC

Author's note: It says "This time she stayed quiet and enjoyed his climax…" because in the little deleted scene in chap. 7 the opposite happened. That scene is on adult fanfiction dot net if you're curious.