Post by latikono on Nov 27, 2005 15:28:37 GMT -5
[[OOC: Hmm, I hope I'm not making a horrid mistake by putting up two fan fics at once. First there's wondering if I'll even be able to update them both regularly. Then there's wondering if my audience, who may read both this and Prince Charming, will get confused trying to keep the stories seperate. Oh well. I hope your memories are good. 
Anyhoo, ya, this is the sequel to The Spider Web. Hope you enjoy, and I hope that, like every writer, this work is even better than the previous . . . (at least in grammer, writing, fluidness, and engaging-ness . . . The plot and such is up to you . . .) . . . Ya . . .]]
[[Chapter One: In Which She's Begun Anew]]
As she gazed into the mirror, the mummer congratulated herself for arranging such a lovely costume. The gown beneath the black corset was in a very dark, rusted brown color and had an eye-catching metallic sort of shine to it. Silk, of course, and supported by wires underneath that gave it more shape as opposed to simply falling to the contours of her legs. She made it herself, just for this year's Halloween. But the most important part to a mummer's costume was, of course, the mask. It had to conceal one's identity, and should she have been identified beneath it, then the mask would be removed. Why didn't this bother her? A perfectly valid question addressed to this girl, Dahlia Rhodes.
Because in the eight months passed since Crane's fall and admittance into Arkham Asylum, she had finally been accepted into society. Because they feared or liked her was up for argument. Either way, the results were the same. She wasn't bullied, she wasn't harassed, and she certainly felt like a much more flattering human being.
"Dahlia! I'm not gonna wait around another hour for you to touch-up your makeup! Hurry up, Girly!" Lou called to her. He was pretty much the same since the incident, except one could notice that extra sparkle of appreciation in life. He appreciated Dahlia, his daughter, a lot more. He was far more trusting in her as well, yet at the same time, more cautious to the people she surrounded herself with (lucky him, so far it was only one girl whom Dahlia had come to call a decent friend). Yes, Lou swore himself to be a better father, directly to Dahlia. She had several times tried to assure him of his good parenting skills, but his stubbornness outweighed hers.
Dahlia, clad as a mummer, hurried out of her bedroom and called back with a large smile, "I'm done, I'm done! And don't call me girly!" Playfully she gave Lou a soft punch in the arm before rushing out the door he opened for her. She reached a gloved hand up to adjust the mask over her eyes - It was a simple, white mask, made of cheap plastic, the kind of mask one could buy at a craft store. It was either that or something more ghoulish and made of porcelain, which Dahlia just couldn't bring herself to wear.
The Halloween party was in fact one week before the 31st of October, and was being thrown by Dahlia's only friend, Diedre, four blocks down from where Dahlia lived. Lou escorted Dahlia there in his car, probably being a little bit overly paranoid for her safety. As they drove, he began on a subtle note of concern.
"Pumpkin . . . Are you alright?"
Glancing to him from her gaze out the passenger window, Dahlia replied with a nod and furrowing of her eyebrows. ". . . Yes . . . Well . . . What do you mean, Dad?"
Keeping his eyes on the passing road, Lou shook his head and kept his calm facial expression. "Nothing really, Sweet Pea. I'm just concerned for your health."
"I feel fine. I'm not sick or anything."
"Emotionally."
A pause. Dahlia stuttered for a moment before finally clearing her throat and starting with a nervous laugh, "Dad, that was a long time ago. I've had plenty of time to recover since then." Lou had definitely become more protective.
"These kinds of things don't just go away, Dahlia. I just wonder if you're aware of any effects that bastard had on you. What about those recent nightmares you told me about?"
She scoffed. "Purely by chance. I know the effects will never go away and they still exist in my subconscious, but the point is that I can live a normal life without any side effects, Dad. That's what you should really be worried about."
Lou nodded. She had a good point. "I can't help but worry anyway. After all, I am your father." Minutes later, the car pulled up to the curb beside a large building at the corner. High up, the fourth floor's row of windows were glaring with changing lights and the loud music was audible from the street. Lou kissed Dahlia's cheek, then let her exit and head up to the party. "I love you!" He called out and smiled, waiting for her to enter before he headed away.
~**~**~**~**~**~
It was like a dance club. Loud techno music, flashing lights, and a crowded dance floor - Dahlia wasn’t expecting quite a wild party. Diedre was sure to get evicted after this, seeing as her large apartment was located right smack in the middle of the building. Dahlia told herself to tell Diedre to tune down the music, but as soon as she entered, she was lost in the mood. Immediately, complete strangers greeted her, everyone speaking at once. Had she not been disguised as a mummer, she would have figured them only to be sucking up to her because of those events now passed. Everyone was dressed up, all as cowboys, Indians, mummies, witches, wizards, demons, ghouls, vampires . . . Dahlia could've sworn that she saw a man dressed as a toilet walk by.
She tried to pick out Diedre from the crowd, and only found herself pushing herself deeper into the dance floor. The music was starting to get ridiculously unbearable. Honestly, why did she come? Or rather, why didn't she just leave right there? The only reason she came was because of Diedre's begging and whining, and after all, Diedre was the only friend she had, and she made it a priority to go out of her way to satisfy her. A sudden piercing cry from nearby sent chills up her spine:
"I am the master of fear!"
As she turned around to face the owner of the voice, she saw a tall figure with his talons raised, red eyes glowing evilly, and his stitched grin spreading wide across the mask over his head. From within his jacket he removed what appeared to be a small spray can, and aimed it at Dahlia. No, this couldn't be happening again! Not again! The Scarecrow!
Shrieking, she jerked backwards and would have fallen had it not been for the blocking torso of another person. As he wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders and pulled her to the side to shield her from the ragged Scarecrow, his booming voice managed to rise above her whimpering. "Knock it off, arsehole! That's not funny!" Confused and frightened, Dahlia glanced towards the Scarecrow, whose features suddenly became so much more realistically fake to her. There was nothing more than a sack over his head with a mouth and eye holes cut out, with no creative attention to detail or accuracy - Now it didn't look anything like the Scarecrow. It must have come at such a relief, as her eyes finally released tears that dripped down her cheeks beneath the contours of her mask.
"Hey, lighten up, Chief! It's just a party!" The fake Scarecrow put his spray bottle of water away. The man yet still holding Dahlia barked back sharply,
"Don't you know who she is? Get lost!" The nearby dancers went on with the party. The man finally released Dahlia, and when she turned to see him she only saw a bulky Egyptian mask hiding his entire head, neck, shoulders, and part of his bare chest. The gold shone brightly under the various lights that streamed down upon them. Quietly for only her to hear, he continued, "Dahlia Rhodes, eh? The lead victim of Jonathan Crane's madness."
Dahlia's eyes widened as she stared at him with disbelief. The rule of mummers required she remove her mask, and so she did, very slowly, feeling exposed and vulnerable. How did he know it was her? The man continued, "Forgive my rudeness.
"You may call me by my Egyptian name, Kek."
Anyhoo, ya, this is the sequel to The Spider Web. Hope you enjoy, and I hope that, like every writer, this work is even better than the previous . . . (at least in grammer, writing, fluidness, and engaging-ness . . . The plot and such is up to you . . .) . . . Ya . . .]]
[[Chapter One: In Which She's Begun Anew]]
As she gazed into the mirror, the mummer congratulated herself for arranging such a lovely costume. The gown beneath the black corset was in a very dark, rusted brown color and had an eye-catching metallic sort of shine to it. Silk, of course, and supported by wires underneath that gave it more shape as opposed to simply falling to the contours of her legs. She made it herself, just for this year's Halloween. But the most important part to a mummer's costume was, of course, the mask. It had to conceal one's identity, and should she have been identified beneath it, then the mask would be removed. Why didn't this bother her? A perfectly valid question addressed to this girl, Dahlia Rhodes.
Because in the eight months passed since Crane's fall and admittance into Arkham Asylum, she had finally been accepted into society. Because they feared or liked her was up for argument. Either way, the results were the same. She wasn't bullied, she wasn't harassed, and she certainly felt like a much more flattering human being.
"Dahlia! I'm not gonna wait around another hour for you to touch-up your makeup! Hurry up, Girly!" Lou called to her. He was pretty much the same since the incident, except one could notice that extra sparkle of appreciation in life. He appreciated Dahlia, his daughter, a lot more. He was far more trusting in her as well, yet at the same time, more cautious to the people she surrounded herself with (lucky him, so far it was only one girl whom Dahlia had come to call a decent friend). Yes, Lou swore himself to be a better father, directly to Dahlia. She had several times tried to assure him of his good parenting skills, but his stubbornness outweighed hers.
Dahlia, clad as a mummer, hurried out of her bedroom and called back with a large smile, "I'm done, I'm done! And don't call me girly!" Playfully she gave Lou a soft punch in the arm before rushing out the door he opened for her. She reached a gloved hand up to adjust the mask over her eyes - It was a simple, white mask, made of cheap plastic, the kind of mask one could buy at a craft store. It was either that or something more ghoulish and made of porcelain, which Dahlia just couldn't bring herself to wear.
The Halloween party was in fact one week before the 31st of October, and was being thrown by Dahlia's only friend, Diedre, four blocks down from where Dahlia lived. Lou escorted Dahlia there in his car, probably being a little bit overly paranoid for her safety. As they drove, he began on a subtle note of concern.
"Pumpkin . . . Are you alright?"
Glancing to him from her gaze out the passenger window, Dahlia replied with a nod and furrowing of her eyebrows. ". . . Yes . . . Well . . . What do you mean, Dad?"
Keeping his eyes on the passing road, Lou shook his head and kept his calm facial expression. "Nothing really, Sweet Pea. I'm just concerned for your health."
"I feel fine. I'm not sick or anything."
"Emotionally."
A pause. Dahlia stuttered for a moment before finally clearing her throat and starting with a nervous laugh, "Dad, that was a long time ago. I've had plenty of time to recover since then." Lou had definitely become more protective.
"These kinds of things don't just go away, Dahlia. I just wonder if you're aware of any effects that bastard had on you. What about those recent nightmares you told me about?"
She scoffed. "Purely by chance. I know the effects will never go away and they still exist in my subconscious, but the point is that I can live a normal life without any side effects, Dad. That's what you should really be worried about."
Lou nodded. She had a good point. "I can't help but worry anyway. After all, I am your father." Minutes later, the car pulled up to the curb beside a large building at the corner. High up, the fourth floor's row of windows were glaring with changing lights and the loud music was audible from the street. Lou kissed Dahlia's cheek, then let her exit and head up to the party. "I love you!" He called out and smiled, waiting for her to enter before he headed away.
~**~**~**~**~**~
It was like a dance club. Loud techno music, flashing lights, and a crowded dance floor - Dahlia wasn’t expecting quite a wild party. Diedre was sure to get evicted after this, seeing as her large apartment was located right smack in the middle of the building. Dahlia told herself to tell Diedre to tune down the music, but as soon as she entered, she was lost in the mood. Immediately, complete strangers greeted her, everyone speaking at once. Had she not been disguised as a mummer, she would have figured them only to be sucking up to her because of those events now passed. Everyone was dressed up, all as cowboys, Indians, mummies, witches, wizards, demons, ghouls, vampires . . . Dahlia could've sworn that she saw a man dressed as a toilet walk by.
She tried to pick out Diedre from the crowd, and only found herself pushing herself deeper into the dance floor. The music was starting to get ridiculously unbearable. Honestly, why did she come? Or rather, why didn't she just leave right there? The only reason she came was because of Diedre's begging and whining, and after all, Diedre was the only friend she had, and she made it a priority to go out of her way to satisfy her. A sudden piercing cry from nearby sent chills up her spine:
"I am the master of fear!"
As she turned around to face the owner of the voice, she saw a tall figure with his talons raised, red eyes glowing evilly, and his stitched grin spreading wide across the mask over his head. From within his jacket he removed what appeared to be a small spray can, and aimed it at Dahlia. No, this couldn't be happening again! Not again! The Scarecrow!
Shrieking, she jerked backwards and would have fallen had it not been for the blocking torso of another person. As he wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders and pulled her to the side to shield her from the ragged Scarecrow, his booming voice managed to rise above her whimpering. "Knock it off, arsehole! That's not funny!" Confused and frightened, Dahlia glanced towards the Scarecrow, whose features suddenly became so much more realistically fake to her. There was nothing more than a sack over his head with a mouth and eye holes cut out, with no creative attention to detail or accuracy - Now it didn't look anything like the Scarecrow. It must have come at such a relief, as her eyes finally released tears that dripped down her cheeks beneath the contours of her mask.
"Hey, lighten up, Chief! It's just a party!" The fake Scarecrow put his spray bottle of water away. The man yet still holding Dahlia barked back sharply,
"Don't you know who she is? Get lost!" The nearby dancers went on with the party. The man finally released Dahlia, and when she turned to see him she only saw a bulky Egyptian mask hiding his entire head, neck, shoulders, and part of his bare chest. The gold shone brightly under the various lights that streamed down upon them. Quietly for only her to hear, he continued, "Dahlia Rhodes, eh? The lead victim of Jonathan Crane's madness."
Dahlia's eyes widened as she stared at him with disbelief. The rule of mummers required she remove her mask, and so she did, very slowly, feeling exposed and vulnerable. How did he know it was her? The man continued, "Forgive my rudeness.
"You may call me by my Egyptian name, Kek."
